|
Date of Arrival |
Place |
Date of Departure |
Orders, Remarks etc |
|
3.2.41 |
Scapa |
? |
|
|
8.2.41 |
Scapa |
13.2.41 |
|
|
17.2.41 |
Rosyth |
18.2.41 |
|
|
20.2.41 |
Harwich |
25.2.41 |
|
|
26.2.41 |
Harwich |
1.3.41 |
For exercise |
|
1.3.41 |
Harwich |
4.3.41 |
|
|
4.3.41 |
Harwich |
5.3.41 |
|
|
6.3.41 |
Harwich |
14.3.41 |
For Dover |
|
16.3.41 |
Newhaven |
18.3.41 |
Arrived 1722, sailed 0726 (18th)
in company with Bramble, Hebe, Niger and Speedy
(Source
Peter Mason) |
|
18.3.41 |
Newhaven |
21.3.41 |
Arrived 1636 in company with
Bramble, Niger, Sharpshooter and Speedy. Sailed 1308 (21st) in company
with Bramble, Niger and Sharpshooter.
(Source
Peter Mason) |
|
? |
Portsmouth |
22.3.41 |
|
|
25.3.41 |
Newhaven |
26.3.41 |
Arrived 1535 in company
with Bramble, Hebe, Niger and Sharpshooter. Sailed 1416 in company
with Bramble, Hebe, Niger, Sharpshooter and Speedy. (Source
Peter Mason) |
|
27.3.41 |
Harwich |
31.3.41 |
|
|
1.4.41 |
Harwich |
7.4.41 |
|
|
10.4.41 |
Clyde |
15.4.41 |
|
|
17.4.41 |
Aberdeen |
25.4.41 |
17/4 Taken in hand for
boiler cleaning and repairs, completes 23/4 |
|
26.4.41 |
Stornoway |
? |
|
|
4.5.41 |
Whilst part of 2nd Escort
Group (Londonderry) HMS SEAGULL attacked what was assumed to be a
U-boat with HMS Saladin while escorting convoy SC29 |
|
9.5.41 |
Aberdeen |
14.5.41 |
9/5 M/S1
arrived (at Aberdeen) in HMS Bramble, also HMS Sharpshooter and HMS
Seagull
1300 14/5 HMS Bramble, HMS Seagull, HMS Sharpshooter and HMS Hebe
sailed in company .(War Diary, Aberdeen) |
|
16.4.41 |
Inverary |
17.5.41 |
|
|
22.5.41 |
Loch Ewe |
? |
5/6 From C in C W A:
British Chivalry is to be diverted to Loch Ewe and is to be escorted
by Hebe, SEAGULL and Sharpshooter |
|
12.6.41 |
Oban |
12.6.41 |
|
|
21.6.41 |
Stornoway |
21.6.41 |
|
|
22.6.41 |
Aberdeen |
28.6.41 |
|
|
? |
Stornoway |
2.7.41 |
|
|
17.7.41 |
Greenock |
5.8.41 |
17/7 From F O i/c
Glasgow: SEAGULL has been brought up river with a view to boiler
cleaning commencing tomorrow if approved. This will take 8 days to
complete. Enquiries are being made to find a firm who will undertake retubing. This is likely to take 2 to 3 weeks from commencement of
work.
