''Mary B Mitchell'' was a British

schooner A schooner () is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than the mainmast. A common variant, the topsail schoon ...

completed in 1892 that served as a

Q-ship Q-ships, also known as Q-boats, decoy vessels, special service ships, or mystery ships, were heavily armed merchant ships with concealed weaponry, designed to lure submarines into making surface attacks. This gave Q-ships the chance to open f ...

during 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 ...

. She was in service from April 1916 until the end of hostilities, operating in the

Southwest Approaches The Southwest Approaches is the name given to the offshore waters to the southwest of Great Britain and Ireland. The area includes the Celtic Sea, the Bristol Channel and sea areas off southwest Ireland. The area is bordered on the north by the S ...

from her base in Falmouth. She had several encounters with German

U-boat U-boats were naval submarines operated by Germany, particularly in the First and Second World Wars. Although at times they were efficient fleet weapons against enemy naval warships, they were most effectively used in an economic warfare role ...

s in her career, and was credited with the destruction of two, though post-war analysis established that no U-boats were sunk. She had a reputation for being an efficient and successful vessel. After the war she returned to merchant service but was wrecked in 1944.

Early career

''Mary B Mitchell'' was built by Paul Rogers in 1892 at

Carrickfergus Carrickfergus ( , meaning " Fergus' rock") is a large town in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It sits on the north shore of Belfast Lough, from Belfast. The town had a population of 27,998 at the 2011 Census. It is County Antrim's oldest t ...

, as a three-masted topsail schooner.Forde ''Maritime Arklow'', p 84 She was owned by Lord Penrhyn and served for a period as a yacht, before being put to work as a coaster. In 1916 she was requisitioned by the Admiralty to be used as a Q-ship.

Service history: World War One

In April 1916 she was at Falmouth, where she was requisitioned for service as a Q-ship. She was armed and outfitted, under the command of Lt. M Armstrong RNR, to carry a 12-pounder and two 6-pounder guns as well as two machine guns and small arms. She commissioned on 5 May 1916 and sailed on her first patrol on 26 June, returning to Falmouth on 25 July. During this period she sailed the usual sea routes in the

Channel Channel, channels, channeling, etc., may refer to: Geography * Channel (geography), in physical geography, a landform consisting of the outline (banks) of the path of a narrow body of water. Australia * Channel Country, region of outback Austral ...

and the

, masquerading as a merchant ship and inviting attack by a German U-boat. Over the following months she undertook a series of such patrols, in a variety of disguises. Great success was claimed On 20 June 1917, under the command of Lt J Lawrie and in the guise of the French schooner ''Eider'', she encountered a U-boat sailing west of

Brittany Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, Historical region, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known ...

, which approached and opened fire. ''Mitchell'' carried out her role as a decoy, being hove to and abandoned until he U-boat was within 600 yards, when she returned fire scoring several hits. At this the U-boat dived and was not seen again. The U-boat, later identified as ''UC-65'', was not damaged. That evening, ''Mitchell'' had a further encounter, which unfolded in the same way, though on this occasion the U-boat was more wary, and ''Mitchell's'' crew had a more difficult time before scoring hits on their assailant. This U-boat, ''UC-17'', was also not damaged. On 3 August 1917 ''Mitchell'' had her third encounter, sailing south of Start Point in the guise of the French schooner ''Cancalais''. She encountered a U-boat, ''UC-75'', which approached, opening fire at a range of nearly three miles. ''Mitchell's'' crew again hove to and the panic party abandoned ship, while the gun crews waited for their target to come into range. However the U-boat was too cautious, and after being shelled for fifteen minutes, Lawrie elected to clear away and close under engine power. ''Mitchell'' was able to score some hits before the U-boat disappeared, but no loss was confirmed. For these actions Lawrie was awarded the DSO.

Later career

''Mary B Mitchell'' was decommissioned in 1919 and returned to merchant service. She appeared in the 1935 Hammer film ''

The Mystery of the Mary Celeste ''The Mystery of the Mary Celeste'' is a 1935 British mystery film directed by Denison Clift and starring Béla Lugosi, Shirley Grey and Arthur Margetson. It is one of the early films from Hammer Film Productions. It is based on the story of th ...

'' as the ''

Mary Celeste ''Mary Celeste'' (; often erroneously referred to as Marie Celeste) was an American-registered merchant brigantine, best known for being discovered adrift and deserted in the Atlantic Ocean off the Azores Islands on December 4, 1872. The Cana ...

''. She had a long career surviving into the Second World War. In December 1944 she was wrecked in a gale in the

Solway Firth The Solway Firth ( gd, Tràchd Romhra) is a firth that forms part of the border between England and Scotland, between Cumbria (including the Solway Plain) and Dumfries and Galloway. It stretches from St Bees Head, just south of Whitehaven in ...

and written off.

Commemoration

The ''Mary B Mitchell'' is commemorated in Bangor, Wales, by a memorial plaque and a bronze weathervane which adorns the city’s new shopping precinct. It was designed and made by Ann Catrin Evans and Roger Wyn Evans. The plaque gives a brief account of the ships history, while the weathervane depicts her in silhouette.

Assessment

The ''Mary B Mitchell'' had a good reputation as a Q-ship following the First World War, being credited with the destruction of two U-boats. This reputation has persisted to this day, although post-war analysis showed neither of the U-boats she engaged had been sunk, and that her achievement had been overestimated. Opinions differ on the effectiveness of the Q-ships. One source regards them as greatly overrated, diverting skilled seamen from other duties without sinking enough U-boats to justify the strategy, while another suggests Q-ships were all the more important in the early stages of the fight against the U-boat because so few methods had appeared to work,Halpern p300 though their effectiveness declined as the war at sea progressed.

References

Bibliography

* Chatterton, E Keble : ''Q-Ships and their story''. (1922) ISBN (none) * * *Halpern, Paul (1995) ''A Naval History of World War I'' Routledge * *

External links

*{{cite web, last=Noonan, first=Dix, title=Lot 1244, 7 Dec 05, url=http://www.dnw.co.uk/medals/auctionarchive/searchcataloguearchive/itemdetail.lasso?itemid=50402, work=Lot details, quote=quoting London Gazette 16 February 1917, and 11 August 1917, accessdate=18 November 2011 Q-ships of the Royal Navy 1892 ships