HMS Terror (I03)
.jpg) HMS Terror in Plymouth Sound , October 1933
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HMS Terror (I03) was a monitor of the Erebus class . The ship, which was completed in August 1916, was used in the First World War off Flanders . Stationed in Singapore at the beginning of the Second World War , the Monitor moved to the Mediterranean Fleet in 1940 and was lost off the Libyan coast in February 1941. The ship had been awarded the Battle Honors Belgian Coast 1916-18 and Zeebrugge 1918 in the First World War ; During the Second World War, the Monitor was awarded the Battle Honors Libya 1941 and Mediterranean 1941.
On February 24, the already damaged Terror sank after an air strike near Derna , although it was not hit directly. The escort ships were able to rescue the entire crew.
History of the ship
The Monitor Terror was ordered from the Harland & Wolff shipyard in Belfast on July 29, 1915 . The keel of the ship was laid on October 26th and launched on May 8th, 1916. The name was first given to a bomb vessel in 1696 ; last from 1857 to 1914 two inpatients in Bermuda carried the name. On August 6, 1916, the new Monitor came into service with the Royal Navy as the ninth ship named Terror . Since the sister ship built by the branch in Govan was named Erebus , the names of the two monitors should be reminiscent of the ships of Sir John Franklin 's North-West Passage expedition .
The new class was a significant improvement over the 14 Abercrombie , Lord Clive and Marshal Ney class monitors built up until then . The seaworthiness and independence of the ships were considerably higher than those of the previous classes. The temporarily contemplated waiver of these ships was given up after the poor sea results of the previous classes, in particular the two units of the Marshal Ney class.
Arming the ship
Terror had a 15 in (381 mm) -Mk.I twin tower when it was commissioned ; the built-in cannons corresponded to the guns of the battleships of the Royal Navy from the Queen Elizabeth class to the Vanguard . The Tower of Terror was previously installed on the Marshal Ney , which was commissioned in 1915 and which, after very poor results in the sea tests, was re-armed in order to become operational at all. In contrast to its sister ship, the Terror initially received only a small amount of auxiliary armament with only one 3-in (76 mm) anti-aircraft gun and two "12-pounder" 3-in (76 mm) guns. By 1919, the armament of the two ships of the class was similar and, in addition to the heavy twin turret, they finally had eight 4-in (102 mm) marine target guns and two 12-pdr (?) / 3-in (76 mm) Flak, two 2 pdr flak and four machine guns.
Operations in the First World War
The Terror came to Dover Patrol in 1916 , an aggregation of all units and types that were needed to defend the Dover Barrier and to attack German-occupied Flanders . The monitor primarily fired at targets on the German-occupied Belgian coast, in particular the ports of Zeebrugge and Ostend used as a base for the Flemish Marine Corps .
On October 19, 1917 Terror was badly hit by three torpedoes from the coastal torpedo boats A 59 , A 60 and A 61 . With severe damage in the forecastle, but without any loss of personnel, the monitor, which had been set aground as a precaution, had to be towed to Portsmouth for repairs. In April 1918, took terror at Zeebrugge Raid part and gave in September 1918 artillery support in the fifth Battle of Ypres .
Interwar period
After the war, the Artillery School Monitor (HMS Excellent ) was assigned to the Royal Navy and participated in various artillery exercises in the 1920s. From January 1934, the Terror was then a base ship on the Sembawang Naval Base in Singapore . The monitor remained there until the war began again. Since May 1939 an extensive overhaul of the ship took place at the naval shipyard in Singapore in order to improve the monitor's defenses against air attacks. At the same time, the sister ship Erebus was overhauled at home.
Another world war
When the Second World War broke out in September 1939 , the Terror was still in the shipyard in Singapore; During the overhaul, the previous support battery of eight 4-inch Mk.IX and the existing anti- aircraft weapons were replaced by six 4-inch Mk.Vs , which could also be used for air defense, and two 0.5-inch FlaMG quadruplets . For this purpose, the armor was changed and additional crew rooms were created. In January 1940 the work was completed and the ship was commanded to Europe.
In March 1940, the monitor reached the Mediterranean, where it was to remain for the time being because of Italy's fear of joining the war. The armor was reinforced again at the naval shipyard in Malta. When Italy intervened on Germany's side in the World War on June 19, 1940 , the monitor initially remained in Malta to strengthen its defense. Italy's contribution to the war focused on an attack in North Africa on British positions in Egypt. However, the Italians actually only launched an offensive from September 9-16. To support the retreating British units, the Royal Navy formed the inshore squadron , which, in addition to the Terror, also included three small gunboats of the insect class ( Aphis , Gnat , Ladybird ), which were last used in China on the Yangtze . The Italian invasion of Egypt surprisingly stopped about 100 km behind the Egyptian-Libyan border and about 130 km before Mersa Matruh , the next British main position. The Italian invasion of Greece , begun on October 28, shifted the attention of Italian political leaders away from the events in North Africa.
