HMAS Toowoomba (J157)
Encyclopedia

HMAS Toowoomba (J157/B251/A125), named for the city of Toowoomba, Queensland
Toowoomba, Queensland
Toowoomba is a city in Southern Queensland, Australia. It is located west of Queensland's capital city, Brisbane. With an estimated district population of 128,600, Toowoomba is Australia's second largest inland city and its largest non-capital inland city...

 was one of 60 Bathurst class corvettes
Bathurst class corvette
The Bathurst class corvettes were a class of general purpose vessels produced in Australia during World War II. Originally classified as minesweepers, but widely referred to as corvettes, the Bathurst class vessels fulfilled a broad anti-submarine, anti-mine, and convoy escort role.Sixty Bathurst...

 constructed during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

 and one of 20 built on Admiralty
Admiralty
The Admiralty was formerly the authority in the Kingdom of England, and later in the United Kingdom, responsible for the command of the Royal Navy...

 order but manned by personnel of and later commissioned into the Royal Australian Navy
Royal Australian Navy
The Royal Australian Navy is the naval branch of the Australian Defence Force. Following the Federation of Australia in 1901, the ships and resources of the separate colonial navies were integrated into a national force: the Commonwealth Naval Forces...

 (RAN). The ship later served in the Royal Netherlands Navy
Royal Netherlands Navy
The Koninklijke Marine is the navy of the Netherlands. In the mid-17th century the Dutch Navy was the most powerful navy in the world and it played an active role in the wars of the Dutch Republic and later those of the Batavian Republic and the Kingdom of the Netherlands...

 (RNN) as HNLMS Boeroe.

Construction

Toowoomba was laid down by Walkers Limited
Walkers Limited
Walkers Limited is an Australian engineering company, based in Maryborough, Queensland, which built ships and locomotives. It is still in the locomotive-building business as part of Downer Rail.-History:...

 at Maryborough, Queensland on 6 August 1940. She launched on 26 March 1941, in a ceremony presided over by Mrs. C. W. Lowther, the wife of a long serving employee of the shipyard. Toowoomba was commissioned on 9 October 1941.

RAN

Toowoomba entered operaional service immediately on commissioning. She was initially based in Sydney, and was tasked with convoy escort duties along the east coast of Australia until January 1942, when Toowoomba and two sister ships were ordered to Batavia. Toowoomba was in constant action over the next two months, and on 14 February was one of the last ships to enter Singapore Harbour before it was captured by the Japanese
Battle of Singapore
The Battle of Singapore was fought in the South-East Asian theatre of the Second World War when the Empire of Japan invaded the Allied stronghold of Singapore. Singapore was the major British military base in Southeast Asia and nicknamed the "Gibraltar of the East"...

.

Retreating to Fremantle, Western Australia after the capture of Singapore, Toowoomba was repaired and recommenced convoy escort duties, this time on the west coast of Australia and with a new captain and crew, until assignment to the British Eastern Fleet
British Eastern Fleet
The British Eastern Fleet was a fleet of the Royal Navy which existed from 1941 to 1971...

 on 23 November 1942. During this time, she was involved in escort and patrol duties across the Indian Ocean
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...

, reaching as far west as the Persian Gulf
Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...

. On 22 November 1944, Toowoomba was assigned to the newly-created British Pacific Fleet
British Pacific Fleet
The British Pacific Fleet was a British Commonwealth naval force which saw action against Japan during World War II. The fleet was composed of British Commonwealth naval vessels. The BPF formally came into being on 22 November 1944...

, and operated with the fleet until returning to Fremantle on 3 December 1944 for refit. The refit was completed in March 1945, and Toowoomba was assigned to escort and patrol duties between Australia and New Guinea until the end of hostilities.

Following the end of World War II, Toowoomba spent time in Hong Kong, performing minesweeping and hydrological survey duties. She returned to Australia in December 1945.

The corvette earned two battle honour
Battle honour
A battle honour is an award of a right by a government or sovereign to a military unit to emblazon the name of a battle or operation on its flags , uniforms or other accessories where ornamentation is possible....

s for her wartime service, "Pacific 1942" and "Indian Ocean 1942-44".

RNN

On 5 July 1946, Toowoomba decommissioned from RAN service and immediately commissioned into the Royal Netherland Navy (RNN). Renamed HNLMS Boeroe, she served with the RNN until 1958.
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