View source for HMS Locust (1896)

{{short description|Destroyer of the Royal Navy}}
{{other ships|HMS Locust}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2016}}
{{Use British English|date=December 2016}}
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|Ship country=United Kingdom
|Ship flag= {{shipboxflag|United Kingdom|naval}}
|Ship name=HMS ''Locust''
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|Ship builder= [[Cammell Laird|Laird, Son & Co.]], [[Birkenhead]]
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|Ship laid down=20 April 1896
|Ship launched=5 December 1896
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|Ship christened= Miss Busk
|Ship completed=July 1898
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|Ship fate=[[ship breaking|Scrapped]], 1919
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{{Infobox ship characteristics
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|Ship class={{sclass|Earnest|destroyer}}
|Ship displacement={{convert|395|LT|t|0|abbr=on}}
|Ship length={{convert|218|ft|m|abbr=on}} [[length overall|oa]]
|Ship beam={{convert|21|ft|6|in|m|1|abbr=on}}
|Ship draught={{convert|9|ft|9|in|m|1|abbr=on}}
|Ship propulsion=*[[Marine steam engine#Triple or multiple expansion|vertical triple-expansion steam engines]]
*Coal-fired [[Normand boiler]]s
*{{convert|6300|ihp|0|abbr=on}}
|Ship speed= {{convert|30|kn|lk=in}}
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|Ship complement= 63
|Ship armament=*1 × [[QF 12 pounder 12 cwt naval gun|QF 12-pounder gun]]
*2 × [[British 18 inch torpedo|18 inch (450 mm)]] [[torpedo tube]]s
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'''HMS ''Locust''''' was a [[B class destroyer (1913)|B-class]] [[torpedo boat destroyer]] of the [[United Kingdom|British]] [[Royal Navy]]. She was launched by [[Cammell Laird|Laird, Son & Company]], [[Birkenhead]], on 5 December 1896.<ref>''[[The Times]] (London)'', Monday, 7 December 1896, p.12</ref> She served in the [[Mediterranean]] between 1902 and 1906, and was used for patrol and escort duties during the [[First World War]]
==Construction==
''Locust'' was ordered on 23 December 1896 as the third of [[Earnest-class destroyer|six 30-knotter destroyers]] programmed to be built by Lairds under the 1895–1896 shipbuilding programme for the Royal Navy.<ref name="Lyon p62">{{Harvnb|Lyon|2001|p=62}}</ref> These followed on from [[Quail-class destroyer|four very similar destroyers]] ordered from Lairds as part of the 1894–1895 programme.<ref name="Lyon p61-2">{{Harvnb|Lyon|2001|pp=61–62}}</ref>
''Locust'' was {{convert|218|ft|m|2}} [[length overall|long overall]] and {{convert|213|ft|m|2}} [[length between perpendiculars|between perpendiculars]], with a [[Beam (nautical)|beam]] of {{convert|21|ft|6|in|m}} and a [[Draft (ship)|draught]] of {{convert|9|ft|9|in|m}}. [[Displacement (ship)|Displacement]] was {{convert|355|LT|t}} light and {{convert|415|LT|t}} full load. Like the other Laird-built 30-knotters, ''Locust'' was propelled by two [[Marine steam engine#Triple or multiple expansion|triple expansion steam engines]], fed by four [[Normand boiler]]s, rated at {{convert|6300|ihp|kW|abbr=on|lk=in}}, and was fitted with four funnels.<ref name="Lyon p61-2"/><ref name="conways60 p94">{{Harvnb|Chesneau| Kolesnik|1979| p= 94}}</ref>
Armament was the standard for the 30-knotters, i.e. a [[QF 12 pounder 12 cwt naval gun|QF 12 pounder 12 cwt]] ({{convert|3|in|mm|abbr=on}} calibre) gun on a platform on the ship's [[conning tower]] (in practice the platform was also used as the ship's bridge), with a secondary armament of five 6-pounder guns, and two 18-inch (450&nbsp;mm) torpedo tubes.<ref name="Lyon p98-9">{{Harvnb|Lyon|2001| pp= 98–99}}</ref><ref name="Friedman p40">{{Harvnb|Friedman|2009| p=40}}</ref> The ship had a crew of 63 officers and men.<ref name="manning p40">{{Harvnb|Manning|1961|p=40}}</ref>
