HMS Llewellyn (1913)

Llewellyn was one of twenty two L- or Laforey-class destroyers built for the Royal Navy.[1] The design followed the preceding Acasta class but with improved seakeeping properties and armament, including twice the number of torpedo tubes.[2] The vessel was one of the last pre-war destroyers constructed by William Beardmore and Company for the British Admiralty.[3]

The destroyer had a length overall of 268 feet 8 inches (81.89 m), a beam of 27 feet 8 inches (8.43 m) and a draught of 10 feet 6 inches (3.20 m). Displacement was 965 long tons (980 t) normal and 1,150 long tons (1,170 t) deep load. Power was provided by four Yarrow boilers feeding two Parsons steam turbines rated at 24,500 shaft horsepower (18,300 kW) and driving two shafts, to give a design speed of 29 knots (54 km/h; 33 mph). Three funnels were fitted.[4] 268 long tons (272 t) of oil were carried, giving a design range of 3,450 nautical miles (6,390 km; 3,970 mi) at 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph).[5] Fuel consumption was 51.33 long tons (52.15 t) of oil in 24 hours during test.[6] Complement was 73 officers and ratings.[4]

Armament consisted of three 4-inch (100 mm) Mk IV QF guns on the ship's centreline, with one on the forecastle, one aft and one between the funnels, each within a P Mk. IX mounting. A single 2-pounder (40 mm) pom-pom anti-aircraft gun was carried.[1] Torpedo armament consisted of two twin mounts for 21-inch (533 mm) torpedoes mounted aft. Capacity to lay four Vickers Elia Mk.4 mines was included, but the facility was never used.[7]

Built under the 1912–1913 Programme as part of a class named after characters in Shakespeare's plays and the Waverley novels by Sir Walter Scott,[4] Picton was laid down by William Beardmore and Company at Dalmuir on the River Clyde on 14 December 1912 with the yard number 511.[3] Originally laid down as Picton, Llewellyn was renamed by Admiralty order on 30 September 1913, joining what was to be the first alphabetical class of the Navy.[8] The new name commemorated either Llywelyn the Great or Llywelyn ap Gruffudd.[9] The destroyer was constructed at the yard alongside sister ship Lennox.[10] Llewellyn was launched on 30 October 1913 and completed on 31 March the following year.[3]

On commissioning, Llewellyn joined the Third Destroyer Flotilla as part of the Harwich Force.[11] At the start of the First World War, the flotilla was tasked with harassing the Imperial German Navy and on 26 August 1914 was ordered to attack German torpedo boats on their patrol as part of a large Royal Navy fleet in what was to be the Battle of Heligoland Bight.[12] On the following day, the flotilla joined the battle, led by the scout cruiser Fearless, attacking the torpedo boats until the light cruiser Stettin appeared on the scene.[13] Subsequently, the flotillas drove off the cruisers Cöln and Strassburg for no loss.[14] In the melee, Llewellyn fired 86 shells.[15]

After returning to service, the destroyer remained stationed at Harwich defending the Strait of Dover and spent 1915 actively involved in the myriad of tasks that were typical of destroyer service at the time. For example, the destroyer returned to Heligoland Bight to provide escort to British minelayers on 8 January, undertook sweeps for German submarines in the Irish Sea on 29 and 30 January, escorting troop convoys to France on 1 and 2 April and protected minesweepers on Dogger Bank on 1 and 2 June.[16][17][18][19]

On 20 February 1916, the destroyer collided with sister ship Lark but suffered minor damage.[20] Llewellyn was soon back in service and, on 31 May 1916, as part of the Ninth Destroyer Flotilla, was one of a small contingent from the Harwich Force that took part in the Battle of Jutland.[21] The destroyer, along with sister ships Landrail, Laurel and Lydiard, were to provide cover to the British battlecruisers of the First Battlecruiser Squadron.[22] In this case, the flotilla was in the centre of the action but again failed to engage the German battle fleet in the confusion of the battle.[23] The ship spent much of the rest of the year on anti-submarine patrols and on 4 December the ship unsuccessfully attacked the German submarine UB-18 with depth charges.[24]

On 28 February 1917, the destroyer was transferred to Dover.[25] On 17 March, the ship formed part of a flotilla including Laertes, Laforey and Paragon patrolling the Dover Barrage. German torpedo boats attacked and sank Paragon. Llewellyn, seeing gun flashes, went to attend and switched on a searchlight to assist in picking up survivors, Attracted by the light, the torpedo boats S49 and G87 attacked and launched two torpedoes, one of which struck the destroyer. By steaming backwards, the ship was able to return to port without additional casualties.[26] The destroyer was subsequently redeployed to the Methil Convoy Flotilla based on the Firth of Forth.[27]

After the war, the Royal Navy returned to a peacetime level of mobilisation, and surplus vessels were retired. Llewellyn was initially placed in reserve at Portsmouth alongside fifty other destroyers.[28] The destroyer was subsequently offered for sale to the Finnish Navy but the purchase was halted by the provisions of the Washington Naval Treaty which denied the sale of superfluous warships by the signatories and instead required the excess destroyers scrapped.[29] In consequence, on 18 March 1922, the vessel was sold to J. Smith of Poole and broken up.[3]