For other ships with the same name, see HMS Bittern.
HMS Bittern was a Vickers three-funnel, 30-knotdestroyer ordered by the Royal Navy under the 1895 – 1896 Naval Estimates. She was the fourth ship to carry this name since it was introduced in 1796 for an 18-gun sloop, sold in 1833.[3][4]
She was laid down as yard number 249 on 17 February 1896 at the Barrow Shipbuilding Company shipyard at Barrow-in-Furness and launched on 10 October 1896. During her builder's trials she made her contracted speed requirement. In 1897 during the construction of these ships, the Barrow Shipbuilding Company was purchased by Vickers, Sons and Maxim and renamed as the Naval Construction and Armaments Shipyard. She was completed and accepted by the Royal Navy in January 1899.[3][4] After commissioning, she was assigned to the Chatham Division of the Harwich Flotilla. She was deployed in Home Waters for her entire service life.
In January 1900 Bittern replaced HMS Haughty in the Medway Instructional flotilla after the latter had a breakdown in her machinery and was paid off for a refit.[5] The following April she was present at an accident at Brighton's West Pier, when seven sailors from HMS Desperate were drowned in bad weather as they approached the pier.[6][7]
On 30 August 1912 the Admiralty directed all destroyer classes were to be designated by alpha characters starting with the letter 'A'. Since her design speed was 30 knots (56 km/h; 35 mph) and she had three funnels, she was assigned to the C class. After 30 September 1913, she was known as a C-class destroyer and had the letter 'C' painted on the hull below the bridge area and on either the fore or aft funnel.[8]
World War Iedit
In August 1914 she was in active commission in the Devonport Local Flotilla tendered to HMS Vivid, Royal Navy Barracks. She remained in this deployment until her loss.
SS Clan Sutherlandedit
On 17 April 1917, the Clan Line'ssteamshipClan Sutherland was on a voyage from Bombay, India to Glasgow carrying 1,000 tons of manganeseore and 3,000 tons of general cargo. She was 12 nautical miles (22 km) east-southeast of Start Point, Devon, when a torpedo fired by UC-66 struck her starboard side.[9][10] The 62 crewmen abandoned ship as Clan Sutherland was badly damaged, without power and with her rudder jammed at 15° to port. She was also in danger of breaking in two. HMS Bittern was nearby and rendered assistance with Admiralty tugsFortitude, Flintshire and Woonda, and HM Armed TrawlerLois. The three tugs began to tow Clan Sutherland to Devonport at a speed of 4 kn (7.4 km/h). When the formation was 9 nautical miles (17 km) from Start Point, Clan Sutherland began to break up. It was decided to beach the foundering steamer at Dartmouth.[9]
It was two days before Captain Calderwood of Clan Sutherland was granted permission from the Admiralty to board his ship. On doing so, he found that the ship had been ransacked and looted.[9]Clan Sutherland was later repaired and returned to service. She was sold to Japan in 1921 and renamed Shinshu Maru.[11]
On 4 April 1918, Bittern was involved in a collision with SS Kenilworth off the Isle of Portland in thick fog. The destroyer was overwhelmed and sank quickly with the loss of all hands. A Court of Inquiry found negligence on the part of the master of SS Kenilworth. His instructions had been to hug the coast as closely as possible from Portland Bill to Start Point. Instead he headed straight across, showing no lights nor sounding for fog. At 0315 Kenilworth saw a red light and a ship 'small and low down' at the moment of impact.[12]
Salvage awardedit
The various parties involved in the saving of Clan Sutherland put in their claims for rewards under salvage rules. Following a Court of Admiralty case concluded on 31 July 1918, Mr Justice Hill awarded £6,000 to the Admiralty, which had coordinated the operation. The crew of Boarhound were awarded £500 to be divided between them. The crews of Lois and Woonda were awarded £360. The crew of Fortitude were awarded £300. Lieutenant Irving of Bittern was awarded £300. Captain Edwards of Lois was awarded £200. The crew of Bittern were awarded £900 to be divided between her then 72-man complement (£12 10s each).[9]
Mr Justice Hill criticised the Admiralty for not allowing Captain Calderwood to return to his ship at the earliest opportunity. Addressing the question of the ship being looted, he laid the blame squarely on the crew of Bittern as only men from that ship had been aboard Clan Sutherland the whole time she was under salvage. Irving was criticised for not exercising proper control over his crew or exercising due diligence in preventing or detecting the thefts. As punishment, he ordered that the crew of Bittern forfeit their salvage reward, regardless of whether or not they had been involved in the looting. Although Lieutenant Irving was cleared of any involvement in the looting, his reward was cut to £100.[9]
NOTE: All tabular data under General Characteristics only from the listed Jane's Fighting Ships volume unless otherwise specified
^Jane, Fred T. (1969) [1905]. Jane's Fighting Ships 1905. New York: first published by Sampson Low Marston, London 1905, reprinted ARCO Publishing Company. p. 77.
