View source for HMAS Vendetta (D69)

{{Other ships|HMAS Vendetta}}
{{Use Australian English|date=March 2018}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2020}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin}}
{{Infobox ship image
|Ship image=File:H.M.A.S. VENDETTA (9916490313607636).jpg
|Ship caption=HMAS ''Vendetta''
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Ship country=United Kingdom
|Ship flag={{shipboxflag|United Kingdom|naval}}
|Ship name=''Vendetta''
|Ship builder=[[Fairfield Shipbuilding & Engineering Company]]
|Ship laid down=November 1916
|Ship launched=3 September 1917
|Ship completed=17 October 1917
|Ship commissioned=
|Ship decommissioned=
|Ship motto=
|Ship nickname=
|Ship honours=
|Ship fate=Transferred to RAN
|Ship notes=
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=title
|Ship country=Australia
|Ship flag={{shipboxflag|Australia|naval-1913}}
|Ship name=''Vendetta''
|Ship commissioned=11 October 1933
|Ship decommissioned=27 November 1945
|Ship motto=*''Vindico''
*"I Avenge"
|Ship nickname=
|Ship honours=*'''Battle honours:'''
*Libya 1940–41
*[[Battle of Cape Matapan|Matapan]] 1941
*[[Battle of Greece|Greece]] 1941
*[[Battle of Crete|Crete]] 1941
*[[Battle of the Mediterranean|Mediterranean]] 1941
*[[South West Pacific theatre of World War II|Pacific]] 1941–43
*[[New Guinea campaign|New Guinea]] 1943–44
|Ship fate=Scuttled off Sydney, 2 July 1948
|Ship notes=
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
|Ship class=[[V and W-class destroyer|V-class]] destroyer
|Ship displacement=*1,090 tons standard
*1,490 tons deep load
|Ship length=*{{convert|312|ft|m|1|abbr=on}} [[length overall]]
*{{convert|300|ft|m|1|abbr=on}} [[between perpendiculars]]
|Ship beam={{convert|29|ft|6|in|m|1|abbr=on}}
|Ship draught={{convert|14|ft|8|in|m|1|abbr=on}} maximum
|Ship propulsion=3 × Yarrow boilers, 2 × Brown-Curtis turbines, {{convert|29417|shp|abbr=on}}, 2 shafts
|Ship speed=Over {{convert|35|kn}}
|Ship range=
|Ship complement=6 officers and 113 sailors
|Ship sensors=
|Ship EW=
|Ship armament=*'''As built:'''
*4 × single [[QF 4 inch Mk V naval gun|QF 4-inch (102-mm) Mk V guns]]
*1 × [[QF 2-pounder naval gun|2-pounder (40-mm) pom-pom]]
*5 × [[.303 British|.303-inch machine guns]]
*2 × triple [[British 21-inch torpedo|21-inch (533-mm) torpedo]] tube sets
*'''Added later:'''
*2 × [[depth charge]] chutes
*4 × depth charge throwers
*'''Post-1942 conversion:'''
*2 × 4-inch guns
*2 × pom-poms
*4 × [[20 mm Oerlikon]] guns
*7 × .303-inch guns
*depth charge chutes and throwers|Ship armour=
|Ship notes=
}}
|}
'''HMAS ''Vendetta'' (D69/I69)''' (formerly '''HMS ''Vendetta'' (FA3/F29/D69)''') was a [[V and W-class destroyer|V-class destroyer]] that served in the [[Royal Navy]] and the [[Royal Australian Navy]] (RAN). One of 25 V class ships ordered for the Royal Navy during World War I, ''Vendetta'' entered service in 1917.

During World War I, ''Vendetta'' participated in the [[Second Battle of Heligoland Bight]], and operated against [[Bolshevik]] forces during the [[British Campaign in the Baltic 1918–1919|British Baltic Campaign]]. Most of the ship's post-war career was spent operating in the Mediterranean. In 1933, ''Vendetta'' was one of five destroyers selected for transfer to the RAN. Over the next six years, the ship was either involved in peacetime activities or was in reserve, but when World War II started, she was assigned to the Mediterranean as part of the '[[Scrap Iron Flotilla]]'. During the [[Greek Campaign]], ''Vendetta'' was involved in the transportation of Allied troops to Greece, then the evacuation to Crete. After, the destroyer served with the [[Tobruk Ferry Service]], and made the highest number of runs to the [[Siege of Tobruk|besieged city of Tobruk]].

