RN Cruisers: Crown Colony Class

[ivorthediver]

Fascinating , to hear all these reminiscing tales Tim , which we all enjoy , thank you for sharing them with us and if you have any more .......most welcome please

[timlewin]

was sure I had this one, taken from one of the destroyers about to come alongside to take her people off, with so much endless sea-time those destroyer captains could handle their ship like parking a Smart car. I believe the signal at the yard reads "I am sailing to the Westward", she went down with this still flying.

[ivorthediver]

Wow Tim , what a shot , who was she please

Many thanks for allowing us to see it , sad though it is .

[timlewin]

there were four destroyers present; first Forrester and Foresight went in to take off most of the people, at the same time they stripped off the much prized Oerlikons on the quarterdeck for their own use. When these two had taken as many as they could Somali went in for the rest including Adm Bonham Carter. Matchless was also on the scene. As Somali was taking off the last of the men a Heinkel came in to attack with more torpedoes, two men on one of the 4" guns trained and set the gun by hand, both shells went off directly under the wing of the bomber, the torpedo went off at right angles and the plane fell burning into the sea. Meanwhile the entire side of Trinidad from the bridge to the waterline was glowing red from the fires below. The last man to leave onto Somali was Captain Saunders, Trinidad's CO. With everyone off and the fires consuming the ship Adm B-C gave the order to Matchless to bring Trinidad's misery to an end with torpedoes, the three of them struck below the bridge on the stbd side, she went down within 3-4 minute with both battle ensigns flying and the famous signal still at the yard. The attacks continued and all the destroyers had to fight their way out of the area. Trinidad lost one officer and sixty-two ratings. In the coming months Foresight would be lost to Italian bombers, and Somali in the Arctic to a U-boat. Meanwhile, as the destroyers pulled away signal traffic indicated German cruisers might be at sea. Somali, the only one with torpedoes remaining, and only four at that, was sent to face them while the other tried to get away. As Somali steamed to the South and the others to the North they saw flashes on the horizon, not guns but the 10th cruiser squadron to the rescue, Kent & Norfolk, Liverpool and Nigeria.

[ivorthediver]

Good grief , that was some scrap then Tim. what was the location please

[timlewin]

they were still in the Barents Sea West of the North Cape but still within range of the bombers from Norway.

[ivorthediver]

Certainly not the Sea to be in for long then Tim .A worthy action indeed .

[Brian James]

Crown Colony Class Light Cruiser HMS Bermuda pictured at Port Melbourne in 1945.

[Pelican]

HMS Bermuda off Greenland, date unknown.
The iceberg is 550' long.

[Pelican]

HMS Bermuda off Greenland, date unknown.
The iceberg is 550' long.

Further info:
"1959, We had FOFH and the British Ambassador to Denmark and their large retinues onboard plus a radio black out in the Artic circle."