HMS Cavalier (R73)
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HMS Cavalier, September 2023, as she appears at Chatham Dockyard.
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History | |
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United Kingdom | |
Name | HMS Cavalier |
Builder | J. Samuel White and Company, Cowes, Isle of Wight |
Laid down | 28 March 1943 |
Launched | 7 April 1944 |
Commissioned | 22 November 1944 |
Decommissioned | 1972 |
Identification | Pennant number: R73 (later D73) |
Motto | "Of one Company" |
Fate | Sold 21 October 1977. |
Status | Preserved as a museum ship since 1998 |
General characteristics | |
Class and type | C-class destroyer |
Displacement | 1,710 tons (standard) 2,520 tons (full) |
Length | 363 ft (111 m) o/a |
Beam | 35.75 ft (10.90 m) |
Draught | |
Propulsion |
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Speed | 37 knots (69 km/h) |
Range | 615 tons oil, 1,400 nautical miles (2,600 km) at 32 knots (59 km/h) |
Complement | 186[1] |
Armament |
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HMS Cavalier is a retired C-class destroyer of the Royal Navy. She was laid down by J. Samuel White and Company at East Cowes on 28 March 1943, launched on 7 April 1944,[1] and commissioned on 22 November 1944.[3] She served in World War II and in various commissions in the Far East until she was decommissioned in 1972. After decommissioning she was preserved as a museum ship and currently resides at Chatham Historic Dockyard.[4]
Construction
Cavalier was one of 96 War Emergency Programme destroyers ordered between 1940 and 1942. She was one of the first ships to be built with the forward and aft portions of her hull welded, with the midsection riveted to ensure strength. The new process gave the ship additional speed. In 1970 a 64-mile race was arranged between Cavalier and the frigate Rapid, which had the same hull form and machinery. Cavalier beat Rapid by 30 yards (27 m) after Rapid lifted a safety valve, reaching an average speed of 31.8 knots (58.9 km/h).[2]
Service history
After commissioning she joined the
Later in 1945 Cavalier was despatched to the Far East, where she provided naval gunfire support during the
From 1955 to 1957, Cavalier was modernised at
On 6 July 1971 Cavalier would participate in a race against a similar ship, HMS Rapid. Cavalier narrowly won the race after a safety valve blew on Rapid. Cavalier was presented with the 'Cock o' the Fleet' award. The award can be seen on the ship's bridge to this day.[14][15]
Cavalier was decommissioned in 1972 and is the last surviving British destroyer of World War 2 still in the UK.
Fate
After decommissioning at
Moved to Southampton, Cavalier opened as a museum and memorial ship in August 1982. This was not commercially successful, and in October 1983 the ship was moved to Brighton, where she formed the centrepiece of a newly built yacht marina.
In 1987, the ship was brought to the
After the reforming of the Cavalier Trust, and a debate in Parliament, in 1998 Cavalier was bought by Chatham Historic Dockyard for display as a museum ship. Arriving on 23 May 1998, Cavalier now resides in No. 2 dry-dock.
On 14 November 2007, Cavalier was officially designated as a war memorial to the 142 Royal Navy destroyers sunk during World War II and the 11,000 men killed on those ships. The unveiling of a bronze monument created by the artist Kenneth Potts was conducted by Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. The monument is adjacent to the ship at the Historic Dockyard in Chatham, Kent.
In the summer of 2009 the Chatham Historic Dockyard Trust made available accommodation on board the ship for youth groups who wish to stay on board and experience life on board a Royal Naval destroyer.
In September 2010, Cavalier fired the first full broadside from a ship flying the White Ensign since a firing by the destroyer London in December 1981. This was due to the work of the heritage naval gun crew who restored all three 4.5-in guns back to working condition in conjunction with the Chatham Historic Dockyard Trust.
In April 2014 Cavalier was added to
Gallery
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Cavalier in 2014
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Navigation bridge
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Forward 4.5in guns
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Operations room
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Seacat launcher
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Seaman's mess
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Ship's bell
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The grog tub
References
- ^ a b c d McMurtrie 1989, p. 52
- ^ a b c d "Cavaliers Specifications". HMS Cavalier Association. Retrieved 22 May 2015.
- ^ a b "HMS Cavalier (R 73)". uboat.net. Retrieved 22 May 2015.
- ^ "HMS Cavalier". National Register of Historic Vessels. National Historic Ships. Retrieved 22 May 2015.
- ^ a b c English 2008, p. 122
- ^ Marriott 1989, pp. 58–59
- ^ Marriott 1989, p. 59
- ^ Roberts 2009, p. 23
- ^ David Davies Lt. Cdr. Rtd Royal Navy/Royal New Zealand Navy. "The Laughing Cavalier in Borneo". Britain's Small Wars. Archived from the original on 14 September 2008. Retrieved 25 April 2009.
- ^ "Royal Marines killed in Brunei" (PDF). Navy News. January 1963. p. 1. Retrieved 2 September 2020.
- ^ a b English 2008, p. 123
- ^ "Cavalier damaged on tow to Gibraltar" (PDF). Navy News. June 1964. p. 3. Retrieved 31 May 2021.
- ^ World of Warships Official Channel (22 September 2017), Naval Legends: HMS Cavalier | World of Warships], retrieved 13 May 2019
- ISBN 9781848323759.
- ^ "Business View". Retrieved 20 April 2014.
- ^ "HMS Cavalier – Google Maps Business View". cinsidemedia.com. Archived from the original on 20 April 2014. Retrieved 20 April 2014.
- ^ "HMS Cavalier – Google Maps". Retrieved 20 April 2014.
- ^ "The Historic Dockyard Chatham – HMS Cavalier Virtual Tour". thedockyard.co.uk. Archived from the original on 21 April 2014. Retrieved 20 April 2014.
Publications
- ISBN 978-1-86176-281-8.
- English, John (2008). Obdurate to Daring: British Fleet Destroyers 1941–45. Windsor, UK: World Ship Society. ISBN 978-0-9560769-0-8.
- Marriott, Leo (1989). Royal Navy Destroyers Since 1945. Ian Allan Ltd. ISBN 0-7110-1817-0.
- McMurtrie, Francis E., ed. (1989). Jane's Fighting Ships of World War II. Crescent Books/Random House. ISBN 0-51767-963-9.
- Roberts, John (2009). Safeguarding the Nation: The Story of the Modern Royal Navy. Annapolis, Maryland, USA: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-1-59114-812-8.
- Johnstone-Bryden, Richard (2015). HMS Cavalier: Destroyer 1944. Seaforth Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84832-226-4.
- David L. Williams, Richard P. De Kerbrech (2012). J. Samuel White and Co., Shipbuilders. History Press Limited. ISBN 978-0-75246-612-5.
External links
- HMS Cavalier (R73) at Historic Naval Ships Association
- Chatham Historic Dockyard
- HMS Cavalier Association