At the end of 1941, ''Vendetta'' was docked for refit in Singapore, but after [[Battle of Singapore|the Japanese invaded]], the destroyer had to be towed to Fremantle, then Melbourne. After the refit, which converted the destroyer into a dedicated escort vessel, ended in December 1942, ''Vendetta'' spent the rest of World War II operating as a troop and convoy escort around Australia and New Guinea. ''Vendetta'' was decommissioned in late 1945, and was [[scuttled]] off [[Sydney Heads]] in 1948.

==Design and construction==
{{main|V and W-class destroyer}}
''Vendetta'' was one of 25 V-class destroyers built for the Royal Navy during World War I.<ref name=Cassells153>Cassells, ''The Destroyers'', p. 153</ref> She had a standard load displacement of 1,090 tons, and a deep displacement of 1,490 tons.<ref name=Cassells153/> The destroyer was {{convert|312|ft|0.75|in}} in [[length overall]] and {{convert|300|ft}} long [[between perpendiculars]], had a beam of {{convert|29|ft|5.75|in}}, and a maximum draught of {{convert|14|ft|7.5|in}}.<ref name=Cassells153/> Propulsion machinery consisted of three Yarrow boilers connected to two Brown-Curtis turbines, which supplied {{convert|29417|shp}} to two propeller shafts.<ref name=Cassells154>Cassells, ''The Destroyers'', p. 154</ref> Although designed with a maximum speed of {{convert|34|kn}}, ''Vendetta'' achieved {{convert|35.041|kn}} during power trials.<ref name=Cassells153/> The ship's company consisted of 6 officers and 113 sailors.<ref name=Cassells154/>

On completion, the ship's main armament consisted of four single [[QF 4 inch Mk V naval gun]]s.<ref name=Cassells153/> This was supplemented by a quad-barrelled [[2-pounder pom-pom]], five [[.303 British|.303-inch machine guns]], and two triple 21-inch torpedo tube sets.<ref name=Cassells154/> Two chutes and four throwers for [[depth charge]]s were installed later in the ship's career, with a payload of 50 charges carried.<ref name=Cassells154/> When ''Vendetta'' was converted into an escort vessel in 1942, her armament was changed to two 4-inch guns, two pom-poms, four [[20 mm Oerlikon]] guns, seven .303-inch guns, and the depth charge equipment.<ref name=Cassells154/>

''Vendetta'' was laid down by the [[Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company, Limited]], at [[Govan]], Scotland on 25 November 1916.<ref name=Cassells154/> The ship was launched on 3 September 1917.<ref name=Cassells154/> ''Vendetta'' was completed on 17 October 1917, and commissioned that day into the Royal Navy.<ref name=Cassells154/> The ship's name came from the concept of [[wikt:vendetta|vendetta]].<ref name=Cassells153/> The original ship's badge depicted a [[stiletto]] dagger pointing down at an angle, however, at a point after entering RAN service, the design was modified to include an arm, with the hand around the stiletto's hilt.<ref>Cassells, ''The Destroyers'', pp. 156–7</ref> The ship also acquired the motto "''Vindico''", Latin for "I Avenge".<ref>Cassells, ''The Destroyers'', p. 157</ref>

==Operational history==

===Royal Navy===
After commissioning, ''Vendetta'' was assigned to the [[13th Destroyer Flotilla]].<ref name=Cassells154/> During early November 1917, the destroyer fired on German minesweepers operating in the [[Kattegat]].<ref name=Cassells154/> On 17 November, ''Vendetta'' was involved in the [[Second Battle of Heligoland Bight]].<ref name=Cassells154/> On 5 December, the destroyer rescued 430 survivors from {{HMS|Cassandra|1916|6}} after the cruiser hit a mine and sank.<ref name=Cassells154/> In early 1918, ''Vendetta'' was assigned to [[British Campaign in the Baltic 1918–1919|operate against Bolshevik forces]] in the Baltic; running the destroyer [[Russian destroyer Spartak|''Spartak'']] aground and assisting in the capture of the destroyer [[Russian destroyer Lennuk|''Lennuk'']] in separate engagements.<ref name=Cassells154/>

