HMS Kelly
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HMS Kelly
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| History | |
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 United Kingdom
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| Namesake: | Admiral of the Fleet Sir John Kelly |
| Ordered: | 24 March 1937 |
| Builder: | R&W Hawthorn, Leslie & Co. Ltd, Hebburn |
| Yard number: | 615 |
| Laid down: | 26 August 1937 |
| Launched: | 25 October 1938 |
| Commissioned: | 23 August 1939 |
| Homeport: | HMNB Portsmouth |
| Motto: | Keep on instead of Hold on |
| Fate: | Sunk by Luftwaffe bombardment 23 May 1941, position 34°40′N 24°10′E / 34.667°N 24.167°E |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | K-class destroyer |
| Displacement: | 1,760 tons; 2,400 tons full load |
| Length: | 339½ ft p/p; 356½ ft o/a |
| Beam: | 35¾ ft |
| Draught: | 9 ft (2.7 m) ; 12 ft (3.7 m) deep |
| Propulsion: | 2 Admiralty 3-drum water-tube boilers (300 psi, 620 °F), Parsons geared steam turbines on 2 shafts, 40,000 shp |
| Speed: | 36 knots (67 km/h) light; 32 knots (59 km/h) deep |
| Range: | 484 tons bunkerage, 5,500 nmi (10,200 km) at 15 knots (28 km/h), 1,050 nmi (1,940 km) at 32 knots (59 km/h) |
| Complement: | 218 |
| Armament: |
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HMS Kelly (pennant number F01) was a K-class destroyer of the British Royal Navy, and flotilla leader of her class. She served through the early years of the Second World War; in Home Waters, off Norway and in the Mediterranean. Throughout her service, Kelly was commanded by Lord Louis Mountbatten. She was lost in action in 1941 during the Battle of Crete. In addition, Mountbatten served as commander (Captain (D)) of the 5th Destroyer Flotilla.
Kelly was built by Hawthorn Leslie and Company at Hebburn on the River Tyne. She was laid down on 26 August 1937, launched on 25 October 1938 and commissioned on 23 August 1939, just 11 days before commencement of hostilities. She was named after Admiral of the Fleet Sir John Kelly.
On the outbreak of the Second World War in September 1939, the Duke and Duchess of Windsor were brought from France, where they were living, back to Britain on board HMS Kelly.
On the afternoon of 14 December 1939, the tanker Atheltemplar struck a mine laid by German destroyers off the Tyne Estuary. Kelly and the Tribal-class destroyer HMS Mohawk were dispatched as escorts for the rescue tugs Great Emperor, Joffre and Langton. During the operation, Kelly also struck a mine and sustained damage to her hull. While Mohawk put a party aboard Atheltemplar, and Joffre and Langton took the tanker under tow, Kelly herself was taken in tow by Great Emperor and returned to the Tyne. Reaching the Tyne just before midnight, Kelly was assisted up river by the tugs Robert Redhead and Washington. She was towed to Hawthorn Leslie's yard for repairs, which took just a little over three months.
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