HMS Jupiter (F85)

HMS ''Jupiter'' was a J-class destroyer of the Royal Navy.

Design

As completed, ''Jupiter'' had a main gun armament of six QF Mark XII guns in three twin mountings, two forward and one aft. These guns could only elevate to an angle of 40 degrees, and so were of limited use in the anti-aircraft role, while the aft mount was arranged so that it could fire forwards over the ship's superstructure to maximise the forward firing firepower, but was therefore incapable of firing directly aft. A short range anti-aircraft armament of a four-barrelled 2 pounder "pom-pom" anti-aircraft mount and eight .50 in machine guns in two quadruple mounts was fitted, while torpedo armament consisted of ten torpedo tubes in two quintuple mounts.Whitley 2000, p. 117–118.

Construction and career

''Jupiter'' was ordered, along with the rest of the J class, on 25 March 1937,English 2001, p. 71. and was laid down by Yarrow, Limited, at their Scotstoun, Glasgow shipyard on Clydebank in Scotland on 28 September 1937 and launched on 27 October 1938. She was commissioned on 22 June 1939, and was completed on 25 June 1939, at a cost of £389,511.English 2001, p. 70.

After commissioning, ''Jupiter'' underwent sea trials and worked up at Portland, with these activities being delayed by problems with the ship's turbines that required repair at Devonport Dockyard. ''Jupiter'' completed trials on 1 September 1939, and joined the 7th Destroyer Flotilla of the Home Fleet, based on the Humber, in time for the British declaration of war on 3 September 1939.English 2001, p. 82

On 29 November 1941, ''Jupiter'' and the destroyer detached from the Mediterranean Fleet, joined up with Force G at Colombo, and the five ships sailed later that day. They rendezvoused with the battlecruiser at sea, and set course for Singapore, where they arrived on 2 December. They spent a few days there with shore leave and refit, while waiting for orders. On 1 December, it was announced that Sir Tom Phillips had been promoted to full Admiral, and appointed Commander-in-Chief of the Eastern Fleet. A few days later, ''Repulse'' started on a trip to Australia with the destroyers ''Vampire'' and ''Tenedos'', but the force was recalled. It was not until nine days later that ''Tenedos'' and ''Repulse'' would join Phillips' Force Z in attacking the Japanese invasion force, and he himself would perish when both ''Repulse'' and the battleship ''Prince of Wales'' were bombed and sunk by Japanese land based bombers. During her campaign in the Pacific, ''Jupiter'' was commanded by Lieutenant Commander Norman V. J. T. Thew.

''Jupiter'' sank the on 17 January 1942. On 27 February 1942 she struck a mine laid earlier in the day by the Dutch minelayer HNLMS ''Gouden Leeuw'' as she steamed with the American-British-Dutch-Australian Command (ABDA) cruiser force during the Battle of the Java Sea. The destroyer sank off the north Java coast in the Java Sea at 21:16 hours. Initially, the explosion was thought to have been caused by a Japanese torpedo. Most of her crew, totalling 97, were captured by Japanese forces, while 83 were rescued from the shore by submarine USS ''S-38''. There were 84 dead or missing.

The wreck has been plotted, and is described by the Admiralty as "very broken up, partly salvaged, and very close to the Java coast".

Notes

Footnotes

References

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External links

Pacific Wrecks: HMS ''Jupiter'' (F85)

HMS Jupiter Association

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jupiter (F85)
J, K and N-class destroyers of the Royal Navy
Ships built on the River Clyde
1938 ships
World War II destroyers of the United Kingdom
World War II shipwrecks in the Java Sea
Ships sunk by mines
Maritime incidents in February 1942