HMS Grasshopper (T85)
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HMS ''Grasshopper'' was a built for the
Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...
in the late 1930s. After completion was sent to the
China station The Commander-in-Chief, China, was the admiral in command of what was usually known as the China Station, at once both a British Royal Navy naval formation and its admiral in command. It was created in 1865 and deactivated in 1941. From 1831 to 1 ...
where she was deployed on the
Yangtse River The Yangtze or Yangzi ( or ) is the longest river in Eurasia and the third-longest in the world. It rises at Jari Hill in the Tanggula Mountains of the Tibetan Plateau and flows including Dam Qu River the longest source of the Yangtze, i ...
to relieve the Insect-class gunboat . She remained there until the declaration of war by the
Empire of Japan The Empire of Japan, also known as the Japanese Empire or Imperial Japan, was the Japanese nation state that existed from the Meiji Restoration on January 3, 1868, until the Constitution of Japan took effect on May 3, 1947. From Japan–Kor ...
in December 1941. She was subsequently transferred to
Singapore Naval Base His Majesty's Naval Base, Singapore, also Her Majesty's Naval Base, Singapore (HMNB Singapore), alternatively known as the Singapore Naval Base, Sembawang Naval Base and HMS Sembawang, was situated in Sembawang at the northern tip of Singapore ...
and participated in the
Malayan Campaign The Malayan campaign, referred to by Japanese sources as the , was a military campaign fought by Allies of World War II, Allied and Axis powers, Axis forces in British Malaya, Malaya, from 8 December 1941 – 15 February 1942 during the World War ...
in early 1942. Near the end of the
Battle of Singapore The fall of Singapore, also known as the Battle of Singapore, took place in the South–East Asian theatre of the Pacific War. The Empire of Japan captured the British stronghold of Singapore, with fighting lasting from 8 to 15 February 1942. S ...
, she evacuated the base on 11 February together with her
sister ship A sister ship is a ship of the same Ship class, class or of virtually identical design to another ship. Such vessels share a nearly identical hull and superstructure layout, similar size, and roughly comparable features and equipment. They o ...
. Three days later she was attacked and sunk by Japanese aircraft off the island of Sebayer. Most of the ship's survivors were later captured on
Sumatra Sumatra () is one of the Sunda Islands of western Indonesia. It is the largest island that is fully within Indonesian territory, as well as the list of islands by area, sixth-largest island in the world at 482,286.55 km2 (182,812 mi. ...
by Japanese troops.


Design and description

The design of the ''Dragonfly''-class ships was based on that of the earlier with that ship's
flagship A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of navy, naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically ...
accommodations replaced by a low-angle director-control tower. ''Grasshopper'' displaced at
standard Standard may refer to: Symbols * Colours, standards and guidons, kinds of military signs * Standard (emblem), a type of a large symbol or emblem used for identification Norms, conventions or requirements * Standard (metrology), an object ...
load and at
deep load The displacement or displacement tonnage of a ship is its weight. As the term indicates, it is measured indirectly, using Archimedes' principle, by first calculating the volume of water displaced by the ship, then converting that value into weig ...
. The ship had an
overall length The overall length (OAL) of an ammunition cartridge is a measurement from the base of the brass shell casing to the tip of the bullet, seated into the brass casing. Cartridge overall length, or "COL", is important to safe functioning of reloads i ...
of , a beam of and a draught of . She was powered by Parsons geared
steam turbine A steam turbine or steam turbine engine is a machine or heat engine that extracts thermal energy from pressurized steam and uses it to do mechanical work utilising a rotating output shaft. Its modern manifestation was invented by Sir Charles Par ...
s, driving two shafts which developed a total of and gave a maximum speed of . Steam for the turbines was provided by two
Admiralty 3-drum boiler Three-drum boilers are a class of water-tube boiler used to generate steam, typically to power ships. They are compact and of high evaporative power, factors that encourage this use. Other boiler designs may be more efficient, although bulkier, an ...
s. ''Grasshopper'' carried a maximum of of
fuel oil Fuel oil is any of various fractions obtained from the distillation of petroleum (crude oil). Such oils include distillates (the lighter fractions) and residues (the heavier fractions). Fuel oils include heavy fuel oil (bunker fuel), marine f ...
. Lenton (1998), p. 270 The ship mounted two quick-firing (QF) guns 4-inch Mk V guns in single mounts, one each fore and aft of the
superstructure A superstructure is an upward extension of an existing structure above a baseline. This term is applied to various kinds of physical structures such as buildings, bridges, or ships. Aboard ships and large boats On water craft, the superstruct ...
. These guns had a maximum elevation of +30 degrees. She also carried a single QF 3.7-inch
howitzer The howitzer () is an artillery weapon that falls between a cannon (or field gun) and a mortar. It is capable of both low angle fire like a field gun and high angle fire like a mortar, given the distinction between low and high angle fire break ...
. For
anti-aircraft Anti-aircraft warfare (AAW) is the counter to aerial warfare and includes "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action".AAP-6 It encompasses surface-based, subsurface ( submarine-launched), and air-ba ...
defence, ''Grasshopper'' had eight single mounts for anti-aircraft machine guns. She had a crew of 74 officers and ratings.


