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Flower-class corvette

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HMCS Regina K234 CT-252.jpg
HMCS Regina, 1942–1943
Class overview
Operators
Completed225 (original), 69 (modified)
Cancelled5 (original), 6 (modified)
Lost33 World War II (22 to submarines)
PreservedHMCS Sackville
General characteristics Original Flower-class corvette
TypeCorvette
Displacement925 long tons (940 t; 1,036 short tons)
Length205 ft (62.5 m) o/a
Beam33 ft (10.1 m)
Draught11.5 ft (3.51 m)
Propulsion
  • 1939–1940 programme
    • Single shaft
    • 2 × fire tube Scotch boilers
    • 1 × double acting triple-expansion reciprocating steam engine
    • 2,750 ihp (2,050 kW)
  • 1940–1941 programme
    • single shaft
    • 2 × water tube three-drum boilers
    • 1 × double acting triple-expansion reciprocating steam engine
    • 2,750 ihp (2,050 kW)
Speed16 knots (29.6 km/h)
Range3,500 nautical miles (6,482 km) at 12 knots (22.2 km/h)
Complement85
Sensors and
processing systems
  • 1 × SW1C or 2C radar
  • 1 × Type 123A or Type 127DV sonar
Armament

The Flower-class corvette[1][2][3] (also referred to as the Gladiolus class after the lead ship)[4] was a British class of 294 corvettes used during World War II by the Allied navies particularly as anti-submarine convoy escorts in the Battle of the Atlantic. Royal Navy ships of this class were named after flowers.

Most served during World War II with the Royal Navy (RN) and Royal Canadian Navy (RCN). Several ships built largely in Canada were transferred from the RN to the United States Navy (USN) under the lend-lease programme, seeing service in both navies. Some corvettes transferred to the USN were crewed by the US Coast Guard.[5] The vessels serving with the US Navy were known as Temptress- and Action-class patrol gunboats. Other Flower-class corvettes served with the Free French Naval Forces, the Royal Netherlands Navy, the Royal Norwegian Navy, the Royal Indian Navy, the Royal Hellenic Navy, the Royal New Zealand Navy, the Royal Yugoslav Navy, and, immediately after the war, the South African Navy.

After World War II, many surplus Flower-class vessels saw worldwide use in other navies, as well as civilian use. HMCS Sackville is the only member of the class preserved as a museum ship.

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Lead ship

Lead ship

The lead ship, name ship, or class leader is the first of a series or class of ships all constructed according to the same general design. The term is applicable to naval ships and large civilian vessels.

Corvette

Corvette

A corvette is a small warship. It is traditionally the smallest class of vessel considered to be a proper warship. The warship class above the corvette is that of the frigate, while the class below was historically that of the sloop-of-war.

Allies of World War II

Allies of World War II

The Allies, formally referred to as the United Nations from 1942, were an international military coalition formed during the Second World War (1939–1945) to oppose the Axis powers, led by Nazi Germany, Imperial Japan, and Fascist Italy. Its principal members by the end of 1941 were the United Kingdom, United States, Soviet Union, and China.

Anti-submarine warfare

Anti-submarine warfare

Anti-submarine warfare is a branch of underwater warfare that uses surface warships, aircraft, submarines, or other platforms, to find, track, and deter, damage, or destroy enemy submarines. Such operations are typically carried out to protect friendly shipping and coastal facilities from submarine attacks and to overcome blockades.

Convoy

Convoy

A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support and can help maintain cohesion within a unit. It may also be used in a non-military sense, for example when driving through remote areas.

Battle of the Atlantic

Battle of the Atlantic

The Battle of the Atlantic, the longest continuous military campaign in World War II, ran from 1939 to the defeat of Nazi Germany in 1945, covering a major part of the naval history of World War II. At its core was the Allied naval blockade of Germany, announced the day after the declaration of war, and Germany's subsequent counter-blockade. The campaign peaked from mid-1940 through to the end of 1943.

Flower

Flower

A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants. Flowers produce gametophytes, which in flowering plants consist of a few haploid cells which produce gametes. The "male" gametophyte, which produces non-motile sperm, is enclosed within pollen grains; the "female" gametophyte is contained within the ovule. When pollen from the anther of a flower is deposited on the stigma, this is called pollination. Some flowers may self-pollinate, producing seed using pollen from the same flower or a different flower of the same plant, but others have mechanisms to prevent self-pollination and rely on cross-pollination, when pollen is transferred from the anther of one flower to the stigma of another flower on a different individual of the same species.

Free French Naval Forces

Free French Naval Forces

The Free French Naval Forces were the naval arm of the Free French Forces during the Second World War. They were commanded by Admiral Émile Muselier.

History of the Indian Navy

History of the Indian Navy

Maritime powers in the Indian subcontinent have possessed navies for many centuries. Indian dynasties such as the Cholas used naval power to extend their influence overseas, particularly to Southeast Asia. The Marakkar Navy under Zamorins during 15th century and the Maratha Navy of the 17th and 18th centuries fought with rival Indian powers and European trading companies. The East India Company organised its own navy, which came to be as the Bombay Marine. With the establishment of the British Raj after the Indian Rebellion of 1857, the small navy was transformed into "His Majesty's Indian Navy", then "Her Majesty's Indian Marine", and finally the "Royal Indian Marine".

Hellenic Navy

Hellenic Navy

The Hellenic Navy is the naval force of Greece, part of the Hellenic Armed Forces. The modern Greek navy historically hails from the naval forces of various Aegean Islands, which fought in the Greek War of Independence. During the periods of monarchy it was known as the Royal Hellenic Navy.

HMCS Sackville (K181)

HMCS Sackville (K181)

HMCS Sackville is a Flower-class corvette that served in the Royal Canadian Navy and later served as a civilian research vessel. She is now a museum ship located in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and the last surviving Flower-class corvette.

Museum ship

Museum ship

A museum ship, also called a memorial ship, is a ship that has been preserved and converted into a museum open to the public for educational or memorial purposes. Some are also used for training and recruitment purposes, mostly for the small number of museum ships that are still operational and thus capable of regular movement.

Class designation

The term "corvette" was originally a French name for a small sailing warship, intermediate between the frigate and the sloop-of-war. In the 1830s the term was adopted by the RN for sailing warships of roughly similar size, primarily operating in the shipping protection role. With the arrival of steam power, paddle- and later screw-driven corvettes were built for the same purpose, growing in power, size, and armament over the decades. In 1877 the RN abolished the "corvette" as a traditional category; corvettes and frigates were then combined into a new category, "cruiser".

The months leading up to World War II saw the RN return to the concept of a small escort warship being used in the shipping protection role. The Flower class was based on the design of Southern Pride, a whale-catcher, and were labelled "corvettes", thus restoring the title for the RN, although the Flower-class has no connection with pre-1877 cruising vessels.

There are two distinct groups of vessels in this class: the original Flower-class, 225 vessels ordered during the 1939 and 1940 building programmes; and the modified Flower-class, which followed with a further 69 vessels ordered from 1940 onward. The modified Flowers were slightly larger and better armed.

Flower-class vessels, of original and modified design, in USN service were called Temptress- and Action-class gunboats; they carried the hull classification symbol PG ("patrol gunboat").

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Frigate

Frigate

A frigate is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied somewhat.

Sloop-of-war

Sloop-of-war

In the 18th century and most of the 19th, a sloop-of-war in the Royal Navy was a warship with a single gun deck that carried up to eighteen guns. The rating system covered all vessels with 20 guns and above; thus, the term sloop-of-war encompassed all the unrated combat vessels, including the very small gun-brigs and cutters. In technical terms, even the more specialised bomb vessels and fireships were classed as sloops-of-war, and in practice these were employed in the sloop role when not carrying out their specialised functions.

Cruiser

Cruiser

A cruiser is a type of warship. Modern cruisers are generally the largest ships in a fleet after aircraft carriers and amphibious assault ships, and can usually perform several roles.

Southern Pride

Southern Pride

Southern Pride was a steam-powered whaler built by the Smiths Dock Company of Middlesbrough in 1936. She was the initial design inspiration for the Flower-class corvettes used to escort convoys in the North Atlantic in World War II. The final design for the Flower class was significantly modified from that of Southern Pride factoring in things like ease of construction.

Hull classification symbol

Hull classification symbol

The United States Navy, United States Coast Guard, and United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) use a hull classification symbol to identify their ships by type and by individual ship within a type. The system is analogous to the pennant number system that the Royal Navy and other European and Commonwealth navies use.

Design

In early 1939, with the risk of war with Nazi Germany increasing, it was clear to the Royal Navy that it needed more escort ships to counter the threat from Kriegsmarine U-boats. One particular concern was the need to protect shipping off the east coast of Britain. What was needed was something larger and faster than trawlers, but still cheap enough to be built in large numbers, preferably at small merchant shipyards, as larger yards were already busy. To meet this requirement, the Smiths Dock Company of South Bank -on-Tees, a specialist in the design and build of fishing vessels, offered a development of its 700-ton, 16 knots (18 mph; 30 km/h) whaler (whale catcher) Southern Pride.[6][7] They were intended as small convoy escort ships that could be produced quickly and cheaply in large numbers. Despite naval planners' intentions that they be deployed for coastal convoys, their long range meant that they became the mainstay of Mid-Ocean Escort Force convoy protection during the first half of the war.

The Flower class became an essential resource for North Atlantic convoy protection until larger vessels such as destroyer escorts and frigates could be produced in sufficient quantities. The simple design of the Flower class using parts and techniques (scantlings) common to merchant shipping meant they could be constructed in small commercial shipyards all over the United Kingdom and Canada, where larger (or more sophisticated) warships[8] could not be built. Additionally, the use of commercial triple expansion machinery instead of steam turbines meant the largely Royal Naval Reserve and Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve crews that were manning the corvettes would be familiar with their operation.

Officers on the open bridge of HMCS Trillium
Officers on the open bridge of HMCS Trillium

Flower-class vessels were slow for a warship, with maximum speed of 16 kn (18 mph; 30 km/h). They were also very lightly armed as they were intended solely for anti-submarine warfare; many of the RCN's original Flower-class ships were initially fitted with minesweeping equipment, while virtually all of the modified Flowers were fitted with a limited anti-aircraft capability. The original Flowers had the standard RN layout, consisting of a raised forecastle, a well deck, then the bridge or wheelhouse and a continuous deck running aft. The crew quarters were in the forecastle while the galley was at the rear, making for poor messing arrangements.[9] The modified Flowers saw the forecastle extended aft past the bridge to the aft end of the funnel, a variation known as the "long forecastle" design. Apart from providing a very useful space where the whole crew could gather out of the weather, the added weight improved the ships' stability and speed and was applied to a number of the original Flower-class vessels during the mid and latter years of the war. The original Flowers had a mast located immediately forward the bridge, a notable exception to naval practice at that time. The modified Flowers saw the mast returned to the normal position immediately aft of the bridge; this does not seem to have been done in all of the modified builds or conversions of the original vessels. A cruiser stern finished the appearance for all vessels in the class.

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HMCS Riviere du Loup (K357)

HMCS Riviere du Loup (K357)

HMCS Riviere du Loup was a modified Flower-class corvette that served with the Royal Canadian Navy during the Second World War. She fought primarily in the Battle of the Atlantic as a convoy escort. She was named for Rivière-du-Loup, Quebec.

Nazi Germany

Nazi Germany

Nazi Germany was the German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a dictatorship. Under Hitler's rule, Germany quickly became a totalitarian state where nearly all aspects of life were controlled by the government. The Third Reich, meaning "Third Realm" or "Third Empire", alluded to the Nazi claim that Nazi Germany was the successor to the earlier Holy Roman Empire (800–1806) and German Empire (1871–1918). The Third Reich, which Hitler and the Nazis referred to as the Thousand-Year Reich, ended in May 1945 after just 12 years when the Allies defeated Germany, ending World War II in Europe.

Kriegsmarine

Kriegsmarine

The Kriegsmarine was the navy of Germany from 1935 to 1945. It superseded the Imperial German Navy of the German Empire (1871–1918) and the inter-war Reichsmarine (1919–1935) of the Weimar Republic. The Kriegsmarine was one of three official branches, along with the Heer and the Luftwaffe, of the Wehrmacht, the German armed forces from 1935 to 1945.

Naval trawler

Naval trawler

Naval trawlers are vessels built along the lines of a fishing trawler but fitted out for naval purposes; they were widely used during the First and Second World Wars. Some—known in the Royal Navy as "Admiralty trawlers"— were purpose-built to naval specifications, others adapted from civilian use. Fishing trawlers were particularly suited for many naval requirements because they were robust vessels designed to work heavy trawls in all types of weather, and had large clear working decks. A minesweeper could be created by replacing the trawl with a mine sweep. Adding depth charge racks on the deck, ASDIC sonar below, and a 3-inch (76 mm) or 4-inch (102 mm) gun in the bow equipped the trawler for anti-submarine duties.

South Bank, Redcar and Cleveland

South Bank, Redcar and Cleveland

South Bank is an industrial town in the Redcar and Cleveland borough in North Yorkshire, England on the south bank of the River Tees. It is 3 miles (4.8 km) east of Middlesbrough and 6 miles (9.7 km) south-west of Redcar. The town is served by South Bank railway station.

Southern Pride

Southern Pride

Southern Pride was a steam-powered whaler built by the Smiths Dock Company of Middlesbrough in 1936. She was the initial design inspiration for the Flower-class corvettes used to escort convoys in the North Atlantic in World War II. The final design for the Flower class was significantly modified from that of Southern Pride factoring in things like ease of construction.

Mid-Ocean Escort Force

Mid-Ocean Escort Force

Mid-Ocean Escort Force (MOEF) referred to the organisation of anti-submarine escorts for World War II trade convoys between Canada and Newfoundland, and the British Isles. The allocation of United States, British, and Canadian escorts to these convoys reflected preferences of the United States upon their declaration of war, and the organisation persisted through the winter of 1942–43 despite withdrawal of United States ships from the escort groups. By the summer of 1943, United States Atlantic escorts were focused on the faster CU convoys and the UG convoys between Chesapeake Bay and the Mediterranean Sea; and only British and Canadian escorts remained on the HX, SC and ON convoys.

Destroyer escort

Destroyer escort

Destroyer escort (DE) was the United States Navy mid-20th-century classification for a 20-knot warship designed with the endurance necessary to escort mid-ocean convoys of merchant marine ships.

Frigate

Frigate

A frigate is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied somewhat.

Scantling

Scantling

Scantling is a measurement of prescribed size, dimensions, or cross sectional areas.

Canada

Canada

Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's second-largest country by total area, with the world's longest coastline. Its southern and western border with the United States is the world's longest binational land border. Canada's capital is Ottawa and its three largest metropolitan areas are Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver.

Royal Naval Reserve

Royal Naval Reserve

The Royal Naval Reserve (RNR) is one of the two volunteer reserve forces of the Royal Navy in the United Kingdom. Together with the Royal Marines Reserve, they form the Maritime Reserve. The present RNR was formed by merging the original Royal Naval Reserve, created in 1859, and the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve (RNVR), created in 1903. The Royal Naval Reserve has seen action in World War I, World War II, the Iraq War, and War in Afghanistan.

Orders

Early Flower corvettes had a mast before the wheel house.
Early Flower corvettes had a mast before the wheel house.

The RN ordered 145 Flower-class corvettes in 1939, the first 26 on 25 July with a further batch of 30 on 31 August, all under the 1939 Pre-War Programme. Following the outbreak of World War II, the British Admiralty ordered another 20 on 19 September (all from Harland & Wolff) under the 1939 War Programme. This was followed by an order for a further ten Flower-class corvettes from other British shipbuilders two days later. Another 18 were ordered on 12 December and two on 15 December, again from British shipbuilders. The RN ordered the last ten vessels (under the 1939 War Programme) from Canadian shipbuilders in January 1940.

By the end of January 1940, 116 ships were building or on order to this initial design. The ten vessels ordered from Canadian shipbuilders were transferred to the RCN upon completion. Another four vessels were ordered at Smiths Dock Company for the French Navy, the first ship being completed for the Free French Naval Forces in mid-1940 and the other three being taken over by the RN. Another 31 Flowers were ordered by the RN under the 1940 War Programme but six of these (ordered from Harland & Wolff) were cancelled on 23 January 1941.

Later corvettes had more flare at the bow and a longer forecastle.
Later corvettes had more flare at the bow and a longer forecastle.

The RN ordered 27 modified Flower-class corvettes under the 1941 and 1942 War Programmes. British shipbuilders were contracted to build seven of these vessels under the 1941 Programme and five vessels under the 1942 Programme; two vessels (one from each year's Programme) were later cancelled. The RN ordered fifteen modified Flowers from Canadian shipyards under the 1941 programme; eight of these were transferred to the USN under reverse Lend-Lease.

The RCN ordered seventy original and 34 modified Flower-class vessels from Canadian shipbuilders. The Canadian shipbuilders also built seven original Flowers ordered by the USN, which were transferred to the RN under the Lend-Lease Programme upon completion, because wartime shipbuilding production in the United States had reached the level where the USN could dispense with vessels it had ordered in Canada. The RCN vessels had several design variations from their RN counterparts: the "bandstand", where the aft pom-pom gun was mounted, was moved to the rear of the superstructure; the galley was also moved forward, immediately abaft the engine room.

Shortly after the outbreak of war the French Navy ordered 18 Flower-class vessels, 12 from UK yards, two from Ateliers et Chantiers de France at Dunkirk and four from Ateliers et Chantiers de Penhoët at Saint-Nazaire.[10][11] The two At. & Ch. de France ships are listed as "cancelled" but the four Penhoët ships were under construction at the time of the Fall of France and were seized by Nazi Germany.[12] Three were completed for Kriegsmarine service and commissioned in 1943–44 as the Patrouillenboot Ausland patrol ships.[11][13]

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World War II

World War II

World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a global conflict that lasted from 1939 to 1945. The vast majority of the world's countries, including all of the great powers, fought as part of two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis. Many participants threw their economic, industrial, and scientific capabilities behind this total war, blurring the distinction between civilian and military resources. Aircraft played a major role, enabling the strategic bombing of population centres and the delivery of the only two nuclear weapons ever used in war.

Admiralty (United Kingdom)

Admiralty (United Kingdom)

The Admiralty was a department of the Government of the United Kingdom responsible for the command of the Royal Navy until 1964, historically under its titular head, the Lord High Admiral – one of the Great Officers of State. For much of its history, from the early 18th century until its abolition, the role of the Lord High Admiral was almost invariably put "in commission" and exercised by the Lords Commissioner of the Admiralty, who sat on the governing Board of Admiralty, rather than by a single person. The Admiralty was replaced by the Admiralty Board in 1964, as part of the reforms that created the Ministry of Defence and its Navy Department.

French Navy

French Navy

The French Navy, informally La Royale, is the maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the five military service branches of France. It is among the largest and most powerful naval forces in the world, ranking seventh in combined fleet tonnage and fifth in number of naval vessels. The French Navy is one of eight naval forces currently operating fixed-wing aircraft carriers, with its flagship Charles de Gaulle being the only nuclear-powered aircraft carrier outside the United States Navy, and one of two non-American vessels to use catapults to launch aircraft.

Free French Naval Forces

Free French Naval Forces

The Free French Naval Forces were the naval arm of the Free French Forces during the Second World War. They were commanded by Admiral Émile Muselier.

Lend-Lease

Lend-Lease

Lend-Lease, formally the Lend-Lease Act and introduced as An Act to Promote the Defense of the United States, was a policy under which the United States supplied the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union, France, China, and other Allied nations with food, oil, and materiel between 1941 and 1945. The aid was given for free on the basis that such help was essential for the defense of the United States.

Ateliers et Chantiers de France

Ateliers et Chantiers de France

The Ateliers et Chantiers de France was a major shipyard that was established in Dunkirk, France, in 1898. The shipyard boomed in the period before World War I (1914–18), but struggled in the inter-war period. It was badly damaged during World War II (1939–45). In the first thirty years after the war the shipyard again experienced a boom and employed up to 3,000 workers making oil tankers, and then liquid natural gas tankers. Demand dropped off in the 1970s and 1980s. In 1972 the shipyard became Chantiers de France-Dunkerque, and in 1983 merged with others yards to become part of Chantiers du Nord et de la Mediterranee, or Normed. The shipyard closed in 1987.

