U class submarine (1937)

The U-class submarines, also known as Undine-class, were a group of diesel-electric submarines built for the Royal Navy during the 1930s and saw extensive service throughout World War II. They were relatively small and designed for operations in the North Sea and Mediterranean, where their compact size allowed them to manoeuvre more easily in shallower waters. The U-class submarines were known for their reliability and versatility and were particularly effective in anti-submarine warfare and reconnaissance missions.

The U-class submarines were initially built as small, experimental submarines intended for training but proved to be quite effective operationally. This led to their eventual mass production and their use in active combat. The class went through several iterations, with each group improving upon the design of the previous one.
Specifications (varied slightly by group)
Displacement was Approximately 545 tons surfaced, 740 tons submerged, length About 58 meters (190 feet), powered by a Diesel-electric system, with two diesel engines driving electric motors for a to speed of 11.25 knots surfaced, 9 knots submerged and range of 4,500 nautical miles at 10 knots surfaced. Operational depth was around 60–90 meters, with some later boats capable of deeper dives
As far as armament went they had four 21-inch torpedo tubes in the bow, capable of carrying up to 8 torpedoes. Later versions were fitted with a 3-inch deck gun for additional surface attack capability and certain variants could also carry and deploy mines.

The U-class submarines saw extensive combat service during WWII, particularly in the Mediterranean and North Atlantic, where they conducted a variety of missions, including classic Anti-Submarine Warfare missions against enemy submarines, particularly in the North Sea. They were used for coastal Patrols, performing reconnaissance, patrolling close to enemy coastlines. They were used also for Convoy Protection by patrolling shipping lanes and were used for Special Operations, supporting covert missions and transporting Allied commandos behind enemy lines or VIPs in occupied territories.

These submarines were particularly effective in the Mediterranean, where their smaller size and shallow draft allowed them to operate close to enemy-held shores and in narrow straits, such as the Strait of Gibraltar. Their contributions were significant, as they helped contain the threat of Axis supply lines and contributed to the overall success of Allied naval operations.
A total of 49 U-class submarines were completed, with 20 being lost in action. Despite their limitations, U-class submarines were seen as a success due to their adaptability and combat effectiveness. Some submarines were transferred to other navies, including the Royal Netherlands Navy, Polish Navy, and Free French Naval Forces.

The U-class set the foundation for later British submarine designs and contributed valuable lessons in diesel-electric submarine warfare. They were succeeded by V-class, a final refinement of the U-class with 34 ordered, 21 built by Vickers under the 1941-42 War Emergency Programmes and the remainder cancelled. The hull was further lengthened to avoid vibrations and “singing propellers” issues whereas the bows were more streamlined. Hull Welding was introduced on thicker steel for the pressure hull, so they could dive down to 300 ft (91 m). None V-class were lost in action and they served for may years in the coldwar or were sold.

Development

The Royal Navy limited itself to 52,700 long tons (53,500 t) of submarines under the London Naval Treaty of 1930, a tonnage limit that favored smaller submarines. This was comounded by numerous reports of earlier large submarines trials showing they were slower to dive, handled poorly and were easy to see and hear. The First World War H-class submarines still around for training in anti-submarine warfare arrived at the end of their career, and this justified replacement in the eyes of the parliament. The Rear-Admiral Submarines, Noel Laurence wanted to simply replaced these with the same type of simple and inexpensive training boats but with enough torpedoes to found usefulness by making short-range patrols in wartime.

In March 1934 he approved the future U class specifications. He called for a “Small, Simple, Submarine, for Anti-Submarine Training (…).” The first three Unity-class boats were eventually ordered once finance was obtained, as HMS Undine, Unity and Ursula on 5 November 1936, from Vickers-Armstrongs, Barrow-in-Furness. The 1926 Hopwood Committee confirmed that names were preferrable to numbers due to crew morale and command and control, but that these names would begin with the same letter in the alphabet. As the plans and detailed blueprints were approved, the new U class would appear as the smallest built since the last war.

Predecessors: The H class

H4 at Brindisi in 1916
The British H-class submarines were Holland 602 types, constructed between 1915 and 1919 and becoming Britain’s largest class of submarine before WW2. They were designed and built in response to minelaying U-Boats and also to perform similar operations in German waters or to hunt German submarines in British waters at large.
They were considered as cramped and many lacked a deck gun but these remained popular amongst submariners. In addition many were sent to the Adriatic but most arrived late and saw little service and further batches saw no service at all, but on the interwar. They still sank U-51 and UB-52, loosing four of their own.
Post-war, many were retained for training purposes, four more lost in accidents in the 1920s. They were obsolete in 1939 and so they served in training and for coastal patrol, mitigating the heavy RN submarine losses in the early years. Two were sunk by the Germans. Canada also built some, which were equipped with Fessenden transducers.

The U class were completely different beasts from the S-class, desptite the fact the latter were also light submersibles. They found their origin in the Shark class, with more made in the 1941 programme, 1942 and 1943 programmes. They had a much longer range and much heavier tonnage of 810-990t for the latter series versus 500/700 tonnes for the U class.

Unity class boats

This class, laid down in 1937 and completed in 1938, were intended as replacements of the ‘H’ class for training and local patrols. They were distinguished by electric drive when surfaced, the main motors being driven from the dieselpowered generators, and were of single-hull type with an operational depth limit of 200ft. The external TT were in the bows and resulted in a bluff form which was not very satisfactory in a seaway.
The UNDINE class (also called “U” class prewar programme was designed at first for a 500t displacemnt, which looked unrealistic, and was later ported to 540t standard. She displaced 630t/730t on “normal” and fully loaded displacement for hull just 191 feet long and to be powered by Paxman-Ricardo diesels coiupled with Vickers electric motors. The former actually developed less than the latter and both surfaced and submerged speeds were about the same between 11-10kts. On trials Undine made 12.45kts surfaced and 8.58kts submerged.

Range was an issue as they only carried 38t of oil, in two 19 tonnes fuel tanks. The initial armament was to be only in the bow and initially of six tubes plus 10 torpedoes including those in the tubes already, leaving 4 spares. It was impossible to fit all six in the pressure hull so two remainder were placed in the outer hull and not reloadable. They were also given a 3 inches/20cwt deck gun from the start. Ursula had only 8 torpedoes to compensate for the weight of the 3in gun, which only she carried, and she could subsequently carry 6 M2 mines as an alternative. The crew amounted to just 27 compared to 48 for an S-class boat (almost double) and to 61 on a T-class (2.5 times larger).

This was due a clever way to manage ergonomics so that some crew members could take on several roles. Still, in their tiny pressure hull they felt extremely cramped. Yet, they appeared in general to be very reliable and agile despite lacking speed and range.
In all three boats were made, UNDINE (Vickers, Armstrong-Barrow, launched 5.10.1937), UNITY (16.2.1938) and URSULA (16.2.1938) the only one to survive the war, discarded in 1950. She was loaned to USSR as B4 from 1944 to 1949 but was allegedly handed over in such a poor state that she was no use to the RN and quickly decommissioned. See later for the historical records of all three.

Design of the class

Hull and general design

The U class were the smallest British submarines built since the D class back in 1908. They displaced 540 long tons (550 t) standard as well as 630 long tons (640 t) full load but surfaced and 730 tons submerged so a 100t buoyancy difference. The weight of a submarine under water needed to always equal its buoyancy, with extra weight compensated for by removing an equal amount of ballast near the keel and it was linked to the density of the water around, from fresh to highly saline.
They were also moderately compact at 191 ft (58 m) long overall for a beam of 16 ft 1 in (4.90 m) and a draught of 15 ft 2 in (4.62 m). To compare the 1908 D-class measured only 50.2 meters long but were beamier at 6.2m, with a 3.5 m draught. Theor conning tower was a simple bathtub style

The U-class boats had a hull of riveted steel, 0.5 inches (13 mm) thick to be able to dive down to 200 feet (61 m) while having the fuel tanks and ballast tanks inside rather than outside the outer hull. Still they were of a partial double hull type. The superstructure and conning tower were built with free-flooding holes as well as storage spaces for cables, anchors and sundry items which was found handy in service. No spare space was left inoccupied. The pressure hull was divided into five bulkheads. The main acess was from the conning tower with an hatch in the torpedo-stowage compartment. However the engine room had drop-down canvas trunks usabled in emergencies. Lessons of the losses of the H class were well retained.

After closing all water-tight doors, the trunks were lowered, connected to the deck. The hatch was opened slightly until air–water pressure was equal. The crew breathing trapped air until escaping. Each crewman had a Davis Submerged Escape Apparatus of nose-clip and mouthpiece connected to the short duration oxygen bag, only there for the pressure balance and rise up. The first man in trunking opened the hatch and left the boat, then the others in turn. Escape from the conning tower was saw two entering the tower and closing the lower hatch, then opening the upper one, flood this before leaving. So at least now there were ways to two escape.
Among interesting equipments were their 200 mm bifocal periscope fitted with low and high magnification and a second 6 inches (150 mm) low magnification periscope for attack only, more discreete. The periscopes could rise 12 ft (3.7 m) but they had a very shallow periscope depth and were easily spotted from the air in the Mediterranean.

Powerplant

These small boats were powered by two 400 hp (300 kW) Paxman diesel-electric engines. Each had an outout of 615 bhp (459 kW). Tis was completed by two Vickers electric motors rated for 825 shp (615 kW). The diesels totalled 1230 bhp, enough for a surface speed of 11.25 knots (20.84 km/h; 12.95 mph) and the two electric motors a submerged speed of 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph). The diesels drive directly the propellers via generators also charging the battery composed of 112 cells under the control room/crew accommodation. There was a small hatch for checking these. The propellers were the object of great care, made not to perform best on the surface but rather submerged in order to reduce propeller noise. However destpite of this, these “singing propellers” remained a problem for the class. They had a fuel capacity of 38 long tons, enough for a range of 3,800 nmi (7,000 km; 4,400 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph) surfaced, 120 nmi (220 km; 140 mi) submerged at 2 knots (3.7 km/h; 2.3 mph). She needed to surface to recharge her battery. In 1944 however some of the wartime U-class tested dummy snorkels solely for ASW training. For quick diving the U class had six ordinary ballast tanks and a special quick-diving “Q tank”. These ballast tanks as well as the hydroplanes and rudder were all hydraulically operated. The forward hydroplanes were placed high on the bow, folding upwards for docking.

Armament

As seen above the small pressure hull was too constrained to fit more than four tubes. Still, specs called for six, so the two extra ones were relocated to the outer hull, and so considered “external”. This was done also for the T class. These four internal bow torpedo tubes could be reloaded underway. Each had a single spare torpedo, the other being already present in tube when loaded at port. The two external tubes were only reloadable in port. They were located in a specific bulged housing forward, creating also a “forecastle” of sorts. Between the internal and external tubes this amounted to ten. The prospect of having two stern tubes was dropped early on due to the lack of space and trimming complications.

