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The Great War (1914-1918) Forum

Remembered Today:

Destroyers at Suvla 11th Division HQ 6 August 1915


owen4256

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I know that seven destroyers towing motor lighters carried the elements of 11th Division which landed at B and C beaches at Suvla on 6/7  August: Grasshopper, Basilisk, Arno, Foxhound, Scourge, Racoon and Mosquito. I believe that the destroyer carrying Hammersley and 11th Division HQ was towing the X lighter K7 but I don't know which of the seven it was. I' d be very grateful for any information which links the destroyers and the lighters they towed.

 

Clive

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Clive,

 

Here are a couple of guesses until some firm evidence turns up

 

Are you looking at the typewritten tables A, B & C, which appear in WO95/4299?

 

Table C does indeed show Embarkation 1720 / Divl HQ / Lighter K7 / Destroyer 7

However, Table B shows Embarkation 1500 / Personnel HQ / Lighters K7, 8 / ENDIMYION

If your looking for the ship on which Hammersley made the crossing, then my guess would be the cruiser Endimyion, rather than a destroyer

 

As to which destroyer towed Lighter K7;

table C shows the lighters' numbering to be sequential north to south

34th – Ks 1, 2 & 3

32nd – Ks 4, 5 & 6

33rd – Ks 8, 9 & 10

with K7 in the sequence between 32nd and 33rd (which also agrees with the sketch plan, seen a couple of pages before Table A)

The destroyers are named on the Naval OH map/sketch, but not in alphabetical order – my guess is that this order is not random, but in fact relates to how they went in towards the beach, which would make HMS Foxhound destroyer No.7

 

I hope that these guesses are of some help

 

regards

Michael

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Michael

 

I was looking at the Divisional war diary tables and sketches. I had noted the sequence in which the destroyers were listed in the sketch in the OH. Like you, I came to the view that the sequence was most likely to have reflected their north to south distribution rather than to have been purely random. Curious about Hammersley but actually interested in the two cyclist platoons on K7. About the only thing their war diary does record in that they landed on the 6th with the rest of the company landing on the 16th.

 

Thanks for your views

 

Regards

 

Clive

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