^ abJane, Fred T. (1969) [1898]. Jane's All the World's Fighting Ships 1898. New York: first published by Sampson Low Marston, London 1898, reprinted ARCO Publishing Company. pp. 84 to 85.
^. The Ships List. Archived from the original on 7 July 2009. Retrieved 4 June 2010.
^Carter, Geoffrey (1987). The Royal Navy at Portland Since 1845. Liskeard: Maritime Books. pp. 45–49. ISBN0-907771-29-7.
^""Arrowsmith" List – Part 1 Destroyer Prototypes through "River" Class". Retrieved 1 June 2013.
Bibliographyedit
Chesneau, Roger & Kolesnik, Eugene M., eds. (1979). Conway's All The World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN0-85177-133-5.
Dittmar, F. J. & Colledge, J. J. (1972). British Warships 1914–1919. Shepperton, UK: Ian Allan. ISBN0-7110-0380-7.
Friedman, Norman (2009). British Destroyers: From Earliest Days to the Second World War. Barnsley, UK: Seaforth Publishing. ISBN978-1-84832-049-9.
Gardiner, Robert & Gray, Randal, eds. (1985). Conway's All The World's Fighting Ships 1906–1921. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN0-85177-245-5.
Lyon, David (2001) [1996]. The First Destroyers. London: Caxton Editions. ISBN1-84067-3648.
Manning, T. D. (1961). The British Destroyer. London: Putnam & Co. OCLC 6470051.
March, Edgar J. (1966). British Destroyers: A History of Development, 1892–1953; Drawn by Admiralty Permission From Official Records & Returns, Ships' Covers & Building Plans. London: Seeley Service. OCLC 164893555.
January 01, 1970
bittern, 1897, other, ships, with, same, name, bittern, bittern, vickers, three, funnel, knot, destroyer, ordered, royal, navy, under, 1895, 1896, naval, estimates, fourth, ship, carry, this, name, since, introduced, 1796, sloop, sold, 1833, close, bittern, al. For other ships with the same name see HMS Bittern HMS Bittern was a Vickers three funnel 30 knot destroyer ordered by the Royal Navy under the 1895 1896 Naval Estimates She was the fourth ship to carry this name since it was introduced in 1796 for an 18 gun sloop sold in 1833 3 4 A close up of HMS Bittern alongside a pierHistory United Kingdom NameBittern Ordered1896 1897 Naval Estimates BuilderBarrow Shipbuilding Company and Vickers Sons and Maxim Barrow in Furness Laid down18 February 1896 Launched1 February 1897 CommissionedApril 1899 Fate4 April 1918 sunk by collision with merchant ship SS Kenilworth in the English Channel General characteristics Class and typeVickers three funnel 30 knot destroyer 1 2 Displacement355 long tons 361 t standard 405 long tons 411 t full load Length214 ft 3 in 65 30 m o a Beam20 ft 6 1 m Draught8 ft 5 in 2 57 m Propulsion4 Thornycroft water tube boiler 2 vertical triple expansion VTE steam engines driving 2 shafts producing 6 300 shp 4 700 kW Speed30 knots 56 km h Range70 tons coal 1 440 nmi 2 670 km at 11 kn 20 km h 13 mph Complement63 Armament1 QF 12 pounder 12 cwt Mark I L 40 naval gun on a P Mark I Low angle mount 5 QF 6 pounder 8 cwt naval gun L 40 Naval gun on a Mark I low angle mount 2 single tubes for 18 inch 450mm torpedoes Contents 1 Construction and career 1 1 World War I 1 1 1 SS Clan Sutherland 2 Salvage award 3 Pennant numbers 4 References 5 BibliographyConstruction and career editShe was laid down as yard number 249 on 17 February 1896 at the Barrow Shipbuilding Company shipyard at Barrow in Furness and launched on 10 October 1896 During her builder s trials she made her contracted speed requirement In 1897 during the construction of these ships the Barrow Shipbuilding Company was purchased by Vickers Sons and Maxim and renamed as the Naval Construction and Armaments Shipyard She was