Hi Guys, I have a new collection of photos taken by a Royal Artillery man in the 4th Durham Survey Regiment and was wondering if anyone can identify these ships for me? Inscription on the back "British Cruiser taken at Alexandria Harbour from onboard the troopship Cameronian (this would have been taken on the voyage out to Greece in 1st April 1941). Inscription on the back "British Cruiser in Alexandria Harbour taken onboard the Delane (this would have been taken on the 1st May 1941 after the evacuation of mainland Greece to Crete where they boarded the Delane at Suda Bay for Alexandria).
Nice photo's Kieron.....I'd PM cally, she helped some one ID a ship not so long ago mate. I think the bottom one is HMS Barham Unfortunately she's quite famous for all the wrong reasons: YouTube - The Sinking of HMS Barham
A couple more one of which I think I have identified by the number on the side. Inscription on the back "British destroyer taken onboard the Delane" (I think I have identified this as HMS Kandahar this was part of the escorting convoy protecting Convoy GA15 from Suda Bay to Alexandria, Egypt). Inscription on the back "Shipping in Alexandria Harbour" you can see the ship that needs indentifying tied up alongside the troop ship
The first ship seems to be the Australian cruiser, HMAS Perth, after embarking troops for Greece. Later she was attacked by Japanese warships near the Sunda Strait, and sank March 1, 1942 http://www.navy.gov.au/HMAS_Perth_(I)
Thanks Hoggene, I think you are totally right in that Identification, did a bit more digging and found that she is in the right place at the right time. She was part of "Operation Lustre" the deployment of British, Australian, New Zealand and Polish troops to Greece from Egypt, this was in March and April of 1941. Thanks again Hoggene Cheers Kieron
I think the bottom one is HMS Barham I have tried looking at the way the bridge is configured on the Barham compared to my picture, I am sure the class of battleship is right that being the Queen Elizabeth Class, but the bridge is somewhat different. HMS Warspite, HMS Valiant and HMS Barham were all in the area at the time, but I can not pin point which one it is. HMS Valiant would have been at the harbour at the time due to being damaged by a mine after or during the bombardment of Tripoli. I have a personal family connection with HMS Barham, one being my Grandad served aboard her and the second my Dads Uncle went down with her when she sunk Maybe someone has a pictures of this class of battleship and can do a positive ID, in total there were 5 ships in this class - Queen Elizabeth - Warspite - Valiant - Mayala and Barham. I personally am being drawn to Valiant
I looked at Valiant Kieron (she was with Barham off Greece in 41) and of those two Barham looked a more likely candidate. I'll post some picture of all four for you to have a look at.
HMAS PERTH (March 1, 1942) Australian cruiser of 6,830 tons launched in 1934 under the name HMS Amphion. Transferred to the Australian Navy in 1939 and renamed HMAS Perth. During the Battle of the Java Sea the Perth's commander, Captain Hector Waller, pulled his ship out of line when the heavy cruiser HMS Exeter was hit and placed it between the Japanese warships and the Exeter to save it from further damage (the Exeter later sank). The Perth, accompanied by the American cruiser Houston, was later sunk in the Sunda Strait half an hour after midnight about four miles from St. Nicholas Point in Java as the two ships attempted to escape southwards from the battle area and into the Indian Ocean. Unfortunately they ran straight into a Japanese invasion fleet of destroyers and troop transports in Banteng Bay and after a long running battle during which all ammunition was expended, both ships were sunk by torpedoes. On board the Perth were 45 officers, 631 ratings, 4 civilian canteen staff and six Royal Australian Air Force personnel, a total of 686 men. Casualties were 23 officers and 329 ratings killed. There were 334 survivors who were taken prisoners of war. Of these, around 106 died in captivity. Not one of the Perth's officers died while a prisoner of war, due no doubt to the privileges granted to men of officer rank. For this heroic act, Captain Waller never received the equivalent of the British VC as did the captain of the Houston. The Dutch government offered its highest award, the Militare Willems-Orde posthumously to Captain Waller, but to its everlasting shame, the Australian government turned it down. In World War II, twelve Victoria Crosses were awarded to members of the Australian forces engaged in operations against Japan but not a single VC was awarded to the Royal Australian Navy. The Australian Cruiser HMAS Perth For more, see http://www.spruso.com/perth.htm.
Concerning the fourth ship, I have to use the magnifying-glass, and I think it could be a V and W class destroyer, perhaps HM(A)S Vendetta (D69/I69) http://www.navy.gov.au/HMAS_Vendetta_(I)
Hoggene I think you've cracked it, I did some more digging and found that she also gave covering escort to convoy GA15, which would make sense as the picture was also taken from the Delane. Hoggene you get my thumbs up, I can see you now with your magnifying glass pressed against the screen. Thanks again Regards Kieron
