View source for HMS London (69)

{{Short description|Cruiser of the Royal Navy}}
{{Other ships|HMS London}}
{{EngvarB|date=September 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2024}}
{{no footnotes|date=June 2008}}
{{Infobox ship
|section1={{Infobox ship/image
 |image=HMS London tow.jpg
 |image_caption=
 }}

|section2={{Infobox ship/career
 |hide_header=
 |country=United Kingdom
 |flag={{shipboxflag|United Kingdom|naval}}
 |name=HMS ''London''
 |ordered=
 |awarded=
 |namesake= [[London]]
 |builder=[[Portsmouth Dockyard]]
 |laid_down=23 February 1926
 |launched=14 September 1927
 |christened=
 |acquired=
 |commissioned=31 January 1929
 |recommissioned=
 |decommissioned=
 |in_service=
 |out_of_service=
 |renamed=
 |reclassified=
 |refit=
 |captured=
 |struck=
 |reinstated=
 |fate=Sold for scrapping, 3 January 1950. Broken up from 22 January 1950 by [[Thos. W. Ward|T. W. Ward of Barrow]]
 |homeport=
 |motto=
 |nickname=
 |honours=
 |identification=[[Pennant number]] 69
 }}

|section3={{Infobox ship/characteristics
 |hide_header=
 |header_caption=
 |class={{sclass2|County|cruiser|0}} [[heavy cruiser]]
 |displacement=*9,750 tons '''standard'''
               *13,315 tons '''full load'''
 |length={{convert|633|ft|m|abbr=on}}
 |beam={{convert|66|ft|m|abbr=on}}
 |draught={{convert|21|ft|m|abbr=on}}
 |draft=
 |propulsion=*Eight Admiralty 3-drum boilers
             *Four shaft Parsons geared turbines
             *80,000 shp (60&nbsp;MN)
 |speed={{convert|32|kn|km/h|1}}
 |range=9,120 [[nautical mile|nmi]] at 12 kn
 |endurance=
 |test_depth=
 |boats=
 |capacity=
 |complement=784
 |time_to_activate=
 |sensors=
 |EW=
 |armament=
*8 × [[BL 8 inch Mk VIII naval gun|BL 8-inch (203 mm L/50) Mk.VIII]] in twin mounts Mk.I*
*4–8 × [[QF 4 inch Mk V naval gun|QF 4-inch (102 mm L/45) Mk.V]] in single mounts HA Mk.III
*4 × [[QF 2-pounder naval gun|QF 2 pdr (40 mm L/39)]] Mk.II in single mounts HA Mk.I
*8 × [[Vickers .50 machine gun|QF 0.5-inch (12.7 mm L/50)]] Mk.III in quad mounts Mk.I
*8 × [[British 21 inch torpedo|21 inch (533 mm)]]  torpedoes in quad mounts
 |armour=
 |armor=
 |aircraft=One [[Supermarine Walrus]], one [[Aircraft catapult#Interwar and World War II|catapult]]
 }}
}}

'''HMS ''London''''', [[pennant number]] C69, was a member of the second group of the {{sclass2|County|cruiser|0}} [[heavy cruiser]]s of the [[Royal Navy]]. She and her [[sister ship|sisters]]; {{HMS|Sussex|96|2}}, {{HMS|Shropshire|73|2}}, and {{HMS|Devonshire|39|2}} differed from the earlier group of Counties (known as the ''Kent'' class) by having a smaller forward superstructure, which was positioned slightly further aft, and little armour plating. HMS ''London''{{'}}s career spanned over twenty years.

==Interwar career and rebuild==
[[File:HMS London gun.jpg|thumb|left|The gun crew of a .5-inch four barrelled [[Vickers .50 machine gun|Vickers gun]] at their quarter on board HMS ''London''. Note the long belts of ammunition hanging off the two men.]]
''London'' was laid down at [[HMNB Portsmouth|Portsmouth Dockyard]] on 23 February 1926, and later launched on 14 September 1927 and commissioned on 31 January 1929.

''London'' served with the 1st Cruiser Squadron until March 1939, and was the flagship of Admiral [[Max Horton]] during his time in command of 1st Cruisers. Her [[flag captain]] during this time was [[Henry Harwood]].

From 1936, she was the flagship of Vice-Admiral [[Charles Kennedy-Purvis]] (later Sir Charles) and on 1 September 1937, she and her sister ship ''Sussex'' made a week-long goodwill visit to Venice, mooring opposite the Doges Palace.

''London'' and her sister ship ''Shropshire'' facilitated the evacuation of thousands of civilians from [[Barcelona]] during the [[Spanish Civil War]]. From March 1939, she was under reconstruction at the [[Chatham Dockyard]], and was much altered in appearance. Replacement of her machinery was considered, but later abandoned.

She was given a new superstructure above the main deck and in many ways resembled a {{sclass|Fiji|cruiser|0}} light cruiser. Her single 4-inch gun mounts were changed to twin mounts, and several 20mm AA guns and radar were added.

In addition, she was fitted with a 3½-inch cemented armoured belt, 8 feet deep down from the main armoured deck which covered the machinery spaces. The reconstruction work was finally finished in March 1941. The refit was planned to be implemented to other ships of the County class, but due to wartime pressures no other ships were reconstructed.