The successful British air raid on the Italian naval forces in the port of Taranto on the night of November 12, 1940 also changed the balance of power in the Mediterranean for several months in favor of the Royal Navy. Three Italian battleships were badly damaged. Caio Duilio and Littorio were out for six and four months, respectively; the Conte di Cavour could not be repaired until the end of the war. The terror previously used in Malta and the Vendetta repaired in Malta used the British attack operation to move to Suda Bay on Crete with the return convoy ME.3 from Malta of four empty ships. On the 11th, the Italian submarine Topazio attacked convoy ME.3 unsuccessfully.
From December 8, 1940, the British finally launched an attack to recapture the lost territories in North Africa with Operation Compass . In support of the counterattack, the terror , which had meanwhile been transferred to Egypt, was deployed with the inshore squadron . The monitor formed the Force A with the three 625 ts gunboats Aphis , Gnat and Ladybird of the insect class and the 800 ts minesweeper Bagshot of the Aberdare group of the old Hunt class. The old Australian destroyers Vampire , Vendetta , Voyager and Waterhen formed Force B for their protection and support . In addition, the Force C with the battleships Barham and Malaya as well as a cruiser and seven destroyers and the Force D with the old carrier Eagle, three more cruisers and three destroyers were available. These units, especially Forces A and B, carried out numerous bombardments at Italian positions and near the coast. Terror shot at Italian positions near Sollum on the night of December 9th with Aphis Maktila, on the night of December 12th with Aphis and Ladybird, and from the 14th to the 18th, mostly with one of the gunboats, further positions. In 1940 Terror 's last mission was a December 28th bombardment of Bardia .
In January 1941, the monitor remained with the Inshore Squadron ; seven captured Italian 20 mm automatic cannons were additionally installed on the Terror to reinforce the anti-aircraft force . The displacement increased to 9400 t with the latest retrofits. The monitor supported the further advance of the 8th British Army in North Africa with the three gunboats from China. After a first bombardment of Bardia by terror and the gunboats on January 2nd and a massive bombardment by the battleships Warspite , Valiant and Barham as well as seven destroyers, the Italian garrison capitulated on January 5th. The old Australian destroyers of Force B used and the old Australian destroyers used at the same time . The continuous use of the old units and the increasingly long journey to the missions put a strain on the old ships and their crews. On January 22nd, supported by terror , the 6th Australian Division succeeded in capturing the gunboats Aphis and Ladybird and the Australian destroyers Stuart , Vampire and Voyager Tobruk and capturing 25,000 Italians. The Italians sank their old armored cruiser San Giorgio in the harbor . The intervention of the Germans on the side of the Italians had also eliminated the superiority of the Royal Navy that had existed after the attack on Taranto. The relocation of the X Air Corps of the Air Force and its involvement in serious damage to the Illustrious on 10 January 1940 had destroyed the benefits on the British side again. The badly damaged porter was able to reach Malta and, after an emergency repair, escaped to Alexandria, but was out of action for 14 months. 126 men died on the carrier, another 91 were seriously wounded.
British troops captured Derna on January 30th .
The loss of the HMS Terror
On February 17th, the Terror arrived again in Benghazi to support the British advance towards Tobruk . The British wanted to separate other Italian units from their supply bases. On February 22nd, Ju 88 bombers from II./LG.1 damaged the British monitor when bombed in the port of Benghazi. The ship should therefore be withdrawn from the support mission. When leaving the port, the ship triggered the explosion of two mines previously laid by the Luftwaffe.
The minesweeper Fareham and the corvette Salvia were sent to Terror to secure their return to a shipyard stay. The monitor's crew was largely distributed between the Fareham and Salvia the next day . On February 23, north-west of Derna , after the last securing hurricane fighter had left the convoy , the Air Force probably made a third attack on the monitor, which began to sink on the 24th. Fareham and Salvia also salvaged the crew members who had remained on board and returned with the entire crew of the Terror , which was located at 32 ° 59 ′ N , 22 ° 32 ′ E had sunk, back to Alexandria.
Renewed use of the name
The name of the monitor was given to the British Navy base in Singapore in May 1946 and kept it until its closure in 1972 when Great Britain gave up its bases in Malaysia .
The Erebus- class ships
| HMS | shipyard | start of building | Launch | in service | fate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Erebus | Harland & Wolff BN ° 492 , Govan | October 12, 1915 | 06/19/1916 | September 2, 1916 | July 1946 demolition |
| terror | Harland & Wolff BN ° 493 , Belfast | 10/26/1915 | May 18, 1916 | August 6, 1916 | sunk on February 24, 1941 off Derna |
The sister ship Erebus was with the Battle Honors Belgian Coast 1916-18 and Zeebrugge 1918 in World War I and in World War II then English Channel 1940-44, North Sea 1940-41, Atlantic 1943, Mediterranean 1943, Sicily 1943, Normandy 1944 and Walcheren Awarded in 1944.
