HMS Hotspur (H01)
Encyclopedia
HMS Hotspur (H01) was an H-class
destroyer
built for the Royal Navy
during the 1930s. During the Spanish Civil War
of 1936–1939 the ship spent considerable time in Spanish waters, enforcing the arms blockade imposed by Britain and France on both sides of the conflict. During the Norwegian Campaign
of World War II
, she fought in the First Battle of Narvik in April 1940 where she was badly damaged. After her repairs were completed, Hotspur was transferred to Gibraltar
where she participated in the Battle of Dakar
in September. A month later the ship was badly damaged when she rammed
and sank an Italian submarine. She received permanent repairs in Malta
and was transferred to the Mediterranean Fleet
when they were finished in early 1941. Hotspur participated in the Battle of Cape Matapan
in March and evacuated British and Australian troops from both Greece
and Crete
in April–May. In June the ship participated in the Syria-Lebanon Campaign
and was escorting convoys and the larger ships of the Mediterranean Fleet until she was transferred to the Eastern Fleet in March 1942.
Hotspur did not see any action during the Japanese Indian Ocean raid in April, but she did escort an aircraft carrier in September during the later stages of the invasion of Madagascar
. In June, however, the ship did return to the Mediterranean to escort another convoy to Malta in Operation Vigorous
. She was converted to an escort destroyer beginning in March 1943 in the United Kingdom
and was assigned to escort convoys in the North Atlantic for most of the rest of the war. After a lengthy refit in late 1944, Hotspur escorted convoys in the Irish Sea
until the end of World War II in May 1945.
After the war the ship was used both as a training ship and on active duty until she was placed in reserve in early 1948. She was sold to the Dominican Republic
late that year and renamed Trujillo. After the death of Rafael Trujillo, who ruled the Dominican Republic from 1930 until his assassination in 1961, the ship was renamed Duarte in 1962, and finally was sold for scrap
in 1972.
load and 1883 long tons (1,913.2 t) at deep load. The ship had an overall length of 323 feet (98.5 m), a beam
of 33 feet (10.1 m) and a draught
of 12 in 5 in (3.78 m). She was powered by Parsons
geared steam turbine
s, driving two shafts, which developed a total of 34000 shp and gave a maximum speed of 36 knots (19.6 m/s). Steam for the turbines was provided by three Admiralty 3-drum water-tube boiler
s. Hotspur carried a maximum of 470 long tons (477.5 t) of fuel oil
that gave her a range of 5530 nautical miles (10,241.6 km) at 15 knots (8.2 m/s). The ship's complement was 137 officers and men in peacetime, but this increased to 146 in wartime.
The ship mounted four 45-calibre
4.7-inch (120 mm) Mark IX guns
in single mounts. For anti-aircraft
(AA) defence, Hotspur had two quadruple Mark I mounts for the 0.5 inch Vickers Mark III
machine gun
. She was fitted with two above-water quadruple torpedo tube
mounts for 21 inches (53 cm)
torpedoes. One depth charge
rail and two throwers were fitted; 20 depth charges were originally carried, but this increased to 35 shortly after the war began.
Beginning in mid-1940, the ship's anti-aircraft armament was increased although when exactly the modifications were made is not known. The rear set of torpedo tubes was replaced by a 3 inches (7.6 cm) (12-pounder)
AA gun and the quadruple .50-calibre Vickers mounts were replaced by 20 millimetre (0.78740157480315 in) Oerlikon
autocannon
. Two more Oerlikon guns were also added in the forward superstructure.
, Scotland
on 27 February 1935, launched on 23 March 1936 and completed on 29 December 1936. Excluding government-furnished equipment like the armament, the ship cost £253,037. She was assigned to the 2nd Destroyer Flotilla of the Mediterranean Fleet upon commissioning. Hotspur patrolled Spanish waters in 1937 during the Spanish Civil War enforcing the policies of the Non-Intervention Committee
. The ship received an overhaul at Gibraltar
between 16 December 1937 and 17 January 1938. She resumed patrolling Spanish waters in 1938 and 1939. After the end of the Spanish Civil War, Hotspur began a refit in Sheerness Dockyard in August 1939, but this was cancelled later in the month as tensions rose just before the beginning of World War II.
She sailed later that month for the Mediterranean, but, once she reached Gibraltar, she was diverted to Freetown
, Sierra Leone
to search for German commerce raiders. The ship was transferred to the North America and West Indies Station in October and was refitted in Sheerness between 18 January and 6 March 1940. On 6 April Hotspur and the rest of the 2nd Destroyer Flotilla escorted the four destroyer minelayer
s of the 20th Destroyer Flotilla as they sailed to implement Operation Wilfred
, an operation to lay mines
in the Vestfjord
to prevent the transport of Swedish iron ore from Narvik
to Germany. The mines were laid on the early morning of 8 April, before the Germans began their invasion, and the destroyers joined the battlecruiser
and her escorts.