Before the war, the first second group boats, HMS Unique, Upholder, Upright and Utmost only had eight torpedoes for weight reasons, and kept their external tubes, but later groups dispensed of these, as bulge generated a large bow wave. Dive stability at periscope depth was problematic and trimming even more sensible. These boats had a shallow 12 ft (3.7 m) persicopic depth, which conducted captains to also to discard the two external tubes. This loss was felt fully justified in operations. Plus when firing these two external tube torpedoes, sudden loss completely break stability and trim, making them to porpoise, break the surface under enemy guns. It was already feared in 1938 and so the Group two boats of the War Supplementary Emergency Programme had the bulg but not the external torpedo tubes already. Group III boats were the first with a straight bow.

21 inches Mark VIII**

The Mark VIII were the first burner-cycle torpedo in service and the most common became the VIII**, with 3,732 fired by September 1944, 56.4% total of those made. It was exported and maintained in service as late ass 1983. A truly fast and dependable model. When correctly used, itw as a sure kill in stark contrast to the US Mark 14. The model suggested below was standard when completed. They were designed betrween 1925 and 1927, and were mass produced for all British subs from the O class. They had a negative buoyancy of 804 lbs. (365 kg).

⚙ specifications Whitehead Mark 8 double star
Weight	3,452 lbs. (1,566 kg)
Dimensions	21 ft 7 in (6.579 m)
Propulsion	Burner-cycle, 322 hp @ 45 knots
Range/speed setting	5,000 yards (4,570 m)/45.5 knots or 7,000 yards (6,400 m)/41 knots
Warhead	722 lbs. (327 kg) TNT, WW2 805 lbs. (365 kg) Torpex
Guidance	Stright course

3 in (76 mm) QF 20 cwt

HMS Ursula and most of the U class built afterwards carried a 3 in (76 mm) Mark V deck gun. It was not protected by the conning tower and unshielded. Ther crew was completely exposed. To compensate for its weight the ten torpedoes carried on paper was reduced to eight. This deck gun was originally a dual purpose or AA model, but the deck gun mount had a more limited elevation than surface ship’s 90°. This gun was shared by the S-class, U-class and V-class submarines. Approximate Barrel Life was 1,250 rounds.

⚙ specifications 3 in (76 mm) QF 20 cwt Mark V
Weight	2,240 lb (1,020 kg), gun and breech
Barrel length	11 ft 4 in (3.45 m) (45 cal)
Elevation/Traverse	CPV mount, +40°, 300°
Loading system	Semi-automatic sliding-block, 13 in (33 cm) recoil
Muzzle velocity	2,350 feet per second (720 m/s)
Range	10,900 yards (9,970 m), 13k yds max
Guidance	Optical
Crew	6
Round	Fixed QF HE 76.2 × 420 mm R, 31 pounds (14 kg)
Rate of Fire	16–18 rpm

Sensors

The U class had Hydrophones fitted on each side near the bow and facing outwards. There was an extra one on the conning tower, facing aft to cover all angles. Next, an Asdic Type 129 was installed forward of the keel (from 1937). For communication the U class had two wireless aerials plus a jumping aerial on the conning tower usable to detect low frequency signals at periscope depth. The also had a WT mast raised above the water spread for conventional wireless signals.

Group I profile general appearance, HMS Unity.

Rendition of HMS Ursula, Group I

3D rendition of the Group II, from a CC illustration

⚙ specifications Undine class
Displacement	540 long tons (550 t) standard, 630 long tons (640 t) FL surfaced, 730 tons submerged
Dimensions	191 ft x 16 ft 1 in x 15 ft 2 in (58 x 4.90 x 4.62 m)
Propulsion	2 shaft Paxman Ricardo diesels, 2 Vickers electric motors 615 hp/825 hp
Speed	11.25 knots surfaced, 10 knots submerged
Range	4,500 nmi at 11 kn surfaced
Armament	6× 21 in (533 mm) TTs (bow), 10 torpedoes, QF 3 inch 20 cwt 3 in gun
Test Depht	58 meters (190 feet)
Sensors	Hydrophones
Crew	27

Career of the U class

Undine was built by Vickers Amstrong, Barrow-in-Furness. She was laid down on 19 February 1937 and commissioned on 21 August 1938, pennant N48. In 1939 she was part of the 6th Submarine Flotilla. From 26–29 August 1939, she was moved to her patrol bases at Dundee and Blyth. On her fourth war patrol in January 1940 her sonar failed. At 09:40 on the 7th she could not detect incoming German auxiliary minesweepers M-1201, M-1204 and M-1207. She spotted them, tried to sink the leading vessel, but they counter attacked, forced her to dive to 50 feet (15 m). She waited for five minutes with no more depht charging before she raising her periscope and the spotted, attacked, badly damaged by an explosion, abandon ship being ordered and she was scuttled.

Unity was built by Vickers Armstrong, Barrow-in-Furness. She was laid down on 19 February 1937 and was commissioned on 5 October 1938. She was part of the 6th Submarine Flotilla as all three sisters of the Unity clas, Ist group. From 26–29 August 1939 she moved to Dundee and Blyth, patrolling in home waters, North Sea, spotting and attacking but missing U-2. She rescued men from the Dutch fishing vessel Protinus, 25 March 1940. On 11 April 1940 she was spotted by U-5 (another IIa coastal model) commanded by Kapitänleutnant Lehmann. He fired a G7a (T1) torpedo and the latter spotted the bubble trail making a crash dive. U-5 followed and launched another underwater but this time with a G7e (T2) electric torpedo until contact was lost. Both departed their way.
Leaving Blyth on 29 April 1940 for a sortie off Norway, she collided with the Norwegian ship Atle Jarl. Completely rolled over and badly damaged, she had rushing water leaks and sank in five minutes, however all but two survived: Lieutenant John Low and able Seaman Henry Miller remaining behind to lock the flooded control room. They shipmates could escape. The wreck was located again between 48 and 55 m (157 and 180 ft) off the Farne Islands.

Ursula was built by Vickers Armstrong like her sisters, laid down on 19 February 1937, commissioned on 20 December 1938 and entering the 6th Submarine Flotilla. On 9 September 1939, she spotted and attacked U-35 but missed. This was the first RN sub attack of the war. On 14 December she was patrolling of the Elbe estuary when spotting KMS Leipzig, escorted by six destroyers. The light cruise was back to Kiel after already taking a torpedo by HMS Salmon. Ursula dived enough to remain undetected, close the distance, surfaced and launched a close-range attack and then dive again to escape. The cruise was missed but one torpedo hit the escort F9, which sank. Lt.Cdr. G.C. Phillips earned a DSO for this, being promoted. Still in the North Sea, she spotted and sank the German merchant Heddernheim.
Next she was ordered to the Mediterranean and there, sank the Italian auxiliary submarine chaser V 135, German merchants Sainte Marguerite II, Odysseus, badly damaged the Italian merchant Sabbia. However she was almost sunk by the escort and notably the Italian torpedo boat Generale Carlo Montanari. She also sank the trnasport Brook, Tilly L.M. Russ, Vulcania and even U-73. She badly damaged the tanker Beppe, towed to Tripoli and beached.
Lt Cdr Philips in a permission before heading to the Med, contacted a tailor to make him a specific “Ursula” suit which he wore each time he made a successful patrol. He also wanted better suits for its submariners, as the crew was dissatisfied with the conventional oilskins. Her designed himself a special clothing more suitable and navigating officer, Lt. Lakin proposed his one-piece waxed cotton motorcycling suit from Barbour, adapted and made into jacket and trousers with hood. This became soon a sensatio and the company sold it as the standard watch-keeping clothing for RN submarines.
On 26 June 1944 her RN career ended as she was transferred on loan to the Soviet Union, renamed V-4 “Soviet Svanetia” and had a new commander Yaroslav Iosseliani. On 20 October 1944 she operated from Murmansk and sank the German submarine chaser UJ-1219. She was returned in early 1950, scrapped at Grangemouth in May. She was one of the most successful U class subs.

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U class Group II

Early Group II

The experience gained with the U-class helped forging ahead with an incrementally improved Group 2 boats, as part of the War Supplementary Emergency Programme. It consisted of a first batch of twelve submarines of a similar design to the original three, so basically simple repeats. However for these the external torpedo tubes were omitted and and they had a redesigned stern to reduce cavitation. Some also inaugurated a new bow shape to reduce the bow wave. Their hydroplanes were also reshaped and enlarged for better submerged handling. Due to deck gun shortages, they were equipped when completed by WWI vintage 12-pounder. HMS Unbeaten and Unique only were completed with the modern 3-inch gun as intended. These boats as ordered in 1940 and 1941 had the new 3-inch gun and more fuel. They all came from Vickers at Barrow-in-Furness.

HMS Una 3-in deck gun

Author’s rendition from Mike1986Russia’s vector profiles, CC

⚙ Group II specifications
Displacement	630 tons surfaced, 732 tons submerged
Displacement 1941-42	658 tons surfaced, 740 tons submerged
Dimensions	191 x 16 x 10ft (58 x 4.9 x 3 m)
Propulsion	2x Paxman diesels 615 bhp (459 kW), 2 Vickers EM 825 hp (615 kW)
Speed	11.25 kn surfaced, 9 kn submerged
Range	3,800 mi (6,100 km) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph).
Range 1941/42 boats	5,000 mi (8,000 km) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph)
Endurance	120 mi (190 km) submerged
Armament	Bow 4× 21-in (533 mm) TTs (8), 6 mines, QF 12-pdr, 2-3× .303-cal MG AA
Sensors	Hydrophones
Tested Depth	200 ft (61 m)
Crew	33-36 officers and enlisted

The MI5 also investigated the loss of HMS Vandal and Untamed in training operations. The report was kept confidential to maintain the population’s morale. Familiies received letters that their husbands and sons were “killed in action”. In June 1940, naming stopped (for a time), fearing names shortages, andthe admiralty started to use pennant numbers instead, with the prefix “P”. However there was an immediate effect of the “esprit de corps” of submariners. Upon hearing that next boats just ordered were unammed and would remain so, some captains protested on the behalf of future crews. Wether it was a remainder of WWI contempt for these “pirates”, or for practical reasons, naming ships by numbers has not been done since WWI submarines, and the latter was taken as example and explanation. The decision stuck for more than two years.

