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A Destroyer Escort (DE) is the classification for a small, relatively slow warship (when compared to first-rate naval fleet vessels) designed to be used to escort convoys of merchant marine ships, primarily of the United States Merchant Marine in World War II. A warship is a Ship that is built and primarily intended for Combat. A fleet, or naval fleet is a large formation of Warships, and the largest formation in any Navy. A convoy is a group of Vehicles (of any type but usually motor vehicles or ships traveling together for mutual support Overview The merchant marine is a civilian auxiliary of the U World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including It is employed primarily for anti-submarine warfare, but also provides some protection against aircraft and smaller attack vessels employed in this application. Anti-submarine warfare (ASW or in older form A/S is a branch of Naval warfare that uses surface Warships Aircraft, space craft or other Submarines The US built roughly 457 destroyer escorts spread out over 8 classes. The Royal Navy equivalent of the destroyer escort was known as a frigate. The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of the British armed services (and is therefore known as the Senior Service) For the bird see Frigatebird. A frigate /ˈfrɪgɪt/ is a warship

Contents

Origins

USS Evarts (DE-5)
USS Evarts (DE-5)

The Lend-lease Act was passed into law in the USA in March 1941 enabling the United Kingdom to procure merchant ships, warships, munitions and other war materiel from the USA, in order to help with the war effort. Awards Lend-Lease (Public Law 77-11 was the name of the program under which the United States of America supplied the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union, The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located Materiel (from the French "matériel" for equipment or hardware related to the word Material) is a term used in English to refer to the This enabled the UK to commission the USA to design, build and supply an escort vessel that was suitable for anti-submarine warfare in deep open ocean situations, which they did in June 1941. Captain E. L. Cochrane of the American Bureau of Shipping came up with a design which was known as the British Destroyer Escort (BDE). The American Bureau of Shipping (ABS is a Classification society, with a mission to promote the security of life property and the natural environment primarily through Early history In June 1941 His Majesty's Government asked the United States to design build and supply an escort vessel that was suitable for anti-submarine warfare The BDE designation was retained by the first six Destroyer Escorts transferred to the United Kingdom ( BDE 1, 2, 3, 4, 12 and 46); of the initial order of 50 these were the only ones the Royal Navy received, the rest being reclassified as Destroyer Escort (DE) on January 25, 1943 and taken over by the United States Navy. The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of the British armed services (and is therefore known as the Senior Service) [1]

When the United States entered the war, and found they also required an Anti-Submarine warfare ship and that the Destroyer Escort fitted their needs perfectly, a system of rationing was put in place whereby out of every five Destroyer Escorts completed four would be allocated to the U. S. Navy and one to the Royal Navy.

General Description

USS Dealey (DE-1006)
USS Dealey (DE-1006)

Full size destroyers must be able to keep up with and exceed the speed of fast capital ships, typically needing better than 25-35 knot speeds (dependent upon the era and navy) and carrying torpedoes and a relatively smaller caliber of cannon to use against enemy ships, as well as anti-submarine detection equipment and weapons. History Dealey was launched 8 November 1953 by Bath Iron Works Corp In naval terminology a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance Warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, Convoy The capital ships of a Navy are its "important" warships the ones with the heaviest Firepower and Armor. The modern torpedo (historically called an automotive automobile locomotive or fish torpedo is a self-propelled explosive Projectile weapon launched above or below

However, a destroyer escort need only be able to maneuver relative to a slow convoy (which in World War II would travel at 10 to 12 knots), defend itself against aircraft, and detect, chase down, and attack a submerged (3 to 6 knot speed) or surfaced (22 knot speed) submarine. These lower requirements greatly reduce the size, cost, and crew required for the destroyer escort. While fleet destroyers were still more effective for anti-submarine warfare, the destroyer escort outweighed this by being able to be built considerably faster and more economically. Destroyer escorts were also considerably more seaworthy than Corvettes. A corvette is a small maneuverable lightly armed Warship, originally smaller than a Frigate and larger than a coastal patrol craft, although many

Destroyer escorts were also useful for coastal anti-submarine and radar picket ship duty.

Some 95 Destroyer escorts were converted to APDs (High Speed Transports). High Speed Transports were converted Destroyers used to support amphibious operations in World War II and afterward This involved adding an extra deck which allowed space for about 10 officers and 150 men. The modern Littoral Combat Ship also adds transport and boat launching capabilities to a ship smaller than a destroyer. The Littoral Combat Ship is the first design of the US Navy 's next-generation surface combatants Two large davits were also installed, one on either side of the ship from which landing craft (LCVP) could be launched. For the name of a person see David. A davit (dāv'ĭt dā'vĭt is a structure usually made of steel which is used to lower things over an edge of a long

Battle off Samar

Destroyer escorts were not meant to fight against cruisers and battleships, but that is what happened in the Battle off Samar. The Battle off Samar was the central action of the Battle of Leyte Gulf, arguably the Largest naval battle in history. While Admiral Hasley's main force of US carriers and battleships was pursuing the Japanese decoy carrier force, that left the landing ships and troops guarded by escort carriers and destroyer escorts. While the escort carriers launched their planes, destroyer escort ship Samuel B. Roberts of task group Taffy 3 joined other out-gunned destroyers in a counter-attack against Admiral Kurita's powerful force of Japanese cruisers and battleships. The Battle off Samar was the central action of the Battle of Leyte Gulf, arguably the Largest naval battle in history.

