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USS Thomas (DD-182)
Encyclopedia
The first USS Thomas (DD–182) was a Wickes class
destroyer
in the United States Navy
following World War I
. She was later transferred to the Royal Navy
as HMS St Albans (I15), as a Town class destroyer
, but spent most of the war in the exiled Royal Norwegian Navy
, before transferred to the Soviet Navy
as Dostoyny.
, she was laid down on 23 March 1918 at Newport News, Virginia
, by the Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company
; launched on 4 July 1918; sponsored by Mrs. Evelyn M. Thomas, widow of Lieutenant Thomas; and commissioned on 25 April 1919, Lieutenant Commander Harry A. McClure in command.
Thomas operated off the east coast on training cruises and exercises until decommissioned at Philadelphia
on 30 June 1922. During this service, she was classified DD-182 during the Navy-wide assignment of alphanumeric hull numbers on 17 July 1920. She lay in reserve in the Philadelphia Navy Yard's back channel for the next 18 years.
Recommissioned on 17 June 1940 — as the United States Navy expanded to meet the demands imposed by neutrality patrols
off American coastlines — Thomas was assigned to Destroyer Division 79 of the Atlantic Squadron and operated briefly in training and exercises off the eastern seaboard until transferred to the United Kingdom
under the "destroyer-for-bases" agreement
. She arrived at Halifax, Nova Scotia
, on 18 September 1940 as part of the second increment of the 50 flush-decked, four-piped destroyers exchanged with the British for leases on strategic base sites in the western hemisphere. After a brief familiarization period for the Royal Navy bluejackets assigned to the ship, Thomas was officially turned over to her new owners on 23 September 1940. Her name was subsequently struck from the United States Navy list on 8 January 1941.
on 29 September. After calling at St. John's, Newfoundland, en route, she arrived at Belfast
, Northern Ireland
, on 9 October.
St Albans and three sister ships — HMS St Mary's (I12)
(ex-USS Bagley (DD-185)
, HMS Bath (I17)
(ex-USS Hopewell (DD-181)
, and HMS Charlestown (I21)
(ex-USS Abbot DD-184
— were attached to the 1st Minelaying Squadron as permanent escort force. Operating off the west coast of Scotland
, the destroyers participated in some of the earliest minelaying operations in the Denmark Strait
which separates Iceland
from Greenland
.
Between minecraft escort missions, St Albans escorted convoys. On 17 and 18 January 1941, the destroyer searched for survivors from SS Almeda Star, torpedoed by U-96 on the 17th. St Albans underwent repairs at Chatham in February to prepare for her transfer to the Royal Norwegian Navy-in-exile on 14 April.
HMS Alberic, sinking the minecraft and sustaining enough damage herself to necessitate repairs in the dockyard.
When again ready for action, St Albans joined the 7th Escort Group, operating out of Liverpool
. On 12 June, she picked up the survivors from the sunken steamship — torpedoed that day by U-48 — and brought them safely to Liverpool.
On 3 August 1941, while bound from Sierra Leone
to the United Kingdom in the screen of convoy SL 81, St Albans joined the destroyer HMS Wanderer (D74) and the Flower-class
corvette
HMS Hydrangea (K39) in sinking U-401. During subsequent operations screening convoys in shipping lanes between West Africa
and the British Isles, St Albans made a score of attacks on U-boat
s but could not repeat her "kill" performance of 3 August.
During the following autumn, a heavy gale severely damaged St Albans while she was escorting convoy ON 22 on 8 October. The following day brought little respite from the high seas and strong winds, but St Albans' s Norwegian sailors brought her safely into Reykjavík
, Iceland
. The destroyer's seaworthiness and the seamanship exhibited by her Norwegian crew elicited a warm commendatory signal from the Commander in Chief, Western Approaches (C-in-C WA). In this message of 12 October 1941, he also praised the destroyer's exemplary steaming performance during the previous three months.
St Albans, meanwhile, continued her escort duties with the 7th Escort Group into 1942. In March, she escorted the damaged aircraft carrier
HMS Illustrious from Liverpool to the Clyde
and, in the following month, helped to screen convoy PQ 15
as it carried arms to Russia
. During the operation, heavy German
air and submarine attacks took a toll of three Allied ships.
