H.M.S. Chelmer (1904)
| H.M.S. Chelmer (1904) | |
|---|---|
| Pendant Number: | unknown[1] |
| Builder: | John I. Thornycroft & Company[2] |
| Ordered: | 1903-04 Programme[3] |
| Laid down: | 11 Dec, 1904[4] |
| Launched: | 8 Dec, 1904[5] |
| Commissioned: | Jun, 1905[6] |
| Broken up: | 1920[7] |
H.M.S. Chelmer was one of 36 destroyers of the "River" class.
Service
She and ten other "Rivers" of the Devonport Reserve followed the scout cruiser H.M.S. Skirmisher from Plymouth on 21 August 1905 for a practice cruise along the Devon and Cornish coasts.[8]
In mid-1913, she was serving in the Mediterranean,[9] arriving at Brindisi on 30 May, 1913 under the command of Lt. Cdr. Gerald Charles Dickens.[10]
On 1 July 1913, she left Malta for Corfu with eight other destroyers under the lead of the torpedo gunboat Hussar.[11] On 4 July, the destroyers left Corfu for Platea, sans Hussar.[12]
Under the command of Lieutenant-Commander England, on 8 March 1915, Chelmer removed 400 men from the stricken French battleship Gaulois, transferring them to the light cruiser Dartmouth. She then rescued a further 500 men from the battleship Ocean as the battleship listed 15 degrees. A mine or shellburst lifted the destroyer from the water and flooded her centre boiler room, but did not deter her from her rescue work. Blenheim was able to repair her.[13]
Later, Chelmer was amongst three "Rivers" employed in towing landing boats in to Anzac Cove at the Dardanelles. Incredibly, she was again the destroyer ready to assist the torpedoed battleship Triumph on 25 May, removing nearly her entire crew in an agonizing twenty minutes alongside the foundering behemoth.[14]
Chelmer fired 1,375 rounds from her 12-pdr in supporting Anzac. Her guns were all worn out by the time her work was done.[15]
Captains
Dates of appointment are provided when known.
- Lieutenant & Commander Thomas C. Armstrong, 23 June, 1905[16] – 7 August, 1905[17]
- Lieutenant & Commander Reginald M. R. West, 7 August, 1905[18][19] – 27 February, 1906[20]
- Lieutenant & Commander Charles C. Dix, 10 May, 1906 – 29 January, 1908
- Lieutenant in Command Loftus W. Jones, 29 January, 1908[21][22] – 8 February, 1910[23]
- Lieutenant & Commander Ernest L. Cardale, 8 February, 1910[24] – 21 April, 1910[25]
- Lieutenant-Commander (I) Gerald C. Dickens, 21 April, 1910[26][27] – 9 May, 1911[28]
- Lieutenant-Commander George W. Taylor, 9 May, 1911[29] – late May, 1911[30]
- Commander Berwick Curtis, 10 June, 1911[31] – 29 August, 1911[32]
- Lieutenant-Commander (I) Gerald C. Dickens, November, 1911[33] – 10 November, 1913[34]
- Lieutenant-Commander Hugh T. England, 11 October, 1913[35][36] – 11 March, 1916[37]
- Lieutenant-Commander (I, Gr.) Ralph M. Hall, 16 March, 1916[38] – 21 September, 1916
- Lieutenant in Command Arthur V. Hemming, 21 September, 1916[39] – 3 June, 1918
- Lieutenant in Command Henry A. Simpson, 3 June, 1918[40] – 16 December, 1918
- Acting Lieutenant R.N.R. Douglas C. Way, 8 December, 1918[41][42] – 4 February, 1919[43] (perhaps just first officer)
See Also
Footnotes
- ↑ Dittmar; Colledge. British Warships 1914–1919. p. 59.
- ↑ Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905. p. 100.
- ↑ Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905. p. 100.
- ↑ Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905. p. 100.
- ↑ Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905. p. 100.
- ↑ Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905. p. 100.
- ↑ Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905. p. 100.
- ↑ "Naval & Military Intelligence." The Times (London, England), Tuesday, August 22, 1905, Issue 37792, p.9.
- ↑ The Navy List. (July, 1913). p. 292.
- ↑ "Movements of Ships." The Times (London, England), Monday, Jun 02, 1913; pg. 3; Issue 40227.
- ↑ "Naval & Military Intelligence." The Times (London, England), Thursday, July 3, 1913, Issue 40254, p.6.
- ↑ "Naval & Military Intelligence." The Times (London, England), Monday, July 7, 1913, Issue 40257, p.6.
- ↑ Smith. Hard Lying. pp. 77-8.
- ↑ Smith. Hard Lying. p. 78.
- ↑ Smith. Hard Lying. pp. 78-9.
- ↑ Armstrong Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/46/24. f. 24.
- ↑ Armstrong Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/46/24. f. 24.
- ↑ West Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/44/128. f. 129.
- ↑ The Navy List. (November, 1905). p. 294.
- ↑ West Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/44/128. f. 129.
- ↑ Jones Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/45/161. f. 165.
- ↑ The Navy List. (January, 1910). p. 292.
- ↑ Jones Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/45/161. f. 165.
- ↑ Cardale Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/45/127. f. 131.
- ↑ Cardale Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/45/127. f. 131.
- ↑ Dickens Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/45. f. 138.
- ↑ The Navy List. (April, 1911). p. 292.
- ↑ Dickens Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/45. f. 138.
- ↑ Taylor Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/48. f. 438.
- ↑ Taylor Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/48. f. 438.
- ↑ Curtis Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/44/262. f. 262.
- ↑ Curtis Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/44/262. f. 262.
- ↑ The Navy List. (September, 1913). p. 292.
- ↑ Dickens Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/45. f. 138.
- ↑ England Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/49/69. ff. 36, 216.
- ↑ The Navy List. (October, 1915). p. 392s.
- ↑ England Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/49/69. ff. 36, 216.
- ↑ The Navy List. (October, 1916). p. 393a.
- ↑ The Navy List. (November, 1917). p. 392i.
- ↑ The Navy List. (December, 1918). p. 756.
- ↑ Way Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 240/58/93. f. 93.
- ↑ The Navy List. (February, 1919). p. 756.
- ↑ Way Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 240/58/93. f. 93.
Bibliography
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| <– | "D" Class | Destroyers (UK) | Tribal Class | –> | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