Dunkirk

Dunkirk

Dunkirk is a commune in the department of Nord in northern France. It lies 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) from the Belgian border. It has the third-largest French harbour. The population of the commune in 2019 was 86,279.

Ateliers et Chantiers de Saint-Nazaire Penhoët

Ateliers et Chantiers de Saint-Nazaire Penhoët

Ateliers et Chantiers de Penhoët was a shipyard established in 1861 by the Scottish engineer John Scott in Saint-Nazaire, France. It was owned by the Compagnie Générale Transatlantique from its founding to 1900. The shipyard was managed by Scott until 1867 when management was transferred to Compagnie des Chantiers et Ateliers de l'Ocean and its successors until the yard temporarily closed in 1871 before reopening a decade later. In 1955 it was combined with Ateliers et Chantiers de la Loire to form Chantiers de l'Atlantique. It also had a shipyard in Grand-Quevilly, near Rouen, during the 1920s.

Saint-Nazaire

Saint-Nazaire

Saint-Nazaire is a commune in the Loire-Atlantique department in western France, in traditional Brittany.

Battle of France

Battle of France

The Battle of France, also known as the Western Campaign, the French Campaign and the Fall of France, was the German invasion of France during the Second World War.

Nazi Germany

Nazi Germany

Nazi Germany was the German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a dictatorship. Under Hitler's rule, Germany quickly became a totalitarian state where nearly all aspects of life were controlled by the government. The Third Reich, meaning "Third Realm" or "Third Empire", alluded to the Nazi claim that Nazi Germany was the successor to the earlier Holy Roman Empire (800–1806) and German Empire (1871–1918). The Third Reich, which Hitler and the Nazis referred to as the Thousand-Year Reich, ended in May 1945 after just 12 years when the Allies defeated Germany, ending World War II in Europe.

Kriegsmarine

Kriegsmarine

The Kriegsmarine was the navy of Germany from 1935 to 1945. It superseded the Imperial German Navy of the German Empire (1871–1918) and the inter-war Reichsmarine (1919–1935) of the Weimar Republic. The Kriegsmarine was one of three official branches, along with the Heer and the Luftwaffe, of the Wehrmacht, the German armed forces from 1935 to 1945.

Armament

Typical BL 4-inch Mk IX gun mounting, here seen on HMS Vervain
Typical BL 4-inch Mk IX gun mounting, here seen on HMS Vervain

The original Flower class were fitted with a 4-inch (102 mm) gun on the bow, depth charge racks carrying 40 charges on the stern, a minesweeping winch and a 2-pounder (40 mm) pom-pom gun on a "bandstand" over the engine room. Due to shortages, a pair of Lewis guns or quadruple Vickers HMG was sometimes substituted for the pom-pom, which would have left the ship very vulnerable to aircraft attack in its envisaged role of coastal convoy escort and patrol in the North Sea. The long-range endurance of the vessels, coupled with early war-time shortages of larger escort warships, saw Flowers assigned to trans-Atlantic convoy escort where Luftwaffe aircraft were rarely encountered. Vessels assigned to the Mediterranean Sea usually had more anti-aircraft guns fitted. Underwater detection capability was provided by a fixed ASDIC dome; this was later modified to be retractable. Subsequent inventions such as the High Frequency Radio Detection Finder (Huff-Duff) were later added, along with various radar systems (such as the Type 271), which proved particularly effective in low-visibility conditions in the North Atlantic.

Loading a depth charge thrower on HMS Dianthus
Loading a depth charge thrower on HMS Dianthus

The Flower class had been designed for inshore patrol and harbour anti-submarine defence and many required minor modifications when the Allied navies began to use them as trans-Atlantic convoy escorts. These small warships could be supported by any small dockyard or naval station, so many ships came to have a variety of weapons systems and design modifications depending upon when and where they were refitted; there is really no such thing as a 'standard Flower-class corvette'

Several of the major changes that vessels in the class underwent are indicated below, in a typical chronological order:

  • Original twin mast configuration changed to single mast in front of the bridge, then moved behind the bridge for improved visibility.
  • Heavy minesweeping gear removed for deep-sea escort work and to improve range.
  • Galley relocated from the stern to midships.
  • Extra depth charge storage racks were fitted at the stern. Later, more depth charges stowed along walkways.
  • Hedgehog fitted to enable remote attacks while keeping ASDIC contact.
  • Surface radar fitted in a "lantern" housing on the bridge.
  • Forecastle lengthened to midships to provide more accommodation and better seaworthiness. Several vessels were given a "three-quarters length" extension.
  • Increased flare at the bow. This and the above modification created the modified Flower design for subsequent orders.
  • Various changes to the bridge, typically lowering and lengthening it. Enclosed compass house removed.
  • Extra twin Lewis guns mounted on the bridge or engine room roof.
  • Oerlikon 20 mm cannons fitted, usually two on the bridge wings but sometimes as many as six spread out along the engine-room roof, depending on the theatre of operations.

A ship could have any mix of these, or other specialist one-off modifications. Ships allocated to other navies such as the RCN or USN usually had different armament and deck layouts. A major difference between the RN vessels and the RCN, USN, and other navies' vessels was the provision of upgraded ASDIC and radar. The RN was a world leader in developing these technologies and RN Flowers were somewhat better-equipped for remote detection of enemy submarines. A good example of this is the difficulty that RCN Flowers had in intercepting U-boats with their Canadian-designed SW1C metric radar, while the RN vessels were equipped with the technologically advanced Type 271 centimetric sets. In addition, RCN vessels were incapable of operating gyrocompasses, making ASDIC attacks more difficult.

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BL 4-inch Mk IX naval gun

BL 4-inch Mk IX naval gun

The BL 4-inch Mk IX naval gun was a British medium-velocity naval gun introduced in 1917 as secondary armament on the Renown-class battlecruisers and Glorious-class "large light cruisers", but which served most notably as the main armament on Flower-class corvettes throughout World War II.

QF 2-pounder naval gun

QF 2-pounder naval gun

The 2-pounder gun, officially the QF 2-pounder and universally known as the pom-pom, was a 40 mm (1.6 in) British autocannon, used as an anti-aircraft gun by the Royal Navy. The name came from the sound that the original models make when firing. This QF 2-pounder was not the same gun as the Ordnance QF 2-pounder, used by the British Army as an anti-tank gun and a tank gun, although they both fired 2 lb (0.91 kg), 40 mm (1.6 in) projectiles.

Lewis gun

Lewis gun

The Lewis gun is a First World War–era light machine gun. Designed privately in the United States though not adopted there, the design was finalised and mass-produced in the United Kingdom, and widely used by troops of the British Empire during the war. It had a distinctive barrel cooling shroud and top-mounted pan magazine. The Lewis served to the end of the Korean War, and was widely used as an aircraft machine gun during both World Wars, almost always with the cooling shroud removed, as air flow during flight offers sufficient cooling.

North Sea

North Sea

The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Denmark, Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium and France. An epeiric sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Sea in the north. It is more than 970 kilometres (600 mi) long and 580 kilometres (360 mi) wide, covering 570,000 square kilometres (220,000 sq mi).

Luftwaffe

Luftwaffe

The Luftwaffe was the aerial-warfare branch of the German Wehrmacht before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the Luftstreitkräfte of the Imperial Army and the Marine-Fliegerabteilung of the Imperial Navy, had been disbanded in May 1920 in accordance with the terms of the 1919 Treaty of Versailles which banned Germany from having any air force.

Mediterranean Sea

Mediterranean Sea

The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant in Western Asia. The Mediterranean has played a central role in the history of Western civilization. Geological evidence indicates that around 5.9 million years ago the Mediterranean was cut off from the Atlantic and was partly or completely desiccated over a period of some 600,000 years during the Messinian salinity crisis before being refilled by the Zanclean flood about 5.3 million years ago.

Sonar

Sonar

Sonar is a technique that uses sound propagation to navigate, measure distances (ranging), communicate with or detect objects on or under the surface of the water, such as other vessels.

Radar

Radar

Radar is a radiolocation system that uses radio waves to determine the distance (ranging), angle (azimuth), and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It is used to detect and track aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, and motor vehicles, and map weather formations, and terrain. A radar system consists of a transmitter producing electromagnetic waves in the radio or microwaves domain, a transmitting antenna, a receiving antenna and a receiver and processor to determine properties of the objects. Radio waves from the transmitter reflect off the objects and return to the receiver, giving information about the objects' locations and speeds.

Type 271 radar

Type 271 radar

The Type 271 was a surface search radar used by the Royal Navy and allies during World War II. The first widely used naval microwave-frequency system, it was equipped with an antenna small enough to allow it to be mounted on small ships like corvettes and frigates, while its improved resolution over earlier radars allowed it to pick up a surfaced U-boat at around 3 miles (4.8 km) and its periscope alone at 900 yards (820 m).

Hedgehog (weapon)

Hedgehog (weapon)

The Hedgehog was a forward-throwing anti-submarine weapon that was used primarily during the Second World War. The device, which was developed by the Royal Navy, fired up to 24 spigot mortars ahead of a ship when attacking a U-boat. It was deployed on convoy escort warships such as destroyers and corvettes to supplement the depth charges.

Gyrocompass

Gyrocompass

A gyrocompass is a type of non-magnetic compass which is based on a fast-spinning disc and the rotation of the Earth to find geographical direction automatically. The use of a gyrocompass is one of the seven fundamental ways to determine the heading of a vehicle. A gyroscope is an essential component of a gyrocompass, but they are different devices; a gyrocompass is built to use the effect of gyroscopic precession, which is a distinctive aspect of the general gyroscopic effect. Gyrocompasses are widely used for navigation on ships, because they have two significant advantages over magnetic compasses:they find true north as determined by the axis of the Earth's rotation, which is different from, and navigationally more useful than, magnetic north, and they are unaffected by ferromagnetic materials, such as in a ship's steel hull, which distort the magnetic field.

Operations

QF2 Mk. VIII pom-pom gun, from HMCS Kamloops, on display in the Lebreton Gallery of the Canadian War Museum
QF2 Mk. VIII pom-pom gun, from HMCS Kamloops, on display in the Lebreton Gallery of the Canadian War Museum

Flower-class corvettes were used extensively by the RN and RCN in the Battle of the Atlantic. They also saw limited service elsewhere with the RN, as well as the USN and several Allied navies such as the Royal Netherlands Navy, the Royal Norwegian Navy, the Royal Hellenic Navy, the Free French Naval Forces, the Royal Indian Navy, and the Royal New Zealand Navy. The Belgian Navy used some of these vessels during World War II, and have continued to use Flower names for their minehunters. Most Royal Navy Flower-class ships drew their officers and crew from the Royal Naval Reserve and the Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve (RNVR). Many RN Flowers had captains drawn from the Merchant Navy.

Service on Flowers in the North Atlantic was typically cold, wet, monotonous and uncomfortable. Every dip of the forecastle into an oncoming wave was followed by a cascade of water into the well deck amidships.[14] Men at action stations were drenched with spray and water entered living spaces through hatches opened for access to ammunition magazines.[14] Interior decks were constantly wet and condensation dripped from the overheads.[14] The head (or sanitary toilet) was drained by a straight pipe to the ocean; and a reverse flow of the icy North Atlantic would cleanse the backside of those using it during rough weather.[14] By 1941 corvettes carried twice as many crewmen as anticipated in the original design.[14] Men slept on lockers or tabletops or in any dark place that offered a little warmth.[14] The inability to store perishable food meant a reliance on preserved food such as corned-beef and powdered potato for all meals.[15]

The Flowers were nicknamed "the pekingese of the ocean". They had a reputation of having poor sea-handling characteristics, most often rolling in heavy seas, with 80-degree rolls, 40 degrees each side of upright, being fairly common; it was said they "would roll on wet grass".[16] Many crewmen suffered severe motion sickness for a few weeks until they acclimatised to shipboard life.[14] Although poor in their sea-handling characteristics, the Flowers were extremely seaworthy; no Allied sailor was ever lost overboard from a Flower during World War II, outside combat.

A typical action by a Flower encountering a surfaced U-boat during convoy escort duties was to run directly at the submarine, forcing it to dive and thus limiting its speed and manoeuvrability. The corvette would then keep the submarine down and preoccupied with avoiding depth charge attacks long enough to allow the convoy to pass safely. The 16 kn (30 km/h; 18 mph) top speed of the Flower-class ships made effective pursuit of a surfaced U-boat [about 17 kn (31 km/h; 20 mph)] impossible, though it was adequate to manoeuvre around submerged U-boats or convoys, both of which ran at a typical maximum of 8 kn (15 km/h; 9.2 mph) and sometimes much less in poor weather. The low speed also made it difficult for Flowers to catch up with the convoy after action.[9]

The Free French Memorial on Lyle Hill in Greenock, looking out to the west of the Tail of the Bank anchorage, has a plaque commemorating the loss of the corvettes Alyssa and Mimosa.[17]
The Free French Memorial on Lyle Hill in Greenock, looking out to the west of the Tail of the Bank anchorage, has a plaque commemorating the loss of the corvettes Alyssa and Mimosa.[17]

This technique was hampered when the Kriegsmarine began deploying its U-boats in "wolf-pack" attacks, which were intended to overwhelm the escort warships of a convoy and allow at least one of the submarines to attack the merchant vessels. Better sensors and armament for the Flowers, such as radar, HF/DF, depth charge projectors and ASDIC, meant these small warships were well equipped to detect and defend against such attacks but the tactical advantage often lay with the attackers, who could mount attacks intended to draw the defending Flower off-station. Success for the Flowers should be measured in terms of tonnage protected, rather than U-boats sunk. Typical reports of convoy actions by these craft include numerous instances of U-boat detection near a convoy, followed by brief engagements using guns or depth charges and a rapid return to station as another U-boat took advantage of the skirmish to attack the unguarded convoy.

Continuous actions against a numerically superior U-boat pack demanded considerable seamanship skills from all concerned and were very wearing on the crews. Thirty-six ships in the class were lost during World War II, many due to enemy action, some to collision with Allied warships and merchant ships. One, sunk in shallow water, was raised and repaired. Of the vessels lost to enemy action, 22 were torpedoed by U-boats, five were mined and four were sunk by aircraft. The Flower-class corvettes are credited with participating in the sinking of 47 German and four Italian submarines. Construction of the Flower-class was superseded toward the end of the war as larger shipyards concentrated on River-class frigates and smaller yards on the improved Castle-class corvette design. The Flower class represented fully half of all Allied convoy escort vessels in the North Atlantic during World War II.

Discover more about Operations related topics

Canadian War Museum

Canadian War Museum

The Canadian War Museum is a national museum on the country's military history in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The museum serves as both an educational facility on Canadian military history, in addition to serving as a place of remembrance. The 440,000 square metres (4,700,000 sq ft) museum building is situated south of the Ottawa River in LeBreton Flats. The museum houses a number of exhibitions and memorials, in addition to a cafeteria, theatre, curatorial and conservation spaces, as well as storage space. The building also houses the Military History Research Centre, the museum's library and archives.

Battle of the Atlantic

Battle of the Atlantic

The Battle of the Atlantic, the longest continuous military campaign in World War II, ran from 1939 to the defeat of Nazi Germany in 1945, covering a major part of the naval history of World War II. At its core was the Allied naval blockade of Germany, announced the day after the declaration of war, and Germany's subsequent counter-blockade. The campaign peaked from mid-1940 through to the end of 1943.

Belgian Navy

Belgian Navy

The Belgian Navy, officially the Belgian Naval Component of the Belgian Armed Forces, is the naval service of Belgium.

Royal Naval Reserve

Royal Naval Reserve

The Royal Naval Reserve (RNR) is one of the two volunteer reserve forces of the Royal Navy in the United Kingdom. Together with the Royal Marines Reserve, they form the Maritime Reserve. The present RNR was formed by merging the original Royal Naval Reserve, created in 1859, and the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve (RNVR), created in 1903. The Royal Naval Reserve has seen action in World War I, World War II, the Iraq War, and War in Afghanistan.

Forecastle

Forecastle

The forecastle is the upper deck of a sailing ship forward of the foremast, or, historically, the forward part of a ship with the sailors' living quarters. Related to the latter meaning is the phrase "before the mast" which denotes anything related to ordinary sailors, as opposed to a ship's officers.

Pekingese

Pekingese

The Pekingese is a breed of toy dog, originating in China. The breed was favored by royalty of the Chinese Imperial court as a companion dog, and its name refers to the city of Peking (Beijing) where the Forbidden City is located. The breed has several characteristics and health issues related to its unique appearance. Because of its desirable characteristics, the Pekingese has been part of the development of designer crossbreeds, such as the Peekapoo and Peke-a-tese.

Rolling

Rolling

Rolling is a type of motion that combines rotation and translation of that object with respect to a surface, such that, if ideal conditions exist, the two are in contact with each other without sliding.

Lyle Hill

Lyle Hill

Lyle Hill stands at the West End of Greenock in Inverclyde, Scotland. It has scenic viewpoints accessible from Lyle Road, which was constructed in 1879–1880 and named after Provost Abram Lyle, well known as a sugar refiner. The hill's highest point is Craigs Top at 426 feet above sea level, and before the road was constructed the hill was known as the Craigs, or as the Bingens.

Naval mine

Naval mine

A naval mine is a self-contained explosive device placed in water to damage or destroy surface ships or submarines. Unlike depth charges, mines are deposited and left to wait until they are triggered by the approach of, or contact with, any vessel or a particular vessel type, akin to anti-infantry vs. anti-vehicle mines. Naval mines can be used offensively, to hamper enemy shipping movements or lock vessels into a harbour; or defensively, to protect friendly vessels and create "safe" zones. Mines allow the minelaying force commander to concentrate warships or defensive assets in mine-free areas giving the adversary three choices: undertake an expensive and time-consuming minesweeping effort, accept the casualties of challenging the minefield, or use the unmined waters where the greatest concentration of enemy firepower will be encountered.

River-class frigate

River-class frigate

The River class was a class of 151 frigates launched between 1941 and 1944 for use as anti-submarine convoy escorts in the North Atlantic. The majority served with the Royal Navy and Royal Canadian Navy (RCN), with some serving in the other Allied navies: the Royal Australian Navy (RAN), the Free French Naval Forces, the Royal Netherlands Navy and, post-war, the South African Navy.

Frigate

Frigate

A frigate is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied somewhat.

Castle-class corvette

Castle-class corvette

The Castle-class corvette was an ocean going convoy escort developed by the United Kingdom during the Second World War. It was the follow-on to the Flower-class corvette, and designed to be built in shipyards that were producing the Flowers. The Castle-class was a general improvement over the smaller Flowers which were designed for coastal rather than open ocean use.

Ships

The following tables list all Flower-class corvettes which served in the Allied navies during World War II.

