HMS Wakeful (1943)
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HMS ''Wakeful'' was a W-class destroyer of the
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 ...
launched in 1943. She saw service during the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...
and was later converted into a Type 15 fast anti-submarine frigate. She was sold for scrap in 1971.


Construction

HMS ''Wakeful'' was a W-class destroyer ordered from
Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company The Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company, Limited was a Scottish shipbuilding company in the Govan area on the Clyde in Glasgow. Fairfields, as it is often known, was a major warship builder, turning out many vessels for the Royal Navy ...
,
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 ...
,
Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...
on 3 December 1941 as part of the 9th Emergency Flotilla. She was laid down on 3 June 1942 under the provisional name of ''Zebra'', but was renamed ''Wakeful'' in January 1943, exchanging names with a destroyer also under construction, which was subsequently launched as . She became the second ship of the name, the first being an Admiralty W-class destroyer sunk by a German
E-Boat E-boat was the Western Allies' designation for the fast attack craft (German: ''Schnellboot'', or ''S-Boot'', meaning "fast boat") of the Kriegsmarine during World War II; ''E-boat'' could refer to a patrol craft from an armed motorboat to a lar ...
off Dunkirk in 1940 during Operation ''Dynamo'', the evacuation from Dunkirk.


Service history


Second World War

''Wakeful'' joined the Home Fleet on 17 February 1944 for sea trials and working up, before entering active service in March and forming part of the 27th Destroyer Flotilla when more ships of the class became available. While serving with the Home Fleet the Flotilla was deployed to support
Operation Tungsten Operation Tungsten was a Second World War Royal Navy air raid that targeted the German battleship ''Tirpitz''. The operation sought to damage or destroy ''Tirpitz'' at her base in Kaafjord in the far north of Norway before she could become ...
, where she served as an escort vessel during the air raids on the in
Altenfjord Altafjord ( en, Alta Fjord;Koop, Gerhard, & Klaus-Peter Schmolke. 2000. ''Heavy Cruisers of the Admiral Hipper Class: Warships of the Kriegsmarine''. Barnsley, UK: Seaforth Publishing, p. 55. no, Altafjorden; fkv, Alattionvuono) is a fjord in A ...
. In May 1944 ''Wakeful'' served as an escort during air attacks on German shipping off Narvik and Stadlandet,
Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the ...
as part of the 27th Destroyer Flotilla. Throughout June and July 1944 she was refitted for redeployment to the
Eastern Fleet Eastern may refer to: Transportation *China Eastern Airlines, a current Chinese airline based in Shanghai * Eastern Air, former name of Zambia Skyways * Eastern Air Lines, a defunct American airline that operated from 1926 to 1991 * Eastern Air ...
remaining with the 27th Destroyer Flotilla for operations in the Indian Ocean based at
Trincomalee Trincomalee (; ta, திருகோணமலை, translit=Tirukōṇamalai; si, ත්‍රිකුණාමළය, translit= Trikuṇāmaḷaya), also known as Gokanna and Gokarna, is the administrative headquarters of the Trincomalee Dis ...
. In October 1944 the
Eastern Fleet Eastern may refer to: Transportation *China Eastern Airlines, a current Chinese airline based in Shanghai * Eastern Air, former name of Zambia Skyways * Eastern Air Lines, a defunct American airline that operated from 1926 to 1991 * Eastern Air ...
initiated diversionary air attacks on the Nicobar Islands during the US amphibious assault of
Leyte Leyte ( ) is an island in the Visayas group of islands in the Philippines. It is eighth-largest and sixth-most populous island in the Philippines, with a total population of 2,626,970 as of 2020 census. Since the accessibility of land has be ...
. In November 1944 ''Wakeful'', with the remainder of the Flotilla, was transferred to the
British Pacific Fleet The British Pacific Fleet (BPF) was a Royal Navy formation that saw action against Japan during the Second World War. The fleet was composed of empire naval vessels. The BPF formally came into being on 22 November 1944 from the remaining ships o ...
upon its formation. In January 1945 she took part in Operation ''Meridian One'' as an escort during air attacks on refineries at Pladjoe, and then took part in Operation ''Meridian Two'' as an escort during air raids on Soengi-Gerong near Palembang. In March 1945 the British Pacific Fleet joined Admiral
Raymond Spruance Raymond Ames Spruance (July 3, 1886 – December 13, 1969) was a United States Navy admiral during World War II. He commanded U.S. naval forces during one of the most significant naval battles that took place in the Pacific Theatre: the Battle ...
's
United States Fifth Fleet The Fifth Fleet is a numbered fleet of the United States Navy. It has been responsible for naval forces in the Persian Gulf, Red Sea, Arabian Sea, and parts of the Indian Ocean since 1995 after a 48-year hiatus. It shares a commander and headq ...
, before joining Admiral
William Halsey William Frederick "Bull" Halsey Jr. (October 30, 1882 – August 16, 1959) was an American Navy admiral during World War II. He is one of four officers to have attained the rank of five-star fleet admiral of the United States Navy, the others ...
's
United States Third Fleet The United States Third Fleet is one of the numbered fleets in the United States Navy. Third Fleet's area of responsibility includes approximately fifty million square miles of the eastern and northern Pacific Ocean areas including the Bering ...
in May 1945. During August 1945 ''Wakeful'' was on escort duties during the
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 ...
and
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 ...
's air raids on Hokkaido and North Honshū. The destroyer was in
Tokyo Bay is a bay located in the southern Kantō region of Japan, and spans the coasts of Tokyo, Kanagawa Prefecture, and Chiba Prefecture. Tokyo Bay is connected to the Pacific Ocean by the Uraga Channel. The Tokyo Bay region is both the most populous ...
during the formal surrender and was available to support the occupation of Japan, remaining in Japanese waters to help with the repatriation of allied nationals before departing for Sydney. She returned to the UK in December 1945, having received the
battle honour A battle honour is an award of a right by a government or sovereign to a military unit to emblazon the name of a battle or operation on its flags ("colours"), uniforms or other accessories where ornamentation is possible. In European military t ...
s 'North Sea 1944' and 'East Indies 1944' for her wartime service.


