Allied Warships

HMS Cotswold (L 54)

Escort destroyer of the Hunt (Type I) class

NavyThe Royal Navy
TypeEscort destroyer
ClassHunt (Type I) 
PennantL 54 
Built byYarrow Shipbuilders Ltd. (Scotstoun, Scotland) 
Ordered11 Apr 1939 
Laid down10 Oct 1939 
Launched18 Jul 1940 
Commissioned16 Nov 1940 
End service 
History

Used as a breakwater at Harwich, England in 1956 before being scrapped.
Scrapped at Grays on 11 September 1957.

Was second R.N. ship of the name.
Named after 2 'Hunts' in Gloucestershire, England.

Battle Honours
North Sea 1941 - 1945
English Channel 1943
Normandy 1944

 

Commands listed for HMS Cotswold (L 54)

Please note that we're still working on this section
and that we only list Commanding Officers for the duration of the Second World War.

CommanderFromTo
1Lt.Cdr. Peter John Knowling, RN23 Oct 194027 Aug 1941
2Lt.Cdr. Rupert Cyril Egan, RN27 Aug 1941mid 1942

3Lt. Alan Lennard Wylde, RNMar 194323 Feb 1944
4A/Lt.Cdr. John William Whittle, DSC, RNVR23 Feb 1944late 1945

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Notable events involving Cotswold include:


1 Mar 1941
HMS St. Donats (T/Skr. F.L.A. Atkinson, RNR) was sunk in a collision with escort destroyer HMS Cotswold (Lt.Cdr. P.J. Knowling, RN) off Spurn, Yorkshire, England on 1 March 1941.

The wreck of the St. Donats lies in position 53°28'39"N, 01°01'09"E.

HMS Cotswold was under repair for about a month.

5 Feb 1942
The heavy cruiser HMS Cumberland (Capt. A.H. Maxwell-Hyslop, AM, RN) departed Rosyth for Sheerness. She is being escorted by the escort destroyers HMS Winchester (Lt.Cdr. D.J.B. Jewitt, RN) and HMS Cotswold (Lt.Cdr. R.C. Egan, RN). (1)

6 Oct 1943
The heavy cruiser HMS Kent (Capt. G.A.B. Hawkins, DSC, MVO, RN) departed Sheerness for Scapa Flow and the light cruiser HMS Dauntless (Cdr. D.C. Kinloch, DSO, RN) and escort destroyer HMS Cotswold (Lt. A.L. Wylde, RN) departed Sheerness for Rosyth.

At 1815A/6, HMS Dauntless and HMS Cotswold parted company with HMS Kent. (2)

Sources

  1. ADM 53/115682
  2. ADM 53/117318 + ADM 53/117698

ADM numbers indicate documents at the British National Archives at Kew, London.


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