completed and accepted by the Royal Navy in January 1899 3 4 After commissioning she was assigned to the Chatham Division of the Harwich Flotilla She was deployed in Home Waters for her entire service life In January 1900 Bittern replaced HMS Haughty in the Medway Instructional flotilla after the latter had a breakdown in her machinery and was paid off for a refit 5 The following April she was present at an accident at Brighton s West Pier when seven sailors from HMS Desperate were drowned in bad weather as they approached the pier 6 7 On 30 August 1912 the Admiralty directed all destroyer classes were to be designated by alpha characters starting with the letter A Since her design speed was 30 knots 56 km h 35 mph and she had three funnels she was assigned to the C class After 30 September 1913 she was known as a C class destroyer and had the letter C painted on the hull below the bridge area and on either the fore or aft funnel 8 World War I edit In August 1914 she was in active commission in the Devonport Local Flotilla tendered to HMS Vivid Royal Navy Barracks She remained in this deployment until her loss SS Clan Sutherland edit On 17 April 1917 the Clan Line s steamship Clan Sutherland was on a voyage from Bombay India to Glasgow carrying 1 000 tons of manganese ore and 3 000 tons of general cargo She was 12 nautical miles 22 km east southeast of Start Point Devon when a torpedo fired by UC 66 struck her starboard side 9 10 The 62 crewmen abandoned ship as Clan Sutherland was badly damaged without power and with her rudder jammed at 15 to port She was also in danger of breaking in two HMS Bittern was nearby and rendered assistance with Admiralty tugs Fortitude Flintshire and Woonda and HM Armed Trawler Lois The three tugs began to tow Clan Sutherland to Devonport at a speed of 4 kn 7 4 km h When the formation was 9 nautical miles 17 km from Start Point Clan Sutherland began to break up It was decided to beach the foundering steamer at Dartmouth 9 It was two days before Captain Calderwood of Clan Sutherland was granted permission from the Admiralty to board his ship On doing so he found that the ship had been ransacked and looted 9 Clan Sutherland was later repaired and returned to service She was sold to Japan in 1921 and renamed Shinshu Maru 11 On 4 April 1918 Bittern was involved in a collision with SS Kenilworth off the Isle of Portland in thick fog The destroyer was overwhelmed and sank quickly with the loss of all hands A Court of Inquiry found negligence on the part of the master of SS Kenilworth His instructions had been to hug the coast as closely as possible from Portland Bill to Start Point Instead he headed straight across showing no lights nor sounding for fog At 0315 Kenilworth saw a red light and a ship small and low down at the moment of impact 12 Salvage award editThe various parties involved in the saving of Clan Sutherland put in their claims for rewards under salvage rules Following a Court of Admiralty case concluded on 31 July 1918 Mr Justice Hill awarded 6 000 to the Admiralty which had coordinated the operation The crew of Boarhound were awarded 500 to be divided between them The crews of Lois and Woonda were awarded 360 The crew of Fortitude were awarded 300 Lieutenant Irving of Bittern was awarded 300 Captain Edwards of Lois was awarded 200 The crew of Bittern were awarded 900 to be divided between her then 72 man complement 12 10s each 9 Mr Justice Hill criticised the Admiralty for not allowing Captain Calderwood to return to his ship at the earliest opportunity Addressing the question of the ship being looted he laid the