After the end of World War I, ''Vendetta'' was initially used to tow captured German ships from Scapa Flow for [[ship breaking]].<ref name=Cassells154/> In 1919, the ship served on the Irish patrol from May to August.<ref name=Cassells154/> During 1923, she operated in the Baltic with the [[Estonian Navy]], then was assigned to the Mediterranean from 1924 until 1933.<ref name=Cassells154/> During 1924, the destroyer served as a patrol ship under the command of [[Lieutenant-Commander]] [[W.N.T. Beckett]], protecting British interests during the [[Jeddah War]].<ref name=Cassells154/><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.unithistories.com/officers/RN_officersB3.html#Beckett_WNT |title=Royal Navy (RN) Officers 1939–1945 |editor=Houterman, Hans |editor2=Koppes, Jeroen |work=World War II Unit Histories and Officers |publisher=unithistories.com |access-date=4 March 2012}}</ref> In March 1925, ''Vendetta'', still under Beckett's command, escorted the royal yacht [[HMY Victoria and Albert (1899)|''Victoria and Albert'']] during a royal tour of the Mediterranean.<ref name=Cassells154/><ref>Lowis, ''Fabulous Admirals and some naval fragments'', pp. 170, 279–283</ref>

===Transfer to RAN===
[[File:HMAS Vendetta - Sydney Harbour 1939.jpg|thumb|right|''Vendetta'' in [[Sydney Harbour]] in April 1939 to collect the body of Prime Minister [[Joseph Lyons]].]]
In 1933, the [[British Admiralty]] decided to replace five [[S-class destroyer (1917)|S-class]] destroyers on loan to the RAN with five more capable (but slightly older) destroyers.<ref name=Cassells154/> ''Vendetta'' was one of the five ships selected, and was commissioned into the RAN at Portsmouth on 11 October 1933.<ref name=Cassells154/> The ships arrived in Australia at the end of 1933, and ''Vendetta'' was placed in reserve on 31 January 1934.<ref name=Cassells154/> She was reactivated on 10 October, and performed routine peacetime duties until 1 June 1938, when she was returned to reserve.<ref name=Cassells154/> On 29 September 1938, with the threat of a new war looming ''Vendetta'' was recommissioned.<ref name=Cassells154/> In April 1939, she was given the honour of transporting the body of Prime Minister [[Joseph Lyons]] from Sydney to his final resting place in [[Devonport, Tasmania]].<ref>{{cite book|first=Anne|last=Henderson|author-link=Anne Henderson (author)|title=Joseph Lyons: The People's Prime Minister|year=2011|publisher=UNSW Press|page=430}}</ref>

===World War II===
Following the outbreak of World War II, ''Vendetta'' and the other four RAN destroyers were deployed to the Mediterranean in October 1939,<ref name=Cassells154/> where they quickly acquired the nickname '[[Scrap Iron Flotilla]]' from German propagandists.<ref name=Cassells154/> In May 1940, the destroyer docked at Malta for repairs.<ref name=Cassells154/> On 18 August, ''Vendetta'' participated in the bombardment of Bardia.<ref name=Cassells155/> From 11 October to 9 November, she was docked at Malta with engine problems.<ref name=Cassells155/> On 3 January 1941, ''Vendetta'' was involved in a second bombardment of the Libyan city of Bardia, and following [[Battle of Bardia|its capture by the Allies]], was reassigned to patrols of the Libyan coast.<ref name=Cassells155>Cassells, ''The Destroyers'' p. 155</ref>

During March, the ship was involved in [[Operation Lustre]], the transportation of Allied troops and materiel to reinforce Greece.<ref name=Cassells155/> On 27 March, ''Vendetta'' was involved in the [[Battle of Cape Matapan]], where Italian warships attempted to disrupt the Allied troop movements.<ref name=Cassells155/> ''Vendetta'' played little part in the battle as engine problems forced the destroyer to first withdraw from the destroyer force to the main battle fleet, then retreat to Alexandria for repairs.<ref name=Cassells155/> The ship returned to duty on 21 April, but the change of Allied fortune in the [[Greek Campaign]] forced the withdrawal of most of the troops landed during Lustre, and ''Vendetta'' became involved in [[Operation Demon]], the evacuation from Greece to Crete, over the course of April.<ref name=Cassells155/> During May, the destroyer served with the Allied battle fleet of Crete attempting to deny German [[air superiority]] during the [[Battle of Crete|battle of and evacuation from Crete]].<ref name=Cassells155/>

