HMS Maenad (1915)

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For other ships with the same name, see HMS Maenad.

HMS Marmion (1915) IWM SP 809.jpg
History
United Kingdom
NameHMS Maenad
NamesakeMaenad
OrderedSeptember 1914
BuilderWilliam Denny and Brothers, Dumbarton
Yard number1030
Laid down10 November 1914
Launched10 August 1915
Completed12 November 1915
Out of service22 September 1921
FateSold to be broken up
General characteristics
Class and typeAdmiralty M-class destroyer
Displacement
Length265 ft (80.8 m)
Beam26 ft 7 in (8.1 m)
Draught8 ft 7 in (2.62 m)
Propulsion
Speed34 knots (39.1 mph; 63.0 km/h)
Range3,450 nmi (6,390 km) at 15 kn (28 km/h)
Complement76
Armament
  • 3 × QF 4-inch (102 mm) Mark IV guns (3×1)
  • 1 × single 2-pounder (40-mm) "pom-pom" Mk. II anti-aircraft gun (1×1)
  • 4 × 21 in (533 mm) torpedo tubes (2×2)

HMS Maenad was an Admiralty M-class destroyer which served with the Royal Navy during the First World War. The M class were an improvement on the previous L-class destroyer, capable of higher speed. The vessel, launched on 10 August 1915, served in the Battle of Jutland between 31 May and 1 June 1916, attacking both battleships and destroyers of the German High Seas Fleet. However, the vessel was notorious for undertaking a sharp manoeuvre which obstructed other destroyers in the fleet from attacking. Maenad also undertook anti-submarine patrols. During the months running up to the battle, on 15 March, the ship mistakenly attacked the British submarine G12 thinking it was a German boat. The submarine escaped with damages. After the armistice that ended of the war, Maenad was placed in reserve until being sold to be broken up in Germany on 22 September 1921.

Design and development[]

Maenad was one of sixteen Admiralty M-class destroyer destroyers ordered by the British Admiralty in September 1914 as part of the First War Construction Programme.[1] The M-class was an improved version of the earlier L-class destroyer destroyers, designed to reach the higher speed of 36 knots (67 km/h; 41 mph) in order to counter rumoured German fast destroyers.[2]

The destroyer was 265 feet (80.77 m) long overall, with a beam of 26 ft 7 in (8.10 m) and a draught of 8 ft 7 in (2.62 m). displacement was 994 long tons (1,010 t) standard and 1,025 long tons (1,041 t) full load.[3] Power was provided by three Yarrow boilers feeding two Parsons steam turbines rated at 25,000 shaft horsepower (19,000 kW) and driving two shafts, to give a design speed of 34 kn (63 km/h; 39 mph).[4] Three funnels were fitted. 296 long tons (301 t) of oil were carried, giving a design range of 3,450 nautical miles (6,390 km; 3,970 mi) at 15 kn (28 km/h; 17 mph).[5]

Armament consisted of three 4 in (102 mm) Mk IV QF guns on the ship's centreline, with one on the forecastle, one aft on a raised platform and one between the middle and aft funnels. A single 2-pounder (40 mm) pom-pom anti-aircraft gun was carried, while torpedo armament consisted of two twin mounts for 21 in (533 mm) torpedoes.[6] The ship had a complement of 76 officers and ratings.[5]

Initially, the vessel carried no fire control system but during 1916 was equipped with a single Dumaresq and a Vickers range clock.[7] On 12 July 1917, the destroyer was also fitted with a kite balloon to spot submarines.[8]

Construction and career[]

Maenad at the Battle of Jutland

Laid down by William Denny and Brothers of Dumbarton at their shipyard on 10 November 1914 with the yard number 1030, Maenad was launched on 10 August the following year and completed on 12 November.[3] The ship was named after the maenads, the female followers of Dionysus.[9] The vessel was deployed as part of the Grand Fleet, joining the Twelfth Destroyer Flotilla.[10] The ship served in anti-submarine patrols. These were occasionally successful at scaring off attacking submarines but often, as in the case of the merchant ship SS Buffalo, only after they had sunk their target.[11] One attack that was reported as leading to the destruction of an enemy submarine on 15 March 1917 was later found out to be against the British submarine G12, which escaped with holes created by the destroyer's gun but no more damage.[12]

On 30 May, the destroyer sailed as part of the flotilla to confront the German High Seas Fleet in what would be the Battle of Jutland.[13] The flotilla formed behind the First Battle Squadron and on the morning of 1 June encountered the dreadnought battleships of the III Battle Squadron. The destroyer steered away from the rest of the flotilla and unleashed two torpedoes, one of which was claimed to hit and caused an explosion on the fourth ship of the line.[14] However, the German's recorded no loss and instead it is likely that the manoeuvre restricted the ability of the destroyers following to launch their own torpedoes.[15] Maenad also joined in attacks against German torpedo boats, although these too did not lead to any ships being sunk.[16] However, the vessel did manage to rescue some survivors from the destroyer Fortune, which had been sunk during the melee.[17] After the battle, it is likely that many of the other destroyer captains mentioned Maenad in less than favorable terms for obstructing their ability to attack the German fleet.[18]

