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H .
M . S . C R O O M E ( L 6 2 )
Type II HUNT
Class Escort Destroyer ordered under the 1939 Emergency War Programme from
Stephens of Govan on 4th September 1939. The ship was laid down as J1477 on 7th
June 1940 and was launched on 30th January 1941 as the 2nd RN warship to carry
the name, previously used by a minesweeper in 1917. Her completion date was
29th June 1941 and after a successful WARSHIP WEEK National Savings campaign in
March 1942 she was adopted by the civil community of Bromsgrove,
Worcestershire.
B a t t
l e H o n o u r s
ATLANTIC 1941-42 - LIBYA 1942 - MEDITERRANEAN 1942 - AEGEAN
1943
H e r a l d i
c D a t a
Badge : On a Field White, on a horse's shoe
inverted red
a cock also Red wattled and legged Gold.
D e t a i
l s
o f W a r
S e r v i c e
1 9 4 1
June
Contractors trials and commissioned for service.
29th Build
completion and commenced Acceptance Trials
July Passage
to Scapa Flow on completion of trials and storing.
Worked-up at Scapa Flow with ships of Home Fleet for operational service.
August Joined 12th
Escort Group based at Londonderry for Atlantic convoy escort.
September Part of escort
for Convoy HG72.
8th Sank
Italian submarine BARACCA by gunfire and ramming in position 40.15N 20.55W
NE of
Azores.
Sustained structural damage.
12th Taken in
hand for repair.
October
4th On
completion of repair resumed convoy escort duty.
11th Escorted
HM Aircraft Carrier EAGLE to Gibraltar for final stage of passage from
Freetown
with
French Corvette COMMANDANTE DUBOC
November Part of
Atlantic escort for military convoy WS14 on passage to Middle East.
December Deployed at
Gibraltar for Atlantic convoy defence.
Part
of escort for Convoy WS14 with HM Destroyer EXMOOR until relieved off West
African
coast
by HM Destroyer WILD SWAN.
14th Took part
in hunt and sinking of U 127 in position 36.38 N 09.12W off
Cape St.
Vincent
with
HM Destroyers FOXHOUND, GURKHA and NESTOR (RAN).
There
were no survivors.
For
details see U-BOATS DESTROYED by P Kemp.
1 9 4 2
January Atlantic
convoy defence duty in continuation.
(For
details of convoy defence and changes in tactics see SEEK AND STRIKE by W
Hackmann
and
U-BOAT WAR IN 1HE ATLANTIC (HMSO)).
February
27th Part of
escort for HM Aircraft Carriers ARGUS and EAGLE during aircraft delivery
to
Malta with
HM
Destroyers LAFOREY, LIGHTING, ACTIVE, ANTHONY, WHITEHALL, WISHART,
BLANKNEY and EXMOOR (Operation SPOTTER I)
(Note
:Cover was provided by HM Battleship MALAYA and HM cruiser HERMIONE.
For
details of naval activities in the
Mediterranean during 1942 see THE BATTLE FOR
THE
MEDITERRANEAN by D. MacIntyre, ENGAGE THE ENEMY MORE
CLOSELY by C.
Barnett and Naval Staff History (HMSO-2001).
28th Operation
abandoned after defects discovered in aircraft fuel tanks.
March
6th Repeated
SPOTTER I successfully with same escorts and cover.
(Operation SPOTTER II)
20th Escorted
HMS ARGUS and HMS EAGLE for Malta aircraft delivery with HM Destroyers
LAFOREY, DUNCAN, ACTIVE, ANTHONY, WHITEHALL, WISHART, BLANKNEY and
EXMOOR.
(Note
: Cover was provided by Force H major ships as SPOTTER II (Operation PICKET I).
27th Repeated
PICKET I escort duty with same escorts and cover.
April Deployed
on escort of convoys on UK-Gibraltar route.
11th Part of
the escort for military convoy WS17B with HM Cruiser
SHROPSHIRE and HM
Destroyers WILD SWAN, EXMOOR and FLOWER Class Corvettes.
Nominated for service in Mediterranean.
Sailed from Gibraltar
May On passage
to Alexandria via Cape of Good Hope
.
Transferred to 5th Destroyer Flotilla on arrival.
June Joined HM
Destroyers ALDENHAM, BEAUFORT, BELVOIR, DERWENT, DULVERTON,
.
EXMOOR, HAYDON, HOLCOMBE, HURSLEY, HURWORTH, ROCKWOOD and
TETCOTT in 5th Flotilla for convoy escort
and patrol in
Eastern Mediterranean.
11th Part of
escort of Convoy MW 11 to Malta (Operation VIGOROUS).
15th Returned
to Alexandria after major air and E-Boat attacks as well as surface threat.
(Note
: For full details of this ill conceived and disastrous operation see THE BATTLE
FOR
THE
MEDITERRANEAN by D Macintyre, ENGAGE THE
ENEMY MORE
CLOSELY by Corelli Barnett, Naval Staff History and MALTA CONVOYS by R
Woodman.).
