HMS Campbeltown was a Batch 3 Type 22 frigate

Type 22 frigate

The Type 22 Broadsword class is a class of frigate built for the British Royal Navy. Fourteen of the class were built in total, with production divided into three batches. With the decommissioning of HMS Cornwall on 30 June 2011, the final Type 22 of the Royal Navy was retired from service...

 of the British Royal Navy

Royal Navy

The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...

. Built by Cammell Laird Shipbuilders Ltd.

Cammell Laird

Cammell Laird, one of the most famous names in British shipbuilding during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, came about following the merger of Laird, Son & Co. of Birkenhead and Johnson Cammell & Co. of Sheffield at the turn of the twentieth century.- Founding of the business :The Company...

 in Birkenhead

Birkenhead

Birkenhead is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral in Merseyside, England. It is on the Wirral Peninsula, along the west bank of the River Mersey, opposite the city of Liverpool...

, she was part of the third batch of Type 22s, which were considerably larger than their predecessors and incorporated more advanced weapon

Weapon

A weapon, arm, or armament is a tool or instrument used with the aim of causing damage or harm to living beings or artificial structures or systems...

ry after lessons learnt from the Falklands War

Falklands War

The Falklands War , also called the Falklands Conflict or Falklands Crisis, was fought in 1982 between Argentina and the United Kingdom over the disputed Falkland Islands and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands...

. She was decommissioned on 7 April 2011.

History

Campbeltowns last deployment was a seven month tour from 2007-2008 in 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...

, where she operated in support of Operation Calash and Operation Telic

Operation Telic

Operation TELIC was the codename under which all British military operations in Iraq were conducted between the start of the Invasion of Iraq on 19 March 2003 and the withdrawal of the last remaining British forces on 22 May 2011...

. In early 2004 the vessel was deployed as part of NATO's Standing Naval Force Atlantic. HMS Campbeltown entered refit in September 2008.

The ship's bell of the first HMS Campbeltown

HMS Campbeltown (I42)

HMS Campbeltown was a "Town"-class destroyer of the Royal Navy during the Second World War. She was originally an American destroyer , and, like many other obsolescent U.S. Navy destroyers, she was transferred to the Royal Navy in 1940 as part of the Destroyers for Bases Agreement. Campbeltown...

, a Second World War

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...

  famous for her role in the St. Nazaire Raid

St. Nazaire Raid

The St Nazaire Raid or Operation Chariot was a successful British amphibious attack on the heavily defended Normandie dry dock at St Nazaire in German-occupied France during the Second World War. The operation was undertaken by the Royal Navy and British Commandos under the auspices of Combined...

, has been loaned from Campbelltown, Pennsylvania

Campbelltown, Pennsylvania

Campbelltown is a census-designated place in Lebanon County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 2,415 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Campbelltown is located at ....

 to the current Campbeltown for the duration of her Royal Navy service.

Decommissioning

The Royal Navy

Royal Navy

The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...

 has announced in March 2011 that the Campbeltown would be decommissioned on 7 April 2011. She paid a final visit to her namesake town of Campbeltown

Campbeltown

Campbeltown is a town and former royal burgh in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It lies by Campbeltown Loch on the Kintyre peninsula. Originally known as Kinlochkilkerran , it was renamed in the 17th century as Campbell's Town after Archibald Campbell was granted the site in 1667...

, Argyll

Argyll

Argyll , archaically Argyle , is a region of western Scotland corresponding with most of the part of ancient Dál Riata that was located on the island of Great Britain, and in a historical context can be used to mean the entire western coast between the Mull of Kintyre and Cape Wrath...

 in March 2011 where a series of ceremonies, including a town centre parade by the ship's crew took place to commemorate the end of the ship's active service. Campbeltown made her final entrance to Plymouth on 31 March 2011 before decommissioning in a traditional ceremony on 7 April 2011.

The ship's bell has now been returned to Campbelltown, Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...

. The ship's bell made specifically for the latest HMS Campbeltown has been gifted to Campbeltown, Kintyre, to be displayed in the town's museum until a future Campbeltown is commissioned.

Affiliations

Campbeltown was affiliated with a number of military and civic bodies:

• J Battery, 3 Regiment, Royal Horse Artillery
  3rd Regiment Royal Horse Artillery
  3rd Regiment Royal Horse Artillery is a regiment of the Royal Horse Artillery in the British Army. They are currently based in Caen Barracks, Hohne, Germany.-Current role:...
  
  
• No. 24 Squadron RAF
• Worshipful Company of Wax Chandlers
  Worshipful Company of Wax Chandlers
  The Worshipful Company of Wax Chandlers is one of the Livery Companies of the City of London. The organisation was established in 1358 by the granting of by-laws and ordinances by the Lord Mayor and Aldermen. New ordinances were issued in 1371...
  
  
• Campbeltown, Argyll
  Campbeltown
  Campbeltown is a town and former royal burgh in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It lies by Campbeltown Loch on the Kintyre peninsula. Originally known as Kinlochkilkerran , it was renamed in the 17th century as Campbell's Town after Archibald Campbell was granted the site in 1667...
  
  
• Campbelltown, Pennsylvania
  Campbelltown, Pennsylvania
  Campbelltown is a census-designated place in Lebanon County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 2,415 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Campbelltown is located at ....
  
  
• Springbank Distillery, Campbeltown, Argyll
• Birmingham Nautical Club
• TS Campbeltown
• Bridgewater Sea Cadet Corps
• Royal Marine Cadet Corps, Bradfield College, Reading
• CCF Naval Section, Gordon's School, Woking

Footnotes