French submarine Doris (P84)

Doris (P84) was a British-built V-class submarine loaned to the Free French Naval Forces in 1944 during World War II. She was returned to the Royal Navy in 1947 and scrapped in 1950.

History
United Kingdom
NameHMS Vineyard
NamesakeVineyard, a plantation of grape-bearing vines
OperatorRoyal Navy
Ordered21 May 1942
BuilderVickers-Armstrong, Barrow-in-Furness, England
Laid down21 May 1943
Launched8 May 1944
CommissionedNever
Fate
France
NameDoris
NamesakeDoris, a sea goddess in Greek mythology
OperatorFree French Naval Forces
Acquired30 June 1944 or 1 August 1944 (see text)
Commissioned1 August 1944
FateReturned to Royal Navy 18 November 1947
General characteristics
Class and typeV-class submarine
Displacement
  • 545 long tons (554 t) surfaced
  • 740 long tons (752 t) submerged
Length62.33 m (204 ft 6 in)
Beam4.9 m (16 ft 1 in)
Draught4.65 m (15 ft 3 in)
Propulsion
Speed
  • 11.25 knots (20.8 km/h; 12.9 mph) surfaced
  • 8.5 or 10 knots (15.7 or 18.5 km/h; 9.8 or 11.5 mph) submerged (sources disagree)
Test depth91.4 m (300 ft)
Complement42
Armament

Construction and commissioning

The British Royal Navy ordered Doris on 21 May 1942, with the name HMS Vineyard and the pennant number P84.[1][2] Vineyard′s keel was laid down in the United Kingdom at Barrow-in-Furness in Cumbria, England, a year later on 21 May 1943 by Vickers-Armstrong.[1][2] She was launched on 8 May 1944.[1][2]

The Royal Navy decided to loan Vineyard to the Free French Naval Forces, who initially planned to rename her Laubeuf, then considered Joule before settling on the name Doris.[1] The Free French submarine Minerve had been badly damaged in a friendly fire attack by a Royal Air Force patrol plane in October 1943, and after the Free French decided not to repair her, they gave her crew the option of transferring to Doris, transferring to the submarine Curie, or leaving the French submarine force entirely to serve aboard a Free French surface warship.[1] Minerve′s officers and crew chose to man Doris, and they reported aboard her on 5 June 1944.[1]

On either 30 June[1] or 1 August 1944,[2] according to different sources, the Royal Navy transferred the submarine to the Free French Naval Forces.[1][2] The second French Navy submarine to bear the name Doris, she was commissioned into service in the Free French Naval Forces on 1 August 1944, retaining the British pennant number P84 in French service.[1][2]

Service history

After training and testing on the River Clyde in Scotland, Doris departed the United Kingdom for Oran in French Algeria on 4 October 1944.[1] By February 1945 she was based at Toulon, France, where she supported training activities at the sound school.[1] Her commanding officer in the spring of 1945 was the French Resistance figure Jacques Le Gall. Doris returned to Oran later in 1945.[1]

By 1946 Doris was at La Pallice, France.[1] The French Navy returned her to the Royal Navy on 18 November 1947.[1][2] She made stopovers at the submarine bases at Lorient and Brest, France, before her arrival in the United Kingdom.[1]

In June 1950 Doris was scrapped in the United States at Charlestown in Boston, Massachusetts.[1][2]

References

Citations

Bibliography

  • Akermann, Paul (2002). Encyclopedia of British Submarines 1901–1955. Periscope Publishing Ltd. p. 446. ISBN 1-90438-105-7..
  • J. J. Colledge; Ben Warlow (2010). Ships of the Royal Navy: The Complete Record of all Fighting Ships of the Royal Navy from the 15th Century to the Present. Casemate / Greenhill. p. 433. ISBN 978-1-61200-027-5.
  • Claude Huan; Jean Moulin (16 February 2010). Les sous-marins français 1945–2000 (in French). Rennes: Marines éditions. p. 40. ISBN 978-2-35743-041-9.
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