HMS ''Consort'' was one of thirty-two destroyers built for 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 ...

during the

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, a member of the eight-ship Co sub-class.

Design and description

The Co sub-class was a repeat of the preceding Ch sub-class. ''Consort'' displaced at standard load and at deep load. They had an overall length of , a beam of and a deep draught of .Lenton, p. 183 The ships were powered by a pair of geared steam turbines, each driving one

propeller shaft A drive shaft, driveshaft, driving shaft, tailshaft (Australian English), propeller shaft (prop shaft), or Cardan shaft (after Girolamo Cardano) is a component for transmitting mechanical power and torque and rotation, usually used to connect ...

using steam provided by two Admiralty three-drum boilers. The turbines developed a total of and gave a speed of at normal load. During her sea trials, ''Consort'' reached a speed of at a load of . The Co sub-class carried enough fuel oil to give them a range of at . The ships' complement was 186 officers and ratings. The main armament of the destroyers consisted of four QF Mk IV dual-purpose guns, one superfiring pair each fore and aft of the superstructure protected by partial gun shields. Their anti-aircraft suite consisted of one twin-gun stabilised Mk IV "Hazemeyer" mount for Bofors guns and two single 2-pounder (40 mm) AA guns amidships, and single mounts for a Oerlikon AA gun on the bridge wings. The ships were fitted with one quadruple mount for 21-inch (533 mm)

torpedo tube A torpedo tube is a cylindrical device for launching torpedoes. There are two main types of torpedo tube: underwater tubes fitted to submarines and some surface ships, and deck-mounted units (also referred to as torpedo launchers) installed abo ...

s. The ships were equipped with a pair of

depth charge A depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare (ASW) weapon. It is intended to destroy a submarine by being dropped into the water nearby and detonating, subjecting the target to a powerful and destructive hydraulic shock. Most depth charges use ...

rails and two throwers for 35 depth charges.

Construction and career

''Consort'' was ordered from Alexander Stephens & Sons and the ship was

laid down Laying the keel or laying down is the formal recognition of the start of a ship's construction. It is often marked with a ceremony attended by dignitaries from the shipbuilding company and the ultimate owners of the ship. Keel laying is one ...

on 26 May 1943 at its

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Linthouse Linthouse is a neighbourhood in the city of Glasgow, Scotland. It is situated directly south of the River Clyde and lies immediately west of Govan, with other adjacent areas including Shieldhall and the Southern General Hospital to the west, ...

, launched on 19 October 1944 and was commissioned on 19 March 1946. ''Consort'' was damaged by artillery fire during the

Yangtze Incident The ''Amethyst'' Incident, also known as the Yangtze Incident, was a historic event which involved the Royal Navy ships , , , and on the Yangtze River for three months during the Chinese Civil War in the summer of 1949. Description On ...

in an attempt to tow the

sloop A sloop is a sailboat with a single mast typically having only one headsail in front of the mast and one mainsail aft of (behind) the mast. Such an arrangement is called a fore-and-aft rig, and can be rigged as a Bermuda rig with triangular ...

from a mudbank, taking 56 direct hits, and causing casualties of 23 wounded and a further ten dead. Following decommissioning she was sold to the Prince of Wales Drydock Co., of Swansea, Wales, for scrap and arrived there on 15 March 1961.English, p. 139

References

Bibliography

* * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Consort Korean War destroyers of the United Kingdom C-class destroyers (1943) of the Royal Navy 1944 ships Ships built on the River Clyde Maritime incidents in 1949