Post war

Between 1948 and 1950 her captain was Commander Royston Wright. ''Wakeful'' was used as a Boys Training ship until she was converted to a Type 15
anti-submarine warfare Anti-submarine warfare (ASW, or in older form A/S) is a branch of underwater warfare that uses surface warships, aircraft, submarines, or other platforms, to find, track, and deter, damage, or destroy enemy submarines. Such operations are t ...
frigate by
Scotts Shipbuilding and Engineering Company Scotts Shipbuilding and Engineering Company Limited, often referred to simply as Scotts, was a Scottish shipbuilding company based in Greenock on the River Clyde. In its time in Greenock, Scotts built over 1,250 ships. History John Scott fo ...
between 1951 and 1953.Programme, ''Navy Days at Portsmouth August 31st-September 2nd 1968'', p. 15. In 1953 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 ...
to celebrate the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. She was assigned the new pennant number F159 and served in the Mediterranean as a part of the 5th Frigate Squadron until 1957. During this time she took part in Operation Musketeer, the Anglo-French assault on Port Said to take control of the Suez Canal. In 1959 she recommissioned as leader of the Portsmouth Squadron, as a training tender to the Navigational Training School at , and as trials ship to the Admiralty Surface Weapons Establishment (ASWE). On 25 February 1960 she was used for the
burial at sea Burial at sea is the disposal of human remains in the ocean, normally from a ship or boat. It is regularly performed by navies, and is done by private citizens in many countries. Burial-at-sea services are conducted at many different location ...
of
Edwina Mountbatten, Countess Mountbatten of Burma Edwina Cynthia Annette Mountbatten, Countess Mountbatten of Burma, (''née'' Ashley; 28 November 1901 – 21 February 1960), was an English heiress, socialite, relief worker and the last vicereine of India as the wife of (the then) Rear Admira ...
off the coast of
Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...
. On 25 August 1960, the destroyer was carrying out steam trials while moored alongside the minelayer at
Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...
, when steam was let into the ship's turbines, driving the ship forward and breaking ''Apollo''s mooring lines. ''Apollo'' then collided with ''Wakeful'', which also broke free from her moorings and struck the caisson at the entrance to a dock. ''Apollo''s stem was damaged, while ''Wakeful'' suffered buckled plates from the impact by ''Apollo'' and a badly damaged bow from the collision with the caisson. In April 1964 she was part of the 2nd Frigate Squadron and took part in 'Navy Days' in Portsmouth during that year. In the same year ''Wakeful'' was used for the filming of the opening scenes of ''
The Bedford Incident ''The Bedford Incident'' is a 1965 British-American Cold War film starring Richard Widmark and Sidney Poitier and co-produced by Widmark. The cast also features Eric Portman, James MacArthur, Martin Balsam and Wally Cox, as well as early a ...
'', including Sidney Poitier's initial flypast and landing from a
Whirlwind A whirlwind is a weather phenomenon in which a vortex of wind (a vertically oriented rotating column of air) forms due to instabilities and turbulence created by heating and flow (current) gradients. Whirlwinds occur all over the world and i ...
helicopter, when her pennant number F159 is clearly visible. (Some interior scenes were filmed in her sister
Type 15 frigate The Type 15 frigate was a class of British anti-submarine frigates of the Royal Navy. They were conversions based on the hulls of World War II-era destroyers built to the standard War Emergency Programme "utility" design. History By 1945 th ...
.) Between 1966 and 1967 she was fitted with experimental satellite communication equipment and stabilisers for trials. In 1968 she took part in 'Navy Days' at Portsmouth Dockyard and at this time was part of the 2nd Frigate Squadron. On 31 October 1967 she escorted the RMS ''Queen Mary'' out of Southampton on her final voyage to Long Beach for retirement. HMS ''Wakeful'' (Commanded by Lt.Cdr. David Whitehead) also went up the Ouistreham Canal for the 25th Anniversary of D Day in June 1969. Later that year she was replaced by . and Lieutenant Commander David Whitehead was transferred to HMS ''Grenville'' as her new commanding officer at this time.


Decommissioning and disposal

In 1970 ''Wakeful'' was put on the Disposal List, and on 26 February left Portsmouth for de-equipping. She was sold to
Thos. W. Ward Thos. W. Ward Ltd was a Sheffield, Yorkshire, steel, engineering and cement business, which began as coal and coke merchants. It expanded into recycling metal for Sheffield's steel industry, and then the supply and manufacture of machinery. I ...
for scrapping on 10 July 1971 and arrived in tow at
Inverkeithing Inverkeithing ( ; gd, Inbhir Chèitinn) is a port town and parish, in Fife, Scotland, on the Firth of Forth. A town of ancient origin, Inverkeithing was given royal burgh status during the reign of Malcolm IV in the 12th century. It was an imp ...
for demolition on 5 July that year.


Affiliations

;Official affiliation * Darwen, Lancashire


Notes


References

* * * * *


External links


HMS ''Wakeful'' at uboat.net


{{DEFAULTSORT:Wakeful (R59) W and Z-class destroyers Ships built on the River Clyde 1943 ships World War II destroyers of the United Kingdom Cold War destroyers of the United Kingdom Type 15 frigates of the Royal Navy Cold War frigates of the United Kingdom