In wartime, however, mistakes in identification or errors in navigation sometimes lead to disaster. On one occasion, these factors combined with tragic results when St Albans and the minesweeper
HMS Seagull
sank the Polish
submarine Jastrząb
on 2 May. Five crewmen were killed.
A court of Enquiry found that Jastrząb was 100 miles out of position, in an area where U-boats were expected to operate, and no blame could be attached to either commander.
However this conclusion is disputed by other sources.
Later that month, the flush-decked destroyer joined the Liverpool Special Escort Division. Among the vessels escorted early in June was the Cunard-White Star
liner RMS Queen Elizabeth
, as the Cunarder steamed from the British Isles toward the Cape of Good Hope
with troops bound for the Middle East
. Then, after refitting at Falmouth
between July and October 1942, St Albans again operated with the Special Escort Division until the end of 1942. In January 1943, she served as a target vessel for training RAF Coastal Command aircraft.
Late in February, she got underway and steamed into the North Sea
toward the Scandinavian coast to search for a Norwegian merchantman which was reportedly attempting to escape to sea from Nazi
-controlled waters. During this mission, the destroyer was attacked by German aircraft but emerged unharmed.
Shifted to the Western Local Escort Force
soon thereafter, St Albans was based at Halifax
and operated in convoy escort missions in the western Atlantic for the remainder of 1943. Departing Halifax four days after Christmas 1943, St Albans arrived in the Tyne
on 10 January 1944, where she was soon laid up in reserve.
, who renamed her Dostoyny (rus.
Достойный, "Worthy"). She sailed under the "hammer and sickle" until returned to the British on 28 February 1949 at Rosyth, Scotland. This veteran of service with four different navies — those of the United States, Britain, Norway, and the Soviet Union
— was eventually broken up for scrap at Charlestown
, England, in April 1949.
Wickes class destroyer
The Wickes-class destroyers were a group of 111 destroyers built by the United States Navy in 1917-1919. Along with the 6 preceding Caldwell class and 155 subsequent Clemson-class destroyers, they formed the "flush-deck" or "four-stack" class. Only a few were completed in time to serve in World...
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...
in the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
following World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. She was later transferred to 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...
as HMS St Albans (I15), as a Town class destroyer
Town class destroyer
The Town class destroyers were warships transferred from the United States Navy to the Royal Navy and the Royal Canadian Navy in exchange for military bases in the Bahamas and elsewhere, as outlined in the Destroyers for Bases Agreement between Britain and United States, signed on 2 September 1940...
, but spent most of the war in the exiled Royal Norwegian Navy
Royal Norwegian Navy
The Royal Norwegian Navy is the branch of the Norwegian Defence Force responsible for naval operations. , the RNoN consists of approximately 3,700 personnel and 70 vessels, including 5 heavy frigates, 6 submarines, 14 patrol boats, 4 minesweepers, 4 minehunters, 1 mine detection vessel, 4 support...
, before transferred to the Soviet Navy
Soviet Navy
The Soviet Navy was the naval arm of the Soviet Armed Forces. Often referred to as the Red Fleet, the Soviet Navy would have played an instrumental role in a Warsaw Pact war with NATO, where it would have attempted to prevent naval convoys from bringing reinforcements across the Atlantic Ocean...
as Dostoyny.
As USS Thomas
Named after Clarence Crase ThomasClarence Crase Thomas
Clarence Crase Thomas was an officer in the United States Navy during World War I. Thomas became the first U.S. naval officer to die in the war, after his ship was torpedoed by a German submarine...
, she was laid down on 23 March 1918 at Newport News, Virginia
Newport News, Virginia
Newport News is an independent city located in the Hampton Roads metropolitan area of Virginia. It is at the southeastern end of the Virginia Peninsula, on the north shore of the James River extending southeast from Skiffe's Creek along many miles of waterfront to the river's mouth at Newport News...
, by the Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company
Northrop Grumman Newport News
Newport News Shipbuilding , originally Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Company , was the largest privately-owned shipyard in the United States prior to being purchased by Northrop Grumman in 2001...
