HMS Jaguar (F34)

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HMS Jaguar was a J-class destroyer of the Royal Navy. Commissioned in September 1939, she was present at the Dunkirk evacuation the following year, during which Jaguar was damaged by dive bombers. She later served in the Mediterranean and was involved in several actions there. She was torpedoed off the coast of Egypt on 26 March 1942 and sunk.

Construction

The eight ships of the J class were ordered on 25 March 1937, and Jaguar was laid down at the Dumbarton shipyard of Denny on 25 November 1937. She was launched on 22 November 1938 and commissioned on 12 September 1939.<ref name="English p71">English 2001, p. 71.</ref>

Jaguar was Template:Convert long between perpendiculars and Template:Convert overall, with a beam of Template:Convert and a draught of Template:Convert. Displacement was Template:Convert standard and Template:Convert deep load.<ref name="Whit p117">Whitley 2000, p. 117.</ref> Two Admiralty three-drum boilers fed steam at Template:Convert and Template:Convert to Parsons to two sets of Parsons single-reduction geared-steam turbines, rated at Template:Convert. This gave a design speed of Template:Convert at trials displacement and Template:Convert at full load.<ref name="Lentonv1 p121">Lenton 1970, p. 121.</ref>

As completed, Jaguar had a main gun armament of six Template:Convert QF Mark XII guns in three twin mountings, two forward and one aft. These guns could only elevate to an angle of 40 degrees, and so were of limited use in the anti-aircraft role, while the aft mount was arranged so that it could fire forwards over the ship's superstructure to maximise the forward firing firepower, but was therefore incapable of firing directly aft. A short range anti-aircraft armament of a four-barrelled 2-pounder "pom-pom" anti-aircraft mount and eight .50 in machine guns in two quadruple mounts was fitted, while torpedo armament consisted of ten Template:Convert torpedo tubes in two quintuple mounts.<ref name="Whitley p117-8">Whitley 2000, p. 117–118.</ref>

Service

Home waters

On commissioning, Jaguar joined the 7th Destroyer Flotilla based at Grimsby, operating off Britain's east coast. On 11 October, the ship ran aground in the Firth of Forth and was under repair until November. She was refitted at the Caledon Shipbuilding & Engineering Company's Dundee yard from 15 March 1940 to 1 May that year, with leaks being rectified and her fuel tanks modified.<ref name="English p73">English 2000, p. 73.</ref> On 20 May 1940, Jaguar, along with sister ships Template:HMS and Template:HMS and the corvette Template:HMS, escorted Naval trawlers as they cut the undersea telegraph cables between the UK and Borkum.<ref name="navhist">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="English p73,6">English 2000, pp. 73, 76.</ref>

File:HMS Jaguar Dunkirk.jpg

Report on HMS Jaguar's actions at Dunkirk.

On 26 May 1940, the Royal Navy set Operation Dynamo in motion, to rescue trapped British troops from Dunkirk and the surrounding area.<ref>Winser 1999, p. 13.</ref> On 27 May, Jaguar, together with Javelin and Template:HMS, was deployed to screen the evacuation operations from the North.<ref name="English p76">English 2000, p. 76.</ref> On 28 May, Jaguar and other destroyers rescued survivors from the sinking of Template:SS.<ref name="navhist"/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Jaguar landed 370 troops picked up from the beaches of Bray-Dunes at Dover early on 29 May.<ref>Winser 1999, p. 89.</ref><ref name="sebag">Sebag-Montefiore 2015, pp. 391–392.</ref> Later that day she was ordered to embark troops from Dunkirk harbour. Jaguar, Grenade and Template:HMS were attacked by German dive bombers as they arrived at Dunkirk at about noon, with Gallant damaged by a near miss and forced to turn back.Jaguar and Grenade berthed side by side on the East Pier at Dunkirk. She embarked about 1000 troops before leaving the harbour at about 15:50 hr, when she was attacked by dive bombers and near missed by four bombs, which severed a steam pipe, which disabled her engines and knocking out her steering. She was towed clear of a wreck by the destroyer Template:HMS, which along with the coaster Rika, took off JaguarTemplate:'s troops. Later that day, Jaguar managed to restore power and returned to Dover under her own steam.<ref>Winser 1999, pp. 17–18.</ref><ref name="sebag"/><ref>H.M. Ships Damaged or Sunk by Enemy Action 1952, p. 133.</ref>

Jaguar was sent to the Humber for repair, returning to service on 23 June.<ref name="English p73"/> On 1 September, she, together with Javelin, Template:HMS and Template:HMS, escorted the cruiser Template:HMS back to the Clyde after Fiji had been torpedoed west of the Hebrides.<ref>Rohwer and Hümmelchen 1992, p. 33</ref><ref>English 2000, p. 77.</ref> In October 1940 she was transferred to Portsmouth,<ref name="navhist"/> and on 11 October, took part in Operation Medium, when the destroyers of the 5th Destroyer Flotilla, including Jaguar, escorted the battleship Template:HMS during a bombardment of Cherbourg harbour.<ref>Rohwer and Hümmelchen 1992, p. 38.</ref> From 14 October to 1 November, Jaguar was refitted at Devonport, being fitted with degaussing coils.<ref name="English p73"/>