From the end of May to the start of August, ''Vendetta''{{'}}s division was assigned to the [[Tobruk Ferry Service]]: supply runs to the Allied forces [[Siege of Tobruk|besieged at Tobruk]].<ref name=Cassells155/> During the evening of 10–11 July, ''Vendetta'' and the destroyer {{HMS|Defender|H07|6}} were returning from a run to Tobruk when the British destroyer was crippled by aerial bomber attacks.<ref name=Cassells155/> ''Vendetta'' took on board the soldiers and equipment ''Defender'' was carrying, and attempted to tow the ship to Alexandria.<ref name=Cassells155/> On the morning of 11 July, it was decided that salvaging the ship was unachievable, and after taking the remaining [[skeleton crew]] aboard, ''Vendetta'' torpedoed ''Defender'' at 11:15.<ref name=Cassells155/> ''Vendetta'' performed twenty return voyages to Tobruk: the greatest number by a ship assigned to the supply run.<ref name=Cassells155/> On 20 October, the destroyer concluded service in the Mediterranean, and sailed to Singapore for refit.<ref>Cassells, ''The Destroyers'', pp. 155–6</ref>

After the Japanese [[Battle of Singapore|commenced air attacks on Singapore]] on 8 December, ''Vendetta''{{'}}s anti-aircraft weapons were removed and used to supplement the dockyard's defences.<ref name=Cassells156>Cassells, ''The Destroyers'', p. 156</ref> On 2 February 1942, the stripped-down vessel was towed from the dockyard by the tug ''St Just'', then over the course of the month was towed by {{HMS|Stronghold}}, {{HMAS|Yarra|U77|6}}, then {{HMAS|Ping Wo}} to Fremantle, where she arrived on 3 March.<ref name=Cassells156/> After this, the destroyer had to be towed across the [[Great Australian Bight]] to [[Williamstown Naval Dockyard]].<ref name=Cassells156/> ''Ping Wo'' started the tow, but only made it to [[Cape Leeuwin]] before her engines failed, and a [[British Phosphate Commission]] freighter took over, with the corvette {{HMAS|Whyalla|J153|6}} escorting.<ref name=Cassells156/> Three towlines were snapped by the weather conditions, and progress at some points was as low as {{convert|1.5|kn}}, but the ships arrived in Melbourne on 15 April.<ref name=Cassells156/> After most of the refit was completed at Williamstown, ''Vendetta'' sailed on 29 September for Sydney, where work was completed in December.<ref name=Cassells156/>

During the year-long refit, ''Vendetta'' had been modified into a dedicated escort vessel, with a reduced main armament and increased anti-aircraft capability.<ref>Cassells, ''The Destroyers'', pgs 154, 156</ref> The period between 1943 and 1945 saw the ship involved in convoy escort and transportation duties in Australian and New Guinea waters.<ref name=Cassells156/> The destroyer's wartime service was recognised with seven [[battle honour]]s: "Libya 1940–41", "Matapan 1941", "Greece 1941", "Crete 1941", "Mediterranean 1941", "Pacific 1941–43", and "New Guinea 1943–44".<ref name=newhonours>{{cite news |url=http://www.navy.gov.au/Navy_Marks_109th_Birthday_With_Historic_Changes_To_Battle_Honours |title=Navy Marks 109th Birthday With Historic Changes To Battle Honours |date=1 March 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110613184920/http://www.navy.gov.au/Navy_Marks_109th_Birthday_With_Historic_Changes_To_Battle_Honours |archive-date=13 June 2011 |publisher=Royal Australian Navy |access-date=23 December 2012}}</ref><ref name=honourslist>{{cite web |url=http://www.navy.gov.au/w/images/Units_entitlement_list.pdf |title=Royal Australian Navy Ship/Unit Battle Honours |date=1 March 2010 |publisher=Royal Australian Navy |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110614064156/http://www.navy.gov.au/w/images/Units_entitlement_list.pdf |archive-date=14 June 2011 |access-date=23 December 2012}}</ref>