During the First Battle of Narvik on 10 April the ship, together with her sister ship
, , was initially deployed to secure the escape route of the other three destroyers of the 2nd Flotilla and deal with any captured coast defence guns
. Hotspur did eventually move forward and fired four torpedo
es into Narvik harbour, sinking at least two merchant ships. As the British ships were leaving the vicinity of Narvik they encountered five German destroyers at close range. Two of the German ships crossed the T
of the British ships and quickly set on fire and forced her to run aground. eventually took the lead, but was severely damaged by the Germans, probably including one torpedo hit, and her speed dropped rapidly. Hotspur, immediately behind her, was temporarily out of control due to two hits and rammed her from behind. When the ships managed to disengage, Hunter capsized and Hotspur moved ahead slowly, engaged by all five German destroyers. and had disengaged earlier, but came back to save Hotspur. Hostile laid a smoke screen that allowed Hotspur to escape while Havock engaged the German ships. Hostile escorted the badly damaged Hotspur to the repair base set up at Flakstadøya
in the Lofoten Islands. During the battle the ship had been hit seven times by German shells which knocked out No. 2 boiler, all electrical circuits, her depth charge
s, her rangefinder
and killed 18 of her crew. Temporary repairs allowed Hotspur to sail for Chatham Dockyard
where she was repaired from 2 May to 16 July.
After her repairs were completed the ship was transferred to the 13th Destroyer Flotilla of the North Atlantic Command, based at Gibraltar. During Operation Hurry
, Hotspur, and three other destroyers, escorted the aircraft carrier
to a position south-west of Sardinia
so the carrier could fly off her Hawker Hurricane
fighters to Malta on 2 August.On 11 September, the ship spotted the Vichy French cruiser
s , and and three escorting destroyers enroute from Toulon
to Gabon
. She escorted the capital ships of Force H
during the Battle of Dakar on 23 September, but was not engaged. On 20 October, Hotspur, the destroyer and her sister sank the east of Gibraltar. The ship was badly damaged when she rammed the submarine and she was given temporary repairs at Gibraltar between 22 October and 20 November. She escorted a troop convoy from Gibraltar to Malta in late November during Operation Collar. Permanent repairs were made at Malta between 29 November and 20 February 1941. After her repairs were completed, Hotspur was assigned to the 2nd Destroyer Flotilla of the Mediterranean Fleet. The ship escorted the capital ship
s of the Mediterranean Fleet during the Battle of Cape Matapan in March 1941. In mid-April she escorted the fast transport and three battleships from Alexandria to Malta before going on to escort the battleships as they bombarded Tripoli
on 20 April. After refuelling in Alexandria on 23 April, Hotspur sailed for Greece to begin evacuating British and Australian troops from the beaches. On 8 May, the ship again escorted the capital ships of the Mediterranean Fleet as they covered another convoy from Alexandria to Malta before being detached to escort the light cruiser
as she bombarded Benghazi
harbour on 7/8 May and sank two Italian merchant ships. During the evacuation of Crete
Hotspur had to scuttle
the destroyer on 29 May after the latter ship's steering had been disabled by a near miss by a bomb.
The ship escorted the LSI(L)
during the opening stage of the Syria-Lebanon Campaign of June 1941 and also hunted for French submarines. From July to November, Hotspur escorted convoys to Tobruk
On 25 November, she was escorting the battleship when that ship was torpedoed by . Hotspur and the other escorting destroyers rescued 451 men. The ship escorted the light cruiser when she bombarded Derna in early December. While escorting a convoy, Hotspur and her sister, , sank on 23 December north of Sollum.
During a convoy to Malta in January 1942, the ship was detailed to escort the merchant ship Thermopylae to Benghazi when she started having engine trouble. Enroute, however, Thermopylae was sunk by air attack on 19 January. On 23 March Hotspur was transferred to the Eastern Fleet in the Indian Ocean
and was assigned to Force A of the fleet during the Indian Ocean raid by the Japanese in early April 1942. The ship returned to the Mediterranean to participate in Operation Vigorous, another convoy from Alexandria to Malta, in June. Hotspur was forced to sink her sister, Hasty, after the latter was damaged by a torpedo from schnellboot S-55. After the ship returned to the Indian Ocean, she escorted the carrier when that ship supported operations on Madagascar
in September. Hotspur remained in the Indian Ocean until January 1943 when she was transferred to Freetown, where she arrived on 14 February. The ship remained there only briefly before being transferred home to begin a conversion to an escort destroyer. The conversion began at Sheerness on 1 March and lasted until 31 May.
A Type 271 surface search radar
replaced the fire-control director and rangefinder above the bridge. A Type 290 surface warning radar was added at the top of the foremast. A High frequency direction finding system was added on a pole mast aft. The ship also received a Type 242 IFF
system. Two 4.7-inch guns were removed, one each forward and aft, and the forward gun was replaced by a Hedgehog
anti-submarine
spigot mortar. The 3-inch anti-aircraft gun amidships was also removed, but the number of 20 mm AA guns was increased to six.
