HMS York was a heavy cruiser of the York class, built for the Royal Navy in the late 1920s. She was the lead ship of her class, which also included HMS Exeter. The York class was base on the preceding County class cruisers, and designed to smaller and cheaper while having better armour.
HMS York was laid down at the shipyard of John Brown & Company in Clydebank, Scotland, on 16 May 1926. She was launched on 17 July 1928, and commissioned into the Royal Navy on 1 May 1930.
HMS York was armed with six 8-inch (203 mm) guns in three twin turrets, four 4-inch (102 mm) guns in single mounts, and six 21-inch (533 mm) torpedo tubes in two tripple mounts. She was also equipped with a catapult and could operate one Supermarine Walrus seaplane.
HMS York served extensively during World War II. She participated in the Norwegian Campaign in 1940, and she was later deployed to the Mediterranean Sea. On 26 March 1941, she was badly damaged by two Italian explosive motor boats in a dawn attack at Suda Bay, north Crete. The motorboats, each armed with 300-kg (667 lb) charges in the bows, were piloted by Italian Navy officers. Two boiler rooms and one engine room were flooded and the ship was run aground to prevent her sinking. On 18 May, a Luftwaffe air attack further damaged York. She was subsequently scuttled after her guns were wrecked.
The wreck of HMS York was raised and salvage for scrap in 1952.
HMS York being launchedHMS York being launchedHMS York being launchedHMS York being launched
HMS York
HMS York during a port visit to Karlskrona Sweden, 1931HMS York sails past the Finnish sea fortress Suomenlinna Sveaborg, September 3, 1933Aerial photo of HMS York in Admiralty Floating Dock No. 1 at Royal Naval Dockyard, Bermuda in 1934HMS York in Washington 1935HMS York in Washington 1935HMS York in 1936HMS York Montreal 20 June 1937HMS York 14 Jan1938 entering Havana HarbourHMS York (90) in Vancouver, British Columbia, 10 August 1938HMS YorkHMS YorkHMS YorkHMS YorkHMS YorkHMS YorkHMS YorkHMS YorkHMS YorkHMS YorkHMS York
Armament
HMS York forward 8″ guns
Aircraft of HMS York
HMS York’s Supermarine Walrus aircraft
HMS York at Suda Bay Crete
The Wreck of HMS York in Suda BayItalians inspecting the wreck of the HMS York after it was abandoned by the BritishThe Wreck of HMS York in Suda BayThe Wreck of HMS York in Suda BayWreck of HMS York, in Souda Bay, summer 1941The wreck of HMS York being salvaged and scrapped
Diderot was a French semi-dreadnought battleship of the Danton-class. Launched on 19 April 1909, she was commissioned into the Marine Nationale on 1 August 1911.
On 16 August 1914, Diderot participated in the Battle of Antivari along with a large Fleet of British and French ships. She participated in the sinking of the Austro-Hungarian protected cruiser Zenta.
For the remainder of the First World War, she helped blockade the Straits of Otranto and the Dardanelles to prevent German, Austro-Hungarian and Turkish warships from breaking out into the Mediterranean.
Post-war, Diderot was modernised from 1923 – 25 after which she was used as a training ship. She was condemned in 1936 and sold for scrap.
Diderot at Toulon, 26 November 1916.DiderotDiderotDiderotDiderot
The lead ship of her class, Danton was a semi-dreadnought of the French Navy. She was launched on 4 July 1909 and commissioned on 1 June 1911. On the outbreak of the First World War, Danton was used to escort troop ships from North Africa to Europe, as the German battle cruiser Goeben and light cruiser Breslau were operating in the Mediterranean.
Along with here five sister ships, Danton was used to blockade the Austro-Hungarian and Turkish fleets, to prevent them breaking out into the Mediterranean. On 19 March 1917, while returning from a refit in Toulon, she was sunk by U-64 35 km south-west of Sardinia. Of the 1,102 men onboard, 296 were lost.
DantonDantonDantonDantonDanton Danton at ToulonDantonDantonDantonDanton’s main armamentDanton after being torpedoed
