V-Class
destroyers ordered from
Fair-field of Govan, Glasgow with the 8th
Emergency Flotilla on 1st September
1941. She was laid down on 26th June 1942 and
launched on 22nd April 1943 as
the 2nd RN warship to carry this name previously
used for a WW1 destroyer lost
in 1919. She had been adopted by the civil
community of St. Albans,
Hertfordshire after a successful WARSHIP WEEK
National Savings campaign in
February 1942. Build was completed on 10th
December 1943 and the ship was fitted for
Arctic service.
B a t t l
e H o n o u r s
ARCTIC 1944
-
NORMANDY 1944 - NORWAY 1944 -
MALAYA 1945 - BURMA 1945
H e r a l d i
c D a t a
Badge: On a Field
Blue, in
front of a saltire coupled Gold
a sword erect Proper pommel and hilt also Gold.
D e
t a i l s o f
W a r S e r v i c e
(for more
ship information,
go
to
Naval History Homepage
and
type name in Site Search)
1 9 4 3
December Contractor's
sea trials and commissioned for service in 26th
Destroyer
Flotilla.
12th
Build completion and
commenced Acceptance Trials.
On completion of
trials and storing took passage to Scapa Flow to
work-up with ships of
Home Fleet.
Joined 26th
Destroyer Flotilla.
(Note: This
comprised HM Destroyers ALGONQUIN (RCN),
KEMPENFELT, SIOUX
(RCN),
VENUS, VERULAM, VIGILANT and VIRAGO).
During work-up
took part in Home Fleet offensive sweep off
Norway as screen for HM
Cruisers BELLONA
and KENT with HM Destroyers MYNGS, ZAMBESI and
ALGONQUIN
(RCN) (Operation
COUNTERBLAST).
1 9 4 4
January Worked-up
with Home Fleet at Scapa Flow.
Deployed
with
Flotilla in Home Fleet after work-up.
February
6th
Joined escort for
returning Convoy RA56 from Murmansk.
9th
Detached from RA56
before arrival at Loch Ewe.
22nd
Joined escort for Russian Convoy JW57
with HM Cruiser BLACK PRINCE and 13 other
destroyers from
the Home Fleet.
28th
Detached from JW57 on
arrival at Kola Inlet.
March
2nd
Joined Destroyer Escort for returning Convoy
RA57 with HMS BLACK PRINCE
and HM
Escort Aircraft
Carrier CHASER with Home Fleet destroyers.
7th
Detached from RA57
before arrival at Loch Ewe.
April
3rd
Escorted HM Battleship
ANSON, HM Aircraft Carriers VICTORIOUS, FURIOUS,
HM
Escort Carriers
SEARCHER, EMPEROR, PURSUER and FENCER with HM
Cruisers
ROYALIST, BELFAST,
SHEFFIELD and JAMAICA for air attacks attack on
German
battleship
TIRPITZ laying in Altenfjord..
(Operation
TUNGSTEN - See Naval Staff History and CONVOY!
by P Kemp.
This operation
also covered passage of
Russian Convoy JW58).
20th
Independent passage to
Kola Inlet to embark personnel and escort ships
awaiting convoy
to UK.
28th
Embarked 17 personnel
for passage and joined escort for
returning
Convoy RA59 with
HM Cruiser
DIADEM, HMS FENCER and HM Destroyers BOADICEA,
ULYSSES,
VIRAGO, WALKER
and WHITEHALL of Home Fleet.
May
Nominated
for duty with Force S in support of Normandy
landings.
(Operation
NEPTUNE - For details see OPERATION NEPTUNE by K
Edwards and LANDINGS
IN NORMANDY June
1944 (HMSO).).
3rd
Detached with above
ships before arrival in UK.
Took part in Home
Fleet preparatory exercises including
bornbardment practices.
(Note: Allocated
target in Fire Support Plan - Lion-sur-Mer)
June
5th
Passage to Solent to
join Force S.
Sailed from Solent as escort for HM Landing Ship
(Headquarters) LARGS with HM Destroyers
VIRAGO, KELVIN, EGLINTON and five Motor Torpedo
Boats as Convoy S7.
See references.)
6th
Provided naval gunfire support
in accordance with Fire Plan.