Hotspur was assigned to Escort Group
C4 in June after working up and escorted convoys in the North Atlantic. She was transferred to the 14th Escort Group in June 1944 and refitted in Barrow-in-Furness between 31 October and 9 March 1945. Escort duties in the Irish Sea followed until Victory in Europe Day
. Sometime before this, the ship's Hedgehog was replaced by a 4.7-inch gun. Hotspur was briefly assigned to the Rosyth
Escort Force before being transferred to the Derry
Training Squadron in August. She was reassigned to the 4th Escort Group in June 1946 until she was refitted at Portsmouth Dockyard
in February–March 1947. The ship was then assigned to the 3rd Escort Flotilla based at Portland Harbour
. Hotspur was selected to be scrapped in November 1947 and was placed in reserve on 20 January 1948 pending disposal.
Hotspur was sold to the Dominican Republic on 23 November 1948 and renamed Trujillo. By this time the ship carried a Type 291 air warning radar and an American SG-1 surface search radar. Four 40 millimetres (1.6 in) Bofors
guns replaced the 20 mm Oerlikons. After the death of Rafael Trujillo, the ship was renamed Duarte in 1962. She was sold for scrap in 1972.
range in 1964.
G and H class destroyer
The G- and H-class destroyers were a class of twenty-four destroyers of the Royal Navy launched in 1935–1939. They served in World War II and sixteen were lost, with a seventeenth being written off as a constructive total loss...
destroyer
Destroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, powerful, short-range attackers. Destroyers, originally called torpedo-boat destroyers in 1892, evolved from...
built for 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...
during the 1930s. During the Spanish Civil War
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...
of 1936–1939 the ship spent considerable time in Spanish waters, enforcing the arms blockade imposed by Britain and France on both sides of the conflict. During the Norwegian Campaign
Norwegian Campaign
The Norwegian Campaign was a military campaign that was fought in Norway during the Second World War between the Allies and Germany, after the latter's invasion of the country. In April 1940, the United Kingdom and France came to Norway's aid with an expeditionary force...
of 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...
, she fought in the First Battle of Narvik in April 1940 where she was badly damaged. After her repairs were completed, Hotspur was transferred to Gibraltar
Gibraltar
Gibraltar is a British overseas territory located on the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula at the entrance of the Mediterranean. A peninsula with an area of , it has a northern border with Andalusia, Spain. The Rock of Gibraltar is the major landmark of the region...
where she participated in the Battle of Dakar
Battle of Dakar
The Battle of Dakar, also known as Operation Menace, was an unsuccessful attempt in September 1940 by the Allies to capture the strategic port of Dakar in French West Africa , which was under Vichy French control, and to install the Free French under General Charles de Gaulle there.-Background:At...
in September. A month later the ship was badly damaged when she rammed
Naval ram
A naval ram was a weapon carried by varied types of ships, dating back to antiquity. The weapon consisted of an underwater prolongation of the bow of the ship to form an armoured beak, usually between six and twelve feet in length...
and sank an Italian submarine. She received permanent repairs in Malta
Malta
Malta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...
and was transferred to the Mediterranean Fleet
Mediterranean Fleet
Several countries have or have had a Mediterranean Fleet in their navy. See:* Mediterranean Fleet * French Mediterranean Fleet* Mediterranean Squadron * United States Sixth Fleet...
when they were finished in early 1941. Hotspur participated in the Battle of Cape Matapan
Battle of Cape Matapan
The Battle of Cape Matapan was a Second World War naval battle fought from 27–29 March 1941. The cape is on the southwest coast of Greece's Peloponnesian peninsula...
in March and evacuated British and Australian troops from both Greece
Battle of Greece
The Battle of Greece is the common name for the invasion and conquest of Greece by Nazi Germany in April 1941. Greece was supported by British Commonwealth forces, while the Germans' Axis allies Italy and Bulgaria played secondary roles...
and Crete
Battle of Crete
The Battle of Crete was a battle during World War II on the Greek island of Crete. It began on the morning of 20 May 1941, when Nazi Germany launched an airborne invasion of Crete under the code-name Unternehmen Merkur...
in April–May. In June the ship participated in the Syria-Lebanon Campaign
Syria-Lebanon campaign
The Syria–Lebanon campaign, also known as Operation Exporter, was the Allied invasion of Vichy French-controlled Syria and Lebanon, in June–July 1941, during World War II. Time Magazine referred to the fighting as a "mixed show" while it was taking place and the campaign remains little known, even...
and was escorting convoys and the larger ships of the Mediterranean Fleet until she was transferred to the Eastern Fleet in March 1942.
Hotspur did not see any action during the Japanese Indian Ocean raid in April, but she did escort an aircraft carrier in September during the later stages of the invasion of Madagascar
Battle of Madagascar
The Battle of Madagascar was the Allied campaign to capture Vichy-French-controlled Madagascar during World War II. It began on 5 May 1942. Fighting did not cease until 6 November.-Geo-political:...
