Allied Warships

HMS Southdown (L 25)

Escort destroyer of the Hunt (Type I) class

NavyThe Royal Navy
TypeEscort destroyer
ClassHunt (Type I) 
PennantL 25 
Built byJ.S. White & Co. (Cowes, U.K.) 
Ordered11 Apr 1939 
Laid down22 Aug 1939 
Launched5 Jul 1940 
Commissioned8 Nov 1940 
End service 
History

Sold to be broken up for scrap on 1 November 1956 and scrapped at Barrow.

 

Commands listed for HMS Southdown (L 25)

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and that we only list Commanding Officers for the duration of the Second World War.

CommanderFromTo
1Cdr. Edward Reignier Conder, DSO, DSC, RN10 Sep 19405 Feb 1941
2Cdr. Geoffrey Neame Loriston-Clarke, RN5 Feb 194115 Jan 1942
3Lt. James Bogue Marjoribanks, RN15 Jan 194222 Aug 1942
4Capt. Selwyn Victor Jephson, RN22 Aug 194229 Sep 1942
5Lt. James Bogue Marjoribanks, RN29 Sep 1942Aug 1943
6Lt. Timothy Claude Upton Fanshawe, RNAug 1943Feb 1945
7Lt.Cdr. Alfred Thomas Morgan, DSC, RNVRFeb 194511 Sep 1945
8Lt. Archibald Norman MacPherson, RN11 Sep 1945early 1946

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Notable events involving Southdown include:


27 Nov 1940
HMS Kenya (Capt. M.M. Denny, CB, RN) conducted 4" AA gunnery exercises off Scapa Flow. These were followed by a ranging exercise during which HMS Southdown (Cdr. E.R. Condor, DSO, DSC, RN) served as the target. (1)

12 Dec 1940
After a delay of 24 hours due to a reported enemy submarine the British battleship HMS Queen Elizabeth (Capt. C.B. Barry, DSO, RN) departed Portsmouth for Rosyth where she was to complete her reconstruction.

She was escorted by the destroyers HMS Kashmir (Cdr. H.A. King, RN), HMS Kipling (Cdr. A. St. Clair-Ford, RN), HMS Jupiter (Lt.Cdr. N.V.J.T. Thew, RN) and HMS Punjabi (Cdr. J.T. Lean, DSO, RN) and the escort destroyers HMS Cattistock (Lt.Cdr R.A. Ewing, RN), HMS Cleveland (Lt.Cdr. W.S. Clouston, RN), HMS Fernie (Lt.Cdr. R.McC.P. Jonas, RN) and HMS Holderness (Lt.Cdr. D.E. Holland-Martin, DSC, RN).

Around 1600A/13 the original escort was relieved by the destroyer HMS Brilliant (Lt.Cdr. F.C. Brodrick, RN) and the escort destroyers HMS Exmoor (Lt.Cdr. R.T. Lampard, RN), HMS Pytchley (Lt.Cdr. H. Unwin, DSC, RN) and HMS Southdown (Cdr. E.R. Condor, DSO, DSC, RN).

At 1630A/14 the light cruiser HMS Nigeria (Capt. J.G.L. Dundas, RN) and the AA cruiser HMS Curacoa (Capt. C.C. Hughes-Hallett, RN) joined the escort coming from Scapa Flow.

The battleship and her escort arrived at Rosyth around 1330A/15. HMS Nigeria had parted company around 1115A/15 and arrived back at Scapa Flow later the same day.

23 Dec 1940
The battleship HMS King George V (Capt. W.R. Patterson, CVO, RN), light cruiser HMS Phoebe (Capt. G. Grantham, RN), destroyers HMS Churchill (Cdr.(Retd.) G.R. Cousins, RN), HMS Lincoln (Cdr. A.M. Sheffield, RN) and the escort destroyers HMS Blencathra (Cdr. H.W.S. Browning, RN) and HMS Southdown (Cdr. E.R. Condor, DSO, DSC, RN) conducted trials and exercises off Scapa Flow. (2)

27 Dec 1940
Around 1500A/27, HMS Mauritius (Capt. L.C.A. Curzon-Howe, RN) departed North Shields for Greenock. On leaving the Tyne at 1555A/27, she was joined by the escort destroyers HMS Southdown (Cdr. E.R. Condor, DSO, DSC, RN) and HMS Tynedale (Lt.Cdr. H.E.F. Tweedie, RN) which had departed Scapa Flow around 2000A/26 for this purpose.

At 0948A/28, in the Pentland Firth, the destroyers HMS Vimy (Lt.Cdr. D.J.B. Jewitt, RN) and HMS Bulldog (Lt.Cdr. F.J.G. Hewitt, RN) relieved the current escort which then proceeded to Scapa Flow. HMS Vimy and HMS Bulldog had departed Scapa Flow around 0845A/28.

HMS Mauritius, HMS Vimy and HMS Bulldog arrived at Greenock around 1100A/29. (3)

16 Apr 1941
HMS Naiad (Capt. M.H.A. Kelsey, DSC, RN, flying the flag of Rear-Admiral E.L.S. King, CB, MVO, RN) departed the Tyne for Scapa Flow.

At the same time the new aircraft carrier HMS Victorious (Capt. H.C. Bovell, RN) departed the Tyne for Rosyth escorted by the escort destroyers HMS Liddesdale (Cdr. A.G. West, RN), HMS Quantock (Lt.Cdr. D.J.A. Heber-Percy, RN) and HMS Southdown (Cdr. G.N. Loriston-Clarke, RN). HMS Naiad proceeded with them until the Firth of Forth when she was detached to continue her passage to Scapa Flow where she arrived later the same day. (4)

20 Nov 1942
Around 1030A/20, the heavy cruiser HMS Shropshire (Capt. J.T. Borrett, OBE, RN) departed Greenock for Sheerness.

Around 1500A/21, she was joined by the escort destroyers HMS Garth (Lt.Cdr. J.P. Scatchard, DSC, RN) and HMS Southdown (Lt. J.B. Marjoribanks, RN).

HMS Shropshire arrived at Sheerness around 1615A/22. The escort destroyers had parted company with her at the boom defence entrance. (5)

Sources

  1. ADM 53/112536
  2. ADM 53/112543 + ADM 53/112973
  3. ADM 53/112692 + ADM 199/376
  4. ADM 53/114749
  5. ADM 53/116655

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


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