The Town-class destroyers were a group of 50
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 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 ...
and the
Royal Canadian Navy
The Royal Canadian Navy (RCN; , ''MRC'') is the Navy, naval force of Canada. The navy is one of three environmental commands within the Canadian Armed Forces. As of February 2024, the RCN operates 12 s, 12 s, 4 s, 4 s, 8 s, and several auxiliary ...
that were in service 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 ...
. They were transferred from the
United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...
in exchange for military bases in the
British West Indies
The British West Indies (BWI) were the territories in the West Indies under British Empire, British rule, including Anguilla, the Cayman Islands, the Turks and Caicos Islands, Montserrat, the British Virgin Islands, Bermuda, Antigua and Barb ...
and
Newfoundland
Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region of Labrador, having a total size of . As of 2025 the population ...
, as outlined in the
Destroyers for Bases Agreement between the United Kingdom and United States, signed on 2 September 1940. They were known as "four-pipers" or "four-stackers" because they had four smokestacks (
funnel
A funnel is a tube or pipe that is wide at the top and narrow at the bottom, used for guiding liquid or powder into a small opening.
Funnels are usually made of stainless steel, aluminium, glass, or plastic. The material used in its constructi ...
s). Later classes of destroyers typically had one or two.
Some went to the Royal Canadian Navy at the outset. Others went on to the
Royal Norwegian Navy
The Royal Norwegian Navy () is the branch of the Norwegian Armed Forces responsible for navy, naval operations of Norway, including those of the Norwegian Coast Guard. , the Royal Norwegian Navy consists of approximately 3,700 personnel (9,450 i ...
, the
Royal Netherlands Navy
The Royal Netherlands Navy (, ) is the Navy, maritime service branch of the Netherlands Armed Forces. It traces its history to 8 January 1488, making it the List of navies, third-oldest navy in the world.
During the 17th and early 18th centurie ...
, and the
Soviet Navy
The Soviet Navy was the naval warfare Military, uniform service branch of the Soviet Armed Forces. Often referred to as the Red Fleet, the Soviet Navy made up a large part of the Soviet Union's strategic planning in the event of a conflict with t ...
after serving with the Royal Navy. Although given a set of names by the
Commonwealth
A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the 15th century. Originally a phrase (the common-wealth ...
navies that suggested they were one class they actually came from three classes of destroyer: , , and . "Town class" refers to the Admiralty's practice of renaming these ships after towns common to the United States and the British Commonwealth.
Ships initially commissioned into the Royal Canadian Navy, however, followed the Canadian practice of giving destroyers the names of Canadian rivers. The rivers selected for the ''Town'' class were on the
border
Borders are generally defined as geography, geographical boundaries, imposed either by features such as oceans and terrain, or by polity, political entities such as governments, sovereign states, federated states, and other administrative divisio ...
between Canada and the United States, with the exception of Annapolis — the name of both a river in
Annapolis County, Nova Scotia
Annapolis County is a county in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia located in the western part of the province located on the Bay of Fundy. The county seat is Annapolis Royal.
History
Established August 17, 1759, by Order in Council, Annapolis ...
, and the location of the
United States Naval Academy
The United States Naval Academy (USNA, Navy, or Annapolis) is a United States Service academies, federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as United States Secre ...
.
One of the Town-class ships achieved lasting fame: (ex-). In the
Commando
A commando is a combatant, or operative of an elite light infantry or special operations force, specially trained for carrying out raids and operating in small teams behind enemy lines.
Originally, "a commando" was a type of combat unit, as oppo ...
raid
Operation Chariot, ''Campbeltown'', fitted with a large demolition charge, rammed the gates of the
Normandie dock at
Saint-Nazaire
Saint-Nazaire (; ; ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Loire-Atlantique Departments of France, department in western France, in traditional Brittany.
The town has a major harbour on the right bank of the Loire estuary, near the Atlantic Oc ...
,
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
. The charge detonated on 29 March 1942, breaching the drydock and destroying ''Campbeltown'', thus destroying the only drydock on the Atlantic coast capable of accepting the . This exploit was depicted in the 1950
Trevor Howard
Trevor Wallace Howard-Smith (29 September 1913 – 7 January 1988) was an English stage and screen actor. After varied work in the theatre, he achieved leading man star status in the film '' Brief Encounter'' (1945), followed by '' The Third M ...
film ''
The Gift Horse'', which starred (ex-) after her return from service in the Soviet Union.
Characteristics
Built for service during the
First World War
World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
, but in the main completed after the end of that conflict, the flush-deckers were, by 1940, the oldest destroyers in the US Navy, and many had been
mothballed for the inter-war period.
While contemporaneous to the
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies.
