Danae

HMS Danae returning to Melbourne, January 1937.

History

Design

The D class cruisers (also known as the Danae-class after the lead ship) were developed from the then previous class of C class cruisers, the Ceres class, the main difference being that the D class were 20 feet (6m) longer so as to allow the fitting of a sixth 152mm (6-inch) gun between the bridge and fore funnel. The main armament therefore consisted of six BL Mk.XII 152mm guns, 'A' and 'B' guns superfiring on the bow, 'P' gun between the bridge and fore funnel, 'Q' gun between the aft funnel and aft superstructure, and 'X' and 'Y' guns super-firing aft. All the guns were mounted on the centreline, allowing for a full broadside of six guns. The larger size of the Danae-class allowed for a heavier armament of torpedoes, replacing the four twin torpedo tubes of the previous Ceres-class for four triple tubes, two per side.

Additional armament consisted of a flying off platform and Sopwith Camel aircraft fitted on Dauntless and Dragon, which was removed during the 1920s, along with the large box superstructure the platforms necessitated. Anti-aircraft capability was provided at first by two 76mm (3-inch)/45 QF Mk.I guns, and a pair of 40mm Vickers 2-pounder Mk.II machine guns. However, the two 76mm guns were quickly replaced by three 102mm (4-inch) QF Mk.V guns during the 1920s, while the last two ships of the class completed, Diomede and Despatch were armed with the 102mm guns from their completion in 1922. During World War 2, the ships had their anti-aircraft armament extensively upgraded with quadruple 12.7mm machine guns, single and twin 20mm 'oerlikons' and quadruple 40mm 'pompoms'.

It was intended that some if not all of the class would be converted to anti-aircraft cruisers in a similar fashion to the previous C-class cruisers, but the outbreak of war put paid to these plans. Originally, one of the proposals was to rearm these ships with eight dual purpose 114mm (4.5-inch) guns which were later fitted to the cruisers Scylla and Charybdis. In the end, only Delhi received a full refit, replacing her six 152mm guns with five American built 127mm (5-inch)/38 dual purpose guns. Danae later had a smaller refit where she landed 'P' 152mm gun and the single 102mm guns in exchange for a dual 102mm gun aft of 'X' turret and quadruple 40mm 'pompoms'.

The ships kept the same machinery and top speed as the Ceres-class. A notable difference between the ships of the class was the first three (Danae, Dauntless and Dragon) being completed with a straight bow, while the last five ships were finished with the improved knuckled 'trawler' bow, which improved sea-keeping qualities.

All ships of the class were ordered under the war emergency program, with the first three being ordered in September 1916, followed by three more in July 1916. A further six ships were ordered in March 1918, but only two of these were completed, the remaining four, Daedalus, Daring, Desperate and Dryad being cancelled shortly after the armistice in November 1918, meaning that of the twelve D class cruisers planned, eight were completed.

Service

Danae was commissioned in time to see service during the final months of World War I. She briefly served during post-war operations in the Baltic in 1919, taking part in anti-Bolshevik operations before being transferred back to Atlantic duties. Danae remained with the Atlantic forces until she was assigned to the Mediterranean in 1925, remaining until 1929. Danae then served in the Americas until she was paid off in 1935. Recommissioned in 1936, Danae went east to the China station, serving until 1938 when she was again sent home to be decommissioned, but returned less than a year later to bolster Royal Navy presence as the conflict in China escalated. Danae was transferred to the Malaya Force in 1940, and served with the ABDA command during the first few months after the entry of Japan into World War II. Danae underwent a major refit and modernization in the UK, lasting from August 1942 to July 1943, then returned to the Eastern Fleet until 1944, when she took part in the Normandy landings. Danae was then lent to the Polish Navy, becoming ORP Conrad, until the end of the war. Returned in 1946, she was paid off and sold for scrapping in 1948. Danae earned the Normandy battle honour during her war service.

Dauntless was completed after the armistice, but also participated in the Baltic operations with Danae in 1919, then served in the Americas until she was decommissioned in 1924. Reactivated in 1928, Dauntless was reassigned to her old station, but ran aground in Halifax and sustained heavy damage. Repaired and returned to the Americas, she served only a year before being placed in the naval reserve. Dauntless was returned to active status in 1930, and again returned to the Americas until 1932, then the Mediterranean until 1934. In 1935, Dauntless was again sent to reserve until 1939, and was again stationed in the Americas and South Atlantic. She remained for several months, and then was, like Danae, assigned to the China station. There she remained until Japan declared war, operating with the Malaya Force, ABDA, and the eastern fleet until 1945, serving as a training ship from 1943. She was sold off for scrap in 1946. Dauntless earned the Atlantic 1939 battle honour for her service.

Dragon served briefly during World War I, and was active in the interwar period on Atlantic, Baltic, Mediterranean, China, and American duties. In 1939, Dragon was with the Home Fleet, but was redeployed to the South Atlantic where she was involved in the hunt for the Admiral Graf Spee, captured a Vichy French merchant in 1940 and participated in operations against Vichy forces in West Africa. In 1941 and 1942, Dragon operated against Japanese forces as part of the China station, ABDA command, and finally joined the Eastern Fleet at Colombo. Dragon was paid off in late 1942, and was lent to the Polish Navy in 1943, becoming ORP Dragon. In 1944, Dragon escorted arctic convoys, and later participated in the Normandy landings, but was badly damaged by a German 'Neger' manned torpedo. It was decided that Dragon was not worth repairing, and she was declared a loss, being decommissioned shortly after, and scuttled as a block-ship in July 1944, forming part of the Mulberry harbors off the Normandy beaches. Dragon earned the battle honour; Arctic 1944 during the second World War.