. In June, however, the ship did return to the Mediterranean to escort another convoy to Malta in Operation Vigorous
Operation Vigorous
Operation Vigorous was a World War II Allied operation to deliver a supply convoy that sailed from Haifa and Port Said on 12 June 1942 to Malta. The convoy encountered heavy Axis air and sea opposition and returned to Alexandria on 16 June....
. She was converted to an escort destroyer beginning in March 1943 in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and was assigned to escort convoys in the North Atlantic for most of the rest of the war. After a lengthy refit in late 1944, Hotspur escorted convoys in the Irish Sea
Irish Sea
The Irish Sea separates the islands of Ireland and Great Britain. It is connected to the Celtic Sea in the south by St George's Channel, and to the Atlantic Ocean in the north by the North Channel. Anglesey is the largest island within the Irish Sea, followed by the Isle of Man...
until the end of World War II in May 1945.
After the war the ship was used both as a training ship and on active duty until she was placed in reserve in early 1948. She was sold to the Dominican Republic
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries...
late that year and renamed Trujillo. After the death of Rafael Trujillo, who ruled the Dominican Republic from 1930 until his assassination in 1961, the ship was renamed Duarte in 1962, and finally was sold for scrap
Ship breaking
Ship breaking or ship demolition is a type of ship disposal involving the breaking up of ships for scrap recycling. Most ships have a lifespan of a few decades before there is so much wear that refitting and repair becomes uneconomical. Ship breaking allows materials from the ship, especially...
in 1972.
Description
Hotspur displaced 1350 long tons (1,371.7 t) at standardDisplacement (ship)
A ship's displacement is its weight at any given time, generally expressed in metric tons or long tons. The term is often used to mean the ship's weight when it is loaded to its maximum capacity. A number of synonymous terms exist for this maximum weight, such as loaded displacement, full load...
load and 1883 long tons (1,913.2 t) at deep load. The ship had an overall length of 323 feet (98.5 m), a beam
Beam (nautical)
The beam of a ship is its width at the widest point. Generally speaking, the wider the beam of a ship , the more initial stability it has, at expense of reserve stability in the event of a capsize, where more energy is required to right the vessel from its inverted position...
of 33 feet (10.1 m) and a draught
Draft (hull)
The draft of a ship's hull is the vertical distance between the waterline and the bottom of the hull , with the thickness of the hull included; in the case of not being included the draft outline would be obtained...
of 12 in 5 in (3.78 m). She was powered by Parsons
Parsons Marine Steam Turbine Company
Parsons Marine Steam Turbine Company was a British engineering company based in Wallsend, North England, on the River Tyne.-History:The company was founded by Charles Algernon Parsons in 1897 with £500,000 of capital, and specialised in building the steam turbine engines that he had invented for...
geared steam turbine
Steam turbine
A steam turbine is a mechanical device that extracts thermal energy from pressurized steam, and converts it into rotary motion. Its modern manifestation was invented by Sir Charles Parsons in 1884....
s, driving two shafts, which developed a total of 34000 shp and gave a maximum speed of 36 knots (19.6 m/s). Steam for the turbines was provided by three Admiralty 3-drum water-tube boiler
Water-tube boiler
A water tube boiler is a type of boiler in which water circulates in tubes heated externally by the fire. Fuel is burned inside the furnace, creating hot gas which heats water in the steam-generating tubes...
s. Hotspur carried a maximum of 470 long tons (477.5 t) of fuel oil
Fuel oil
Fuel oil is a fraction obtained from petroleum distillation, either as a distillate or a residue. Broadly speaking, fuel oil is any liquid petroleum product that is burned in a furnace or boiler for the generation of heat or used in an engine for the generation of power, except oils having a flash...
that gave her a range of 5530 nautical miles (10,241.6 km) at 15 knots (8.2 m/s). The ship's complement was 137 officers and men in peacetime, but this increased to 146 in wartime.
The ship mounted four 45-calibre
Caliber (artillery)
In artillery, caliber or calibredifference in British English and American English spelling is the internal diameter of a gun barrel, or by extension a relative measure of the length....
4.7-inch (120 mm) Mark IX guns
4.7 inch QF Mark XII
The 4.7 inch QF Mark IX and Mark XII were 120-mm 45-calibre naval guns which armed the majority of Royal Navy and Commonwealth destroyers in World War II, and were exported to many countries after World War II as the destroyers they were mounted on were sold off.-Description and history:These guns...
in single mounts. For anti-aircraft
Anti-aircraft warfare
NATO defines air defence as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action." They include ground and air based weapon systems, associated sensor systems, command and control arrangements and passive measures. It may be to protect naval, ground and air forces...
(AA) defence, Hotspur had two quadruple Mark I mounts for the 0.5 inch Vickers Mark III
Vickers .50 machine gun
The Vickers .50 machine gun, also known as the 'Vickers .50' was basically the same as the Vickers machine gun but scaled up to use a larger calibre round.-Mark II, IV and V:...
machine gun
Machine gun
A machine gun is a fully automatic mounted or portable firearm, usually designed to fire rounds in quick succession from an ammunition belt or large-capacity magazine, typically at a rate of several hundred rounds per minute....