In 1939 the monitor was in Southampton for overhaul . The overhaul tasks were canceled and the monitor assigned to the Home Fleet . The ship should be used to repel an invasion. in October 1940 the ship was first used in combat, firing at targets near Dunkirk . In 1941 the anti-aircraft capabilities of the monitor were improved by new anti-aircraft guns with radar support. In early 1942 the Erebus moved to Trincomalee and was involved in the defense of the port during the Japanese air raid on April 9, 1942; the monitor was damaged and had losses (13 deaths). After necessary repairs (especially in Bombay ), the monitor moved to Kilindini in order to support the planned final landings for the conquest of Madagascar, which had been loyal to Vichy, with its artillery . Since an operation was not required, the monitor returned to Europe around the Cape of Good Hope .
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The monitor then participated with the two newly built monitors Abercrombie and Roberts in support of the Allied landing in Sicily . After preparatory bombardments on the Italian coast, the ship was withdrawn from Operation Avalanche (landing near Salerno) early.
For the planned deployment when the Allies landed in Normandy, the ship's defensive armament was reinforced and the radar equipment was significantly modernized. The monitor was used to support the Utah Beach landing area in the USA . After the landing phase, the Monitor supported the advance of the Commonwealth troops until mid-September 1944. Together with the Roberts and the old battleship Warspite , the Monitor supported the British landing on Walcheren at the end of October / beginning of November 1944 . After that there were no further missions.
The Erebus was most recently armed with a 381 mm L / 42 Mk.I twin turret , six individual 102 mm L / 45 multi-purpose guns , two individual 76 mm L / 45 Mk.IV anti-aircraft guns , three 40 mm L / 39-Mk.VII-Fla-Vierlingen , a single 40mm-L / 39-Mk.VIII-Flak and 15 Oerlikon-20mm-L / 70-Mk.III-automatic cannons . For this purpose, the monitor had extensive radar equipment for location and fire control. After the surrender of Japan, the monitor was assigned to the reserve and sold for demolition in 1946, which began in Inverkeithing from January 1947 .
literature
- Frederick J. Dittmar, James J. Colledge: British Warships 1914-1919. Ian Allen, London 1972, ISBN 0-7110-0380-7 .
- Randal Gray (Ed.): Conway's All The Worlds Fighting Ships, 1906-1921. Conway Maritime Press, London 1985, ISBN 0-85177-245-5 .
Web links
- HMS TERROR - Erebus-class 15in gun monitor naval-history.net
- HMS EREBUS - Erebus-class 15in gun monitor naval-history.net
- Jürgen Rohwer / Gerhard Hümmelchen : Chronicle of the Naval War 1939–1945 , Library for Contemporary History, Württemberg State Library Stuttgart 2007 to 2020 wlb-stuttgart.de
Individual evidence
- ↑ 15-inch (38.1 cm) Mark I : Five battleships of the Queen Elizabeth, five of the Revenge class and the Vanguard , which was only completed in 1946, were equipped with this weapon, each with four twin towers. There were also two battlecruisers of the Renown class (3 twin towers), the Hood (4 twin towers) and the two light battle cruisers of the Courageous class with two twin towers, both of which were converted into aircraft carriers after the First World War and surrendered their heavy weapons. In addition there were the three pairs of monitors, each with a twin tower of the Marshall Ney -, Erebus - and, in World War II, the Roberts class .
- ↑ Sources are not clear, the two monitors certainly received the tower of the Ney and a tower built for the Furious , who received which is disputed.
- ↑ Jane's Fighting Ships 1919, p. 90 Monitors
- ↑ HMS APHIS - Insect-class River Gunboat The boats of the Insect-class displaced 625ts, were 72.39 m long, 11 m wide and had a draft of 1.2 m. The two steam engines of 2000 hp made a top speed of 14 knots possible . So far they had a crew of 55 men and were armed with two 152 mm cannons , two 76 mm cannons and six machine guns
- ^ HMS GNAT - Insect-class River Gunboat
- ↑ HMS LADYBIRD - Insect-class River Gunboat
- ^ Rohwer: Sea War , November 4-14, 1940 Mediterranean
- ^ Rohwer: Sea War , December 9-17, 1940 North Africa and December 25-30, 1940 Mediterranean
- ↑ Rohwer: Sea War , 2.– 3.1.1941, 21.– 22.1.1941 Mediterranean
- ^ Rohwer: Sea War , January 6–13, 1941 / January 23–25, 1941 Mediterranean Sea
- ↑ Rohwer: Seekrieg , February 22–24, 1941 Mediterranean Sea The information on a sinking, self-sinking or sinking differ in terms of the sequence of the sources
- ↑ Casualty Lists of the Royal Navy and Dominion Navies, World War 2, 1st - 30th APRIL 1942
- ↑ HMS EREBUS - Erebus-class 15in gun monitor