HMS Vervain

HMS Vervain was a Flower-class corvette of the Royal Navy. She served during the Second World War.

HMS Vervain's 4-inch gun crew in action, July 1942
History
United Kingdom
Name	HMS Vervain
Ordered	8 April 1940
Builder	Harland & Wolff, Belfast, Northern Ireland
Yard number	1101[1]
Laid down	16 November 1940
Launched	12 March 1941
Completed	9 June 1941[1]
Commissioned	9 June 1941
Stricken	20 February 1945
Identification	Pennant number K190
Fate	Torpedoed and sunk on 20 February 1945
General characteristics
Class and type	Flower-class corvette
Displacement	925 long tons (940 t)
Length	205 ft (62.48 m) o/a
Beam	33 ft (10.06 m)
Draught	11.5 ft (3.51 m)
Propulsion	single shaft 2 × fire tube Scotch boilers 1 × 4-cycle triple-expansion reciprocating steam engine 2,750 ihp (2,050 kW)
Speed	16 knots (29.6 km/h)
Range	3,500 nautical miles (6,482 km) at 12 knots (22.2 km/h)
Complement	85
Sensors and processing systems	1 × SW1C or 2C radar 1 × Type 123A or Type 127DV sonar
Armament	1 × 4-inch (102 mm) BL Mk.IX gun 2 × .50-inch (12.7 mm) Vickers machine gun (twin) 2 × .303-inch (7.7 mm) Lewis machine gun (twin) 2 × Mk.II depth charge throwers 2 × Depth charge rails with 40 depth charges originally fitted with minesweeping gear, later removed

In March 1942, the ship was adopted by the village of Queensbury in West Yorkshire.^[2]

On 28 February 1943 the Liberty ship SS Wade Hampton was torpedoed by German submarine U-405 while sailing in a convoy from New York to Murmansk, Russia. Survivors were picked up by Vervain and HMS Beverley near Greenland.^[3]

On 20 February 1945 at 11.45 hours Vervain was escorting a homeward-bound convoy when she was sunk by a torpedo from a U-boat, U-1276 under Oberleutnant zur See Karl-Heinz Wendt, about 25 miles south-east of Dungarvan, Ireland, south of Waterford. Vervain sank after 20 minutes. The commander, three officers and 56 ratings were lost. Three officers and 30 ratings were rescued.^[4] In turn the U-boat, U-1276 was sunk with depth charges by HMS Amethyst. The action resulted in the loss of all 49 of the U-boat's crew.

HMS Vervain is a Designated vessel under schedule 1 of The Protection of Military Remains Act 1986 (Designation of Vessels and Controlled Sites) Order 2012.^[5]