18/7 Taken in hand,
docking for repairs to A/S boiler cleaning and examination of tubes
31/7 Completed and
proceeded down river to Greenock |
|
6.8.41 |
Londonderry |
20.8.41 |
|
|
5.9.41 |
Aberdeen |
9.9.41 |
|
|
11.9.41 |
Belfast |
15.9.41 |
|
|
? |
Milford Haven |
17.9.41 |
|
|
19.9.41 |
Belfast |
25.9.41 |
|
|
? |
Belfast |
27.9.41 |
|
|
28.9.41 |
Liverpool |
? |
|
|
? |
Belfast |
4.10.41 |
|
|
? |
Liverpool |
13.10.41 |
|
|
18.10.41 |
At sea |
30.10.41 |
Bramble, SEAGULL and
Speedy formed part of the ocean escort for PQ2 (6 ships), with
Gossamer, Hussar and Leda joining from their base in Archangel to
provide local eastern escort on 29th and 30th
October. The convoy was not attacked. |
|
3.11.41 |
At sea |
|
Bramble, Leda and SEAGULL
local eastern escorts for QP2 (12 ships) from Archangel until
5/11. No enemy activity. |
|
20.11.41 |
At sea |
22.11.41 |
Bramble, SEAGULL and
Speedy met PQ3 (8 ships) on 20th and escorted it
into Archangel on the 22nd. |
|
24.11.41 |
Murmansk |
? |
Speedy and
SEAGULL arrive
Kola Inlet
24/11 From
Gossamer: General Gronnov and party are in SEAGULL sailed for Murmansk
22/11 |
|
26.11.41 |
|
|
Bramble,
Speedy and SEAGULL sailed from Kola. |
|
27.11.41 |
At sea |
28.11.41 |
Gossamer, SEAGULL and
Speedy met PQ4 (8 ships) 27/11 and escorted it into Archangel
on 28/11. |
|
28.11.41 |
Archangel |
? |
BRAMBLE and SEAGULL waited six days for oil at Ekonomia, I being
promised daily. Two days before ships were due to sail SEAGULL
filled up from LEDA and oil for BRAMBLE was personally assured by
Chief of Staff for the following day. Oil eventually arrived with
the ice breaker that was to take BRAMBLE and SEAGULL out of harbour
and I was given the choice of oil or proceeding to sea. If the
latter choice was taken, oil was available at Molotovsk where there
was stated to be no ice. I decided since the icebreaker was
available to proceed down harbour.
LENIN broke BRAMBLE and
SEAGULL
out of the ice and they followed astern of her down river without
trouble till arrival in the sea reaches, where they both stuck.
LENIN then towed BRAMBLE to roadstead and returned for SEAGULL.
Ships left Ekonomia at 0900, and SEAGULL was not clear of ice until
1545.
Source: ADM 199/624 Report
of Senior Officer 1st MSF, HMS Bramble
|
|
|
|
|
Following damage has been
sustained by ships due to ice and limitations of ice breaker
service:
BRAMBLE: Plates strained aft
causing leak into tiller flat
GOSSAMER: A/S 60% out of action
SPEEDY: A/S 100% out of action
and chipped propellers.
SEAGULL: Extension of damage to
fore peak; original damage was sustained in very bad weather on
passage from United Kingdom.
All ships sides show signs of slight corrugation and
all ships have suffered from choked condenser inlets continually.
The long sea time put in by all ships in bad weather,
long hours of darkness, and difficult navigation, throws a
considerable strain on Commanding Officers, especially with the
limited experience of the majority of their officers. It is
necessary if the ships are to continue to operate efficiently that
Commanding Officers should have adequate rest on return to harbour.
This they will not get if they are to be concerned
with possible damage to their ships, failure to fuel, and doubts as
to being ready for sea when required. Every one of my commanding
officers has said that they would rather be at sea continually than
return to the uncertainties, troubles and worries of Archangel.
Source:
ADM 199/624 Report of Captain Harvey Crombie Senior Officer 1st
MSF, HMS Bramble |
|
|
|
|
He (William Glover) remembers the
supply problems for everything the ship and crew required to operate
out of Russia. They relied on anything spare from returning ships
sailing back to the UK food fuel etc, as they got very little from the
Russians. He remembers a large Russian with bushy beard who gave them
a large section of yak which they tried every way to cook including
curried, but was so hard they could not eat it they had to dump it a
great shame. He was brought up on a farm and he could not remember any
thing else that he could not eat in some way or other.
Rodney Trudgeon - son in law |
|
7.12.41 |
At sea |
13.12.41 |
On 7/12 Bramble and
SEAGULL joined PQ5 as local eastern escort, allowing Hazard and
Hebe to detach to Murmansk with the cruiser Sheffield arriving 8/12.
The convoy arrived at Archangel 13/12. There was no enemy activity. |
|
13.12.41 |
Murmansk |
29.12.41 |
|
|
29.12.41 |
At sea |
? |
Leda,
Speedy and SEAGULL formed part of Ocean escort for QP4 (13
ships), with Bramble and Hebe acting as local eastern escort. The
convoy was lead out by two huge new Russian ice-breakers and
eventually reached the open sea beyond the Gourlo. The convoy
dispersed on 9/1, no enemy activity. |
