HMS ''Amethyst'' was a modified
''Black Swan''-class sloop 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 ...
. She was laid down by
Alexander Stephen and Sons of
Linthouse,
Govan
Govan ( ; Cumbric: ''Gwovan''; Scots language, Scots: ''Gouan''; Scottish Gaelic: ''Baile a' Ghobhainn'') is a district, parish, and former burgh now part of southwest Glasgow, Scotland. It is situated west of Glasgow city centre, on the sout ...
,
Scotland
Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...
on 25 March 1942, launched on 7 May 1943 and commissioned on 2 November 1943, with the
pennant number
In the Royal Navy and other navies of Europe and the Commonwealth of Nations, ships are identified by pennant number (an internationalisation of ''pendant number'', which it was called before 1948). Historically, naval ships flew a flag that iden ...
U16. After the
Second World War
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 ...
she was modified and redesignated as a
frigate
A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied.
The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and maneuvera ...
, and renumbered F116.
Second World War
During the
Second World War
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 ...
, ''Amethyst'' was deployed mostly on anti-submarine patrols and escort duties. She attacked and sank the
U-boat
U-boats are Submarine#Military, naval submarines operated by Germany, including during the World War I, First and Second World Wars. The term is an Anglicization#Loanwords, anglicized form of the German word , a shortening of (), though the G ...
with
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 on 20 February 1945. ''U-1276'' had just sunk , a , with the loss of 60 crew. The action took place in the North Atlantic, south of
Waterford
Waterford ( ) is a City status in Ireland, city in County Waterford in the South-East Region, Ireland, south-east of Ireland. It is located within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster. The city is situated at the head of Waterford H ...
, and resulted in the loss of all 49 of the U-boat's crew.
During the war ''Amethyst'' was credited, along with the sloops , , , and frigate , with sinking the in the
North Channel on 16 January 1945. The
British Admiralty
The Admiralty was a Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom, department of the Government of the United Kingdom that was responsible for the command of the Royal Navy.
Historically, its titular head was the Lord High Admiral of the ...
withdrew this credit in a post-war reassessment.
The Amethyst incident
On 20 April 1949, ''Amethyst'' was on her way from
Shanghai
Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...
to Nanking (now
Nanjing
Nanjing or Nanking is the capital of Jiangsu, a province in East China. The city, which is located in the southwestern corner of the province, has 11 districts, an administrative area of , and a population of 9,423,400.
Situated in the Yang ...
) when she was fired upon by the
People's Liberation Army
The People's Liberation Army (PLA) is the military of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the People's Republic of China (PRC). It consists of four Military branch, services—People's Liberation Army Ground Force, Ground Force, People's ...
. This became known as the
Amethyst incident. ''Amethyst'' was trapped in China until 30 July 1949, when she escaped under cover of darkness.
For the 1957 film ''
Yangtse Incident: The Story of H.M.S. Amethyst'', ''Amethyst'' was brought out of reserve to play herself. As the engines were no longer operational, her sister ship was used for shots of the ship moving. ''Amethyst'' was scrapped shortly after the filming was finished.
See also
*
Lieutenant-Commander John Kerans
*
Simon (cat)
Citations
General and cited references
*
*
Further reading
*
* Leslie Frank, ''Yangtse River Incident 1949: The Diary of Coxswain Leslie Frank: HMS Amethyst - Yangtse River 19/4/49 to 31/7/49'' (2004)
*
Edwyn Gray, ''Frigate Under Fire: HMS Amethyst's 100 Days of Hell'' (1987)
* Malcolm H. Murfett, ''Hostage on the Yangtze: Britain, China, and the Amethyst Crisis of 1949'' (1991)
External links
Britain's Small Wars' account of the Amethyst IncidentFriends of the Four Ships 191 members Up-dated 2008 awarded the
Dickin Medal
The PDSA Dickin Medal was instituted in 1943 in the United Kingdom by Maria Dickin to honour the work of animals in World War II. It is a bronze medallion, bearing the words "For Gallantry" and "We Also Serve" within a laurel wreath, carried ...
.
MaritimeQuest HMS Amethyst pages
{{DEFAULTSORT:Amethyst
1943 ships
Black Swan-class sloops
Korean War sloops of the United Kingdom
Maritime incidents in 1949
Ships built on the River Clyde
Sloops of the United Kingdom
World War II sloops of the United Kingdom