True Name HMS Cape Howe
Previous name: Knight Almoner
Official Number: 167638
Class: Special Service Freighter – Q ship
Pennant No: X02
Laid down:
Builder: Lithgows, Port Glasgow
Launched: 31 March 1930
Into Service: 15 September 1939
Out of service: 21 June 1940
Fate: Sunk
Items of historic interest involving this ship: –
Background Data:
In 1939 Winston Churchill gave authority for a number of merchantmen to be requisitioned for service as Q-ships, although for security purposes they were referred to as Special Service Freighters. A fleet of nine small mainly coal-burning vessels were acquired , six for deep-sea work and three for coastal work. All were commissioned as HM ships under their original names but were given RFA cover names and on entering harbour and while in harbour they wore the Blue Ensign, behaved as RFA’s and adopted the RFA commercial practices. None of them was really suitable for their intended roles and met with a complete lack of success. Their Q-ship service officially ended on 2 March 1941
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31 March 1930 launched by Lithgows Ltd, Port Glasgow as Yard Nr: 830 named KNIGHT ALMONER for Ottoman Line Ltd ( Pardoe-Thomas & Co Ltd, Managers) Cardiff
1 April 1930 the Scotsman newspaper reported –
23 May 1930 mortgaged; joint mortgagees were James Shearer & Bertie Pardoe-Thomas
July 1930 completed
18 July 1930 sailed Glasgow for Cadiz in ballast
22 August 1930 arrived Montevideo from Cadiz
25 September 1930 at Montevideo
14 October 1930 sailed St Vincent, Cape Verde Islands
24 October 1930 in contact with Niton Radio reporting she was on passage to Dieppe and was 102 nmiles south west
26 October 1930 arrived at Dieppe
9 November 1930 passed the Lloyds Signal Station on the Lizard sailing west bound
10 November 1930 arrived at Penarth, South Wales
20 November 1930 radioed when she was 100 miles SW of Lands End when on passage to Monte Video via Cadiz
During the 1930’s laid up at Newport, South Wales during the depression
26 January 1931 sailed Ibicuy
2 February 1931 passed Rio de Janerio
17 February 1931 arrived Teneriffe from Ibucuy sailing later in the day for Dunkirk
11 March 1933 mortgage transferred to James Shearer Snr and John McCulloch of Lithgows Ltd.
26 January 1934 entered dry Dock at Newport for survey and general repairs
30 January 1934 sold to Lyle Shipping Co Ltd., Glasgow
6 February 1934 renamed Cape Howe of Glasgow by her owner after application had been made to the Board of Trade under Section 47, Merchant Shipping Act 1894 and dated this day
23 February 1934 sailed Newport for Singapore
29 March 1934 sailed Port Natal for Singapore
22 April 1934 arrived Singapore
1 May 1934 sailed Singapore for Saigon
30 June 1934 sailed Rangoon
9 July 1934 sailed Colombo
27 July 1934 arrived at Suez
21 October 1934 arrived Port Said
3 November 1934 arrived at Karachi from Alexandria
7 December 1934 at Calcutta
10 February 1935 at Rangoon
13 March 1935 at Bombay
27 March 1935 at Moulmein, Burma
10 June 1935 arrived Singapore
15 June 1935 sailed Kohsichang
19 June 1935 arrived at Singapore from Kohsichang
12 July 1935 arrived at Lorenço Marques
19 July 1935 arrived Table Bay from Kohsichang
13 November sailed Victoria for Santos
27 December 1935 sailed Maderia
5 January 1936 arrived at Londonderry from Rosario
18 January 1936 at Port Glasgow
12 February 1936 140 miles south of Tuskar for Pernambuco
14 May 1936 sailed Pernambuco
4 June 1936 at Greenock
10 June 1936 at Princess Pier, Greenock Fireman Mohammed Said discharged dead – drowned
29 July 1936 at Balboa, Republic of Panama
29 August 1936 at Balboa, Republic of Panama transitted the Panama Canal and cleared at Cristobal the next day, She carried a cargo of sugar