* British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...
s they were not much liked by their crews. While the V and W classes set a new standard for destroyer design, the
flush-deckers were already obsolescent by comparison. They were uncomfortable and wet, working badly in a seaway. Their hull lines were rather narrow and 'herring-gutted' which gave them a vicious roll. The officers didn't like the way they handled either, since they had been built with propellers that turned the same way (2-screw ships normally have the shafts turning in opposite directions as the direction of rotation has effects on the rudder and the whole ship when manoeuvring, especially when coming alongside), so these were as awkward to handle as single-screw ships. Their turning circle was enormous, as big as most Royal Navy
battleship
A battleship is a large, heavily naval armour, armored warship with a main battery consisting of large naval gun, guns, designed to serve as a capital ship. From their advent in the late 1880s, battleships were among the largest and most form ...
s, making them difficult to use in a
submarine
A submarine (often shortened to sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. (It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability.) The term "submarine" is also sometimes used historically or infor ...
hunt which demanded tight manoeuvres, compounded by unreliable "chain and cog" steering gear laid across the main deck. They also had fully enclosed
bridges
A bridge is a structure built to 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, which is usually somet ...
which caused problems with reflections in the glass at night. One Royal Canadian Navy corvette captain described them as "the most dubious gift since the Trojan Horse".
However, despite their disadvantages they were a welcome addition to forces escorting
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 used ...
s in the
Atlantic
The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for se ...
at a time when 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 ...
s, operating from newly acquired bases on the Atlantic coast of
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
were becoming an increasingly serious threat to British shipping. They were also seen as an
earnest of the United States’ commitment to support Britain against Nazism.
The original armament was four
4-inch (102 mm) guns, one 3-inch (76 mm)
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 ...
gun, and twelve
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 aboa ...
s. On the ''Wickes-''class, the 4-inch gun placement was one gun in a shield on the foredeck, one on the quarterdeck and one each side on a platform between the number 2 and number 3 funnels. The
Admiralty promptly removed one of the 4-inch guns and six torpedo tubes to improve stability.
[Lenton&Colledge 1968 pp.80] Twenty-three of the class had further armament reductions for
anti-submarine
An anti-submarine weapon (ASW) is any one of a number of devices that are intended to act against a submarine and its crew, to destroy (sink) the vessel or reduce its capability as a weapon of war. In its simplest sense, an anti-submarine weapon ...
escort of trade convoys.
[Lenton&Colledge 1968 pp.80&90–92] Two of the remaining 4-inch guns and three of the remaining torpedo tubes were removed to allow increased
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 ...
stowage and installation of
Hedgehog
A hedgehog is a spiny mammal of the subfamily Erinaceinae, in the eulipotyphlan family Erinaceidae. There are 17 species of hedgehog in five genera found throughout parts of Europe, Asia, and Africa, and in New Zealand by introduction. The ...
anti-submarine mortar system.
Ships in class by origin
The ships were divided by the Royal Navy into four groups based on their characteristics.
[Hague p.14-15]
*Type A corresponded to the 20 ships of the , having a standard
displacement
Displacement may refer to:
Physical sciences
Mathematics and physics
*Displacement (geometry), is the difference between the final and initial position of a point trajectory (for instance, the center of mass of a moving object). The actual path ...
of 1,190 tons powered by geared turbines that produced a maximum speed of 28.5
knots
A knot is a fastening in rope or interwoven lines.
Knot or knots may also refer to:
Other common meanings
* Knot (unit), of speed
* Knot (wood), a timber imperfection
Arts, entertainment, and media Films
* ''Knots'' (film), a 2004 film
* ''Kn ...
. They were armed with four single 4-inch guns and one 3-inch anti-aircraft gun, with triple 21-inch torpedo tubes. Overall length was 314 ft 4 in, beam 31 ft 8 in and draught 12 ft 10 in.
*Type B were the 12 ships of the built to plans prepared by the
Bath Iron Works
Bath Iron Works (BIW) is a major United States shipyard located on the Kennebec River in Bath, Maine, founded in 1884 as Bath Iron Works, Limited. Since 1995, Bath Iron Works has been a subsidiary of General Dynamics, one of the world's largest ...
. These were lighter than the type A ships, with a displacement of 1090 tons but they had the same armament and machinery with a slightly better speed of 28.75 kt.
*Type C were the 15 ships of the ''Wickes'' class built to plans prepared by
Bethlehem Steel
The Bethlehem Steel Corporation was an American steelmaking company headquartered in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Until its closure in 2003, it was one of the world's largest steel-producing and shipbuilding companies. At the height of its success ...
, with a displacement of 1,060 tons and an improved speed of 29.75 kt.
*Type D were the 3 ships of the , smaller again at 1020 tons, with a gun armament of four single 3-inch guns and built with direct drive turbines, but having a speed of 30 kt. The type D vessels were recognizable also in having only three funnels.
Ships in class by operator
Royal Canadian Navy
RCN (loaned from the Royal Navy)
Royal Navy
Royal Netherlands Navy
Royal Norwegian Navy
Soviet Navy
Notes
References
*
*R Gardiner, R Gray (1985) ''Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1906–1921''
*
* Hague, Arnold (1988) ''Destroyers for Great Britain: A History of the 50 Town Class Ships Transferred From the United States to Great Britain in 1940''. Naval Institute Press, Annapolis
Limited viewat archive.org)
*
*
Roskill, SW (1954) ''The War at Sea: 1939-1945'' Vol I.
HMSO
The Office of Public Sector Information (OPSI) is the body responsible for the operation of His Majesty's Stationery Office (HMSO) and of other public information services of the United Kingdom. The OPSI is part of the National Archives of the U ...
(ISBN: none)
*
External links
{{WWII British ships
Battle of the Atlantic
Destroyer classes
North Atlantic convoys of World War II
Ship classes of the Royal Navy
Ships of the Royal Canadian Navy
Soviet Union–United Kingdom relations