HMS Boadicea (H65)

HMS "Boadicea" (H65) was a B-class destroyer of the British Royal Navy that saw service during World War II.

Authorised in the 1928 ship building programme HMS "Boadicea" was laid down at the Hawthorn Leslie & Company Limited yard at Hebburn-on-Tyne on the 11 July 1929 and was launched on the 23 September 1930 and completed on the 7 April 1931 [Hawkins] .

"Boadicea" was commissioned at Portsmouth on the 2 June1931 and joined the 4th Destroyer Flotilla. Her pre-war service was in the Mediterranean between 1931 and 1936. Following a refit at Portsmouth in 1936 she rejoined the 4th Destroyer Flotilla until the 'B' Class destroyers were replaced with the Tribal Class.

At the outbreak of the Second World war "Boadicea" was attached to the 19th Destroyer Flotilla based at Dover during which time her role was the escort of troopships. Her earliest major engagement of the war was in support of the evacuation of the 51st Highland Division from Le Havre in June 1940. During this action she was extensively damaged and needed to return to Portsmouth for repair. During 1942 and 1943 she served on convoys to Russia and in support of Operation Torch; the invasion of North Africa.

"Boadicea" acted as escort for the following arctic convoys:PQ-15,QP-12, JW-51-A, JW-53, JW-57, JW-58, RA-53, RA-57, RA-58 and RA-59. [ConvoyWeb]

"Boadicea" was sunk on the 13 June 1944 while escorting a convoy of merchant ships in convoy EBC-8 from Milford Haven in support of the Normandy invasion. She was possibly struck by an Hs 293 air-to-surface missile launched by a German Do 217; only 12 of her crew survived. However, official British reports attribute the sinking to a torpedo launched by a Ju 88 aircraft which disguised itself in a formation of RAF Beaufighters.

Her wreck lies 16 miles South West of Portland at 50:28:12N, 02:29:30W in 53 metres of water. The bows of the ship are blown off forward of the engine rooms. The stern section is upright and reasonably intact. The wrecksite is designated as a "protected place" under the Protection of Military Remains Act 1986 [SI 2008/950] .

References

¤ Ian Hawkins, "Destroyer: An Anthology of First Hand Accounts of the Wat at Sea 1939 - 1945". (Conway Maritime Press, London, 2003) ISBN 0 85177 947 6

Links

[http://www.naval-history.net/xGM-Chrono-10DD-15B-Boadicea.htm www.naval-history.net]

[http://www.convoyweb.org.uk/russian/index.html?home.htm~rumain www.convoyweb.org]

[http://www.opsi.gov.uk/si/si2008/uksi_20080950_en_1 SI 2008/950] Designation under the Protection of Military Remains Act 1986

Gallery