But on 4 November 1942, Prime Minister Winston Churchill questioned the policy, even though he understood some reasons of this new naming policy. The First Lord of the Admiralty replied that naming was mainly dropped to avoid confusion with destroyers names, as the “U” were alread booked in the alphabet. Numbering submarines was done in the First World War indeed, but Churchill famously declared it was better to be right (towards submariners) than consistent. Esprit de corps was thus to be maintaioned, and naming was resumed. Still, he encounters some rebuffing as the Admiralty after a delay affirmed it was difficult to find enough “U” names, which were not already taken by the S-T-U-V-W planned destroyers (1941 emergency program) and that the remainder would be named with “V”. A list was sent to Churchill on 27 December 1942. Those lost before the naming resumed kept their “P” pennants.

HMS Upholder (IWM). No better photo of the most successful of all British submarines in WW2
They were a few “stars” among these Group II U-class:
-Urchin was transferred to the Polish Navy as ORP Sokół, sinking 55,000 long tons (56,000 t) of Axis shipping.
-Upholder under LtCdr Malcolm Wanklyn over 16 months in the Mediterranean, 24 patrols, sank around 119,000 long tons (121,000 t) of Axis shipping, but also bagged no less than three U-boats, a destroyer, 15 merchant ships, damaged a cruiser and sank another destroyer bfore her loss in April 1942. Captain Wanklyn was awarded the Victoria Cross aso for sinking the Conte Rosso on 25 May 1941. It’s no wonder that tne name “upholder” was resurrectred for the lead boat of the last cold war diesel-electric boats. Losses in general were high, with three out of twelve surviving.

HMS Umpire was ordered on 4 September 1939 at Chatham NyD, laid down on 1 January 1940, launched on 30 December 1940 and commissioned on 10 July 1941. She was rammed accidentally and sunk by trawler Peter Hendriks on 17 July 1941, North Sea, with 22 killed. This was just 9 days after commission, with her full crew of 33. When it happened, she was en route from Chatham to join the 3rd Submarine Flotilla at Dunoon. The skipper was Lieutenant Mervyn Wingfield. From there, it was planned a working-up patrol in the North Sea before heading to the Mediterranean. After stopping overnight at Sheerness, she joined a convoy that headed North, but suffered an engine failure with a Paxman diesel, fell behind and her electric motors took over while she was still surfaced. The convoy passed a Southbound convoy around midnight and this happened 12 nautical miles (22 km) off Blakeney (Norfolk), the two passing starboard to starboard, unusual as it was usually port to port. Lights were al shut not to draw attention of reaming S-bootes.

However, the armed escort trawler Peter Hendriks, part of the crossing southbound convoy accidentally struck Umpire, hidden in the dark. Having far more bulk she basically rolled over her outer hull, which was completely cut and mushed, and then cut into the pressure hull, which broke under the pressure, resulting in instant floodin, leaving no chances to the crew. She sank like a stone under 18 metres of water.
The only survivors were the four crew members on the bridge when it happened, which had the time to jump overboard. This was the skipper Wingfield, his navigator and two lookouts. However despite it was July, that north these were icy cold waters, and only Wingfield survived rapid hypothermia to be picked up by the trawler. The latter stopped immediately after the colision to investigate. Several other personnel survived simply by escaping from the sunken wreck, using the conning tower or engine room escape hatch wearing their DSEA suit. Chief ERA Killen received a British Empire Medal for leaving first to check for obstructions around the engine room hatch and returning to the engine room to assist others escaping, remained until everyone escaped. Still, 16 of the crew were lost.

HMS Una was laid down on 4 September 1939 to Chatham Dockyard, laid down on 7 May 1940, launched on 10 June 1941 and commissioned on 27 September 1941. In the Mediterranean from early 1942, she sank the Italian tanker Lucania, Italian fishing vessel Maria Immacolata, Italian merchants Ninetto G. and Petrarca. Lucania however had been granted immunity by the Admiralty, as to be a replenishment ship for an Italian ship repatriating civilians from East Africa but Lieutenant D.S.R. Martin, was ill and had not read the Admiralty signal before departure.

Una also damaged two sailing vessels and the Italian merchant Cosala, grounded, but total loss. But she also missed the merchant Brioni, the tanker Panuco and German merchant Menes. She even made an attack inside Lampedusa harbour bu missed and her torpedoes hit the rocks. In the night of 11/12 August 1942 she disembarked a commando in Catania, Sicily, to attack an airfield for Operation Pedestal. They managed to blow up the electrical power lines between Syracuse and Catania but were spotted and taken prisoner. From April to August 1943 she was used solely for training after refit back home. After the end of the war, she was decommissioned and placed in reserve in November 1945. She survived the war, sold 11 April 1949 for BU.

HMS Unbeaten was ordered to Vickers Armstrong, Barrow-in-Furness, laid down on 22 November 1939, launched on 9 July 1940 and commissioned on 10 November 1940, the only RN ever of that name. She served on the Mediterranean, sinking the armed sailing vessel V51/Alfa, Vichy-French merchant PLM 20, Italian submarine Guglielmotti and German U-374 but also claimed sinking two sailing vessels with gunfire on 15 July 1941 at Marsa Zuag roads off Libya. She damaged the Italian merchant Vettor Pisani on 16 March 1942. She missed the merchant Silvio Scaroni, troopship Esperia and and either Oceania or Neptunia.
After a refit in Chatham, workup, she joined the 3rd Submarine Flotilla in Scotland, left from Holy Loch for her last patrol, Operation Bluestone, landing an agent near Bayona (Basque coast). She completed her patrol in the Bay of Biscay but was reported missing, believed sunk by British bomber by error on 11 November 1942, RAF Wellington of No. 172 Squadron, Coastal Command, with all hands.

HMS Undaunted was ordered to Vickers, laid down on 2 December 1939, launched on 20 August 1940 and commissioned on 30 December 1940. She was active in the Mediterranean. On 1 May 1941 between Malta and off Tripoli, she was due to return on 11 May but was presumed lost on mines. Postwar possible scenarios includes the Italian torpedo boat Pegaso off Tripoli on the 12th and reporting a sub attack with depth charges, large patch of oil observed. However dates does not match unless Unbeaten’s skipper either decided or was forces to (tech issu) remained longer. The other possibility is the Italian torpedo boat Pleiade off Tripoli on the 13th.

HMS Union was ordered to Vickers Armstrong, laid down on 9 December 1939, launched on 1 October 1940 and commissioned on 22 February 1941. In the Mediterranean, she sank the Italian merchant Pietro Querini. But while leaving from Malta at the first hour of the morning of 14 July 1941 to intercept a convoy north of Tripoli on the 15th, she was most likely depht charged and sank on 20 July 1941 by the torpedo boat Circe, with all hands, south of Pantelleria, when attacking another convoy, she likely missed the first. She failed to return to Malta and reported overdue on 22 July.

Pietro Querini sinking, photo by a RAF aicraft from Malta. Image: IWM (C 1913)

Late Group II

Just before the war broke out, a second group of twelve units were ordered, sometimes class as the “Unique sub-class”: HMS Unique, HMS Upholder, HMS Upright and HMS Utmost had all external tubes, the others lacked it as the bulge at the bow generated a large bow wave. Depth keeping was also more difficult at periscope depth due to their rather shallow 12 ft (3.7 m) draught, which was more of a disadvantage than the six-torpedo salvo that was promoted. The sudden loss of weight in the bows as the full salvo was launched was probably the biggest issue, as the imbalance was such they invariably porpoise and break the surface. Thus, becoming immediate targets by everything in spotting range. Another issue, which was even present for the 4-torpedo of standard boats

HMS Unique was laid down at Vickers Armstrong on 30 October 1939, launched on 6 June 1940 and commissioned on 27 September 1940. She served in the Mediterranean from mid 1941 under command of Captain Arthur Hezlet, sinking the freighter Fenicia and troopship Esperia, damaged the Arsia, later declared a total loss. On 5 January 1942, she attacked, but missed Littorio.
She left Holy Loch after a refit for the Bay of Biscay on 7 October 1942, left her escort off the Scillies on 9 October but was never heard of eagin. HMS Ursula was in the area on 10 October, reporting hearing underwater explosion. Germans made no claims of her sinking and she was reported overdue on 24 October 1942, now considered “sunk around the 10 October”.

HMS Upholder was by far the most successful of the U-class and most successful of all British submarines in WW2, period. She was laid down at laid down on 30 October 1939 at Vickers, launched on 8 July 1940 and commissioned on 31 October, sent to the Mediterranean, under Malcolm David Wanklyn. She left for Malta after working up in Scotland, Holy Loch, underway on 10 December 1940. She started in the 10th submarine flotilla her first of 24 patrols from January 1941 until her loss on 14 April 1942 by the Italian torpedo boat Pegaso off Tripoli. In between, she sank four warships: The destroyer Libeccio (after the Battle of the Duisburg Convoy), two submarines (Tricheco and Ammiraglio Saint-Bon) and an auxiliary minesweeper. But also ten merchant ships, three troopships, six cargo ships, and an auxiliary transport for a total pof 93,000 GRT and the Victoria Cross to attack a well-defended convoy on 24 May 1941, torpedoing the 17,879 GRT Italian troop ship and liner Conte Rosso.
On 28 July 1941, she damaged the cruiser Giuseppe Garibaldi. On 18 September 1941 she sank two troopships, Neptunia (19,475 GRT) and Oceania (19,507 GRT) and damaged the German freighter Duisburg (7,389 GRT) in the “Duisburg convoy”. She also sank the French tanker Capitaine Damiani (4,818 GRT), Italian freighters Dandolo (4,964 GRT) and Sirio (5,223 GRT) the German freighter Arta (2,425 GRT) grounded after the battle of the Tarigo Convoy.

17 April 1942: HMS UPRIGHT, 2nd from left, and Flotilla berther to a repair ship of the Maidstone class, in Holy Loch. P 43 and possibly P 23 also visible.

HMS Upright was laid down on 6 November 1939, launched on 21 April 1940 and commissioned on 3 September 1940. She served in the Mediterranean, sinking the Italian submarine chaser Albatros, merchants Silvia Tripcovich, Fabio Filzi, Carlo del Greco carrying previous M13/40 tanks of the XII Tank Battalion, 133rd Tank IR. to Libya. She sank the light cruiser Armando Diaz and a drydock under tow. She also damaged the transport Galilea. She missed also a floating drydock and merchant Calino and was heavily depth charged by escorts. She survived the war, sold 19 December 1945, BU March 1946.

HMS Urchin was ordered to Vickers Armstrong, laid down on 9 December 1939, launched on 30 September 1940 under the pennant N97. Whe completed, she loaned to the Polish Navy from November 1941 as ORP Sokół. She was returned and renamed P97 in 1946 and was BU 1949. Her loan was decided between the two governments, with an Anglo-Polish military alliance on 18 November 1939 and 3 December 1940. Under Polish flag, captain Borys Karnicki, she was moved to Portsmouth, and started by patrolling the dangerous bay of Biscaye. Later from Malta, in the Adriatic, off northern africa and Italy, attacking even inside Naples and Pola, and the Aegean in 1944 from beirut. She ended the war in the Dundee 9th sub Flotilla, operating off Norway. Overall, she sank or damaged 19 enemy vessels for 55,000 tons total under Lieutenant Commander Karnicki, Lieutenant Commander Koziołkowski and Captain Bernas, all were awarded the Virtuti Militari.

