HMS ''Calder'' was a Captain class frigate of the Royal Navy during World War II. It was named after Admiral Sir

Robert Calder Admiral Sir Robert Calder, 1st Baronet, (2 July 174531 August 1818) was a British naval officer who served in the Seven Years' War, the American Revolutionary War, the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars. For much of his career h ...

, Bt. KCB, who was appointed Captain of the Fleet to Admiral John Jervis in 1796, and saw action at the battle of Cape St Vincent on 14 February 1797. Originally destined for the US Navy as a

turbo-electric A turbo-electric transmission uses electric generators to convert the mechanical energy of a turbine (steam or gas) into electric energy, which then powers electric motors and converts back into mechanical energy that power the driveshafts. Tur ...

(TE) type ''Buckley''-class destroyer escort, HMS ''Calder'' was provisionally given the name USS ''Formoe''. However, the delivery was diverted to the Royal Navy before the launch.

Actions

HMS ''Calder'' served exclusively with the 4th Escort Group, earning battle honours for service in the

North 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 and ...

. On 26 January 1945 the submarine was sunk in the Irish Sea south of the Isle of Man, at position by the frigates , , HMS ''Calder'' and . ''U-1051'' was forced to the surface by the use of

depth charge A depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare (ASW) weapon. It is intended to destroy a submarine by being dropped into the water nearby and detonating, subjecting the target to a powerful and destructive Shock factor, hydraulic shock. Most depth ...

s. A gun battle then ensued, with ''U-1051'' finally sinking after it had been rammed by HMS ''Aylmer''. This action resulted in the loss of all hands (47) from the crew of ''U-1051''. It was entirely clear that the ramming of U-1051 by HMS ''Aylmer'' was intentional and that Cdr B.W.Taylor was not removed from command of HMS ''Aylmer'' shortly after this incident (see the article on for more information). On 8 April 1945 the submarine was sunk in the North Atlantic south-west of Ireland, at position , by the frigates HMS ''Bentinck'' and HMS ''Calder''. ''U-774'' was attacked by the use of

s after its periscope was spotted by a lookout on HMS ''Calder''. This action resulted in loss of all hands (44) aboard ''U-774''.

General information

*Pennant (UK): K 349 *Pennant (US): DE 58

References

* ''The Captain Class Frigates in the Second World War'' by Donald Collingwood. published by Leo Cooper (1998), . * ''The Buckley-Class Destroyer Escorts'' by Bruce Hampton Franklin, published by Chatham Publishing (1999), . *

External links

Uboat.net page for HMS Calder

captainclassfrigates.co.uk
{{DEFAULTSORT:Calder (K349) Captain-class frigates Buckley-class destroyer escorts World War II frigates of the United Kingdom Ships built in Hingham, Massachusetts 1943 ships