HMS ''Adamant'' was a
submarine depot ship
A submarine tender is a type of depot ship that supplies and supports submarines.
Development
Submarines are small compared to most oceangoing vessels, and generally do not have the ability to carry large amounts of food, fuel, torpedoes, and ...
of the
Royal Navy. She was purpose built to support three of the new
D-class submarines under the 1910/11 Naval Programme, allowing a small part of a flotilla to be deployed away from the main base.
Service history
Pre-war
''Adamant'' commissioned at
Portsmouth on 27 April 1912, as an additional depot ship. Soon incorporated in the newly established
8th Submarine Flotilla
The 8th Submarine Flotilla was a flotilla of the British Royal Navy consisting of submarines and their supporting depot ships and destroyers. It was established as part of the Home Fleet in 1912. The flotilla brought together the newer, longer ran ...
. This was the offensive submarine force based in UK waters.
First World War
''Adamant'' went with 8th Submarine Flotilla to its war station at
Harwich
Harwich is a town in Essex, England, and one of the Haven ports on the North Sea coast. It is in the Tendring district. Nearby places include Felixstowe to the north-east, Ipswich to the north-west, Colchester to the south-west and Clacton-on- ...
in the 1914
mobilisation. On 3 November 1914 ''Adamant'' was sent to
Yarmouth
Yarmouth may refer to:
Places Canada
*Yarmouth County, Nova Scotia
**Yarmouth, Nova Scotia
**Municipality of the District of Yarmouth
**Yarmouth (provincial electoral district)
**Yarmouth (electoral district)
* Yarmouth Township, Ontario
*New ...
to act as depot for a detachment of the Flotilla, which was based there from this date. Her crew also established a permanent submarine base. The detachment left on 21 December 1914 and ''Adamant'' returned to Harwich.
''Adamant'' was transferred for service as depot ship for the
E-class submarines being sent to the
Eastern Mediterranean Squadron for service at the
Dardanelles, leaving Harwich on 27 March 1915 for the base at
Mudros. In January 1916 ''Adamant'' moved to
Brindisi
Brindisi ( , ) ; la, Brundisium; grc, Βρεντέσιον, translit=Brentésion; cms, Brunda), group=pron is a city in the region of Apulia in southern Italy, the capital of the province of Brindisi, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea.
Histo ...
as depot ship for the submarines of the
Adriatic Squadron. She returned as depot for the submarines of the Eastern Mediterranean Squadron at Mudros in November 1916. In October 1917 she returned to the
Adriatic Force
The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) to the ...
as depot for submarines based at Govino (now
Gouvia
Gouvia is a village and resort beside a natural harbour in Corfu, Greece. It is situated around 8 km (5 miles) North of Corfu town. It is separated from the Bay of Gouvia to the south by a headland on which is found the village of Kontók ...
) on
Corfu
Corfu (, ) or Kerkyra ( el, Κέρκυρα, Kérkyra, , ; ; la, Corcyra.) is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea, of the Ionian Islands, and, including its small satellite islands, forms the margin of the northwestern frontier of Greece. The isl ...
, moving back to Brindisi on 28 March 1918. She went through the Dardanelles as part of the
Aegean Force
Aegean may refer to:
*Aegean Sea
* Aegean Islands
* Aegean Region (geographical), Turkey
*Aegean Region (statistical), Turkey
*Aegean civilizations
* Aegean languages, a group of ancient languages and proposed language family
*Aegean Sea (theme), ...
on 11 November 1918 following the
Turkish Armistice.
Fate
''Adamant'' decommissioned from service on 7 July 1932.
[ADM 53/70057] She was sold on 21 September 1932.
Pennant numbers
References
Sources
*
* The National Archives: ADM 186/15: ''War Vessels and Aircraft (British and Foreign): Quarterly Return, Oct 1915''
* The National Archives: ADM 53/16731, 32787-32822, 70016-70057: ''Logs of HMS Adamant''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Adamant (1911), HMS
Ships built on the River Mersey
Auxiliary ships of the Royal Navy
Royal Navy Submarine Depot Ships
1911 ships