''Locust'' was [[Keel laying|laid down]] at Laird's [[Birkenhead]] shipyard as [[Yard number]] 623 on 20 April 1894 and was [[Ceremonial ship launching|launched]] on 5 December 1896, when she was named by Miss Busk.<ref>{{Cite newspaper The Times |title=Naval & Military intelligence |date=7 December 1896 |page=12 |issue=35067| }}</ref><ref name="Lyon p62"/> During [[sea trials]] on 21 January 1898, ''Locust'' reached an average speed of {{convert|30.26|kn|lk=in}} over six runs of a measured mile and {{convert|30.16|kn}} on a three-hour run.<ref>{{cite magazine|title=The Birkenhead Destroyers|magazine=[[The Engineer (UK magazine)|The Engineer]]|date=28 January 1898|volume=85|page=88|url=http://www.gracesguide.co.uk/images/1/12/Er18980128.pdf#16}}</ref> She was completed in July 1898.<ref name="Lyon p62"/>
==Service history==
On 2 February 1900 she was commissioned as [[Ship's tender|tender]] to [[HMS Vivid (shore establishment 1890)|HMS ''Vivid'']], shore establishment at [[HMNB Devonport|Devonport]], for service in the Devonport Instructional flotilla,<ref>{{Cite newspaper The Times | title=Naval & Military intelligence|date=5 February 1900 |page=11 |issue=36057| }}</ref> and Lieutenant [[Stephen Herbert Radcliffe]] was appointed in command.<ref>{{Cite newspaper The Times |title=Naval & Military intelligence |date=2 February 1900 |page=10 |issue=36055}}</ref> A mere week into her commission, she had her stem damaged while in the [[Falmouth, Cornwall|Falmouth]] harbour when the destroyer {{HMS|Fairy|1897|2}} dragged her moorings and drifted into ''Locust'' and other ships of the flotilla.<ref>{{Cite newspaper The Times |title=Naval & Military intelligence |date=19 February 1900 |page=9 |issue=36069| }}</ref> Following repairs in Devonport, she was back in the flotilla the following month. Lieutenant Hepworth Staley Alton was appointed in command on 15 January 1901,<ref>{{Cite newspaper The Times |title=Naval & Military intelligence |date=10 January 1901 |page=8 |issue=36348}}</ref> and was in charge as she took part in the 1901 Naval Manoeuvres.<ref name="Brass02 p90">{{Harvnb|Brassey| 1902| p= 90}}</ref> On 5 December 1901 she was recommissioned as [[Ship’s tender|tender]] to the battleship {{HMS|Victorious|1895|2}} on the [[Mediterranean Fleet|Mediterranean station]].<ref>{{Cite newspaper The Times |title=Naval & Military intelligence |date=6 December 1901 |page=6 |issue=36631| }}</ref> She left [[HMNB Devonport|Devonport]] for [[Malta]] in January the following year.<ref>{{Cite newspaper The Times |title=Naval & Military intelligence |date=20 January 1902 |page=6 |issue=36669| }}</ref> Lieutenant the [[Arthur Brandreth Scott Dutton|Hon. Arthur Brandreth Scott Dutton]] was appointed in command in April 1902, and in August that year she visited [[Lemnos]].<ref>{{Cite newspaper The Times |title=Naval & Military intelligence |date=27 August 1902 |page=4 |issue=36857| }}</ref> In early January 1903 she took part in a three-weeks cruise with other ships of her squadron in the Greek islands around [[Corfu]].<ref>{{Cite newspaper The Times |title=Naval & Military intelligence |date=21 January 1903 |page=8 |issue=36983}}</ref>
