HMT ''Warwick Deeping'' (H136) was a
naval trawler
Naval trawlers are vessels built along the lines of a fishing trawler but fitted out for naval purposes; they were widely used during the First and Second World Wars. Some—known in the Royal Navy as "Admiralty trawlers"— were purpose-built to ...
of the British
Royal Naval Patrol Service during World War II, sunk off the
Isle of Wight in October 1940.
Ship history
The ''Warwick Deeping'' was built in 1934 by
Cochrane & Sons Shipbuilders of
Selby for the Newington Steam Trawling Company of
Kingston upon Hull as a
North Sea fishing trawler.
She was acquired by the
Admiralty
Admiralty most often refers to:
*Admiralty, Hong Kong
* Admiralty (United Kingdom), military department in command of the Royal Navy from 1707 to 1964
*The rank of admiral
* Admiralty law
Admiralty can also refer to:
Buildings
*Admiralty, Tr ...
in August 1939 and converted into an anti-submarine patrol vessel, armed with a single gun, machine guns,
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, and fitted with
ASDIC, and assigned to the 17th Anti-Submarine Group at
Portsmouth.
At 22:30 on the night of 11–12 October 1940 she was on patrol in the
English Channel, about south of the Isle of Wight, in company with HMS ''Listrac'' (former French armed merchant ship), when she encountered five
German torpedo boats; ''Falke'', ''Wolfe'', ''Greif'', ''Kondor'' and ''Seeadler''
which had sailed from
Cherbourg
Cherbourg (; , , ), nrf, Chèrbourg, ) is a former commune and subprefecture located at the northern end of the Cotentin peninsula in the northwestern French department of Manche. It was merged into the commune of Cherbourg-Octeville on 28 Feb ...
to
sortie
A sortie (from the French word meaning ''exit'' or from Latin root ''surgere'' meaning to "rise up") is a deployment or dispatch of one military unit, be it an aircraft, ship, or troops, from a strongpoint. The term originated in siege warfare. ...
along the English coast. The two British ships soon found themselves under fire, and ''Listrac'', believing that the German ships were Royal Navy vessels
attacking in error switched on her identification lights. She was promptly shelled, causing a large explosion aboard, and then torpedoed and sunk, with the loss of her captain and 11 men. The ''Warwick Deeping'' attempted to escape, but was relentlessly attacked, and hit by a torpedo, which failed to explode. She was hit several times by shells, one of which finally disabled her engines. Now helpless and sinking, the crew abandoned the ship, but instead of delivering the ''
coup de grace'' the German torpedo boats unexpectedly broke off their attack and sailed away. An hour later all 22 crew were rescued.
The ''Warwick Deeping'' lies in of water at and is a popular
wreck diving site.
See also
*
Trawlers of the Royal Navy
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Warwick Deeping, HMT
1934 ships
Anti-submarine trawlers of the Royal Navy
Maritime incidents in October 1940
Ships built in Selby