. She was fitted with two above-water quadruple torpedo tube
Torpedo tube
A torpedo tube is a device for launching torpedoes. There are two main types of torpedo tube: underwater tubes fitted to submarines and some surface ships, and deck-mounted units installed aboard surface vessels...
mounts for 21 inches (53 cm)
British 21 inch torpedo
There have been several British 21-inch diameter torpedoes used by the Royal Navy since their first development just before the First World War.They were the largest size of torpedo in common use in the RN...
torpedoes. One depth charge
Depth charge
A depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare weapon intended to destroy or cripple a target submarine by the shock of exploding near it. Most use explosives and a fuze set to go off at a preselected depth in the ocean. Depth charges can be dropped by either surface ships, patrol aircraft, or from...
rail and two throwers were fitted; 20 depth charges were originally carried, but this increased to 35 shortly after the war began.
Beginning in mid-1940, the ship's anti-aircraft armament was increased although when exactly the modifications were made is not known. The rear set of torpedo tubes was replaced by a 3 inches (7.6 cm) (12-pounder)
QF 12 pounder 12 cwt naval gun
The QF 12 pounder 12 cwt gun was a common calibre naval gun introduced in 1894 and used until the middle of the 20th century. It was produced by Armstrong Whitworth, Elswick and used on Royal Navy warships, and exported to allied countries...
AA gun and the quadruple .50-calibre Vickers mounts were replaced by 20 millimetre (0.78740157480315 in) Oerlikon
Oerlikon 20 mm cannon
The Oerlikon 20 mm cannon is a series of autocannons, based on an original design by Reinhold Becker of Germany, very early in World War I, and widely produced by Oerlikon Contraves and others...
autocannon
Autocannon
An autocannon or automatic cannon is a rapid-fire projectile weapon firing a shell as opposed to the bullet fired by a machine gun. Autocannons often have a larger caliber than a machine gun . Usually, autocannons are smaller than a field gun or other artillery, and are mechanically loaded for a...
. Two more Oerlikon guns were also added in the forward superstructure.
Service
Hotspur was laid down by Scotts Shipbuilding & Engineering Company, GreenockGreenock
Greenock is a town and administrative centre in the Inverclyde council area in United Kingdom, and a former burgh within the historic county of Renfrewshire, located in the west central Lowlands of Scotland...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
on 27 February 1935, launched on 23 March 1936 and completed on 29 December 1936. Excluding government-furnished equipment like the armament, the ship cost £253,037. She was assigned to the 2nd Destroyer Flotilla of the Mediterranean Fleet upon commissioning. Hotspur patrolled Spanish waters in 1937 during the Spanish Civil War enforcing the policies of the Non-Intervention Committee
Non-Intervention Committee
During the Spanish Civil War, several countries followed a principle of non-intervention, which would result in the signing of the Non-Intervention Agreement in August 1936 and the setting up of the Non-Intervention Committee, which first met in September...
. The ship received an overhaul at Gibraltar
Gibraltar
Gibraltar is a British overseas territory located on the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula at the entrance of the Mediterranean. A peninsula with an area of , it has a northern border with Andalusia, Spain. The Rock of Gibraltar is the major landmark of the region...
between 16 December 1937 and 17 January 1938. She resumed patrolling Spanish waters in 1938 and 1939. After the end of the Spanish Civil War, Hotspur began a refit in Sheerness Dockyard in August 1939, but this was cancelled later in the month as tensions rose just before the beginning of World War II.
She sailed later that month for the Mediterranean, but, once she reached Gibraltar, she was diverted to Freetown
Freetown
Freetown is the capital and largest city of Sierra Leone, a country in West Africa. It is a major port city on the Atlantic Ocean located in the Western Area of the country, and had a city proper population of 772,873 at the 2004 census. The city is the economic, financial, and cultural center of...
, Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone , officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Guinea to the north and east, Liberia to the southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west and southwest. Sierra Leone covers a total area of and has an estimated population between 5.4 and 6.4...
to search for German commerce raiders. The ship was transferred to the North America and West Indies Station in October and was refitted in Sheerness between 18 January and 6 March 1940. On 6 April Hotspur and the rest of the 2nd Destroyer Flotilla escorted the four destroyer minelayer
Minelayer
Minelaying is the act of deploying explosive mines. Historically this has been carried out by ships, submarines and aircraft. Additionally, since World War I the term minelayer refers specifically to a naval ship used for deploying naval mines...
s of the 20th Destroyer Flotilla as they sailed to implement Operation Wilfred
Operation Wilfred
Operation Wilfred was a British naval operation during World War II that involved the mining of the channel between Norway and her offshore islands in order to prevent the transport of swedish iron ore through neutral Norwegian waters to be used to sustain the German war effort...