HMS Urge was laid down at Vickers on 30 October 1939, launched on 19 August 1940 and commissioned on 12 December 1940. From 1941 to 1942 was with the 10th Submarine Flotilla in Malta, damaging and sank enemy warships (Vittorio Veneto on 14 December 1941, Giovanni delle Bande Nere on 1 April 1942) and merchant vessels with also SBS and SIS special operations under Lieutenant-Commander Edward Philip Tomkinson, DSO for a totak of 20 patrols. She was sunk on 6 May 1942 (with all hands inc. passengers and one war correspondent) either by the Italian torpedo boat Pegaso on 27 April 1942, or after striking a German mine off Malta.

HMS Usk was laid down at Vickers on 6 November 1939, Launched on 7 June 1940 and commissioned on 11 October 1940. Sent to the Mediterranean after working up in Scotland, she sailed from Malta to patrol off the north west coast of Sicily, on 19 April 1941. She was signalled intense ASW patrols in the vicnity and to move away, but was never heard of again. She most likely struck mines in the vicinity of Cape Bon some after 25 April 1941, reported overdue on 3 May 1941. She she is assumed “mined on 3 May 1941” off Cap Bon in Tunisia.

HMS Utmost was laid down on 2 November 1939 at Vickers, launched on 20 April 1940 and commissioned on 17 August 1940. In the Mediterranean, she sank the Italian merchants Capo Vita, Enrico Costa, and Frederico C., German tanker Languste, damaged the Italian merchant Manfredo Camperio. She boldly attackked later a convoy of 5 German merchants protected by 3 Italian destroyers; bagging the Heraklea, badly damaged Ruhr. In another convoy for the DAK, she missed however the German merchant Tilly L.M. Russ and Italian merchant Cadamosto, escorted by Pallade and Polluce.
She finished off the Italian merchant Marigola, and became with ORP Sokół, the “terrible twins”, sink the Italian merchant Balilla but missed Fabio Filzi and Siculo, and the Italian auxiliary minelayer Barletta, but torpedoed and damaged the heavy cruiser Trieste.
Her CO Lt.Cdr. R.D. Cayley received the DSO for this and a mission, landing agents behind enemy lines. She left Malta for a last patrol in the Mediterranean in November 1942. On the 23rd she sank an enemy ship but failed to report. It was learned postwar that on 25 November while back to Malta, she was spotted and destroyed west off Sicily by the TB Groppo.
Full records on uboat.net

Crew of HMS Utmost with their “Jolly Roger” success flag

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Group III (Ullswater class)

Comparison between the Group II and III: The aft section remained the same, but the forward section has a new bow without outer tubes, finer lines and added lenght overall

The third group were the largest in production, with 34 vessels ordered in three sub-batches. In June 1940, decision was taken to drop the naming practice of submarines (it was starting to run out of names) and used a simpler system with the “P” prefix, such as P31 to P39, P41 to P49. However this was countermanded in late 1942 by PM Winston Churchill, which ordered that all submarines would revert to names, notably to keep the esprit de corps among submariners. However eight of these were lost in action before they could receive named.

Layout

Technically, the new group III were abit larger, and lost their outer TTs, since in operation it was discovered, these upper bow TTs fins creates on periscopic depth a very large surf as well as on type “Т”. Under 1940 and 1941 Programmes 41 more submarines were ordered from which 7 were canceled. Fuel stowage was increased to 55t for the account of use of part of ballast tanks.
In Displacement theyw ere the largest U class at 662 long tons (673 t) surfaced and 740 long tons (750 t) submerged (versus 630/732 tons on Gp.II), for an overall length reaching 205 ft (62 m)
an outer beam of 16 ft (4.9 m) and draught of 10 ft (3 m) versus 191 feet (58 meters) long for the Group II but same beam and draught.

HMS Uproar, ex-Ullswater, ex P31.

Powerplant

The powerplant was the same as well, with an installed power of 800 bhp up to 825 bhp in the latter batches (600 kW) engines (versus 615 bhp/459 kW Group II) and 760 bhp (570 kW) motors, for a better speed, which was the main objective. The increase lenght also improved the beam to lenght ratio as well and played into this. Thanks to the new Paxman diesels, top speed jumped from 11.25 kn (20.84 km/h; 12.95 mph) surfaced to 12.75 kn (23.61 km/h; 14.67 mph). Underwater speed did not changed as the same generators and bnattery arrangements were kept, for 9 knots (17 km/h; 10 mph) submerged. The range was about the same as well, 5,000 miles (8,000 km) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph) based on 55 tonnes diesel oil, same as the late Group II, and endurance renamined the same at 120 nautical miles (190 km) submerged. The test depth was 300 ft (91 m), service depth generally c50 m or 150 ft. They carried a slightly larger crew of 37 versus 33, albeit this was the maximal capacity of the boat, it’s likely 33 was the norm.

Armament

The Armament remained the same as Group II late boats, with the two bow outer torpedo tubes removed, and only the four bow 21-inch (533 mm) torpedo tubes kept, reloadable from the pressure hull. They carried 4 spare torpedoes, for eight total but could also carry instead six mines. With their small size, mining harbours became more interesting as the war progressed. They also retained ther QF 12-pounder on deck, and had up to three 0.303 machine-guns, Vickers or Browning on pintles, installed each time she surfaced. On later batches (2nd and 3rd in 1942 and 1943), the deck gun was replaced by a 3-in/45 20cwt QF Mk II instead.

3-in/45 20cwt QF Mk II

On HMS Voracious in Australia 1945
In all, 184 Mark II were in service with the RN. Muzzle velocity 2,000 feet per second (610 m/s), shell 16 pounds (7.3 kg), 9.2 sec. to 5000 ft at 25°, 13.7 sec. to 10,000 fr or 3000 m at 40° and 18.8 sec. at 15,000 ft or 4600m at 55° and max ceiling 22,000 feet (6,700 m). Many started their carrer with the 3-in/40 before being teplaced by the 3-in/45 20cwt QF Mk II.
A few also received later in their carrer, 1945, the 3-in/45 CP Mk V.

Mark II ground Mines

These Submarines could launch sea mine. 2 for one torpedo. Used a CR magnetic trigger. Weight 1,760 lbs. (798 kg), inc. 1,000 lbs. (454 kg) minol charge. Laid at 8 knots under 9-110 m. Generally carried by the S class submarines as the U clas lacked capacity. By November 1920 production of the model IID was halted. If replacing all torpedoes, they could carry 16 mines, making for a more serious minefield but as a general practice, captained preferred to keep four torpedoes. So the standard was rather eight, not six.

Sensors

The site remained the Type 1929 and 138 sonar, that worked well in complement, but Group III boats were systematically equipped with the type 286PW and the last batch started to be equipped with the 291W radar.

286PW

This 1940 small VHF band British naval air search radar was available since 1940, without rotating antenna and rather a set of three rake antennae, and the target area was scanned by maneuvering the ship around. Type 286 was later replaced by Type 291. Frequency was 214 MHz in VHF band, for a PRF of 200 to 800 Hz, a pulsewidth (τ) of 2 µs, peak power of 6 kW and range of 25 nm (46 km).

291W

Replacement for the Type 286, it had the famous “X” architecture. Also working in VHF band, it arrived by late 1941 and was installed on U-class boats from early 1942, but rotating by crank so no need to turn the boat. Frequency 214 MHz, PRF 500 Hz, pulsewidth (τ) 1.1 µs, PP 100 kW, average 55 W. Range 35 nm (65 km) resulotion 180 m, beamwidth 40°.

Author’s rendition from Mike1986Russia’s vector profiles, CC

⚙ specifications
Displacement	662 long tons (673 t) surfaced, 740 long tons (750 t)
Dimensions	205 x 16 x 10 ft (62 x 4.9 x 3 m)
Propulsion	2 shaft 800 bhp (600 kW) engines, 760 bhp (570 kW) motors
Speed	12.75 knots surfaced, 9 knots submerged
Range	5,000 mi (8,000 km) at 10 knots, 120 nm (190 km) submerged
Armament	bow 4× 21-in (533 mm) TTs (8 or 6 mines), QF 12-pounder, 3 × LMGs
Max depht	300 ft (91 m)
Sensors	Type 129/138 Sonar, 286PW or 291W radar
Crew	37 (maximum)

11 March 1940 batch Career

HMS was P43, laid down on 30 April 1940 at Vickers-Armstrong, launched on 27 November 1940, commissioned on 2 April 1941. She originally named P 31. And from February 1943, Ullswater, then renamed a last time Uproar on April 1943. She honored the memory of a Yarrow Late M-class destroyer sunk in 1918 (ullswater). As P 31 she was deployed in the hunt for Bismarck, but did not see action directly. She was then transferred to the Mediterranean with the 10th flotilla, from Malta. She was damaged by an air raid there, repaired. In her frsisr patrol she sank the Italian auxiliary patrol vessel D-15/Brindisi, merchant Chietti (former French Artesien), and the Italian passenger liner Andrea Sgarallino (300 civilians, 4 survived). She also later sank the merchant Marin Sanudo but was depth charged by the TBs Cigno and Procione.

She also hit the former French tanker Champagne, under German service, which ran aground off Bastia (Corsica) on the 24th (finished off by her sister Ultor) and damaged the German tanker Matera (former French General Gassouin), German troop transport Virgilio (former Yugoslavian Dubrovnik) off St. Tropez. She survived but was declared a total loss.
She attacked but missed the Italian merchant Chisone, U-466 and Italian light cruiser Raimondo Montecuccoli as well as taking part in operations Harpoon and Vigorous by mid-1942. She survived the war, sold for BU 13 February 1946 at Thos. W. Ward in Inverkeithing.

P32 was laid down under that name on 30 April 1940, launched on 15 December 1940 and commissioned on 3 May 1941. She was sent to the Mediterranean, likely based from Malta. On 12 August 1941 during a patrol near Tripoli she found no target but six days later, she spotted a small Italian convoy of five merchant ships, protected by destroyers and torpedo boats, heading towards to Tripoli. P32 and two sisters attempted an attack. P33 was sunk in the attempt but HMS Unique sank the SS Esperia two days later.
P32 was about to abort the attack, whe her skipper attempted to run underneath a moored minefield to take a better spot. Believing he had cleared it, Lieutenant D.A.B. Abdy ordered to periscope depth, likely stricking one in the process.
The detonation pierced her hull forward of the control room, killing 8. She developed a severe list and sank but there were still 24 survivors. They managed to shut the hatches behind them and take refuge in the engine room, later attempting a DSEA escape. However Abdy, coxswain Petty Officer Kirk, and ERA Martin attempted using the conning tower, the latter drawn, the twp others surfaced and were later picked up by MAS 528. Abdy and Kirk were later exchanged for Italian POWs 1943. The wreck was discovered in 1999, 15 nm east-north-east of Tripoli under 200 feet (61 m).

