Rosyth Dockyard/rəˈsaɪθ/(listen) is a large naval dockyard on the Firth of Forth at Rosyth, Fife, Scotland, owned by Babcock Marine, which formerly undertook refitting of Royal Navy surface vessels and submarines. Before its privatisation in the 1990s it was formerly the Royal Naval Dockyard Rosyth. Its primary role now is the dismantling of decommissioned nuclear submarines. It is also the integration site for the Royal Navy's newest aircraft carriers, the Queen Elizabeth class as well as the Type 31 Frigate.
Construction of the dockyard by civil engineers Easton, Gibb & Son commenced in 1909. At the time, the Royal Navy was strengthening its presence along the eastern seaboard of Great Britain due to a naval arms race with Germany.[1]
In 1903 approval was given with an estimated cost of £3 million for "works" and £250,000 for machinery spread over 10 years. The site consisted of 1,184 acres (479 ha) of land, 285 acres (115 ha) of foreshore, and the main basin would be 52.5 acres (21.2 ha). This was intended to be large enough for 11 battleships or 22 if doubled up.
The yard gained in size and importance during the First World War, with No. 6 Division of the Metropolitan Police set up to patrol it on 1 January 1916 (the Metropolitan Police then provided police for UK dockyards). The first ship to dry dock at Rosyth was the pre-dreadnought battleship HMS Zealandia on 28 March 1916.[2]
Interwar years
HMS Magnificent(1894) as an ammunition store ship between October 1918 & 4 February 1920.
HMS Crescent (1899) as a harbor depot ship between 1 May 1920 and 17 September 1921.
HMS London(1899) as a minelayer between February 1918 and January 1919.
Rosyth Dockyard in 1986
World War II
This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (October 2020)
Privatisation
The new Goliath crane at the Dockyard, used for the current assembly of the Royal Navy's new 65,000 tonne aircraft carriers.
Babcock Thorn, a consortium operated by Babcock International and Thorn EMI, was awarded the management contract for Rosyth dockyard in 1987; with Rosyth Dockyard becoming a government owned, contractor run facility. This contract was awarded in parallel with Devonport Management Limited's contract to run Devonport Dockyard, Plymouth. In 1993 the Ministry of Defence announced plans to privatise Rosyth. Babcock International, who had bought out Thorn's share of the original Babcock Thorn consortium, was the only company to submit a bid and after protracted negotiations purchased the yard in January 1997.[3]
Nuclear submarine refitting
In 1984 Rosyth was chosen as the sole location for refitting the Royal Navy's nuclear submarine fleet (a role it was already specialising in), and in 1986 extensive rebuilding commenced to facilitate this new role. However, in 1993, the government switched the refitting role to Devonport Dockyard.[4]
Nuclear submarine decommissioning
Seven nuclear submarines were stored at Rosyth in 2007.[5] In 2018, the Public Accounts Committee criticised the slow rate of decommissioning of these submarines, with the Ministry of Defence admitting that it had put off decommissioning due to the cost.
HMS Queen Elizabeth under construction at Rosyth (alongside HMS Illustrious)
The Royal Navy's two Queen Elizabeth-class carriers were constructed across six UK shipyards, with final assembly at Rosyth.[6]
Today
Today a Ministry of Defence site is based at the former dockyard, MoD Caledonia which holds a small naval garrison.[7] It is due to close by/in 2022. Babcock currently building the type 31 frigates at rosyth.[8][9]
Administration of the dockyard
The admiral-superintendent was the Royal Navy officer in command of a larger Naval Dockyard. The appointment of admiral-superintendents (or their junior equivalents) dates from 1832 when the Admiralty took charge of the Royal Dockyards. Prior to this larger dockyards were overseen by a commissioner who represented the Navy Board.