The Mediterranean

On 23 November 1940, Jaguar joined Force H based at Gibraltar. On 27 November, she took part in the Battle of Cape Spartivento.<ref name="English p73"/> In January 1941, the British carried out Operation Excess, an operation to run a convoy from Gibraltar to Malta and Piraus in Greece, while simultaneously running another convoy from Alexandria to Malta. Jaguar formed part of the close escort of the convoy running eastwards from Gibraltar.<ref name="English p74">English 2000, p. 74.</ref><ref>Rohwer and Hümmelchen 1992, pp. 47–48.</ref> At dawn on 10 January, the Italian torpedo boats Template:Ship and Template:Ship attacked the convoy, launching seven torpedoes, all of which missed. Gunfire from the cruiser Template:HMS and the destroyers of the escort soon disabled Vega, and Jaguar closed to within Template:Convert of Vega and raked her with gunfire, setting the torpedo boat ablaze before the destroyer Template:HMS sank Vega with a torpedo. Jaguar fired 88 4.7 inch rounds and six 4-inch rounds during the engagement.<ref>O'Hara 2009, Chapter 5</ref> When the operation was complete Jaguar joined the 14th Destroyer Flotilla of the Mediterranean Fleet.<ref name="English p74"/> In later February 1941 she took part in Operation Abstention, an attempt to capture the island of Kastelorizo in the Dodecanese from the Italians. The Italians rushed reinforcements to the island, forcing the British force to evacuate. Jaguar was covering the evacuation when she encountered the Template:Ship in the early hours of 27 February. After a brief exchange of fire between the two ships, JaguarTemplate:'s searchlight was hit by a Template:Cvt round from Crispi, causing contact to be lost.<ref>O'Hara 2009, Castelorizzo</ref> That March she was at sea as part of Force D during the Battle of Cape Matapan.<ref name="English p74"/>

On the night of 20/21 April 1941, Jaguar formed part of the escort for the battleships Template:HMS, Template:HMS and Template:HMS and the cruiser Template:HMS when they bombarded the port of Tripoli in Libya.<ref name="English p74"/><ref name="rohp59">Rohwer and Hümmelchen 1992, p. 59.</ref> On 23 April, Jaguar together with sister ships Template:HMS, Template:HMS and Template:HMS set out from Malta to intercept an Italian convoy on the way from Italy to Tripoli. The four destroyers engaged and sunk the Italian armed motor ship Template:MV south of Lampedusa, but the convoy avoided the searching British ships.<ref name="English p74"/><ref name="rohp59"/> Jaguar took part in the Battle of Crete,<ref name="English p74"/> delivering ammunition to British troops fighting on the island and escorting ships carrying out the evacuation from Crete.<ref name="navhist"/> Jaguar was near missed by a bomb on 30 May.<ref>Shores, Cull and Malizia 1987, p. 395.</ref> In June 1941, Britain launched an invasion of Vichy French Syria and Lebanon, and on 23 June, Jaguar, together with the cruisers Template:Ship, Template:HMS and the destroyers Template:HMS and Template:Ship, clashed with the Template:Ship, which was hit once but managed to escape.<ref name="English p74"/><ref>Rohwer and Hümmelchen 1992, p. 67.</ref>

After the end of the Syrian campaign, Jaguar operated out of Alexandria, duties including escorting supply convoys to besieged Tobruk, and shore bombardment duties off the coast of Libya. On 1 December 1941, her bridge was hit by a single 4.7 in shell accidentally fired by Jervis while the latter destroyer guns were being cleaned. Two men were killed, including JaguarTemplate:'s commanding officer Lieut.-Comdr. John F.W. Hine.<ref name="English p74"/> Later that month, Jaguar was deployed to Malta for operations against Italian convoys carrying supplies to North Africa. On the night of 18/19 December, three cruisers and four destroyers of Force K set out from Malta to intercept an Italian convoy, but ran into a minefield north of Tripoli, with the cruiser Template:HMS striking four mines and sinking, the cruisers Template:HMS and Template:HMS also striking mines. The destroyer Template:HMS struck a mine when trying to rescue survivors from Neptune, blowing her stern off. Early on 20 December, Jaguar found Kandahar, but the seas were too heavy for Jaguar to take Kandahar under tow, so after picking up 165<ref group="lower-alpha">175 according to Kemp<ref name="kempp1623" /></ref> survivors from the stricken destroyer's crew, Jaguar scuttled Kandahar with torpedoes.<ref name="English p74"/><ref>Rohwer and Hümmelchen 1992, p. 107.</ref><ref name="kempp1623">Kemp 1999, pp. 162–163</ref>

File:HMS Jaguar entering Grand Harbour Malta WWII IWM A 7268.jpg

Jaguar entering the Grand Harbour in Valetta, Malta, in wartime dazzle camouflage.

Jaguar helped to escort convoy MF 2 into Malta on 7–8 January 1942.<ref>Rohwer and Hümmelchen 1992, p. 114.</ref> She left Malta later that month, and from 13 to 16 June escorted the Malta-bound three ship Convoy MW 9, but two of the merchant ships were sunk and the third damaged and forced to put into Tobruk.<ref name="English p74"/><ref>Rohwer and Hümmelchen 1992, p. 122.</ref> On 26 March 1942 Jaguar and the Template:Ship were escorting the tanker Template:Ship when Slavol was torpedoed by the German submarine Template:GS and set on fire. Jaguar came alongside Salvol to rescue the oiler's crew, but the destroyer was then struck by two more torpedoes from U-652. Jaguar broke into three parts and quickly sank off Sidi Barrani, Egypt, Template:Coord with the loss of 3 officers and 190 of her crew, including two from the Irish Republic which was neutral at the time.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref group="lower-alpha">Petty Officer Richard Wafer of Guileen, County Cork, and Able Seaman Albert Edward Stevens of Bray, County Wicklow.</ref> 8 officers and 45 crewmen were rescued by the South African naval whaler Klo.<ref name="English p74"/><ref>Kemp 1999, pp. 172–173.</ref>

References

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