With no armor, only two 5-inch guns and 3 Mark-15 torpedoes capable of punching a hole in enemy hulls, her crew lacked the weapons and training in tactics to compete with the much larger heavy cruiser Chokai. The Roberts dodged shellfire to fire a salvo of 3 torpedoes which struck the cruiser. The battle continued for an hour, and the Roberts fired over 600 5-inch shells, and hit the upper works with 40 mm Bofors and 20 mm anti-aircraft guns at close range. Chikuma's bridge was set afire and the number 3 gun turret was disabled. Chikuma scored two direct hits on the Roberts, which soon sank with 89 of her crew. After the battle the Roberts became known as "the destroyer escort that fought like a battleship". The Roberts was an instrumental part of a small task force of light ships that forced a much larger armoured battle force to turn away from American landing forces in Leyte Gulf, though at a high cost.

Postwar U. S. Ship Reclassification

After World War II United States Navy destroyer escorts were referred to as ocean escorts, but retained the hull classification symbol DE. This is a list of Destroyer escorts of the United States Navy, listed both by hull number and by name Ocean Escort was a type of United States Navy Warship. Ocean Escorts were an evolution of the World War II Destroyer escort types The United States Navy uses hull classification symbols (sometimes called hull codes) to identify the types of its ships However other navies, most notably those of NATO countries and the USSR, followed different naming conventions for this type of ship which resulted in some confusion. The North Atlantic Treaty The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 In order to remedy this problem the 1975 ship reclassification reclassified ocean escorts (and by extension, destroyer escorts) as Frigates (FF). The United States Navy reclassified many of its surface vessels in 1975 changing terminology and Hull classification symbols for Aircraft carriers For the bird see Frigatebird. A frigate /ˈfrɪgɪt/ is a warship This brought the USN's nomenclature more in line with NATO, and made it easier to compare ship types with the Soviet Union (see Cruiser gap). As of 2006 there are no plans for future frigates for the US Navy. The DDG Zumwalt and the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) are the main ship types planned in this area. Name and hull number Elmo Russell Zumwalt Jr (29 November 1920 &ndash 2 January 2000 was an American naval officer and the youngest man to serve as Chief of Naval The Littoral Combat Ship is the first design of the US Navy 's next-generation surface combatants One major problem with ship classification is whether to base it on a ship's role (such as escort or air defense), or on its size (such as the amount of tons). One example of this ambiguity are the Ticonderoga-class air defense ships, which are classified as cruiser even though they use the same hull as the Spruance class destroyer. Vertical Launching System See also Vertical Launching System In addition to the added Radar capability the Ticonderoga class built after the A cruiser is a large type of Warship, which had its prime period from the late 19th century to the end of the Cold War. Class The class was designed for anti-submarine warfare (ASW with point defense Anti-aircraft warfare (AAW missiles upgrades provided anti-ship and land attack

US Navy Destroyer escort class overview

Class Name        Lead Ship          Commissioned  Ships Built
Evarts classUSS Evarts (DE-5)April 15, 1943  72
Buckley classUSS Buckley (DE-51)April 30, 1943102
Cannon classUSS Cannon (DE-99)September 26, 1943  72
Edsall classUSS Edsall (DE-129)April 10, 1943  85
Rudderow classUSS Rudderow (DE-224)May 15, 1944  22
John C. Butler class  USS John C. Butler (DE-339)  March 31, 1944  87
Dealey classUSS Dealey (DE-1006)June 3, 1954  13
Claud Jones classUSS Claud Jones (DE-1033)February 10, 1959    4

