HMS Belfast: Ship's Don't Bend That Way!
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- Опубликовано: 23 июл 2024
- Step aboard HMS Belfast and experience a pivotal moment in naval history. It’s Tuesday morning, November 21, 1939, just 15 weeks after the commissioning of this new Town-class cruiser. Under the command of Captain George Scott, HMS Belfast, accompanied by HMS Southampton, is preparing for gunnery exercises outside the Firth of Forth. As Belfast follows Southampton, a sudden explosion rocks the ship - she has struck a magnetic mine, rendering her out of action for months.
Commissioned on August 5, 1939, HMS Belfast had quickly become a vital part of the Royal Navy. She participated in numerous exercises, including one where she successfully evaded the Home Fleet while simulating a German commerce raider. As tensions escalated in Europe, Belfast joined the 18th Cruiser Squadron, patrolling between the Shetlands and Norway to thwart any German breakout attempts into the Atlantic. Her patrols continued after war broke out in September 1939, with Belfast playing a crucial role in various operations, such as the recovery of the submarine Spearfish and intercepting several enemy vessels.
On the morning of November 21, 1939, as HMS Belfast passed under the Firth of Forth Bridge, the crew was going about their daily routines, unaware of the impending disaster. At 10:53 AM, a massive explosion occurred, lifting the ship out of the water and causing severe damage. Captain Scott immediately ordered the engines to stop and attempted to navigate the ship back to Rosyth. Despite the chaos and injuries among the crew, they managed to keep Belfast afloat and steer her towards safety.
Emergency procedures were quickly implemented. Medical teams treated the injured, and damage control parties worked tirelessly to stabilize the ship. Tugboats arrived to assist, and by 5:00 PM, Belfast was secured in the lock at Rosyth Dockyard. Examination revealed significant damage, including a bent keel, requiring extensive repairs. The crew was granted survivor leave, and the ship entered dry dock for what would be a prolonged repair period. Despite initial hopes for a swift return to service, HMS Belfast would remain out of action until August 1942.
Intro 0:00
Background 0:55
The Morning 2:36
The Mine 5:17
Towed Back 6:40
The Damage 10:45
Conclusion 12:33
Sources/Further Reading:
www.amazon.com/Last-Big-Gun-W...
www.amazon.com/British-Cruise...
www.amazon.com/Gathering-Stor...
www.amazon.com/German-Fleet-W...
Video Information:
Copyright fair use notice. All media used in this video is used for the purpose of education under the terms of fair use. All footage and images used belong to their copyright holders, when applicable.
Thanks for watching everyone! Due note the thumbnail and several of the photos used in the video are after her repairs and upgrades as I could find a total of five photos in 1939, just so you know!
Edit: I should note the audio might sound a bit different, I've been messing with settings to see how it sounds. Saturday's video will sound even more different.
I was a junior ordinary seaman on a Blue Funnel ship, the Memnon, in 1960. We were outward bound from Birkenhead, in between Hong Kong and Shanghai, when one of the crew collapsed with a perforated appendix. As we didn't carry a doctor, only a male nurse, it was decided to radio for help to any nearby ships with a doctor on board. HMS Belfast responded, she was 12 hours steaming away from us, and we rendezvoused with her somewhere in the South China Sea, and the casualty was picked up from us and taken over to Belfast where he was operated on immediately.
We picked him up in Hong Kong homeward bound and brought him home to Liverpool, fully recovered.
Belfast was an amazing sight as she steamed up out of the murk lit up like a Christmas tree, turned parallel to Memnon, and carried out the transfer at high speed.
And She`s Still around! Definately worth a visit.
I visited just a few weeks ago in May.
She was my father’s first ship, he joined her for the first convoy escort trip to Murmansk after she went back into service.
Before she died from Alzheimer’s I took my mother aboard to show her where her husband started his war.
To anyone reading this do visit HMS Belfast in London, it’s well worth the visit.
@Andymelvin006 Sorry to read about your mum but what a lovely thing to do for her. I've visited HMS Belfast twice and it's nice to think I walked the same decks and spaces as your dad did all those years ago.
@@bahoonies Thanks mate, appreciated.
Belfast needs its own TV series. It just materializes everywhere during the sea battles of WW2
Remarkable recovery after her keel was essentially broken.
Such a resilient ship
personal note.. my dear brother was the last sailor (CPO) injured on belfast. she was a dormatary ship in london where he lived.. he got drunk in london and fell down the ladders going to his birth... a week in hospital and two black eyes..
She was so very lucky not to have been sunk, given the power of the mine's explosion. It is most gratifying that the ship has been restored as a museum. Definitely worth a visit if you find yourself in London. If only HMS Waspite had been preserved too.
What a tragedy that Warspite went to the breakers!
My old physics teacher designed the degaussing and it was brought out and fitted during the war. His name was Potts
I've been on board Belfast twice while visiting London, a very interesting experience I would recommend it 👌
I remember visiting the ship many years ago when I must younger. Hopefully I'll go again.