P33 was laid down on 18 June 1940, launched on 28 January 1941 and commissioned on 30 May 1941. Commanded by Lt. R.D. Whiteway-Wilkinson, she was attached to the 10th Submarine Flotilla based at Malta. On 15 July 1941 she spotted and sank the 5,300 ton Barbarigo south of Punta Sciaccazza (Pantelleria) in a small Italian convoy. She made her final patrol from 6 August 1941 leaving Malta for Sicily and intercept a convoy to Tripoli. P32, and HMS Unique joined her, and reported a long depth charge attack on 18 August. They failed to contact P33. P32 was sunk later on a mine. P33 was overdue on 20 August. Postwar analysis showed she had been likely sank by Partenope near Pantelleria, on 23 August. On board was also Lt. Richard Cunningham, son of Vice Admiral John Cunningham…

Ultimatum was P34 when laid down on 19 June 1940, launched on 11 February 1941 and Commissioned on 29 July 1941.
She was sent to the Mediterranean, sank the Italian passenger ship Dalmatia L. as well as a German sailing vessel. But her biggest kill was the Italian submarine Ammiraglio Millo, surfaced reloading batteries by night. From January 1943 her skipper was Lieutenant Hedley Kett. On 30 October she spotted and attacked a U-boat southeast of Toulon, later identified as U-73 but she was missed. She was credited for a time with sinking U-431 albeit iy happened rather off Algiers by a Wellington bomber as revised in November 1987 by the MoD. She also attacked the merchants Ravello, Luciano Manara and Unione. She also attacked but missed the submarine Zaffiro and German auxiliary patrol vessel Uj 607 ex-Nimeth Allah. On 2 May 1944, she shelled Kalamata (Greece) and damaged or sunk several sailing vessels and small German vessels, like the German barge F 811. Postwar, she sold for BU on 23 December 1949, scrapped at Port Glasgow.

Laid down on 19 July 1940 as P35 she was launched at Vickers on 15 March 1941, and commissioned on 2 September 1941. Based in the Mediterranean, she sank the Italian Assunta De Gregori, Francesco Barbaro, Sacro Cuore, Emilio Morandi, transport Manfredo Campiero, German cargo ship Süllberg, Italian salvage vessel Rampino. Her biggest kill was finish off the already damaged Italian heavy cruiser (by a Beaufort of the 217 Sqn) Trento, on 15 June 1942 and also attacked but missed the Italian battleship Littorio.

Umbra sank the already grounded Italian supply ship Amsterdam, on 23 October 1942, and sank the tug Pronta trying to rescue her. She also attacked, hit and damaged the 15,186 GRT Italian troop ship Piemonte and cargo ship Napoli, later beached and finished off by aircraft. She torpedo-damaged the German troop ship Macedonia north of Sousse (Tunisia), beached and abandoned. She attacked by missed the cargo Nino Bixio. Her last actions were against the sailing vessels Nuovo Domenico and Concetta Falco, by gunfire in the Gulf of Hammamet, on 11 January 1943.
Postwar she was sold for scrap on 9 July 1946, at Blyth.

P36 was ordered from Vickers Armstrong, Barrow-in-Furness and laid down on 26 July 1940, launched on 28 April 1941, then commissioned on 24 September 1941. On 26 November 1941 she patrolled the Bay of Biscay, spotted and torpedoed, but missed an U-Boat south-west of Belle-Ile island (might have been U-133, U-552, U-567 or U-577). On 13 February 1942 she fired torpedoes at the heavy cruisers Gorizia and Trento in the Ionian Sea, 90 nm (170 km) east of Capo Spartivento in Calabria but missed. Two days later, she damaged the destroyer Carabiniere off Taranto.
On 1 April 1942, she was at the jetty of Sliema Harbour, Malta when the Luftwaffe raided the harbour and one Sturzkampfgeschwader 3 Stuka’s heavy bomb made a near miss so close her pressure hull ruptured and she started to sink. Despite desperate efforts to save her, she rolled over, not raised until 7 August 1958, scuttled off the island on 22 August. Her crew embarked on HMS Olympus, bound for Gibraltar which 8 May 1942, struck a mine and sank, for this really curse crew. Theye were nine survivors of 98 passengers which managed to swim 7 miles (11 km) back to Malta.

HMS Unbending was started at Vickers-Armstrongs, laid down on 30 August 1940, Launched on 12 May 1941 and commissioned on 5 November 1941. She entered the 10h Flotilla under command of Lieutenant E.T. Stanley, patrolled the Mediterranean. She sank the Italian merchant ships Alga, Citta di Bergamo, Cosenza and Beppe, Italian auxiliary minelayer Eritrea, Italian destroyer Giovanni da Verrazzano and the Italian small coaster Lupa II with gunfire as the latter evaded her two torpedoes. She also damaged the Italian cargo liner “Viminale” and Carlo Margottini (former “Bled”) which ran ashore but was later salvaged and returned to service. She boarded a schooner in the gulf of Sfax, unable to hit the small vessel with her deck gun, only to set fire to it using a can of shale oil. She survived the war and was sold for BU on 23 December 1949, scrapped at Gateshead in May 1950.

HMS P38 was laid down on 2 September 1940, launched on 9 July 1941 and commissioned on 17 October 1941. P38 left Malta on 16 February 1942 to catch a large supply convoy off Tripoli and on the 23rd she was in position on 25 February. The TB Circe with her German sonar reported contact at 08:14 at 1,800 m and ordered the convoy to turn to port and she attacked. After a deluge of DCs, P38 rose and sank immediately. Further attacks and machine gun fire from Emanuele Pessagno and Antoniotto Usodimare plus aircraft tracking went on until P38 rose out again to crash dive at 40 degrees. Later a large patch of oil appeared, debris and human remains so that the kill was confirmed. She is now under 350 m (1,150 ft) 90 nm (170 km; 100 mi) east of Tripoli, Cape Misuratha.

HMS P39 was Laid down on 14 October 1940, Launched on 23 August 1941 and commissioned on 16 November 1941. She was assigned to operate from Malta, 10th Flotilla. While in harbour in 1943 following a patrol off Tunisia to repair bomb damage she was targeted by Ju-87 Stukas and JU-88 dive bombers, shook by near hits and too badly damaged for repair. Salvaged, she was towed to Kalkara, beached. She was again badly damaged by another air attack. Meanwhile the crew served on HMS Olympus, lost on their way home. P39 was broken up in 1954.

HMS P41 was Laid down on 15 October 1940, Launched on 24 August 1941 and Transferred to Royal Norwegian Navtransferred at completion to the Royal Norwegian Navy as HNoMS Uredd. She served mostly as a patrol craft off Norway, making seven missions, sinking several German ships. In February 1943 under Rolf Q. Røren, she was tasked to land night commandos of the Kompani Linge at Bodø for Operation Seagull and to Senja to pick up two French submariners left stranded after the departure of Junon. Contact with Uredd was. She was assumed lost in a German minefield on 10 February, that became official on 20 February 1943 and 28 February in the RN, conformed by her wreck rediscovered in 1985 by HNoMS Tana southwest of Fugløyvær, a victim of the minelayer Cobra with all crew about 5 February 1943 or after.

23 August 1940 batch

HMS Unbroken was Laid down on 30 December 1940, Launched on 4 November 1941 as P42, commissioned on 29 January 1942, but Christened “Unbroken” on 1st February 1943. After work up trials in Holy Loch she joined the 10th Flotilla at Malta, her first patrol from Gibraltar. She landed saboteurs (Captain Peter Churchill) at Antibes on her way to Malta and arrived in June 1942 as the only submarine then until United, Unruffled and Unrivalled arrived. She took part in Operations Harpoon and Vigorous in June 1942 and by July 1942 she gunned the west coast railway line on the Italian coast, blocking it for 24 hours and dodged coastal artillery fire. Her battery was damaged, forcing her back to Malta. On October 1942 she was depht charged by Italian escorts after hitting a tanker, repaired at Malta.

She also sank the Italian merchants Edda and Bologna (former French Monaco), the pilot vessel F20, Italian auxiliary minesweeper No. 17, damaged the Italian sailing vessel Vale Formoso II, German tanker Regina. But her best shots were the Italian heavy cruiser Bolzano and the light cruiser Muzio Attendolo in Operation Pedestal. Bolzano had to be beached at Panarea island, out of action until V-Day, Attendolo lost her bow. She missed the Italian merchant Algerino, but damaged the Titania, finished off by HMS Safari. She was back to Britain in December 1943.
She was then transferred on loan to USSR on 26 June 1944, renamed V-2. She sank the German submarine chaser UJ-1220 on 12 October 1944. Returned in 1949 she was scrapped from May 1950.

Unison was laid down on 30 December 1940 as P43, launched on 5 November 1941 and commissioned on 19 February 1942, renamed in 1943. She was sent to Malta, 10th Flotilla fropm the start after the usual training at Holy Loch. She sank the Italian merchants Enrichetta, Marco Foscarini and Terni, sailing vessels Luigi Verni, Carlo P. and Angela, German coaster Jaedjoer and Italian tanker Zeila, damaged the Italian tanker Pozarica, missed the merchant Chisone and the tanker Cerere. At operation Harpoon, she attacked but missed the Raimondo Montecuccoli and Emanuele Filiberto Duca d’Aosta on 13 June. On 2 August 1943 she was attacked by gunfire in error while surfaced by the American tanker Yankee Arrow off Cape Bon. She was repaired in Bizerte (1 killed, several wounded in the CT inc. CO Lt. Anthony Daniell DSO DSC.
Transferred to the Soviet Navy on 26 June 1944 she was renamed V-3, was returned in 1949, scrapped from May 1950.

HMS United was Laid down on 25 February 1941, launched on 18 December 1941 and commissioned on 2 April 1942 as P44. She joined the 10th flotilla at Malta after training in Scotland, and made several patrols in the Mediterranean, sank the merchant Rostro, auxiliary submarine chaser V 39/Giovanna, and her greatest prize, the destroyer Bombardiere. She also sank the Vichy French merchant Ste Marguerite, Italian merchant Olbia. She took part in Operation Husky, the Feb. 1943 invasion of Sicily when spotting by night the transport submarine Remo, launched four, one hitting and sinking her. She later sank the transport ship MS Rosolino Pilo, already damaged by MTBs. She damaged the tanker Petrarca, merchant Ravenna, already grounded after air attack on 29 September 1942. She missed the light cruiser Attilio Regolo, which already lost her bow to HMS Unruffled. She survived the war, was scrapped at Troon from 12 February 1946.