Flower-class (original)

Free French Navy

Construction data for Flower-class corvettes of the Free French Navy
Ship Builder Laid down Launched Commissioned Paid off Fate
Aconit Ailsa Shipbuilding Co. Ltd., Troon 25 March 1940 31 March 1941 23 July 1941 30 April 1947 Formerly HMS Aconite. Transferred on 23 July 1941 to the Free French Navy. Returned to RN on 30 April 1947. Sold and rebuilt as buoy boat (towing vessel) Terje 11 for United Whalers. 1951 converted to a whale catcher. 1960 sold and renamed Southern Terrier. 1963 sold to Norway and 1967 scrapped in Belgium.
Alysse George Brown & Co., Greenock 24 June 1940 3 March 1941 17 June 1941 9 February 1942 Formerly HMS Alyssum. Transferred on 17 June 1941 to the Free French Navy. Torpedoed and sunk on 9 February 1942 by U-654 while escorting convoy ON-60 about 420 nautical miles (780 km) east of Cape Race at 46-00N, 44-00W. 36 crew were killed.
Commandant d'Estienne d'Orves Charles Hill & Sons Ltd., Bristol 26 May 1941 17 January 1942 23 May 1942 31 May 1947 Formerly HMS Lotus. Transferred on 23 May 1942 to the Free French Navy upon completion. Returned to RN on 31 May 1947 and sold. Rebuilt as buoy boat Southern Lotus for Christian Salvesen. 1953 converted to a whale catcher. 1966 in tow from Melsomvik to Bruges for scrapping stranded near Hvide Sande on the Jutland coast.
Commandant Detroyat Hall, Russell & Co., Aberdeen 19 September 1940 9 June 1941 16 September 1941 1947 Formerly HMS Coriander. Transferred on 16 September 1941 to the Free French Navy. Returned to RN in 1947.
Commandant Drogou Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 17 December 1940 11 April 1941 15 January 1942 May 1947 Formerly HMS Chrysanthemum. Transferred on 26 January 1942 to the Free French Navy. Returned to RN in May 1947 Sold and rebuilt as buoy boat Terje 10 for United Whalers. 1959 sold to Portugal and renamed NRP Carvalho Araújo (A524) and used as survey vessel. 1975 to Angola.
La Bastiaise Smiths Dock Co., South Bank-on-Tees 18 November 1939 8 April 1940 22 June 1940 22 June 1940 First and only Flower-class corvette commissioned into the French Navy before the Fall of France. Mined during sea trials off Hartlepool on day of her commissioning.
Lobelia Alexander Hall & Co., Aberdeen 27 June 1940 15 February 1941 16 July 1941 April 1947 Formerly HMS Lobelia. Transferred on 16 July 1941 to the Free French Navy. Returned to RN in April 1947. Sold and rebuilt as whale catcher Thorgeir for A/S Thor Dahl. Continuous upgrading after the catching seasons until 1955. 1955 steam machinery replaced by a Sulzer diesel engine. 1970 scrapped in Norway.[18]
Mimosa Charles Hill & Sons Ltd., Bristol 22 April 1940 18 January 1941 11 May 1941 9 June 1942 Formerly HMS Mimosa. Transferred on 11 May 1941 to the Free French Navy. Torpedoed and sunk on 9 June 1942 by U-124 while escorting convoy ONS 100 at 52-12N, 32-37W. 58 French and 6 British crew were killed; the French crew being largely from Saint Pierre and Miquelon. 4 survivors rescued by HMCS Assiniboine.
Renoncule W. Simons & Co., Renfrew 19 July 1940 25 June 1941 28 July 1941 1947 Formerly HMS Ranunculus. Transferred on 28 July 1941 to the Free French Navy. Returned to RN in 1947 and sold. Converted to buoy boat Southern Lily. 1952 rebuilt as whale catcher and used in the Antarctic until 1963. 1967 scrapped in Belgium.
Roselys J. Lewis & Sons Ltd., Aberdeen 4 November 1940 28 May 1941 19 September 1941 1947 Formerly HMS Sundew. Transferred on 19 September 1941 to the Free French Navy. Returned to RN in 1947.

Royal Canadian Navy

Construction data for Flower-class corvettes of the Royal Canadian Navy
Ship Builder Laid down Launched Commissioned Paid Off Fate
Agassiz Burrard Dry Dock Co. Ltd., North Vancouver (city), British Columbia 29 April 1940 15 August 1940 23 January 1941 14 June 1945 Sold on 16 November 1945.
Alberni Canadian Yarrow, Esquimalt, British Columbia 29 April 1940 22 August 1940 4 February 1941 21 August 1944 Torpedoed and sunk on 21 August 1944 by U-480 while escorting a convoy in the English Channel south of St. Catherine's Point at 50-18N, 00-51W. 59 crew killed and 31 rescued by RN Motor Torpedo Boats.
Algoma Port Arthur Shipbuilding Co., Port Arthur, Ontario 18 June 1940 17 December 1940 11 July 1941 6 July 1945 Transferred in 1945 to Venezuela as Constitucion.
Amherst Saint John Dry Dock and Shipbuilding Co. Ltd., Saint John, New Brunswick 23 May 1940 4 December 1940 5 August 1941 16 July 1945 Wrecked in 1945 while under tow.
Arrowhead Marine Industries Ltd., Sorel-Tracy, Quebec 11 April 1940 8 August 1940 22 November 1940 27 June 1945 Formerly HMS Arrowhead. Transferred to RCN 22 November 1940. Returned to RN 27 June 1945.
Arvida Morton Engineering & Dry Dock Co., Quebec City 28 February 1940 21 September 1940 22 May 1941 14 June 1945 Sold in 1950 to Spain as mercantile La Ceie.
Baddeck Davie Shipbuilding & Repairing Co. Ltd., Lauzon, Quebec 14 August 1940 20 November 1940 18 May 1941 4 July 1945 Sold in 1947 as mercantile Efthai.
Barrie Collingwood Shipyards Ltd., Collingwood, Ontario 4 April 1940 23 November 1940 12 May 1941 26 June 1945 Sold in 1947 as mercantile Gasestado.
Battleford Collingwood Shipyards Ltd., Collingwood, Ontario 30 September 1940 15 April 1941 31 July 1941 18 July 1945 Sold in 1946 to Venezuela as Libertad.
Bittersweet Marine Industries Ltd., Sorel-Tracy 17 April 1940 12 September 1940 23 January 1941 22 June 1945 Formerly HMS Bittersweet. Transferred to RCN 23 January 1941. Returned to RN 22 June 1945.
Brandon Davie Shipbuildingg & Repairing Co. Ltd., Lauzon, Quebec 10 October 1940 29 April 1941 22 July 1941 22 June 1945 Sold on 5 October 1945.
Brantford Midland Shipyards Ltd., Midland, Ontario 24 February 1941 6 September 1941 15 May 1942 17 August 1945 Converted 1950 to whale catcher Olympic Arrow.
Buctouche Davie Shipbuilding & Repairing Co. Ltd., Lauzon, Quebec 14 August 1940 20 November 1940 5 June 1941 15 June 1945 Sold on 23 October 1945. Scrapped in 1949 at Hamilton, Ontario.
Calgary Marine Industries Ltd., Sorel-Tracy 22 March 1941 23 August 1941 16 December 1941 19 June 1945 Sold 30 August 1946. Scrapped 1951 at Hamilton, Ontario.
Camrose Marine Industries 17 February 1940 16 November 1940 30 June 1941 22 July 1945 Scrapped in Canada.
Chambly Canadian Vickers Ltd., Montreal 20 February 1940 29 July 1940 18 December 1940 20 June 1945 Sold in 1946. 1954 as Dutch whale catcher Sonia Vinkle (AM20) in service. Scrapped in October 1966 at Santander, Spain.
Charlottetown Kingston Shipbuilding Co. Ltd., Kingston, Ontario 7 June 1941 10 September 1941 13 December 1941 11 September 1942 Torpedoed and sunk on 11 September 1942 by U-517 off Cap-Chat.
Chicoutimi Canadian Vickers Ltd., Montreal 5 July 1940 16 October 1940 12 May 1941 16 June 1945 Scrapped in 1946 at Hamilton, Ontario.
Chilliwack Burrard Dry Dock Co. Ltd., North Vancouver (city) 3 July 1940 14 September 1940 8 April 1941 14 July 1945 Sold on 5 October 1945. Scrapped in 1946 at Hamilton, Ontario.
Cobalt Port Arthur Shipbuilding Co., Port Arthur, Ontario 1 April 1940 17 August 1940 25 November 1940 17 June 1945 In the Netherlands 1953 as whale catcher Johanna W. Vinke (AM5²) in service. Scrapped 15 December 1961 in South Africa.
Collingwood Collingwood Shipyards Ltd., Collingwood, Ontario 2 March 1940 27 July 1940 19 November 1940 23 July 1945 Scrapped in 1950 at Hamilton, Ontario.
Dauphin Canadian Vickers Ltd., Montreal 6 July 1940 24 October 1940 17 May 1941 20 June 1945 Sold in 1949 to Honduras as mercantile Cortes.
Dawson Victoria Machinery Depot Co. Ltd., Victoria, British Columbia 7 September 1940 8 February 1941 6 October 1941 19 June 1945 Scrapped in 1946 at Hamilton, Ontario.
Drumheller Collingwood Shipyards Ltd., Collingwood, Ontario 4 December 1940 5 July 1941 13 September 1941 11 July 1945 Scrapped in 1949 at Hamilton, Ontario.
Dundas Victoria Machinery Depot Co. Ltd., Victoria, British Columbia 19 March 1941 25 July 1941 1 April 1942 17 July 1945 Sold on 23 October 1945.
Dunvegan Marine Industries Ltd., Sorel-Tracy 30 August 1940 11 December 1940 9 September 1941 3 July 1945 Sold in 1946 to Venezuela as Independencia. Scrapped in 1953.
Edmundston Canadian Yarrow, Esquimalt, British Columbia 23 August 1940 22 February 1941 21 October 1941 16 June 1945 Sold in 1948 to Liberia as mercantile Amapala.
Eyebright Canadian Vickers Ltd., Montreal 20 February 1940 22 July 1940 26 November 1940 17 June 1945 Formerly Eyebright. Transferred to RCN 26 November 1940. Returned to RN 17 June 1945. Became 1950 Dutch whale catcher Albert W. Vinke (AM2²).
Fennel Marine Industries Ltd., Sorel-Tracy 29 March 1940 20 August 1940 15 May 1941 12 June 1945 Formerly HMS Fennel. Transferred to RCN 15 May 1941. Returned to RN 12 June 1945. 1948 sold to Norway and converted to buoy tender Milliam Khil by Howaldtswerke, Kiel, 1951 conversion to whale catcher in Kiel,1966 scrapped
Fredericton Marine Industries Ltd., Sorel-Tracy 22 March 1941 2 September 1941 8 December 1941 14 July 1945 Sold in 1946 as mercantile Tra Los Montes. Resold in 1950 as whaler Olympic Fighter and in 1956 as Otori Maru No. 6 and then Kyo Maru No. 20. (Note : the register may actually have mistook it with HMCS Saskatoon.)
Galt Collingwood Shipyards Ltd., Collingwood, Ontario 27 May 1940 28 December 1940 15 May 1941 21 June 1945 Sold on 5 October 1945. Scrapped in 1946 at Hamilton, Ontario.
Halifax Collingwood Shipyards Ltd., Collingwood, Ontario 26 April 1941 4 October 1941 26 November 1941 12 July 1945 Sold in 1945 as mercantile Halifax.
Hepatica Davie Shipbuilding & Repairing Co. Ltd., Lauzon, Quebec 24 February 1940 6 July 1940 15 May 1941 27 June 1945 Formerly HMS Hepatica. Transferred to RCN 15 May 1941. Returned to RN 27 June 1945.
Kamloops Victoria Machinery Depot Co. Ltd., Victoria, British Columbia 29 April 1940 7 August 1940 17 March 1941 27 June 1945 Sold on 19 October 1945.
Kamsack Port Arthur Shipbuilding Co., Port Arthur, Ontario 20 November 1940 5 May 1941 4 October 1941 22 July 1945 Sold in 1945 to Venezuela as Carabobo. Lost in December 1945.
Kenogami Port Arthur Shipbuilding Co., Port Arthur, Ontario 20 April 1940 5 September 1940 29 June 1941 9 July 1945 Scrapped in January 1950 in Canada.
Kitchener G T Davie, Lauzon, Quebec 28 February 1941 18 November 1941 28 June 1942 11 July 1945 Formerly Vancouver. Scrapped in September 1949 in Canada.
La Malbaie Marine Industries Ltd., Sorel-Tracy 22 March 1941 25 October 1941 28 April 1942 28 June 1945 Formerly Fort William. Sold on 17 October 1945.
Lethbridge Canadian Vickers Ltd., Montreal 5 August 1940 21 November 1940 25 June 1941 23 July 1945 1955 in service as Dutch whale catcher Nicolaas W. Vinke (AM22). Scrapped in September 1966 at Santander, Spain.
Levis G T Davie, Lauzon, Quebec 11 March 1940 4 September 1940 16 May 1941 19 September 1941 Torpedoed and sunk 19 September 1941 by U-74 while escorting convoy SC 44 east of Cape Farewell at 60-07N, 38-37W. 18 crew killed and 91 rescued.
Louisburg Morton Engineering & Dry Dock Co., Quebec City 4 October 1940 27 May 1941 2 October 1941 6 February 1943 Bombed and torpedoed on 6 February 1943 by Luftwaffe aircraft while escorting convoy KMF-8 off Cape Tenes in Mediterranean Sea at 36-15N, 00-15E. 59 crew killed, 50 rescued.
Lunenburg G T Davie, Lauzon, Quebec 28 September 1940 10 July 1941 4 December 1941 23 July 1945 Scrapped in June 1946 in Canada.
Matapedia Morton Engineering & Dry Dock Co., Quebec City 2 February 1940 14 September 1940 9 May 1941 16 June 1945 Scrapped in December 1950 in Canada.
Mayflower Canadian Vickers Ltd., Montreal 20 February 1940 3 July 1940 15 May 1941 31 May 1945 Formerly HMS Mayflower. Transferred to RCN 15 May 1941. Returned to RN 31 May 1945.
Midland Midland Shipyards Ltd., Midland, Ontario 24 February 1941 25 June 1941 17 November 1941 15 July 1945 Sold on 19 November 1945. Scrapped in 1946 at Fort William, Ontario.
Moncton Saint John Dry Dock and Shipbuilding Co. Ltd., Saint John, New Brunswick 17 December 1940 11 August 1941 24 April 1942 12 December 1945 Sold in 1955 to the Netherlands as whale catcher Willem Vinke (AM21). Scrapped in 1966 at Santander, Spain.
Moose Jaw Collingwood Shipyards Ltd., Collingwood, Ontario 12 August 1940 9 April 1941 19 June 1941 8 July 1945 Scrapped in September 1949 in Canada.
Morden Port Arthur Shipbuilding Co., Port Arthur, Ontario 25 October 1940 5 May 1941 6 September 1941 29 June 1945 Scrapped in November 1946 in Canada.
Nanaimo Canadian Yarrow, Esquimalt, British Columbia 27 April 1940 28 October 1940 26 April 1941 28 September 1945 Sold in 1952 to the Netherlands, became whale catcher René W. Vinke (AM 7²).
Napanee Kingston Shipbuilding Co. Ltd., Kingston, Ontario 20 March 1940 31 August 1940 12 May 1941 12 July 1945 Scrapped in June 1946 in Canada.
New Westminster Victoria Machinery Depot Co. Ltd., Victoria, British Columbia 4 February 1941 14 May 1941 31 January 1942 21 June 1945 Sold in 1950 as mercantile Elisa. Resold in 1952 as mercantile Portoviejo and in 1954 as mercantile Azura. Scrapped in 1966 at Tampa, Florida.
Oakville Port Arthur Shipbuilding Co., Port Arthur, Ontario 21 December 1940 21 June 1941 18 November 1941 20 July 1945 Sold in 1946 to Venezuela as Patria.
Orillia Collingwood Shipyards Ltd., Collingwood, Ontario 4 March 1940 15 September 1940 25 November 1940 2 July 1945 Scrapped in January 1951 in Canada.
Pictou Davie Shipbuilding & Repairing Co. Ltd., Lauzon, Quebec 12 July 1940 5 October 1940 29 April 1941 12 July 1945 1950 converted to whale catcher Olympic Chaser. Resold in 1956 as Otori Maru No. 7. Converted in 1963 to a barge.
Port Arthur Port Arthur Shipbuilding Co., Port Arthur, Ontario 28 April 1941 18 September 1941 26 May 1942 11 July 1945 Sold on 23 October 1945. Scrapped in 1948 at Hamilton, Ontario.
Prescott Kingston Shipbuilding Co. Ltd., Kingston, Ontario 31 August 1940 7 January 1941 26 June 1941 20 July 1945
Quesnel Victoria Machinery Depot Co. Ltd., Victoria 9 May 1940 12 November 1940 23 May 1941 3 July 1945 Sold on 5 October 1945. Scrapped in 1946 at Hamilton, Ontario.
Regina Marine Industries Ltd., Sorel-Tracy 22 March 1941 14 October 1941 22 January 1942 8 August 1944 Torpedoed and sunk on 8 August 1944 by U-667 off Trevose Head at 50-42N, 05-03W. 30 crew were killed.
Rimouski Davie Shipbuilding & Repairing Co. Ltd., Lauzon, Quebec 12 July 1940 3 October 1940 26 April 1941 24 July 1945 Scrapped in December 1950 in Canada.
Rosthern Port Arthur Shipbuilding Co., Port Arthur, Ontario 18 June 1940 30 November 1940 17 June 1941 19 July 1945 Scrapped in June 1946 in Canada.
Sackville Saint John Dry Dock and Shipbuilding Co. Ltd., Saint John, New Brunswick 28 May 1940 15 May 1941 30 December 1941 8 April 1946 Transferred in 1953 to Department of Fisheries as research ship Sackville. Acquired in 1982 by the Canadian Naval Corvette Trust and restored to 1944 configuration. Now a museum ship at the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic in Halifax, operated by the Canadian Naval Memorial Trust. Sackville is the last remaining Flower-class corvette.
Saskatoon Canadian Vickers Ltd., Montreal 9 August 1940 7 November 1940 9 June 1941 25 June 1945 Sold in 1948 as whaling ship Tra los Montes. Resold in 1950 as mercantile Olympic Fighter, in 1956 as Otori Maru No. 6, and in 1961 as Kyo Maru No. 20 (Note : the register may actually have mistook it with HMCS Fredericton.)
Shawinigan G T Davie, Lauzon, Quebec 4 June 1940 16 May 1941 19 September 1941 25 November 1944 Torpedoed and sunk with all hands 25 November 1944 by U-1228 in the Cabot Strait at 47-34N, 59-11W.
Shediac Davie Shipbuilding & Repairing Co. Ltd., Lauzon, Quebec 5 October 1940 29 April 1941 8 July 1941 28 August 1945 Sold in 1952 to the Netherlands, conversion to whale catcher Jooske W. Vinke (AM19). Scrapped in 1966 at Santander, Spain.
Sherbrooke Marine Industries Ltd., Sorel-Tracy 5 August 1940 25 October 1940 5 June 1941 28 June 1945 Scrapped in May 1947 in Canada.
Snowberry Davie Shipbuilding & Repairing Co. Ltd., Lauzon, Quebec 24 February 1940 8 August 1940 26 November 1940 8 June 1945 Formerly HMS Snowberry. Transferred to RCN on 26 November 1940. Returned to RN on 8 June 1945.
Sorel Marine Industries Ltd., Sorel-Tracy 24 August 1940 16 November 1940 19 August 1941 22 June 1945 Sold on 16 November 1945.
Spikenard Davie Shipbuilding & Repairing Co. Ltd., Lauzon, Quebec 24 February 1940 10 August 1940 15 May 1941 11 February 1942 Formerly HMS Spikenard. Transferred to RCN 15 May 1941. Torpedoed and sunk on 11 February 1942 by U-136 while escorting convoy SC 67 west of Malin Head at 56-10N, 21-07W. 8 crew survived.
Sudbury Kingston Shipbuilding Co. Ltd., Kingston, Ontario 25 January 1941 31 May 1941 15 October 1941 28 August 1945 Sold in 1949 as mercantile as deep sea salvage tug Sudbury. Scrapped 1967. Refer to the book High Seas, High Risk: The Story of the Sudburys by Pat Norris for details of her career as a salvage tug.
Summerside Morton Engineering & Dry Dock Co., Quebec City 4 October 1940 7 May 1941 11 September 1941 6 July 1945 Scrapped in June 1946 in Canada.
The Pas Collingwood Shipyards Ltd., Collingwood, Ontario 7 January 1941 16 August 1941 21 October 1941 24 July 1945 Sold on 16 September 1945. Scrapped 1946 at Hamilton, Ontario.
Timmins Canadian Yarrow, Esquimalt, British Columbia 14 December 1940 26 June 1941 10 February 1942 15 July 1945 Sold in 1948 as mercantile Guayaquil. Lost on 3 August 1960.
Trail Burrard Dry Dock Co. Ltd., North Vancouver (city) 20 July 1940 16 October 1940 30 April 1941 17 July 1945 Scrapped in August 1950 in Canada.
Trillium Canadian Vickers Ltd., Montreal 20 February 1940 26 June 1940 31 October 1940 27 June 1945 Formerly HMS Trillium. Transferred to RCN 31 October 1940. Returned to RN 27 June 1945. Converted 1950 to whale catcher Olympic Runner, 1956 resold as Otori Maru No. 10, then Kyo Maru No. 16
Vancouver Canadian Yarrow, Esquimalt, British Columbia 16 June 1941 26 August 1941 20 March 1942 26 June 1945 Formerly HMCS Kitchener.
Ville de Quebec Morton Engineering & Dry Dock Co., Quebec City 7 June 1941 12 November 1941 24 May 1942 6 July 1945 Sold in 1946 as mercantile Dispina. Resold in 1947 as mercantile Dorothea Paxos, in 1948 as Tanya, and in 1949 as Medex.
Wetaskiwin Burrard Dry Dock Co. Ltd., North Vancouver 11 April 1940 18 July 1940 17 December 1940 19 June 1945 Formerly HMCS Banff. Sold in 1946 to Venezuela as Victoria.
Weyburn Port Arthur Shipbuilding Co., Port Arthur, Ontario 21 December 1940 26 July 1941 26 November 1941 22 February 1943 Mined on 22 February 1943 off Cape Espartel at 36-46N, 06-02W. 7 crew were killed.
Windflower Davie Shipbuilding & Repairing Co. Ltd., Lauzon, Quebec 25 February 1940 4 July 1940 15 May 1941 7 December 1941 Formerly HMS Windflower. Transferred to RCN 15 May 1941. Sunk 7 December 1941 while escorting convoy SC 58 after collision with freighter Zypenberg in dense fog on the Grand Banks at 46-19N, 49-30W. 23 crew were lost.
Woodstock Collingwood Shipyards Ltd., Collingwood, Ontario 23 May 1941 10 December 1941 1 May 1942 27 January 1945 Converted 1951 to whale catcher Olympic Winner. Resold in 1956 as Otori Maru 20 and in 1957 as Akitsu Maru. Scrapped in 1975 at Etajima.

