HMS Valerian (1916)

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HMS Valerian

Artist's impression of the loss of HMS Valerian
History
United Kingdom
Name	HMS Valerian
Namesake	Valeriana officinalis
Builder	, South Shields, England
Laid down	1915
Launched	21 February 1916
Homeport	Royal Naval Dockyard, Bermuda
Fate	Foundered off Bermuda in the 1926 Havana–Bermuda hurricane, on 22 October 1926
General characteristics
Class and type	Arabis-class sloop
Displacement	1,250 tons
Length	255 ft 3 in (77.80 m) p/p 267 ft 9 in (81.61 m) o/a
Beam	33 ft 6 in (10.21 m)
Draught	11 ft 9 in (3.58 m)
Propulsion	1 × 4-cylinder triple expansion engine 2 × cylindrical boilers 1 screw
Speed	17 knots (31 km/h; 20 mph)
Range	2,000 nmi (3,700 km; 2,300 mi) at 15 kn (28 km/h; 17 mph) with max. 260 tons of coal
Complement	104
Armament	2 x QF 4.7-inch Mk IV guns 2 x 3-pounder (47 mm) AA 2 x depth charge launchers

HMS Valerian was an Arabis-class sloop of the Royal Navy, built by Charles Rennoldson and Company, South Shields, and launched 21 February 1916. After service in the First World War, she was assigned with sister ships to the America and West Indies Station, based at the Royal Naval Dockyard on Ireland Island in the Imperial fortress colony of Bermuda. She foundered off Bermuda in the 1926 Havana–Bermuda hurricane, on 22 October 1926.

History[]

After the commissioning, the Valerian completed security tasks off the British east coast, being used in 1917 and 1918 mainly to monitor coastal convoy routes and the mine barriers of the North Sea Mine Barrage. The sloop was not involved in combat operations, although it was briefly suspected that the she had sunk the German submarine SM U-99 in the northern North Sea in July 1917. However, this submarine was sunk by the British submarine HMS J2.

Loss[]

HMS Valerian, under her Captain, Commander W. A. Usher, was returning to the HMD Bermuda from providing hurricane relief in the Bahamas (her second post-hurricane mission of mercy to the British West Indies that autumn), trailed by another hurricane. A shortage of coal in the Bahamas had forced her to put to sea with only enough to complete her journey, which meant that her mass, and hence her displacement, was a great deal less than would normally be the case, reducing her stability in rough seas. She last radioed after sighting Gibb's Hill Lighthouse early in the morning of the 22 October 1926, at which time the crew saw no sign of an approaching storm. By the time she reached the Five Fathom Hole, she was being overtaken by the storm and conditions were too rough to risk the channel through the reefs. The crew were forced to turn southward to obtain sea room from the reefline lest they be driven on the rocks, and headed directly into the storm. She fought the storm for more than five hours before she was sunk with the loss of 85 men. The British merchant ship Eastway was also sunk near Bermuda. When the centre of the storm passed over Bermuda, winds increased to 114 mph (183 km/h) at Prospect Camp, whereupon the Army took down its anemometer to protect it. The Royal Naval Dockyard was being hammered and never took its anemometer down. It measured 138 mph (222 km/h) at 13:00 UTC, before the wind destroyed it.^[1] This roughly coincided with the moment Valerian was overwhelmed.

The report of the court martial of the survivors of the Valerian included survivors' descriptions of her loss:^[2]

MEMBERS OF THE COURT.
The Court was composed of: -
Captain A. B. Cunningham, D.S.O., Chief of Staff, North America and West Indies Station, H.M.S. Calcutta;
Captain A. T. Tillard, D.S.O., H.M.S. Malabar.
Captain H. D. Bridges, D.S.O., H.M.S. Curlew.
Captain A. M. Lecky, D.S.O., H.M.S. Colombo.
Commander H. B. Maltby, H.M.S. Calcutta.
Captain O. H. Dawson, H.M.S. Capetown, was Prosecutor, and Paymaster-Commander G. H. DeDenne, D.S.O., H.M.S. Calcutta (Admiral's Secretary), was Deputy Judge Advocate.
Commander W.A. Usher, who was in command of the Valerian, Lieutenant F. G. Hughes, Navigator, and the other 17 members of the crew who were saved, attended the Court as the accused.

References[]