HMS Coltsfoot

HMS Coltsfoot
History
United Kingdom
NameHMS Coltfoot
Ordered25 July 1939
BuilderAlexander Hall and Sons, Aberdeen
Laid down4 September 1940
Launched15 May 1941
Completed1 Nov 1941
IdentificationPennant number: K140

HMS Coltsfoot (K140) was a Flower-class corvette that served in the Royal Navy during the Second World War.

Construction

The ship was ordered on 25 July 1939. She was laid down on 4 September 1940 and built at Alexander Hall and Sons in Aberdeen.

The ship was launched 15 May 1941 and commissioned into the Royal Navy on 1 Nov 1941.

Career

From June 1941 until July 1943, her commander was William Keith Rous, 5th Earl of Stradbroke. In February 1942, during Warship Week, the ship was adopted by the town of Amesbury.

On 15 December 1941, she assisted the crew of the sunken ship SS Empire Barracuda after the Barracuda was torpedoed by the U-77 and sunk while on a voyage from Gibraltar to Cape Town and Suez. Ten crew members and three DEMS gunners were killed. The ship master, thirty six crew members and two gunners were rescued by the HMS Coltsfoot and arrived at Gibraltar.

In August 1942, the ship participated in Operation Pedestal, a British convoy to supply Malta.[unreliable source?] In the operation, she was assigned to Force R along with 3 other corvettes and a tug to protect the fleet oil tankers: RFA Brown Ranger and RFA Dingledale.[unreliable source?]

In 1943, the ship was part of the 39th escort group in the Battle of the Atlantic.

The ship was sold in 1947 and was turned into mercantile ship Alexandra.

Honours

In February of 1942, as part of the Warship week campaign, the town of Amesbury raised money to adopt the corvette, which was successful with £52,100 being raised. There is a plaque commemorating the adoption in Amesbury.

The ship featured on a 2012 Maltese postal stamp.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "HMS Coltsfoot (K 140) of the Royal Navy". uboat.net. 1939-07-25. Retrieved 2024-10-02.
  2. 1 2 3 History, Amesbury (2019-08-01). "HMS Coltsfoot and Amesbury". Amesbury History. Retrieved 2024-10-02.
  3. ↑ "Empire Barracuda". Uboat.net. Retrieved 2 October 2024.
  4. ↑ Hastings, Max (2022-05-12). Operation Pedestal: the Fleet That Battled to Malta 1942. William Collins. ISBN 978-0-00-836498-4.
  5. ↑ Smith, Peter Charles (1987). Pedestal. London: Kimber. p. 72. ISBN 978-0-7183-0632-8.
  6. ↑ Henshaw, John (2024-02-16). Malta's Savior. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland. p. 261. ISBN 978-1-4766-4853-8.
  7. ↑ Rohwer, Jurgen (2015-11-15). Critical Convoy Battles of WWII. Stackpole Books. p. 44. ISBN 978-0-8117-6267-0.
  8. 1 2 History, Amesbury (2019-08-01). "HMS Coltsfoot and Amesbury". Amesbury History. Retrieved 2026-09-01.
  9. ↑ "HERITAGE: Amesbury's adoption of HMS Coltsfoot". Salisbury Journal. 2020-02-27. Retrieved 2026-09-01.
  10. ↑ "Coltsfoot HMS 1941". shipstamps.co.uk. 2009-03-22. Retrieved 2024-10-02.