Royal Navy

Construction data for Flower-class corvettes of the Royal Navy
Ship Builder Laid down Launched Commissioned Paid off Fate
Abelia Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 19 August 1940 28 November 1940 3 February 1941 Torpedoed and badly damaged on 9 January 1944 by a U-boat. Sold in 1947. Resold 1948 to Norway, converted in Kiel to buoy tender Kraft, 1951 converted to whale catcher. Resold in 1954 and renamed Arne Skontorp. Scrapped in 1966 in Norway.
Acanthus Ailsa Shipbuilding Co. Ltd., Troon 21 December 1939 26 May 1941 Transferred on 1 October 1941 before completion to Norway as HNoMS Andenes. 1956 sold and converted to whale catcher Colyn Frye. 1970 scrapped.
Aconite Ailsa Shipbuilding Co. Ltd., Troon 25 March 1940 31 March 1941 FFL Transferred on 23 July 1941 to the Free French Navy as Aconit. Returned to RN on 30 April 1947. Sold in July 1947 and rebuilt as whale catcher Terje 11, 1960 Southern Terrier, 1964 laid up and 1966 scrapped
Alisma Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 19 August 1940 17 December 1940 13 February 1941[19] Sold in 1947. Resold in 1949 as mercantile Laconia, in 1950 as mercantile Constantinos S, and in 1952 as mercantile Parnon. Sunk 16 July 1954.
Alyssum George Brown & Co., Greenock 24 June 1940 3 March 1941 Transferred on 17 June 1941 to the Free French Navy as Alysse.
Amaranthus Fleming & Ferguson Ltd., Paisley 4 May 1940 17 October 1940 12 February 1941 Sold in 1946 as mercantile ship. Scrapped in 1953 at Hong Kong.
Anchusa Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 17 September 1940 15 January 1941 1 March 1941 Sold in 1946. Resold in 1949 as mercantile Silverlord and in 1954 as mercantile Sir Edgar. Sunk 18 January 1960. Salvaged and scrapped in Mauritius.
Anemone Blyth Shipbuilding & Drydock Co. Ltd., Blyth, Northumberland[20] 26 October 1939[20] 22 April 1940[20] 12 August 1940[20] Sold in November 1949. Resold on 3 October 1950 to Norway as buoy tender Pelkan, 1951 rebuilt as whale catcher, sold December 1963, renamed Østfold, Scrapped 1 November 1964.
Arabis Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 30 October 1939 14 February 1940 5 April 1940 30 April 1942 Transferred on 30 April 1942 to USN as Saucy. Returned to RN 26 August 1945 and renamed HMS Snapdragon. Sold in 1947 as mercantile Katina.
Arbutus Blyth Shipbuilding & Drydock Co. Ltd., Blyth, Northumberland[20] 30 November 1939[20] 5 June 1940[20] 12 October 1940[20] 5 February 1942[20] Torpedoed and sunk on 5 February 1942 by U-136[21] west of Erris Head at 55-05N, 18-43W. Shared sinking of U-70 on 7 March 41. Probable shared sinking of U-47 same day.
Armeria Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 17 September 1940 16 January 1941 28 March 1941 Sold in 1947. Resold in 1948 as mercantile Deppie, in 1950 as mercantile Canastel, in 1952 as mercantile Rio Blanco and in 1955 as mercantile Lillian.
Arrowhead Marine Industries Ltd., Sorel-Tracy 11 April 1940 8 August 1940 Transferred on 22 November 1940 before completion to RCN as HMCS Arrowhead. Returned RN 27 June 1945. Sold in May 1947. Resold in 1948 as whale catcher Southern Larkspur. 1953 laid up. Scrapped in November 1959 at Odense.
Asphodel George Brown & Co., Greenock[20] 20 October 1939[20] 25 May 1940[20] 11 September 1940[20] 10 March 1944 Torpedoed and sunk 10 March 1944 by U-575[22] while escorting convoys SL 150 and MKS 41 at 45-24N, 18-09W. 92 crew were killed, 5 survivors rescued by HMS Clover.
Aster Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 15 October 1940 12 February 1941 9 April 1941 Scrapped on 29 May 1946 at Bo'ness.
Aubrietia George Brown & Co., Greenock[20] 27 October 1939[20] 5 September 1940[20] 23 December 1940[20] Sold on 29 July 1946. Resold in October 1948 as buoy tender Arnfinn Bergan. Converted in 1951 to whale catcher. 1966 scrapped.
Auricula George Brown & Co., Greenock[20] 25 November 1939[20] 14 November 1940[20] 5 March 1941[20] 6 May 1942 Mined on 6 May 1942 in Courrier Bay, Madagascar at 12-12S, 49-19E. Foundered the following day while under tow.
Azalea Cook, Welton & Gemmell, Beverley[20] 15 November 1939[20] 8 July 1940[20] 27 January 1941 Sold on 5 April 1946 as mercantile Norte. Sunk on 19 January 1955.
Balsam George Brown & Co., Greenock 16 April 1941 30 May 1942 28 November 1942 Formerly Chelmer. Scrapped on 20 April 1947 at Newport.
Begonia Cook, Welton & Gemmell, Beverley[20] 13 March 1940[20] 18 September 1940[20] 3 March 1941[20] 10 March 1942 Transferred on 10 March 1942 to USN as USS Impulse. Returned to RN on 22 August 1945. Sold on 22 July 1946 as mercantile Begonlock. Resold in 1949 as mercantile Fundiciones Molinao, in 1951as mercantile Astiluzu and in 1956 as mercantile Rio Mero.
Bellwort George Brown & Co., Greenock 17 September 1940 11 August 1941 20 November 1941 Sold to Ireland and handed over on the on 3 February 1947 to the Irish Naval Service as the LÉ Cliona, pennant number 03. Commissioned on the same date. Taken out of service July 1969, she was decommissioned on 2 November 1970 and shortly afterwards was scrapped at Passage West, Cork Harbour.
Bergamot Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 15 October 1940 15 February 1941 12 May 1941 Sold in May 1946 as mercantile ship. Resold in 1947 as mercantile Syros, in 1951 as mercantile Delphini and in 1955 as mercantile Ekaterini.
Bittersweet Marine Industries Ltd., Sorel-Tracy 17 April 1940 12 September 1940 Transferred on 23 January 1941 before completion to RCN as HMCS Bittersweet on 23 January 1941. Returned to RN on 22 June 1945. Scrapped in November 1950.
Bluebell Fleming & Ferguson Ltd., Paisley[20] 25 October 1939[20] 24 April 1940[20] 19 July 1940[20] 17 February 1945[20] Torpedoed and sunk on 17 February 1945 by U-711[23] off the Kola Inlet at 69-36N, 35-29E.
Borage George Brown & Co., Greenock 27 November 1940 22 November 1941 29 April 1942 Sold to Ireland and handed over on the 15 November 1946 to the Irish Naval Service and commissioned the same day as Macha. Pennant Number 01. Originally built as a Flotilla Commander with extra accommodation and a 3/4 deck. Taken out of service in December 1968 and decommissioned on 2 November 1970, sold for scrap on 22 November 1970. Scrapped at Passage West, Cork Harbour.
Bryony Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 16 November 1940 15 March 1941 4 June 1942 Bombed and sunk by the Luftwaffe on 15 April 1941 during sea trials. Raised and repaired. Transferred to the Royal Norwegian Navy in 1947, in service as weathership HNoMS Polarfront.
Burdock John Crown & Sons Ltd., Sunderland 13 June 1940 14 December 1940 27 March 1941 Sold in June 1946. Scrapped in August 1946 at Hayle.
Buttercup Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 17 December 1940 10 April 1941 24 April 1942 20 December 1944 Served from 23 April 1942 to 20 December 1944 in the Royal Navy Section Belge, crewed with Belgian volunteers. Transferred on 20 December 1944 to Royal Norwegian Navy as HNoMS Buttercup. Bought in 1946 by Norway and renamed HNoMS Nordkyn. 1956 sold and converted to diesel-driven whale catcher Thoris. 1969 scrapped.
Calendula Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 30 October 1939 21 March 1940 6 May 1940 12 March 1942 Transferred on 12 March 1942 to USN as USS Ready. Returned to RN on 23 August 1945. Sold on 22 July 1946. Resold in 1948 as mercantile Villa Cisneros and in 1949 as mercantile Villa Bens.
Camellia Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 14 November 1939 4 May 1940 18 June 1940 Shared sinking of U-70 7 March 1941. Probable shared sinking of U-47 same day. Sold on 9 August 1946. Resold in 1948 as whale catcher Hetty W. Vinkle (AM9).
Campanula Fleming & Ferguson Ltd., Paisley[20] 26 October 1939[20] 23 May 1940[20] 6 September 1940[20] Scrapped on 21 August 1947 at Dunston. Nicholas Monsarrat served aboard as officer.
Campion John Crown & Sons Ltd., Sunderland 16 September 1940 20 June 1941 7 July 1941 Sold on 20 April 1947 and scrapped at Newport.
Candytuft Grangemouth Dry Dock Co., Grangemouth[20] 31 October 1939[20] 8 July 1940[20] 16 October 1940[20] 4 March 1942 Transferred on 4 March 1942 to USN as USS Tenacity. Returned to RN on 26 August 1945. Sold on 9 July 1946. Resold in 1947 as mercantile Maw Hwa.
Carnation Grangemouth Dry Dock Co., Grangemouth[20] 26 February 1940[20] 3 September 1940[20] 22 February 1941[20] Transferred on 26 March 1943 to the Royal Netherlands Navy as HNLMS Frisco. Returned to RN on 4 October 1944. Sold on 31 March 1948 as mercantile ship. Resold in 1949, became whale catcher Southern Laurel. Scrapped in 1966 at Stavanger.
Celandine Grangemouth Dry Dock Co., Grangemouth[20] 30 April 1940[20] 28 December 1940[20] 30 April 1941[20] Shared sinking of U-556 27 June 41. Sold in October 1948 and scrapped at Portaferry.
Chrysanthemum Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 17 December 1940 11 April 1941 Transferred on 26 January 1942 to the Free French Navy as Commandant Drogou. Returned to RN in May 1947. Sold on 7 August 1947. Resold in 1948 as mercantile Terje 10. Resold on 23 May 1959 to Portugal as hydrographic survey vessel NRP Carvalho Araújo (A524) until 3 September 1975 when she was transferred to the Angolan Navy.
Clarkia Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 30 October 1939 7 March 1940 22 April 1940 Sold on 30 July 1947 for scrap.
Clematis Charles Hill & Sons Ltd., Bristol[20] 11 October 1939[20] 22 April 1940[20] 27 July 1940[20] Scrapped in September 1949 at Charlestown.
Clover Fleming & Ferguson Ltd., Paisley 29 July 1940 30 January 1941 13 May 1941 Sold on 17 May 1947 as mercantile Cloverlock. Resold to People's Republic of China as mercantile Kai Feng.
Coltsfoot Alexander Hall & Co., Aberdeen 4 September 1940 15 May 1941 1 November 1941 Sold in 1947 as mercantile Alexandra.
Columbine Charles Hill & Sons Ltd., Bristol[20] 2 November 1939[20] 13 August 1940[20] 9 November 1940[20] Sold on 9 August 1946. Resold and renamed Leif Welding in 1949, used as buoy tender, then whale catcher. Scrapped in 1966 at Grimstad.
Convolvulus Charles Hill & Sons Ltd., Bristol[20] 17 January 1940[20] 22 September 1940[20] 26 February 1941[20] Sold on 21 August 1947 and scrapped on 5 October 1947 at Newport.
Coreopsis A. & J. Inglis Ltd., Glasgow[20] 19 September 1939[20] 23 May 1940[20] 17 August 1940[20] 10 November 1943 Transferred on 10 November 1943 to the Royal Hellenic Navy as Kriezis. Returned to RN on 1 June 1952. Portrayed the fictional HMS Compass Rose (K49) in the 1953 film The Cruel Sea. Scrapped on 22 July 1952 at Sunderland.
Coriander Hall, Russell & Co., Aberdeen 19 September 1940 9 June 1941 Transferred on 16 September 1941 to the Free French Navy as Commandant Detroyant. Returned to RN in 1947. Scrapped in 1948 at Troon.
Cowslip Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 16 January 1941 28 May 1941 9 August 1941 Sold in July 1948. Scrapped in April 1949 at Troon.
Crocus A. & J. Inglis Ltd., Glasgow[20] 26 October 1939[20] 26 June 1940[20] 20 October 1940[20] Badly damaged U-333 by ramming her twice 6 October 1942. Sold on 22 July 1946 as mercantile Annlock. Scrapped in 1952 at Hong Kong.
Cyclamen J. Lewis & Sons Ltd., Aberdeen[20] 30 November 1939[20] 20 June 1940[20] 30 September 1940[20] Sold in 1947. Resold in 1948, became whale catcher Southern Briar. Wrecked 1966 at Thorsminde while under tow for demolition in Belgium.
Dahlia J. Lewis & Sons Ltd., Aberdeen[20] 28 February 1940[20] 31 October 1940[20] 21 March 1941[20] Scrapped on 28 October 1948 at Gelliswick Bay.
Delphinium Henry Robb Ltd., Leith[20] 31 October 1939[20] 6 June 1940[20] 15 November 1940[20] Scrapped in February 1949 at Pembroke Dock.
Dianella J. Lewis & Sons Ltd., Aberdeen[20] 8 December 1939[20] 3 September 1940[20] 6 January 1941[20] Formerly Daffodil. Scrapped on 24 June 1947 at Portaferry.
Dianthus Henry Robb Ltd., Leith[20] 31 October 1939[20] 9 July 1940[20] 17 March 1941[20] Sank U-379 single-handed by both ramming and depth-charging enemy 8 August 42. Sold in May 1947 as mercantile ship. Resold in June 1949 to Norway as buoy tender Thorslep. Rebuilt in 1950 to whale catcher. Scrapped in June 1969 at Grimstad.
Eglantine Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 16 January 1941 11 June 1941 Transferred on 29 August 1941 to Royal Norwegian Navy as Eglantine. Sold to Norway on 10 August 1946 as fishery protection service Soroy.
Erica Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 22 February 1940 18 June 1940 9 August 1940 9 February 1943 Mined and sunk on 9 February 1943 while escorting a convoy in the Mediterranean Sea off Derna, Libya at 32-48N, 21-10E. Entire crew rescued by HMSAS Southern Maid.
Eyebright Canadian Vickers Ltd., Montreal 20 February 1940 22 July 1940 Transferred on 26 November 1940 before completion to RCN as HMCS Eyebright. Returned to RN on 17 June 1945. Sold on 17 May 1947. Resold in 1950 to the Netherlands as mercantile Albert W. Vinke. Scrapped in 1965 at Cape Town.
Fennel Marine Industries Ltd., Sorel-Tracy 29 March 1940 20 August 1940 Transferred on 15 May 1941 before completion to RCN as HMCS Fennel. Shared sinking of U-744 6 March 44. Returned to RN on 12 June 1945. Sold 1948 to Norway as Milliam Kihl. Converted October 1948 as buoy tender, then 1951 in West Germany to whale catcher. Laid up 1960–61. Last whaling season 1964–65. Scrapped in 1966 at Grimstad.
Fleur de Lys Smiths Dock Co., South Bank-on-Tees 30 January 1940 21 June 1940 26 August 1940 14 October 1941 Launched as La Dieppoise for the French Navy. Completed for RN after the Fall of France. Torpedoed and sunk by U-206[24] west of Gibraltar at 36-00N, 06-30W. There were 3 survivors.
Freesia Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 18 June 1940 3 October 1940 19 November 1940 Sold on 22 July 1946 as mercantile Freelock. Sunk on 1 April 1947.
Fritillary Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 15 February 1941 22 July 1941 1 November 1941 Sold on 19 March 1946. Resold in 1947 as mercantile Andria and in 1949 as mercantile V.D. Chidambaram. Scrapped in 1955 in India.
Gardenia W. Simons & Co., Renfrew[20] 20 September 1939[20] 10 April 1940[20] 24 May 1940[20] 9 November 1942[20] Rammed and sunk off Oran at 35-49N, 01-05W in collision with HMS Fluellen.
Genista Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 15 February 1941 24 July 1941 8 December 1941 Sold in 1947 as weather ship Weather Recorder. Scrapped in 1961.
Gentian Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 20 April 1940 6 August 1940 20 September 1940 Scrapped on 21 August 1947 at Purfleet.
Geranium W. Simons & Co., Renfrew[20] 21 September 1939[20] 10 April 1940[20] 24 June 1940[20] Shared sinking of U-306 31 October 43. Transferred on 8 September 1945 to Royal Danish Navy as Thetis.
Gladiolus Smiths Dock Co., South Bank-on-Tees[20] 19 October 1939[20] 24 January 1940[25] 6 April 1940 17 October 1941 Torpedoed and sunk on 17 October 1941 by U-553[26] while escorting convoy SC 48 south of Iceland at 57-00N, 25-00W. All hands were lost. Shared sinkings of U-26 1 July 40 and U-556 27 June 41.
Gloriosa Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast Cancelled on 23 January 1941. Pennant number K201
Gloxinia Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 21 March 1940 2 July 1940 22 August 1940 Scrapped on 15 July 1947 at Purfleet.
Godetia Smiths Dock Co., South Bank-on-Tees 4 January 1940 8 May 1940 15 July 1940 6 September 1940 Rammed and sunk 3 miles (4.8 km) off Altacarry Head at 55-18N, 05-57W in collision with mercantile Marsa.
Godetia John Crown & Sons Ltd., Sunderland 15 January 1941 24 September 1941 23 February 1942 Formerly Dart. Served from 12 February 1942 to 16 Dezember 1944 in the Royal Navy Section Belge, crewed with Belgian volunteers. Sold on 22 May 1947 and scrapped at Grays.
Harebell Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast Cancelled on 23 January 1941. Pennant K202
Heartsease Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 14 November 1939 20 April 1940 4 June 1940 3 April 1942 Transferred on 3 April 1942 to USN as Courage. Returned to RN on 23 August 1945. Sold on 22 July 1946. Resold in 1951 as mercantile Roskva, in 1956 as mercantile Douglas, and in 1958 as mercantile Seabird. Lost in December 1958.
Heather Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 22 May 1940 17 September 1940 1 November 1940 Sold on 22 May 1947 and scrapped at Grays.
Heliotrope John Crown & Sons Ltd., Sunderland 23 October 1939 5 June 1940 12 September 1940 24 March 1942 Transferred on 24 March 1942 to USN as Surprise. Returned to RN on 26 August 1945. Sold as mercantile ship. Finally served in People's Liberation Army Navy as Lin I.
Hemlock Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast Cancelled on 23 January 1941.
Hepatica Davie Shipbuilding & Repairing Co. Ltd., Lauzon, Quebec 24 February 1940 6 July 1940 Transferred on 15 May 1941 before completion to RCN as HMCS Hepatica. Returned to RN on 27 June 1945. Scrapped on 1 January 1948 at Llanelly.
Hibiscus Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 14 November 1939 6 April 1940 21 May 1940 2 May 1942 Transferred on 2 May 1942 to USN as Spry. Returned to RN on 26 August 1945. Sold as mercantile Madonna. Scrapped in 1955 at Hong Kong.
