HMS Thrasher
Four ships of the Royal Navy have borne the name HMS Thrasher:
See also
HMS Thrasher (1895)
HMS Thrasher was a "thirty-knotter" torpedo boat destroyer of the British Royal Navy. She was completed by Laird, Son & Company, Birkenhead, in 1897. One of four Quail-class destroyers (later classed as part of the B-class), she served in the First World War, sinking the German submarine UC-39 in 1917, and was sold off after hostilities ended.
Design and construction
As part of its 1894–1895 shipbuilding programme for the Royal Navy, the British Admiralty placed orders with Laird Brothers for four destroyers. The destroyers ordered under the 1894–1895 programme had a contracted speed of 30 knots (56 km/h; 35 mph) rather than the 27 knots (50 km/h; 31 mph) required of previous destroyers. Armament was specified to be a QF 12 pounder 12 cwt (3 in (76 mm) calibre), with a secondary armament of five 6-pounder guns, and two 18-inch (450 mm) torpedo tubes. As with other early Royal Navy destroyers, the detailed design was left to the builder, with the Admiralty laying down only broad requirements.
HMS Thrasher (N37)
HMS Thrasher (N37) was a T-class submarine of the Royal Navy. She was laid down by Cammell Laird & Co Limited, Birkenhead, launched in November 1940, and had an active career in the Mediterranean and Pacific Far East.
Mediterranean
Thrasher began her service by heavily damaging the French fishing vessel Virgo Fidelis in the Bay of Biscay, while in transit to the Mediterranean. The Virgo Fidelis was beached, but declared a total loss. Also in the Mediterranean she sank a number of ships, including three Greek sailing vessels, including the San Stefano; the Italian sailing vessel Esperia; the Italian merchants Attilio Deffenu, Fedora, Gala, Penelope, Lero, Sant Antonio and Padenna; the German army cargo ship Atlas; the Italian tugs Pilo and Roma; and the Italian sloop Diana. She also unsuccessfully attacked the German transport Ankara and the German merchant Arkadia. She also attacked the German barge F 184, but was forced to withdraw due to return fire.
On 16 February 1942 north of Crete, Thrasher, was attacked after sinking a supply ship. After surfacing later, two unexploded bombs were discovered in the gun-casing. Lieutenant Peter Scawen Watkinson Roberts and Petty Officer Thomas William Gould removed the first one without too much difficulty, but the second was lying in a very confined space and they had to approach it lying full length. Gould lay on his back with the bomb in his arms while Roberts dragged him along by the shoulders. It was 50 minutes before they got the bomb clear and dropped it over the side. As a result of their heroic actions which likely saved Thrasher, both men were awarded the Victoria Cross. The citation read
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