H.M.S. Aurora (1913)
| H.M.S. Aurora (1913) | |
|---|---|
| Pendant Number: | C1 (1914) 08 (Jan 1918) none (Apr 1918)[1] |
| Builder: | Devonport Royal Dockyard[2] |
| Ordered: | Sep, 1912[3] |
| Laid down: | 24 Oct, 1912[4] |
| Launched: | 30 Sep, 1913[5] |
| Commissioned: | 5 Sep, 1914 |
| Sold: | Aug, 1927[6] |
H.M.S. Aurora was one of eight Arethusa class light cruisers completed for the Royal Navy. She fought in the Battle of Dogger Bank and was later converted to a high speed minelayer.
Service
Aurora was launched on 30 September, 1913 in fine weather under copious amounts of bunting, overshadowed to a degree by the hulking mass of H.M.S. Warspite under construction at an adjoining slip. The assembled dignitaries included Mr. George Lambert, M.P., the Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth and Lady Egerton, the Admiral Superintendent and Mrs. Stokes, Lord Morley, Lady St. Germans, Sir Joseph Bellamy, Lady Mary Parker, Vice-Admiral Hammick and many others. Mrs. George Lambert conducted the naming ceremony, after preliminary ceremonies conducted by the dockyard chaplain. Scheduled for 4.45pm, the launching occurred ten minutes early to rousing cheers. The new ship was expected to enter service in July, 1914.[7]
Aurora commissioned at Devonport on 5 September, 1914.[8]
In September 1914, she was to be assigned to the Fourth Destroyer Flotilla as the flotilla leader, thus demoting Swift to serve as half-flotilla leader,[9] but in November she is not noted as being assigned.[10]
At the Battle of Dogger Bank, she was the leader of the First Destroyer Flotilla.[11]
In May, 1917, she completed a refit to be a minelayer, capable of carrying 70 (or 74) mines.[12] She was able to conduct up to six minelaying operations per month, with an operational radius of 1270 miles.[13] She conducted three operations and laid 212 mines in total.[14]
Aurora was placed in reserve and in 1920 and transferred to the Royal Canadian Navy. She paid off on 30 June, 1922 and was placed in the hands of caretakers.[15]
Alterations
In 1915-1916, she was given a Wise Pressure Telegraphy System Type B to trial for torpedo control. Based on this trial, in 1917, she likely received Chadburn's Torpedo Order Telegraphs and had her Wise gauges reworked to indicate Torpedo Deflection only, as well as having Barr and Stroud instruments provided to acknowledge torpedo orders given via Wise and Chadburn.[16]
Aurora was fitted with a director in December, 1917. This alteration required her pole mast to be replaced with a tripod mast for greater rigidity.[17]
Captains
Dates of appointment are provided when known.
- Captain Alan G. Hotham, 19 June, 1914[18] – 11 November, 1914[19]
- Captain Wilmot S. Nicholson, 11 November, 1914[20][21] – 1 December, 1916[22] (and as Captain (D) of Tenth Destroyer Flotilla)
- Captain Wilfred Tomkinson, 1 December, 1916[23] – 6 July, 1917[24]
- Captain Wilfrid Nunn, 6 July, 1917[25][26] – November, 1917[27]
- Captain Humphrey W. Bowring, 15 November, 1917[28][29] – 15 March, 1919[30]
- Captain Ralph S. Wykes-Sneyd, 1 July, 1920[31] – August, 1920[32] (initially, for Reserve Fleet Exercises)
- Captain Henry G. H. Adams, 1 November, 1920 – 10 September, 1922
See Also
Footnotes
- ↑ Dittmar; Colledge. British Warships 1914–1919. p. 47.
- ↑ Dittmar; Colledge. British Warships 1914–1919. p. 47.
- ↑ Dittmar; Colledge. British Warships 1914–1919. p. 47.
- ↑ Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1906–1921. p. 55.
- ↑ Dittmar; Colledge. British Warships 1914–1919. p. 47.
- ↑ Dittmar; Colledge. British Warships 1914–1919. p. 47.
- ↑ "Naval And Military Intelligence." The Times (London, England), Wednesday, Oct 01, 1913; pg. 11; Issue 40331.
- ↑ The Navy List. (December, 1914). p. 279.
- ↑ Grand Fleet Conferences, 1914. p. 104.
- ↑ Grand Fleet Conferences, 1914. p. 218.
- ↑ March. British Destroyers. p. 123.
- ↑ Dittmar; Colledge. British Warships 1914–1919. p. 117.
- ↑ Annual Report of the Torpedo School, Mining Appendix, 1917-18. Plate 7.
- ↑ Dittmar; Colledge. British Warships 1914–1919. p. 117.
- ↑ The Navy List. (April, 1925). p. 296.
- ↑ Annual Report of the Torpedo School, 1916. p. 30.
- ↑ The Technical History and Index, Vol. 3, Part 23. pp. 11-12.
- ↑ Hotham Service Record The National Archives. ADM 196/44/184. f. 184.
- ↑ Hotham Service Record The National Archives. ADM 196/44/184. f. 184.
- ↑ The Navy List. (December, 1916). p. 392h.
- ↑ Nicholson Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/43. f. 239.
- ↑ Nicholson Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/43. f. 239.
- ↑ Tomkinson Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/44. f. 375.
- ↑ Tomkinson Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/44. f. 375.
- ↑ Nunn Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/43/484. f. 484.
- ↑ The Navy List. (November, 1917). p. 391o.
- ↑ Nunn Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/43/484. f. 484.
- ↑ The Navy List. (February, 1919). p. 736.
- ↑ Bowring Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/43. f. 317.
- ↑ Bowring Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/43. f. 317.
- ↑ Wykes-Sneyd Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/90. f. 164.
- ↑ Wykes-Sneyd Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/90. f. 164.
Bibliography
- Dittmar, F.J.; Colledge, J.J. (1972). British Warships 1914–1919. London: Ian Allan.
- Gray, Randal (editor) (1985). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1906–1921. London: Conway Maritime Press. (on Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk).
- Admiralty, Technical History Section (1919). The Technical History and Index: Fire Control in H.M. Ships. Vol. 3, Part 23. C.B. 1515 (23) now O.U. 6171/14. At The National Archives. ADM 275/19.
| Arethusa Class Light Cruiser | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Arethusa | Aurora | Galatea | Inconstant | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Penelope | Phaeton | Royalist | Undaunted | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| <– | Birmingham Class | Minor Cruisers (UK) | Caroline Class | –> | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