July Eastern
Mediterranean deployment with Flotilla for anti-submarine patrol and support of
Tobruk garrison.
August Sank U 372 in
position SW of Haifa (32.28N 34.37E) with SUCH, ZULU, TETCOTT and
Wellington aircraft from 221 Squadron RAF.
Some
of the submarine's crew survived.
For
details see U-BOATS DESTROYED by P Kemp.
27th Took part
in Bombardment of Data in support of military operation.
September Participated
with Fleet units, including ships of Flotilla in the failed assault of Tobruk
during
which
HM Cruiser COVENTRY and HM Destroyers SIKH and ZULU were sunk as well as
many
casualties (Operation AGREEMENT)
(For
full details see MASSACRE AT TOBRUK by P Smith and Naval Staff History.)
October. Eastern
Mediterranean deployment with Flotilla in continuation.
November
17th Part of
escort for first westbound Malta relief convoys since lifting of siege.
(Operation STONEAGE - See above references).
December Deployed with
Flotilla for convoy escort and patrol in Eastern Mediterranean.
1 9 4 3
January Convoy
defence and patrol duty in Eastern Mediterranean.
to
February
March Transferred
to 22nd Destroyer Flotilla based at Algiers for convoy escort, patrol
and support
to of
military operations in Tunisia.
April (Note: HM
Destroyers EXMOOR, HURSLEY and Greek THEMISTOCLES were part of this
Flotilla and
were sister ships.
May Deployed
on blockade of Cape Bon area to intercept craft evacuating enemy troops
from
Cape
Bon
area (Operation RETRIBUTION).
June Convoy
defence and patrol in central
Mediterranean in continuation.
to
Escorted military convoys on passage for landings at Salerno.
August (Operation
AVALANCHE - See Naval Staff History and above references).
September Military convoy
escort in continuation.
14th Whilst
escorting convoy MKS24 in Eastern Mediterranean detached and diverted to
Haifa
to support military operations in Aegean following the Italian surrender.
16th Joined HM
Destroyer HURWORTH at Haifa to embark troops of Royal Irish Fusiliers
for
passage to Leros.
17th Landed
troops at Leros.
Deployed for patrol to intercept craft bring German troops to replace the
Italian
garrisons in
Aegean Islands.
October Deployed in
support of Aegean defence by patrol, supply of stores and personnel
and
supplementing AA defences.
November Deployed with
Flotilla in eastern Mediterranean. for support of
Aegean Islands defence.
December
12th Resumed
Flotilla duties after the defence operations ended.
(For
details of this disastrous fiasco see WAR IN THE AEGEAN by Peter Smith and
Edwin
Walker, NAVAL OPERATIONS, AEGEAN (London Gazette) and ENGAGE
THE
ENEMY MORE
CLOSELY).
Nominated for support of planned allied landings at Anzio.
1 9 4 4
January Passage to
Naples.
21st Sailed
from Naples with Southern Attack Force (US) as part of Task Force 81 with
Greek
Destroyers THEMISTOCLES and KRITI. deployed as Task Unit 81.6.
(Operation SHINGLE - See Naval Staff History, ENGAGE THE ENEMY MORE
CLOSELY and BRITISH INVASION FLEETS.).
22nd Provided
gunfire support and AA defence during landings at
Anzio.
Deployed for
interception patrol off beach head,
February After release
from SHINGLE deployed for convoy escort.
March Central and
western Mediterranean convoy defence and patrol duties with Flotilla
to in
continuation.
July
August Nominated for
return to UK and
transferred to 21st Destroyer Flotilla.
September Passage to
Sheerness.
October Joined
Flotilla and deployed on Coastal patrol and convoy defence in North Sea
and
English Channel.
November Coastal convoy
defence and patrol duties in continuation.
to (For
details of naval activities in 1944 see HOLD THE NARROW SEA by P Staith).
December
1 9 4 5
January Nominated
for service with Eastern Fleet based in Ceylon after refit
to Under
refit and prepared for foreign service.
February
March Part of
escort for HM Light Fleet Aircraft Carriers VENERABLE, VENGEANCE and
COLOSSUS during passage to Mediterranean.
April Retained
in Mediterranean as Reserve for Eastern Fleet.
Deployed for convoy escort and patrol duties.
May After VE
Day retained in Mediterranean for Eastern Fleet service if required.
to
Deployed in Malta for
Mediterranean Fleet duties including support of garrisons and
August for
exercises.
P o s t W a r N o t e s
HMS CROOME returned to
UK in
October 1945 and paid off into Reserve at Plymouth. The ship reduced to Category C Reserve and
transferred to Cardiff in 1954. She was placed on the Disposal List as part of
the Defence Review and sold in 1957 to BISCO for demolition by T W Ward.. The
ship arrived at the breaker’s yard at Briton Ferry under tow on 13th August
1957. |
