Any info on the following vessels in WW1 please? Actaeon Waverley, Ac

[Guest marine explorer]

Hello,

Can anyone provide me with info regarding the following vessels that my Wife's Grandfather served on (RNR) 1915 - 1919 please?

HMS Victory, HMS Pembroke, (I think they must be shore bases) - Actaeon Waverley, Actaeon Excellency, Thalia, Halcyon II, Pekin, Actaeon Netsukis, Kingfisher.

He was a 2nd mate in Merchant Navy.

While serving in the RNR he was transfered to Trawler Section on the 1st October 1916 and have seen this date mentioned on other mens records - is this a significant date?

Last - could someone tell me what duties a 2nd hand would have on a vessel?

Many thanks for taking the time to read this,

Dave

[Gibbo]

You're correct that HMS Victory and Pembroke are shore bases. Victory is actually Nelson's flagship; men on shore establishments in the Portsmouth area would be officially carried as part of her crew. Pembroke is Chatham.

Thalia was a motor drifter used as a decoy to trap U boats.

I'm not sure about Halcyon II but there was an elderly (1893-4) torpedo gunboat converted to a minesweeper called Halcyon. It could be her or more likely Halcyon II was a merchant vessel also called Halcyon & numbered II to avoid confusion. However, that's speculation on my part.

Kingfisher I think was a trawler.

I can't find a vessel called Perkin.

I'd guess that the 3 ships called Actaeon something were all merchant ships with the same former owner but I don't know for sure.

Sources: Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1906-1921 and Ships of the Royal Navy by J.J. Colledge.

[Guest marine explorer]

Cheers Gibbo,

Any information I can gather will be most useful for many reasons- my wife's family have no knowledge about their grandfather's career in the RNR at all. We recently got our hands on some records but they are hard to interpret....!

Sorry - I originally wrote 'Perkin' - it's actually 'Pekin' !

Many thanks

[joseph]

Dave,

Actaeon was a Destroyer depot ship at Sheerness, the names following this most likely in brackets will be Destroyers or Auxiliary Patrol Craft.

Can you scan the Service document and post it, not an easy task to begin with? If you can there are lots of people who can interperate it for you.

Victory and Pembroke are accounting bases are there any numbers after the names IE I, II, III, etc, there are 12 Victory's?

Regards Charles

[Gibbo]

There was a Clyde paddle steamer called Waverley which was requistioned as a minesweeper. Possibly she's Actaeon Waverley? She was requisitioned again in 1939 & was sunk at Dunkirk

[Guest marine explorer]

Thanks Charles,

I really do appreciate any info at all.

Victory and Pembroke do not have any numbers afterward and thanks to this forum I now know they must be a shore base of some kind - not sure what...

Actaeon Waverley, Actaeon Excellency and Actaeon Netsukis are a mystery also.

Thalia, Halcyon II, Pekin and Kingfisher appear to be vessels of some kind? one or two HMT trawlers?

Have scanned in this part of the document - not sure if the size will be sufficient to read but here's hoping.

Many thanks again,

Regards,

Dave and family

[Guest marine explorer]

Thanks Martin,

What this Actaeon prefix means is a puzzle to me....

At the base of the list is a last entry - " Victory Chris 10. 7. 18 - Victory etc etc the text looks like 'Chris' ??

Hope the scan helps...

Many thanks to you,

Dave

[joseph]

HI,

A 2nd Hand on a fishing vessel is the mate. After Actaeon the names are in inverted commas meaning they were administered by the Actaeon.

HMT PEKIN Auxiliary Patrol

HALCYON II (hired 1917-1919) Trawler, Auxiliary Patrol Depot Ship Lowestoft

THALIA Base Ship 1915-1920. Cromarty and Peterhead.

HMT KINGFISHER seaplane carrier.

Regards Charles

[joseph]

Dave,

As an aside, Henry Allingham the last survivor of Jutland served on HMT Kingfisher leaving in September 1917.

Regards Charles

[Gibbo]

Whilst searching for something else, I found this website, which might help on how to trace an ex RNR relative.

British Maritime History & Genealogy

[Guest marine explorer]

Thanks Charles and Martin - will check out Henry and the Kingfisher plus the site British Maritime History & Genealogy tonite.

Many Many thanks for your replies.

Dave and Family