HMS Kelly (F01)

HMS "Kelly" (pennant number F01) was a K-class destroyer of the British Royal Navy, and flotilla leader of her class. She served through the early years of the Second World War; in Home Waters, off Norway and in the Mediterranean. Throughout her service, "Kelly" was commanded by Lord Louis Mountbatten. She was lost in action in 1941 during the Battle of Crete. In addition, Mountbatten served as commander (Captain (D)) of the 5th Destroyer Flotilla.

"Kelly" was built by Hawthorn Leslie and Company at Hebburn on the River Tyne. She was laid down on 26 August 1937, launched on 25 October 1938 and commissioned on 23 August 1939, just 11 days before commencement of hostilities. She was named after Admiral of the Fleet Sir John Kelly. [http://ftp3.dns-systems.net/~hebburn/hebburn.org/pages/kelly/kelly.htm]

ervice

Home Waters (1939)

On the afternoon of 14 December 1939, the tanker "Atheltemplar" struck a mine laid by German destroyers off the Tyne Estuary. "Kelly" and the Tribal-class destroyer HMS "Mohawk" were dispatched as escorts for the rescue tugs "Great Emperor", "Joffre" and "Langton". During the operation, "Kelly" also struck a mine and sustained damage to her hull. While "Mowhawk" put a party aboard "Atheltemplar", and "Joffre" and "Langton" took the tanker under tow, "Kelly" herself was taken in tow by "Great Emperor" and returned to the Tyne. Reaching the Tyne just before midnight, "Kelly" was assisted up river by the tugs "Robert Redhead" and "Washington". She was towed to Hawthorn Leslie's yard for repairs, which took just a little over three months, and were completed in early March 1940. [Hough, Richard, "Bless Our Ship" London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1991 ISBN 978-0340543962]

This was the second of "Kelly’s" misfortunes, having just returned to active service after a month in dry dock following storm damage.Repairs were completed on 28 February 1940, and "Kelly" returned to the fray.Astonishingly she was involved in a collision with HMS Gurkha just two days later on the 2 March, necessitating a further 8 weeks in dry dock, this time on the Thames. She was released on 27 April, in time to assist with the evacuation of allied forces from Namsos.

Norwegian campaign (1940)

On the night 9 May/10 May 1940, during the Battle of Norway, "Kelly" was torpedoed amidships by the German E-boat "S 31", under command of Oberleutnant zur See Hermann Opdenhoff (for which action Oblt.z.S. Opdenhoff was awarded the Knight's Cross). Severely damaged, she was taken under tow by the tug "Great Emperor" and for four days she was attacked by E-boats and bombers as she struggled back to port at three knots. The Navy Controller wrote that she survived "not only by the good seamanship of the officers and men but also on account of the excellent workmanship which ensured the watertightness of the other compartments. A single defective rivet might have finished her." She was repaired and returned to service. [ [http://uboat.net/allies/warships/ship/4455.html HMS "Kelly" (F 01) uboat.net] ]

Returned to Hebburn shipyard she was de-commissioned before undergoing extensive repairs; she was not fit for active service until December 1940. Her bad luck had seen her on active service for less than two weeks over the previous 14 months.

During this period her captain, Louis Mountbatten, as Captain (D), was forced to lead his flotilla from temporary placement in other ships of the flotilla; for a time he led from HMS Javelin, until she too succumbed to damage.

Kelly re-joined 5th Flotilla after re-commissioning in December 1940; after working-up trials and some service in the Channel, she and 5th Flotilla sailed for the Mediterranean, arriving at Malta in April 1941.

Mediterranean (1941)

On 23 May 1941, during the evacuation of Crete, "Kelly" was bombed and sunk, with half her crew killed. The survivors were deeply affected by the loss of their ship; Mountbatten shared their loss and tried to console the ship's company by reminding them all that "we didn't leave the Kelly, the Kelly left us!"

Legacy

The 1942 film "In Which We Serve" starring Noel Coward and John Mills and telling the story of "HMS "Torrin", is based on the career of "Kelly". The HMS "Kelly" Association hosts reunions and commemorations. Notable supporters of the association have included HRH Prince Charles and Sir John Mills. [British Film Institute [http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/37809 BFI Film & TV Database, In Which We Serve] ] [BBC News [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/1987021.stm Prince commemorates Royal Navy crew] ] [Navy News [http://www.navynews.co.uk/articles/2001/0101/0001010503.asp Sir John Proves a Tireless Supporter] ]

References

*"Destroyers of the Royal Navy, 1893-1981", Maurice Cocker, Ian Allan, ISBN 0-7110-1075-7
*"British and Empire Warships of the Second World War", H T Lenton, Greenhill Books, ISBN 1-85367-277-7
*"Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships, 1922-1946", Ed. Robert Gardiner, Naval Institute Press, ISBN 0-87021-913-8
*"Destroyers of World War Two: An International Encyclopedia", M J Whitley, Arms and Armour Press, 1999, ISBN 1-85409-521-8
*"Warships of World War II", H. T. Lenton & J. J. Colledge, Ian Allen Ltd
* "Mediterranean Maelstrom", G.G.Connell, Kimber (1987).

ee also

External links

* [http://www.bbc.co.uk/ww2peopleswar/stories/59/a4182059.shtml The Man I Never Knew on HMS "Kelly"] - BBC People's War 12 June 2005