HMS ''Medway'' (Pennant F25) was the first purpose-built

submarine depot ship A submarine tender, in British English a submarine depot ship, is a type of depot ship that supplies and supports submarines. Development Submarines are small compared to most oceangoing vessels, and generally cannot carry large amounts of food ...

constructed for 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 built by

Vickers Armstrong Vickers-Armstrongs Limited was a British engineering conglomerate formed by the merger of the assets of Vickers Limited and Sir W G Armstrong Whitworth & Company in 1927. The majority of the company was nationalised in the 1960s and 1970s, wi ...

Barrow-in-Furness Barrow-in-Furness is a port town and civil parish (as just "Barrow") in the Westmorland and Furness district of Cumbria, England. Historic counties of England, Historically in the county of Lancashire, it was incorporated as a municipal borou ...

during the late 1920s. The ship served on 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 1 ...

before the Second World War and was transferred to Egypt in early 1940. Ordered to evacuate

Alexandria Alexandria ( ; ) is the List of cities and towns in Egypt#Largest cities, second largest city in Egypt and the List of coastal settlements of the Mediterranean Sea, largest city on the Mediterranean coast. It lies at the western edge of the Nile ...

in the face of the German advance after the

Battle of Gazala The Battle of Gazala, also the Gazala Offensive (Italian language, Italian: ''Battaglia di Ain el-Gazala'') was fought near the village of Gazala during the Western Desert Campaign of the Second World War, west of the port of Tobruk in Libya, f ...

in May 1942, ''Medway'' sailed for

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

at the end of June, escorted by a

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 ...

and seven

destroyer In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, maneuverable, long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy, or carrier battle group and defend them against a wide range of general threats. They were conceived i ...

s. Her strong escort could not protect her; on 30 June a German submarine torpedoed and sank her.

Description and construction

''Medway'' was designed to support up to 18 and s in peacetime and an additional three submarines during wartime. She carried three QF 4-inch Mk IV deck guns as spares together with 144

torpedo A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, such ...

es to resupply her submarines. The ship proved to be less top-heavy than anticipated and had the enormously high

metacentric height The metacentric height (GM) is a measurement of the initial static stability of a floating body. It is calculated as the distance between the centre of gravity of a ship and its '' metacentre''. A larger metacentric height implies greater initial ...

of at full load. Built with

bilge keel A bilge keel is a nautical device used to reduce a ship's tendency to roll. Bilge keels are employed in pairs (one for each side of the ship). A ship may have more than one bilge keel per side, but this is rare. Bilge keels increase hydrodynamic ...

s only deep, ''Medway'' once rolled 42° each way with a period of nine seconds, losing her main

topmast The masts of traditional sailing ships were not single spars, but were constructed of separate sections or masts, each with its own rigging. The topmast is one of these. The topmast is semi-permanently attached to the upper front of the lower m ...

. Her bilge keels were subsequently increased in depth to . She was

long overall Length overall (LOA, o/a, o.a. or oa) is the maximum length of a vessel's hull measured parallel to the waterline. This length is important while docking the ship. It is the most commonly used way of expressing the size of a ship, and is also u ...

and had a

beam Beam may refer to: Streams of particles or energy *Light beam, or beam of light, a directional projection of light energy **Laser beam *Radio beam *Particle beam, a stream of charged or neutral particles **Charged particle beam, a spatially lo ...

of and a

draft Draft, the draft, or draught may refer to: Watercraft dimensions * Draft (hull), the distance from waterline to keel of a vessel * Draft (sail), degree of curvature in a sail * Air draft, distance from waterline to the highest point on a v ...

of .Lenton, p. 587 The ship displaced at

standard Standard may refer to: Symbols * Colours, standards and guidons, kinds of military signs * Standard (emblem), a type of a large symbol or emblem used for identification Norms, conventions or requirements * Standard (metrology), an object ...

load and up to at (

full load The displacement or displacement tonnage of a ship is its weight. As the term indicates, it is measured indirectly, using Archimedes' principle, by first calculating the volume of water displaced by the ship, then converting that value into weig ...

).Chesneau, p. 79 Her crew numbered 400 officers and ratings; she could also accommodate up to 1,335 additional men. The ship was powered by

MAN A man is an adult male human. Before adulthood, a male child or adolescent is referred to as a boy. Like most other male mammals, a man's genome usually inherits an X chromosome from the mother and a Y chromosome from the f ...

diesel engine The diesel engine, named after the German engineer Rudolf Diesel, is an internal combustion engine in which Combustion, ignition of diesel fuel is caused by the elevated temperature of the air in the cylinder due to Mechanics, mechanical Compr ...

s rated at , driving two shafts, and had a top speed of about . ''Medway'' carried of diesel fuel for herself and an additional for her submarines. Figures for her range are not available. The ship had five diesel generators for electrical power and special provisions to recharge submarine batteries. She was armed with two low-angle guns in single mounts and four quick-firing Mk V 4-inch

anti-aircraft Anti-aircraft warfare (AAW) is the counter to aerial warfare and includes "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action".AAP-6 It encompasses surface-based, subsurface ( submarine-launched), and air-ba ...

guns, also in single mounts. The latter guns were controlled by a High-Angle Control System mounted above the

bridge A bridge is a structure built to Span (engineering), span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or railway) without blocking the path underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, whi ...