Hollyhock John Crown & Sons Ltd., Sunderland 27 November 1939 19 August 1940 19 November 1940 9 April 1942 Bombed and sunk on 9 April 1942 by Japanese aircraft east of Ceylon at 07-21N, 81-57E.
Honeysuckle Ferguson Bros. (Port Glasgow) Ltd., Port Glasgow 26 October 1939 22 April 1940 14 September 1940 Sold in 1950 and scrapped in November 1950 at Grays.
Hyacinth Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 20 April 1940 19 August 1940 3 October 1940 24 October 1943 Shared sinking of U-617 by gunfire after enemy ran aground 12 September 43. Transferred on 24 October 1943 to Royal Hellenic Navy as Apostolis. Returned to RN in 1952.
Hyderabad Alexander Hall & Co., Aberdeen 24 December 1940 23 September 1941 23 February 1942 Formerly Nettle. Shared sinking of U-436 26 May 43. Sold on 1 January 1948 and scrapped in October 1948 at Portaferry.
Hydrangea Ferguson Bros. (Port Glasgow) Ltd., Port Glasgow 22 November 1939 4 September 1940 3 January 1941 Shared sinking of U-401 3 August 41. Sold in 1947. Resold in 1948 as mercantile Hydralock. Wrecked on 25 February 1957 off Taiwan.
Ivy Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast Cancelled on 23 January 1941. Pennant number K204.
Jasmine Ferguson Bros. (Port Glasgow) Ltd., Port Glasgow 23 December 1939 14 January 1941 16 May 1941 Sold on 11 September 1948 for scrap.
Jonquil Fleming & Ferguson Ltd., Paisley 27 December 1939 9 July 1940 21 October 1940 Sold in May 1946. Resold in 1947 as mercantile Lemnos. Resold in 1951 as Olympic Rider. Whale catcher sank in Antarctic waters on 1 December 1955 after collision with Olympic Cruiser.
Kingcup Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 19 July 1940 31 October 1940 30 December 1940 Sold on 31 July 1946. Resold in 1947 as mercantile Rubis and in 1954 as mercantile Seislim. Scrapped in 1959 at Hendrik-Ido-Ambacht.
La Malouine Smiths Dock Co., South Bank-on-Tees 13 November 1939 21 March 1940 29 July 1940 Launched and commissioned as La Malouine for the French Navy. Seized by and completed for RN after the Fall of France (name not changed). Scrapped on 22 May 1947 at Gelliswick Bay.
Larkspur Fleming & Ferguson Ltd., Paisley 26 March 1940 5 September 1940 4 January 1941 17 March 1942 Transferred on 17 March 1942 to USN as Fury. Returned to RN on 22 August 1945. Sold on 22 July 1946 as mercantile Larkslock. Scrapped in 1953 at Hong Kong.
Lavender Alexander Hall & Co., Aberdeen 30 April 1940 27 November 1940 16 May 1941 Sold on 9 August 1946. Resold 1948 to the Netherlands and converted to whale catcher Eugene Vinke (AM10)
Ling Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast Cancelled on 23 January 1941.
Lobelia Alexander Hall & Co., Aberdeen 27 June 1940 15 February 1941 Transferred on 16 July 1941 to the Free French Navy as Lobelia (name not changed). Sank U-609 single-handed 7 February 43. Returned to RN in April 1947. Sold on 3 May 1947 to Norway as mercantile ship. Resold in July 1948 as buoy tender Thorgeir. Rebuilt as whale catcher, since 1955 diesel-engined. Scrapped in 1969 at Grimstad.
Loosestrife Hall, Russell & Co., Aberdeen 9 December 1940 25 August 1941 25 November 1941 Sold on 4 October 1946. Resold in 1947 as mercantile Kallsevni.
Lotus Charles Hill & Sons Ltd., Bristol 26 May 1941 17 January 1942 23 May 1942 Transferred on 23 May 1942 to the Free French Navy as Commandant d'Estienne d'Orves. Returned to RN on 31 May 1947. Sold 23 October 1947. BU May 1951.
Mallow Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 14 November 1939 22 May 1940 2 July 1940 11 January 1944 Shared sinking of U-204 19 October 41. Transferred on 11 January 1944 to the Yugoslav Navy as Nada. Renamed in 1948 as Partizanka. Returned to RN in 1948. Transferred in 1948 to the Egyptian Navy as El Sudan.
Marguerite Hall, Russell & Co., Aberdeen 30 December 1939 8 July 1940 20 November 1940 Sold in 1947 as a weather ship becoming Ocean Weather Ship (OWS) Weather Observer.[27][28] Scrapped on 8 September 1961 at Ghent.
Marigold Hall, Russell & Co., Aberdeen 26 January 1940 4 September 1940 28 February 1941 9 December 1942 Torpedoed and sunk on 9 December 1942 by the Aviazione Ausiliara per la Marina while escorting convoy KMS.3Y off Algiers at 36-50N, 03-00E. 40 crew were killed.
Marjoram Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast Cancelled on 23 January 1941. Pennant number K206
Mayflower Canadian Vickers Ltd., Montreal 20 February 1940 3 July 1940 Transferred on 15 May 1941 before completion to RCN as Mayflower. Returned to RN on 31 May 1945. Scrapped on 20 September 1949 at Inverkeithing.
Meadowsweet Charles Hill & Sons Ltd., Bristol 12 August 1941 28 March 1942 8 July 1942 Sold on 31 March 1951 to the Netherlands for conversion as whale catcher Gerrit W. Vinkle (AM 1²).
Mignonette Hall, Russell & Co., Aberdeen 15 July 1940 28 January 1941 7 May 1941 Shared sinkings of U-135 15 July 43 and U-1199 21 April 45. Sold in 1946. Resold in 1948 as mercantile Alexandrouplis. Sunk on 30 November 1948.
Mimosa Charles Hill & Sons Ltd., Bristol 22 April 1940 18 January 1941 Transferred on 11 May 1941 to the Free French Navy as Mimosa (name not changed).
Monkshood Fleming & Ferguson Ltd., Paisley 1 October 1940 17 April 1941 31 July 1941 Sold in 1947. Resold in 1948 as buoy tender W.R. Strang. Converted to whale catcher. Resold in 1957 as Toshi Maru. Scrapped in Japan in 1965.
Montbretia Fleming & Ferguson Ltd., Paisley 16 November 1940 27 May 1941 Transferred on 29 September 1941 to Royal Norwegian Navy as HNoMS Montbretia.
Myosotis J. Lewis & Sons Ltd., Aberdeen 21 June 1940 28 January 1941 30 May 1941 Sold on 2 September 1946 to Faroe Islands as trawler Grunningur. Resold in 1949 as buoy tender, then diesel-engined whale catcher Thorørn. Scrapped in 1969 at Grimstad.
Narcissus J. Lewis & Sons Ltd., Aberdeen 9 September 1940 29 March 1941 17 July 1941 Sold in April 1946 as mercantile Este.
Nasturtium Smiths Dock Co., South Bank-on-Tees 23 March 1940 4 July 1940 26 September 1940 Launched as La Paimpolaise for the French Navy. Completed for RN after the Fall of France. Shared sinking of U-556 27 June 1941. Sold in 1946.
Nigella George Philip & Son Ltd., Dartmouth, Devon 28 November 1939 21 September 1940 25 February 1941 Sold in 1947 as mercantile Nigelock. Sunk on 10 March 1955.
Orchis Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 18 June 1940 15 October 1940 29 November 1940 21 August 1944 Sank U-741 single-handed 15 August 44. Mined and heavily damaged on 21 August 1944 off Courseulles-sur-Mer. Beached on Juno Beach and declared a total loss.
Oxlip A. & J. Inglis Ltd., Glasgow 9 December 1940 28 August 1941 28 December 1941 Sold to Ireland. Handed over on the 20 December 1946 to the Irish Naval Service as the LÉ Maeve, pennant number 02. Commissioned the same day. By late 1970 she was unfit to put to sea and was decommissioned in 1971. She was sold for scrapping on 23 March 1972 and removed to Passage West, Cork Harbour the following day.
Pennywort A. & J. Inglis Ltd., Glasgow 11 March 1941 18 October 1941 5 March 1942 Sold in 1947. Scrapped in February 1949 at Troon.
Pentstemon George Philip & Son Ltd., Dartmouth, Devon 28 November 1939 18 January 1941 31 July 1941 Sold in 1946. Resold in 1947 as mercantile Galaxidi and in 1951 as mercantile Rosa Vlassi.
Peony Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 24 February 1940 4 June 1940 2 August 1940 1943 Transferred in 1943 to the Royal Hellenic Navy as Sachtouris. Returned to RN in September 1951. Scrapped on 21 April 1952.
Periwinkle Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 30 October 1939 24 February 1940 8 April 1940 15 March 1942 Shared sinking of U-147 2 June 1941. Transferred on 15 March 1942 to USN as USS Restless. Returned to RN on 26 August 1945. Sold in 1947 as mercantile Perilock. Scrapped in 1953 at Hong Kong.
Petunia Henry Robb Ltd., Leith 4 December 1939 19 September 1940 13 January 1941 Sold in January 1946 to the Republic of China Navy as Fu Po. Sunk on 19 March 1947.
Phlox Henry Robb Ltd., Leith ? 16 January 1942 May 1942 Renamed Lotus (ii) April 1942 after transfer of Lotus (i) to France. Sold in 1947/January 1948 as mercantile Southern Lotus. Refitted in 1948 as a buoy tender. Refitted in 1950 as a whaling ship. Sold in December 1966 for scrapping in Belgium. Wrecked 18 December 1966 off Jutland, Denmark, while being towed from Norway to Belgium for scrapping together with her sister Southern Briar (ex-HMS Cyclamen).
Picotee Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 21 March 1940 19 July 1940 5 September 1940 12 August 1941 Torpedoed and sunk on 12 August 1941 by U-568[29] while escorting convoy ONS 4 south of Iceland at 62-00N, 16-01W. All hands were lost.
Pimpernel Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 19 July 1940 16 November 1940 9 January 1941 Sold on 6 February 1948. Scrapped in October 1948 at Portaferry.
Pink Henry Robb Ltd., Leith 20 May 1941 16 February 1942 2 July 1942 27 June 1944 Torpedoed and heavily damaged on 27 June 1944 by U-988[30] off Normandy at 49-48N, 00-49W. Declared a total loss and scrapped in 1947 at Llanelly.
Polyanthus Henry Robb Ltd., Leith 19 March 1940 30 November 1940 24 April 1941 21 September 1943 Torpedoed and sunk on 21 September 1943 by U-952[31] while escorting convoy ON 202 at 57-00N, 31-10W. 1 survivor rescued by Itchen but was killed when Itchen was torpedoed and sunk by U-666 on 23 September 1943.
Poppy Alexander Hall & Co., Aberdeen 6 March 1941 20 November 1941 12 May 1942 Sold in 1946 as mercantile Rami. Scrapped in 1956.
Potentilla W. Simons & Co., Renfrew 28 February 1941 18 December 1941 Transferred on 16 January 1942 to the Royal Norwegian Navy as Potentilla. Returned to RN on 13 March 1944. Sold on 13 March 1946 and scrapped at Gateshead.
Primrose W. Simons & Co., Renfrew 22 September 1939 8 May 1940 15 July 1940 Sold on 9 August 1946. Resold in June 1949 as buoy tender Mek V. Resold in 1952 as whaling ship Norfinn. Sold in October 1965. Scrapped in June 1966 in Belgium.
Primula W. Simons & Co., Renfrew 23 September 1939 22 June 1940 27 August 1940 Sold on 22 July 1946. Resold in 1947 as mercantile Marylock. Scrapped in 1953 at Hong Kong.
Ranunculus W. Simons & Co., Renfrew 19 July 1940 25 June 1941 Transferred on 28 July 1941 to the Free French Navy as Renoncule. Returned to RN in 1947. Sold in 1947 as buoy tender, later whale catcher Southern Lily. 1963 Laid up. Scrapped on 9 January 1967 at Bruges.
Rhododendron Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 22 May 1940 2 September 1940 18 October 1940 Sold on 17 May 1947. Resold 1950 to the Netherlands and converted to whale catcher Maj Vinke (AM15)
Rockrose Charles Hill & Sons Ltd., Bristol 28 October 1940 26 July 1941 4 November 1941 Transferred on 4 October 1947 to the South African Navy as HMSAS Protea.
Rose W. Simons & Co., Renfrew 3 September 1940 22 September 1941 Transferred on 31 October 1941 to the Royal Norwegian Navy as Rose.
Salvia W. Simons & Co., Renfrew 26 September 1939 6 August 1940 20 September 1940 24 December 1941 Torpedoed and sunk on 24 December 1941 by U-568[32] west of Alexandria at 31-46N, 28-00E. All hands were lost plus a number of the crew, servicemen and POW's rescued from the loss of SS Shuntien torpedoed and sunk by U-559 on 23 December 1941
Samphire Smiths Dock Co., South Bank-on-Tees 4 December 1940 14 April 1941 30 June 1941 30 January 1943 Shared sinking of U-567 21 December 41. Torpedoed and sunk on 30 January 1943 by Italian submarine Platino while escorting convoy TE-14 off Béjaïa at 36-56N, 05-40E.
Saxifrage Charles Hill & Sons Ltd., Bristol 1 February 1941 24 October 1941 6 February 1942 Transferred in August 1947 to Royal Norwegian Navy as Polarfront I.
Snapdragon Smiths Dock Co., South Bank-on-Tees 27 September 1939 3 September 1940 28 October 1940 19 December 1942 Bombed and sunk on 19 December 1942 by the Luftwaffe northwest of Benghazi at 32-18N, 19-54E.
Snowberry Davie Shipbuilding & Repairing Co. Ltd., Lauzon, Quebec 24 February 1940 8 August 1940 Transferred on 26 November 1940 before completion to RCN as Snowberry. Shared sinking of U-536 20 November 43. Returned to RN on 8 June 1945. Scrapped in August 1947 at Middlesbrough.
Snowdrop Smiths Dock Co., South Bank-on-Tees 4 February 1941 12 May 1941 30 July 1941 Sold on 17 May 1947. Scrapped in September 1949 at Newcastle upon Tyne.
Snowflake Smiths Dock Co., South Bank-on-Tees 19 May 1941 22 August 1941 2 November 1941 Formerly Zenobia. Shared sinking of U-125 3 July 43 by gunfire. Sold in 1947 as weather ship Weather Watcher. Scrapped in May 1962 at Dublin.
Spikenard Davie Shipbuilding & Repairing Co. Ltd., Lauzon, Quebec 24 February 1940 10 August 1940 Transferred on 15 May 1941 before completion to RCN as Spikenard.
Spiraea A. & J. Inglis Ltd., Glasgow 31 May 1940 31 October 1940 27 February 1941 Sold in August 1947. Resold in 1948 as mercantile Thessalonika.
Starwort A. & J. Inglis Ltd., Glasgow 11 June 1940 12 February 1941 26 May 1941 Shared sinking of U-660 12 November 42 (scuttled). Sold in 1948, converted to whale catcher Southern Broom. 1963 laid up. Scrapped on 9 January 1967 at Bruges.
Stonecrop Smiths Dock Co., South Bank-on-Tees 4 February 1941 12 May 1941 30 July 1941 Shared sinking of U-124 2 April 43. Shared sinking of U-634 30 August 43. Sold on 17 May 1947. Resold in 1949 as mercantile Silver King. 1952 in Dutch service as whale catcher Martha W. Vinke (AM 6²).
Sundew J. Lewis & Sons Ltd., Aberdeen 4 November 1940 28 May 1941 Transferred on 19 September 1941 to the Free French Navy as Roselys. Returned to RN in 1947. Sold on 23 October 1947 and scrapped in May 1948 at Troon.
Sunflower Smiths Dock Co., South Bank-on-Tees 24 May 1940 19 August 1940 25 January 1941 The most successful Royal Navy Flower-class. Shared sinking of U-282 29 October 43. Sank single-handed 2 U-boats: U-631 17 October 43 and U-638 5 May 43. Scrapped in August 1947 at Hayle.
Sweetbriar Smiths Dock Co., South Bank-on-Tees 4 April 1941 26 June 1941 8 September 1941 Sold on 29 July 1946. Resold in June 1949 as whale catcher Star IX. Scrapped in April 1966 at Bruges.
Tamarisk Fleming & Ferguson Ltd., Paisley 10 February 1941 28 July 1941 26 December 1941 November 1943 Formerly Ettrick, renamed before completion. Shared sinking of U-82 6 February 42. Transferred in November 1943 to Royal Hellenic Navy as Tombazis. Returned to RN in 1952. Scrapped on 20 March 1952 in the United Kingdom.
Thyme Smiths Dock Co., South Bank-on-Tees 30 April 1941 25 July 1941 23 October 1941 Sold in 1947 as weather ship Weather Explorer. Resold in 1958 as mercantile Epos and scrapped in Hong Kong in 1962.
Trillium Canadian Vickers Ltd., Montreal 20 February 1940 26 June 1940 Transferred on 31 October 1940 before completion to RCN as HMCS Trillium. Returned to RN on 25 June 1945. Sold in 1950 as whale catcher Olympic Runner. Resold in 1956 as Otori Maru 10, then in 1959 as Kyo Maru No. 16.
Tulip Smiths Dock Co., South Bank-on-Tees 30 May 1940 4 September 1940 18 November 1940 Sold in May 1947. Resold in 1950 as whale catcher Olympic Conqueror. Confiscated November 1954 by Peru. In 1956 sold to Japan as Otori Maru No. 8. Resold in 1957 as Thorlyn and in November 1964 to Sweden. Scrapped in 1965 in West Germany.
Verbena Smiths Dock Co., South Bank-on-Tees 29 June 1940 1 October 1940 19 December 1940 Sold on 17 May 1947. Scrapped on 1 October 1951 at Blyth, Northumberland.
Veronica Smiths Dock Co., South Bank-on-Tees 9 July 1940 17 October 1940 18 February 1941 16 February 1942 Transferred on 16 February 1942 to USN as Temptress. Returned to RN on 26 August 1945. Sold in 1946 as mercantile Verolock. Sank in 1947. Raised in 1951 and scrapped at Blyth, Northumberland.
Vervain Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 16 November 1940 12 March 1941 9 June 1941 20 February 1945 Formerly Broom. Torpedoed and sunk on 20 February 1945 by U-1276[33] southeast of Dungarvan at 51-47N, 07-06W.
Vetch Smiths Dock Co., South Bank-on-Tees 15 March 1941 27 May 1941 11 August 1941 Shared sinking of U-252 14 April 42. Sank U-414 single-handed 25 May 43. Sold in August 1945. Resold in 1948 as mercantile Patrai, in 1951 as whale catcher Olympic Hunter and in 1956 as Otori Maru No. 18.
Violet W. Simons & Co., Renfrew 21 March 1940 30 December 1940 3 February 1941 10 February 1946 Shared sinking of U-651 29 June 41. Sank U-641 single-handed 19 January 44. Sold on 17 May 1947 as mercantile La Aguerra. Resold in 1949 to Spain as mercantile La Guera then in 1958 as mercantile Claudio Sabadell. Scrapped in October 1970 at Bilbao
Wallflower Smiths Dock Co., South Bank-on-Tees 23 July 1940 14 November 1940 7 March 1941 Shared sinking of U-523 25 August 43. Sold on 29 July 1946. Resold in 1949 as buoy tender Asbjørn Larsen, 1950 converted to whale catcher. Scrapped in October 1966 at Grimstad.
Windflower Davie Shipbuilding & Repairing Co. Ltd., Lauzon, Quebec 25 February 1940 4 July 1940 Transferred on 15 May 1941 before completion to RCN as Windflower.
Woodruff W. Simons & Co., Renfrew 29 April 1940 28 February 1941 7 April 1941 Sold in 1947, converted to whale catcher. Resold in 1948 as buoy tender Southern Lupin and later as whale catcher. 1950 to 1952 and since 1954 laid up. Scrapped in 1959 at Odense.
Zinnia Smiths Dock Co., South Bank-on-Tees 20 August 1940 28 November 1940 30 March 1941 23 August 1941 Torpedoed and sunk on 23 August 1941 by U-564[34] while escorting convoy OG-71 west of Portugal at 40-25N, 10-40W.