blame squarely on the crew of Bittern as only men from that ship had been aboard Clan Sutherland the whole time she was under salvage Irving was criticised for not exercising proper control over his crew or exercising due diligence in preventing or detecting the thefts As punishment he ordered that the crew of Bittern forfeit their salvage reward regardless of whether or not they had been involved in the looting Although Lieutenant Irving was cleared of any involvement in the looting his reward was cut to 100 9 Pennant numbers editPennant number 13 From To D03 6 Dec 1914 1 Sep 1915 D5A 1 Sep 1915 1 Jan 1918 D10 1 Jan 1918 4 Apr 1918References editNOTE All tabular data under General Characteristics only from the listed Jane s Fighting Ships volume unless otherwise specified Jane Fred T 1969 1905 Jane s Fighting Ships 1905 New York first published by Sampson Low Marston London 1905 reprinted ARCO Publishing Company p 77 Jane Fred T 1990 1919 reprinted Jane s Fighting Ships of World War I Jane s Publishing c 1919 p 77 ISBN 1 85170 378 0 a b Jane Fred T 1969 1898 Jane s All the World s Fighting Ships 1898 New York first published by Sampson Low Marston London 1898 reprinted ARCO Publishing Company pp 84 to 85 a b Jane Fred T 1990 1919 reprinted Jane s Fighting Ships of World War I Jane s Publishing c 1919 p 76 ISBN 1 85170 378 0 Naval amp Military intelligence The Times No 36049 London 26 January 1900 p 7 Disaster to Bluejackets Boat Swamped at Brighton Seven Seamen Drowned News of the World 15 April 1900 HMS Bittern Index of 19th Century Naval Vessels and a few of their movements Archived from the original on 21 September 2004 Retrieved 13 January 2014 Conway s All the World s Fighting Ships 1906 1921 Conway Maritime Press 2006 1985 reprinted 1986 1997 2002 2006 pp 17 to 19 ISBN 0 85177 245 5 a b c d e Booth Tony 2006 Admiralty Salvage in Peace amp War 1906 2006 Grope Grub amp Tremble Barnsley Pen amp Sword Books Ltd pp 45 49 ISBN 978 1 84415 565 1 Clan Sutherland Uboat Retrieved 4 June 2010 C W Cayzer amp Company Cayzer Irvine amp Company Clan Line of Steamers Limited Clan Line The Ships List Archived from the original on 7 July 2009 Retrieved 4 June 2010 Carter Geoffrey 1987 The Royal Navy at Portland Since 1845 Liskeard Maritime Books pp 45 49 ISBN 0 907771 29 7 Arrowsmith List Part 1 Destroyer Prototypes through River Class Retrieved 1 June 2013 Bibliography editChesneau Roger amp Kolesnik Eugene M eds 1979 Conway s All The World s Fighting Ships 1860 1905 London Conway Maritime Press ISBN 0 85177 133 5 Colledge J J Warlow Ben 2006 1969 Ships of the Royal Navy The Complete Record of all Fighting Ships of the Royal Navy Rev ed London Chatham Publishing ISBN 978 1 86176 281 8 Dittmar F J amp Colledge J J 1972 British Warships 1914 1919 Shepperton UK Ian Allan ISBN 0 7110 0380 7 Friedman Norman 2009 British Destroyers From Earliest Days to the Second World War Barnsley UK Seaforth Publishing ISBN 978 1 84832 049 9 Gardiner Robert amp Gray Randal eds 1985 Conway s All The World s Fighting Ships 1906 1921 London Conway Maritime Press ISBN 0 85177 245 5 Lyon David 2001 1996 The First Destroyers London Caxton Editions ISBN 1 84067 3648 Manning T D 1961 The British Destroyer London Putnam amp Co OCLC 6470051 March Edgar J 1966 British Destroyers A History of Development 1892 1953 Drawn by Admiralty Permission From Official Records amp Returns Ships Covers amp Building Plans London Seeley Service OCLC 164893555 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title HMS Bittern 1897 amp oldid 1199378100, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
