The British 12th Destroyer Flotilla, or Twelfth Destroyer Flotilla, was a naval formation of the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

from November 1915 to March 1919 and again from September 1939 to 2 July 1943.

History

World War One

The flotilla was first formed in November 1915 and was assigned to the

Grand Fleet The Grand Fleet was the main battlefleet of the Royal Navy during the First World War. It was established in August 1914 and disbanded in April 1919. Its main base was Scapa Flow in the Orkney Islands. History Formed in August 1914 from th ...

. Between 31 May and 1 June 1916 it was present at the

Battle of Jutland The Battle of Jutland () was a naval battle between Britain's Royal Navy Grand Fleet, under Admiral John Jellicoe, 1st Earl Jellicoe, Sir John Jellicoe, and the Imperial German Navy's High Seas Fleet, under Vice-Admiral Reinhard Scheer, durin ...

then commanded by Captain Anselan J. B. Stirling. It remained with the Grand Fleet until November 1918 and was disbanded in March 1919.

Second World War

In September 1939 the flotilla was re-established and allocated to the

Western Approaches Command Commander-in-Chief, Western Approaches was the commander of a major operational command of the Royal Navy during World War II. The admiral commanding, and his forces, sometimes informally known as 'Western Approaches Command,' were responsibl ...

and stationed at

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: *Portland, Oregon, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon *Portland, Maine, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine *Isle of Portland, a tied island in the English Channel Portland may also r ...

till December 1939 when it was reassigned to the

Home Fleet The Home Fleet was a fleet of the Royal Navy that operated from the United Kingdom's territorial waters from 1902 with intervals until 1967. In 1967, it was merged with the Mediterranean Fleet creating the new Western Fleet. Before the First ...

till May 1941 when its ships were dispersed among other formations. It reformed again on 29 January 1943 as part of the Mediterranean Fleet and was part of forces covering the

East Mediterranean The Eastern Mediterranean is a loosely delimited region comprising the easternmost portion of the Mediterranean Sea, and well as the adjoining land—often defined as the countries around the Levantine Sea. It includes the southern half of Turke ...

area till 2 July 1943 when it was abolished.

Administration

Captains (D) afloat 12th Destroyer Flotilla

Incomplete list of post holders included:

Composition

Included:
,

September 1939 12th Destroyer Flotilla * HMS Exmouth (Leader) Division 23 * HMS Eclipse * HMS Electra Division 24 * HMS Encounter * HMS Escapade * HMS Escort

References

Sources

* Harley, Simon; Lovell, Tony. (2018) "Twelfth Destroyer Flotilla (Royal Navy) - The Dreadnought Project". www.dreadnoughtproject.org. Harley and Lovell, 29 May 2018. Retrieved 9 July 2018. * Kindell, Don. (2012) "ROYAL NAVY SHIPS, SEPTEMBER 1939". naval-history.net. Gordon Smith. * Watson, Dr Graham. (2015) Royal Navy Organisation and Ship Deployments 1900-1914". www.naval-history.net. G. Smith. * Watson, Dr Graham. (2015) "Royal Navy Organisation and Ship Deployment, Inter-War Years 1919-1938". www.naval-history.net. Gordon Smith. * Watson, Dr Graham. (2015) "Royal Navy Organisation in World War 2, 1939-1945". www.naval-history.net. Gordon Smith. * Willmott, H. P. (2009). The Last Century of Sea Power, Volume 1: From Port Arthur to Chanak, 1894–1922. Bloomington, IN, USA: Indiana University Press. . {{Destroyer flotillas of the Royal Navy, state=collapsed Destroyer flotillas of the Royal Navy Military units and formations established in 1915 Military units and formations disestablished in 1919 Military units and formations established in 1939 Military units and formations disestablished in 1943