South African Navy

Construction data for Flower-class corvettes of the South African Navy
Ship Builder Laid down Launched Commissioned Paid off Fate
Protea Charles Hill & Sons Ltd., Bristol 28 October 1940 26 July 1941 4 October 1947 Formerly Rockrose. Transferred on 4 October 1947 to the South African Navy. Converted to a survey vessel. Scrapped in 1967.

Royal Netherlands Navy

Construction data for Flower-class corvettes of the Royal Netherlands Navy
Ship Builder Laid down Launched Commissioned Paid off Fate
Friso Grangemouth Dry Dock Co., Grangemouth 31 October 1939 8 July 1940 26 March 1943 4 October 1944 Formerly Carnation. Transferred on 26 March 1943 to the Royal Netherlands Navy. Returned to RN on 4 October 1944.

Royal Norwegian Navy

Construction data for Flower-class corvettes of the Royal Norwegian Navy
Ship Builder Laid down Launched Commissioned Paid off Fate
Andenes Ailsa Shipbuilding Co. Ltd., Troon 21 December 1939 26 May 1941 1 October 1941 1956 Formerly HMS Acanthus. Transferred to the Royal Norwegian Navy on 1 October 1941. Bought by Norway in 1946 as a fishery protection ship. Reclassified in 1950 as a frigate with pennant number F307. Sold in 1956 as whale catcher Colin Frye. Resold in 1957 as Toshi Maru No. 2. Scrapped in 1970 in Japan.
Buttercup Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 17 December 1940 10 April 1941 20 December 1944 November 1957 Formerly HMS Buttercup. Transferred to the Royal Norwegian Navy on 20 December 1944. Bought by Norway in 1946 as fishery protection ship Nordkyn. Sold in November 1957 as whaling ship Thoris. Scrapped in June 1969.
Eglantine Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 16 January 1941 11 June 1941 29 August 1941 August 1956 Formerly HMS Eglantine. Transferred to the Royal Norwegian Navy on 29 August 1941. Bought by Norway in 1946 as fishery protection ship Soroy. Sold in August 1956 and converted to diesel-engined whale catcher Thorglimt. Scrapped in June 1969 at Grimstad.
Montbretia Fleming & Ferguson Ltd., Paisley 16 November 1940 27 May 1941 29 September 1941 18 November 1942 Formerly HMS Montbretia. Transferred to the Royal Norwegian Navy on 29 September 1941. Torpedoed and sunk by U-262 on 18 November 1942 at 53-37N, 38-15W. 48 crew killed, 23 survivors were rescued by Potentilla.
Potentilla W. Simons & Co., Renfrew 28 February 1941 18 December 1941 16 January 1942 13 March 1944 Formerly HMS Potentilla. Transferred to the Royal Norwegian Navy on 16 January 1942. Returned to RN on 13 March 1944.
Rose W. Simons & Co., Renfrew 3 September 1940 22 September 1941 31 October 1941 26 October 1944 Formerly HMS Rose. Transferred to the Royal Norwegian Navy on 26 October 1941 and commissioned on 31 October 1941. Rammed and sunk on 26 October 1944 by Manners at 45-50N, 40-15W. 3 crew were killed.

Royal Hellenic Navy

Construction data for Flower-class corvettes of the Royal Hellenic Navy
Ship Builder Laid down Launched Commissioned Paid off Fate
Apostolis Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 20 April 1940 19 August 1940 24 October 1943 1952 Formerly HMS Hyacinth. Transferred to the Royal Hellenic Navy on 24 October 1943. Returned to RN in 1952.
Kriezis A. & J. Inglis Ltd., Glasgow 19 September 1939 23 April 1940 10 November 1943 1 June 1952 Formerly HMS Coreopsis. Transferred to the Royal Hellenic Navy on 10 November 1943. Returned to RN on 1 June 1952.
Sachtouris Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 24 February 1940 4 June 1940 1943 1951 Formerly HMS Peony. Transferred to the Royal Hellenic Navy in 1943. Returned to RN in September 1951.
Tombazis Fleming & Ferguson Ltd., Paisley 10 February 1941 28 July 1941 November 1943 Formerly HMS Tamarisk. Transferred to the Royal Hellenic Navy in November 1943. Returned to RN in 1952.

United States Navy

Construction data for Flower-class corvettes of the United States Navy
Ship Builder Laid down Launched Commissioned Paid off Fate
Courage Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 14 November 1939 20 April 1940 3 April 1942 22 August 1945 Formerly HMS Heartsease. Transferred to USN on 3 April 1942. Returned to RN on 23 August 1945.
Fury Fleming & Ferguson Ltd., Paisley 26 March 1940 5 September 1940 17 March 1942 22 August 1945 Formerly HMS Larkspur. Transferred to USN on 17 March 1942. Returned to RN on 22 August 1945.
Impulse Cook, Welton & Gemmell, Beverley 13 March 1940 18 September 1940 10 March 1942 22 August 1945 Formerly HMS Begonia. Transferred to USN on 10 March 1942. Returned to RN on 22 August 1945.
Ready Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 30 October 1939 21 March 1940 12 March 1942 23 August 1945 Formerly HMS Calendula. Transferred to USN on 12 March 1942. Returned to RN on 23 August 1945.
Restless Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 30 October 1939 24 February 1940 15 March 1942 20 August 1945 Formerly HMS Periwinkle. Transferred to USN on 15 March 1942. Returned to RN on 26 August 1945.
Saucy Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 30 October 1939 14 February 1940 30 April 1942 20 August 1945 Formerly HMS Arabis. Transferred to USN on 30 April 1942. Returned to RN on 26 August 1945.
Spry Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast 14 November 1939 6 April 1940 2 May 1942 20 August 1945 Formerly HMS Hibiscus. Transferred to the USN on 2 May 1942. Returned to RN on 26 August 1945.
Surprise John Crown & Sons Ltd., Sunderland 23 October 1939 5 June 1940 24 March 1942 20 August 1945 Formerly HMS Heliotrope. Transferred to USN on 24 March 1942. Returned to RN on 26 August 1945.
Temptress Smiths Dock Co., South Bank-on-Tees 9 July 1940 17 October 1940 21 March 1942 20 August 1945 Formerly HMS Veronica. Transferred to USN on 16 February 1942. Returned to RN on 26 August 1945.
Tenacity Grangemouth Dry Dock Co., Grangemouth 31 October 1939 8 July 1940 11 June 1942 22 August 1945 Formerly HMS Candytuft. Transferred to USN on 4 March 1942. Returned to RN on 26 August 1945.

Flower-class (modified)

Royal Canadian Navy

Construction data for modified Flower-class corvettes of the Royal Canadian Navy
Ship Builder Laid down Launched Commissioned Paid off Fate
Asbestos Morton Engineering & Dry Dock Co., Quebec City 20 July 1943 22 November 1943 16 June 1944 8 July 1945 Scrapped in March 1949 at New Orleans.
Atholl Morton Engineering & Dry Dock Co., Quebec City 15 August 1942 4 April 1943 14 October 1943 17 July 1945 Scrapped in October 1952 in Canada.
Beauharnois Morton Engineering & Dry Dock Co., Quebec City 8 November 1943 11 May 1944 25 September 1944 12 July 1945 Sold in 1946 to the "Mossad Le'Aliya bet" in Quebec (The Institute for Immigration B) as a passenger vessel Yoashia Wegwood.[35] Transferred to Israel in 1948 as corvette HaShomer.
Belleville Kingston Shipbuilding Co. Ltd., Kingston, Ontario 21 January 1944 17 June 1944 19 October 1944 5 July 1945 Sold in 1947 to the Dominican Republic as Juan Bautista Cambiaso.
Brampton Cancelled in December 1943.
Charlottetown Kingston Shipbuilding Co. Ltd., Kingston, Ontario 7 June 1941 10 September 1941 13 December 1941 11 September 1942 Torpedoed and sunk on 11 September 1942 by U-517 while escorting convoy SQ-30 in the Saint Lawrence River north of Cap-Chat at 49-10N, 66-50W. 9 crew killed.
Cobourg Midland Shipyards Ltd., Midland, Ontario 25 November 1942 14 July 1943 11 May 1944 15 June 1945 Sold in 1947 as mercantile Camco. Resold in 1956 to Panama as mercantile Puerto del Sol. Burned and sunk in 1971.
Fergus Collingwood Shipyards Ltd., Collingwood, Ontario 10 December 1943 30 August 1944 18 November 1944 14 July 1945 Sold in 1945 as mercantile Camco II. Resold in 1948 as Hartcourt Kent. Wrecked in 1949.
Forrest Hill Ferguson Bros. (Port Glasgow) Ltd., Port Glasgow 5 February 1943 30 August 1943 1 December 1943 9 July 1945 Formerly Ceanothos. Transferred to RCN before completion.
Frontenac Kingston Shipbuilding Co. Ltd., Kingston, Ontario 19 February 1943 2 June 1943 26 October 1943 22 July 1945 Sold in October 1945 to United Ship Corporation.
Giffard Alexander Hall & Co., Aberdeen 30 November 1942 19 June 1943 10 November 1943 5 July 1945 Formerly Buddleia. Scrapped in October 1952 in Canada.
Guelph Collingwood Shipyards Ltd., Collingwood, Ontario 29 May 1943 20 December 1943 9 May 1944 27 June 1945 Sold in 1945 to Panama as mercantile Guelph (name not changed). Resold in 1956 as Burfin.
Hawkesbury Morton Engineering & Dry Dock Co., Quebec City 20 July 1943 16 November 1943 14 June 1944 10 July 1945 Sold in 1950 to Cambodia as Campuchea.
Ingersoll Cancelled in December 1943.
Lachute Morton Engineering & Dry Dock Co., Quebec City 24 November 1943 9 June 1944 26 October 1944 10 July 1945 Sold in 1947 to the Dominican Republic and renamed Cristobal Colon. Wrecked by Hurricane David on 30 August 1979.[36]
Lindsay Midland Shipyards Ltd., Midland, Ontario 30 September 1942 4 June 1943 15 November 1943 18 July 1945 Sold in 1946 as mercantile North Shore.
Listowel Cancelled in December 1943.
Long Branch A. & J. Inglis Ltd., Glasgow 27 February 1943 28 September 1943 5 January 1944 17 June 1945 Formerly Candytuft. Sold in 1947 as mercantile Rexton Kent II.
Louisburg Morton Engineering & Dry Dock Co., Quebec City 11 January 1943 13 July 1943 13 December 1943 25 June 1945 Sold in 1947 to the Dominican Republic and renamed Juan Alejandro Acosta. Wrecked by Hurricane David on 30 August 1979.[36]
Meaford Cancelled in December 1943.
Merrittonia Morton Engineering & Dry Dock Co., Quebec City 23 November 1943 24 June 1944 10 November 1944 11 July 1945 Formerly Pointe Claire.
Mimico John Crown & Sons Ltd., Sunderland 22 February 1943 11 October 1943 8 February 1944 18 July 1945 Formerly Bullrush. Sold to Honduras and converted 1950 in Germany to whale catcher Olympic Victor. Resold in 1956 to Japan as Otori Maru No. 12 and in 1962 as Kyo Maru No. 25.
Norsyd Morton Engineering & Dry Dock Co., Quebec City 14 January 1943 31 July 1943 22 December 1943 25 June 1945 Sold in 1946 to Yugoslavia as mercantile Balboa under Panamanian flag. Resold to the "Mossad Le'Aliya bet" (The Institute for Immigration B) while still in Quebec as a passenger vessel Hagana.[35] Transferred to Israel in 1948 as corvette Hagana.
North Bay Collingwood Shipyards Ltd., Collingwood, Ontario 29 September 1942 27 April 1943 25 October 1943 5 June 1945 Sold in 1946 as mercantile Kent County II. Resold in 1950 as Galloway Kent and in 1951 as Bedford II.
Owen Sound Collingwood Shipyards Ltd., Collingwood, Ontario 11 November 1942 15 June 1943 17 November 1943 19 July 1945 Sold in 1945 to Greece as Cadio.
Parry Sound Marine Industries Ltd., Sorel-Tracy, Quebec 11 June 1943 13 November 1943 30 August 1944 10 July 1945 Sold in 1950 to Honduras, converted to whale catcher Olympic Champion. Resold in 1956 to Japan as Otori Maru No. 15, 1961 renamed Kyo Maru No. 22.
Peterborough Kingston Shipbuilding Co. Ltd., Kingston, Ontario 14 September 1943 15 January 1944 1 June 1944 19 July 1945 Sold in 1947 to the Dominican Republic as Gerardo Jansen.
Renfrew Cancelled in December 1943.
Riviere du Loup Morton Engineering & Dry Dock Co., Quebec City 5 January 1943 2 July 1943 21 November 1943 2 July 1945 Sold in 1947 to the Dominican Republic as Juan Bautista Maggiolo.
Smiths Falls Kingston Shipbuilding Co. Ltd., Kingston, Ontario 21 January 1944 19 August 1944 28 November 1944 8 July 1945 Sold in 1950 to Honduras, converted to whale catcher Olympic Lightning. Resold in 1956 to Japan as Otori Maru No. 16, 1961 renamed Kyo Maru No. 23.
St. Lambert Morton Engineering & Dry Dock Co., Quebec City 8 July 1943 6 November 1943 27 May 1944 20 July 1945 Sold in 1946 to Panama as Chrysi Hondroulis. Resold in 1955 to Greece as Loula.
Stellarton Morton Engineering & Dry Dock Co., Quebec City 16 November 1943 27 April 1944 29 September 1944 1 July 1945 Sold in 1946 to Chile as Casma.
Strathroy Marine Industries Ltd., Sorel-Tracy, Quebec 18 November 1943 15 June 1944 20 November 1944 12 July 1945 Sold in 1946 to Chile as Chipana.
Thorlock Marine Industries Ltd., Sorel-Tracy, Quebec 25 September 1943 15 May 1944 13 November 1944 15 July 1945 Sold in 1946 to Chile as Papudo.
Trentonian Kingston Shipbuilding Co. Ltd., Kingston, Ontario 19 February 1943 1 September 1943 1 December 1943 22 February 1945 Torpedoed and sunk on 22 February 1945 by U-1004 off Falmouth, Cornwall at 50-06N, 04-50W. 6 crew were lost.
West York Midland Shipyards Ltd., Midland, Ontario 23 July 1943 25 January 1944 6 October 1944 9 July 1945 Sold in 1945 as mercantile West York (name not changed). Resold in 1960 as Federal Express. Rammed and sunk in 1960 in the Saint Lawrence River near Montreal. Raised and scrapped.
Whitby Marine Industries Ltd., Sorel-Tracy, 1 April 1943 18 September 1943 6 June 1944 16 July 1945 Acquired by the Portuguese Navy from the US and renamed NRP Bengo on 29 April 1948 and transferred to the Mozambique Pilots on 1 October 1948 where she was named just Bengo.

Royal Indian Navy

Construction data for modified Flower-class corvettes of the Royal Indian Navy
Ship Builder Laid down Launched Commissioned Paid off Fate
Assam John Crown & Sons Ltd., Sunderland 26 November 1942 21 June 1943 19 February 1945 Formerly HMS Bugloss. Transferred to the RIN on 19 February 1945. Returned to RN in 1947. Scrapped.
Gondwana Ferguson Bros. (Port Glasgow) Ltd., Port Glasgow 2 November 1942 31 May 1943 15 May 1945 17 May 1946 Formerly HMS Burnet. Transferred to the RIN on 15 May 1945. Returned to RN on 17 May 1946. 1947 sold to Royal Thai Navy, renamed Bangpakong
Sind Alexander Hall & Co., Aberdeen 26 September 1942 22 April 1943 24 August 1945 17 May 1946 Formerly HMS Betony. Transferred to the RIN on 24 August 1945. Returned to RN on 17 May 1946. 1947 sold to Royal Thai Navy, renamed Prasae , stranded 7. January 1951 on the North-Korean east coast, total loss.
Mahratta Ferguson Bros. (Port Glasgow) Ltd., Port Glasgow 6 April 1943 16 November 1943 1946 1947 loss Formerly HMS Charlock. Transferred to the RIN 1946. 1947 stranded and total loss.

Royal New Zealand Navy

Construction data for modified Flower-class corvettes of the Royal New Zealand Navy
Ship Builder Laid down Launched Commissioned Paid off Fate
Arabis George Brown & Co., Greenock 26 February 1943 28 October 1943 16 March 1944 1948 Formerly HMS Arabis. Transferred to RNZN on 16 March 1944. Returned to RN in 1948.
Arbutus George Brown & Co., Greenock 3 May 1943 26 January 1944 5 July 1944 1948 Formerly HMS Arbutus. Transferred to RNZN on 5 July 1944. Returned to RN in 1948.

Royal Navy

Construction data for modified Flower-class corvettes of the Royal Navy
Ship Builder Laid down Launched Commissioned Paid off Fate
Arabis George Brown & Co., Greenock 26 February 1943 28 October 1943 Transferred on 16 March 1944 to the Royal New Zealand Navy as HMNZS Arabis. Returned to RN in 1948. Scrapped in August 1951 at Grays.
Arbutus George Brown & Co., Greenock 3 May 1943 26 January 1944 Second ship of this type to bear the name. For history of the first see below under ships lost in action. This ship transferred on 5 July 1944 to the Royal New Zealand Navy as Arbutus. Returned to RN in 1948. Scrapped in June 1951 at Dunston.
Balm Cancelled on 12 November 1942.
Betony Alexander Hall & Co., Aberdeen 26 September 1942 22 April 1943 31 August 1943 24 March 1945 Transferred on 24 August 1945 to India as Sind. Returned to RN on 17 May 1946. Transferred in 1947 to Thailand as Prasae. Grounded on 7 January 1951 along east coast of Korea and scuttled on 13 January 1951.
Buddleia Alexander Hall & Co., Aberdeen 30 November 1942 19 June 1943 Transferred on 10 November 1943 to RCN as Giffard.
Bugloss John Crown & Sons Ltd., Sunderland 26 November 1942 21 June 1943 8 November 1943 19 February 1945 Transferred on 19 February 1945 to Indian Navy as Assam. Returned to RN in 1947 and scrapped.
Bullrush John Crown & Sons Ltd., Sunderland 22 February 1943 11 October 1943 Transferred on 8 February 1944 to RCN as Mimico.
Burnet Ferguson Bros. (Port Glasgow) Ltd., Port Glasgow 2 November 1942 31 May 1943 23 September 1943 Transferred on 15 May 1945 to India as HMIS Gondwana. Returned to RN on 17 May 1946. Transferred on 15 May 1947 to Thailand.
Candytuft A. & J. Inglis Ltd., Glasgow 27 February 1943 28 September 1943 Transferred on 5 January 1944 to RCN as HMCS Long Branch.
Ceanothos Ferguson Bros. (Port Glasgow) Ltd., Port Glasgow 5 February 1943 30 August 1943 Transferred on 1 December 1943 to RCN as HMCS Forrest Hill.
Charlock Ferguson Bros. (Port Glasgow) Ltd., Port Glasgow 6 April 1943 16 November 1943 March 1944 Transferred in 1946 to India as HMIS Mahratta. 1947 total loss.
Comfrey Collingwood Shipyards Ltd., Collingwood, Ontario 6 January 1942 28 July 1942 Transferred on 22 November 1942 to USN as USS Action.
Cornel Collingwood Shipyards Ltd., Collingwood, Ontario 6 January 1942 4 September 1942 Transferred on 10 December 1942 to USN as USS Alacrity.
Dittany Collingwood Shipyards Ltd., Collingwood, Ontario 31 October 1942 31 May 1943 Formerly USS Beacon. Transferred to RN on 31 May 1943 under the lend-lease program. Returned to USN on 20 June 1946.
Flax Kingston Shipbuilding Co. Ltd., Kingston, Ontario 15 June 1942 Transferred on 6 December 1942 to USN as USS Brisk.
Honesty Kingston Shipbuilding Co. Ltd., Kingston, Ontario 28 September 1942 Formerly USS Caprice. Transferred to RN under the lend-lease program. Returned to USN on 5 January 1946.
Linaria Midland Shipyards Ltd., Midland, Ontario 18 November 1942 22 June 1943 Formerly USS Clash. Transferred to RN under the lend-lease program. Returned to USN on 27 July 1946.
Mandrake Morton Engineering & Dry Dock Co., Quebec City November 1941 22 August 1942 Transferred on 6 April 1943 to USN as USS Haste.
Milfoil Morton Engineering & Dry Dock Co., Quebec City November 1941 5 August 1942 Transferred on 31 March 1943 to USN as USS Intensity.
Musk Morton Engineering & Dry Dock Co., Quebec City 28 November 1941 15 July 1942 Transferred on 22 December 1942 to USN as USS Might.
Nepeta Morton Engineering & Dry Dock Co., Quebec City 22 July 1942 29 November 1942 Transferred on 23 July 1943 to USN as USS Pert.
Privet Morton Engineering & Dry Dock Co., Quebec City 14 August 1942 4 December 1942 Transferred on 16 August 1943 to USN as USS Prudent.
Rosebay Kingston Shipbuilding Co. Ltd., Kingston, Ontario 11 February 1943 28 July 1943 20 March 1946 Formerly USS Splendor. Transferred to RN under the lend-lease program. Returned to USN on 20 March 1946.
Smilax Collingwood Shipyards Ltd., Collingwood, Ontario 24 December 1942 21 June 1943 Formerly USS Tact. Transferred to RN under the lend-lease program. Returned to USN on 5 January 1946.
Statice Collingwood Shipyards Ltd., Collingwood, Ontario 10 April 1943 20 September 1943 Formerly USS Vim. Transferred to RN under the lend-lease program. Returned to USN on 21 June 1946.
Willowherb Midland Shipyards Ltd., Midland, Ontario 24 March 1943 Formerly USS Vitality. Transferred to RN under the lend-lease program. Returned to USN on 11 June 1946.