Service

The ship was ordered on 9 August 1937 as one of the intended replacements for the existing river gunboats stationed on the Chinese rivers. ''Grasshopper'' was
laid down Laying the keel or laying down is the formal recognition of the start of a ship's construction. It is often marked with a ceremony attended by dignitaries from the shipbuilding company and the ultimate owners of the ship. Keel laying is one ...
on 29 December 1937 by John I. Thornycroft & Company at
Woolston, Southampton Woolston is a suburb of Southampton, located on the eastern bank of the River Itchen. It is bounded by the River Itchen, Sholing, Peartree Green, Itchen and Weston. The area has a strong maritime and aviation history. The former hamlet gr ...
, and launched on 19 January 1939. In April 1939 she sailed to the
China Station The Commander-in-Chief, China, was the admiral in command of what was usually known as the China Station, at once both a British Royal Navy naval formation and its admiral in command. It was created in 1865 and deactivated in 1941. From 1831 to 1 ...
under her own power and was expected to arrive on 24 May. ''Grasshopper'' was commissioned on 1 June 1939 in Hong Kong and completed on 13 June. She was deployed to the
Yangtse River The Yangtze or Yangzi ( or ) is the longest river in Eurasia and the third-longest in the world. It rises at Jari Hill in the Tanggula Mountains of the Tibetan Plateau and flows including Dam Qu River the longest source of the Yangtze, i ...
where she replaced the HMS ''Gnat'' later that month. Part of ''Gnat'' crew transferred to ''Grasshopper'', including the ship's mascot, a dog called Judy. Following Japan's entry into the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
in December 1941, she was transferred from China to Singapore. Varley (1973): p. 43 During January 1942, ''Grasshopper'' supported retreating Allied troops during the
Malayan Campaign The Malayan campaign, referred to by Japanese sources as the , was a military campaign fought by Allies of World War II, Allied and Axis powers, Axis forces in British Malaya, Malaya, from 8 December 1941 – 15 February 1942 during the World War ...
. Starting on 27 January, ''Grasshopper'' and ''Dragonfly'' rescued almost 3,000 soldiers from the British 53rd Infantry and 15th Indian Infantry Brigades from the swamps south of
Batu Pahat The Batu Pahat District is a district in the state of Johor, Malaysia. It lies southeast of Muar, southwest of Kluang, northwest of Pontian, south of Segamat and Tangkak District. The capital of the district is Bandar Penggaram. Geograph ...
after they had been cut off by the advancing Japanese forces. After the Japanese captured the Malayan Peninsula, both ships moved to Singapore harbour. On 8 February, the Japanese launched an amphibious assault across the Strait of Johore and following heavy fighting, many ships began evacuating from the harbour. By 11 February ''Gnat'' and ''Grasshopper'' were the largest vessels left. The two ships left Singapore for Batavia at 21:00 on 13 February, having taken on other personnel to evacuate them. Amongst these was Commander Ian Forbes, formerly of the
battleship A battleship is a large, heavily naval armour, armored warship with a main battery consisting of large naval gun, guns, designed to serve as a capital ship. From their advent in the late 1880s, battleships were among the largest and most form ...
, which had been sunk by the Japanese just over two months earlier. By the following morning they could hear the attacks by Japanese aircraft on other vessels in the distance. Varley (1973): p. 54 As they were sailing south, they were attacked by Japanese bombers. During the initial pass, ''Grasshopper'' was hit by a single bomb. When the planes returned, ''Dragonfly'' was hit three times and sank quickly. ''Grasshopper'' was hit twice and was set on fire. The order to abandon ship was given as the fire spread to compartments adjacent to an ammunition store. upJudy, the ship's dog, later became a Japanese prisoner of war and was awarded the
">Dicken Medal for bravery. The crew were ferried across to the nearby island of Sebayer by the ship's boats while the Japanese aircraft
strafed Strafing is the military practice of attacking ground targets from low-flying aircraft using aircraft-mounted automatic weapons. Less commonly, the term is used by extension to describe high-speed firing runs by any land or naval craft such a ...
them, where they joined some survivors from the ''Dragonfly''. However the ship did not sink initially and after the planes departed, several crewmen were sent back on board to scavenge supplies. Varley (1973): p. 60 Among the survivors were six captured Japanese airmen and two pregnant women who had their babies delivered by the ship's
coxswain The coxswain ( or ) is the person in charge of a boat, particularly its navigation and steering. The etymology of the word gives a literal meaning of "boat servant" since it comes from ''cock'', referring to the wiktionary:cockboat, cockboat, a ...
