HMS Douglas

While Douglas had only limited modifications between the wars,[10] an early change during the Second World War was the replacement of the amidships 4.7-inch gun by two 2-pounder (40 mm) "pom-pom" autocannon, with the aft funnel shortened to improve the field of fire for the 3 inch anti-aircraft gun.[10][11] Three Oerlikon 20 mm cannon later supplemented the short-range anti-aircraft armament, while a further two Oerlikons finally replaced the 2-pounders.[3] Radar (Type 286, later replaced by Type 290 and Type 271) was fitted during the war,[3] as was HF/DF radio direction-finding gear.[12]

Conversion to a short-range escort involved removal of two more 4.7 inch guns and a bank of torpedo tubes, with the forward gun replaced by a Hedgehog anti-submarine mortar, and the aft gun and tubes removed to allow a heavy depth charge armament of 70 charges.[13]

In September 1939, at the start of the Second World War, Douglas was a member of the 13th Destroyer Flotilla, based at Gibraltar, having joined the flotilla on 22 August.[22][25] On 24 October, Douglas, along with the leader Keppel and the destroyers Watchman and Vidette, set out to hunt the German submarine U-37, which had sunk three merchant ships. Douglas picked up the survivors from one of the ships, the Tafna. A Saro London flying boat from Gibraltar-based No. 202 Squadron RAF alighted in an attempt to rescue survivors, but was unable to take-off again, and was towed back to Gibraltar by Douglas as she returned the survivors to land.[26] On 21 January 1940, Douglas was escorting the Gibraltar bound convoy OG.15F off the coast of Portugal when she spotted a German submarine U-44 and attacked. U-44 sustained only minor damage.[27][10]

On 8 July 1940, Douglas sortied as part of the escort for Force H, which had left Gibraltar to act as a distraction while the British Mediterranean Fleet escorted two convoys between Malta and Alexandria. While the Mediterranean Fleet clashed briefly with Italian forces at the Battle of Calabria, Force H's movements caused Italian submarines, one of which sank the destroyer Escort, to be redeployed away from the convoy, and attracted heavy air attacks.[28] Later that month, Douglas returned to Britain, undergoing condenser repairs before joining to the Home Fleet, based at Scapa Flow, carrying out patrol duties, as well as escorting the fleet and minelaying operations.[22][29][30] On 2 November, Douglas rescued twelve survivors from the naval trawler Wardour, which had been sunk by a mine on 31 October.[31]

In February 1941, Douglas was transferred from the Home Fleet to Western Approaches Command, joining the 2nd Escort Group. On 28 April, Convoy HX 121 came under heavy U-boat attack, and the 2nd Escort Group, including Douglas, was detached from Convoy OB 314 to reinforce HX 121. On approaching the convoy, Douglas rescued 18 survivors from the tanker Capulet, which had been torpedoed by U-552, but failed in an attempt to sink Capulet's abandoned wreck with gunfire.[lower-alpha 3] Douglas then depth-charged and sank the submarine U-65.[lower-alpha 4] In all four ships were lost from HX 121, with one U-boat being sunk.[35][34][36] On 11 September, the 2nd Escort Group, led by Commander W. E. Banks aboard Douglas, left Convoy ON 13F to reinforce Convoy SC 42 under heavy attack off the east coast of Greenland from the U-boats of the wolfpack Markgraf, which had sunk 15 ships from the convoy already. Banks took charge of the convoy's defence, ordering the destroyers Leamington and Veteran to investigate a sighting by an aircraft of a submarine ahead of the Convoy, which resulted in the two destroyers sinking U-207, and managing to drive off several attacking U-boats over the next few days.[37][38]

Douglas after conversion to a short range escort

On 15 January 1942, Douglas was part of the escort of Convoy ON 55 off Iceland in a severe storm (described as the worst seen in Iceland for 15 years), when the American destroyer Mayo, part of an American escort group attempting to relieve the 2nd Escort Group, collided with Douglas, badly damaging both ships, with one seaman lost from Douglas.[39][40][41] After temporary repair by the depot ship Helca at Iceland and returning to the United Kingdom, it was decided to convert Douglas to a Short-Range Escort while she was under repair at Palmers in Jarrow. This involved reducing the ship's gun and torpedo armament to accommodate better anti-submarine weaponry.[22][30]

Douglas was under repair and refit until April 1942, joining the Home Fleet in May. Douglas formed part of the ill-fated Arctic Convoy Convoy PQ 17, but left the convoy to join Convoy QP-13, which was returning from the Soviet Union at the same time as PQ 17 was sailing to the Soviet Union, on 2 July 1942, before PQ 17 had come under serious attack.[42][30][43] The ship continued in escort operations, and in November 1942, rescued 29 survivors from the merchant ship Louise Moller, sunk by U-172 on 13 November south-east of Durban.[36][44] On 11 July 1943, Douglas, together with the destroyer HMCS Iroquois and the frigate Moyola, were escorting a convoy consisting of the troopships California and Duchess of York and the munitions ship Port Fairy, when the convoy was attacked by three Focke-Wulf Fw 200 Condors of Kampfgeschwader 40 300 miles (480 km) off Vigo. Both California and Duchess of York were badly hit, with 46 killed aboard California and 27 aboard Duchess of York, and the blazing ships were sunk by the convoy's escorts early the next day after the survivors were rescued, in order to avoid the attentions of U-boats.[45][46][47][48][lower-alpha 5]

On 31 October 1943, the naval trawler Imperialist depth-charged the German submarine U-732 west of Gibraltar, forcing the submarine to the surface, and scored several gun hits before U-732 managed to submerge, which resulted in Imperialist subjecting U-732 to another heavy depth-charging. After dark, U-732 attempted to escape on the surface but was spotted by an aircraft. On being spotted, the commanding officer of U-732 ordered that the submarine be scuttled, but before the submarine sank, Douglas attacked with 10 more depth charges. Eighteen of U-732's crew were rescued, eight by Douglas, with 31 killed. Imperialist and Douglas were jointly credited with the sinking of U-732.[49][50][51]

Douglas continued in use as a convoy escort until February 1945 when she was paid off into reserve. She was sold for scrap on 20 March 1945 to the British Iron & Steel Corporation (BISCO) who passed the ship on to TW Ward.[30]