Bot: robot: Create/upgrade articles. If there is a mistake please report on my talk page.

2022-04-22T17:41:29Z

robot: Create/upgrade articles. If there is a mistake please report on my talk page.

New page

{{short description|Submarine of the Royal Navy}}

{{other ships|HMS Seraph}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2022}}
{{Use British English|date=January 2022}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin}}
{{Infobox ship image
|Ship image=Seraph.jpg
|Ship caption=HMS ''Seraph''
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=
|Ship country=United Kingdom
|Ship flag={{shipboxflag|United Kingdom|naval}}
|Ship name=''Seraph''
|Ship namesake=[[Seraph]]
|Ship ordered=23 June 1940
|Ship awarded=
|Ship builder=[[Vickers Armstrong]], [[Barrow-in-Furness]]
|Ship laid down=16 August 1940
|Ship launched=25 October 1941
|Ship christened=
|Ship commissioned=27 June 1942
|Ship recommissioned=
|Ship decommissioned=25 October 1962
|Ship in service=
|Ship out of service=
|Ship renamed=
|Ship reclassified=
|Ship identification=[[Pennant number]]: P219
|Ship struck=
|Ship badge=[[File:SERAPH badge-1-.jpg|left|80px]]
|Ship fate=Scrapped
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
|Hide header=
|Header caption=
|Ship class=[[British S-class submarine (1931)|S-class submarine]]
|Ship displacement=*{{cvt|865|LT|t}} (surfaced)
*{{convert|990|LT|t}} (submerged)
|Ship length={{cvt|217|ft|m|1}}
|Ship beam={{cvt|23|ft|9|in|m|1}}
|Ship draught={{cvt|14|ft|8|in|1}}
|Ship power=*{{cvt|1900|bhp|kW|lk=in|abbr=on}} (diesel)
*{{convert|1300|hp|kW|abbr=on}} (electric)
|Ship propulsion=*2 × [[diesel engine]]s
*2 × [[electric motor]]s
|Ship speed=*{{cvt|15|kn|lk=in}} (surfaced)
*{{convert|10|kn|abbr=on}} (submerged)
|Ship range={{cvt|6000|nmi|lk=in}} at {{convert|10|kn}} (surfaced); {{cvt|120|nmi}} at {{convert|3|kn}} (submerged)
|Ship test depth={{cvt|300|ft|1}}
|Ship complement=48
|Ship sensors=*Type 129AR or 138 [[ASDIC]]
*[[Type 291 radar|Type 291]] [[early-warning radar]]
|Ship armament=*7 × [[British 21-inch torpedo|{{cvt|21|in|mm|0}}]] [[torpedo tube]]s (6 × bow, 1 × stern)
*1 × [[QF 3-inch 20 cwt|3 in (76 mm)]] [[deck gun]]
*1 × [[Oerlikon 20 mm cannon|{{cvt|20|mm|1}}]] [[AA gun]]
|Ship notes=
}}
|}
'''HMS ''Seraph''''' ([[Pennant number]]: P219) was an [[British S-class submarine (1931)|S-class submarine]] built for the [[Royal Navy]] during the Second World War. Completed in 1942, she carried out multiple [[intelligence (information gathering)|intelligence]] and [[special operations]] activities during World War II, the most notable of which was [[Operation Mincemeat]].

She was afterwards assigned to the [[8th Submarine Flotilla]] in the Mediterranean on 25 August; she found herself selected to carry out special operations duties. Of the missions she carried out, three stand out among the rest.

==Design and description==
[[File:British S-class submarine schematic drawing.jpg|thumb|350px|left|Schematic drawing of a S-class submarine]]
The S-class submarines were designed to patrol the restricted waters of the [[North Sea]] and the [[Mediterranean Sea]]. The third batch was slightly enlarged and improved over the preceding second batch of the S-class. The submarines had a length of {{convert|217|ft|m|1}} [[length overall|overall]], a [[beam (nautical)|beam]] of {{convert|23|ft|9|in|m|1}} and a [[draft (ship)|draught]] of {{convert|14|ft|8|in|m|1}}. They [[displacement (ship)|displaced]] {{convert|865|LT|t}} on the surface and {{convert|990|LT|t}} submerged.<ref>Akermann, p. 341</ref> The S-class submarines had a crew of 48 officers and [[naval rating|ratings]]. They had a diving depth of {{convert|300|ft|1}}.<ref name=i7>McCartney, p. 7</ref>