The future [[Admiral of the Fleet]], [[Andrew Cunningham, 1st Viscount Cunningham of Hyndhope|Andrew Cunningham]], was appointed her second-in-command while a sub-lieutenant, in September 1903.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.royalnavalmuseum.org/info_sheets_andrew_cunningham.htm |title=Cunningham information sheet |publisher = Royal Naval Museum|date = 2004 |access-date=18 October 2015| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20070713083936/http://www.royalnavalmuseum.org/info_sheets_andrew_cunningham.htm| archive-date= 13 July 2007 | url-status= dead}}</ref> ''Locust'' returned to the United Kingdom in 1906.<ref name="Lyon p62"/>
On 30 August 1912 the Admiralty directed all destroyers were to be grouped into classes designated by letters based on contract speed and appearance. As a four-funneled 30-knotter destroyer, ''Locust'' was assigned to the [[B-class destroyer (1913)|B Class]].<ref name="Conway06 p18">{{Harvnb|Gardiner|Gray|1985|p=18}}</ref><ref name="Manning p17-8">{{Harvnb|Manning|1961|pp=17–18}}</ref>
''Locust'' was a member of the [[Fifth Destroyer Flotilla]], based at Devonport, in 1912, and after a reorganisation of the Royal Navy's destroyer flotillas in 1912, with older destroyers being transferred to patrol flotillas, joined the [[Seventh Destroyer Flotilla]], also based at Devonport.<ref name="nmm">{{cite web|url=http://www.rmg.co.uk/upload/pdf/Warship_Histories_Vessels_ii.pdf|title=NMM, vessel ID 370451|work=Warship Histories, vol ii|publisher=[[National Maritime Museum]]|access-date=18 October 2015|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141101002700/http://www.rmg.co.uk/sites/default/files/media/pdf/Warship_Histories_Vessels_ii.pdf|archive-date=1 November 2014|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref name="Manning p25">{{Harvnb|Manning|1961|p=25}}</ref>
''Locust'' remained part of the Seventh Patrol Flotilla in August 1914,<ref>{{cite journal|title=Fleets and Squadrons in Commission at Home and Abroad: Patrol Flotillas|journal=The Navy List|date=August 1914|page=269c|url=http://digital.nls.uk/british-military-lists/pageturner.cfm?id=91884214&mode=fullsize}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=HMS Locust|url=http://www.pbenyon.plus.com/18-1900/L/02759.html|work=Late 18th, 19th and early 20th Century Naval and Naval Social History|publisher=pbenyon.plus.com|access-date=18 October 2015}}</ref> which transferred to the [[Humber]] on the East coast of England following the outbreak of the [[First World War]].<ref name="Manning p26">{{Harvnb|Manning|1961|p=26}}</ref><ref name="navop1 p15-6">{{Harvnb|Corbett|1920|pp=15–16}}</ref> In November 1914, ''Locust'' was transferred to [[Scapa Flow]], where she carried out local patrol and escort duties.<ref name="nmm"/><ref>{{cite journal|title=Supplement to the Monthly Naval List Showing Organisation of the Fleet, Flag Officer's Commands, &c.|journal=The Navy List|date=January 1915|page=8|url=http://digital.nls.uk/british-military-lists/pageturner.cfm?id=91953402&mode=fullsize}}</ref><ref name="manning p27">{{Harvnb|Manning|1961|p=27}}</ref> ''Locust'' remained part of the Scapa Flow local patrol forces until January 1918,<ref>{{cite web|title=Ships of the Royal Navy - Location/Action Date, 1914–1918: Part 2 - Admiralty "Pink Lists", 2 January 1918|publisher=Naval-history.net|url=http://www.naval-history.net/WW1NavyBritishShips-Locations2PL1801.htm|access-date=18 October 2015}}</ref> but transferred to the [[Firth of Forth]] as part of the [[Methil]] Convoy Flotilla by February that year.<ref>{{cite journal|title=Supplement to the Monthly Naval List Showing Organisation of the Fleet, Flag Officer's Commands, &c.