HMS Blankney
HMS Blankney in 1943 | |
| History | |
|---|---|
| United Kingdom | |
| Name | HMS Blankney |
| Ordered | 4 September 1939 |
| Builder | John Brown & Company |
| Yard number | 569 |
| Laid down | 17 May 1940 |
| Launched | 19 December 1940 |
| Commissioned | 11 April 1941 |
| Honours & awards | Atlantic 1941–43, Malta Convoys 1942, Arctic 1942–43, Sicily 1943, Salerno 1943, Normandy 1944, Mediterranean 1944. |
| Fate | Scrapped in 1958 |
| Badge | On a Field Red, a griffin's head erased Gold in front of two hunting horns in saltire White. |
| General characteristics Type II | |
| Class & type | Hunt-class destroyer |
| Displacement |
|
| Length | 85.3 m (279 ft 10 in) o/a |
| Beam | 9.6 m (31 ft 6 in) |
| Draught | 2.51 m (8 ft 3 in) |
| Propulsion |
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| Speed |
|
| Range | 3,600 nmi (6,700 km) at 14 kn (26 km/h) |
| Complement | 164 |
| Armament |
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HMS Blankney was a Hunt-class destroyer of the Royal Navy and was the first and so far only warship to bear the name. She was laid down on 17 May 1940 at John Brown & Company, Clydebank, Scotland, launched on 19 December 1940 and commissioned on 11 April 1941.
Blankney was one of 33 Type II Hunt Escort Destroyers. The hulls of this second batch had an extra section which with the increased beam, gave stability for a third twin 4" AA gun to be mounted as originally designed and more storage for depth charges (increased from 40 to 110). The class were named after fox hunts; in Blankney's case, this was the Blankney Hunt, a fox-hunting pack based in the North Kesteven district of Lincolnshire.
In 1942 the British Wartime Government introduced a National Savings campaign named "Warship Week" where towns could "adopt" a Royal Navy ship. Blankney was adopted by Nantwich in Cheshire. The town still has two roads named after the destroyer, Blankney Avenue and The Blankney. There is a plaque hanging in Civic Hall, commemorating the towns support for the crew.