7th
Deployed for
interception patrol and naval gunfire support in
Eastern Task Force area.
27th
On release from NEPTUNE
took passage to Scapa Flow to resume Flotilla
duties in Home Fleet.
July
Flotilla
duties in Home Fleet in continuation.
August
10th
Joined screen for HM
Aircraft Carrier INDEFATIGABLE, HM Escort
Carriers, NABOB, HM
Cruisers KENT and
DEVONSHIRE with ships of Flotilla for series of
air attacks on airfields at
Gossen, aircraft
minelay and shipping strikes off Norway
(Operation
OFFSPRING - See Naval Staff History (MINING)).
September
12th
Escorted HMS FURIOUS
and HMS TRUMPETER with HMS DEVONSHIRE, HM
Destroyers
MYNGS, MARNE,
MUSKETEER, ALGONQUIN and VIGILANT for minelay
off Norway.
Planned shipping
strike by aircraft was cancelled but convoy
sighted in area was attacked.
(Operation
BEGONIA - See above reference).
17th
Deployed with Flotilla
and other Home Fleet destroyers to escort Convoy
JW60.
Joined
screen for HM Battleship RODNEY, HM Cruiser
DIADEM, HM Escort Carriers
CAMPANIA and
STRIKER.
23rd
Detached on arrival at
Kola Inlet.
28th
Joined escort for
returning Convoy RA60 with HMS RODNEY.
October
3rd
Detached for passage to
Scapa Flow.
23rd
Escorted HM Aircraft
Carrier IMPLACABLE with HM Cruiser BELLONA and
Home Fleet
destroyers
during air attacks
on Sorreisa and Bardufoss airfield.
28th
Escorted HMS IMPLACABLE
with HM Cruiser MAURITIUS and Home Fleet
destroyers for
air strikes on
shipping at Bodo and Kristiansund.
November
12th
Escorted HMS KENT and
HMS BELLONA with Home Fleet destroyers for
shipping strike near
Egersund during
which several ships and escorts were sunk.
December
Nominated
for service with Eastern Fleet with Flotilla.
1 9 4 5
January
Refit
and preparation for foreign service at
commercial shipyard in
Leith.
February
Passage
to Trincomalee with ships of D26.
March
Joined
Eastern Fleet and exercised for Fleet escort,
patrol and military
support duties.
(For details of
Eastern Fleet deployments see OPERATION PACIFIC
by E Gray and WAR
WITH
JAPAN (HMSO).
April
8th
Joined escort for HM Battleship QUEEN
ELIZABETH, French battleship RICHELIEU, HM
Cruisers LONDON
and CUMBERLAND with HM Destroyers SAUMAREZ,
VIGILANT,
VIRAGO and VENUS
(Operation SUNFISH).
11th
Bombardment of Sabang,
Sumatra
14th Deployed
as screen for
HMS QUEEN ELIZABETH, FS RICHELIEU and HMS LONDON
during
to air
operations. One aircraft was
lost and one enemy plane shot down.
15th (For
details see WAR WITH JAPAN Volume
VI (HMSO).)
16th
Remained with screen during during
offensive sweep against coastal shipping by HMS
VENUS
and HMS VIRAGO.
20th
Returned to Trincomalee with ships of
Force 62.
27th Sailed
with Slips of East Indies Fleet
as Force 63 for operations in Andaman Sea to
prevent any
interference
with landings at Rangoon by Japanese ships or
aircraft
.
(Operation
BISHOP - For details including names of ships
involved see the above
reference.)
(Note:
Operations
were conducted to prevent aircraft from bases in
the Nicobars and Andamans
carrying
out attacks and to destroy any shipping found in
the area.
28th Sailed
from Trincomalee to join Eastern Fleet
escort carriers.
May
1st
Escorted HM Cruisers
PHOEBE and ROYALIST, HM Escort Carriers EMPEROR,
KHEDIVE,
HUNTER and
STALKER with HM Destroyers SAUMAREZ, VENUS,
VIRAGO and
VIGILANT which
were covering Rangoon landings (Operation
DRACULA.
3rd
On release from DRACULA
rejoined Force 63 in Andaman Sea..