, an operation to lay mines
Naval mine
A naval mine is a self-contained explosive device placed in water to destroy surface ships or submarines. Unlike depth charges, mines are deposited and left to wait until they are triggered by the approach of, or contact with, an enemy vessel...
in the Vestfjord
Vestfjord
Vestfjord is a Norwegian fjord, which would be described as a firth or an open bight of sea between the Lofoten archipelago and mainland Norway, northwest of Bodø...
to prevent the transport of Swedish iron ore from Narvik
Narvik
is the third largest city and municipality in Nordland county, Norway by population. Narvik is located on the shores of the Narvik Fjord . The municipality is part of the Ofoten traditional region of North Norway, inside the arctic circle...
to Germany. The mines were laid on the early morning of 8 April, before the Germans began their invasion, and the destroyers joined the battlecruiser
Battlecruiser
Battlecruisers were large capital ships built in the first half of the 20th century. They were developed in the first decade of the century as the successor to the armoured cruiser, but their evolution was more closely linked to that of the dreadnought battleship...
and her escorts.
During the First Battle of Narvik on 10 April the ship, together with her sister ship
Sister ship
A sister ship is a ship of the same class as, or of virtually identical design to, another ship. Such vessels share a near-identical hull and superstructure layout, similar displacement, and roughly comparable features and equipment...
, , was initially deployed to secure the escape route of the other three destroyers of the 2nd Flotilla and deal with any captured coast defence guns
Coastal artillery
Coastal artillery is the branch of armed forces concerned with operating anti-ship artillery or fixed gun batteries in coastal fortifications....
. Hotspur did eventually move forward and fired four torpedo
Torpedo
The modern torpedo is a self-propelled missile weapon with an explosive warhead, launched above or below the water surface, propelled underwater towards a target, and designed to detonate either on contact with it or in proximity to it.The term torpedo was originally employed for...
es into Narvik harbour, sinking at least two merchant ships. As the British ships were leaving the vicinity of Narvik they encountered five German destroyers at close range. Two of the German ships crossed the T
Crossing the T
Crossing the T or Capping the T is a classic naval warfare tactic attempted from the late 19th to mid 20th century, in which a line of warships crossed in front of a line of enemy ships, allowing the crossing line to bring all their guns to bear while receiving fire from only the forward guns of...
of the British ships and quickly set on fire and forced her to run aground. eventually took the lead, but was severely damaged by the Germans, probably including one torpedo hit, and her speed dropped rapidly. Hotspur, immediately behind her, was temporarily out of control due to two hits and rammed her from behind. When the ships managed to disengage, Hunter capsized and Hotspur moved ahead slowly, engaged by all five German destroyers. and had disengaged earlier, but came back to save Hotspur. Hostile laid a smoke screen that allowed Hotspur to escape while Havock engaged the German ships. Hostile escorted the badly damaged Hotspur to the repair base set up at Flakstadøya
Flakstadøya
Flakstadøya is an island in Lofoten in Nordland county, Norway. It is located in Flakstad municipality.The island is connected to Moskenesøya in the west by Kåkern Bridge, and to Vestvågøya through the undersea tunnel Nappstraumtunnelen....
in the Lofoten Islands. During the battle the ship had been hit seven times by German shells which knocked out No. 2 boiler, all electrical circuits, her depth charge
Depth charge
A depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare weapon intended to destroy or cripple a target submarine by the shock of exploding near it. Most use explosives and a fuze set to go off at a preselected depth in the ocean. Depth charges can be dropped by either surface ships, patrol aircraft, or from...
s, her rangefinder
Rangefinder
A rangefinder is a device that measures distance from the observer to a target, for the purposes of surveying, determining focus in photography, or accurately aiming a weapon. Some devices use active methods to measure ; others measure distance using trigonometry...
and killed 18 of her crew. Temporary repairs allowed Hotspur to sail for Chatham Dockyard
Chatham Dockyard
Chatham Dockyard, located on the River Medway and of which two-thirds is in Gillingham and one third in Chatham, Kent, England, came into existence at the time when, following the Reformation, relations with the Catholic countries of Europe had worsened, leading to a requirement for additional...
where she was repaired from 2 May to 16 July.
After her repairs were completed the ship was transferred to the 13th Destroyer Flotilla of the North Atlantic Command, based at Gibraltar. During Operation Hurry
Malta Convoys
The Malta Convoys were a series of Allied supply convoys that sustained the besieged island of Malta during the Mediterranean Theatre of the Second World War...
