HMS Penn (1916)

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

HMS Paladin (1916) IWM SP 1403.jpg
History
United Kingdom
NameHMS Penn
NamesakeWilliam Penn
OrderedMay 1915
BuilderJohn Brown & Company, Clydebank
Yard number447
Laid down5 June 1915
Launched8 April 1916
Completed31 May 1916
Out of service31 October 1921
FateSold to be broken up
General characteristics
Class and typeAdmiralty M-class destroyer
Displacement
  • 860 long tons (870 t) normal
  • 1,021 long tons (1,037 t) full load
Length273 ft 8 in (83.4 m)
Beam26 ft 9 in (8.2 m)
Draught16 ft 3 in (4.95 m)
Propulsion
Speed34 knots (63.0 km/h; 39.1 mph)
Range3,450 nmi (6,390 km; 3,970 mi) at 15 kn (28 km/h; 17 mph)
Complement76
Armament
  • 3 × QF 4 in (102 mm) Mark IV guns (3×1)
  • 1 × 2-pounder (40 mm) "pom-pom" Mk. II anti-aircraft gun (1×1)
  • 4 × 21 in (533 mm) torpedo tubes (2×2)

HMS Penn was a Admiralty M-class destroyer which served with the Royal Navy during the First World War. The M class were an improvement on the preceding L class, capable of higher speed. The ship was named after William Penn, the father of the founder of Pennsylvania. Launched on 8 April 1916, the vessel served with the Grand Fleet forming part of the screen for the dreadnought battleships of the 1st Battle Squadron and escorting the aircraft carrier Furious in battle. The destroyer participated in the Actions of 19 August 1916 and 16 October 1917, as well as forming part of the distant support during the Second Battle of Heligoland Bight. Penn was also instrumental in rescuing the survivors from the light cruiser Nottingham, sunk by a German submarine. After the Armistice that ended the war, the destroyer was placed in reserve and subsequently sold to be broken up on 9 May 1921.

Design and development[]

Penn was one of sixteen Admiralty M-class destroyers ordered by the British Admiralty in May 1915 as part of the Fifth War Construction Programme.[1] The M-class was an improved version of the earlier L-class destroyer destroyers, designed to reach a higher speed in order to counter rumoured German fast destroyers, although it transpired these vessels did not exist.[2]

The destroyer was 273 feet 8 inches (83.41 m) long overall, with a beam of 26 feet 9 inches (8.15 m) and a draught of 16 feet 3 inches (4.95 m). Displacement was 860 long tons (870 t) normal and 1,021 long tons (1,037 t) full load.[3] Power was provided by three Yarrow boilers feeding two Brown-Curtis steam turbines rated at 25,000 shaft horsepower (19,000 kW) and driving two shafts, to give a design speed of 34 knots (63 km/h; 39 mph).[4] Three funnels were fitted and 296 long tons (301 t) of oil carried, giving a design range of 3,450 nautical miles (6,390 km; 3,970 mi) at 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph).[5]

Armament consisted of three 4-inch (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]

Construction and career[]

Penn was laid down by John Brown & Company of Clydebank, alongside sister ship Peregrine, on 9 June 1915 with the yard number 447, launched on 8 April the following year and completed on 31 May.[3] The vessel was the first to be named after the naval officer Admiral William Penn, the father of the founder of Pennsylvania.[7] The vessel was deployed as part of the Grand Fleet, joining the Thirteenth Destroyer Flotilla.[8]

The destroyer spent most of the war as part of the screen for the 1st Battle Squadron. A key role was to protect the dreadnought battleships of the squadron from German submarines. As part in the Action of 19 August 1916, the ship was dispatched to support the light cruiser Nottingham, which was sunk by torpedo launched by the submarine U-52.[9] The destroyer sped to the spot to pick up survivors, weaving to avoid the same fate. Despite the cold water, the destroyer managed to save most of the crew.[10] Returned to screen the squadron, Penn subsequently sighted a submarine and helped to fend off attacks by Zeppelin airships against the British warships.[11]

On 18 January 1917, the destroyer, equipped with anti-submarine paravanes, was one of six used for high speed sweeps of Dogger Bank, although no submarines were found during the operation.[12] On 16 October, the destroyer participated in the Action off Lerwick, escorting the aircraft carrier Furious, which launched aircraft to search for enemy ships.[13] Penn rejoined the screen for the 1st Battle Squadron in time for the Second Battle of Heligoland Bight the following month.[14] The squadron did not engage with the German forces, which was able to escape through a minefield.[15]

After the armistice, the Royal Navy returned to a peacetime level of mobilisation and Penn was declared superfluous to operational requirements. On 17 October 1919, the destroyer was reduced and placed in reserve.[16] However, this did not last long and, on 31 October 1921, Penn was sold to be broken up to W. & A.T. Burdon.[17]

Pennant numbers[]

Pennant number Date
G50 September 1915[18]
F19 January 1917[19]
F16 January 1918[19]
G74 March 1918[20]
G25 January 1919[21]

References[]

Citations[]

  1. ^ McBride 1991, p. 34.
  2. ^ Friedman 2009, p. 132.
  3. ^ a b Johnston 2014, p. 189.
  4. ^ Parkes & Prendergast 1969, p. 109.
  5. ^ a b Friedman 2009, p. 296.
  6. ^ Gardiner & Gray 1985, p. 79.
  7. ^ Manning & Walker 1959, p. 338.
  8. ^ "Destroyer Flotillas of the Grand Fleet". Supplement to the Monthly Navy List: 12. July 1916. Retrieved 21 December 2021.
  9. ^ Newbolt 1928, p. 35.
  10. ^ Naval Staff Monograph No. 33 1927, p. 100.
  11. ^ Newbolt 1928, p. 39.
  12. ^ Naval Staff Monograph No. 34 1933, p. 91.
  13. ^ Newbolt 1931, pp. 150–151.
  14. ^ Newbolt 1931, p. 169.
  15. ^ Newbolt 1931, p. 176.
  16. ^ "Penn", The Navy List, p. 823, July 1920, retrieved 21 December 2021 – via National Library of Scotland
  17. ^ Colledge & Warlow 2006, p. 264.
  18. ^ Dittmar & Colledge 1972, p. 67.
  19. ^ a b Bush & Warlow 2021, p. 46.
  20. ^ Bush & Warlow 2021, p. 66.
  21. ^ Bush & Warlow 2021, p. 63.

Bibliography[]

  • 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.
  • 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.
  • Johnston, Ian (2014). A Shipyard at War: Unseen Photographs of John Brown & Co. Ltd, Clydebank, 1914–18. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-1-59114-189-1.
  • 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 978-0-85177-582-1.
  • Monograph No. 33: Home Waters Part VII: June 1916 to November 1916. Naval Staff Monographs (Historical). Vol. XVII. Naval Staff, Training and Staff Duties Division. 1927.
  • Monograph No. 34: Home Waters Part VIII: December 1916 to April 1917. Naval Staff Monographs (Historical). Vol. XVIII. 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.
  • Newbolt, Henry (1928). Naval Operations: Volume IV. History of the Great War. London: Longmans, Green and Co. OCLC 1049894132.
  • Newbolt, Henry (1931). Naval Operations: Volume V. History of the Great War. London: Longmans, Green and Co. OCLC 220475309.
  • Parkes, Oscar; Prendergast, Maurice (1969). Jane's Fighting Ships 1919. Newton Abbott: David & Charles. OCLC 907574860.
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