HMS Terrapin (P323)

HMS "Terrapin" was a British submarine of the third group of the "T" class. She was built as "P323" by Vickers Armstrong, Barrow and Bellis and Morcom Ltd, and launched on 31 August 1943. So far she has been the only ship of the Royal Navy to bear the name "Terrapin", after the animal of that name.

ervice

Apart from a brief period in home waters off the Scandinavian coast, "Terrapin" served in the Far East for much of her wartime career. She had a comparatively active career, since she was only commissioned on 22 January 1944. In March 1944 she attacked a German convoy off Egersund, Norway, torpedoing and damaging the German katapult ship "Schwabenland", and the German tanker "Wörth", (the former Dutch "Omala"). The "Schwabenland" was grounded to prevent her from sinking and the "Wörth" was towed to port.

"Terrapin" was then assigned to the Pacific Far East in mid 1944. She opened her career by bombarding Japanese installations at Gunung Sitoli (Nias Island), western Sumatra. She also sank a Japanese coaster with gunfire and damaged another. She went on to sink the Japanese auxiliary netlayer "Kumano Maru", the Japanese minesweeper "W 5", and ten Japanese sailing vessels, damaging another.

"Terrapin" often operated with her sister, HMS "Trenchant", and together they sank the Japanese tanker "Yaei Maru No.6", the Japanese auxiliary minesweeper "Reisui Maru", the Japanese submarine chaser "Ch 8", a fishing vessel and seven coasters. "Terrapin" herself sank another small craft with gunfire.

She was damaged on 19 May 1945 by depth charges from Japanese escort vessels while attacking an escorted tanker. She escaped and returned to Fremantle, Australia. She was declared a constructive total loss on return to harbour, and was scrapped in June 1946. [ [http://uboat.net/allies/warships/ship/3520.html HMS Terrapin] , Uboot.net]

References

*"Submarines, War Beneath The Waves, From 1776 To The Present Day", by Robert Hutchinson
*Colledge