HMS Brocklesby

The First Brocklesby

The present HMS Brocklesby is the third to bear the name. The first was an ex-coaster taken up from trade in 1916. Re-categorised as a Merchant Fleet Auxiliary she was used to patrol the East Coast. She was paid off in June 1917.

The Second Brocklesby

The second HMS Brocklesby was a Type I Hunt-class destroyer of 1,000 tonnes displacement. Laid down on 18 November 1939 by Cammell Laird and Co Ltd of Birkenhead, she was launched on 30 September 1940 and completed on 1 April 1941. Her armament consisted of four 4inch HA/LA guns, four 2-pounder pom-poms in quadruple mountings and two 20mm Oerlikons. Two 40mm Bofors were added in 1947. To combat the submarine threat she had one rail and two throwers for depth charges.

Raids and Repairs

On completion, HMS Brocklesby joined the 15th Destroyer Flotilla under Plymouth Command. Her first duty was to cover convoys until, in 1942, she took part in the raid on St Nazaire. This raid put the Great Lock out of action, the only place that the German battleship Tirpitz could be docked. In August of the same year Brocklesby took part in Operation Jubilee, the raid on Dieppe.

Brocklesby provided covering fire for one of the 13 groups involved in the raid in company with the Polish destroyer Slazak. During the raid Brocklesby steamed within 500 yards of the beach and came under heavy fire, taking several hits. Repairs took six weeks. On rejoining the Flotilla Brocklesby was soon in action again in Operation Bowery in which the German armed raider Komet was torpedoed and sunk as she attempted to break-out on a second sortie in the English Channel. During the engagement Brocklesby suffered superficial damage and one rating onboard was injured.

Joining the Mediterranean Fleet

In February 1943 Brocklesby joined the Mediterranean Fleet. She was to serve for nearly two years employed chiefly as a convoy escort. In the first week of June 1943 she took part in the escort of what is believed to be the largest convoy of the war. The convoy consisted of 129 merchantmen and 19 escort vessels. The whole convoy covered an area of 68 square miles. The convoy left Casablanca on 1 June and, after detaching units to various North African ports, arrived in Tripoli on 8 June without loss.

In the invasion of Sicily on 10 July 1943, Operation Husky, Brocklesby was allocated to Force V under the command of Vice Admiral Sir Phillip Vian. On 12 July she had the honour of conveying Admiral Ramsay, General Eisenhower and General Montgomery to Bark West where the assault had been made by a combined Canadian and British force. For the remainder of 1943 and 1944 Brocklesby took part in several bombardments of enemy positions, including the landing at Salerno when the mainland of Italy was invaded.

Recall and Reclassification

Increased enemy activities with U-boats and E-boats in home waters in the early part of 1945 resulted in the recall of six Hunt-class destroyers from the Mediterranean for service nearer home. Brocklesby was one of those detailed and she returned to Plymouth on 16 March. She then operated out of Harwich as part of the 16th Destroyer Squadron. In 1945 she was reclassified as a frigate.

Sailing for the Last Time

Brocklesby was still in service into the 1960s, predominantly as a training ship. On 22 June 1963, HMS Brocklesby, the last of the Hunt-class, sailed into Portsmouth for the last time. After 22 years’ service she paid off, de-stored and was placed on the sales list. On 21 October 1968 she was bought by Shipbreaking Industries Ltd and broken up at Faslane.

The Present Brocklesby

The present HMS Brocklesby was built by Vosper Thornycroft shipbuilders at Woolston, Southampton and launched on 12 January 1982 by the Viscountess Trenchard, the wife of Viscount Trenchard MC, Minister of State for Defence Procurement. She was accepted into service on 25 October 1982 and commissioned on 3 February 1983 at HMS Vernon. The ship’s name is taken from the Brocklesby Hunt owned by Lord Yarborough, whose family crest was adopted by the ship. The ship has a close association with the town of Brocklesby.

Iraq

HMS Brocklesby gained her most recent battle honour when she was among the first coalition ships into Umm Qasr during operations in Iraq. She was part of a task group of MCMVs that cleared a mined channel into the port, enabling vital logistics support by sea for coalition forces.