HMS Hesperus (H57)

**Hesperus**
Ship data
flag	< Brazil > United Kingdom ;
other ship names	< Juruena >, < Hearty >
Ship type	destroyer
class	H class, Javary type
Shipyard	Thornycroft , Woolston / Southampton
Order	December 16, 1937
Keel laying	July 6, 1938
Launch	August 1, 1939
Commissioning	January 15, 1940
Whereabouts	May 1947 demolished
Ship dimensions and crew
length	98.5 m ( Lüa ) 95.1 m ( Lpp )
width	10.1 m
Draft	Max. 3.89 m
displacement	Standard : 1,400 ts; maximum: 1,930 ts
crew	145 men
Machine system
machine	3 Admirality 3-drum steam boiler; 2 Parsons turbines with single gear
Machine ; performance	34,000 PS (25,007 kW)
Top ; speed	36 kn (67 km / h)
propeller	2
Armament
	3 - 120mm L / 45 Mk.IX guns ; 2 × 4 - 12.7-mm - Fla - MG ; Mid 1940: 2 × 4 torpedo tubes Ø 533 mm; 110 depth charges , ; 4 launchers, 2 dropping frames; last 2 - 120 mm L / 45 Mk.IX / XVIII guns ; 1 - 76mm L / 45 Mk.II Flak ; 4 - 20 mm L / 70 Oerlikon cannons ; 1 × 24f.- Hedgehog thrower ; 110 depth charges , ; 4 launchers, 2 dropping frames;
Sensors
	Type 128 sonar

HMS Hesperus (H57) was an H-class destroyer of the British Royal Navy during World War II . The ship under construction for the Brazilian Navy was purchased by Great Britain immediately after the start of the war with its five sister ships. The Hesperus was one of the most successful British submarine hunters.

history

The ship was launched on August 1, 1939 as part of a class of six destroyers for the Brazilian Navy at Thornycroft in Woolston , Southampton , under the name Juruena . On September 4, 1939, immediately after the start of the war, Great Britain acquired the destroyer, which was initially renamed HMS Hearty , then on February 27, 1940, HMS Hesperus . It entered service on January 22, 1940.

The destroyer was together with his former Brazilian sister ships of the 9th destroyer flotilla assigned and acted as their flotilla. The first war missions of the ship took place in the operations in connection with the ultimately unsuccessful attempts by the Allied troops to throw back the landed German troops (Operation Weser Exercise ) from Norway. It was HMS Hesperus before in May 1940 Mo by German dive bombers badly damaged.

After the repair, HMS Hesperus was used in May 1941 in a heavily secured convoy in the Mediterranean, which served to supply the besieged island of Malta . HMS Hesperus then served as the lead ship of one of the newly formed escort groups, which consisted of a few, mostly older destroyers and several corvettes , later also partly a frigate . The anti -submarine and anti-aircraft armament was reinforced over time at the expense of the main guns and a torpedo tube set.

HMS Hesperus achieved first successes during the time when he was stationed with Force H in Gibraltar . Together with HMS Harvester , U 208 was sunk on December 7, 1941 west of Gibraltar , which was marching into the Mediterranean. On January 15, 1942, the ship achieved another success with the sinking of U 93 , which wanted to attack a Gibraltar convoy.

In June 1942 one of the most successful leaders of anti-submarine groups, Commander Donald MacIntyre , took over command of the escort group, which was led by HMS Hesperus and which was now mainly deployed on the North Atlantic route. However, the next sinking took place only on 20 December 1942 when the North West of Ireland in collaboration with the destroyer HMS Vanessa by ramming U 357 was sunk. With the Hedgehog launcher installed in the meantime, the destroyer sank its next victim, U 191 , southeast of Cape Farewell on April 23, 1943 . About three weeks later there was an epic duel north of the Azores between HMS Hesperus and U 223 , in the course of which the submarine fired a total of five torpedoes at the destroyer, which in turn defended itself with ramming attempts, artillery and depth charges. However, the submarine was able to reach its home port damaged. On the same day, May 12, 1943, however, U 186 could first be sighted using Huff-Duff , then located after a diving maneuver with Asdic and finally sunk using depth charges.

In the period from autumn 1943 to spring 1944, the escort group led by HMS Hesperus was deployed on the route between Great Britain and Gibraltar . In July 1944, due to its outstanding successes, the destroyer was given the honor of taking the remains of the most successful British submarine hunter, Captain Frederic John Walker , on board for a burial at sea . After further North Atlantic convoys, the command of the escort group had changed in the meantime, a time finally followed in 1945 in which the group was assigned to free anti-submarine hunts in the English Channel and in the Bay of Biscay .

After the fighting ended, HMS Hesperus was sold for scrapping in November 1946 .

literature

MJ Whitley: Destroyers of World War Two. Arms and Armor Press, London 1988, ISBN 0-85368-910-5 .

Web links

Commons : HMS Hesperus - collection of images, videos and audio files