; launched on 4 July 1918; sponsored by Mrs. Evelyn M. Thomas, widow of Lieutenant Thomas; and commissioned on 25 April 1919, Lieutenant Commander Harry A. McClure in command.
Thomas operated off the east coast on training cruises and exercises until decommissioned at Philadelphia
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
on 30 June 1922. During this service, she was classified DD-182 during the Navy-wide assignment of alphanumeric hull numbers on 17 July 1920. She lay in reserve in the Philadelphia Navy Yard's back channel for the next 18 years.
Recommissioned on 17 June 1940 — as the United States Navy expanded to meet the demands imposed by neutrality patrols
Neutrality Patrol
At the beginning of World War II, when Nazi Germany's invasion of Poland on 1 September 1939 started the hostilities in Europe, President Franklin D...
off American coastlines — Thomas was assigned to Destroyer Division 79 of the Atlantic Squadron and operated briefly in training and exercises off the eastern seaboard until transferred to 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...
under the "destroyer-for-bases" agreement
Destroyers for Bases Agreement
The Destroyers for Bases Agreement between the United States and the United Kingdom, September 2, 1940, transferred fifty mothballed destroyers from the United States Navy in exchange for land rights on British possessions...
. She arrived at Halifax, Nova Scotia
City of Halifax
Halifax is a city in Canada, which was the capital of the province of Nova Scotia and shire town of Halifax County. It was the largest city in Atlantic Canada until it was amalgamated into Halifax Regional Municipality in 1996...
, on 18 September 1940 as part of the second increment of the 50 flush-decked, four-piped destroyers exchanged with the British for leases on strategic base sites in the western hemisphere. After a brief familiarization period for the Royal Navy bluejackets assigned to the ship, Thomas was officially turned over to her new owners on 23 September 1940. Her name was subsequently struck from the United States Navy list on 8 January 1941.
As HMS St Albans
Simultaneously renamed HMS St Albans (I15) and commissioned the same day for service in the Royal Navy, the destroyer sailed for the British IslesBritish Isles
The British Isles are a group of islands off the northwest coast of continental Europe that include the islands of Great Britain and Ireland and over six thousand smaller isles. There are two sovereign states located on the islands: the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and...
on 29 September. After calling at St. John's, Newfoundland, en route, she arrived at Belfast
Belfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
, Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
, on 9 October.
St Albans and three sister ships — HMS St Mary's (I12)
USS Bagley (DD-185)
The second USS Bagley was a Wickes class destroyer in the United States Navy following World War I. She was renamed USS Doran and later transferred to the Royal Navy as HMS St...
(ex-USS Bagley (DD-185)
USS Bagley (DD-185)
The second USS Bagley was a Wickes class destroyer in the United States Navy following World War I. She was renamed USS Doran and later transferred to the Royal Navy as HMS St...
, HMS Bath (I17)
USS Hopewell (DD-181)
The first USS Hopewell was a Wickes-class destroyer in the United States Navy following World War I. She was later transferred to the Royal Navy as HMS Bath , a "Town"-class destroyer.-As USS Hopewell:...
(ex-USS Hopewell (DD-181)
USS Hopewell (DD-181)
The first USS Hopewell was a Wickes-class destroyer in the United States Navy following World War I. She was later transferred to the Royal Navy as HMS Bath , a "Town"-class destroyer.-As USS Hopewell:...
, and HMS Charlestown (I21)
USS Abbot (DD-184)
The first USS Abbot was a Wickes-class destroyer in the service of the United States Navy until traded to Britain at the beginning of World War II...
(ex-USS Abbot DD-184
USS Abbot (DD-184)
The first USS Abbot was a Wickes-class destroyer in the service of the United States Navy until traded to Britain at the beginning of World War II...
— were attached to the 1st Minelaying Squadron as permanent escort force. Operating off the west coast of 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...
, the destroyers participated in some of the earliest minelaying operations in the Denmark Strait
Denmark Strait
The Denmark Strait or Greenland Strait |Sound]]) is an oceanic strait between Greenland and Iceland...
which separates Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
from Greenland
Greenland
Greenland is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark, located between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Though physiographically a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe for...