United States Navy

Construction data for modified Flower-class corvettes of the United States Navy
Ship Builder Laid down Launched Commissioned Paid off Fate
Action Collingwood Shipyards Ltd., Collingwood, Ontario 6 January 1942 28 July 1942 22 November 1942 6 September 1945 Formerly HMS Comfrey. Transferred to USN on 22 November 1942. Sold on 6 February 1946.
Alacrity Collingwood Shipyards Ltd., Collingwood, Ontario 6 January 1942 4 September 1942 10 December 1942 4 October 1945 Formerly HMS Cornel. Transferred to USN on 10 December 1942. Sold on 22 September 1945 to Italy as mercantile Rio Marina.
Beacon Collingwood Shipyards Ltd., Collingwood, Ontario 31 October 1942 Transferred on 31 May 1943 to RN as HMS Dittany. Returned to USN on 20 June 1946.
Brisk Kingston Shipbuilding Co. Ltd., Kingston, Ontario 15 June 1942 6 December 1942 9 October 1945 Formerly HMS Flax. Transferred to USN on 6 December 1942. Sold on 18 October 1946.
Caprice Collingwood Shipyards Ltd., Collingwood, Ontario 31 October 1942 Transferred to RN as HMS Honesty. Returned to USN on 20 June 1946.
Clash Midland Shipyards Ltd., Midland, Ontario 18 November 1942 Transferred to RN as HMS Linaria. Returned to USN on 27 July 1946.
Haste Morton Engineering & Dry Dock Co., Quebec City November 1941 22 August 1942 6 April 1943 3 October 1945 Formerly HMS Mandrake. Transferred to USN on 6 April 1943. Sold in 1949 to Italy as mercantile Porto Azzurro. Scrapped in 1973 at La Spezia.
Intensity Morton Engineering & Dry Dock Co., Quebec City November 1941 22 August 1942 31 March 1943 3 October 1945 Formerly HMS Milfoil. Transferred to USN on 31 March 1943. Sold into mercantile service. 1950 whale catcher Olympic Promoter, 1956 resold and renamed Otori Maru No. 5
Might Morton Engineering & Dry Dock Co., Quebec City 28 November 1941 15 July 1942 22 December 1942 9 October 1945 Formerly HMS Musk. Transferred to USN on 22 December 1942. Sold into mercantile service. 1950 whale catcher Olympic Explorer, 1956 resold and renamed Otori Maru No.3, later Kyo Maru No.12
Pert Morton Engineering & Dry Dock Co., Quebec City 22 July 1942 27 November 1942 23 July 1943 3 October 1945 Formerly HMS Nepeta. Transferred to USN on 23 July 1943. Sold on 18 October 1946 into mercantile service. 1950 whale catcher Olympic Leader, 1956 resold and renamed Otori Maru No. 1, later Kyo Maru No. 15
Prudent Morton Engineering & Dry Dock Co., Quebec City 14 August 1942 4 December 1942 16 August 1943 11 October 1945 Formerly HMS Privet. Transferred to USN on 16 August 1943. Sold in 1949 to Italy as mercantile Elbano. Resold in 1951 to the Italian Navy as hydrographic survey vessel Staffetta.
Splendor Kingston Shipbuilding Co. Ltd., Kingston, Ontario 11 February 1943 Transferred to RN as HMS Rosebay. Returned to USN on 20 March 1946.
Tact Collingwood Shipyards Ltd., Collingwood, Ontario 24 December 1942 Transferred to RN as HMS Smilax. Returned to USN on 5 January 1946.
Vim Collingwood Shipyards Ltd., Collingwood, Ontario 10 April 1943 Transferred to RN as HMS Statice. Returned to USN on 21 June 1946.
Vitality Midland Shipyards Ltd., Midland, Ontario 24 March 1943 Transferred to RN as HMS Willowherb. Returned to USN on 11 June 1946.

Vessels lost in action

Flower-class ships lost to enemy action
Ship Flag Date Fate
Alysse Free French Naval Forces 9 February 1942 Torpedoed and sunk by U-654 while escorting Convoy ON-60 about 420 nautical miles (780 km) E of Cape Race at 46°00′N 44°00′W / 46.000°N 44.000°W / 46.000; -44.000 36 crew were killed.
La Bastiaise Free French Naval Forces 22 June 1940 Mined during sea trial off Hartlepool on day of her commissioning.
Mimosa Free French Naval Forces 9 June 1942 Torpedoed and sunk by U-124 while escorting Convoy ONS 100 at 52°12′N 32°37′W / 52.200°N 32.617°W / 52.200; -32.617 58 French crew and 6 British crew were killed; the French crew being largely from Saint Pierre and Miquelon. 4 survivors rescued by HMCS Assiniboine.
Alberni Royal Canadian Navy 21 August 1944 Torpedoed and sunk by U-480 while escorting a convoy in the English Channel S of St. Catherine's Point at 50°18′N 00°51′W / 50.300°N 0.850°W / 50.300; -0.850 59 crew killed and 31 rescued by RN motor torpedo boats.
Charlottetown Royal Canadian Navy 11 September 1942 Torpedoed and sunk by U-517 while escorting Convoy SQ-30 in the Saint Lawrence River N of Cap-Chat at 49°10′N 66°50′W / 49.167°N 66.833°W / 49.167; -66.833 9 crew killed.
Levis Royal Canadian Navy 19 September 1941 Torpedoed and sunk by U-74 while escorting Convoy SC 44 E of Cape Farewell at 60°07′N 38°37′W / 60.117°N 38.617°W / 60.117; -38.617 18 crew killed and 91 rescued.
Louisburg Royal Canadian Navy 6 February 1943 Bombed and torpedoed by Luftwaffe aircraft while escorting Convoy KMF-8 off Cape Tenes in Mediterranean Sea at 36°15′N 00°15′E / 36.250°N 0.250°E / 36.250; 0.250 59 crew killed, 50 rescued.
Regina Royal Canadian Navy 8 August 1944 Torpedoed and sunk by U-667 off Trevose Head at 50°42′N 05°03′W / 50.700°N 5.050°W / 50.700; -5.050 30 crew were killed.
Shawinigan Royal Canadian Navy 25 November 1944 Torpedoed and sunk by U-1228 in the Cabot Strait at 47°34′N 59°11′W / 47.567°N 59.183°W / 47.567; -59.183. All hands were lost.
Spikenard Royal Canadian Navy 11 February 1942 Torpedoed and sunk by U-136 while escorting Convoy SC 67 W of Malin Head at 56°10′N 21°07′W / 56.167°N 21.117°W / 56.167; -21.117. 8 crew survived.
Weyburn Royal Canadian Navy 22 February 1943 Mined on 22 February 1943 off Cape Espartel at 36°46′N 06°02′W / 36.767°N 6.033°W / 36.767; -6.033. 7 crew were killed.
Windflower Royal Canadian Navy 7 December 1941 Rammed and sunk while escorting Convoy SC 58 after colliding with freighter Zypenberg in dense fog on the Grand Banks at 46°19′N 49°30′W / 46.317°N 49.500°W / 46.317; -49.500 23 crew were killed.
Abelia Royal Navy 9 January 1944 Torpedoed and badly damaged by a U-boat.
Arbutus Royal Navy 5 February 1942 Torpedoed and sunk by U-136 W of Erris Head, Ireland at 55°05′N 18°43′W / 55.083°N 18.717°W / 55.083; -18.717
Asphodel Royal Navy 10 March 1944 Torpedoed and sunk by U-575 while escorting Convoy SL-150 and Convoy MKS-41 at 45°24′N 18°09′W / 45.400°N 18.150°W / 45.400; -18.150. 92 crew were killed, 5 survivors rescued by HMS Clover.
Auricula Royal Navy 6 May 1942 Mined in Courrier Bay, Madagascar at 12°12′S 49°19′E / 12.200°S 49.317°E / -12.200; 49.317. Foundered the next day while under tow.
Bluebell Royal Navy 17 February 1945 Torpedoed and sunk by U-711 off the Kola Inlet at 69°36′N 35°29′E / 69.600°N 35.483°E / 69.600; 35.483
Bryony Royal Navy 15 April 1941 Bombed and sunk during sea trials by the Luftwaffe. Raised and repaired. Transferred to the Royal Norwegian Navy in 1947 as HNoMS Polarfront.
Erica Royal Navy 9 February 1943 Mined and sunk while escorting a convoy in the Mediterranean Sea off Derna, Libya at 32°48′N 21°10′E / 32.800°N 21.167°E / 32.800; 21.167. Entire crew rescued by 'HMSAS Southern Maid.
Fleur de Lys Royal Navy 14 October 1941 Torpedoed and sunk by U-206 west of Gibraltar at 36°00′N 06°30′W / 36.000°N 6.500°W / 36.000; -6.500. There were 3 survivors.
Gardenia Royal Navy 9 November 1942 Rammed and sunk off Oran at 35°49′N 01°05′W / 35.817°N 1.083°W / 35.817; -1.083 in collision with HMS Fluellen (T157).
Gladiolus Royal Navy 17 October 1941 Torpedoed and sunk by U-558 while escorting Convoy SC 48 S of Iceland at 57°00′N 25°00′W / 57.000°N 25.000°W / 57.000; -25.000. All hands were lost.
Godetia Royal Navy 6 September 1940 Rammed and sunk 3 miles (4.8 km) off Altacarry Head at 55°18′N 05°57′W / 55.300°N 5.950°W / 55.300; -5.950 in collision with mercantile Marsa.
Hollyhock Royal Navy 9 April 1942 Bombed and sunk by Japanese aircraft E of Ceylon at 07°21′N 81°57′E / 7.350°N 81.950°E / 7.350; 81.950
Marigold Royal Navy 9 December 1942 Torpedoed and sunk by the Regia Aeronautica while escorting Convoy KMS.3Y off Algiers at 36°50′N 03°00′E / 36.833°N 3.000°E / 36.833; 3.000. 40 crew were killed.
Orchis Royal Navy 21 August 1944 Mined and heavily damaged off Courseulles-sur-Mer. Beached on Juno Beach and declared a total loss.
Picotee Royal Navy 12 August 1941 Torpedoed and sunk by U-568 while escorting Convoy ONS 4 S of Iceland at 62°00′N 16°01′W / 62.000°N 16.017°W / 62.000; -16.017. All hands were lost.
Pink Royal Navy 27 June 1944 Torpedoed and heavily damaged by U-988 off Normandy at 49°48′N 00°49′W / 49.800°N 0.817°W / 49.800; -0.817. Declared a total loss and scrapped in 1947 at Llanelly.
Polyanthus Royal Navy 21 September 1943 Torpedoed and sunk by U-952 while escorting Convoy ON 202 at 57°00′N 31°10′W / 57.000°N 31.167°W / 57.000; -31.167. 1 survivor rescued by HMS Itchen but was killed when that ship was torpedoed and sunk by U-666 on 23 September 1943.
Salvia Royal Navy 24 December 1941 Torpedoed and sunk by U-568 W of Alexandria at 31°46′N 28°00′E / 31.767°N 28.000°E / 31.767; 28.000. All hands were lost.
Samphire Royal Navy 30 January 1943 Torpedoed and sunk by Italian submarine Platino while escorting Convoy TE-14 off Béjaïa at 36°56′N 05°40′E / 36.933°N 5.667°E / 36.933; 5.667
Snapdragon Royal Navy 19 December 1942 Bombed and sunk by the Luftwaffe NW of Benghazi at 32°18′N 19°54′E / 32.300°N 19.900°E / 32.300; 19.900
Vervain Royal Navy 20 February 1945 Torpedoed and sunk by U-1276 SE of Dungarvan, Rep of Ireland at 51°47′N 07°06′W / 51.783°N 7.100°W / 51.783; -7.100
Zinnia Royal Navy 23 August 1941 Torpedoed and sunk by U-564 while escorting Convoy OG-71 W of Portugal at 40°25′N 10°40′W / 40.417°N 10.667°W / 40.417; -10.667
Montbretia Royal Norwegian Navy 18 November 1942 Torpedoed and sunk by U-262 at 53°37′N 38°15′W / 53.617°N 38.250°W / 53.617; -38.250. 48 crew killed, 23 survivors were rescued by HNoMS Potentilla (K214).
Trentonian Royal Canadian Navy 22 February 1945 Torpedoed and sunk on 22 February 1945 by U-1004 off Falmouth at 50°06′N 04°50′W / 50.100°N 4.833°W / 50.100; -4.833. 6 crew were killed.

Kriegsmarine use

In 1940 four Flower-class corvettes were being built in St. Nazaire-Penhoet for the French Navy. They were seized by the Kriegsmarine (German Navy). Three were completed in 1943 and 1944, while the fourth was never finished. Their designation "PA" stood for Patroullienboot Ausland (foreign patrol craft).

Construction data for Flower-class corvettes of the Kriegsmarine[13]
Ship Ordered Launched Intended French name Completed Fate
PA 1 September 1939 16 October 1940 Arquebuse April 1944 Seized in June 1940 and served in 15 Vorposten Flottille. Sunk by aerial bombing 15 June 1944 at Le Havre
PA 2 September 1939 22 November 1940 Hallebarde September 1943 Seized in June 1940 and served in 15 Vorposten Flottille. Sunk by aerial bombing 15 June 1944 at Le Havre
PA 3 September 1939 29 November 1940 Sabre November 1943 Seized in June 1940 and served in 15 Vorposten Flottille. Sunk by aerial bombing 15 June 1944 at Le Havre
PA 4 September 1939 29 November 1940 Poignard Not completed Seized in June 1940. Launched 1 September 1944 as La Télindière. Sunk uncompleted as a block ship at Nantes

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List of Flower-class corvettes

List of Flower-class corvettes

This is a list of Flower-class corvettes and Modified Flower-class corvettes. It should be stressed that all ships were initially built for the British, Canadian, French and American navies, so that all mentions of other nations' navies refer to ships which were transferred to those countries later in their lives.

Ailsa Shipbuilding Company

Ailsa Shipbuilding Company

Ailsa Shipbuilding Company was a Scottish shipbuilding company based in Troon and Ayr, Ayrshire.

Greenock

Greenock

Greenock is a town and administrative centre in the Inverclyde council area in Scotland, United Kingdom and a former burgh within the historic county of Renfrewshire, located in the west central Lowlands of Scotland. It forms part of a contiguous urban area with Gourock to the west and Port Glasgow to the east.

German submarine U-654

German submarine U-654

German submarine U-654 was a Type VIIC U-boat built for Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine for service during World War II. She was laid down on 1 June 1940 by Howaldtswerke, Hamburg as yard number 803, launched on 3 May 1941 and commissioned on 5 July 1941 under Korvettenkapitän Hans-Joachim Hesse.

Cape Race

Cape Race

Cape Race is a point of land located at the southeastern tip of the Avalon Peninsula on the island of Newfoundland, in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. Its name is thought to come from the original Portuguese name for this cape, "Raso", meaning flat or low-lying. The Cape appeared on early sixteenth century maps as Cabo Raso and its name may derive from a cape of the same name at the mouth of the Tagus River in Portugal. The cape was the location of the Cape Race LORAN-C transmitter until the system was decommissioned in 2010. It is also home to the Cape Race Lighthouse, notable for having received the distress call from the RMS Titanic.

Charles Hill & Sons

Charles Hill & Sons

Charles Hill & Sons was a major shipbuilder based in Bristol, England, during the 19th and 20th centuries.

Bristol

Bristol

Bristol is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in South West England. The wider Bristol Built-up Area is the eleventh most populous urban area in the United Kingdom.

Christian Salvesen

Christian Salvesen

Christian Salvesen was a Scottish whaling, transport and logistics company with a long and varied history, employing 13,000 staff and operating in seven countries in western Europe. In December 2007, it was acquired by French listed transport group Norbert Dentressangle.

Melsomvik

Melsomvik

Melsomvik is a village in the municipality of Sandefjord, Norway, which lies by the Tønsberg Fjord. Its population is 2,076 as of 2016. It has been a boat harbor since Medieval times when the Leidang fleet was located in Melsomvik. When the conflict with Sweden escalated and fears of war were imminent, the Royal Norwegian Navy was relocated from Horten to Melsomvik as Melsomvik was a better-protected location. Melsomvik remained an important site for the Norwegian Armed Forces until the 1960s. During the age of sailships there was much activity in Melsomvik, and it was also where the Navy laid their ships up in the years 1898-1964. Whale-catchers were also harbored in the hamlet of Melsomvik. Melsomvik experiences significant summer tourism and is home to many vacation homes.

Bruges

Bruges

Bruges is the capital and largest city of the province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium, in the northwest of the country, and the sixth-largest city of the country by population.

Hvide Sande

Hvide Sande

Hvide Sande is a small town in the middle of the Holmsland Dunes and placed around the artificial canal which connects Ringkøbing Fjord to the North Sea, in the western part of Central Denmark Region, formerly Ringkjøbing County, Denmark. The town has a population of 2,874 and is the fifth largest fishing port in Denmark.

Jutland

Jutland

Jutland, known anciently as the Cimbric or Cimbrian Peninsula, is a peninsula of Northern Europe that forms the continental portion of Denmark and part of northern Germany. The names are derived from the Jutes and the Cimbri, respectively.

Battle credits

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German submarine U-26 (1936)

German submarine U-26 (1936)

German submarine U-26 was one of the two Type IA ocean-going U-boats produced by Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine. Constructed in Bremen, U-26 was commissioned in May 1936. She experienced a short, but successful combat career, sinking eleven ships.

HMS Gladiolus (K34)

HMS Gladiolus (K34)

HMS Gladiolus was a Flower-class corvette of the Royal Navy, the first ship of her class.

German submarine U-70 (1940)

German submarine U-70 (1940)

German submarine U-70 was a Type VIIC submarine of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine during World War II.

HMS Camellia (K31)

HMS Camellia (K31)

HMS Camellia was a Flower-class corvette that served in the Royal Navy.

HMS Arbutus (K86)

HMS Arbutus (K86)

HMS Arbutus was a Flower-class corvette of the Royal Navy, which was active during the Second World War. She was a successful escort vessel, and took part in the destruction of two U-boats during the Battle of the Atlantic. Arbutus was sunk in the North Atlantic in February 1942.

