HMS ''Calder'' was a Captain class frigate 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 ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. It was named after Admiral Sir

Robert Calder Admiral Sir Robert Calder, 1st Baronet, (2 July 174531 August 1818) was a Royal Navy officer who served in the Seven Years' War, the American Revolutionary War, the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars. For much of his career he w ...

, Bt. KCB, who was appointed

Captain of the Fleet Fleet captain (US) is a historic military title that was bestowed upon a naval officer who served as chief of staff to a flag officer. In the UK, a captain of the fleet could be appointed to assist an admiral when the admiral had ten or more shi ...

to Admiral John Jervis in 1796, and saw action at the battle of Cape St Vincent on 14 February 1797. Originally destined for the US Navy as a turbo-electric (TE) type ''Buckley''-class destroyer escort, HMS ''Calder'' was provisionally given the name USS ''Formoe''. However, the delivery was diverted to the Royal Navy before the launch.

Actions

HMS ''Calder'' served exclusively with the 4th Escort Group, earning battle honours for service in the

North Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for ...

. On 26 January 1945 the submarine was sunk in the

Irish Sea The Irish Sea is a body of water that separates the islands of Ireland and Great Britain. It is linked to the Celtic Sea in the south by St George's Channel and to the Inner Seas off the West Coast of Scotland in the north by the North Ch ...

south of the

Isle of Man The Isle of Man ( , also ), or Mann ( ), is a self-governing British Crown Dependency in the Irish Sea, between Great Britain and Ireland. As head of state, Charles III holds the title Lord of Mann and is represented by a Lieutenant Govern ...

, at position by the frigates , , HMS ''Calder'' and . ''U-1051'' was forced to the surface by the use of

depth charge A depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare (ASW) weapon designed to destroy submarine A submarine (often shortened to sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. (It differs from a submersible, which has more limited ...

s. A gun battle then ensued, with ''U-1051'' finally sinking after it had been rammed by HMS ''Aylmer''. This action resulted in the loss of all hands (47) from the crew of ''U-1051''. It was entirely clear that the ramming of U-1051 by HMS ''Aylmer'' was intentional and that Cdr B.W.Taylor was not removed from command of HMS ''Aylmer'' shortly after this incident (see the article on for more information). On 8 April 1945 the submarine was sunk in the North Atlantic south-west of Ireland, at position , by the frigates HMS ''Bentinck'' and HMS ''Calder''. ''U-774'' was attacked by the use of

s after its periscope was spotted by a lookout on HMS ''Calder''. This action resulted in loss of all hands (44) aboard ''U-774''.

General information

*Pennant (UK): K 349 *Pennant (US): DE 58

References

* ''The Captain Class Frigates in the Second World War'' by Donald Collingwood. published by Leo Cooper (1998), . * ''The Buckley-Class Destroyer Escorts'' by Bruce Hampton Franklin, published by Chatham Publishing (1999), . *

External links

Uboat.net page for HMS Calder

captainclassfrigates.co.uk
{{DEFAULTSORT:Calder (K349) Captain-class frigates Buckley-class destroyer escorts World War II frigates of the United Kingdom Ships built in Hingham, Massachusetts 1943 ships