. ''Medway'' was protected by an internal

anti-torpedo bulge The anti-torpedo bulge (also known as an anti-torpedo blister) is a form of defence against naval torpedoes occasionally employed in warship construction in the period between the First and Second World Wars. It involved fitting (or retrofittin ...

which incorporated a

water jacket A water jacket is a water-filled casing surrounding a device, typically a metal sheath having intake and outlet vents to allow water to be pumped through and circulated. The flow of water to an external heating or cooling device allows precise ...

of . Amidships a

torpedo bulkhead A torpedo bulkhead is a type of naval armor common on the more heavily armored warships, especially battleships and battlecruisers of the early 20th century. It is designed to keep the ship afloat even if the hull is struck underneath the belt ...

was located 13 feet inboard that inclined outwards above the

waterline The waterline is the line where the hull of a ship meets the surface of the water. A waterline can also refer to any line on a ship's hull that is parallel to the water's surface when the ship is afloat in a level trimmed position. Hence, wate ...

. The main deck was 1.5 inches thick amidships. ''Medway'' was ordered on 14 September 1926 as part of the 1925/26 Naval Estimates. 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 ...

in April 1927 by the Vickers Armstrong shipyard in Barrow-in-Furness. The ship was launched on 19 July 1928. Captain Colin Cantlie was appointed as the first commander of the new ship on 1 January 1929. The ship was completed on 3 July 1929.Osborne, p. 22 After completion, HMS ''Medway'' began Harbour Acceptance Trials and Sea Acceptance Trials, known in the Royal Navy as HATs and SATs. A report in The Singapore Free Press and Mercantile Advertiser on 27 July 1929 notes that HMS ''Medway'' was undergoing trials.

Career

HMS ''Medway'' served on the China Station before the start of the Second World War. She had taken over from

HMS Titania HMS ''Titania'' (pennant number F32) was a Royal Navy submarine depot ship. Most of those that saw service in the First World War were scrapped in the 1930s. ''Titania'', however, saw service in the Second World War. She was scrapped at Faslane, ...

in 1929/30 as the submarine depot ship for the 4th Submarine Flotilla. HMS ''Medway'' took her place in

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

as the depot ship for the 4th Submarine Flotilla. Under the command of Capt. Colin Cantlie HMS ''Medway'' sailed to

with six O-Class submarines of the

Odin Odin (; from ) is a widely revered god in Norse mythology and Germanic paganism. Most surviving information on Odin comes from Norse mythology, but he figures prominently in the recorded history of Northern Europe. This includes the Roman Em ...

group. They were: * HMS ''Odin'' (N84) * HMS ''Olympus'' (N35) * HMS ''Osiris'' (N67) * HMS ''Orpheus'' (N46) * HMS ''Oswald'' (N58) * HMS ''Otus'' (N92) The submarine flotilla was enlarged in 1930. HMS ''Medway'' was under refit at

Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

from September 1939 through February 1940. Upon completion of the refit, ''Medway'' sailed for

where she remained until she departed for Alexandria on 2 April. She arrived there on 3 May and thereafter supported the 1st Submarine Flotilla, which operated in the Eastern Mediterranean. Two years later,

Vice-Admiral Vice admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, usually equivalent to lieutenant general and air marshal. A vice admiral is typically senior to a rear admiral and junior to an admiral. Australia In the Royal Australian Navy, the rank of vic ...

Henry Harwood Admiral Sir Henry Harwood Harwood, (19 January 1888 – 9 June 1950) was a Royal Navy officer who won fame in the Battle of the River Plate during the Second World War. Early life Following education at Stubbington House School, Harwood ent ...

, Commander-in-Chief,

Mediterranean Fleet The British Mediterranean Fleet, also known as the Mediterranean Station, was a formation of the Royal Navy. The Fleet was one of the most prestigious commands in the navy for the majority of its history, defending the vital sea link between ...

, ordered all non-essential ships to leave Alexandria in June 1942 as he was preparing to demolish the port facilities there to prevent their capture by the advancing

Panzer Army Africa The Panzer Army Africa (German language, German: ''Panzerarmee Afrika''; Italian language, Italian: ''Gruppo Corazzato Africa'') was a joint German-Italian field army that fought in the North African campaign during World War II. It consisted of ...

. ''Medway'' loaded stores and 1,135 personnel on 29 June to establish a new base at

Beirut Beirut ( ; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the List of largest cities in the Levant region by populatio ...

, Lebanon and sailed later that day for Beirut.Osborne, p. 24 Accompanied by the Greek ship , ''Medway'' was escorted by the light cruiser and the destroyers , , , , , , and . The next day, off

Port Said Port Said ( , , ) is a port city that lies in the northeast Egypt extending about along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, straddling the west bank of the northern mouth of the Suez Canal. The city is the capital city, capital of the Port S ...

, fired two torpedoes that sank ''Medway''; 30 men were lost in the sinking.Rohwer, p. 174 47 of the 90 spare torpedoes aboard floated free of the wreck and were salvaged.

Notes

References

* * * *

External links

Submarine Heritage entry
{{DEFAULTSORT:Medway Auxiliary ships of the Royal Navy Royal Navy Submarine Depot Ships Fleet auxiliaries of the United Kingdom World War II naval ships of the United Kingdom Ships built in Barrow-in-Furness 1928 ships World War II shipwrecks in the Mediterranean Sea Maritime incidents in June 1942 Ships sunk by German submarines in World War II Submarine tenders

Description and construction

Career

See also

Notes

References

External links