For surface running, the boats were powered by two {{convert|950|bhp|lk=in|0|adj=on}} [[diesel engine]]s, each driving one [[propeller shaft]]. When submerged each propeller was driven by a {{convert|650|hp|0|adj=on}} [[electric motor]]. They could reach {{convert|15|kn|lk=in}} on the surface and {{convert|10|kn}} underwater.<ref>Bagnasco, p. 110</ref> On the surface, the third batch boats had a range of {{convert|6000|nmi|lk=in}} at {{convert|10|kn}} and {{convert|120|nmi|abbr=on}} at {{convert|3|kn}} submerged.<ref name=i7/>

The boats were armed with seven [[British 21 inch torpedo|21-inch (533 mm)]] [[torpedo tube]]s. A half-dozen of these were in the bow and there was one external tube in the stern. They carried six reload torpedoes for the bow tubes for a grand total of thirteen torpedoes. Twelve [[naval mine|mines]] could be carried in lieu of the internally stowed torpedoes. They were also armed with a [[QF 3-inch 20 cwt|3-inch (76 mm)]] [[deck gun]].<ref>Chesneau, pp. 51–52</ref> It is uncertain if ''Seraph'' was completed with a [[Oerlikon 20 mm cannon|{{convert|20|mm|1|adj=on}} Oerlikon]] light [[AA gun]] or had one added later. The third-batch S-class boats were fitted with either a Type 129AR or 138 [[ASDIC]] system and a [[Type 291 radar|Type 291]] or 291W [[early-warning radar]].<ref>Akermann, pp. 341, 345</ref>

==Operation Flagpole==
{{main|Operation Flagpole (World War II)}}
''Seraph'' first saw action in support of [[Operation Torch]], the Allied landings in North Africa; her first combat mission, under the command of Lieutenant [[Norman Jewell|Norman "Bill" Jewell]], was carrying out a [[periscope]] [[reconnaissance]] of the [[Algeria]]n coast during the last two weeks of September 1942.

Upon her return to [[Gibraltar]], ''Seraph'' was assigned to [[Operation Flagpole (World War II)|Operation Flagpole]], the carrying of General [[Dwight Eisenhower]]'s deputy, Lieutenant General [[Mark W. Clark]], to North Africa for secret negotiations with [[Vichy France|Vichy French]] officers. Loaded with [[Folding kayak|collapsible canoes]], [[submachine gun]]s, [[walkie-talkie]]s, and other supplies, the submarine carried Clark, two other [[United States Army]] generals, [[United States Navy]] Captain [[Jerauld Wright]], several other officers, and three members of the British [[Special Boat Section]] - [[Captain]] G.B. ('Gruff') Courtney; and [[Lieutenant]]s R.P. Livingstone and J.P. Foot.

''Seraph'' then sailed to the Algerian coast on 19 October 1942. On the night of 20 October her passengers disembarked ashore. The operation was very important as it helped to reduce French opposition to the Torch landings (although the French were not informed that the troop ships were already on their way and the landings were due in just a few days).

General Clark and his party were then picked up on 25 October by the submarine after some inadvertent delays. After an uneventful return journey, ''Seraph'' landed her party in Gibraltar on 25 October.

== Operation Kingpin: "the ship with two captains" ==
{{anchor|Operation Kingpin}}
On 27 October, Lt.Cdr. Jewell was ordered to set sail again to the coast of southern France for a secret rendezvous. ''Seraph'' was ordered to patrol up and down the coast until she received a signal giving her the name of the port from which she was to pick up her passengers. On the night of 5 November she finally arrived at a location some {{convert|20|mi|km|0}} east of [[Toulon]], as arranged to secretly take aboard French General [[Henri Giraud]], his son, and three staff officers for a meeting with Eisenhower in Gibraltar, with the intention to enlist the support of the pro-Vichy forces at [[Oran]] and [[Casablanca]] to the Allied cause.