, Hotspur, and three other destroyers, escorted the aircraft carrier
Aircraft carrier
An aircraft carrier is a warship designed with a primary mission of deploying and recovering aircraft, acting as a seagoing airbase. Aircraft carriers thus allow a naval force to project air power worldwide without having to depend on local bases for staging aircraft operations...
to a position south-west of Sardinia
Sardinia
Sardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea . It is an autonomous region of Italy, and the nearest land masses are the French island of Corsica, the Italian Peninsula, Sicily, Tunisia and the Spanish Balearic Islands.The name Sardinia is from the pre-Roman noun *sard[],...
so the carrier could fly off her Hawker Hurricane
Hawker Hurricane
The Hawker Hurricane is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was designed and predominantly built by Hawker Aircraft Ltd for the Royal Air Force...
fighters to Malta on 2 August.On 11 September, the ship spotted the Vichy French cruiser
Cruiser
A cruiser is a type of warship. The term has been in use for several hundreds of years, and has had different meanings throughout this period...
s , and and three escorting destroyers enroute from Toulon
Toulon
Toulon is a town in southern France and a large military harbor on the Mediterranean coast, with a major French naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur region, Toulon is the capital of the Var department in the former province of Provence....
to Gabon
Gabon
Gabon , officially the Gabonese Republic is a state in west central Africa sharing borders with Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, Cameroon to the north, and with the Republic of the Congo curving around the east and south. The Gulf of Guinea, an arm of the Atlantic Ocean is to the west...
. She escorted the capital ships of Force H
Force H
Force H was a British naval formation during the Second World War. It was formed in 1940 to replace French naval power in the western Mediterranean that had been removed by the French armistice with Nazi Germany....
during the Battle of Dakar on 23 September, but was not engaged. On 20 October, Hotspur, the destroyer and her sister sank the east of Gibraltar. The ship was badly damaged when she rammed the submarine and she was given temporary repairs at Gibraltar between 22 October and 20 November. She escorted a troop convoy from Gibraltar to Malta in late November during Operation Collar. Permanent repairs were made at Malta between 29 November and 20 February 1941. After her repairs were completed, Hotspur was assigned to the 2nd Destroyer Flotilla of the Mediterranean Fleet. The ship escorted the capital ship
Capital ship
The capital ships of a navy are its most important warships; they generally possess the heaviest firepower and armor and are traditionally much larger than other naval vessels...
s of the Mediterranean Fleet during the Battle of Cape Matapan in March 1941. In mid-April she escorted the fast transport and three battleships from Alexandria to Malta before going on to escort the battleships as they bombarded Tripoli
Tripoli
Tripoli is the capital and largest city in Libya. It is also known as Western Tripoli , to distinguish it from Tripoli, Lebanon. It is affectionately called The Mermaid of the Mediterranean , describing its turquoise waters and its whitewashed buildings. Tripoli is a Greek name that means "Three...
on 20 April. After refuelling in Alexandria on 23 April, Hotspur sailed for Greece to begin evacuating British and Australian troops from the beaches. On 8 May, the ship again escorted the capital ships of the Mediterranean Fleet as they covered another convoy from Alexandria to Malta before being detached to escort the light cruiser
Light cruiser
A light cruiser is a type of small- or medium-sized warship. The term is a shortening of the phrase "light armored cruiser", describing a small ship that carried armor in the same way as an armored cruiser: a protective belt and deck...
as she bombarded Benghazi
Benghazi
Benghazi is the second largest city in Libya, the main city of the Cyrenaica region , and the former provisional capital of the National Transitional Council. The wider metropolitan area is also a district of Libya...
harbour on 7/8 May and sank two Italian merchant ships. During the evacuation of Crete
Battle of Crete
The Battle of Crete was a battle during World War II on the Greek island of Crete. It began on the morning of 20 May 1941, when Nazi Germany launched an airborne invasion of Crete under the code-name Unternehmen Merkur...
Hotspur had to scuttle
Scuttling
Scuttling is the act of deliberately sinking a ship by allowing water to flow into the hull.This can be achieved in several ways—valves or hatches can be opened to the sea, or holes may be ripped into the hull with brute force or with explosives...
the destroyer on 29 May after the latter ship's steering had been disabled by a near miss by a bomb.
The ship escorted the LSI(L)
Landing Ship, Infantry
Landing Ship, Infantry was a British term for a type of ship used to transport infantry in amphibious warfare during the Second World War...
during the opening stage of the Syria-Lebanon Campaign of June 1941 and also hunted for French submarines. From July to November, Hotspur escorted convoys to Tobruk
Tobruk
Tobruk or Tubruq is a city, seaport, and peninsula on Libya's eastern Mediterranean coast, near the border with Egypt. It is the capital of the Butnan District and has a population of 120,000 ....
On 25 November, she was escorting the battleship when that ship was torpedoed by . Hotspur and the other escorting destroyers rescued 451 men. The ship escorted the light cruiser when she bombarded Derna in early December. While escorting a convoy, Hotspur and her sister, , sank on 23 December north of Sollum.