.
Between minecraft escort missions, St Albans escorted convoys. On 17 and 18 January 1941, the destroyer searched for survivors from SS Almeda Star, torpedoed by U-96 on the 17th. St Albans underwent repairs at Chatham in February to prepare for her transfer to the Royal Norwegian Navy-in-exile on 14 April.
As HNoMS St. Albans
St. Albans had no sooner entered service with the Norwegians than she collided with the minesweeperMinesweeper (ship)
A minesweeper is a small naval warship designed to counter the threat posed by naval mines. Minesweepers generally detect then neutralize mines in advance of other naval operations.-History:...
HMS Alberic, sinking the minecraft and sustaining enough damage herself to necessitate repairs in the dockyard.
When again ready for action, St Albans joined the 7th Escort Group, operating out of Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
. On 12 June, she picked up the survivors from the sunken steamship — torpedoed that day by U-48 — and brought them safely to Liverpool.
On 3 August 1941, while bound from 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 the United Kingdom in the screen of convoy SL 81, St Albans joined the destroyer HMS Wanderer (D74) and the Flower-class
Flower class corvette
The Flower-class corvette was a class of 267 corvettes used during World War II, specifically with the Allied navies as anti-submarine convoy escorts during the Battle of the Atlantic...
corvette
Corvette
A corvette is a small, maneuverable, lightly armed warship, originally smaller than a frigate and larger than a coastal patrol craft or fast attack craft , although many recent designs resemble frigates in size and role...
HMS Hydrangea (K39) in sinking U-401. During subsequent operations screening convoys in shipping lanes between West Africa
West Africa
West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of the African continent. Geopolitically, the UN definition of Western Africa includes the following 16 countries and an area of approximately 5 million square km:-Flags of West Africa:...
and the British Isles, St Albans made a score of attacks on U-boat
U-boat
U-boat is the anglicized version of the German word U-Boot , itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot , and refers to military submarines operated by Germany, particularly in World War I and World War II...
s but could not repeat her "kill" performance of 3 August.
During the following autumn, a heavy gale severely damaged St Albans while she was escorting convoy ON 22 on 8 October. The following day brought little respite from the high seas and strong winds, but St Albans
Reykjavík
Reykjavík is the capital and largest city in Iceland.Its latitude at 64°08' N makes it the world's northernmost capital of a sovereign state. It is located in southwestern Iceland, on the southern shore of Faxaflói Bay...
, Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
. The destroyer's seaworthiness and the seamanship exhibited by her Norwegian crew elicited a warm commendatory signal from the Commander in Chief, Western Approaches (C-in-C WA). In this message of 12 October 1941, he also praised the destroyer's exemplary steaming performance during the previous three months.
St Albans, meanwhile, continued her escort duties with the 7th Escort Group into 1942. In March, she escorted the damaged 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...
HMS Illustrious from Liverpool to the Clyde
River Clyde
The River Clyde is a major river in Scotland. It is the ninth longest river in the United Kingdom, and the third longest in Scotland. Flowing through the major city of Glasgow, it was an important river for shipbuilding and trade in the British Empire....
and, in the following month, helped to screen convoy PQ 15
Convoy PQ 15
Convoy PQ 15 was an Arctic convoy sent from Iceland by the Western Allies to aid the Soviet Union during World War II. It sailed in late April 1942, reaching the Soviet northern ports after air attacks that sank three ships...
as it carried arms to Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
. During the operation, heavy German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
air and submarine attacks took a toll of three Allied ships.
In wartime, however, mistakes in identification or errors in navigation sometimes lead to disaster. On one occasion, these factors combined with tragic results when St Albans and the minesweeper
Minesweeper (ship)
A minesweeper is a small naval warship designed to counter the threat posed by naval mines. Minesweepers generally detect then neutralize mines in advance of other naval operations.-History:...
HMS Seagull
HMS Seagull (J85)
HMS Seagull was a , and the first Royal Navy ship to be built entirely without rivets. She was completed on 30th March 1938.During the Second World War she helped escort 21 Arctic convoys, and participated in Operation Neptune...
sank the Polish
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
submarine Jastrząb
ORP Jastrzab
ORP Jastrząb was an old Holland-type S-class submarine, originally of the United States Navy, in Polish service between 1941 and 1942, when she was lost to friendly fire....
on 2 May. Five crewmen were killed.
