HMS Fearless (1912)

Fearless underway with a paddle steamer to the right
History
United Kingdom
Name:	HMS Fearless
Builder:	Pembroke Royal Dockyard
Laid down:	15 November 1911
Launched:	12 June 1912
Commissioned:	October 1913
Fate:	Sold for scrap, 8 November 1921
General characteristics (as built)
Class and type:	Active-class scout cruiser
Displacement:	3,340 long tons (3,390 t) (normal)
Length:	405 ft (123.4 m) (o/a)
Beam:	41 ft (12.5 m)
Draught:	14 ft 6 in (4.4 m)
Installed power:	18,000 shp (13,000 kW) 12 × Yarrow boilers
Propulsion:	4 × shafts 2 × Parsons steam turbine sets
Speed:	25 knots (46 km/h; 29 mph)
Range:	4,630 nautical miles (8,570 km; 5,330 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph)
Complement:	293
Armament:	10 × single BL 4-inch (102 mm) guns 4 × single QF 3-pounder (1.9 in (47 mm)) guns 2 × single 18-inch (450 mm) torpedo tubes
Armour:	Deck: 0.5–1 in (13–25 mm) Conning tower: 4 in (102 mm)

HMS Fearless was one of three Active-class scout cruisers built for the Royal Navy shortly before the First World War. Upon completion in 1913, the ship was assigned to the 1st Light Cruiser Squadron (LCS) of the 1st Fleet. She became flotilla leader of the 1st Destroyer Flotilla (DF) shortly before the start of the war in August 1914 and was transferred to the Harwich Force shortly after it began. Fearless participated in the Battle of Heligoland Bight and the Cuxhaven Raid later that year. The ship was transferred to the Grand Fleet in early 1915 and played a minor role in the Battle of Jutland the following year.

Fearless was converted into a submarine depot ship shortly afterwards and briefly deployed to Russia later in the year. She later became the flotilla leader of the 12th Submarine Flotilla (SF), initially based in Scapa Flow, but later in Rosyth. In early 1918, she accidentally rammed and sank one submarine from a different flotilla as part of an incident that sardonically came to be known as the Battle of May Island. The ship survived the war and was sold for scrap in 1921.

The Active-class ships were the last class of turbine-powered scout cruisers ordered by the Admiralty. These ships were intended to work with destroyer flotillas, leading their torpedo attacks and backing them up when attacked by other destroyers, although they quickly became less useful as destroyer speeds increased before the First World War. Fearless had a length between perpendiculars of 405 feet (123.4 m), a beam of 41 feet (12.5 m) and a draught of 14 feet 6 inches (4.4 m). She displaced 3,340 long tons (3,394 t) at normal load and 3,945 long tons (4,008 t) at deep load. Her crew consisted of 289 officers and other ranks.