HMS Liverpool

Liverpool was the fifth of eight town class cruisers (completed 2nd November 1938): actual displacement 9,394 tons (13,175 tons deep load), with four triple 6-inch turrets, 3 twin 4-inch HA, 3 0.5 inch multiple machine gun mountings and 2 triple 21-inch torpedo tubes.

Battle Honours: Mediterranean 1940, Calabria 1940, Arctic 1942, Malta Convoys 1942.

After a courtesy visit to Merseyside in January 1939 (1), Liverpool sailed via Malta (2) to join the East Indies Fleet. (3)

In January 1940, Liverpool was at the centre of a diplomatic interchange relating to the interception of a Japanese liner (4) little more than thirty miles off the coast of Japan.

In October 1940 Liverpool was torpedoed off Crete, losing her bows and A-turret (5) when aviation fuel ignited. Towed to Alexandria (6) by the cruiser Orion, she was patched up sufficiently to cross the Pacific to Mare Island, (7a) (7b) for permanent repairs.

Liverpool returned to the UK in 1942 (8) to escort Artic convoys (9), but was soon back in the Mediterranean where she was again torpedoed in supporting a Malta convoy (10a) (10b). She was towed (11a) (11b) to Gibraltar by the destroyer Antelope. She was not recommissioned until after the war.

Movements 1938 - 1942

      

Daily Mirror (November 1938)

      

Pathe News (January 1939)

      

Pathe News (October 1941)

      

The Marines’ Tale (May 1939)

      

The Asama Maru Incident (January 1940)

      

Torpedoed

            
If you have information or photographs that you would like to be considered for inclusion on this site, please contact G.R. Steele, 3 Riverside Close, Halton, Lancaster, LA2 6NA (g.steele@lancs.ac.uk)