Allied Warships

HMS Winchester (L 55)

Destroyer of the Admiralty V & W class

Navy	The Royal Navy
Type	Destroyer
Class	Admiralty V & W
Pennant	L 55
Mod	Fast escort
Built by	J.S. White & Co. (Cowes, U.K.)
Ordered	9 Dec 1916
Laid down	12 Jun 1917
Launched	1 Feb 1918
Commissioned	29 Apr 1918
End service
History	Reconstruction to Fast Escort at Portsmouth Dockyard was completed on 9 April 1940. HMS Winchester is not listed as active unit in the January 1945 Navy List Sold to be broken up for scrap on 5 March 1946.

Commands listed for HMS Winchester (L 55)

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.

	Commander	From	To
1	Lt.Cdr. Stuart Erskine Crewe-Read, RN	9 Mar 1940	Jan 1941
2	Lt. Robert Andrew Morgan, RN	Jan 1941	3 Feb 1941
3	Lt.Cdr. Dermod James Boris Jewitt, RN	3 Feb 1941	31 May 1942
4	Lt. John Ronald Gower, RN	31 May 1942	17 Aug 1943
5	Lt. John Kenneth Lyon, RN	17 Aug 1943	late 1944

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Notable events involving Winchester include:

10 May 1940
HMS Valentine (Cdr. H.J. Buchanan, RAN) and HMS Winchester (Lt.Cdr. S.E. Crewe-Read, RN) departed Dover for Dunkirk where they arrived later the same day.

11 May 1940
The British (AA) destroyers HMS Valentine (Cdr. H.J. Buchanan, RAN), HMS Winchester (Lt.Cdr. S.E. Crewe-Read, RN) and the French destroyers Sirocco (Lt.Cdr. G.R.C.M.J.M. de Toulouse-Lautrec) and Cyclone (Capt. Y.F.C.A.M. Urvoy de Portzamparc) departed Dunkirk for Flushing escorting the French transport Côte d'Argent (3047 GRT, built 1933).

After arrival early in the afternoon HMS Valentine and HMS Winchester gave AA protection to the Breskens - Flushing ferry until dusk.

Also the French transports Pavon (4128 GRT, built 1930) and Newhaven (1656 GRT, built 1911) were escorted in the Scheldt estuary.

12 May 1940
HMS Valentine (Cdr. H.J. Buchanan, RAN), HMS Winchester (Lt.Cdr. S.E. Crewe-Read, RN) shifted from Flushing to Dunkirk.

13 May 1940
HMS Valentine (Cdr. H.J. Buchanan, RAN), HMS Winchester (Lt.Cdr. S.E. Crewe-Read, RN) shifted from Dunkirk to Nieuport. HMS Winchester later returned to Dunkirk to replenish with ammunition on completion of which she proceeded to Flushing. Late on the day HMS Valentine also returned to Dunkirk to replenish with ammunition.

15 May 1940
HMS Winchester (Lt.Cdr. S.E. Crewe-Read, RN) was damaged during German air attacks while supporting Allied land forces off the Dutch coast. Repairs were completed ca. mid June.

15 May 1940
HMS Valentine (Cdr. H.J. Buchanan, RAN), HMS Whitley (Lt.Cdr. G.N. Rolfe, RN) and HMS Winchester (Lt.Cdr. S.E. Crewe-Read, RN) were operating off Flushing during the night of 14/15 May 1940.

Early in the afternoon of the 15th, HMS Valentine and HMS Whitley were ordered to give AA protection to the Terneuzen - Hoedekenskerke ferry but they came under air attack and HMS Valentine was badly damaged and had to be beached near Terneuzen after which her wreck was scuttled by HMS Whitley. HMS Whitley then returned to Flushing.

25 Jun 1940
HMS Sealion (Lt.Cdr. B. Bryant, DSC, RN) departed Rosyth for her 9th war patrol. She was ordered to patrol in the Skagerrak. Before proceeding on patrol two practice attacks were made on HMS Winchester (Lt.Cdr. S.E. Crewe-Read, RN).

For the daily and attack positions of HMS Sealion during this patrol see the map below.

(1)

15 Sep 1941
Around 0730A/15, the heavy cruiser HMS Norfolk (Capt. A.J.L. Phillips, RN) departed North Shields for Scapa Flow. She was escorted by the destroyers HMS Winchester ( Lt.Cdr. D.J.B. Jewitt, RN) and HMS Windsor (Lt.Cdr. J.M.G. Waldegrave, DSC, RN).

At 1200A/15, HMS Winchester was detached as was HMS Windsor 15 minutes later.

HMS Norfolk arrived at Scapa Flow around 1905A/15. Shortly before arrival a full power trial had been carried out. (2)

5 Feb 1942
The heavy cruiser HMS Cumberland (Capt. A.H. Maxwell-Hyslop, AM, RN) departed Rosyth for Sheerness. She is being escorted by the escort destroyers HMS Winchester (Lt.Cdr. D.J.B. Jewitt, RN) and HMS Cotswold (Lt.Cdr. R.C. Egan, RN). (3)

27 May 1943
HrMs O 14 (Lt.Cdr. H.A.W. Goossens, RNN) conducted A/S exercises in the Firth of Forth with HMS Winchester (Lt. J.R. Gower, RN) and local defence craft. (4)

6 Jun 1943
HrMs O 14 (Lt.Cdr. H.A.W. Goossens, RNN) conducted A/S exercises in the Firth of Forth with HMS Lady Beryl, HMS Brimness (Skr. A.E. Larner, RNR) and HMS Winchester (Lt. J.R. Gower, RN). (4)