In picking up the general's party, a bit of legerdemain was needed: because Giraud flatly refused to deal with the British, and there was no US boat within {{convert|3000|mi|km|-2}}, HMS ''Seraph'' briefly became the "USS ''Seraph''", flying the US Navy ensign. Nominally the sub came under the command of Captain Jerauld Wright, who was earlier involved in the Flagpole operation, although Jewell took care of actual operations. In the spirit of things the British crew affected American accents that they imitated from the movies. However, it fooled nobody — including Giraud, who had been told of the deception by Wright.

After the pick-up, on 7 November ''Seraph'' transferred her charges to a [[PBY Catalina]] [[flying boat]] that was sent from Gibraltar to search for her after they lost contact with the sub due to a problem with her main radio.

On 24 November, ''Seraph'' sailed on her first war patrol in the Mediterranean. She was soon called upon to join other submarines in carrying U.S. and [[British Commandos]] for reconnaissance operations in the area. On 2 December 1942 she torpedoed and damaged the Italian merchant ship ''Puccini''. Later that month, on 23 December she rammed and damaged a [[U-boat]], sustaining sufficient damage herself to necessitate repairs and refit back in Britain.

==Operation Mincemeat==
{{main|Operation Mincemeat}}
''Seraph'' returned to [[Blyth, Northumberland|Blyth]], northern England, for a much needed overhaul and leave on 28 January 1943. A few weeks later, Jewell was briefed at the [[British Admiralty|Admiralty]] on Operation Mincemeat, to be carried out during ''Seraph''{{'}}s return to the Mediterranean. This mission was part of [[Operation Barclay]], a plan to convince the [[Nazi Germany|Germans]] that the Allies intended to land in Greece and [[Sardinia]], and not [[Invasion of Sicily|Sicily]].

She set sail again on 19 April, carrying a [[William Martin (Royal Marine officer)|special passenger]]. This was a corpse in a metal canister, packed in [[dry ice]], and dressed in a [[Royal Marines]] uniform. Attached to the corpse was a briefcase containing faked "secret documents" designed to mislead the Axis.

In the early hours of 30 April ''Seraph'' surfaced off the coast of Spain, near the port of [[Huelva]]. Jewell and his officers launched the body and briefcase in the water, disposing of the canister in deeper waters. Jewell then radioed the signal "MINCEMEAT completed" while the submarine continued to [[Gibraltar]]. The body was picked up by the Spanish, who decided it was a courier killed in an aircraft accident. The false documents were passed to the Germans and led them to divert forces from the defence of Sicily.

==Other missions==
By late April 1943 ''Seraph'' was back in the Mediterranean operating east of Sardinia and on 27 April she fired a salvo of three [[torpedo]]es at a merchant ship off the [[Strait of Bonifacio]] but was not successful. Again on the last two days of that month she made similar attacks but none of these was successful, and ''Seraph'' ended up being depth-charged each time. She was not damaged during these engagements, with no lives lost.

In July, during the Allied [[invasion of Sicily]], she acted as a guide ship for the invasion force.

For the remainder of 1943 the ''Seraph'' operated against German and Italian forces in the Mediterranean theatre and attacked several convoys, but her performance in that area was lacklustre, sinking only a few small ships.
[[File:HMS Seraph periscope head.jpg|thumb|right|The head of HMS ''Seraph''{{'}}s search (navigation) periscope]]
In December 1943, she sailed to [[Chatham Dockyard|Chatham]] for a much needed refit. In March 1944, under [[Lieutenant Commander|Lt.Cdr.]] Trevor Russell-Walling, she carried out her final patrol in the [[English Channel]], when she suffered accidental damage and was docked for repairs. During this time it was decided to convert her as a training boat for [[anti-submarine warfare]] operations.

The Admiralty had received intelligence in early 1944 about [[Elektroboot|new U-boats]] which were reported to be able to achieve a top speed of around {{convert|16|kn|km/h|0}} underwater, compared to the {{convert|9|kn|km/h|0}} of the fastest existing U-boats. As these new [[German Type XXI submarine|XXI-class]] U-boats were considered to pose a major threat, ''Seraph'' was modified at Devonport as a matter of urgency to have a high underwater speed so that trials and exercises could be carried out against a submarine having a similar underwater speed; for example in developing new tactics.