A court of Enquiry found that Jastrząb was 100 miles out of position, in an area where U-boats were expected to operate, and no blame could be attached to either commander.
However this conclusion is disputed by other sources.
Later that month, the flush-decked destroyer joined the Liverpool Special Escort Division. Among the vessels escorted early in June was the Cunard-White Star
White Star
The White Star is a fictional, cruiser class combat spacecraft type in the science fiction television series Babylon 5.- Depiction :The White Star-class was designed and built through a collaborative effort between the Minbari religious caste and the Vorlon Empire...
liner RMS Queen Elizabeth
RMS Queen Elizabeth
RMS Queen Elizabeth was an ocean liner operated by the Cunard Line. Plying with her running mate Queen Mary as a luxury liner between Southampton, UK and New York City, USA via Cherbourg, France, she was also contracted for over twenty years to carry the Royal Mail as the second half of the two...
, as the Cunarder steamed from the British Isles toward the Cape of Good Hope
Cape of Good Hope
The Cape of Good Hope is a rocky headland on the Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula, South Africa.There is a misconception that the Cape of Good Hope is the southern tip of Africa, because it was once believed to be the dividing point between the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. In fact, the...
with troops bound for the Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
. Then, after refitting at Falmouth
Falmouth, Cornwall
Falmouth is a town, civil parish and port on the River Fal on the south coast of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It has a total resident population of 21,635.Falmouth is the terminus of the A39, which begins some 200 miles away in Bath, Somerset....
between July and October 1942, St Albans again operated with the Special Escort Division until the end of 1942. In January 1943, she served as a target vessel for training RAF Coastal Command aircraft.
Late in February, she got underway and steamed into the North Sea
North Sea
In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...
toward the Scandinavian coast to search for a Norwegian merchantman which was reportedly attempting to escape to sea from Nazi
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
-controlled waters. During this mission, the destroyer was attacked by German aircraft but emerged unharmed.
Shifted to the Western Local Escort Force
Western Local Escort Force
Western Local Escort Force referred to the organization of anti-submarine escorts for World War II trade convoys from North American port cities to the Western Ocean Meeting Point near Newfoundland where ships of the Mid-Ocean Escort Force assumed responsibility for safely delivering the convoys...
soon thereafter, St Albans was based at Halifax
City of Halifax
Halifax is a city in Canada, which was the capital of the province of Nova Scotia and shire town of Halifax County. It was the largest city in Atlantic Canada until it was amalgamated into Halifax Regional Municipality in 1996...
and operated in convoy escort missions in the western Atlantic for the remainder of 1943. Departing Halifax four days after Christmas 1943, St Albans arrived in the Tyne
River Tyne
The River Tyne is a river in North East England in Great Britain. It is formed by the confluence of two rivers: the North Tyne and the South Tyne. These two rivers converge at Warden Rock near Hexham in Northumberland at a place dubbed 'The Meeting of the Waters'.The North Tyne rises on the...
on 10 January 1944, where she was soon laid up in reserve.
As Dostoyny
On 16 July 1944, the British transferred St Albans to the Soviet NavySoviet Navy
The Soviet Navy was the naval arm of the Soviet Armed Forces. Often referred to as the Red Fleet, the Soviet Navy would have played an instrumental role in a Warsaw Pact war with NATO, where it would have attempted to prevent naval convoys from bringing reinforcements across the Atlantic Ocean...
, who renamed her Dostoyny (rus.
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
Достойный, "Worthy"). She sailed under the "hammer and sickle" until returned to the British on 28 February 1949 at Rosyth, Scotland. This veteran of service with four different navies — those of the United States, Britain, Norway, and the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
— was eventually broken up for scrap at Charlestown
Charlestown, Cornwall
Charlestown is a village and port on the south coast of Cornwall, United Kingdom, in the parish of St Austell Bay. It is situated approximately south east of St Austell town centre....
, England, in April 1949.