HMS ''M23'' was a

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

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 ...

monitor Monitor or monitor may refer to: Places * Monitor, Alberta * Monitor, Indiana, town in the United States * Monitor, Kentucky * Monitor, Oregon, unincorporated community in the United States * Monitor, Washington * Monitor, Logan County, West Vir ...

. After service in the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the e ...

and the

Dover Patrol The Dover Patrol and later known as the Dover Patrol Force was a Royal Navy command of the First World War, notable for its involvement in the Zeebrugge Raid on 22 April 1918. The Dover Patrol formed a discrete unit of the Royal Navy based at Dove ...

, she was also served in the British intervention in Russia in 1919. Converted to the RNVR drillship ''Claverhouse'' in 1922, she served in that capacity at "Leith" until 1958.

Design

Intended as a shore bombardment vessel, ''M23''s primary armament was a single 9.2 inch Mk VI gun removed from the HMS ''Grafton''. In addition to her 9.2-inch gun, she also possessed one 12 pounder and one six pound anti-aircraft gun. She was equipped with a four-shaft Bolinder four-cylinder semi-diesel engine with 640 horsepower that allowed a top speed of eleven knots. The monitor's crew consisted of sixty-nine officers and men.

Construction

HMS ''M23'' ordered in March, 1915, as part of the

War Emergency Programme War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular ...

of ship construction. She was laid down at the Sir Raylton Dixon & Co. Ltd shipyard at

Govan Govan ( ; Cumbric?: ''Gwovan'?''; Scots: ''Gouan''; Scottish Gaelic: ''Baile a' Ghobhainn'') is a district, parish, and former burgh now part of south-west City of Glasgow, Scotland. It is situated west of Glasgow city centre, on the south ba ...

in March 1915, launched on 17 June 1915, and completed in July 1915.

World War 1

''M23'' served initially in the

from October 1915. On her return from the Mediterranean in May 1917, ''M23'' had her main 9.2in gun removed, as it was required for artillery use on the Western Front, and a BL Mk III 50-caliber gun was fitted in lieu. ''M23'' then served with the

from June 1917 to June 1918.

Russia

''M23'' next saw service in support of the

North Russian Expeditionary Force The North Russia intervention, also known as the Northern Russian expedition, the Archangel campaign, and the Murman deployment, was part of the Allied intervention in the Russian Civil War after the October Revolution. The intervention brought ...

. Prior to departure, she had her two QF 2-pounder Mark II and her 12pdr (76mm) QF Mk 1 gun replaced by AA guns.

RNVR Claverhouse

''M23'' returned to

Sheerness Sheerness () is a town and civil parish beside the mouth of the River Medway on the north-west corner of the Isle of Sheppey in north Kent, England. With a population of 11,938, it is the second largest town on the island after the nearby town ...

in November 1919. In August 1922 she moved to

Dundee Dundee (; sco, Dundee; gd, Dùn Dè or ) is Scotland's fourth-largest city and the 51st-most-populous built-up area in the United Kingdom. The mid-year population estimate for 2016 was , giving Dundee a population density of 2,478/km2 or ...

, where she became a

Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal, Iowa, a cit ...

(RNVR) drillship, and was renamed ''Claverhouse'' on 16 December 1922. She served in this capacity until sold in 1959. She arrived at

Charlestown, Fife Charlestown (also known as Charlestown-on-Forth) is a village in Fife, Scotland. It lies on the north shore of the Firth of Forth, around west of Limekilns and south-west of Dunfermline. History Charlestown was established in 1756 by Charles Br ...

on 21 April 1959 for breaking up.

References

* *Dittmar, F. J. & Colledge, J. J., "British Warships 1914–1919", (Ian Allan, London, 1972), {{DEFAULTSORT:M23 M15-class monitors 1915 ships World War I monitors of the United Kingdom Royal Navy ship names