. Both boys were named after him by their mothers. Whilst on board, Petty Officer George White found Judy, who would later find a source of fresh water for the crew on the island. On 19 February, the remaining crew managed to commandeer a Chinese
tongkang Tongkang or "Tong'kang" refers to several type of boats used to carry goods along rivers and shoreline in Maritime Southeast Asia. One of the earliest record of tongkang has a background of 14th century, being mentioned in Malay Annals which was ...
and using that and the ship's boat, Varley (1973): p. 64 they reached
Singkep Singkep is an island in the Lingga Archipelago in Indonesia. Its area is . It is separated from the east coast of Sumatra by the Berhala Strait. It is surrounded by islands Posik to the west, I. Serak to the SW, I. Lalang to the South, and I. Se ...
in the
Dutch East Indies The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies (; ), was a Dutch Empire, Dutch colony with territory mostly comprising the modern state of Indonesia, which Proclamation of Indonesian Independence, declared independence on 17 Au ...
. After two days, the crew departed for
Sumatra Sumatra () is one of the Sunda Islands of western Indonesia. It is the largest island that is fully within Indonesian territory, as well as the list of islands by area, sixth-largest island in the world at 482,286.55 km2 (182,812 mi. ...
on a Chinese junk, leaving their injured in the care of the
Dutch Empire The Dutch colonial empire () comprised overseas territories and trading posts under some form of Dutch control from the early 17th to late 20th centuries, including those initially administered by Dutch chartered companies—primarily the Du ...
. They eventually reached Sumatra and sailed through the
Strait of Malacca The Strait of Malacca is a narrow stretch of water, long and from wide, between the Malay Peninsula to the northeast and the Indonesian island of Sumatra to the southwest, connecting the Andaman Sea (Indian Ocean) and the South China Sea (Pa ...
and up the
Indragiri River The Indragiri River is a river in Sumatra, in the Indonesian province of Riau, about 800 km northwest of the capital Jakarta. Formed by the union of the Ombilin River and the Sinamar River, the Indragiri empties into the Strait of Malacca. ...
. The river narrowed too much for the junk to go any further, leaving the crew from
Padang Padang () is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the Indonesian Provinces of Indonesia, province of West Sumatra. It had a population of 833,562 at the 2010 CensusBiro Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2011. and 909,040 at the 2020 Census;Bad ...
. They trekked through the jungle but entered a Japanese-held area and were captured outside their destination. Two of the crew elected not to travel with the others to Sumatra. They were Petty Officer George White and Able Seaman "Tancy" Lee, who were joined by one of the evacuees from the
Royal Naval Reserve The Royal Naval Reserve (RNR) is one of the two volunteer reserve forces of the Royal Navy in the United Kingdom. Together with the Royal Marines Reserve, they form the Maritime Reserve. The present RNR was formed by merging the original ...
and two
British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...
soldiers who were already on Singkep. To prevent trouble with the incoming Japanese forces, they were transferred to the smaller Selajar Island. They were subsequently offered a boat by the island's administrator, and a map of the Indian Ocean torn from a child's atlas. They decided that they would aim to sail to
Madras Chennai, also known as Madras ( its official name until 1996), is the capital and largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost state of India. It is located on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal. According to the 2011 Indian ce ...
, India, as there were concerns that the Japanese were working their way through the islands. Their departure timetable was brought forward after the island was visited by a boat containing a Japanese officer and five soldiers. They were told by the Japanese to remain on the island and await collection. That evening they prepared the boat and put supplies on board. They departed on 11 April, only travelling by night until they were clear of the islands. During the day, they landed on nearby islands and hid. After four days, the engine broke and could not be turned off. As they travelled through the islands, they passed two Japanese transport ships and were buzzed by a Japanese bomber. Once out of sight of the islands, they navigated using the position of the stars during the night and the sun during the day. After seventeen days of travelling, they landed in India, a distance of , only away from their intended destination. Varley (1973): p. 152


Notes


References

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Grasshopper Dragonfly-class gunboats 1939 ships Ships sunk by Japanese aircraft Gunboats of the Royal Navy Maritime incidents in February 1942 Gunboats sunk by aircraft World War II shipwrecks in the South China Sea