The ''Hastings'' class, also known as the ''Folkestone'' class, was a class of
sloop which were built for 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 the
Royal Indian Navy
The Royal Indian Navy (RIN) was the naval force of British India and the Dominion of India. Along with the Presidency armies, later the Indian Army, and from 1932 the Royal Indian Air Force, it was one of the Armed Forces of British India.
F ...
in the interwar period. In total five ships were built, and went on to see service in 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 ...
.
Design
The ''Hastings'' were a follow on of the previous and utilised features developed from the lessons learnt from the convoy escorts of the
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 ...
. They were fitted out as fleet
minesweepers
A minesweeper is a small warship designed to remove or detonate naval mines. Using various mechanisms intended to counter the threat posed by naval mines, minesweepers keep waterways clear for safe shipping.
History
The earliest known usage of ...
, but were intended to be multifunctional vessels. Features included a high, sustained forecastle to improve operations in high seas, and they were fitted with turbine machinery to improve performance. This turned out to be a drawback as the turbine machinery could not be mass-produced and the design was superseded by the Second World War in favour of classes that could be quickly brought into service.
Service
Five ships were built in total, four for the Royal Navy and one for the Royal Indian Navy. They were launched in 1930 and all saw service in the Second World War. was disarmed before the outbreak and was rearmed with a high angle anti-aircraft gun, a 12-pounder gun and 15
depth charges, this number later being increased to 80. One, was lost during the war after being torpedoed by . The remaining Royal Navy ships were decommissioned after the war and had all been scrapped by 1949. The sole Indian ship, was later involved in
the Royal Indian Navy Mutiny, and was subsequently transferred to the
Pakistan Navy in 1948 on its formation, and was renamed ''Karsaz''. She was broken up in 1951.
References
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External links
Hastings class at Uboat.net
{{Frigates of the Indian Navy
Sloops of the Royal Navy
Sloop classes