During a convoy to Malta in January 1942, the ship was detailed to escort the merchant ship Thermopylae to Benghazi when she started having engine trouble. Enroute, however, Thermopylae was sunk by air attack on 19 January. On 23 March Hotspur was transferred to the Eastern Fleet in 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...
and was assigned to Force A of the fleet during the Indian Ocean raid by the Japanese in early April 1942. The ship returned to the Mediterranean to participate in Operation Vigorous, another convoy from Alexandria to Malta, in June. Hotspur was forced to sink her sister, Hasty, after the latter was damaged by a torpedo from schnellboot S-55. After the ship returned to the Indian Ocean, she escorted the carrier when that ship supported operations on Madagascar
Battle of Madagascar
The Battle of Madagascar was the Allied campaign to capture Vichy-French-controlled Madagascar during World War II. It began on 5 May 1942. Fighting did not cease until 6 November.-Geo-political:...
in September. Hotspur remained in the Indian Ocean until January 1943 when she was transferred to Freetown, where she arrived on 14 February. The ship remained there only briefly before being transferred home to begin a conversion to an escort destroyer. The conversion began at Sheerness on 1 March and lasted until 31 May.
A Type 271 surface search radar
Radar
Radar is an object-detection system which uses radio waves to determine the range, altitude, direction, or speed of objects. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, weather formations, and terrain. The radar dish or antenna transmits pulses of radio...
replaced the fire-control director and rangefinder above the bridge. A Type 290 surface warning radar was added at the top of the foremast. A High frequency direction finding system was added on a pole mast aft. The ship also received a Type 242 IFF
Identification friend or foe
In telecommunications, identification, friend or foe is an identification system designed for command and control. It is a system that enables military and national interrogation systems to identify aircraft, vehicles, or forces as friendly and to determine their bearing and range from the...
system. Two 4.7-inch guns were removed, one each forward and aft, and the forward gun was replaced by a Hedgehog
Hedgehog (weapon)
The Hedgehog was an anti-submarine weapon developed by the Royal Navy during World War II, that was deployed on convoy escort warships such as destroyers to supplement the depth charge. The weapon worked by firing a number of small spigot mortar bombs from spiked fittings...
anti-submarine
Anti-submarine weapon
An anti-submarine weapon is any one of a range of devices that are intended to act against a submarine, and its crew, to destroy the vessel or to destroy or reduce its capability as a weapon of war...
spigot mortar. The 3-inch anti-aircraft gun amidships was also removed, but the number of 20 mm AA guns was increased to six.
Hotspur was assigned to Escort Group
Escort Group (naval)
Escort Groups for convoy protection were a British development in the war at sea during World War II. They were a tactical innovation by the Royal Navy in anti-submarine warfare, to combat the threat of the German Navy's "wolfpack" tactics....
C4 in June after working up and escorted convoys in the North Atlantic. She was transferred to the 14th Escort Group in June 1944 and refitted in Barrow-in-Furness between 31 October and 9 March 1945. Escort duties in the Irish Sea followed until Victory in Europe Day
Victory in Europe Day
Victory in Europe Day commemorates 8 May 1945 , the date when the World War II Allies formally accepted the unconditional surrender of the armed forces of Nazi Germany and the end of Adolf Hitler's Third Reich. The formal surrender of the occupying German forces in the Channel Islands was not...
. Sometime before this, the ship's Hedgehog was replaced by a 4.7-inch gun. Hotspur was briefly assigned to the Rosyth
Rosyth
Rosyth is a town located on the Firth of Forth, three miles south of the centre of Dunfermline. According to an estimate taken in 2008, the town has a population of 12,790....
Escort Force before being transferred to the Derry
Derry
Derry or Londonderry is the second-biggest city in Northern Ireland and the fourth-biggest city on the island of Ireland. The name Derry is an anglicisation of the Irish name Doire or Doire Cholmcille meaning "oak-wood of Colmcille"...
Training Squadron in August. She was reassigned to the 4th Escort Group in June 1946 until she was refitted at Portsmouth Dockyard
HMNB Portsmouth
Her Majesty's Naval Base Portsmouth is one of three operating bases in the United Kingdom for the British Royal Navy...
in February–March 1947. The ship was then assigned to the 3rd Escort Flotilla based at Portland Harbour
Portland Harbour
Portland Harbour is located beside the Isle of Portland, off Dorset, on the south coast of England. It is one of the largest man-made harbours in the world. Grid reference: .-History:...
. Hotspur was selected to be scrapped in November 1947 and was placed in reserve on 20 January 1948 pending disposal.
Hotspur was sold to the Dominican Republic on 23 November 1948 and renamed Trujillo. By this time the ship carried a Type 291 air warning radar and an American SG-1 surface search radar. Four 40 millimetres (1.6 in) Bofors
Bofors
The name Bofors has been associated with the iron industry for more than 350 years.Located in Karlskoga, Sweden, the company originates from the hammer mill "Boofors" founded 1646. The modern corporate structure was created in 1873 with the foundation of Aktiebolaget Bofors-Gullspång...
guns replaced the 20 mm Oerlikons. After the death of Rafael Trujillo, the ship was renamed Duarte in 1962. She was sold for scrap in 1972.
Plastic model
A 1:600-scale plastic model kit of HMS Hotspur was released in the AirfixAirfix
Airfix is a UK manufacturer of plastic scale model kits of aircraft and other subjects. In Britain, the name Airfix is synonymous with the hobby, a plastic model of this type is often simply referred to as "an airfix kit" even if made by another manufacturer....
range in 1964.