British Destroyer Losses of World War II

Summary

I created this listing on a whim after reading a post by my friend Tony Williams regarding the lack of data on RN destroyer losses.

This listing includes all RN, RAN and RCN destroyers that were either sunk or declared as a Constructive Total Loss (CTL). Near the end of the war, many damaged ships fell into this latter category as new construction more than outpaced losses.

Losses during 1939

Name	Date	Cause	Gunfire	Ship Torpedo	Submarine Torpedo	Aircraft Torpedo	Mine	Bombs	Accident	Other
Blanche	13-Nov-39	Mined Thames Estuary					❌
Gypsy	21-Nov-39	Mined off Harwich					❌
Duchess	12-Dec-39	Collision with HMS Barham in North Channel							❌
Total			0	0	0	0	2	0	1	0

Losses during 1940

Name	Date	Cause	Gunfire	Ship Torpedo	Submarine Torpedo	Aircraft Torpedo	Mine	Bombs	Accident	Other
Grenville	19-Jan-40	Mined North Sea					❌
Exmouth	27-Jan-40	Torpedoed by U22 off Moray Firth			❌
Daring	3-Feb-40	Torpedoed by U23 off Duncansby Head			❌
Glowworm	8-Apr-40	Gunfire by and collision with German cruiser Admiral Hipper	❌
Gurkha	9-Apr-40	Bombed by Ju.87 and He.111 off Bergen						❌
Hardy	10-Apr-40	Gunfire by German Destroyers Georg Thiele and Bernd von Arnim at Narvik	❌
Hunter	10-Apr-40	a) Gunfire by German Destroyers Georg Thiele and Bernd von Arnim at Narvik b) Torpedo from Georg Thiele c) Collision with HMS Hotspur	❌
Afridi	3-May-40	Bombed by Ju.87 off Namsos						❌
Valentine	13-May-40	Bombed by Ju.87, beached Schelde Salved and scrapped Jan-53						❌
Whitley	19-May-40	Bombed by German aircraft off Belgian coast						❌
Wessex	24-May-40	Bombed by German aircraft off Calais						❌
Wakeful	29-May-40	Torpedoed by S-30 off Nieuport		❌
Grafton	29-May-40	Torpedoed by U62 off Dunkirk			❌
Grenade	29-May-40	Bombed by German aircraft off Dunkirk						❌
Keith	1-Jun-40	Bombed by Ju.87 off Dunkirk						❌
Basilisk	1-Jun-40	Bombed by German aircraft off Dunkirk						❌
Havant	1-Jun-40	Bombed by German aircraft off Dunkirk						❌
Ardent	8-Jun-40	Sunk by gunfire from German battleships Scharnhorst and Gneisenau	❌
Acasta	8-Jun-40	Sunk by gunfire from German battleships Scharnhorst and Gneisenau	❌
Khartoum	22-Jun-40	Gunfire from Italian submarine Torricelli, torpedo flask explosion, beached off Perim Island, Yemen ¹	❌
Fraser RCN	25-Jun-40	Collision with HMS Calcutta off Gironde							❌
Whirlwind	5-Jul-40	Torpedoed by U34 off Lands End			❌
Escort	11-Jul-40	Torpedoed by Italian submarine Marconi Foundered North off Cyprus			❌
Imogen	16-Jul-40	Collision with HMS Glasgow in Pentland Firth							❌
Brazen	20-Jul-40	Bombed by German aircraft off Dover						❌
Codrington	27-Jul-40	Bombed by German aircraft at Dover Harbor						❌
Wren	27-Jul-40	Bombed by German aircraft off Aldeburgh						❌
Delight	29-Jul-40	Bombed by German aircraft off Portland						❌
Hostile	21-Aug-40	Mined off Cape Bon					❌
Esk	30-Aug-40	Mined off Holland					❌
Ivanhoe	1-Sep-40	Mined off Texel					❌
Venetia	19-Oct-40	Mined Thames Estuary					❌
Margaree RCN	22-Oct-40	Collision with MV Port Fairey in North Atlantic							❌
Sturdy	30-Oct-40	Grounding, Island of Tiree, Scotland							❌
Cameron	15-Dec-40	Bombed by German aircraft at Portsmouth CTL, scrapped Nov-44						❌
Acheron	17-Dec-40	Mined off Isle of Wright					❌
Hyperion	22-Dec-40	Torpedoed by Italian submarine Serpente off Patellaria			❌
Total			6	1	6	0	6	14	4	0