Rear-Admiral Peter Skelton: November 1953 – September 1956
Rear-Admiral Peter D.H.R. Pelly: September 1956 – November 1957
Rear-Admiral Walter Evershed: November 1957 – September 1960
Rear-Admiral Ian G. Aylen: September 1960 – September 1963
Rear-Admiral John G. Watson: September 1963 – September 1966
Rear-Admiral William T.C. Ridley: September 1966 – September 1971
Port Admiral, Rosyth
Rear-Admiral William T.C. Ridley: September 1971 – February 1972
Rear-Admiral Peter White: February 1972 – April 1974
Rear-Admiral Anthony J. Monk: April 1974 – January 1976
Rear-Admiral William T. Pillar: January 1976 – November 1977
Rear-Admiral John R.D. Nunn: November 1977 – January 1980
Rear-Admiral James E.C. Kennon: January 1980 – August 1981
Rear-Admiral John C. Warsop: August 1981 – August 1983
Vice-Admiral Robert R. Squires: August – December 1983
In the Royal Naval Dockyards, admiral-superintendents ceased to be appointed after 15 September 1971, and existing post-holders were renamed port admirals.[11]
^. National Archives of Scotland. Archived from the original on 14 April 2016. Retrieved 19 March 2016.
^Brown, David K (2010). The grand fleet : warship design and development, 1906-1922. Barnsley: Seaforth Pub. ISBN978-1-84832-085-7.
^"Completed acquisition by Babcock International Group plc of Devonport Management Limited" (PDF). Office of Fair Trading. Retrieved 19 March 2016.
^White, David (25 June 1993). "Shrinking navy prompted great nuclear race: David White tracks the two-year highly politicised battle for the contract to refit Trident submarines". The Financial Times. p. 8.
^"Parliamentary Business 27 Jan 2007". Hansard. Retrieved 26 July 2014.
^"Two carriers take shape at Rosyth". The Engineer. 1 September 2014. Retrieved 19 March 2016.
^"MOD Caledonia - Rosyth". wikimapia.org. Retrieved 6 May 2021.
^"MP says closure is 'still on the cards' at HMS Caledonia". Dunfermline Press. Retrieved 6 May 2021.
^"MOD Caledonia". TheyWorkForYou. Retrieved 6 May 2021.
^Mackie, Colin. "Royal Navy Appointments from 1865" (PDF). gulabin.com. Colin Mackie, p.113, December 2017. Retrieved 19 December 2017.
Burt, Walter (2016). Rosyth Dockyard and Naval Base: Through Time (Paperback). Stroud, Gloucestershire: Amberley Publishing. ISBN9781445648965.
Buxton, Ian (2019). "Rosyth Dockyard, Battleship and Dry-docking". In MacDougall, Philip (ed.). British Dockyards in the First World War. Transactions of the Naval Dockyards Society. Vol. 12: Conference held at the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, March 2014. Southwick, UK: The Naval Dockyards Society. pp. 107–122. ISBN978-1-9164797-1-5.
Rogers, Martin (2019). "Rosyth Dockyard 1903–1926". In MacDougall, Philip (ed.). British Dockyards in the First World War. Transactions of the Naval Dockyards Society. Vol. 12: Conference held at the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, March 2014. Southwick, UK: The Naval Dockyards Society. pp. 89–106. ISBN978-1-9164797-1-5.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Rosyth Dockyard.