Dehli continued the pattern of foreign service, deactivation, and reactivation typical of the class during the interwar years. She was on the reserve list at the beginning of World War II, but was promptly reactivated and assigned to the Northern Patrol where she saw good success, taking two German blockade runners. In 1940 Dehli briefly joined Force H in the Mediterranean and was present during attacks on Sardinia. She then participated in operations in West Africa before being sent to New York for conversion to an anti-aircraft cruiser which took most of 1941 to complete. Returning to service in 1942 Dehli participated in the Torch landings where she was badly damaged by aircraft. Repaired, Dehli was present at the invasions in Sicily, Salerno, and Anzio, as well as for Operation Dragoon, the landings in Southern France. Dehli continued to operate in the Mediterranean, and was damaged again during a torpedo boat attack in the Adriatic off the port of Split. Dehli was made seaworthy but not repaired, and was used for target practice after the war ended, finally being sold off for scrapping in 1948. Delhi earned seven battle honours for her service.

Dunedin served in the Atlantic fleet until 1924, when she was placed on loan to New Zealand, being part of the New Zealand division until replaced by Leander in 1937. Active at the beginning of World War II, Dunedin was serving with the Home Fleet, where she remained until 1940. Dunedin captured two German merchants and participated in the blockade of Martinique. One of the merchants she captured later became the escort carrier HMS Audacity. In 1941, Dunedin was reassigned to the South Atlantic and captured another German merchant and it's enigma codes and three Vichy French merchants in the Central Atlantic at this time. Dunedin was selected as the second ship to be converted into an anti-aircraft cruiser like Delhi but Dunedin never received the refit; as she hit by two torpedoes and sunk by the German submarine U-124 on the 24th November 1941. Like some of her sisters, Dunedin earned a solitary battle honour; Atlantic 1941.

Durban was completed post-war and spent her interwar years on foreign station. In reserve when World War II began, Durban was briefly assigned to the South Atlantic, then sailed for Singapore in 1940 to join the Malaya Force as tensions with Japan were rising. Durban was damaged by air attack in February of 1942 during the evacuation of Singapore while carrying refugees, and returned to Colombo for temporary repairs, moving on to New York and Portsmouth for completion and refit. She returned to the Eastern Fleet until 1943 when she was returned to the UK until 1944, joining the Allied forces for the invasion of Normandy. Due to her condition, Durban was scuttled as a block-ship for the Mulberry harbors in Normandy in June of 1944. For this, Durban earned the battle honour for Normandy.

Despatch also spent much of her interwar service on foreign station or in naval reserve, but was reactivated after the beginning of World War II, Despatch was assigned to the Americas until 1942, where she captured three German merchants in patrols from Chile to Brazil. During 1940, she also escorted the British convoy during the Battle of Cape Spartivento against the Italians. In 1943, Despatch underwent a major refit, returning for the invasion of Normandy, becoming a headquarters ship for the landings. Placed in naval reserve before the end of the war in 1945, Despatch was sold off for scrapping in 1946. She had earned three battle honours for her service.

Diomede was completed with an experimental enclosed single 152mm mount in place of the normal 'A' gun, and served on foreign station during the interwar period and was in reserve at the outbreak of World War II. She was also transferred from the Home fleet to the Americas, serving there until 1942 and capturing and sinking the German merchant Idarwald off Mexico. Reassigned as a training ship in 1943 due to her poor condition, she continued in that capacity until 1945, when she was placed in reserve. Diomede was sold for scrapping in 1946.

Historical Inaccuracies

• The model in game representing the Danae-class has the 'trawler' knuckled bow of the later 5 ships of the class, while the rest of the hull is a composite aspects from the ships.
• The anti-aircraft armament for both hulls is ahistorical. Hull (A) uses four quadruple 12.7mm (0.5-inch) machine guns, alongside the original AA armament of two 76mm and two 40mm guns. The largest use of the 12.7mm mounts on the Danae-class was when three were added to Durban during the evacuation of Singapore, long after the 76mm guns had been replaced by the 102mm guns.
• Hull (B) uses the same ahistorical 12.7mm machine guns, but also adds in two octuple 40mm 'pompom' mounts that none of the class ever carried.
• The nominal maximum speed for the Danae-class was 29 knots, not 30 knots.
• The main armour deck was 25.4mm thick, not 19mm as it is in game.
• The gun shields had armour 25.4mm thick, not 76.2mm.
• Although Danae uses the same 152mm Mk.XXII guns as Caledon and Emerald, Danae — like other regular Royal Navy light cruisers in-game — only gets access to AP shells. Historically, ships using the Mk.XXII gun were outfitted with both AP/CPBC (Common Pointed Ballistic Cap) as well as HE shells.
• The in game description lists the Danae-class as developed from the Caledon-class, however the class of cruisers before the Danae class that influenced the D class was the Ceres-class.

• 

  HMS Danae underway, August 1943.

• 

  Polish sailors raise the Polish flag on Danae’s transfer to the Polish Navy.

• 

  Scheme for Danae.

• 

  HMS Danae in Vancouver, 29 August 1934 - Photographer Walter Edwin Frost.

• 

  A portrait of HMS Danae.

• 
• 
• 
• 
•