After the Armistice and the end of the First World War, the Royal Navy returned to a peacetime level of mobilisation, and surplus vessels were culled. Maenad was initially placed in reserve at Devonport.[19] The destroyer was decommissioned and, on 22 September 1921, was sold, along with sister ship Magic, to G Cohen to be broken up in Germany.[20]

Pennant numbers[]

Pennant Number Date
HA7 August 1915[21]
G26 January 1917[22]
G27 January 1918[22]
GA8 September 1918[23]
G23 January 1919[24]

References[]

Citations[]

  1. ^ McBride 1991, p. 34.
  2. ^ Friedman 2009, p. 132.
  3. ^ a b Lyon 1975, p. 689.
  4. ^ Parkes & Prendergast 1969, p. 109.
  5. ^ a b Friedman 2009, p. 296.
  6. ^ Gardiner & Gray 1985, p. 79.
  7. ^ "Fire Control in H.M. Ships". The Technical History and Index: Alteration in Armaments of H.M. Ships During the War. 3 (23): 32. 1919.
  8. ^ Naval Staff Monograph No. 35 1939, p. 177.
  9. ^ Manning & Walker 1959, p. 282.
  10. ^ "Destroyer Flotillas of the Grand Fleet". Supplement to the Monthly Navy List: 12. January 1916. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  11. ^ Naval Staff Monograph No. 35 1939, p. 165.
  12. ^ Naval Staff Monograph No. 34 1933, pp. 263–265.
  13. ^ Jutland: Official Despatches 1920, p. 34.
  14. ^ Jutland: Official Despatches 1920, pp. 24–25.
  15. ^ Brooks 2016, pp. 421–422.
  16. ^ Corbett 1920, p. 420.
  17. ^ Corbett 1920, p. 422.
  18. ^ Brooks 2016, pp. 422.
  19. ^ "Vessels in Reserve at Home Ports and Other Bases", The Navy List, p. 17, July 1919, retrieved 28 April 2021 – via National Library of Scotland
  20. ^ Colledge & Warlow 2006, p. 211.
  21. ^ Bush & Warlow 2021, p. 79.
  22. ^ a b Dittmar & Colledge 1972, p. 65.
  23. ^ Bush & Warlow 2021, p. 69.
  24. ^ Bush & Warlow 2021, p. 62.

Bibliography[]

  • Battle of Jutland, 30 May to 1 June 1916: Official Despatches with Appendices. London: His Majesty's Stationery Office. 1920.
  • Brooks, John (2016). The Battle of Jutland. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-1-107-15014-0.
  • Bush, Steve; Warlow, Ben (2021). Pendant Numbers of the Royal Navy: A Complete History of the Allocation of Pendant Numbers to Royal Navy Warships & Auxiliaries. Barnsley: Seaforth Publishing. ISBN 978-1-526793-78-2.
  • Campbell, John (1998). Jutland: An Analysis of the Fighting. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 978-0-85177-750-4.
  • Colledge, J.J.; Warlow, Ben (2006). Ships of the Royal Navy: The Complete Record of All Fighting Ships of the Royal Navy. London: Chatham Press. ISBN 978-1-93514-907-1.
  • Corbett, Julian S. (1920). Naval Operations: Volume III. History of the Great War. London: Longmans, Green and Co. OCLC 1049894619.
  • Dittmar, F.J.; Colledge, J.J. (1972). British Warships 1914–1919. Shepperton: Ian Allan. ISBN 978-0-71100-380-4.
  • Friedman, Norman (2009). British Destroyers: From Earliest Days to the First World War. Barnsley: Seaforth Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84832-049-9.
  • Gardiner, Robert; Gray, Randal, eds. (1985). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1906–1921. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 978-0-85177-245-5.
  • Lyon, David John (1975). The Denny List: Ship numbers 769-1273. London: National Maritime Museum. OCLC 256517657.
  • Manning, Thomas Davys; Walker, Charles Frederick (1959). British Warship Names. London: Putnam. OCLC 780274698.
  • McBride, Keith (1991). "British 'M' Class Destroyers of 1913–14". In Gardiner, Robert (ed.). Warship 1991. London: Conway Maritime Press. pp. 34–49. ISBN 0-85177-582-9.
  • Monograph No. 34: Home Waters Part VIII: December 1916 to April 1917. Naval Staff Monographs (Historical). Vol. VIII. Naval Staff, Training and Staff Duties Division. 1933.
  • Monograph No. 35: Home Waters Part IX: 1st May 1917 to 31st July 1917. Naval Staff Monographs (Historical). Vol. XIX. Naval Staff, Training and Staff Duties Division. 1939.
  • Parkes, Oscar; Prendergast, Maurice (1969). Jane's Fighting Ships 1919. Newton Abbott: David & Charles. OCLC 907574860.
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