Table Of ContentThis book is for all those who have found that just wars
sometimes fall short of high expectations.
First published in Great Britain in 2003 by Leo Cooper
an imprint of Pen & Sword Books Limited
47 Church Street, Barnsley, South Yorkshire S70 2AS
Copyright © Iain Ballantyne, 2003
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Contents
HMS London Battle Honours 1652–1991
Acknowledgements
Introduction
Chapter One Privateers, Royalists and Roundheads
Chapter Two The Ship That Lost America
Chapter Three Mutiny at Spithead
Chapter Four Nelson Turns a Blind Eye
Chapter Five Bombarding Sevastopol
Chapter Six At War With the Kaiser
Chapter Seven Running the Dardanelles
Chapter Eight Policemen of the Empire
Chapter Nine Bismarck Hunt
Chapter Ten The Kremlin Delegation
Chapter Eleven The Tirpitz Chase
Chapter Twelve The Shame of Convoy PQ17
Chapter Thirteen An Undeserving Scapegoat
Chapter Fourteen Surrender at Sabang
Chapter Fifteen The Final Days of Empire
Chapter Sixteen Storming up The Yangtze
Chapter Seventeen The Long Retreat
Chapter Eighteen In Dangerous Waters
Chapter Nineteen Saddam's Apocalypse
Chapter Twenty The Fall of the Soviet Union
Chapter Twenty-One Keeping Watch on the Balkans
Bibliography
Index
HMS LONDON Battle Honours 1652–1991
Kentish Knock 1652, Gabbard 1653, Scheveningen 1653, St James’ Day Fight
1666, Sole Bay 1672, Schooneveld 1673, Texel 1673, Barfleur 1692,
Chesapeake 1781, Île de Croix 1795, Copenhagen 1801, Marengo 1806,
Crimea 1854–5, Dardanelles 1915, Atlantic 1941, Arctic 1941–43, Kuwait
1991.
A Note on Ships & Battle Honours
There is a bewildering, and sometimes conflicting, array of information on the
Londons of the British fleet and their battle honours. The warships included in
this book have been selected using the official battle honours attributed to the
name HMS London as a guide, combined with the Royal Navy's own definition
of what ships were the true bearers of the title. I have differed from some naval
records regarding the Londons of the early seventeenth century, by considering
the London of 1636 as the first fully fledged English warship to bear the name,
rather than the vessel of 1656 (which I consider to be the third London).
When it comes to battle honours, Lowestoft 1665 in fact involved a hired
merchant vessel called London. She was not the official bearer of the title HMS
London, as that vessel was under construction at the time. Therefore the
honour, Lowestoft 1665, cannot be attributed to HMS London.
Confusion also arises when it comes to the proper names of battles in the
Anglo-Dutch naval wars. The two clashes at Schooneveld and Texel in 1673
are sometimes merged under the single battle honour, De Ruyter 1673. Some
lists of London battle honours give alternative names for the three main Anglo-
Dutch clashes of 1652–53. In this book North Foreland (September 1652) is
referred to by the generally accepted title Kentish Knock, while Lowestoft
(June 1653) is Gabbard and Camperdown (July 1653) is Scheveningen.
Hopefully, I have resolved these issues satisfactorily.
HMS London's battle honours, as displayed on the cruiser in the late 1940s. This appears to be a
selection of ‘highlights’, with ‘Camperdown’ instead of ‘Scheveningen’ and ‘De Ruyter’ used as an
alternative to ‘Schooneveld’ and ‘Texel’. Peter Seaborn Collection.
HMS London's ship's badge.
Image courtesy of T. Elliott.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
In piecing together the story of HMS London I am indebted to a large cast of
people who have given me an incredible amount of support as well as practical
assistance. Mike Overton very generously allowed me to use material
downloaded from a web site that he has created in honour of the cruiser HMS
London (http://freespace.virgin.net/michael.overton1/hms.htm).
Mike's father, Derek, served in HMS London during the Yangtze Incident of
1949 and contributed via his son. I am in their debt.
Through Mike I was put in touch with the HMS London 1947–49
Association. Its members deserve my special thanks for loaning images from
their private collections, allowing me to interview them and contributing in
other ways, especially Don Chidlow, John Parker, Christopher Parker-Jervis
and Neil Stewart. Frederick G. Harwood, who was decorated by King George
VI with the Distinguished Service Medal for his courage and endurance under
fire during the Yangtze Incident, also contributed but sadly died before
publication. Another casualty of time was Benny Goodman, who made some
valuable contributions to the chapters on the Second World War, but
unfortunately passed away in the late summer of 2002.
Alan J. Howlett, whose brother served in London during the same 1947–49
commission has forwarded a number of images to me and also deserves thanks.
Captain Tommy Catlow RN (Retd.) mailed me a copy of his excellent book, A
Sailor's Survival, a much appreciated gift that considerably enhanced the
texture of Chapters Fifteen and Sixteen.
Bill Jacobs provided two key images via Mike Overton who also put me in
touch with others who served in HMS London during the Second World War.
Graham Bramley, Norman Brigden, Gordon Bruty and Ted Huke all deserve
my thanks for allowing me to interview them and giving material from their
private collections. Brian Whitcombe whose father, Alexander, served in HMS
Cumberland while she was in company with the London during the
bombardment of Car Nicobar in 1944, deserves thanks for providing a dramatic
image of that event. Research on the web and two adverts for contributions to
the book in the British monthly naval newspaper Navy News yielded a flurry of
responses from around the world, either via e-mail or letters. Articles in Legion
(the magazine of the British Legion) and the Evening Herald, Plymouth, also
sparked help from those who served in the last three Londons, or had some
other connection with the warships. My gratitude goes to the following who
responded to the adverts and articles, providing their memories and, in several
cases, key photographs and original documents from their collections: David
Atkins, Bob Boynton, Charlie Breach, Casper Cardwell, Douglas Clark, C.
Clifford, Eddie Cowling, Charles Cox, Yorkie Cunningham, Fred Dale, Ted
Davis, Bryan Dunster, Walter Eglinton, Charlie Ellis, C.W. Ellis, Malcolm
Farmer, Ken Fleming, David Gilchrist, R.D. Houghton, Ian Inskip, Patrick
Lambert, Warwick Luke, Mac McComb, Gordon Moores, Mike North, Brian
Parker, David Parker, Douglas Parker, Gordon Perry, Terry Potton, Albert
Price, John Reekie, Rod Saul, Peter Seaborn, Martin Sykes, Ken Tamon,
Martin Weaver, Bill West, Harry Williams and Waldie Willing.
John Cunningham and Victor Parker – who sailed in London as young Army
officers in the 1940s – played their part in this maritime story with their
recollections and photographs.
The eyewitness accounts of serving members of the Royal Navy were
invaluable in bringing the story of the last London to life. Despite his busy
schedule as Assistant Chief of the Naval Staff, Rear Admiral Tim McClement
made himself available for an interview about his time as the warship's
Commanding Officer and also provided photographs and other material from
his private papers. I am extremely grateful to Rear Admiral McClement for his
vital input.
Lieutenant Commander Lee Abernethy was generous with both his time and
material from his own private papers, while Warrant Officers Tim Allen, Bob
Burton and Chris Norris made important contributions.
Commodore Richard Leaman, Director of Corporate Communications
Description:There is no current warship in the Royal Navy called HMS London, but vessels carrying the name have featured for better or worse in some of the most controversial episodes of British naval history. For example, the wooden wall battleship HMS London of the late 18th Century could be called 'the ship