Losses during 1941

Name	Date	Cause	Gunfire	Ship Torpedo	Submarine Torpedo	Aircraft Torpedo	Mine	Bombs	Accident	Other
Gallant	10-Jan-41	Mined off Pantellaria and bombed at Malta CTL, expended as blockship at Malta, wreck broken up in 1953					❌
Dainty	24-Feb-41	Bombed by Ju.88 off Tobruk						❌
Exmoor	25-Feb-41	Torpedoed by S-30 off Lowestoft		❌
Mohawk	16-Apr-41	Torpedoed by Italian Destroyer Tarigo off Cape Bon		❌
Wryneck	27-Apr-41	Bombed by Ju.87 off Nauplia						❌
Diamond	27-Apr-41	Bombed by Ju.87 off Nauplia						❌
Jersey	27-Apr-41	Mined off Malta					❌
Juno	21-May-41	Bombed by Italian Cant Z.1007 off Crete						❌
Greyhound	22-May-41	Bombed by Ju.87 off Crete						❌
Kelly	23-May-41	Bombed by Ju.87 off Crete						❌
Kashmir	23-May-41	Bombed by Ju.87 off Crete						❌
Mashona	28-May-41	Bombed by He.111 off Ireland						❌
Imperial	29-May-41	Scuttled following a steering failure off Crete Failure probably caused by near-misses from German aircraft bombs the previous day						❌
Hereward	29-May-41	Bombed by Ju.87 off Crete						❌
Waterhen RAN	29-Jun-41	Bombed by German aircraft off Sollum						❌
Defender	11-Jul-41	Bombed by German and Italian aircraft off Sidi Barani						❌
Fearless	23-Jul-41	Torpedoed by Italian aircraft West Mediterranean				❌
Broadwater	18-Oct-41	Torpedoed by U101 off Ireland			❌
Cossack	23-Oct-41	Torpedoed by U563 in North Atlantic			❌
Stanley	19-Dec-41	Torpedoed by U574 SW of Portugal			❌
Kandahar	20-Dec-41	Mined off Tripoli					❌
Thracian	24-Dec-41	Scuttled after suffering grounding damage at Hong Kong Salved by the Japanese and commissioned as Patrol Boat No. 101 and later as Training Boat No. 1 Repatriated at the end of the war and scrapped in 1946							❌
Vimiera	9-Jan-42	Mined Thames Estuary					❌
Total			0	2	3	1	4	12	1	0

Losses during 1942

Name	Date	Cause	Gunfire	Ship Torpedo	Submarine Torpedo	Aircraft Torpedo	Mine	Bombs	Accident	Other
Gurkha	17-Jan-42	Torpedoed by U133 off Sidi Barani			❌
Matabele	17-Jan-42	Torpedoed by U454 Barents Sea			❌
Thanet	27-Jan-42	Gunfire from Japanese destroyers Amagiri, Hatsuyuki and Shirayuki off Malaya	❌
Belmont	31-Jan-42	Torpedoed by U82 off Halifax			❌
Maori	12-Feb-42	Bombed by German aircraft at Grand Harbor, Malta						❌
Electra	27-Feb-42	Gunfire from Japanese destroyer Asagumo at Java Sea	❌
Jupiter	27-Feb-42	Strayed into a Dutch minefield at Java Sea					❌
Encounter	1-Mar-42	Gunfire from Japanese cruisers Myoko and Ashigara at Java Sea	❌
Stronghold	1-Mar-42	Gunfire from Japanese cruiser Maya and destroyers Arashi and Nowaki South of Java	❌
Vortigern	15-Mar-42	Torpedoed by S-104 off Cromer		❌
Heythrop	20-Mar-42	Torpedoed by U652 off Sollum			❌
Southwold	24-Mar-42	Mined off Malta					❌
Jaguar	26-Mar-42	Torpedoed by U652 North of Sollum			❌
Legion	26-Mar-42	Bombed by German aircraft at Malta CTL, scrapped 1946						❌
Campeltown	28-Mar-42	Expended as a Blockship at St Nazaire								❌
Tenedos	5-Apr-42	Bombed by Japanese aircraft at Columbo Harbor Salved Feb-1944						❌
Lance	5-Apr-42	Bombed by German aircraft at Malta CTL, scrapped Jun-44						❌
Havock	6-Apr-42	Grounding off Kelibia, Tunisia							❌
Vampire RAN	9-Apr-42	Bombed by Japanese aircraft East of Ceylon						❌
Kingston	11-Apr-42	Bombed by German aircraft at Malta CTL, used as a blockship at Malta, scrapped in situ 1950s						❌
Punjabi	1-May-42	Collision with HMS King George V off Iceland							❌
Lively	11-May-42	Bombed by Ju.88 off Sollum						❌
Kipling	11-May-42	Bombed by Ju.88 South of Crete						❌
Jackal	11-May-42	Bombed by Ju.88 South of Crete						❌
Grove	12-Jun-42	Torpedoed by U77 off Sollum (slowed due to grounding damage)			❌
Bedouin	15-Jun-42	a) Gunfire by Italian cruisers Raimondo Montecuccoli and Eugenio di Savoia b) Torpedoed by Italian SM.79 aircraft	1/2 ❌			1/2 ❌
Hasty	15-Jun-42	Torpedoed by S-55 in East Mediterranean		❌
Airedale	15-Jun-42	Bombed by Ju.87 in East Mediterranean						❌
Nestor	16-Jun-42	Bombed by Ju.87 in East Mediterranean						❌
Wild Swan	17-Jun-42	Bombed by Ju.88 and collision with Spanish fishing vessel in Bay of Biscay						❌
Foresight	11-Aug-42	Torpedoed by Italian SM.79 aircraft in West Mediterranean				❌
Berkeley	19-Aug-42	Bombed by German aircraft at Dieppe						❌
Eridge	29-Aug-42	Torpedoed by Italian torpedo boat MTSM.228 in East Mediterranean CTL, scrapped Oct-46		❌
Ottawa RCN	14-Sep-42	Torpedoed by U91 in Gulf of St Lawrence			❌
Sikh	14-Sep-42	Gunfire from German shore batteries at Tobruk	❌
Zulu	14-Sep-42	Bombed by Ju.87 and Ju.88 off Alexandria						❌
Somali	20-Sep-42	Torpedoed by U703 in Artic			❌
Voyager RAN	25-Sep-42	Grounding, Timor Island Later attacked by Japanese aircraft but wrecked by own crew							❌
Veteran	26-Sep-42	Torpedoed by U404 in North Atlantic			❌
Broke	8-Nov-42	Gunfire by French shore batteries at Algiers	❌
Martin	10-Nov-42	Torpedoed by U431 off Algiers			❌
Saguenay RCN	15-Nov-42	Collision with SS Azara off Newfoundland CTL, used for training, scrapped in 1946							❌
Ithuriel	28-Nov-42	Bombed by German aircraft off Bone, Algeria CTL, scrapped in 1944						❌
Quentin	2-Dec-42	Bombed by Ju.88 off Bone, Algeria						❌
Penylan	3-Dec-42	Torpedoed by S-115 off Start Point		❌
Porcupine	9-Dec-42	Torpedoed by U602 in West Mediterranean CTL, scrapped May-46			❌
Blean	11-Dec-42	Torpedoed by U443 off Oran			❌
Firedrake	17-Dec-42	Torpedoed by U211 in North Atlantic			❌
Partridge	18-Dec-42	Torpedoed by U565 West of Oran			❌
Achates	31-Dec-42	Gunfire from German cruiser Admiral Hipper at Barents Sea	❌
Total			7.5	4	14	1.5	2	16	4	1