|journal=The Navy List|date=February 1918|page=16|url=http://digital.nls.uk/british-military-lists/pageturner.cfm?id=92232610}}</ref> By May 1918, ''Locust'' had moved again, returning to the Seventh Flotilla based on the Humber,<ref>{{cite journal|title=Supplement to the Monthly Naval List Showing Organisation of the Fleet, Flag Officer's Commands, &c.|journal=The Navy List|date=May 1918|page=15|url=http://digital.nls.uk/british-military-lists/pageturner.cfm?id=92263946}}</ref> remaining there until the end of the war.<ref>{{cite web|title=Ships of the Royal Navy - Location/Action Date, 1914–1918: Part 2 - Admiralty "Pink Lists", 11 November 1918|publisher=Naval-history.net|url=http://www.naval-history.net/WW1NavyBritishShips-Locations2PL1811.htm|access-date=18 October 2015}}</ref>
''Locust'' was sold for scrap to J. Jackson on 10 June 1919.<ref name="ditt p57">{{Harvnb|Dittmar|Colledge|1972|p=57}}</ref>
==Pennant numbers==
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
![[Pennant number]]<ref name="ditt p57"/> ||Date
|-
|D29||1914
|-
|D84||September 1915
|-
|D54||January 1918
|-
|H02||April 1918
|}
== References ==
{{reflist|30em}}
==Bibliography==
* {{cite book|editor-last=Brassey|editor-first=T. A.|title=The Naval Annual 1898|year=1898|publisher= J Griffin and Co.|location=Portsmouth, UK}}
* {{cite book|editor-last=Brassey|editor-first=T. A.|title=The Naval Annual 1902|year=1902|publisher=J. Griffin and Co|location=Portsmouth, UK|url=https://archive.org/details/brasseysnavala1902brasuoft/page/n6/mode/2up}}
* {{cite book|editor1-last=Chesneau|editor1-first=Roger|editor2-last=Kolesnik|editor2-first=Eugene M.|title=Conway's All The World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905|year=1979 |name-list-style=amp |publisher=Conway Maritime Press|location=London |isbn=0-85177-133-5}}
* {{Cite Colledge2006}}
* {{cite book|last=Corbett|first=Julian S.|authorlink=Julian Corbett|title=History of the Great War: Naval Operations: Vol. I: To the Battle of the Falklands December 1914|year=1920|publisher=Longmans, Green and Co|location=London|url=https://archive.org/details/navaloperations01corb}}
*{{cite book|last1=Dittmar|first1=F.J.|last2=Colledge|first2=J.J.|title=British Warships 1914–1919|year=1972|publisher=Ian Allan|location=Shepperton, UK|isbn=0-7110-0380-7}}
*{{cite book|last=Friedman|first=Norman|title=British Destroyers: From Earliest Days to the Second World War|year=2009|publisher=Seaforth Publishing|location=Barnsley, UK|isbn=978-1-84832-049-9}}
* {{cite book|editor1-last=Gardiner|editor1-first=Robert|editor2-last=Gray|editor2-first=Randal|title=Conway's All The World's Fighting Ships 1906–1921|year=1985|publisher=Conway Maritime Press|location=London|isbn=0-85177-245-5|name-list-style=amp}}
*{{cite journal|last1=Hepper|first1=David|last2=Conway|first2=Michael S.|title=Question 18/57|ISSN=0043-0374 |journal=Warship International |date=June 2021 |volume=LVIII |issue=2 |pages=100–101}}
*{{cite book|last=Lyon|first=David|title=The First Destroyers|year=2001|orig-year=1996|publisher=Caxton Editions|location=London|isbn=1-84067-3648}}
*{{cite book|last=Manning|first=T. D.|title=The British Destroyer|year=1961|publisher=Putnam & Co.|location=London|oclc= 6470051}}
*{{cite book|last=March|first=Edgar J.|title=British Destroyers: A History of Development, 1892–1953; Drawn by Admiralty Permission From Official Records & Returns, Ships' Covers & Building Plans|year=1966|publisher=Seeley Service|location=London |oclc=164893555}}
{{B class destroyer (1913)}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Locust (1896)}}
[[Category:Earnest-class destroyers]]
[[Category:Ships built on the River Mersey]]
[[Category:1896 ships]]
[[Category:B-class destroyers (1913)]]
[[Category:World War I destroyers of the United Kingdom]]