Unrivalled was ordered on 23 August 1940 from Vickers Armstrong, Barrow-in-Furness, laid down on 12 May 1941, launched on 16 February 1942 and commissioned on 3 May 1942. She trained in Holy Loch and had work-up patrol in the Norwegian Sea, before being sent to the Mediterranean. While in Norway she fired a torpedo at what she believed to be a surfaced U-Boat, but nothing came out of it. In the Mediterranean, from Malta, she sank axis merchantmen and naval auxiliary vessels, the latter often with gunfire as the sub-chaser O 97/Margherita, merchants Maddalena, Mostaganem and Pasubio, tugs Genova and Iseo, sailing vessels Triglav, Albina, Margherita, Sparviero and Ardito, German auxiliary sub-chaser UJ 2201/Bois Rose and UJ 2204/Boréal, Italian tanker Bivona, merchant Santa Mariana Salina, auxiliary minesweeper R 172 and AMC San Francisco di Paola A.

Lt H B Turner RN, commanding officer of HMS Unrivalled, Malta, 26–28 January 1943 (IWM A14488)
Unrivalled damaged the Italian torpedo boat Antonio Mosto on 3 December 1942, but saw no more success after after 28 July 1943. She took part in Operation Husky in July, placed offshore to mark landing beaches for the 1st Canadian Infantry Division. Postwar she was mothballed and scrapped at Briton Ferry, Wales, from 22 January 1946.

Unruffled was Laid down on 25 February 1941, launched on 19 December 1941 and commissioned on 9 April 1942 as P46, renamed 1943. She started training in Scotland under ieutenant John Samuel Stevens, Holy Loch for sea trials and working up, departing on 13 May 1942 for Lerwick and started her first patrol on 16 May off of the North Sea coast of Norway. While 90 miles (140 km) off station she met HNoMS Uredd and returned to Lerwick on 1 June. She was then ordered for Gibraltar, arrived on 25 June. In July her crew adopted a lone harbour’s cat named “Timoshenko” on board for all her twenty Med patrols until mid-43. The mascot became such a luck item that the boat delayed departure if the cat could not be found.
On 1 August 1942 she was part of Operation Pedestal and on 10 August she spotted the merchant Siculo off Marettimo, fired three, missed. She arrived at Malta 5 days later. On 21 September she engaged the Italian auxiliary minesweepers N10/Aquila and S. Michele with her deck gun off the coast of Tunisia, destroyed, the first, but S. Michele escaped. Half an hour later she spotted and torpedoed the the Vichy French merchant ship “Liberia”. The next day this was the Italian merchant ship SS Leonardo Palomba. At first he missed, so he surfaced, fired four shots but dived as the latter fired her machine gun. She shadowed Leonardo Palomba until launching again, hitting her and left her burning before being back to Malta.

In her next patrol on 9 October she was close to the Italian coast and opened fore on a passing train, hits twice. On 11 October she spotted and fired four on the merchant Una near Capri but missed. Una headed for Naples, but P46 attacked again and hit her amidships. She burned and sank.
On 13 October, she spotted, launched and hit the Italian cargo ship Loreto which carried (without markings) 350 POWs mostly from the British Indian Army, 130 drawn, and british Intel knew this but the information never reached P46. On 2 November P46 she took part of Operation Torch and on 6 November sighted an Italian sub (likely Bronzo), gave chase, firing four but missed.
On 8 November, she spotted a flotilla led by the cruiser Attilio Regolo and attacked, hit with a torpedo that severed her bow. Out of torpedoes, she broke off. Later HMS United also attacked, missed but Regolo ended the war in a dry dock. P46 was back in Malta on 11 November.
She was at sea on the 16th, on the 21st spotted, surfaced, engaged but failed to sunk an Italian tug. He gun jammed. So she was back to Malta on the 29th. Back at sea on 10 December. On the 14th she spotted an Italian convoy, already attacked by HMS Sahib. Herself sank the tanker Castelverde, Sahib sank Honestas.

A day later she spotted the steamer Sant’Antioco. However when closing, she was attacked by Italian aircraft dropping depth charges (minor damage). She was back on 18 December.
In early January 1943 she took part in Operation Principal (frogman attack on Palermo), recovered two crews manning Chariot torpedoes. Next she gunned down a schooner on 23 January but splashed from shore guns forced her to dive. On 26 January she attacked the Z 90/Redentore by deck gun, its crew abandoned ship, she launched a boarding party, foudn her sinking. On 31 January she attacked the German SS Lisbon, sank her. She was back on 2 February and formally named HMS Unruffled. The 10th Submarine Flotilla boss commented this was “well suited to her commanding officer, Lt. Stevens”. XO Lieutenant Oliver Lascelles was also commended for hhits actions and later himself became skipper of Unruffled.

Unruffled’s Second Lieutenant Oliver Lascelles pictured in front of the boat on 4 February 1943; Lascelles would go on to command Unruffled later in his career Unruffled back at sea on 18 February surfaced and engaged two schooners, forced their crews to abandon ship and see them wrecked on the shore, albeit none were damaged them. On 21 February she sank the German merchant Baalbek, back on 24 February. Next patrol on 16 March she engaged a lighter, gunned, crew out, she boarded and and sank her with a demolition charge. Next two patrols were reconnaissances for Operation Husky, as a marker boat for troop landings. On 25 May, she sank the Vichy French tanker Henri Desprez on 3 June. She was escorted, took depth charges but escaped back toMalta on 8 June. From 24 June to 10 July, she made two reconnaissance patrols. On 27 July she made a new patrol and on 3 August, sank the Italian troopship Città di Catania entering Brindisi after already engaging her two days earlier. She was in Malta for maintenance 10-22 August, back at sea with two Greek officers, delivered to Cephalonia on 25 August for sabotage missions (Operation Seaman). Two days later she attacked the troopship Città di Spezia, full salvo, but missed. She learned at Malta on 8 September the Armistice of Cassibile. Her 20th and final patrol started on 26 September via Algiers on 9 October, attacked an unidentified German merchant vessel on 5 October, missed (possibly Pommern). In Algiers, she was serviced by HMS Maidstone, and was underway for home on 17 October via Gibraltar until 4 November, parted company without the mascot cat Timoshenko (ashore, can’t be found) and she reached Gosport on 18 November. After a refit at Tilbury, she spent time in exercises from Bermuda, was mothballed in late 1945, until sold for BU at Troon in January 1946.

P47 was laid down on 19 November 1941, launched on 27 July 1942 and transferred to Royal Netherlands Navy before completion. Under the new name HNLMS Dolfijn she was Commissioned on 8 October 1942. Dolfijn between September 1942 and January 1943 was in trials with the 3rd Flotilla in Holy Loch, Scotland. In January 1943 she was assigned to the 8th Flotilla at Algiers. In November-December 1943, she ws in the 10th Flotilla, Malta. On her first war patrol she attacked an unidentified U-Boat but missed. On 9 February 1943, she ambushed and sank the Perla-class Malachite near Cape Spartivento in Sardini. Next she sank the Italian merchant ship Egle, auxiliary patrol vessel V50/Adalia, sailing vessel Stefano Galleano plus four more like the Greek Hydrea and Theonie, and other German vessels such as barges.

She damaged the Italian merchantmen Humanitas and Sabia, launched attacks against the German Oria and Leda. On the latter, this was thrwarted by escorting TA14. She torpedoed the wreck of the French merchant Dalny and attacked a small convoy with gunfire, badly damaged the barge Vidi but broke off and submerge due to counter fire. From December 1943 to March 1944, she entered the 1st Flotilla at Beirut. She sailed back to the UK with convoys, refitted at Dundee but saw little activity afterwards. Postwar, she became a training boat for the TOKM in Amsterdam 1947-1952 until decommissioned and nominally returned butbroken up the eby May 1952.

P48 was laid down on 2 August 1941, launched on 15 April 1942 and commissioned on 18 June 1942. At Holy Loch, she had training and tests in the River Clyde, with additional torpedo trials off Arrochar, and left for Lerwick on 17 July and the next day, she made a first patrol in the Norwegian Sea, mostly against known U-Boat sorties routes. She was back home on 29 July. After refresher at Holy Loch and Rothesay, she departed for Gibraltar on 12 August but was ordered to look for a German tanker. Whhile surfaced in heavy weather she had her auxiliary machinery flooded, so she abandoned the search and went on to Gibraltar. On 23 August, after repairs and exercises until 27 September she made a second patorl between 29 September and 6 October 1942 in the Alboran Sea. On 31 October, she departed Gibraltar for the eastern Med, and took men for a a spec ops landing off Algiers, and resumed her trip to Malta. She only kept torpedoes in her tubes, with extra equipment loaded for her mission, she landed the team on 4 October and remained as a directional radio beacon for Operation Torch landings three days later. She patrolled off Bizerte, spotted a Vichy merchant ship, launched but missed. She made another and went back to Malta and the 10th Submarine Flotilla.

On 26 November, P48 she started another patrol off Tunisia. A week later, she attacked a German-Italian convoy (no hits) but was depth charged by the escort. On 5 December, she launched three torpedoes at a German merchant, missed, and was attacked by the escorting Zerstorer. She was back on 8 December. Her next patrol started on 23 December under Lieutenant M.E. Faber. On the 24th she was caught surfaced by an Italian escorting aircraft which strafed her and signalled her so that escorting TB Ardente arrived and made sonar contact, dropping 48 depth charges. She later observed a large oil patch 100–150 metres wide and claimed her sunk. So far P48’s wreck was not found. She was declared overdue on 5 January 1943.

Unruly was Laid down on 19 November 1941, launched on 28 July 1942 and commissioned on 3 November 1942. Likeher sisters she was sent to the Mediterranean, after her Scottish training and shakedown in the sea of Norway, then convoy escort duty off the North Cape. In Mediterranean, where she transited via Gobralmtar to Malta, she sank the French merchant St Lucien, Italian merchant Valentino Coda, twelve sailing vessels, and German minelayer Bulgaria, the latter loaded with supplies for the Kos garrison (Aegean). She also attacked but missed the minelayer Drache the same day. She continued to shadow Drache for days but never managed to sink her. She damaged the Italian tanker Cesco, merchant Nicolo Tommaseo (later sunk by aviation). She missed the German merchants Erpel and Pelikan, and a Spanish merchant. In Allied invasion of Sicily she had her best kill, when spotting by noight the surfaced Acciaio, launching four torpedoes, one hitting. Oddly enough, Unurly’s skipper bleioved she missed the submarine and left the area. This kill was recorded postwar with analysis. After late 1943 there was not much else to do and she returned likely in 1944 in UK. Too small for Pacific Operations, like her sisters she was without goal until V Day, and spent time training. She was scrapped in February 1946 at Thos. W. Ward, Inverkeithing.

