HMS ''Cairo'' (D87) was a C-class

light cruiser A light cruiser is a type of small or medium-sized warship. The term is a shortening of the phrase "light armored cruiser", describing a small ship that carried armor in the same way as an armored cruiser: a protective belt and deck. Prior to thi ...

of the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by Kingdom of England, English and Kingdom of Scotland, Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were foug ...

, named after the

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Med ...

ian capital,

Cairo Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo met ...

. So far she has been the only ship of the Royal Navy to bear the name. She was part of the ''Carlisle'' group of the C-class of cruisers.

History

left, Gun position on HMS ''Cairo'', smoke above Narvik in the back on 8 June 1940. She was laid down by

Cammell Laird Cammell Laird is a British shipbuilding company. It was formed from the merger of Laird Brothers of Birkenhead and Johnson Cammell & Co of Sheffield at the turn of the twentieth century. The company also built railway rolling stock until 1929, ...

Birkenhead Birkenhead (; cy, Penbedw) is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, Merseyside, England; Historic counties of England, historically, it was part of Cheshire until 1974. The town is on the Wirral Peninsula, along the south bank of the R ...

on 28 November 1917, launched on 19 November 1918 and commissioned on 24 September 1919. ''Cairo'' was not ready for service in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

and her first posting was to the

China Station The Commander-in-Chief, China was the admiral in command of what was usually known as the China Station, at once both a British Royal Navy naval formation and its admiral in command. It was created in 1865 and deactivated in 1941. From 1831 to 18 ...

in 1920, followed by the

East Indies Station The East Indies Station was a formation and command of the British Royal Navy. Created in 1744 by the Admiralty, it was under the command of the Commander-in-Chief, East Indies. Even in official documents, the term ''East Indies Station'' was ...

from 1921 to 1925. On 23 April 1926 HMS Cairo visited Kismayu, Italian Somaliland, during the

Jubaland Jubaland ( so, Jubbaland, ar, , it, Oltregiuba), the Juba Valley ( so, Dooxada Jubba) or Azania ( so, Asaaniya, ar, ), is a Federal Member State in southern Somalia. Its eastern border lies east of the Jubba River, stretching from Gedo ...

Boundary Commission. After a further temporary attachment to the China Station until 1927, she joined the 8th Cruiser Squadron on the

North America and West Indies Station The North America and West Indies Station was a formation or command of the United Kingdom's Royal Navy stationed in North American waters from 1745 to 1956. The North American Station was separate from the Jamaica Station until 1830 when th ...

, based at the

Royal Naval Dockyard Royal Navy Dockyards (more usually termed Royal Dockyards) were state-owned harbour facilities where ships of the Royal Navy were built, based, repaired and refitted. Until the mid-19th century the Royal Dockyards were the largest industrial c ...

on Ireland Island,

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. From 1928 to 1930, ''Cairo'' was in the Mediterranean as flagship for the Rear-Admiral (D). After a refit from 1931–1932, she was with 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 Fi ...

as Commodore (D). She was converted to an

anti-aircraft Anti-aircraft warfare, counter-air or air defence forces is the battlespace response to aerial warfare, defined by NATO as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action".AAP-6 It includes surface based, ...

cruiser in 1939. In

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

she took part in the Norwegian Campaign, where she was damaged by German aircraft off Narvik on 28 May 1940. 10 sailors were killed and the ship was out of action for two months. In the Mediterranean she led the escort of a six cargo-ship convoy from Gibraltar to

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

, code named Operation Harpoon, which endured intense air strikes. The British squadron also faced the attack of an Italian light cruiser division in the

Sicilia channel Sicily ( it, Sicilia , ) is the list of islands in the Mediterranean, largest island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the 20 regions of Italy, regions of Italy. The Strait of Messina divides it from the region of Calabria in Southern Italy. I ...

. Four merchantmen and two destroyers were sunk, while ''Cairo'' was hit by two 6-inch rounds from the Italian cruiser ''Eugenio di Savoia'', killing two members of her crew. In August 1942, ''Cairo'' took part in

Operation Pedestal Operation Pedestal ( it, Battaglia di Mezzo Agosto, Battle of mid-August), known in Malta as (), was a British operation to carry supplies to the island of Malta in August 1942, during the Second World War. Malta was a base from which British ...

, the escort of a

convoy A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support and can help maintain cohesion within a unit. It may also be use ...

. During the operation she was torpedoed and sunk by the Italian submarine ''Axum'' north of Bizerta,

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, on 12 August 1942. One torpedo blew off part of the stern, the port propellor was gone, the engine room flooded and gun mount Y fell off in the sea. As during the battle it was impossible to tow her to safety, it was decided to scuttle her. The destroyer HMS Pathfinder fired 4 torpedoes but only 1 hit. A series of depth charges did not finish her off, so finally HMS Derwent was ordered to sink her with gunfire. Twenty-four seamen went down with the ship.

Notes

References

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External links

IWM Interview with survivor Clifford Richardson
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cairo (D87) C-class cruisers Ships built on the River Mersey 1918 ships World War I cruisers of the United Kingdom World War II cruisers of the United Kingdom Ships sunk by Italian submarines World War II shipwrecks in the Mediterranean Sea Maritime incidents in August 1942