rosyth, dockyard, listen, large, naval, dockyard, firth, forth, rosyth, fife, scotland, owned, babcock, marine, which, formerly, undertook, refitting, royal, navy, surface, vessels, submarines, before, privatisation, 1990s, formerly, royal, naval, dockyard, ro. Rosyth Dockyard r e ˈ s aɪ 8 listen is a large naval dockyard on the Firth of Forth at Rosyth Fife Scotland owned by Babcock Marine which formerly undertook refitting of Royal Navy surface vessels and submarines Before its privatisation in the 1990s it was formerly the Royal Naval Dockyard Rosyth Its primary role now is the dismantling of decommissioned nuclear submarines It is also the integration site for the Royal Navy s newest aircraft carriers the Queen Elizabeth class as well as the Type 31 Frigate Rosyth Dockyard in 1975 Contents 1 History 1 1 First World War 1 2 Interwar years 1 3 World War II 1 4 Privatisation 1 5 Nuclear submarine refitting 1 6 Nuclear submarine decommissioning 1 7 Queen Elizabeth class aircraft carriers 2 Today 3 Administration of the dockyard 3 1 Admiral Superintendent Rosyth 3 2 Port Admiral Rosyth 4 References 5 Bibliography 6 External linksHistory Edit Cranes at the Rosyth Dockyard Construction of the dockyard by civil engineers Easton Gibb amp Son commenced in 1909 At the time the Royal Navy was strengthening its presence along the eastern seaboard of Great Britain due to a naval arms race with Germany 1 First World War Edit HMS Russell 1901 In 1903 approval was given with an estimated cost of 3 million for works and 250 000 for machinery spread over 10 years The site consisted of 1 184 acres 479 ha of land 285 acres 115 ha of foreshore and the main basin would be 52 5 acres 21 2 ha This was intended to be large enough for 11 battleships or 22 if doubled up The yard gained in size and importance during the First World War with No 6 Division of the Metropolitan Police set up to patrol it on 1 January 1916 the Metropolitan Police then provided police for UK dockyards The first ship to dry dock at Rosyth was the pre dreadnought battleship HMS Zealandia on 28 March 1916 2 Interwar years Edit HMS Magnificent 1894 as an ammunition store ship between October 1918 amp 4 February 1920 HMS Crescent 1899 as a harbor depot ship between 1 May 1920 and 17 September 1921 HMS London 1899 as a minelayer between February 1918 and January 1919 Rosyth Dockyard in 1986 World War II Edit This section needs expansion You can help by adding to it October 2020 Privatisation Edit The new Goliath crane at the Dockyard used for the current assembly of the Royal Navy s new 65 000 tonne aircraft carriers Babcock Thorn a consortium operated by Babcock International and Thorn EMI was awarded the management contract for Rosyth dockyard in 1987 with Rosyth Dockyard becoming a government owned contractor run facility This contract was awarded in parallel with Devonport Management Limited s contract to run Devonport Dockyard Plymouth In 1993 the Ministry of Defence announced plans to privatise Rosyth Babcock International who had bought out Thorn s share of the original Babcock Thorn consortium was the only company to submit a bid and after protracted negotiations purchased the yard in January 1997 3 Nuclear submarine refitting Edit In 1984 Rosyth was chosen as the sole location for refitting the Royal Navy s nuclear submarine fleet a role it was already specialising in and in 1986 extensive rebuilding commenced to facilitate this new role However in 1993 the government switched the refitting role to Devonport Dockyard 4 Nuclear submarine decommissioning Edit Seven nuclear submarines were stored at Rosyth in 2007 5 In 2018 the Public Accounts Committee criticised the slow rate of decommissioning of these submarines with the Ministry of Defence admitting that it had put off decommissioning due to the cost HMS Churchill HMS Dreadnought HMS Resolution HMS Repulse HMS Renown HMS Revenge HMS SwiftsureQueen Elizabeth class aircraft carriers Edit HMS Queen Elizabeth under construction at Rosyth alongside HMS Illustrious The Royal Navy s two Queen Elizabeth class carriers were constructed across six UK shipyards with final assembly at Rosyth 6 Today EditToday a Ministry of Defence site is based at the former