Unseen (a name appopriate for a submarine) was laid down as P51 at Vickers on 30 July 1941, launched on 16 April 1942 and commissioned on 2 July 1942. Like her sisters she was sent to the Med after a sort training in Scotland, the shores of Norway, via Gibraltar to Malta. There, she sank the Italian merchants Zenobia Martini, Tre Marie and Rastello (former Greek Messaryas Nomikos), the auxiliary “Sportivo”, German auxiliary subm-chaser UJ-2205 (former French Le Jacques Coeur), Italian sailing vessel Fabiola, German minelayer Brandenburg (former French Kita), German nightfighter direction vessel Kreta (former French Ile de Beauté) German barge F 541. She also finished off the merchant Macedonia and a salvage barge. She also attacked but missed the Italian merchant Saluzzo (former French Tamara), and also a Capitani Romani class cruiser (unidentified). Postwar she was scrapped at Hayle in September 1949.

P52 (never named in british service) was laid down on 30 December 1941, launched on 11 October 1942 but transferred to the Polish Navy before completion. Under the new name ORP Dzik (“Wild Boar”) she was commissioned on 16 December 1942. She had an active wartime carrier, first under Capt. Bolesław Romanowski until November 1944, then Lt. Tadeusz Noworol until 31 December 1944 and Capt. Andrzej Kłopotowski until 25 August 1946. After training in Scotlmand and a shakedown in the north sea, she was transferred to Gibraltar and Malta, and made several patrols in 1943. The first success came on 24 May 1943 Near Cape Spartivento, when she fired a salvo and damaged the Italian oil tanker Carnaro (8357 GRT) and survived a 60 DCs attack by two Gabbiano class corvettes.

On 21 Sep 1943, ORP Dzik managed to slip into Bastia harbour, Corsica, occupied by the Italians, to sink the German tanker Nikolaus (6397 GRT former Greek Nikolaou Ourania) and German tug Kraft (333 GRT). 8 Jan 1944 ORP she sank the Greek sailing vessel Eleni (200 GRT) with gunfire off Lesbos. In total she destroyed or damaged 18 surface ships of the axis with 45,080 tons total, took part in Operation Husky and engaged fleeing enemy surface ships by night with her deck gunb thice, boarding two. She earned the “Jolly Roger”, reserved to ace crews. By July 1946, she was decommissioned and returned her to the Royal Navy and in 1947, retransferred to the Royal Danish Navy, recommissioned as HDMS U-1, later HDMS Springeren, training crews for new submarine and ultimately returned to the Royal Navy in April 1958 to be scrapped.

Ultor (Mars the Avenger) was laid down on 30 December 1941, launched on 12 October 1942 and commissioned on 31 December 1942. After the usual training in Scotland, shakedown in the north sea and preting along the Norwegian coast, she was transferred to the Med via Gibraltar, and based in Malta. Ultor sank the French ship Penerf, Italian auxiliary minesweeper No.92/Tullio, Italian merchant Valfiorita, Italian torpedo boat Lince, German merchant Aversa (former Greek Kakoulima), German sailing vessel Paule and guardvessel FCi 01, patrol vessel SG-11 (former French Alice Robert), tug Cebre, tankers Felix 1 and Tempo 3 (former Greek Pallas), auxiliary patrol vessel Vinotra III and German auxiliary sub-chaser UJ 2211/Hardy, and also sinking nine sailing vessels, almost all by gunfire or boarding and scuttling. She also attacked but missed the German(ex-French merchant Condé) former Danish merchant Nicoline Maersk, auxiliary minelayer KMS Niedersachsen, netlayer NT 38 but damaged a French fishing vessel and the former French, German tanker Champagne, beached and later finish off by HMS Uproar. On 19 October 1943, after Aversa was sunk, her last victim, her CO George Hunt was congratulated for his excellent “marksmanship” having a 47% hit rate for 68 torpedoes fired, 32 being hits. Postwar she ended at HMS Dolphin at Gosport, joined the 6th Flotilla at Blyth, then Rothesay with HMS Cyclops. She became an ASDIC training target, and ended in reserve at Londonderry until sold for BU at Briton Ferry, January 1946.

Unshaken was ordered from Vickers, laid down as P54 on 12 June 1941, launched on 17 February 1942 and commissioned on 21 May 1942. She had the usual Scottish training, then operating off the coast of Norway, and joined the Mediterranean. But before getting there on 5 July 1942, she spotted and radioed seeing a heavy German force with KMS Tirpitz, Admiral Scheer, and Admiral Hipper underway to savage Convoy PQ 17. This was lacker confirmed by the Russian submarine K-21 and a Catalina patrol. German intel warned Admiral Raeder about this and he cancelled the sortie, leaving the convoy to the Luftwaffe and U-boats (24 ships lost out of 40).
On 12 August 1942, Unshaken spotted the German cargo ship Georg L.-M. Russ, off southern Norway but was too far to attack. In the Mediterranean, she sank the Italian cargo ships Foggia and Pomo and the torpedo boat Climene, sailing vessel Giovanni G., auxiliary patroller No 265/Cesena, troop transport Asmara but also damaged the Italian tanker Dora C., but missed the French cargo ship Oasis, Italian cargos Pomo, Nina and Campania, French liner Cap Corse. She as mistook for a U-Boat by the Polish submarine ORP Dzik (fellow P52) which fired four torpedoes at her but she dodged them. As the armistice of Cassibile was announced, Unshaken captured the submarine Ciro Menotti, escorted to Malta. Her skipper LtCdr. Jack Whitton detected her by hydrophone, surfaced and boarded her after stopping her with a shot from the deck gun across her bows. However that the time it’s unsure the crew was aware of the armistice, and so they used their AA weapon, until silenced by Unshaken. Menotti was boarded the old way by able seaman Ronald “Sharky” pistol in hand, securing by himself the conning tower hatch to prevent her from diving. He described a “robust verbal exchange” with the Italian commander. The latter had orders to Brindisi, Whitton insisted on Malta. Eventually the British won the point with a short fired in the air at 13 feet (4 m) from the commander.
By mid-1944, Unshaken was back in northern European waters and sank the German cargo ship Asien off Lista off Norway. She survived the war and was scrapped at Troon, March 1946.

12 July 1941 batch

HMS Unsparing was ordered from Vickers, laid down on 11 August 1941 as P55, launched on 28 July 1942 and commissioned on 29 November 1942. After the usual Scottish training and Norwegian shakedown she was sent to the Mediterranean. There, she sank the Italian tanker Flegetonte, German merchant Ingeborg (former Fr. Ste. Martine) German submarine chaser UJ 2106 (former Greek minelayer Tenedos), German barge Sybille (former French Caisson), German ferry SF 284 plus six sailing vessels mostly by gunfire. She torpedoed and damaged the German merchant Peter, and more sailing vessels. She survived the war and was scrapped at Thos. W. Ward Inverkeithing, 1946. More more, see uboat.net

Usurper was ordered at Vickers as P56, laid down on 18 September 1941, launched on 24 September 1942 and commissioned on 2 February 1943. Left: Her skipper, Lt D. R. O. Mott DSC RN, in Holy Loch, 6 February 1943 (IWM A14396). During her work-up patrol off the Norwegian coast she surprised and attacked U-467 but missed. Next she was assigned to the Mediterranean, via Gibraltar and Malta. She sank the French ship Château Yquem. She left Algiers on 24 September 1943 for a patrol off La Spezia, occupied by the Germans (this was 15 days after the armistice). On 3 October she was ordered to the Gulf of Genoa, and never being heard of again. Pronounced overdue at Algiers on 12 October 1943 she was later assumed lost in action. Postwar logs analysis led to believe her killer was the German anti-submarine vessel UJ-2208 (KMS Alfred) which reported an attack in the Gulf of Genoa on 3 October 1943 that seems to match. It is still believed to this day that this may have been Usurper. However her wreck remained undiscovered, that might confirmed this. As Usurper was adopted by the town of Stroud during a Warship Week there is a dedicated plaque at the National Museum of the Royal Navy in Portsmouth.

Universal was ordered as P57 from Vickers, laid down on 5 September 1941, launched on 10 November 1942 and commissioned on 8 March 1943. After Scottish traininh and Norwegian shakedown she was sent to the Mediterranean, where she spent most of the war. In one of her first patrols she sank the Italian auxiliary patrol vessels V 130/Ugo and V 134/Tre Sorelle, merchant La Foce, German auxiliary gunboat SG 15 (former French Rageot de la Touche), German merchants President Dal Piaz and Canosa (former French Corsa), German Guardboat FMa 06 (former French Guarani) German auxiliary minesweeper Petrel. She damaged the Spanish sailing vessel Sevellina, the German (ex-Italian) tanker Cesteriano, survived to be later towed to Toulon and written off. Universal attacked but missed and auxiliary minesweeper, but claimed damage. Postwar, she was sold to be BU February 1946. On 3 February while on passage from Foyle in Northern Ireland to Newport undr Lt.Cdr. W.F.N. Main her engines failed. She was towed then by the destroyer HMS Southdown but in the bad weather she slipped her tow line many times until eventually abandoned. Lifeboats attended over 24 hours until she was completely abandoned. However its seems she drifted, was spotted again as the weatheer cleared up, was towed finally at Milford Haven to be scrapped in June 1946.

Untamed was laid down at Vickers on 9 October 1941, launched on 8 December 1942 and commissioned on 14 April 1943. She was on a training exercise with the 8th Escort Group, in the Firth of Clyde, on 30 May 1943 and acted as target. In a second exercise that day, she became a mortar practice target by the yacht HMS Shemara but soon all attempts to contact her failed and assistance was sent, with Shemara locating Untamed by sonar. She reported engines runing, tanks being blown. HMS Thrasher then arrived but could not assist her more as dead sile,ce wa sheard after 17:45, three hours after she was unable to be contacted. Bad weather prevented divers going there until 1 June. They reported no apparent damage. She was evtntually salvaged on 5 July 1943. Inspected, it was discovered she had been flooded through a faulty or left open sluice valve. Her crew was extracted and buried at Dunoon Cemetery, declared officially “killed in action”. She was refitted, renamed Vitality to avoid bad luck, and returned to service in July 1944. HMS Vitality, never ventured to the Mediterranean and the fight was practically won there at sea. This, remaining in northern waters, she had a short and uneventful career until postwar she was sold for BU on 13 February 1946, at Troon. There is a Sandbank War Memorial, Hunters Quay’s plaque partly dedicated to the crew of Untamed. The families learned about their true fate after the war.

