SLNS ''Gajabahu'' (named after '' Gajabahu'', a former king of Sri Lanka) was a of the

Sri Lanka Navy ta, இலங்கை கடற்படை , image = Sri Lanka Naval Seal.png , image_size = 180px , caption = Emblem of Sri Lanka Navy , dates = , c ...

. She has since been converted to a

training ship A training ship is a ship used to train students as sailors. The term is mostly used to describe ships employed by navies to train future officers. Essentially there are two types: those used for training at sea and old hulks used to house class ...

for the Naval & Maritime Academy,

Trincomalee Trincomalee (; ta, திருகோணமலை, translit=Tirukōṇamalai; si, ත්‍රිකුණාමළය, translit= Trikuṇāmaḷaya), also known as Gokanna and Gokarna, is the administrative headquarters of the Trincomalee Dis ...

. She was originally HMCS ''Hallowell'' of the

Royal Canadian Navy The Royal Canadian Navy (RCN; french: Marine royale canadienne, ''MRC'') is the naval force of Canada. The RCN is one of three environmental commands within the Canadian Armed Forces. As of 2021, the RCN operates 12 frigates, four attack submar ...

, built 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 then saw service as INS ''Miznak'' of the

Israeli Navy The Israeli Navy ( he, חיל הים הישראלי, ''Ḥeil HaYam HaYisraeli'' (English: The Israeli Sea Corps); ar, البحرية الإسرائيلية) is the naval warfare service arm of the Israel Defense Forces, operating primarily in ...

. The

Royal Ceylon Navy ta, இலங்கை கடற்படை , image = Sri Lanka Naval Seal.png , image_size = 180px , caption = Emblem of Sri Lanka Navy , dates = , c ...

purchased her in 1958 from Israel.

Construction and career

Royal Canadian Navy and Israeli Navy

HMCS ''Hallowell'' was ordered on 1 February 1943 as part of the 1943-44 River-class building program by the

(RCN). She was laid down by Canadian Vickers Ltd. aT

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple ...

on 22 November 1943 and launched 28 March 1944. She was commissioned into the RCN on 8 August 1944 at Montreal. After working up at

Bermuda ) , anthem = "God Save the King" , song_type = National song , song = "Hail to Bermuda" , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , mapsize2 = , map_caption2 = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = , es ...

, ''Hallowell'' was assigned to the

Mid-Ocean Escort Force Mid-Ocean Escort Force (MOEF) referred to the organisation of anti-submarine escorts for World War II trade convoys between Canada and Newfoundland, and the British Isles. The allocation of United States, British, and Canadian escorts to these c ...

(MOEF) escort group C-1 as the Senior Officer's Ship. From late November 1944 until June 1945, she was continuously employed as a convoy escort on North Atlantic convoys. In June 1945 she returned to Canada and from July to August transported troops from St. John's to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. She was paid off at Sydney, Nova Scotia on 7 November 1945 and placed in reserve at

Shelburne, Nova Scotia Shelburne is a town located in southwestern Nova Scotia, Canada. History Shelburne lies at the southwest corner of Nova Scotia, at roughly the same latitude as Portland, Maine in the United States. The Mi'kmaq call the large and well-sheltered h ...

. After the war she was sold to Uruguayan interests in 1946 before being re-sold to a Palestinian group in 1949 for conversion to a short-service ferry in the

Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the ...

. She was renamed ''Sharon'' and remained in service until 1952, when she was purchased by the

, rearmed and commissioned as INS ''Miznak'' and given the designation K-32. She remained in service until 1958.

Royal Ceylon Navy

Purchased from the Israeli Navy in 1958–3 years after another River-class frigate, HMCyS ''Mahasena''—she was commissioned as HMCyS ''Gajabahu'' into the

Royal Ceylon Navy ta, இலங்கை கடற்படை , image = Sri Lanka Naval Seal.png , image_size = 180px , caption = Emblem of Sri Lanka Navy , dates = , c ...

. She participated in many flag-showing missions in various countries, including a cruise to Japan. ''Gajabahu'' also took part in many international naval exercises. Following the failed military coups d'état in 1962 in which the former Captain of the Navy (as the Commander of the Navy was known then) was implicated, the government undertook a program of downsizing the military. As a result, ''Gajabahu'' became the flagship of the fleet and only major warship of the Royal Ceylon Navy after ''Mahasena'' and ''Parakram'' were sold off and ''Vijaya'' was lost in a storm. During the 1971 Insurrection she could not be deployed to sea since her crew were dispatched for ground duty due to personnel shortages. "HMCyS ''Gajabahu''" became "SLNS ''Gajabahu''" when Sri Lanka became a republic in 1972. In the 1980s she was taken out of active service to be converted to a

for the Naval and Maritime Academy,

References

External links

Sri Lanka Navy
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gajabahu Ships of the Royal Canadian Navy Ships built in Quebec 1944 ships River-class frigates of the Sri Lanka Navy Training ships