dockyard MoD Caledonia which holds a small naval garrison 7 It is due to close by in 2022 Babcock currently building the type 31 frigates at rosyth 8 9 Administration of the dockyard EditThe admiral superintendent was the Royal Navy officer in command of a larger Naval Dockyard The appointment of admiral superintendents or their junior equivalents dates from 1832 when the Admiralty took charge of the Royal Dockyards Prior to this larger dockyards were overseen by a commissioner who represented the Navy Board Admiral Superintendent Rosyth Edit Included 10 Rear Admiral Sir Henry H Bruce June 1915 April 1920 Vice Admiral Sir John F E Green April 1920 June 1923 Rear Admiral Colin Cantlie September 1939 April 1944 Rear Admiral Henry C Bovell April 1944 April 1947 Vice Admiral Sir Angus Cunninghame Graham April 1947 August 1951 Rear Admiral John H F Crombie August 1951 November 1953 Rear Admiral Peter Skelton November 1953 September 1956 Rear Admiral Peter D H R Pelly September 1956 November 1957 Rear Admiral Walter Evershed November 1957 September 1960 Rear Admiral Ian G Aylen September 1960 September 1963 Rear Admiral John G Watson September 1963 September 1966 Rear Admiral William T C Ridley September 1966 September 1971Port Admiral Rosyth Edit Rear Admiral William T C Ridley September 1971 February 1972 Rear Admiral Peter White February 1972 April 1974 Rear Admiral Anthony J Monk April 1974 January 1976 Rear Admiral William T Pillar January 1976 November 1977 Rear Admiral John R D Nunn November 1977 January 1980 Rear Admiral James E C Kennon January 1980 August 1981 Rear Admiral John C Warsop August 1981 August 1983 Vice Admiral Robert R Squires August December 1983In the Royal Naval Dockyards admiral superintendents ceased to be appointed after 15 September 1971 and existing post holders were renamed port admirals 11 Note These officers reported to the Flag Officer Scotland and Northern Ireland References Edit Records from Rosyth Royal Dockyard show machinery of 250 and 100 ton cantilever cranes National Archives of Scotland Archived from the original on 14 April 2016 Retrieved 19 March 2016 Brown David K 2010 The grand fleet warship design and development 1906 1922 Barnsley Seaforth Pub ISBN 978 1 84832 085 7 Completed acquisition by Babcock International Group plc of Devonport Management Limited PDF Office of Fair Trading Retrieved 19 March 2016 White David 25 June 1993 Shrinking navy prompted great nuclear race David White tracks the two year highly politicised battle for the contract to refit Trident submarines The Financial Times p 8 Parliamentary Business 27 Jan 2007 Hansard Retrieved 26 July 2014 Two carriers take shape at Rosyth The Engineer 1 September 2014 Retrieved 19 March 2016 MOD Caledonia Rosyth wikimapia org Retrieved 6 May 2021 MP says closure is still on the cards at HMS Caledonia Dunfermline Press Retrieved 6 May 2021 MOD Caledonia TheyWorkForYou Retrieved 6 May 2021 Mackie Colin Royal Navy Appointments from 1865 PDF gulabin com Colin Mackie p 113 December 2017 Retrieved 19 December 2017 House of Commons 27 July 1971 Hansard Bibliography EditBurt Walter 2016 Rosyth Dockyard and Naval Base Through Time Paperback Stroud Gloucestershire Amberley Publishing ISBN 9781445648965 Buxton Ian 2019 Rosyth Dockyard Battleship and Dry docking In MacDougall Philip ed British Dockyards in the First World War Transactions of the Naval Dockyards Society Vol 12 Conference held at the National Maritime Museum Greenwich March 2014 Southwick UK The Naval Dockyards Society pp 107 122 ISBN 978 1 9164797 1 5 Rogers Martin 2019 Rosyth Dockyard 1903 1926 In MacDougall Philip ed British Dockyards in the First World War Transactions of the Naval Dockyards Society Vol 12 Conference held at the National Maritime Museum Greenwich March 2014 Southwick UK The Naval Dockyards Society pp 89 106 ISBN 978 1 9164797 1 5 External links Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Rosyth Dockyard Graveyard fear as sub s hull is holed Dunfermline Press 3 April 2008Coordinates 56 1 14 N 3 27 12 W 56 02056 N 3 45333 W 56 02056 3 45333 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Rosyth Dockyard amp oldid 1133816048, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
