The British 2nd Destroyer Flotilla (also styled as Second Destroyer Flotilla) was a naval formation of the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

from 1909 to 1943 and again from 1945 to 1946.

History

The 2nd Destroyer Flotilla originated in early 1907 as a part of a Home Fleet Flotilla within the

Home Fleet The Home Fleet was a fleet of the Royal Navy that operated from the United Kingdom's territorial waters from 1902 with intervals until 1967. In 1967, it was merged with the Mediterranean Fleet creating the new Western Fleet. Before the First ...

. In February 1909, that Home Fleet Flotilla was split into the 2nd and 4th Destroyer Flotillas. The new flotilla was then assigned to the 2nd Division of the Home Fleet from February 1909 to May 1912. From May 1912 to July 1914 the flotilla was part of the Home Fleet's

First Fleet The First Fleet was a fleet of 11 ships that brought the first European and African settlers to Australia. It was made up of two Royal Navy vessels, three store ships and six convict transports. On 13 May 1787 the fleet under the command ...

. It was then transferred to the

Grand Fleet The Grand Fleet was the main battlefleet of the Royal Navy during the First World War. It was established in August 1914 and disbanded in April 1919. Its main base was Scapa Flow in the Orkney Islands. History Formed in August 1914 from the ...

from August 1914 to April 1916. After its stay with the Grand Fleet the flotilla was assigned to the

Plymouth Command The Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth, was a senior commander of the Royal Navy for hundreds of years. Plymouth Command was a name given to the units, establishments, and staff operating under the admiral's command. Between 1845 and 1896, this offic ...

from April 1916 to November 1917 and was stationed at Devonport. It was next assigned to the

Coast of Ireland Station The Commander-in-Chief, Coast of Ireland was both an admiral's post and a naval formation of the Royal Navy. It was based at Queenstown, now Cobh, in Ireland from 1797 to 1919. The admiral's headquarters was at Admiralty House, Cobh. History T ...

from November 1917 to November 1918 based at

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry (), is the second-largest city in Northern Ireland and the fifth-largest city on the island of Ireland. The name ''Derry'' is an anglicisation of the Old Irish name (modern Irish: ) meaning 'oak grove'. The ...

. After World War One the flotilla was assigned to the Atlantic Fleet from December 1918 to November 1924. In December 1924 it was sent to join the Mediterranean Fleet where it stayed until June 1932. It was recalled back to home waters as part of the Home Fleet between from June 1932 to August 1936. It was sent back to join the

Mediterranean Fleet The British Mediterranean Fleet, also known as the Mediterranean Station, was a formation of the Royal Navy. The Fleet was one of the most prestigious commands in the navy for the majority of its history, defending the vital sea link between t ...

from August 1936 until September 1939. The flotilla was gradually dispersed to the

South Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...

and

West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greater A ...

, and in January 1940 it was reformed once more as part of the Home Fleet until May 1940. On 1 June 1940 it was sent to join the Mediterranean Fleet until 1 August 1942. It was next transferred to the

Eastern Fleet Eastern may refer to: Transportation *China Eastern Airlines, a current Chinese airline based in Shanghai * Eastern Air, former name of Zambia Skyways *Eastern Air Lines, a defunct American airline that operated from 1926 to 1991 *Eastern Air L ...

where it remained until June 1943 when it was disbanded. The flotilla was re-established in July 1944 and assigned to the Home Fleet until 1947. Its final posting was with the Mediterranean Fleet until 1951 when it was re-designated as the 2nd Destroyer Squadron.

Operational deployments

Administration

A Captain (D) afloat or Captain Destroyers afloat is an operational commander responsible for the command of a destroyer flotilla or squadron.

Captains (D) afloat 2nd Destroyer Flotilla

Incomplete list of post holders included:

References

Sources

*Harley, Simon; Lovell, Tony. (2018) "Second Destroyer Flotilla (Royal Navy) - The Dreadnought Project". www.dreadnoughtproject.org. Harley and Lovell. * Watson, Dr Graham. (2015) Royal Navy Organisation and Ship Deployments 1900-1914". www.naval-history.net. G. Smith. * Watson, Dr Graham. (2015) "Royal Navy Organisation and Ship Deployment, Inter-War Years 1914-1918". www.naval-history.net. Gordon Smith. * Watson, Dr Graham. (2015) "Royal Navy Organisation in World War 2, 1939-1945". www.naval-history.net. Gordon Smith. {{Destroyer flotillas of the Royal Navy, state=collapsed Destroyer flotillas of the Royal Navy Military units and formations established in 1909 Military units and formations disestablished in 1943