USS ''Christopher'' (DE-100) was a

Cannon class destroyer escort The ''Cannon'' class was a class of destroyer escorts built by the United States primarily for antisubmarine warfare and convoy escort service during World War II. The lead ship, USS ''Cannon'', was commissioned on 26 September 1943 at W ...

built for the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

. She served only a short time in the

Atlantic Ocean 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 ...

before being transferred to

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

, in December 1944. She was renamed NAe ''Benevente'' (D-20) and was finally retired and scrapped in 1964.

History

USS ''Christopher'' was named for a Navy Cross recipient, Harold Jensen Christopher, who was killed at

Pearl Harbor Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the Naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Re ...

aboard on 7 December 1941. She was launched 19 June 1943 by Dravo Corp.,

Wilmington, Delaware Wilmington ( Lenape: ''Paxahakink /'' ''Pakehakink)'' is the largest city in the U.S. state of Delaware. The city was built on the site of Fort Christina, the first Swedish settlement in North America. It lies at the confluence of the Christina ...

; sponsored by Mrs. Carl Christopher, mother of Ensign Christopher. D100 commissioned 23 October 1943.

U.S. Navy (1943-1944)

''Christopher'' sailed from

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

, Pennsylvania, 25 December 1943 for duty off

and to

Trinidad Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands of Trinidad and Tobago. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is often referred to as the southernmos ...

on training exercises in convoys and on screening cruisers during their

shakedown Shakedown may refer to: * Shakedown (continuum mechanics), a type of plastic deformation * Shakedown (testing) or a shakedown cruise, a period of testing undergone by a ship, airplane or other craft before being declared operational * Extortion, ...

and training periods. Between 16 January and 11 February, she sailed off

Montevideo Montevideo () is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Uruguay, largest city of Uruguay. According to the 2011 census, the city proper has a population of 1,319,108 (about one-third of the country's total population) in an area of . M ...

, screening the British cable ship

Cambria Cambria is a name for Wales, being the Latinised form of the Welsh name for the country, . The term was not in use during the Roman period (when Wales had not come into existence as a distinct entity). It emerged later, in the medieval period, a ...

as she repaired broken cables.

Brazilian Navy (1944-1964)

Similar duty continued until ''Christopher'' was decommissioned at

Natal, Brazil Natal ( ) is the capital and largest city of the state of Rio Grande do Norte, located in northeastern Brazil. According to IBGE's 2021 estimate, the city had a total population o896,708 making it the 19th largest city in the country. Natal is a ...

, 19 December 1944, and loaned to

under

lend-lease Lend-Lease, formally the Lend-Lease Act and introduced as An Act to Promote the Defense of the United States (), was a policy under which the United States supplied the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union and other Allied nations with food, oil, ...

. She was renamed Benevente (D-20) in Brazilian service. On 30 June 1953, when the loan ended, she was stricken from the U.S

Navy List A Navy Directory, formerly the Navy List or Naval Register is an official list of naval officers, their ranks and seniority, the ships which they command or to which they are appointed, etc., that is published by the government or naval author ...

and transferred to Brazil under the

Mutual Assistance Program Mutual Assistance Program is a generic term denoting any form of international—and, in the United States, between states—cooperation projects, treaties, or joint ventures related to a specific issue, both civilian or military on, for example, he ...

. She was stricken and scrapped in 1964.

Awards

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Christopher (DE-100) Ships built in Wilmington, Delaware 1943 ships Cannon-class destroyer escorts of the United States Navy Bertioga-class destroyer escorts Cannon-class destroyer escorts of the Brazilian Navy World War II frigates of Brazil World War II frigates and destroyer escorts of the United States