HMS Samphire (K128)

HMS Samphire was a Flower-class corvette that served in the Royal Navy.

History
United Kingdom
Name: HMS Samphire
Ordered: 25 July 1939
Builder: Smiths Dock Company, South Bank, Middlesbrough
Laid down: 4 December 1940
Launched: 14 April 1941
Commissioned: 30 June 1941
Out of service: Sunk on 30 January 1943
Identification: Pennant number: K128
General characteristics
Class and type: Flower-class corvette
Displacement: 940 tons
Length: 205 ft (62 m)
Beam: 33 ft (10 m)
Draught: 11.5 ft (3.5 m)
Propulsion:
  • Two fire tube boilers
  • one 4-cycle triple-expansion steam engine
Speed: 16 knots (30 km/h) at 2,750 hp (2,050 kW)
Range: 3,500 nautical miles (6,500 km; 4,000 mi) at 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph)
Complement: 85 men
Armament:

She was built by Smiths Dock Company, in South Bank-on-Tees, and was commissioned into the Royal Navy on 30 June 1941.

Wartime service

Samphire was assigned to the 36th Escort Group and tasked with convoy escort operations between Liverpool and the Mediterranean Sea. On 21 December 1941, she successfully released depth charges with the British sloop Deptford resulting in the sinking of the German submarine U-567 in the North Atlantic northeast of the Azores. All 47 men on board the U-567 were killed. On 8 November 1942, she escorted USS Leedstown (AP-73) from the Mediterranean after she had been attacked by German aircraft, which hit the Leedstown with an aerial torpedo in the stern the day earlier. At 12:55 on 9 November, German aircraft attacked again, however Samphire shot down one attacker and then escorted the Leedstown to anchor near Cape Matifu, about 12 miles (19 km) from Algiers. On 14 December 1942, Samphire assisted in the rescue of nine survivors from the British merchant ship Edencrag, which had been torpedoed and sunk by the German submarine U-443 west of Algiers.

Sinking

Samphire was torpedoed and sunk on 30 January 1943 off Bougie, Algeria by the Italian submarine Platino. Samphire was escorting convoy TE-14 which was taking part in the North African campaign. The captain, two officers and 42 of the ship’s crew perished.

References
  • Colledge, J. J.; Warlow, Ben (2006) [1969]. Ships of the Royal Navy: The Complete Record of all Fighting Ships of the Royal Navy (Rev. ed.). London: Chatham Publishing. ISBN 978-1-86176-281-8.

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