HMS Witherington (D76)

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History
Royal Navy Ensign
NameHMS Witherington
OrderedApril 1918
BuilderJames Samuel White & Co Ltd
Laid down27 September 1918
Launched16 January 1919
Commissioned10 October 1919
Out of serviceTo reserve after May 1945
StrickenOn disposal list after September 1945
IdentificationPennant numbers D76 and I76
Motto”I Will Not Fail”
Honours and
awards		list error: <br /> list (help)
Atlantic 1939-44
Norway 1940
English Channel 1940
Fatelist error: <br /> list (help)
Sold for scrap on 20 March 1947
Wrecked on 29 April 1947
BadgeOn a Field Black, A sinister Leg Gold couped at the Knee Red.
General characteristics
Class and typeAdmiralty modified W class destroyer
Displacement1,140 tons standard, 1,550 tons full
Length300 ft o/a, 312 ft p/p
Beam29.5 feet (9.0 m)
Draught9 feet (2.7 m), 11.25 feet (3.43 m) under full load
PropulsionWhite-Foster Water-tube boilers, Brown-Curtis geared steam turbines, 2 shafts, 27,000 shp
Speed34 kt
Rangelist error: <br /> list (help)
320-370 tons oil
3,500 nmi at 15 kt
900 nmi at 32 kt
Complement127
Armamentlist error: <br /> list (help)
• 4 x BL 4.7 in (120-mm) Mk.I guns, mount P Mk.I
• 2 x QF 2 pdr Mk.II "pom-pom" (40 mm L/39)
• 6 × 21-inch Torpedo Tubes
General characteristics SRE Conversion
Complement134
Sensors and
processing systems		• Type 271 Target Indication Radar
Armamentlist error: <br /> list (help)
• 3 × BL 4.7 in (120mm) Mk.I L/45 guns
• 1 × QF 12 pounder 12 cwt naval gun
• 2 x
Service record
Operations: list error: <br /> list (help)
Nanking Incident 1927
World War II
Victories: U-340

HMS Witherington (D76/I76) was an Admiralty modified W class destroyer built for the Royal Navy. She was one of four destroyers ordered in April 1918 from James Samuel White & Co Ltd. under the 14th Order for Destroyers of the Emergency War Program of 1917-18. She was the first Royal Navy ship to carry this name[1].

Construction

HMS Witherington’s keel was laid on the 27th of September, 1918 at the James Samuel White & Co. Ltd. Shipyard in Cowes, Isle of Wight. She was launched on the 16th of January, 1919. She was 300 feet overall (312 ft between the perpendiculars) in length with a beam of 29.5 feet. Her mean draught was 9 feet, and would reach 11.25 feet under full load. She had a displacement of 1,140 tons standard and up to 1,550 full load[2].

She was propelled by three White-Foster type water tube boilers powering Curtis-Brown geared steam turbines developing 27,000 SHP driving two screws for a maximum designed speed of 34 knots. She was oil-fired and had a bunkerage of 320 to 370 tons. This gave a range of between 3500 nautical miles at 15 knots and 900 nautical miles at 32 knots[2].

She shipped four BL 4.7 in (120-mm) Mk.I guns, mount P Mk.I naval guns in four single center-line turrets. The turrets were disposed as two forward and two aft in super imposed firing positions. She also carried two QF 2 pdr Mk.II "pom-pom" (40 mm L/39) mounted abeam between funnels. Abaft of the 2nd funnel, she carried six 21-inch Torpedo Tubes in two triple mounts on the center-line[2].

Inter-War years

HMS Witherington was commissioned into the Royal Navy on the 10th of October, 1919 with pennant number D76. After commissioning she was assigned to the 3rd Destroyer Flotilla of the Atlantic Fleet. The Flotilla served in Home waters from May 1920 to July 1923 when the Flotilla was transferred to the Mediterranean Fleet. She was transferred to China Station in 1926. Also, in 1926 she carried the last Shah of Persia, Ahmad Shah Qajar, into exile, as the old country of Persia ceased to exist and was replaced by the modern country of Iran. During the Nanking Incident in March 1927, she helped rescue foreign nationals from the Nanking region of China[1].