Untiring was ordered at Vickers Armstrong, Newcastle upon Tyne and laid down on 23 December 1941, Launched on 20 January 1943 and commissioned on 9 June 1943. After trzining in Scotlland and work up patrol off the Norwegian coast, in which she sank the Norwegian fishing vessel Havbris I, fishing for halibut, she was assigned to operate in the Mediterranean. There, she sank the German netlayer Netztender 44, barge F 296, Jean Suzon/FP 352, St. Antoine/FP 358, auxiliary minesweeper M 6022/Enseigne, merchants Diana and Siena (ex-French Astrée), auxiliary submarine chasers UJ 6075/Clairvoyant and UJ 6078/La Havraise, and claimed a sailing vessel by gunfire. She attacked but missed the U-616, the auxiliary submarine chaser UJ 6073/Nimeth Allah, TA18 (former Solferino), German merchant Burgas and an unidentified patrol vessel. Before the end of the war she was loaned to the Greek Navy in July 1945, renamed Xifias, training Greelk submariners for seven years, until returned to the Royal Navy in 1952 and sunk as an ASDIC target on 25 July 1957.

Varangian was Laid down on 23 December 1941 atVickers-Armstrongs, High Walker Yard, launched on 4 April 1943 and commissioned on 10 July 1943 under Lieutenant Jeremy Nash. She was one of the last 3rd groups subs too advanced to be cancelled. Bythe summer of 1943 the situation in the Mediterranean was now definitively inb favor of the allies so after her Scottish training she was not deployed in the Med. She carried out patrols in the Norwegian Sea, the first from 25th October to 7th Nov 1943 patrolling off the Alten Fjord, trying to catch axis traffic and possible U-Boat sorties against the last lend-lease arctic convoys. However she had engine issues and remained in repairs ad trials until early 1944. By Nov.1943 already she had a change in command, to Lt Stephen Forvargue. After mid-1944 she was maintained only in a training role until V-Day, under COs Lt Geoffrey Gellie, and Lt Anthony Sumption on 15th Aug 1944, then Lt John Pope. Mothballed after the war after decommission in October 1945, she was was only out of the reserve of Lisahally, Northern Ireland from March 1946. She was stricken and sold for BU, broken up at Gateshead in 1949. Her bell “HMS Varangian 1943” is now at the Royal Navy Submarine Museum in Gosport, United Kingdom.

Uther, after Uther Pendragon in the Arthurian cycle, was laid down at Vickers-Armstrongs, Newcastle upon Tyne on 31 January 1942, launched on 6 April 1943 and commissioned on 15 August under Anthony Arthur Catlow. She trained in the Cluyde and Scotland, had a shakedown in the North Sea and like subs of that time, never deployed in the Med. Instead she tried to catch U-Boats coming from north Norway fjord trying to get at the passing arctic convoys. Her patrols were uneventful however, and in 1945 she had a change of command with Lt. Robin William Garson and towards the end of the war, Lieutenant. John Paton Fyfe. However postwar instead of ending in the mothballs she continued service for a few more years, five in all, until decommissioned and sold for BU in January 1940, and BU at Hayle from April. Full records

Unswerving was ordered from Vickers-Armstrongs, High Walker, laid down as P63 on 17 February 1942, launched on 19 July 1943 and commissioned on 3 October 1943 under T/Lt. Michael Dent Tattersall, RNVR until 1945 (after that T/Lt. Norman Douglas Piper, RNVR, T/S.Lt. James Nehemiah McCaughan, RNR, Lt. Kenneth James Clark, DSC, RN). She was, unlike others, deployed to the Mediterranean after the usual training in the Clyde and shakedown in the North sea. Under M. D. “Mick” Tattershall, she was the first British submarine with Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve officers only. She joined the 1st Flotilla in the Med. and patrolled the Aegean Sea, sank the German guard boats GN 61 and GN 62, German tanker Bertha (former French Bacchus) plus six sailing vessels, claimed a 7th. But she also attacked and missed the German merchant Toni (former Greek Thalia), auxiliary minelayer Zeus, transport Pelikan, the TB TA19, and merchant Gertrud, twice.
The war ended and she continued service under two skippers until place in reserve and decommissioned, stricken, sold for BU at John Cashmore Ltd, Newport on 10 July 1949.

HMS Vandal, after the ancient barbarians, was the first “V-named” in the U-class, albeit she did not belonged to the V class. She was ordered from the Vickers-Armstrongs at Barrow-in-Furness, yard number 838, as HMS Unbridled, Laid down on 17 March 1942, launched on 23 November 1942, and commissioned on 20 February 1943, under command of Lieutenant James S. Bridger, but renamed in between by PM Winston Churchill “Vandal” (many later believed this brought bad luck on the boat). She had the shortest carrer of all British subs, lost in a three-day exercise after commissioning. Se left anchorage on 24 February 1943 at Lochranza, North Isle of Arran, Firth of Clyde. And was never heard of again. Her wreck was rediscoved in December 1994. She was assigned to the 3rd Submarine Flotilla in Holy Loch. About what happened, a spotter plane reported a large oil slick 2 miles (4 km) north of Arran (15 km from Inchmarnock) but the inquiry ignored this report and concluded she was lost during the deep dive scheduled that day north of Inchmarnock.

PM W. Churchill still demanded a full report on her loss, asking she had been recovered. But as many bvbelieved she was off Inchmarnock, salvage would be impossible.
In 1994 the Scottish Branch of the Submariners Association persuaded the Navy to look north of Arran where trawlers reported theur nets wer regularly snagged by an underwater object. HMS Hurworth sailed there with requipment in June 1994, detected a metallic mass 300 feet (100 m) below the surface, 1.5 miles (3 km) northwest of Lochranza (at the position of the reported 1943 oil slick). HMS Vandal was at last confirmed buried in a muddy slope 100 metres down with, 35 degree list to port with her deck gun convered with nets. The brass letters VANDAL were clearly visible. The only member of the crew alive at the time was Larry Gaines, too ill to take part in the training and remaining ashore. Her blamed himself for the loss, believing his young replacement had not secured the aft engine room hatch. But dives there proved the hatch was properly closed and not a cause. A new enquiry showed the sub had this accident while surfaced, not underwater. A memorial was erected close to MacBrayne ferry terminal, Lochranza Pier, Arran and the wreck lies under Protection of Military Remains Act 1986, meaning no divers allowed.

Upstart was ordered from Vickers-Armstrongs, Barrow-in-Furness, laid down on 17 March 1942 and launched on 24 November 1942, commissioned on 3 April 1943. After the usual Scottish training and shakedown in the North Sea and off Norway, she was sent to the Mediterranean, and tasked there to sink any traffic off the French Riveria coast. There, she sank the French fishing vessels “Grotte de Bethlehem” and “Torpille”, plus German auxiliary minelayer Niedersachsen (former French Guyane) German merchant Tolentino (former French Saumur), and also attacked but missed the French merchant Medjerda and Italian merchant Pascoli. She was loaned to the Greek Navy in 1945, renamed Amfitriti and used for Greek Navy for seven years, until returned to the Royal Navy in 1952. She was used asa target ship, sunk as an ASDIC target off the Isle of Wight, on 29 July 1959.

Varne I (not to counfound with Varne II, a V-class sub) was born P66 at Vickers-Armstrongs, Barrow-in-Furness, laid down on 29 April 1942 and Launched on 22 January 1943 but decision was taken even beforte compeltion to transfer her to the Royal Norwegian Navy in April 1943. HNoMS Ula was used to train Norwegian Crews for the remainder of her career, but also making 14 patrols as part of the ‘Norwegian Section’, 9th Submarine Flotilla, Dundee. On 19 April 1944, under CO Lt Valvatne RNoN she attacked and fired on U-974 (a Type VIIc). It happened just 1 km (0.62 mi) south east of Løten, western Boknafjorden near Stavanger. She launched from 1,200 metres (1,300 yd) and made one hit just behind the conning tower. The U-Boat broke in two and sunk, but had 8 survivors in the CT and deck when it happened as she was surfaced. This was Ula’s most notable kill. She sank also merchant ships, off the Norwegian coast and ended as the Allied submarine which sunk the most enemy tonnage in the Atlantic in the Second World War. She remaineds in service until 1965, then sold for BU in Hamburg. Full logs here.

Succession: V class

The V-class, officially the “U class, long hull”, was a late war ultimate variant of the wartime U-class, the third pillar of the British underwater Forces in world war two, especially active in the Mediterranean. These were a development of the 1937 Undine and 1940 “short hull” class, boosted by wartime experience. This class, laid down in 1942-43 and completed in 1943-45, had its stern lengthened to give an easier angle of approach of water to the propellers in order to reduce noise, with a further fining of the bows. The hull had welded framing and the riveted plating was increased from half to three-quarter of an inch, so that the operational depth limit was increased to 300ft. None was sunk in action, Some were transferred in wartime, but most were sold postwar as surplus, to Norway, Greece, France and Denmark.

Read More/Src

Books

Brown, D. K. (2012) [2000]. Nelson to Vanguard (hbk. repr. Seaforth Publishing (Pen & Sword) ed.). Barnsley: Chatham Publishing.
Chesneau, Roger (1992) [1980]. Gardiner, Robert (ed.). Conway’s All the World’s Fighting Ships 1922–46 (3rd ed.). London: Conway Maritime Press.
Colledge, J. J.; Wardlow, B. (2006) [1969]. Ships of the Royal Navy: The Complete Record of all Fighting Ships of the Royal Navy. Chatham.
McCartney, I. (2006). British Submarines 1939–45. New Vanguard (No. 159). Oxford: Osprey.
Pol, E. van den (1989). “Aspects of Submarines – Part I: Some Notes on Development”. Schip en Werf. Vol. 56.
Walters, Derek (2004). The History of the British ‘U’ Class Submarine. Barnsley: Pen & Sword.
Friedman, N. (2019). British Submarines in two World Wars (e-Pub ed.). Barnsley: Seaforth (Pen & Sword).
Hutchinson, Robert (2001). Submarines, War Beneath The Waves, From 1776 To The Present Day. London: HarperCollins.

Links

rnsubs.co.uk/ u-class.html
navypedia.org/ U-class
on uboat.net/
on web.archive.org/ home.cogeco.ca
wikipedia.org British_U-class_submarine
wikipedia.org/ V-class_submarine
archive.org/ Janessubmarines
navweaps.com 3-in 45 mk1
navweaps.com/ Brit Torps. ww2
navweaps.com/ Mines
https://www.klaarvooronderwater.nl/kvo/Kvo-004.pdf
https://rnsubs.co.uk/index.php?PageID=boats/subs/u-class/varangian.html
https://uboat.net/allies/warships/ship/2908.html
https://web.archive.org/web/20070711184647/http://home.cogeco.ca/~gchalcraft/sm/page6.html
https://klaarvooronderwater.nl/kvo/Kvo-173.pdf

Model Kits

all kits on scalemates.com: 1:400, 1:350, 1:700

3D

On cgtrader.com/