4 September 1936 at Hamburg, Germany
4 October 1936 arrived Cristobal from Hamburg
1 December 1936 berthed at Liverpool from the River Plate with 1 DBS. Captain J R MacIntyre was Master
23 December 1936 passed Gibraltar east bound
30 December 1936 arrived at Alexandria
7 January 1937 arrived Port Said from Alexandria
21 January 1937 sailed from Djibouti for Penang
6 March 1937 sailed Batavia to New York with a cargo of rubber
5 May 1937 arrived New York
13 June 1937 arrive at Cristolbal from Houston
11 August 1937 sailed Osaka for New York
27 January 1938 at New York
12 July 1938 arrived at Liverpool
15 July 1938 passed the Lloyds Signal Station on the Lizard sailing east bound
17 July 1938 passed Dungeness
20 July 1938 arrived at Gravesend
28 July 1938 arrived at King George Dock, Hull sailing the same day
28 December 1938 at New York
20 April 1939 in Buenos Aires Roads
5 June 1939 arrived at Boston from Buenos Aires
10 June 1939 sailed New York for Baltimore
17 June 1939 sailed Baltimore
24 July 1939 sailed Gibraltar for Marseilles
28 July 1939 at Marseilles
4 August 1939 at Bona from Marseilles
5 August 1939 at Hospital de la Conseption, Marseilles Fireman Arthur Alexander discharged dead from fever
15 August 1939 passed Gibraltar
18 August 1939 off Ushant
23 August 1939 arrived at the River Tees
29 August 1939 sailed the River Tees for the River Tyne
September 1939 requisitioned by the Admiralty for conversion into a Special Service Freighter by Portsmouth Dockyard
19 September 1939 commissioned as HMS Cape Howe
February 1940 conversion completed. Cover name RFA PRUNELLA.Complement 90 under command of Commander Eric L. Woodhall DSO MVO Royal Navy. Armed with 7 x single 4-inch guns, 4 x Lewis machine guns, 4 x single 21-inch torpedo tubes, 100 x depth charges and was fitted with Asdic
26 March 1940 sailed from Portsmouth Harbour
7 April 1940 sailed Portsmouth on her first cruise
13 April 1940 berthed at Portsmouth Harbour
26 April 1940 sailed from Portsmouth Harbour
5 June 1940 while disguised as RFA PRUNELLA, reported sighting at 1630 two unidentified warships northwest of Norway in 64°45N, 00°24W making for Iceland on course 265 at 20 knots
21 June 1940 while hunting German submarines to the South of Ireland torpedoed and sunk at 49°54N 8°47W by the German submarine U28 (Kapitanleutnant Gunter Kuhnke) with 57 of the crew being killed. Those lost are remembered with pride on the Naval Memorials at Liverpool, Plymouth and Portsmouth. The body of one who was lost was recovered and he is buried in Pornic War Cemetery, Loire Atlantique, France – Able Seaman Gerald Barber P/SSX 23467
Courtesy and © of The War Graves Photographic Project
HMS Cape Howe a.k.a RFA Prunella sinking
27 June 1940 Thirteen survivors were picked up off a raft in position 48°47 N 07°59 W, about 150 miles off Ushant by the destroyer HMS VERSATILE
4 October 1940 Honours awarded as a result of the sinking of HMS Cape Howe: –
Sub-Lieutenant Duncan Cameron Kennedy, R.N.R. mentioned in despatches for “seamanship, bravery and good leadership” taking command of the lifeboats from HMS Cape Howe when she sunk (see below)
Able Seaman G H Rhoades JX.136445
6 January 1948 Mr Charles Percy Smith, Chief Engineer Officer granted permission to wear, without restriction, the award of Chevalier of the Order of Leopold II with Palm and the Croix de Guerre 1940 with Palm made by the King of the Belgians
Notes:
- RFA Prunella was a cover name for the ‘Q’ Ship HMS Cape Howe. The name Prunella was used when the ship was in port so her true identity was not disclosed. She never actually sailed as an RFA