==Decommissioning and fate==
''Vendetta'' arrived in Sydney on 3 October 1945, and was paid off for disposal on 27 November.<ref name=Cassells156/> On 20 March 1946, she was sold to Penguins Propriety Limited for scrapping.<ref name=Cassells156/> After the ship was stripped of all useful material, her hulk was scuttled off Sydney Heads on 2 July 1948.<ref name=Cassells156/>

==Citations==
{{Reflist}}

==References==
*{{cite book |last=Cassells |first=Vic |title=The Destroyers: their battles and their badges |year=2000 |publisher=Simon & Schuster |location=East Roseville, NSW |isbn=0-7318-0893-2 |oclc=46829686}}
*{{cite book |title=Fabulous Admirals and some naval fragments |last=Lowis |first=Geoffrey Lyttelton |publisher=Putnam & Co. Ltd |location=London |year=1957 |oclc=221709158}}

==Further reading==
*{{cite book|last=Campbell|first=John|title=Naval Weapons of World War II|year=1985|publisher=Naval Institute Press|location=Annapolis, Maryland|isbn=0-87021-459-4}}
*{{cite book|title=Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1922–1946|editor1-last=Chesneau|editor1-first=Roger|publisher=Conway Maritime Press|location=Greenwich, UK|year=1980|isbn=0-85177-146-7}}
*{{Cite Colledge2006}}
* {{cite book |first1=Maurice |last1=Cocker |publisher=Ian Allan |title=Destroyers of the Royal Navy, 1893–1981 |year=1981 |isbn=0-7110-1075-7}}
* {{cite book|last=Friedman|first=Norman|title=British Destroyers From Earliest Days to the Second World War|publisher=Naval Institute Press|location=Annapolis, Maryland|year=2009|isbn=978-1-59114-081-8}}
* {{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|location=Annapolis, Maryland|publisher=Naval Institute Press|isbn=0-85177-245-5|name-list-style=amp}}
* {{cite book|last=Lenton|first=H. T.|author-link=Henry Trevor Lenton|title=British & Empire Warships of the Second World War|publisher=Naval Institute Press|location=Annapolis, Maryland|year=1998|isbn=1-55750-048-7}}
*{{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}}
* {{cite book |last=Preston |first=Antony |title='V & W' Class Destroyers 1917–1945 |publisher=Macdonald |location=London |year=1971 |oclc=464542895}}
* {{cite book |last1=Raven |first1=Alan |last2=Roberts|first2=John  |title='V' and 'W' Class Destroyers |publisher=Arms & Armour |location=London |year=1979 |series=Man o'War |volume=2 |isbn=0-85368-233-X|name-list-style=amp }}
* {{cite book|last=Rohwer|first=Jürgen|title=Chronology of the War at Sea 1939–1945: The Naval History of World War Two|publisher=Naval Institute Press|location=Annapolis, Maryland|year=2005|edition=Third Revised|isbn=1-59114-119-2}}
* {{cite book |last=Whinney |first=Bob |title=The U-boat Peril: A Fight for Survival |publisher=Cassell |year=2000 |isbn=0-304-35132-6 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/uboatperilfightf0000whin }}
* {{cite book|last=Whitley|first=M. J.|title=Destroyers of World War 2|publisher=Naval Institute Press|date=1988|isbn=0-87021-326-1|location=Annapolis, Maryland}}
* {{cite book|last=Winser|first=John de D.|title=B.E.F. Ships Before, At and After Dunkirk|publisher=World Ship Society|location=Gravesend, Kent|year=1999|isbn=0-905617-91-6}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|HMAS Vendetta (D69)}}

{{coord missing|Pacific Ocean}}

{{V and W class destroyer}}
{{1948 shipwrecks}}
{{Navbox shipwrecks of New South Wales|Scuttlednsw}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vendetta (D69)}}
[[Category:V and W-class destroyers of the Royal Navy]]
[[Category:Ships built in Govan]]
[[Category:1917 ships]]
[[Category:World War I destroyers of the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:V and W-class destroyers of the Royal Australian Navy]]
[[Category:World War II destroyers of Australia]]
[[Category:Scuttled vessels of New South Wales]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in 1948]]