Captain class frigates of the Royal Navy

Under the Lend-Lease agreement, the Royal Navy received 32 destroyer escorts of the Evarts class and 46 of the Buckley class. This is a list of Destroyer escorts of the United States Navy, listed both by hull number and by name See also List of destroyer escorts of the United States Navy List of frigates of the United States Navy subset of above with hull numbers Awards Events 1450 - Battle of Formigny: Toward the end of the Hundred Years' War, the French attack and nearly annihilate English Year 1943 ( MCMXLIII) was a Common year starting on Friday (the link will display full 1943 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. See also List of destroyer escorts of the United States Navy List of frigates of the United States Navy subset of above with hull numbers Events 313 - Roman emperor Licinius unifies the entire Eastern Roman Empire under his rule Year 1943 ( MCMXLIII) was a Common year starting on Friday (the link will display full 1943 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Hull Numbers A total of 72 ships of the Cannon class were built Events 46 BC - Julius Caesar dedicates a Year 1943 ( MCMXLIII) was a Common year starting on Friday (the link will display full 1943 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Hull Numbers A total of 85 Edsall class destroyer escorts were built Events 879 - Louis III becomes King of the Western Franks. 1407 - the lama Year 1943 ( MCMXLIII) was a Common year starting on Friday (the link will display full 1943 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. See also List of destroyer escorts of the United States Navy List of frigates of the United States Navy subset of above with hull See also List of destroyer escorts of the United States Navy External References navsource Events 1252 - Pope Innocent IV issues the Papal bull Ad exstirpanda, which authorizes but also limits the Year 1944 ( MCMXLIV) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. History The new destroyer escort conducted shakedown training off Bermuda before departing Hampton Roads 5 June 1944 for the Pacific. Events 307 - After divorcing his wife Minervina, Constantine marries Fausta, the daughter of the retired Roman Emperor Year 1944 ( MCMXLIV) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. See also ''Oslo'' class frigate - Norwegian ship class based on the Dealey History Dealey was launched 8 November 1953 by Bath Iron Works Corp Events 350 - Roman usurper Nepotianus, of the Constantinian dynasty, proclaims himself Roman Emperor, entering Year 1954 ( MCMLIV) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1954 Gregorian calendar) Hull Numbers A total of four ships of the Claud Jones class were built Events 1355 - The St Scholastica's Day riot breaks out in Oxford, England, leaving 63 scholars and perhaps 30 locals dead The year 1959 ( MCMLIX) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Lend-Lease (Public Law 77-11 was the name of the program under which the United States of America supplied the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union, The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of the British armed services (and is therefore known as the Senior Service) See also List of destroyer escorts of the United States Navy List of frigates of the United States Navy subset of above with hull numbers See also List of destroyer escorts of the United States Navy List of frigates of the United States Navy subset of above with hull numbers The Royal Navy initially used the names of captains of the Napoleonic Wars for the ships; hence the Admiralty calling these ships the Captain class frigates. The Napoleonic Wars (1803-1815 involved Napoleon's French Empire and a shifting set of European allies and opposing coalitions The Admiralty was formerly the authority in the United Kingdom responsible for the command of the Royal Navy. Early history In June 1941 His Majesty's Government asked the United States to design build and supply an escort vessel that was suitable for anti-submarine warfare

The main design difference between the Royal Navy frigates and the US Navy destroyer escorts was that the British Buckley class had the forward torpedo tubes removed (the Evarts class was not designed to carry torpedo tubes[2] As well, British frigates had the ice cream makers, the iced water fountains, the dishwashers, and laundries (in some ships) and the replacing of the primitive American two seat "thunder trough" toilets (which did not offer even so much as a simple canvas screen to spare blushes) with an enclosed water closet.

Free French

Six Cannon class Destroyer Escorts were built for the Free French Navy. Hull Numbers A total of 72 ships of the Cannon class were built Les Forces Navales Françaises Libres ("Free French Naval Forces" were the naval arm of the Free French Forces during the Second World War. Although initially transferred under the Lend-lease Act these ships were permanently transferred under the Mutual Defense Assistance Program. Lend-Lease (Public Law 77-11 was the name of the program under which the United States of America supplied the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union,

List of Free French Destroyer escorts

Mutual Defense Assistance Program - Post WWII

Under the Mutual Defense Assistance Program (MDAP) the Destroyer Escorts leased to the Free French were permanently transferred to the French Navy. The USS Cronin, Algérien and Oise are all names of a Frigate owned at various times by the US Navy and the The Mutual Defense Assistance Act commonly known as the Battle Act was a 1949 law passed by the United States. In addition the following navies also acquired Destroyer Escorts:

French Navy

DE-1007, DE-1008, DE-1009, DE-1010, DE-1011, DE-1012, DE-1013, DE-1016, DE-1017, DE-1018, DE1019

Italian Navy

DE-1020, DE-1031

Portuguese Navy

DE-1032, DE-1039, DE-1042, DE-1046

Netherlands Navy

DE 195 Burrows, DE 196 Rinehart, DE 182 Gustafson, DE 188 O'Neill, DE 192 Eisner, DE 187 Stern

See also

External links

References

  1. ^ The Buckley-Class Destroyer Escorts by Bruce Hampton Franklin, published by Chatham Publishing (1999), ISBN 086176118X page 7
  2. ^ Franklin, Bruce H. Buckley-Class Destroyer Escorts, Naval Institute Press, 1999 ISBN 1557502803 page 21
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