German submarine U-110 (1940)

German submarine U-110 (1940)

German submarine U-110 was a Type IXB U-boat of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine that operated during World War II. She was captured by the Royal Navy on 9 May 1941 and provided a number of secret cipher documents to the British. U-110's capture, later given the code name "Operation Primrose", was one of the biggest secrets of the war, remaining so for seven months. President Franklin D. Roosevelt was only told of the capture by Winston Churchill in January 1942.

HMS Aubrietia (K96)

HMS Aubrietia (K96)

HMS Aubrietia (K96) was a Flower-class corvette built for the Royal Navy (RN) from 1941-1946. She was active as a convoy escort in the Atlantic and Mediterranean. In May 1941, Aubrietia sighted and depth charged the German submarine U-110, leading to its capture and the seizure of a German Naval Enigma and its Kurzsignale code book.

German submarine U-147 (1940)

German submarine U-147 (1940)

German submarine U-147 was a Type IID U-boat of the German Navy (Kriegsmarine) during World War II. She was laid down on 10 April 1940 at Deutsche Werke in Kiel as yard number 276, launched on 16 November 1940 and commissioned on 11 December under the command of Kapitänleutnant Reinhard Hardegen.

HMS Periwinkle (K55)

HMS Periwinkle (K55)

HMS Periwinkle was a Flower-class corvette, built for the Royal Navy during the Second World War, and was in service in the Battle of the Atlantic. In 1942 she was transferred to the United States Navy as part of the Reverse Lend-Lease arrangement and renamed USS Restless, one of the Temptress-class gunboats. With the end of hostilities she was returned to the Royal Navy and sold into mercantile service.

German submarine U-556

German submarine U-556

German submarine U-556 was a Type VIIC U-boat of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine during World War II. She was laid down on 2 January 1940 at the Blohm & Voss yard in Hamburg as yard number 532, launched on 7 December 1940, and commissioned on 6 February 1941 under the command of Kapitänleutnant Herbert Wohlfarth, who commanded her for her entire career. U-556 conducted only two patrols, sinking six ships totalling 29,552 gross register tons (GRT) and damaging one other of 4,986 GRT, before she was sunk on 27 June 1941.

German submarine U-651

German submarine U-651

German submarine U-651 was a German Type VIIC U-boat built for Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine for service during World War II. She was ordered just after the war started in 1939, laid down on 16 January 1940, launched on 21 December that year and commissioned the following 21 February. She was commanded by Kapitänleutnant Peter Lohmeyer.

HMS Malcolm (D19)

HMS Malcolm (D19)

HMS Malcolm was one of eight Admiralty-type destroyer leaders built for the Royal Navy during World War I. She was the first of only two Royal Navy ships to carry the name Malcolm, although HMS Valkyrie was originally planned to bear the name. She was one of two Admiralty-type leaders to miss the First World War but saw service in, and survived, the Second World War. Her pennant number was changed from D19 to I19 in May 1940. She was broken up in 1945.

Post-war use

The relatively small Flowers were among the first warships to be declared surplus by Allied navies following the end of World War II. They had seen years of hard service in the North Atlantic and were made obsolete by the numerous destroyer escorts and frigates that entered service in the latter part of the war.

32 vessels from the RN, RCN, and USN were transferred to Argentina, Chile, the Dominican Republic, Greece, India, the Republic of Ireland, South Africa, and Venezuela. These were typically operated according to their original design, as coastal patrol vessels, with many serving until the 1970s.

The Irish Navy bought three Flowers in 1946 (LE Macha, LE Cliona, and LE Maev). The fledgling navy had intended to buy three more corvettes, as well as a number of surplus minesweepers, but severe budget restrictions cancelled these plans, leaving the original three to serve alone through the 1950s and 1960s despite antiquated armament, poor accommodation, and maintenance problems. Taken out of service 1968–1970 and scrapped shortly afterwards. Replaced by Ton-class minesweepers before the building of a similar size vessel, LE Deirdre. Entry into the European Economic Community in 1973 assisted in funding for the building of three future ships.

110 surplus Flowers were sold for commercial use. These saw various careers as mercantile freighters, smugglers, tugs, weather ships, and whalers. The remainder were scrapped. Of particular interest is the story of HMCS Sudbury. She was declared surplus by the RCN and sold as a towboat specializing in deep-sea salvage. In November 1955, she rescued the freighter Makedonia in the North Pacific, towing the vessel for over one month through severe weather, becoming one of the most famous salvage ships of all time.

The surplus RCN Flowers Norsyd and Beauharnois were sold as mercantile freighters but were subsequently acquired in 1946 by the Mossad LeAliyah Bet, a branch of the Jewish Defense Association (Haganah) in the British Mandate for Palestine. Mossad Le'aliyah Bet organized Jewish immigration from Europe into Palestine, in violation of unilateral British restrictions. The corvettes were intercepted in the Mediterranean Sea during the summer of 1946 by the destroyer Venus and interned in Palestine. After Israel became independent in 1948, these commercial ships were commissioned into the Israeli Navy as the warships Hashomer and Hagana respectively.

Allied navies disposed of their Flowers so quickly following the war, the RN could not supply a single vessel to play Compass Rose in the 1953 film production of Nicholas Monsarrat's novel The Cruel Sea. The Royal Hellenic Navy supplied Kriezis (formerly HMS Coreopsis) for the role prior to her scrapping.

The only survivor of the entire class is Sackville, owned by the Canadian Naval Memorial Trust. She was laid up in reserve in March 1946 and converted in 1952 to a research vessel for Canadian Department of Marine and Fisheries, a role she served in until the early 1980s when she was acquired by the trust.[37] She has been restored to her wartime appearance and serves in the summer months as a museum ship in Halifax, Nova Scotia, while wintering securely in the naval dockyard at CFB Halifax under the care of Maritime Forces Atlantic, Maritime Command. Sackville's presence in Halifax is considered very appropriate, given the port was an important North American convoy assembly port during the war. Sackville makes her first appearance each spring when she is towed by a naval tug from HMC Dockyard to a location off Point Pleasant Park on the first Sunday in May to participate in the Commemoration of the Battle of the Atlantic ceremonies held at a memorial in the park overlooking the entrance to Halifax Harbour. Sackville typically hosts several dozen RCN veterans on this day and has also participated in several burials at sea for dispersing the ashes of RCN veterans of the Battle of the Atlantic at this location.

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Argentina

Argentina

Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of 2,780,400 km2 (1,073,500 sq mi), making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourth-largest country in the Americas, and the eighth-largest country in the world. It shares the bulk of the Southern Cone with Chile to the west, and is also bordered by Bolivia and Paraguay to the north, Brazil to the northeast, Uruguay and the South Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Drake Passage to the south. Argentina is a federal state subdivided into twenty-three provinces, and one autonomous city, which is the federal capital and largest city of the nation, Buenos Aires. The provinces and the capital have their own constitutions, but exist under a federal system. Argentina claims sovereignty over the Falkland Islands, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, and a part of Antarctica.

Chile

Chile

Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country located in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes Mountains and the Pacific Ocean. With an area of 756,096 square kilometers (291,930 sq mi) and a population of 17.5 million as of 2017, Chile shares borders with Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage to the south. The country also controls several Pacific islands, including Juan Fernández, Isla Salas y Gómez, Desventuradas, and Easter Island, and claims about 1,250,000 square kilometers (480,000 sq mi) of Antarctica as the Chilean Antarctic Territory. The capital and largest city of Chile is Santiago, and the national language is Spanish.

Dominican Republic

Dominican Republic

The Dominican Republic is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares with Haiti, making Hispaniola one of only two Caribbean islands, along with Saint Martin, that is shared by two sovereign states. The Dominican Republic is the second-largest nation in the Antilles by area at 48,671 square kilometers (18,792 sq mi), and third-largest by population, with approximately 10.7 million people, down from 10.8 million in 2020, of whom approximately 3.3 million live in the metropolitan area of Santo Domingo, the capital city. The official language of the country is Spanish.

Greece

Greece

Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkan Peninsula, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to the northeast. The Aegean Sea lies to the east of the mainland, the Ionian Sea to the west, and the Sea of Crete and the Mediterranean Sea to the south. Greece has the longest coastline on the Mediterranean Basin, featuring thousands of islands. The country consists of nine traditional geographic regions, and has a population of approximately 10.4 million. Athens is the nation's capital and largest city, followed by Thessaloniki and Patras.

India

India

India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area and the second-most populous country. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the southwest, and the Bay of Bengal on the southeast, it shares land borders with Pakistan to the west; China, Nepal, and Bhutan to the north; and Bangladesh and Myanmar to the east. In the Indian Ocean, India is in the vicinity of Sri Lanka and the Maldives; its Andaman and Nicobar Islands share a maritime border with Thailand, Myanmar, and Indonesia.

Republic of Ireland

Republic of Ireland

Ireland, also known as the Republic of Ireland, is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern side of the island. Around 2.1 million of the country's population of 5.13 million people reside in the Greater Dublin Area. The sovereign state shares its only land border with Northern Ireland, which is part of the United Kingdom. It is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, with the Celtic Sea to the south, St George's Channel to the south-east, and the Irish Sea to the east. It is a unitary, parliamentary republic. The legislature, the Oireachtas, consists of a lower house, Dáil Éireann; an upper house, Seanad Éireann; and an elected President who serves as the largely ceremonial head of state, but with some important powers and duties. The head of government is the Taoiseach, who is elected by the Dáil and appointed by the President; the Taoiseach in turn appoints other government ministers.

Irish Naval Service

Irish Naval Service

The Naval Service is the maritime component of the Defence Forces of Ireland and is one of the three branches of the Irish Defence Forces. Its base is in Haulbowline, County Cork.

Minesweeper

Minesweeper

A minesweeper is a small warship designed to remove or detonate naval mines. Using various mechanisms intended to counter the threat posed by naval mines, minesweepers keep waterways clear for safe shipping.

European Economic Community

European Economic Community

The European Economic Community (EEC) was a regional organisation created by the Treaty of Rome of 1957, aiming to foster economic integration among its member states. It was subsequently renamed the European Community (EC) upon becoming integrated into the first pillar of the newly formed European Union in 1993. In the popular language, however, the singular European Community was sometimes inaccurately used in the wider sense of the plural European Communities, in spite of the latter designation covering all the three constituent entities of the first pillar.

Pacific Ocean

Pacific Ocean

The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, and is bounded by the continents of Asia and Oceania in the west and the Americas in the east.

HMCS Beauharnois (K540)

HMCS Beauharnois (K540)

HMCS Beauharnois was a modified Flower-class corvette that served with the Royal Canadian Navy during the Second World War, primarily in the Battle of the Atlantic. After the war it was sold to a Jewish resettlement movement and eventually made its way into the nascent Israeli Navy.

Mossad LeAliyah Bet

Mossad LeAliyah Bet

The Mossad LeAliyah Bet was a branch of the paramilitary organization Haganah in British Mandatory Palestine, and later the State of Israel, that operated to facilitate Jewish immigration to British Palestine. During the Mandate period, it was facilitating illegal immigration in violation of governmental British restrictions. It operated from 1938 until four years after the founding of the State of Israel in 1952. It was funded directly by the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, and was not subject to the control of the Jewish Agency who operated their own Aliyah department headed by Yitzhak Rafael.

Literature

Wartime artwork of Hal Lawrence and HMCS Oakville.
Wartime artwork of Hal Lawrence and HMCS Oakville.
  • Alex H. Cherry wrote Yankee R N, the story of a Wall Street banker who volunteered for active duty in the RN, including details of Flower operations.
  • Peter Coy, who served in Narcissus in the North Atlantic between June 1942 and August 1944, wrote 'The Echo of a Fighting Flower' about her and B3 Escort Group, comprising two British and four Free French corvettes.
  • Hugh Garner wrote Storm Below which provides a detailed account of Flower-class corvettes and the stresses of shipboard life during World War II.
  • James B. Lamb wrote The Corvette Navy, which accounts the use of these vessels by the RCN during World War II.
  • Hal Lawrence wrote A Bloody War including first-hand accounts of his service aboard Moosejaw and Oakville.
  • Nicholas Monsarrat wrote the best-known fictionalised account of Flower-class corvette operations in his novel The Cruel Sea. A less well known volume by the same author, Three Corvettes, is a collection of wartime essays of his personal experiences as an officer on board a Flower, although only the first part deals with North Atlantic convoy escort duties.
  • Robert Radcliffe wrote Upon Dark Waters, a fictionalized account of Flower-class corvette Daisy, set in 1942 on the North Atlantic.
  • Denys Rayner wrote Escort, a first-hand account of his experiences as an officer aboard a Flower.
  • Douglas Reeman's 1969 novel To Risks Unknown features the fictional Flower-class corvette Thistle.
  • Mac Johnston wrote "Corvettes Canada" aptly subtitled "Convoy Veterans of World War II Tell Their True Stories."

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Hal Lawrence

Hal Lawrence

Harold Ernest Thomas Lawrence (1920–1994) was a Canadian naval officer and author. He was born in the Corps of Royal Engineers barracks at Chatham, England; and moved to Halifax, Nova Scotia.

HMS Narcissus (K74)

HMS Narcissus (K74)

HMS Narcissus was a Flower-class corvette which served in the Royal Navy during the Second World War from 1941 to the end of the war in 1945. She primarily escorted convoys across the Atlantic Ocean.

Hugh Garner

Hugh Garner

Hugh Garner was a British-born Canadian novelist.

Nicholas Monsarrat

Nicholas Monsarrat

Lieutenant Commander Nicholas John Turney Monsarrat FRSL RNVR was a British novelist known for his sea stories, particularly The Cruel Sea (1951) and Three Corvettes (1942–45), but perhaps known best internationally for his novels, The Tribe That Lost Its Head and its sequel, Richer Than All His Tribe.

The Cruel Sea (novel)

The Cruel Sea (novel)

The Cruel Sea is a 1951 novel by Nicholas Monsarrat. It follows the lives of a group of Royal Navy sailors fighting the Battle of the Atlantic during the Second World War. It contains seven chapters, each describing a year during the war.

Denys Rayner

Denys Rayner

Denys Arthur Rayner DSC & Bar, VRD, RNVR was a Royal Navy officer who fought throughout the Battle of the Atlantic. After intensive war service at sea, Rayner became a writer, a farmer, and a successful designer and builder of small sailing craft – his first being the Westcoaster; his most successful being the glass fibre gunter or Bermudian rigged twin keel Westerly 22 from which evolved similar "small ships" able to cross oceans while respecting the expectations, in terms of comfort, safety and cost, of a burgeoning family market keen to get to sea. Before his death in 1967, Rayner had founded, and via his pioneering GRP designs, secured the future expansion of Westerly Marine Construction Ltd – up until the late 1980s, one of Britain's most successful yacht builders.

Douglas Reeman

Douglas Reeman

Douglas Edward Reeman, who also used the pseudonym Alexander Kent, was a British author who wrote many historical novels about the Royal Navy, mainly set during either World War II or the Napoleonic Wars. He wrote a total of 68 novels, selling 34 million copies in twenty languages.

Source: "Flower-class corvette", Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, (2022, December 16th), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flower-class_corvette.

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Notes
  1. ^ Gardiner and Chesneau 1980, p. 62.
  2. ^ (reproduction with introduction by Antony Preston), Jane's Fighting Ships of World War II, New Jersey: Random House, 1996, ISBN 0-517-67963-9, page 68.
  3. ^ United States Navy Warship Identification Manual (NAVPERS 10796)
  4. ^ Fitzsimons, Bernard, ed. The Illustrated Encyclopedia of 20th Century Weapons & Warfare (London: Phoebus, 1978), Volume 11, pp. 1137–42.
  5. ^ Silverstone, Paul (2007). The Navy of World War II, 1922-1947. Routledge. p. 175. ISBN 9780415978989.
  6. ^ Brown 2007, pp. 41–43.
  7. ^ Lambert and Brown 2008, p. 3.
  8. ^ Canadian yards, for instance, could not build destroyer hulls.
  9. ^ a b Brown D K, Nelson to Vanguard
  10. ^ Le Masson 1969, pp. 27–28
  11. ^ a b Le Masson 1969, pp. 26, 28.
  12. ^ Le Masson 1969, p. 28
  13. ^ a b "Captured gunboats of the Kriegsmarine". German-Navy.de. Retrieved 18 January 2011.
  14. ^ a b c d e f g Milner 1985, p. 89
  15. ^ "Flower Class uboat.net
  16. ^ Monsarrat, N., H.M. corvette. Philadelphia, New York, J.B. Lippincott Co., 1943. OCLC 1523299
  17. ^ "War Memorials". Inverclyde Council. 9 August 2017. Archived from the original on 9 November 2017. Retrieved 9 November 2017.
  18. ^ Alamer.fr (in French)
  19. ^ [1] uboat.net – Officered & crewed by Royal Australian Navy Volunteer Reserve personnel from May 1941 to June 1945
  20. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah ai aj ak al am an ao ap aq ar as at au av aw ax ay az ba bb bc bd be bf bg bh bi bj bk bl bm bn bo bp bq br bs bt bu bv bw bx by bz ca cb cc cd ce cf cg ch ci cj ck cl cm cn co cp cq cr cs ct cu cv Lambert and Brown 2008, p. 65.
  21. ^ HMS Arbutus (K 86) (British Corvette) – Ships hit by German U-boats during WWII – uboat.net
  22. ^ HMS Asphodel (K 56) (British Corvette) – Ships hit by German U-boats during WWII – uboat.net
  23. ^ HMS Bluebell (K 80) (British Corvette) – Ships hit by German U-boats during WWII – uboat.net
  24. ^ HMS Fleur de Lys (K 122) (British Corvette) – Ships hit by German U-boats during WWII – uboat.net
  25. ^ Lambert and Brown 2008, p. 7.
  26. ^ HMS Gladiolus (K 34) (British Corvette) – Ships hit by German U-boats during WWII – uboat.net
  27. ^ "Civil Aviation News: First Weather Ship". Flight. Vol. LII, no. 2015. 7 August 1947. p. 145.
  28. ^ "Weather Observer: First British "Met" Ship". Flight. Vol. LII, no. 2015. 7 August 1947. p. 144.
  29. ^ HMS Picotee (K 63) (British Corvette) – Ships hit by German U-boats during WWII – uboat.net
  30. ^ HMS Pink (K 137) (British Corvette) – Ships hit by German U-boats during WWII – uboat.net
  31. ^ HMS Polyanthus (K 47) (British Corvette) – Ships hit by German U-boats during WWII – uboat.net
  32. ^ HMS Salvia (K 97) (British Corvette) – Ships hit by German U-boats during WWII – uboat.net
  33. ^ HMS Vervain (K 190) (British Corvette) – Ships hit by German U-boats during WWII – uboat.net
  34. ^ HMS Zinnia (K 98) (British Corvette) – Ships hit by German U-boats during WWII – uboat.net
  35. ^ a b Greenfield, Murray S. & Hochstein, Joseph M., Jews' Secret Fleet, Gefen Publishing House, Jerusalem, 2010, pp. 55–56
  36. ^ a b "Today in History August 30, 2007". Seawaves. Archived from the original on 27 October 2007. Retrieved 10 June 2008.
  37. ^ "HMCS Sackville: The last flower (1941–2000)". History in Illustration. Retrieved 10 June 2008.
References
  • Brown, David K (2007). Atlantic Escorts: Ships, Weapons & Tactics in World War II. Barnsley: Seaforth Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84415-702-0.
  • Brown, David K (2006). Nelson to Vanguard: Warship Design and Development, 1923-1945. Naval Institute Press.
  • Gardiner, Robert; Chesneau, Roger (1980). Conway's All The World's Fighting Ships 1922–1946. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-85177-146-7.
  • Johnson, Harold (2007). "Question 16/05: French Flower Class Corvettes". Warship International. XLIV (2): 145–146. ISSN 0043-0374.
  • Le Masson, Henri (1969). The French Navy. Navies of the Second World War. Vol. 2. London: MacDonald & Co. (Publishers) Ltd. ISBN 9780356023847.
  • McKay, J; Harland, J (1993). The Flower Class Corvette Agassiz. Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-85177-975-1.
  • Lambert, John; Brown, Les (2008). Flower Class Corvettes. ShipCraft Special. St. Catharines, Ontario: Vanwell Publishing. ISBN 978-1-55068-986-0.
  • Lambert, J; Raven, A (2000). Flower Class Corvettes in World War II. White Raven Press.
  • Milner, Marc (1985). North Atlantic Run. Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-87021-450-0.
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