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HMS Prince of Wales (1941) BB (8th) |
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This the eighth ship to carry the name HMS Prince of Wales was one
of five King George V Class battleships. Built by Cammell Laird, laid down Jan-1937, launched 03-May-1939 and completed May-1941. Although not fully worked up her first deployment was in May-1941, when in company with HMS Hood, she left Scapa Flow to join the hunt for the Bismarck. On 24-May Prince of Wales and Hood engaged Bismarck and her accompanying cruiser Prince Eugen with gunfire. During this action Hood was sunk and although Prince of Wales hit Bismarck three times with 14in shells, she received in her turn a number of hits from the German ships. These caused a number of teething problems with her main guns and she was forced to break off the action. In July-1941 she took the Prime Minister to Placentia Bay, Newfoundland to meet President Roosevelt. Supported various convoy operations in the Mediterranean Sept-41. In October 1941 sailed to join the Far East Fleet via South Africa to join with HMS Repulse at Ceylon and proceed to Singapore to counter the growing Japanese threat. On 8-Dec-1941 both ships sailed from Singapore in company with escorting destroyers to oppose reported Japanese landings on the East coast of Malaya. On 10-Dec-41 both ships came under heavy attack by successive waves of Japanese bomb and torpedo armed aircraft. Both Prince of Wales and Repulse received multiple hits and eventually sank. But not before the majority of each ships company had been rescued by accompanying destroyers, including 1,250 from Prince of Wales. Won the Battle Honours: 'Bismarck' 1941 and Malta Convoys 1941.
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King George V Class (1940) BB Outside Links |
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This page last edited -
18 May, 2013.
Copyright © Ian M King, except where otherwise indicated. |
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