HMCS Prince Henry
landing ship infantry at Greenock in May 1944
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History | |
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Name | Prince Henry |
Owner |
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Operator |
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Port of registry | |
Builder | Cammell Laird, Birkenhead |
Yard number | 964 |
Launched | 17 January 1930 |
Completed | May 1930 |
In service | 1930 |
Out of service | 1939 |
Renamed | North Star 1937 |
Fate | Acquired by Royal Canadian Navy 1939 |
General characteristics as built | |
Type | Ocean liner |
Tonnage | 6,893 GRT |
Length | 366 ft 4 in (111.7 m) pp |
Beam | 57 ft 1 in (17.4 m) |
Installed power |
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Propulsion |
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Speed | 20.5 knots (38.0 km/h) |
Capacity |
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HMCS Prince Henry was an
Converted to an armed merchant cruiser, Prince Henry was ordered to patrol along the west coast of South America to intercept German merchant vessels trying to break the British
Taken into British service as Prince Henry, the vessel served as an
Description
As built, Prince Henry was considered a small
The ship was powered by six Yarrow watertube boilers feeding two Parsons single reduction geared steam turbines, driving two shafts.[1][2] The engines were rated at 19,000 shaft horsepower (14,168 kW) during sea trials, giving the ship a maximum speed of 23 knots (42.6 km/h). However, in service the vessel operated at 16,500 shp (12,304 kW) with maximum speed of 21.5 knots (39.8 km/h).[1][3][a] Prince Henry could carry 1,470 long tons (1,490 t) of fuel oil.[3]
Prince Henry had a capacity of 334 first class passengers and 70 deck passengers. The ship could also accommodate several cars. After being acquired by the Clarke Steamship Company, the vessel was refitted to carry 335 cruise passengers.[1]
Conversion to warship
In 1939 Prince Henry was converted first to an
Construction and career
Prince Henry was one of three small ocean liners ordered by Canadian National Railway (CNR) for passenger service along the
The Prince ships were high-sided and less maneuverable than preceding classes in CNR service. The vessels were expensive to operate and their arrival created no new business opportunities for the company beyond providing an alternative to Canadian Pacific's coastal operations. Their large size required tugboat support in Victoria Harbour for berthing and un-berthing and the wash created by them while travelling at speed did damage to the sea walls of West Vancouver, requiring them to travel at a maximum of 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph) while in the Burrard Inlet.[8]
In 1931, following the
In 1937, Prince Henry was chartered by the Clarke Steamship Company of Quebec to operate in the St. Lawrence River and Gulf of St. Lawrence during the summer months and in winter months, travel between Miami, Port-au-Prince, Kingston and Havana. The following year, the Clarke Steamship Company purchased the ship and renamed her North Star.[8]
War service
History | |
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Canada | |
Name | Prince Henry |
Acquired | 1939 |
Commissioned | 4 December 1940 |
Decommissioned | 15 April 1945 |
Honours and awards | |
Fate | Transferred to UK 1945 |
History | |
Name | Prince Henry |
Operator | General Steam Navigation Company |
Port of registry | London |
Acquired | 1945 |
In service | 1945 |
Out of service | 1961 |
Renamed | Empire Parkeston 1946 |
Fate | Broken up at La Spezia, Italy 1962 |
General characteristics | |
Displacement | 5,736 long tons (5,828 t) |
Capacity |
|
Complement | 417 |
Sensors and processing systems | Asdic |
Armament |
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After the declaration of war Canada, the
Prince Henry underwent conversion to an armed merchant cruiser at Montreal. Upon completion of her refit at Halifax in January 1941, the ship travelled to Bermuda for work ups. On 21 February, Prince Henry sailed on her first operational cruise. Based out of Jamaica, she transited the Panama Canal to rendezvous with the cruiser HMS Diomede on 1 March.[13]
Assigned to operate with Diomede off the coast of South America, Prince Henry sailed into the port of