6th Deployed
with HM Destroyers ROTHERHAM,
SAUMAREZ, VENUS and VIGILANT in
screen for HMS
QUEEN ELIZABETH, FS RICHELIEU, HM Escort
Carriers SHAH and
EMPRESS, HM
Cruisers CUMBERLAND, SUFFOLK, CEYLON and TROMP
during
bombardment
of Car
Nicobar and Port Blair (Continuation of
Operation BISHOP).
9th
Returned to Trincomalee
and joined Force 51 with Eastern Fleet
destroyers to intercept Japanese
warships sighted
in the entrance to the Malacca Straits
(Operation DUKEDOM).
(Note: Force 51
included ships of Force 63 plus ships of the
21st Aircraft Carrier Squadron).
10th Sailed
from Trincomalee for Ten Degree
Channel.
14th
Detached with HM
Destroyers SAUMAREZ, VIGILANT, VENUS and VIRAGO
to search for
enemy craft north
of Sumatra (Operation MITRE).
15th
In action with Japanese
cruiser HAGURO and destroyer KAMIKAZE during
which HAGURO
was sunk SW of
Penang.
(For full details
of this brilliantly executed night torpedo
attack by the 26th Destroyer
Flotilla
see
"SINK THE HAGURO"
by John Winton and WAR WITH JAPAN.)
June
Escorted
HMS ROYALIST during series of offensive sweeps
in Indian Ocean.
July
Deployed
in support of military operations in Burma and
Fleet screening.
Took part in
exercises and preparation for support of planned
allied landings in Malaya
(Operation
ZIPPER).
(Note: This
operation was delayed until after VJ Day by US
insistence. and problems
relating
to
release of long serving personnel from from SEAC
in the PYTHON Scheme
See
ENGAGE THE ENEMY MORE CLOSELY and Final Report
of Supreme
Commander
SEAC (HMSO)
August Deployed
with escort for Eastern Fleet ships off Malaya
and Burma prior
to the Malayan coast
landings.
September
4th
Sailed from Trincomalee
with Escort Carriers to join Eastern Fleet ships
off Malayan coast.
6th
Joined convoy JME1F
Diverted to take
passage to Singapore.
P o s t W a r N o t e s
HMS VERULAM
returned to UK after
the Japanese surrender at Singapore and was
deployed with the Londonderry
Flotilla in 1946. The next year she joined the
Mediterranean Fleet and served
in the 3rd Destroyer Flotilla based in Malta for
two years. She was selected
for conversion to Type 15 Anti-Submarine Frigate
in 1951 and after completion
by HM Dockyard , Portsmouth she was deployed for
Arctic Trials. After
attendance at the Coronation Review in 1953 she
was placed in
Reserve. The ship re-commissioned in 1958 for
duty as Trials Ship attached to
the Weapons Research Establishment at Portland
and continued in that role until
1970 when she was placed on the Disposal List.
Sold to BISCO for demolition by
J Cashmore on 1st September 1972 she arrived in
tow at the breakers’ yard in
Newport on 23rd September that year.
Addendum
CONVOY
ESCORT MOVEMENTS of
HMS
VERULAM
by
Don Kindell
These
convoy lists have not been cross-checked with
the text above
|
|
|
|
|
Date
convoy sailed
|
Joined
convoy as escort
|
Convoy No.
|
Left
convoy
|
Date
convoy arrived
|
|
|
|
|
|
03/02/44
|
06/02/44
|
RA
056
|
09/02/44
|
11/02/44
|
20/02/44
|
22/02/44
|
JW
057
|
28/02/44
|
28/02/44
|
02/03/44
|
02/03/44
|
RA
057
|
07/03/44
|
10/03/44
|
28/04/44
|
28/04/44
|
RA
059
|
03/05/44
|
06/05/44
|
15/09/44
|
17/09/44
|
JW
060
|
23/09/44
|
23/09/44
|
28/09/44
|
28/09/44
|
RA
060
|
03/10/44
|
05/10/44
|
04/06/45
|
10/06/45
|
OW
006/2
|
13/06/45
|
13/06/45
|
23/06/45
|
23/06/45
|
WO
007
|
25/06/45
|
25/06/45
|
29/06/45
|
05/07/45
|
OW
007/2
|
08/07/45
|
08/07/45
|
|
|
|
|
|
(Note
on Convoys)
|