I heard somwhere that the ship surveyors advised she was passed economic repair, and was only brought back into service at Churchills insistance..
Probably due to practical reasons. The Royal Navy needs every hull they had, and I remember correctly, the Edinburgh sub-class of the Southampton-class cruisers (HMS Edinburgh and HMS Belfast) were the most expensive of the Southamptons, due to the quite extensive mods to the Southampton-class design.
That is true, in normal circumstances she would have been scrapped, but these were not normal circumstances.
My uncle sailed on belfast during the 2 nd w w he was on the artic convoys to ark angel to help save Russia against Hitler,,, many seamen died on them convoys only had two minutes in the artic water if your ship was sunk frozen to death. Belfast was a great ship.
I was so surprised to see you do a video on _HMS Belfast's_ mining. Didn't see that one coming. 😝
That's the best way
Good informative vid, thank you.
Always find it interesting that she was shored up @ Rosyth & made fit to tow (considering her back was broken she held up together well), all the way to Devonport (Guz).
The doubling patches on her are remarkable & in dock they would have to have weighted her correctly to regain the alignment/datum.
The gyro seating recovery would have been an interesting piece of work.
Considering that the dockyard was relentlessly targeted by the Luftwaffe during her stay in dock. Her AA armament was put to good use.
1941/42 was the time of the Plymouth blitz.
Nice, I do believe the is the only town-class left. I knew a little of her history but never knew of how bad the mine damage was.
Magnificent ship! I hope One day i'll be able to visit her on the Thames. The pictures of her bent and wrinkled hull are astonishing. Apparently, the hull gave way to the shock, without suffering major flooding. Am i right? Thank you IH, another interesting video!
Because she was so new she wasn't work-hardened and bent rather than broke. She did have one engine room and boiler room flooded. I volunteer on her so have spent hours wandering round her. One of her turrets was fitted in a Colony class cruiser (I forget which one) during the extensive refit as that was a bottleneck. . She crabbed slightly and also lost a couple of knots because of the bulges added to strengthen the hull.
She helped to sink the Scharnhorst in the Battle of the North Cape
Interesting story! Keep up the good work.
Great video. I live in south Fife and overlook the ‘Firth of Forth’ although I can’t see the old railway bridge or Rosyth.. more recently there has been an ‘uptick’ in Naval activity including many NATO partners vessels and of course HMS Queen Elizabeth II which has been plagued by serious engineering faults since commissioning.. currently at Rosyth for major repairs..
My uncle George Ettie BEM was in the asdic dome during this event and his bruises are evident in the pictures of his wedding which occured shortly after, he won his BEM as a recognition of his work developing anti-submarine watfare later in the War.
I was a second engineer in the Union Castle Pretoria Castle South African mail service in my youth. Built shortly after WW II I understand the machinery was very similar to RN standards so she could be converted into an aircraft carrier in an emergency.
When visiting Belfast many years later at her Thames berth, I was taken by the great similarity to Pretoria’s Engine arrangements.
Mike Drew.
HMS Belfast was the ship that started D-Day, she fired first to signal others that D-Day to commence
She picked up my father from the North sea as he had bailed out in 1943
In 1992 i was a RNR officer based on Belfast in the pool of London. In what was the Royal Marine messdeck ran a 8 inch fire main, this had leaked for years. It was decided to take it apart at the leaking flange. When it was unbolted the two halves sprung apart, and were out of alignment by six inches.
This was attributed to the damage caused by the mine and twisting the whole ship.
She’s a tough old girl.
Despite her excessive damage, a lot was learned about restoring a ship that suffered such damage!
Good video thank you. Interestingly Belfast was the only Town Class' cruiser to retain four main gun turrets. As more anti aircraft weapons were added to her earlier sister ships, and the succeeding Colony Class, their X turrets were landed giving them a main armamament of nine six-inch barrels. I am not an enginerr but the bulges installed during her post mining rebuild possibly added to her stability and strength which enabled Belfast to retain her fourth turrets.
Degaussing wasn’t an option for Belfast the technology wasn’t developed for another 6 months or so.
they obviously DO bend that way! And she's still afloat opposite the Tower Of London by Tower Bridge to prove it.
Just a heads up…
Royal Navy ships don’t have a “Crew”. They have a “Ship’s Company”. Nice video.
In late November coming from Rosyth, I find it hard to believe the men were stripped to the waist it’s bloody freezing at that time of year. Meal preparation in the Forenoon would have been lunch not dinner, never seen crew with helmets and lights attached. Just saying.
Trust me, I did too. However, that’s what the first hand accounts report. I’m taking them at their word.
👍🏻🏴🇬🇧
Skibidi Toilet...idk...my son keeps saying it.
Trust me my friend, that is a rabbit hole you don't want to go down.