With the fire aboard Muenschen too far advanced, Prince Henry departed the scene to find the other German merchant. At 1225, Prince Henry spotted Hermonthis, on fire, sinking and abandoned. Prince Henry ordered the German sailors back to their ship, an order which most obeyed, and sent a
Prince Henry began searching for Muenschen and her crew. On 3 April, the armed merchant cruiser returned to the German ship's last known position at 0800, however Muenschen was not found. Prince Henry began a search and encountered the Peruvian cruiser BAP Almirante Grau around 1145. The Peruvian cruiser informed Prince Henry that she had sunk Muenschen by gunfire two hours earlier.[14] Prince Henry began looking for the crew of Muenschen, however three hours later, Prince Henry was ordered away from the area on a new patrol. The crew and their lifeboats were later intercepted by Bishopdale, however the ship was unable to capture them, being an unarmed tanker and the Germans made it safely ashore at Casma, Peru, where they were arrested.[13]
Following the sinking of the two German ships, Prince Henry continued patrolling for three more weeks and then returned to
After the Japanese invaded islands in the Territory of Alaska threatening northwestern North America, the US assembled a force to retake the islands. All three Prince ships were assigned to the Aleutians campaign, along with the corvettes HMCS Dawson and HMCS Vancouver. The Canadian ships sailed on 20 August 1942 from Esquimalt, bound for Kodiak. Once there, they were tasked with escort duties, protecting supply convoys travelling between Kodiak, Dutch Harbor and locations between. The Canadian ships were placed under US command and spent two uneventful months traversing Alaskan waters.[17]
As landing ship
Beginning on 6 March 1943, Prince Henry underwent conversion to a medium landing ship infantry at
After completing the final fittings, Prince Henry sailed for
After reaching a position 7 miles (11 km) offshore, Force J turned parallel to the coast, with 300 yards (270 m) between ships and prepared for the assault.[22] Prince Henry began lowering the assault craft at 0545 on 6 June and by 0827 the Canadian Scottish were landing on the beaches. LCA 856 hit a beach obstacle and LCA 1021 collided with a tank landing craft, but both made it to shore and landed their troops. By 1230, all of the landing craft, save the duty boat, were loaded back aboard Prince Henry. The duty boat was hit by mortar fire and required some repairs, but quickly returned to duty. Prince Henry embarked 57 wounded, along with survivors from ships that had sunk during the assault and sailed back to Cowes in a nine-ship convoy at night.[23]
Prince Henry embarked landing craft and American troops for Utah Beach during the reinforcement phase of the assault. Following that delivery, Prince Henry joined Prince David for ten days at anchor. The ship made one more voyage to Normandy, this time starting from Portland in June, then three more voyages in July before departing for a boiler cleaning at Southampton.[23] Between them, Prince Henry and Prince David transported 5,566 troops to Normandy.[24] In 2023, Prince Henry was awarded the campaign honour "Normandy, 1944", in addition to honours that had been awarded decades earlier.[10]
Prince Henry departed Southampton for Gibraltar on 24 July and then travelled on to Naples, Italy. There, the ship joined the forces gathering for the invasion of southern France named Operation Dragoon. Prince Henry arrived at Naples on 31 July and was designated the headquarters ship for the force subdivision "Sitka Unit B" on 6 August. "Sitka Unit B" was composed of Prince Henry and four US destroyer troop transports, escorted by four motor torpedo boats. The ship would be the flagship of US Rear Admiral T. E. Chandler, who commanded one of the main force divisions. In addition to the headquarters staff, Prince Henry embarked 279 members of the First Special Service Force.[25]
After departing Naples, the force stopped at
Prince Henry spent September ferrying troops and landing craft from
British service
Prince Henry remained in the
The British assumed control of the ship on loan and recommissioned the vessel HMS Prince Henry. The ship sailed for
Notes
- ^ The speed of the ship varies between the sources. Milner and Macpherson & Barrie give the speed of the ship as 22 knots (40.7 km/h)[4][5] while the Miramar Ship Index gives the speed of the vessel as 22.5 knots (41.7 km/h).[2]
- Roman numeralsto denote Marks (models) of ordnance until after World War II.
