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HMASStalwart(H14)

Coordinates:33°59.906′S151°36.067′E/ 33.998433°S 151.601117°E/-33.998433; 151.601117
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For other ships with the same name, seeHMAS Stalwart.

HMAS Stalwart (H14)
History
Australia
BuilderSwan Hunter & Wigham Richardson Limited
Laid downApril 1918
Launched23 October 1918
Completed5 April 1919
Commissioned
  • Royal Navy: April 1919
  • RAN: 27 January 1920
Decommissioned1 December 1925
Motto
  • Cor Roboris Cona Fors
  • "The Heart of Strength is Good Fortune"
FateSold for scrap, 1937
General characteristics
Class and typeAdmiralty S class destroyer
Displacement1,075 tons
Length
Beam26 ft 8.25 in (8.1344 m)
Propulsion3 × Yarrow boilers, Brown-Curtis turbines, 27,000 shp (20,000 kW), 2 shafts
Speed
  • 36 knots (67 km/h; 41 mph) as designed
  • 32.7 knots (60.6 km/h; 37.6 mph) on power trails
  • 13 knots (24 km/h; 15 mph) economical
Range2,608 nautical miles (4,830 km; 3,001 mi) at 13 knots (24 km/h; 15 mph)
Complement6 officers, 93 sailors
Armament

HMASStalwart(H14)was anAdmiralty S class destroyerof theRoyal Australian Navy(RAN). Built for theRoyal Navyduring World War I, the ship was not completed until 1919, and spent less than eight months in British service before being transferred to the RAN at the start of 1920. The destroyer's career was uneventful, with almost all of it spent operating along the east coast of Australia.Stalwartwas decommissioned at the end of 1925, sold forship breakingin 1937, andscuttledin 1939.

Design and construction

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Main article:S-class destroyer (1917)

Stalwartwas built to the Admiralty design of theS class destroyer,which was designed and built as part of the British emergency war programme.[1]The destroyer had a displacement of 1,075 tons, a length of 276 feet 1.75 inches (84.1693 m)overalland 265 feet (81 m)between perpendiculars,and a beam of 26 feet 8.25 inches (8.1344 m).[2]The propulsion machinery consisted of three Yarrow boilers feeding Brown-Curtis turbines, which supplied 27,000 shaft horsepower (20,000 kW) to the ship's two propeller shafts.[3]Although designed with a maximum speed of 36 knots (67 km/h; 41 mph),Stalwartwas only able to achieve 32.7 knots (60.6 km/h; 37.6 mph) on power trials.[2]The destroyer's economical speed of 13 knots (24 km/h; 15 mph) gave her a range of 2,608 nautical miles (4,830 km; 3,001 mi).[1]The ship's company was made up of 6 officers and 93 sailors.[3]

The destroyer's primary armament consisted of threeQF 4-inch Mark IV guns.These were supplemented by a2-pounder pom-pom,five.303 inch machine guns(a mix ofLewisandMaxim guns), two twin 21-inch torpedo tube sets, twodepth chargethrowers, and two depth charge chutes.[2]

Stalwartwas laid down bySwan Hunter & Wigham Richardson Limitedat theirWallsend-on-Tyneshipyard in April 1918.[3]The destroyer was launched on 23 October 1918, and completed on 5 April 1919.[3]The ship was briefly commissioned into theRoyal Navyin April 1919, but was quickly marked for transfer to the RAN, along with foursister ships.[3]Stalwartwas commissioned into the RAN on 27 January 1920.[3]There were plans to rename the destroyer HMASDarwin,but these were cancelled in mid 1920.[2]Theship's badgedepicted anacorn,andStalwartcarried the motto "Cor Roboris Bona Fors";Latin for" The Heart of Strength is Good Fortune ".[3]

Operational history

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Although the other four S class ships sailed on 20 February,Stuartremained in England for another six days, and sailed with thedestroyer leaderHMASAnzac.[3]Stalwartspent most of her career operating within theAustralia Station,primarily along the east coast of the continent.[3]

Decommissioning and fate

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Stalwartwas paid off to reserve on 1 December 1925.[3]The ship was sold to Penguins Limited forship breakingon 4 June 1937.[3]The ship was stripped of useful materials, and the remaininghulkwas sunk at33°59.906′S151°36.067′E/ 33.998433°S 151.601117°E/-33.998433; 151.601117on 22 July 1939.[4][5]The ship had been loaded with a cargo of condemned onions before sinking: currents removed many onions from the wreck and caused them to wash up on beaches aroundBondi.[6]The ship's mast was removed before the ship's sinking, and is preserved inside theRoyal Australian Navy Heritage Centre.[7]

Citations

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  1. ^abCassells,The Destroyers,pp. 103–4
  2. ^abcdCassells,The Destroyers,p. 103
  3. ^abcdefghijkCassells,The Destroyers,p. 104
  4. ^NSW Wrecks,Scuttled Vessels
  5. ^Sunk at Sea. Obsolete destroyer,inThe Evening Post
  6. ^Bastock,Australia's Ships of War,p. 84
  7. ^Royal Australian Navy,Heritage Centre - Online Guided Tour

References

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  • Bastock, John (1975).Australia's Ships of War.Cremorne, NSW: Angus and Robertson.ISBN0-207-12927-4.OCLC2525523.
  • Cassells, Vic (2000).The Destroyers: their battles and their badges.East Roseville, NSW: Simon & Schuster.ISBN0-7318-0893-2.OCLC46829686.
  • Colledge, J. J.;Warlow, Ben (2006) [1969].Ships of the Royal Navy: The Complete Record of all Fighting Ships of the Royal Navy(Rev. ed.). London: Chatham Publishing.ISBN978-1-86176-281-8.
  • Friedman, Norman (2009).British Destroyers: From Earliest Days to the Second World War.Barnsley, UK: Seaforth Publishing.ISBN978-1-84832-049-9.
  • Gardiner, Robert & Gray, Randal, eds. (1985).Conway's All The World's Fighting Ships 1906–1921.London: Conway Maritime Press.ISBN0-85177-245-5.
  • March, Edgar J. (1966).British Destroyers: A History of Development, 1892–1953; Drawn by Admiralty Permission From Official Records & Returns, Ships' Covers & Building Plans.London: Seeley Service.OCLC164893555.
  • "Sunk at Sea. Obsolete destroyer".The Evening Post.Vol. CXXVIII, no. 20. Wellington, New Zealand. 24 July 1939. p. 9.
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