Trawlers of the Royal Navy
Naval trawlers were purpose-built or requisitioned and operated by the Royal Navy (RN), mainly during World Wars I and II. Vessels built to Admiralty specifications for RN use were known as Admiralty trawlers. All trawlers operated by the RN, regardless of origin, were typically given the prefix HMT, for "His Majesty's Trawler".
Summary
First World War
Class[1] | Builder | Dates | Built | Lost | Dspl (tons) |
Length (feet) |
Power (ihp) |
Speed (kts) |
Crew | Armament |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Mersey | Cochrane | 112[2] | 438 | 148 | 600 | 11 | 20 | 2x3in guns | ||
Castle | Smith's Dock | 145 | 360 | 18 | ||||||
Strath | Hall Russell | 167[3] | 311 | 18 | ||||||
The trawler Viola, built in 1906 at Hull and requisitioned September 1914 is the oldest surviving steam trawler in the world. She is currently beached at Grytviken in South Georgia, though there are currently plans to return her to Hull.[4]
Second World War
Class[1] | Builder | Dates | Built | Lost | Dspl (tons) |
Length (feet) |
Power (ihp) |
Speed (kts) |
Crew | Armament |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
*Basset | 18[5] | - | 460 | 12 | 33 | 3in gun | ||||
Tree | 20[6] | 6 | 530 | 164 | 850 | 11.5 | 35 | 12pdr gun, 2x.5in, 2xtwin MG | ||
Dance | 20[7] | 1 | 530 | 161 | 850 | 11.5 | 35 | 4in gun, 3x20mm | ||
Shakespearian | 12[8] | 3 | 545 | 164 | 950 | 12 | 35 | 12pdr gun, 3x20mm | ||
Isles | 112[9] | 12 | 545 | 164 | 850 | 12 | 40 | 12pdr gun, 3x20mm | ||
Portuguese | CUF (Lisbon) Arsenal do Alfeite (Lisbon) Mónica (Aveiro) |
12[10] | 550 | 11 | 30 | 12pdr gun | ||||
Brazilian | 680 | 12.5 | 40 | |||||||
Castle | 625 | 10 | 32 | |||||||
Hills | 8[11] | 2 | 750 | 181 | 970 | 11 | 35 (40?) | 12pdr gun, 3x20mm | ||
Fish | 10[12] | 1 | 670 | 167 | 700 | 11 | 35 | 4in gun, 3x20mm | ||
Round Table | 8[13] | - | 440 | 137 | 600 | 12 | 35 | 12pdr gun, 1x20mm, 2xMG | ||
Military | 9[14] | - | 750 | 193 | 1000 | 11 | 40 | 4in gun, 4x20mm | ||
Requisitioned | 215[15] | 72 | These were ships taken over by the Admiralty |
Requisitioned trawlers
There were also 215 trawlers of no specific class[15] These were commercial trawlers that the Admiralty requisitioned. The Royal Navy classified requisitioned trawlers by manufacturer, although such classes were more diverse than traditional naval classifications. Seventy-two requisitioned trawlers were lost.
See also
- Anti-submarine warfare
- Auxiliary Patrol
- List of mine countermeasure vessels of the Royal Navy
- Minesweepers of the Royal New Zealand Navy
- Royal Naval Patrol Service
- Vorpostenboot, the German equivalent to the trawlers of the Royal Navy
Footnotes
- "Anti-Submarine Trawlers - Fighting the U-boats - uboat.net". uboat.net.
- Dittmar & Colledge 1972, p. 155
- Gardiner 1986, p. 130.
- Blower, Janis (19 May 2015). "World War One-era steam trawler remembered on stamp - Shields Gazette". Archived from the original on 4 January 2017. Retrieved 15 April 2021.
- "Basset class MS Trawlers - Allied Warships of WWII - uboat.net". uboat.net.
- "Tree class MS Trawlers - Allied Warships of WWII - uboat.net". uboat.net.
- "Dance class ASW Trawlers - Allied Warships of WWII - uboat.net". uboat.net.
- "Shakespearian class MS Trawlers - Allied Warships of WWII - uboat.net". uboat.net.
- "Isles class MS Trawlers - Allied Warships of WWII - uboat.net". uboat.net.
- "Naval Trawlers, Admiralty trawlers". www.battleships-cruisers.co.uk.
- "Hill class ASW Trawlers - Allied Warships of WWII - uboat.net". uboat.net.
- "Fish class ASW Trawlers - Allied Warships of WWII - uboat.net". uboat.net.
- "Round Table class MS Trawlers - Allied Warships of WWII - uboat.net". uboat.net.
- "Military class ASW Trawlers - Allied Warships of WWII - uboat.net". uboat.net.
- "ASW Trawlers - Allied Warships of WWII - uboat.net". uboat.net.
References
- Cocker, M P (1993) Mine Warfare Vessels of the Royal Navy - 1908 to date. Airlife Publishing. ISBN 978-1-85310-328-5
- Dittmar, F.J.; Colledge, J.J. (1972). British Warships 1914–1919. Shepperton, UK: Ian Allan. ISBN 0-7110-0380-7.
- Gardiner, R. (1986). All the World's Fighting Ships 1906–1921. Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 978-0-85177-245-5.
- Lund, Paul and Ludlam, Harry (1971) The Trawlers go to War ISBN 978-0-572-00768-3
- Lund, Paul and Ludlam, Harry (1978) Out Sweeps! - The Story of the Minesweepers in World War II. New English Library Ltd ISBN 978-0-450-04468-7
- McKee, Alexander (1973) The Coal-Scuttle Brigade : The splendid, dramatic story of the Channel convoys. New English Library ASIN B000RTAX2Y
- RNPS Book list
- Royal Naval Patrol Service Booklist
- Books about the RNPS
External links
- A/S Trawlers (uboat.net)>
- The Trawlers go to War
- The Battle of Mesco Point
- The Dover Convoys
- The 'Art' of Minesweeping
- Naval Trawlers
- Trawlers lost in the Namsen Fjord
- The Loss of HMT Cap d'Antifer
- The Loss of the Rutlandshire
- HM Trawler Orfasy
- List of all trawlers lost during WW2
- Memorial site to a trawler skipper
- HMS Almond Memorial Site