- ^ "Cwt" is the abbreviation for hundredweight, 20 cwt referring to the weight of the gun.
Citations
- ^ a b c d e f g h Greenway 2014, p. 130.
- ^ a b c d e Miramar Ship Index.
- ^ a b c d Chesneau 1980, p. 82.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Milner 2010.
- ^ a b c d e f Macpherson & Barrie 2002, p. 43.
- ^ a b Macpherson & Barrie 2002, pp. 42–43.
- ^ Macpherson & Barrie 2002, p. 42.
- ^ a b c Hacking 1995, p. 55.
- ^ a b c "Battle Honours". Britain's Navy. Retrieved 25 Jan 2019.
- ^ a b Canadian Forces General Message 089/23, 23 May 2023: "The campaign honour 'Normandy, 1944' is awarded to HMCS Prince Henry"
- ^ a b Hacking 1995, p. 56.
- ^ a b Boutiller 1982, pp. 104–105.
- ^ a b "Looking Astern". The Crowsnest. Vol. 2, no. 9. Ottawa, Ontario: King's Printer. July 1950. pp. 22–23.
- ^ a b c "Prince Henry's Half Victory". The Crowsnest. Vol. 13, no. 5. Ottawa, Ontario: Queen's Printer. March 1961. pp. 13–14.
- ^ Boutiller 1982, pp. 123–124.
- ^ a b Boutiller 1982, p. 124.
- ^ Schull 1961, p. 122.
- ^ a b Boutiller 1982, pp. 128–129.
- ^ a b c Boutiller 1982, pp. 129–131.
- ^ Schull 1961, p. 263.
- ^ Schull 1961, pp. 263, 273.
- ^ Schull 1961, p. 273.
- ^ a b Boutiller 1982, p. 132.
- ^ Schull 1961, p. 326.
- ^ Schull 1961, p. 362.
- ^ Schull 1961, pp. 362–364.
- ^ Schull 1961, pp. 365–366, 368–370.
- ^ Schull 1961, p. 386.
- ^ a b Boutiller 1982, p. 136.
- ^ Fullick & Powell 2006, pp. 155–156.
Sources
- Boutiller, James A., ed. (1982). RCN in Retrospect, 1910–1968. Vancouver: University of British Columbia Press. ISBN 0-7748-0196-4.
- Chesneau, Roger, ed. (1980). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1922–1946. Greenwich, UK: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-85177-146-7.
- Fullick, Ray & Powell, Geoffrey (2006) [1979]. Suez: The Double War. Barnsley, United Kingdom: Pen & Sword. ISBN 1-84415-340-1.
- Greenway, Ambrose (2014). Cross Channel and Short Sea Ferries. Barnsley, United Kingdom: Seaforth Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84832-170-0.
- Hacking, Norman (1995). Prince Ships of Northern B.C.: Ships of the Grand Trunk Pacific and Canadian National Railways. Surrey, British Columbia: Heritage House Publishing. ISBN 1-895811-28-7.
- Macpherson, Ken & Barrie, Ron (2002). The Ships of Canada's Naval Forces 1910–2002 (Third ed.). St. Catharines, Ontario: Vanwell Publishing. ISBN 1-55125-072-1.
- Milner, Marc (17 April 2010). "The Three Princes: Navy, Part 38". Legion Magazine. Retrieved 14 April 2018.
- "Prince Henry (1156885)". Miramar Ship Index. Retrieved 14 April 2018.
- Schull, Joseph (1961). The Far Distant Ships: An Official Account of Canadian Naval Operations in the Second World War. Ottawa: Queen's Printer. OCLC 19974782.