- HMS Ajax (22)
HMS "Ajax" was a "Leander" class light cruiser which served with the
Royal Navy of theUnited Kingdom duringWorld War II . She was made famous for her part in theBattle of the River Plate , theBattle of Crete , the Battle of Malta and as a supply escort in theBattle of Tobruk .Before the War
Built at Vickers shipyard,
Barrow-in-Furness ,England , she was laid down on 7 February 1933, launched on 1 March 1934, and completed on 12 April 1935. "Ajax" served on the America and West Indies Station from completion, then joined the South American Division on the outbreak of theSecond World War in September 1939. There she sank the German merchant "Olinda" and intercepted the German merchant "Carl Fritzen" and the passenger ship "Ussukuma". Both ships scuttled themselves to avoid capture.The
Battle of the River Plate She was the flagship of Commodore
Henry Harwood 's Force G during the hunt for the "Admiral Graf Spee". "Ajax" was hit seven times by the Germans but inflicted more damage on the "Graf Spee" during theBattle of the River Plate on 13 December 1939. "Ajax" was also in Chile and assisted in relief work after an earthquake inConcepcion , and many years later surviving members of HMS "Ajax" were awarded medals from the Chilean Government for valued assistance.Mediterranean, Crete and North Africa
Under repair until July 1940, she then moved to the Mediterranean. On 11 October/12 October 1940 she engaged Italian forces off Cape Passero, sinking the
Spica class torpedo boat s "Airone" and "Ariel", and badly damaging the Italian destroyer "Artigliere", which was later sunk by HMS "York". According to Seaman Harry Mansfield, the "Ajax" intercepted retreating German and Italian warships which were cruising towardsCrete and fired a variety of small arms and large guns completely destroying the enemy. The "Ajax" then took part in theBattle of Taranto , a night operation which was held under by RDF (radio detection finder). Ajax was one of the escort vessels of that highly successful operation, the first all-air attack by a naval force in history. "Ajax" participated in theBattle of Cape Matapan and was hit by bombs from Ju 87's on 21 May. She evacuated many troops from Crete up until 29 May 1941. [http://www.bbc.co.uk/ww2peopleswar/stories/61/a3015361.shtml] She then covered Syrian operations in June, and joined Force K at Malta in November 1941, but was withdrawn in February 1942.D-Day and Post war
She was refitted in England from May to October 1942, then returned to the Mediterranean where she was again damaged by bombs. After repairs in New York between March and October 1943, "Ajax" went back to the Mediterranean. As part of Force K, she bombarded
Gold Beach during the D-Day invasion, and later supported the landings in southern France. "Ajax" operated in the Aegean during the reoccupation ofAthens and the communist uprising in Greece.After the war, the "Ajax" was involved in the Exodus incident, where she formed part of the Royal Navy task force trailing the illegal immigrant ship.
"Ajax" remembered
, 28 December 1944. Captain Cuthbert: "I hope, Sir, that while you are with us we shan't have to open fire...if we are asked to give supporting fire I must do so."Winston Churchill: "Pray remember, Captain, that I came here as a cooing dove of peace, bearing a sprig of mistletoe in my beak but far be it from me to stand in the way of military necessity." [The Churchill Centre: Winston Churchill on Ships and the Navy] ] She was decommissioned in February 1948. She was initially intended to be sold to
the Indian Navy but this deal did not materialize because ofWinston Churchill 's apparent disapproval of the sale and he felt that such an important vessel would be better off broken up to preserve her history. She duly arrived at Newport for breaking up on 18 November 1949.The town of Ajax, in
Ontario ,Canada , was named after the cruiser following the Battle of the River Plate. The town has streets named after members of the ship's company. For example, Harwood Avenue is the town's main north-south street.In addition, many street signs in the town bear the
silhouette of the ship, and the ship'sanchor rests in front of the local branch of theRoyal Canadian Legion .The ship's bell is currently located at Summerhill Mansion,
Kingswood School , Bath,England .References
*Colledge
* [http://uboat.net/allies/warships/ship/4002.html HMS Ajax at Uboat.net]See also
*
List of World War II ships
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