==Wartime career==
{{stack|[[File:HMS London King George.jpg|thumb|[[George VI of the United Kingdom|HM King George VI]] meeting the officers of HMS ''London'' lined up on deck next to one of the cruiser's 8-inch gun turrets, part of the [[Home Fleet]] at [[Scapa Flow]].]]}}
''London'' was involved in the pursuit of the German [[battleship]] {{ship|German battleship|Bismarck||2}} in May 1941. During this time at sea, many cracks appeared in her upper deck and hull, due to the weight of the new superstructure causing stresses. She entered a commercial shipyard on the [[River Tyne]] in October 1941 and was under repair until February 1942.

''London'' then spent from March 1942 to November 1942 in the North Atlantic on convoy protection duties in the company of several US Navy warships.

This phase of operations in the heavy North Atlantic seas caused hull cracks and popped rivets in her lower hull, necessitating the ship again going into the dry-dock in December 1942 for strengthening of the hull and for the fitting of newer and more refined radar, and of more light anti-aircraft guns. This refit rectified her hull and was completed in May 1943, with the ship ready for sea in July. After sea trials and loading of ammunition, she was assigned to operate off the South African coast and then to the [[Eastern Fleet]] for the rest of the war.

==Postwar, the ''Amethyst'' incident, and decommissioning==
After the Second World War, and being the Royal Navy's only modernised 8-inch gun cruiser, ''London'' was refitted for further service in early 1946 to let her serve in the postwar fleet. Following the refit, she sailed for the far east in 1946 and served there for the next three years on the [[China Station]].

=== ''Amethyst'' incident ===
{{main|Amethyst Incident}}
In the spring of 1949, the [[frigate]] {{HMS|Amethyst|F116|2}} became trapped by advancing Communist Chinese forces up the [[Yangtze River]]. ''London'' sailed up the river as a show of strength in an attempt to help free the frigate. The Communist forces were not intimidated and took the cruiser under fire. ''London'' returned fire with her 8-inch and 4-inch guns, firing hundreds of rounds, but was hit several times. Her two forward 8-inch turrets and "X" turret aft were damaged and rendered inoperable, and her bridge sustained several hits. ''London'' retreated down river and returned to [[Hong Kong]] for repairs which lasted until the end of July.

''London'' remained in Chinese waters until August 1949, when she was relieved by {{HMS|Kenya|14|6}}, and she returned to the UK in the autumn of 1949. ''London'' was surveyed to determine if an extensive repair and refit for further service was feasible, but the condition of her machinery (dating back to 1928 and not replaced during her rebuild in the 1930s), as well as the large crew she required made her too expensive a proposition, given Britain's post-war financial difficulties. She was retired to reserve in the [[River Fal]] until sold for scrapping in 1950.

== Gallery ==
<gallery widths=180>
File:HMS_London_1941.jpg|A photo of HMS London in 1941.
File:HMS_London_1941_2.JPG|The back of the same photo with information.
</gallery>

==References==
* {{cite book|title=Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1922–1946|editor1-last=Chesneau |editor1-first=Roger |publisher=Mayflower Books|location=New York|year=1980|isbn=0-8317-0303-2 |chapter=Great Britain |last1=Campbell |first1=N.J.M.|pages=2–85}}
* {{cite book|last=Friedman|first=Norman|title=British Cruisers: Two World Wars and After|year=2010|publisher=Seaforth Publishing|location=Barnsley, UK|isbn=978-1-59114-078-8 |author-link=Norman Friedman}}
* {{cite book|last1=Raven|first1=Alan|last2=Roberts|first2=John|title=British Cruisers of World War Two|publisher=Naval Institute Press|location=Annapolis, Maryland|year=1980|isbn=0-87021-922-7|name-list-style=amp}}
* {{cite book|last=Rohwer|first=Jürgen|title=Chronology of the War at Sea 1939–1945: The Naval History of World War Two|publisher=Naval Institute Press|location=Annapolis, Maryland|year=2005|edition=Third Revised|isbn=1-59114-119-2 |author-link=Jürgen Rohwer}}
* {{cite book|last=Whitley|first=M. J.|title=Cruisers of World War Two: An International Encyclopedia|publisher=Cassell |location=London|year=1995|isbn=1-86019-874-0|author-link=Michael J. Whitley}}

==Further reading==
* ''Two Red Stripes: A Naval Surgeon at War'', R Ransome Wallis, Ian Allan Ltd, {{ISBN|0-7110-0461-7}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|HMS London (69)}}
*[https://www.naval-history.net/xGM-Chrono-06CA-HMS_London.htm HMS London service history] at Naval-history.net
*[http://uboat.net/allies/warships/ship/1178.html HMS London at U-boat.net]
*[http://www.world-war.co.uk/index.php3 Cruisers of World War II]
*{{cite AV media
 | people =
 | title =Meet the Ship
 | medium =
 | publisher =Imperial War Museum
 | location =
 | date =1943
 | url =http://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/1060005174 }}

{{County class cruiser}}
{{1949 shipwrecks}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:London (69)}}
[[Category:London-class cruisers]]
[[Category:County-class cruisers of the Royal Navy]]
[[Category:Ships built in Portsmouth]]
[[Category:1927 ships]]
[[Category:World War II cruisers of the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Cold War cruisers of the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in 1949]]