The submarine was streamlined by careful attention to the attachments on the outside of the hull, the size of the bridge reduced, the gun was removed along with one of the periscopes and the radar mast, and torpedo tubes blanked over. The motors were upgraded and higher-capacity batteries fitted along with replacement of the propellers with the coarser pitched type used on the larger [[British T class submarine|T class submarine]]s.<ref>Brown, DK, ''Nelson to Vanguard''</ref>

Trials and ASW exercises were carried out in September and October 1944, giving an insight into the difficulties and possible remedies to the new underwater menace.<ref>Marc Milner (2003) ''Battle of the Atlantic'' The History Press {{ISBN|978-0-7524-6187-8}}</ref>

==After the war==
''Seraph'' remained in active service after the war. In 1955 she was fitted with armour plating and used as a torpedo target boat. She was attached to a squadron commanded by her first skipper, now Captain David Jewell. Also during this time, ''Seraph'' appeared as herself in the British film ''[[The Man Who Never Was]]'' (1956), which details her exploits during [[Operation Mincemeat]]. Her identifying marks are visible in a number of scenes during the film.

She remained in commission until 25 October 1962, 21 years to the day after her launching.

When she arrived at [[Briton Ferry]] for scrapping on 20 December 1962, parts from her [[conning tower]] and a torpedo loading hatch were preserved as a memorial at [[The Citadel]] in [[Charleston, South Carolina]], where General Clark served as president from 1954–1965. This monument is the only shore installation in the United States where the Royal Navy [[ensign]] is authorised to be permanently flown by the British Admiralty. It flies alongside the US flag to commemorate Anglo-American cooperation during World War II.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.scnow.com/news/politics/article_9c252b26-a680-11e2-9942-001a4bcf6878.html|publisher=AP|date=16 April 2013|access-date=4 June 2013|title=British ambassador lays wreath at The Citadel}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2506&dat=19800328&id=kntJAAAAIBAJ&sjid=gAsNAAAAIBAJ&pg=3639,6398918|newspaper=[[News and Courier]]|location=Charleston, South Carolina|date=28 March 1980|page=B1|title=Raising the Ensign}}</ref>

==Notes==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==References==
* {{cite book|last=Akermann|first=Paul|title=Encyclopaedia of British Submarines 1901–1955|edition=reprint of the 1989|year=2002|publisher=Periscope Publishing|location=Penzance, Cornwall|isbn=978-1-904381-05-1}}
* {{cite book|last=Bagnasco |first=Erminio |title=Submarines of World War Two |year=1977 |publisher=Naval Institute Press |location=Annapolis, Maryland |isbn=978-0-87021-962-7}}
* {{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=978-0-85177-146-5}}
* {{Cite Colledge2022}}
* {{cite book|last=McCartney|first=Innes|location=Oxford, UK|title=British Submarines 1939–1945|series=New Vanguard|volume=129|year=2006|publisher=Osprey|isbn=978-1-84603-007-9}}
See also: reference to HMS ''Seraph'' in 'FDR's 12 Apostles', The Spies who paved the way for the invasion of North Africa, Hal Vaughan, Lyons Press, 2006, 311 pp

==External links==
{{Commons category|HMS Seraph (P219)}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20150626001415/http://www.citadel.edu/root/monuments#seraph Seraph monument at The Citadel The Military College of South Carolina]
* [http://www.uboat.net/allies/warships/ship/3438.html History of HMS SERAPH (P.219)] uboat.net
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20170410173423/http://historisches-marinearchiv.de/projekte/asa/uebersicht.php Allied Submarine Attacks] ''Suche'': SERAPH


{{British S class submarine}}
{{The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Seraph}}
[[Category:British S-class submarines (1931)]]
[[Category:Ships built in Barrow-in-Furness]]
[[Category:1941 ships]]
[[Category:World War II submarines of the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina campus]]
[[Category:Operation Mincemeat]]

HMS Seraph (P219) - Revision history

Bot: robot: Create/upgrade articles. If there is a mistake please report on my talk page.