Allied Warships

HMS Virginia (FY 031)

Armed Yacht

NavyThe Royal Navy
TypeArmed Yacht
Class[No specific class] 
PennantFY 031 
Built byWilliam Beardmore & Co. (Dalmuir, Scotland) 
Ordered 
Laid down 
Launched15 Mar 1930 
Commissioned 
End service 
History

Displacement: 676 tons.
Completed on 15 May 1931.
Requisitioned by the Admiralty in September 1939.
Served in A/S role and as Auxiliary vessel.

Returned in 1945.

 

Commands listed for HMS Virginia (FY 031)

Please note that we're still working on this section
and that we only list Commanding Officers for the duration of the Second World War.

CommanderFromTo
1Capt. (retired) Henry Percival Wilson, RN21 Sep 193910 Jan 1940
2Cdr. (retired) Stephen Hewitt Sutton Moxley, RN10 Jan 194024 Nov 1941
3Cdr. (retired) John Allen Shuter, RN24 Nov 194128 Aug 1942
4T/A/Lt.Cdr. John Dobson, RNR28 Aug 1942late 1943
5W F Duff, RNRlate 194331 May 1945
6Patrick Percival O'Sullivan, RNR31 May 1945late 1945

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Notable events involving Virginia include:


28 Nov 1940
HMS H 43 (Lt. H.R.B. Newton, RN) departed Holyhead for Rothesay. She was escorted by HMS Virginia (Cdr.(Retd.) S.H.S. Moxley, RN). (1)

29 Nov 1940
HMS H 50 (Lt. M. Willmott, RN) departed Rothesay for Holyhead. She was escorted by HMS Virginia (Cdr.(Retd.) S.H.S. Moxley, RN). (2)

22 Jan 1941
HMS H 50 (Lt. M. Willmott, RN) departed Holyhead for Rothesay. She was escorted by HMS Virginia (Cdr.(Retd.) S.H.S. Moxley, RN). (3)

23 Jan 1941
HMS H 32 (Lt. R.L. Alexander, RN) departed Rothesay for Holyhead. She was escorted by HMS Virginia (Cdr.(Retd.) S.H.S. Moxley, RN). (4)

6 Oct 1942
HMS H 43 (Lt. B.J.B. Andrew, DSC, RN) conducted A/S exercises off Lough Foyle with HMS Virginia (T/A/Lt.Cdr. J. Dobson, RNR), HMS Vetch (T/A/Lt.Cdr. H.J. Beverley, DSO, DSC, RNR), HMS Duncton (T/Lt. J.P. Kilbee, RNR), HMS Marigold (Lt. J.A.S. Halcrow, RD, RNR), HMS Sapphire (T/Lt. E.G.le G. Berry, RNVR), HMS Gardenia (T/Lt. M.M. Firth, RNVR) and HMS Convolvulus (A/Lt.Cdr. R.F.R. Yarde-Buller, RNVR). (5)

16 Mar 1943
HMS H 44 (Lt. P.S. Beale, RN) conducted A/S exercises off Lough Foyle with HMS Virginia (T/A/Lt.Cdr. J. Dobson, RNR). (6)

17 Mar 1943
HMS H 44 (Lt. P.S. Beale, RN) conducted A/S exercises off Lough Foyle with HMS Virginia (T/A/Lt.Cdr. J. Dobson, RNR) and HMS Northern Reward (Lt. J.D. Weaver, RNVR). (6)

25 Mar 1943

Passage of floating dock AFD 24 from Trinidad to Freetown.

On 25 March 1943, the dock in tow of the tugs HMS Frisky and HMS Zwarte Zee departed Trinidad. Escort was provided by the sloop HMS Milford (Lt.Cdr. G. MacClelland, RN), corvettes HMS Tamarisk (Lt. S. Ayles, RNR), HMS Woodruff (A/Lt.Cdr. F.H. Gray, RNR) and the ASW trawlers HMS Morris Dance (T/Lt. S.A. MacKechnie, RNVR) and HMS Yestor (Lt. R.C. Holt, RNVR). A third tug was also present as stand by tug, this was HMS Oriana.

On 1 April 1943, the armed merchant cruiser HMS Alcantara (A/Capt.(retd.) J.D. Harvey, RN) and the corvette HMS Amaranthus (T/Lt. W.S. Thomson, RNR) departed Trinidad to overtake and join the 'convoy'. HMS Alcantara was to fuel the oil firing sloop and corvettes at sea during the passage to Freetown. The coal firing trawlers were to coal in Brazilian ports.

On 24 April 1943, the corvette HMS Snowdrop (Lt. P.A. Tinne, RNVR) and the motor launches HMS ML 296 (T/Lt. R.C. Breckenridge, RCNVR), HMS ML 289 (?), HMS ML 287 (T/Lt. J.B. Bramwell, RNVR), HMS ML 281 (T/Lt. P.S. Castle, RNVR), HMS ML 266 (T/Lt. D.R. Beverley, RCNVR) and HMS ML 209 (T/Lt. A.M.C. Scott, RNVR) departed freetown to make rendezvous with the convoy which did at 1130Z/26. ML 281 had however returned to Freetown on the 26th after having been detached due to a defective Asdic installation.

On 27 April 1943, the A/S yacht HMS Virginia (T/A/Lt.Cdr. J. Dobson, RNR) and corvettes HMS Armeria (Lt. M. Todd, RNR), HMS Cyclamen (Lt. A.G. Scott, RNR) and HMS Thyme (Lt. H. Roach, RNR) departed Freetown to join the convoy which they did early in the evening of the same day.

The dock and it's escorts arrived at Freetown on 28 April 1943.

2 Apr 1943
HMS Upstart (Lt. P.C. Chapman, DSC and Bar, RN) departed her builders yard at Barrow for Holy Loch. She made the passage together with HNoMS Ula (Lt. R.M. Sars). They were escorted by HMS Virginia (T/A/Lt.Cdr. J. Dobson, RNR). (7)

Sources

  1. ADM 173/16313
  2. ADM 173/16334
  3. ADM 173/16789
  4. ADM 173/16735
  5. ADM 173/17254
  6. ADM 173/17814
  7. ADM 173/18372

ADM numbers indicate documents at the British National Archives at Kew, London.


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