In the early 1930s she underwent a refit and was laid-up in Maintenance Reserve at Rosyth as more modern destroyers came into service. She was reactivated manned by Reservists for a Royal Review at Weymouth in August 1939. With war looming she was retained in service and brought to war readiness[1].

Second World War

Early Operations

In September 1939 the ship was allocated to the 15th Destroyer Flotilla based at Rosyth in Western Approaches Command for convoy defence. Until April 1940 she was employed in the South West Approaches area providing local escort for convoys moving to and from Gibraltar[1].

In April 1940 she was detached to Scapa Flow after the German invasion of Norway. From April to May she escorted several convoys from the UK to Norway. She was also involved in an anti-submarine action with HMS Hero. In May her pennant number was changed to I76 for visual signalling purposes. In June she escorted the Group 1 of the evacuation of Norway[1].

In July 1940 she was transferred to the Western Approaches for convoy defence and was mainly employed in the North-West Approach sector as a local escort until February 1942[1].

SRE Conversion

In late February 1942 she was withdrawn for conversion to a short-range escort (SRE). To augment the earlier changes, the replacement of the after bank of torpedo tubes with a single QF 12 pounder 12 cwt naval gun and the landing of 'Y' gun for additional space for depth charge gear and stowage, the 2 pdr “pompoms” were replaced with two Oerlikon 20 mm cannons amidships and the 'A' gun was replaced by a Hedgehog anti-submarine mortar. A Type 271 centimetric target indication Radar was added on the bridge and a Type 286M air warning radar was installed on the main mast[1].

Western Approaches Command

Upon completion of the conversion, HMS Witherington was redeployed in the Western Approaches. She reinforced Convoy HX226 after heavy U-Boat attacks in January 1943. During March she was part of the escort force of Convoy HX229 which was subject to sustained attacks from the Dranger Group of U-Boats. This major battle marked a turning point in the Battle of the Atlantic[1].

At the end of June 1943 she was transferred to the Mediterranean based out of Alexandria in support of follow on convoys for the Allied invasion of Sicily. In November she was deployed to Gibraltar for Atlantic Convoy Defence.

On 1 November she took part in the sinking of U-340 with HMS Active, HMS Fleetwood and two Vickers Wellington aircraft of No. 179 Squadron RAF[3]at position 35o33'N, 06o37'W[4]. She was deployed in the South-West Approaches out of Gibraltar throughout 1944. .[1]

She was deployed in the South-West Approaches out of Gibraltar throughout 1944[1].

In 1945 she was deployed to the English Channel area to counter the threat of snorkel equipped U-Boats being concentrated or convoy formation areas. She remained in this deployment until VE-Day[1].

Post War

Disposition

HMS Witherington was paid off into reserve after VE-Day. She was placed on the disposal list after VJ-Day. On the 20th of March 1947 she was sold to Metal Industries for breaking up. On the 29th of April while under tow to the breakers yard at Charlestown near Rosyth she parted the tow and was wrecked off the mouth of the Tyne.

Notes

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Service Histories of Royal Navy Warships in World War 2". Cite error: The named reference "naval-history.net" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  2. ^ a b c "Jane's Fighting Ships © for 1919".
  3. ^ Blair, Clay (1996). Hitler's U-Boat The Hunted 1942-1945. New York: Random House Inc. pp. Pg 456. ISBN 0-679-45742-9. {{cite book}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
  4. ^ "U-Boat.net".

References

  • Hitler's U-Boat War The Hunters 1939-1942
  • Hitler's U-Boat War The Hunted 1942-1945
  • Jane's Fighting Ships © for 1919

External Links

Service History of HMS Whitehall compiled by the late LtCdr Geoffry B. Mason, RN (Rtd) and can be found at Naval Histroy web site http://www.naval-history.net/index.htm

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