HMS ''Decoy'' was a

torpedo boat destroyer In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, manoeuvrable, long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against powerful short range attackers. They were originally developed in ...

which served with the

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in home waters. She was launched in 1895 and sunk in a collision with the destroyer in 1904.

Construction

She was built by John I. Thornycroft & Company at Chiswick and was launched on 7 February 1894.''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' (f ...

(London)'', Thursday, 8 February 1894, p.4 Although fitted with multiple

torpedo tube A torpedo tube is a cylindrical device for launching torpedoes. There are two main types of torpedo tube: underwater tubes fitted to submarines and some surface ships, and deck-mounted units (also referred to as torpedo launchers) installed aboa ...

s, her bow tube proved useless in practice as — while running at high attack speeds — the ship was prone to overtake its own torpedo. The clumsy tube also reduced living quarters and made the

bridge A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually somethi ...

very prone to flooding.

Service

''Decoy'' took part in the 1896 British Naval Manoeuvres, attached to the Channel Fleet operation from

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in southern Ireland.Brassey (1897), pp. 141–143, 149. She served as instructional tender to ''Cambridge'', a gunnery school ship, until August 1901. Lieutenant Cyril Asser was appointed in command in February 1902, when she was based at Plymouth as part of the Devonport instructional flotilla, and was succeeded by Lieutenant Henry Ralph Heathcote on 1 July the same year. Heathcote transferred to the following month, and was succeeded in command by Lieutenant L. J. I. Hammond on 8 August 1902. She took part in the

fleet review A fleet review or naval review is an event where a gathering of ships from a particular navy is paraded and reviewed by an incumbent head of state and/or other official civilian and military dignitaries. A number of national navies continue to ...

held at

Spithead Spithead is an area of the Solent and a roadstead off Gilkicker Point in Hampshire, England. It is protected from all winds except those from the southeast. It receives its name from the Spit, a sandbank stretching south from the Hampshire ...

on 16 August 1902 for the

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of King

Edward VII Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910. The second child and eldest son of Queen Victoria and ...

. She acted temporary as tender to ''Cambridge'' again from late August, when her crew transferred to , which took her place in the flotilla. The following month she was reported to be back in the instructional flotilla. ''Decoy'' was lost in a collision with the destroyer off the

Scilly Islands The Isles of Scilly (; kw, Syllan, ', or ) is an archipelago off the southwestern tip of Cornwall, England. One of the islands, St Agnes, is the most southerly point in Britain, being over further south than the most southerly point of the ...

on 13 August 1904. while taking part in night exercises.Kemp (1999), p. 1. One man was killed while the remaining 40 members of the crew were rescued by ''Arun'' and . Courts martial regarding the sinking were subsequently assembled aboard the battleship . The first, on 22 August, attributed blame to the commander of ''Arun'',

Reginald Tyrwhitt Admiral of the Fleet Sir Reginald Yorke Tyrwhitt, 1st Baronet, (; 10 May 1870 – 30 May 1951) was a Royal Navy officer. During the First World War he served as commander of the Harwich Force. He led a supporting naval force of 31 destroyers a ...

. The second, an appeal, was held on 30 August,''

(London)'', Friday, 31 August 1904, p.4 and dismissed the charge of neglect but confirmed the charge of hazarding both vessels.

Notes

References

Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Decoy (1894) Daring-class destroyers (1893) 1894 ships Ships built in Chiswick Maritime incidents in 1904 Ships sunk in collisions Shipwrecks in the Atlantic Ocean Ships built by John I. Thornycroft & Company