H.M.S. Caribbean (1890)
| H.M.S. Caribbean (1890) | |
|---|---|
| Pendant Number: | M.79[1] |
| Builder: | Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company[2] |
| Yard Number: | 348[3] |
| Laid down: | 1889[4] |
| Launched: | 22 May, 1890[5] |
| Commissioned: | 19 Nov, 1914[6] |
| Foundered: | 27 Sep, 1915[7] |
H.M.S. Caribbean was a commercial liner, R.M.S. Dunottar Castle, converted for use as an Armed Merchant Cruiser in the Royal Navy.
Service
She was commissioned by Commander F.H. Walter at Liverpool on 12 December, 1914, with one Lieutenant, R.N., and 183 ratings from Devonport. On 14 December the mercantile crew signed on.[8]
She became an accommodation ship on 1 June, 1915.[9]
When she foundered in bad weather while en route to Scapa, it was thought that the scuttles may have not all been secure. An inquiry was conducted into the loss. Henry Leonard Bethune was found largely to blame, as he knew he had inefficient officers under his command. He was severely reprimanded.
Armament
Caribbean was armed with:[10]
- eight 4.7-in guns
- two 6-pdrs
Captains
Dates of appointment are provided when known.
- Commander Frederic H. Walter, 23 November, 1914[11] – 2 June, 1915
- Commander Henry L. Bethune, 12 August, 1915 – 26 September, 1915 (ship lost under his command)
See Also
- Wikipedia
- Court of Inquiry documents at The National Archives. ADM 156/16.
- Discovery of the wreck in 2004
Footnotes
- ↑ Dittmar; Colledge. British Warships 1914–1919. p. 119.
- ↑ Wikipedia.
- ↑ Wikipedia.
- ↑ Wikipedia.
- ↑ Wikipedia.
- ↑ Dittmar; Colledge. British Warships 1914–1919. p. 119.
- ↑ Wikipedia.
- ↑ Commander F.H. Walter to Rear-Admiral Commanding Tenth Cruiser Squadron. Quoted in J.D. Grainger, The Maritime Blockade of Germany in the Great War: The Northern Patrol, 1914-1918 (2003).
- ↑ Dittmar; Colledge. British Warships 1914–1919. p. 119.
- ↑ Dittmar; Colledge. British Warships 1914–1919. p. 119.
- ↑ The Navy List. (January, 1915). p. 401f.
Bibliography
| British Armed Merchant Cruisers | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Alphabetic List of Ships to appear here... |