Losses during 1943

Name	Date	Cause	Gunfire	Ship Torpedo	Submarine Torpedo	Aircraft Torpedo	Mine	Bombs	Accident	Other
Harvester	11-Mar-43	Torpedoed by U444 in North Atlantic			❌
Lightning	12-Mar-43	Torpedoed by S-55 and S-158 in Sicilian Channel		❌
Derwent	19-Mar-43	Torpedoed by Italian aircraft off Tripoli				❌
Beverley	11-Apr-43	Torpedoed by U188 South of Greenland			❌
Pakenham	16-Apr-43	Scuttled following gunfire damage from Italian torpedo boat Cigno off Marsala	❌
Puckeridge	6-Sep-43	Torpedoed by U617 off Gibraltar			❌
St. Croix RCN	20-Sep-43	Torpedoed by U305 South of Ireland			❌
Intrepid	27-Sep-43	Bombed by German aircraft off Leros						❌
Panther	3-Oct-43	Bombed by Ju.87 off Rhodes						❌
Hurworth	22-Oct-43	Mined off Cos, Aegean Sea					❌
Limbourne	22-Oct-43	Torpedoed by German T22 or T26 off Brittany		❌
Eclipse	24-Oct-43	Mined East of Kalymnos					❌
Rockwood	11-Nov-43	Hit by Hs.293A glider bomb in Agean Sea						❌
Dulverton	11-Nov-43	Hit by Hs.293A glider bomb off Cos, Aegean Sea						❌
Quail	15-Nov-43	Mined off Bari					❌
Tynedale	12-Dec-43	Torpedoed by U593 off Bougie			❌
Holcombe	12-Dec-43	Torpedoed by U593 off Bougie			❌
Worcester	23-Dec-43	Mined in North Sea					❌
Hurricane	24-Dec-43	Torpedoed by U415 in North Atlantic			❌
Total			1	2	7	1	4	4	0	0

Losses during 1944

Name	Date	Cause	Gunfire	Ship Torpedo	Submarine Torpedo	Aircraft Torpedo	Mine	Bombs	Accident	Other
Janus	23-Jan-44	Probably aircraft torpedo, but possibly Hs.293A glider bomb off Anzio				❌
Hardy	30-Jan-44	Torpedoed by U278 in Arctic Ocean			❌
Warwick	20-Feb-44	Torpedoed by U413 off North Cornwall			❌
Inglefield	25-Feb-44	Hit by Hs.293A glider bomb off Anzio						❌
Maharatta	25-Feb-44	Torpedoed by U990 in Barents Sea			❌
Laforey	30-Mar-44	Torpedoed by U223 North of Sicily			❌
Athabaskan RCN	29-Apr-44	Torpedoed by German T24 off Normandy		❌
Wrestler	6-Jun-44	Mined off Normandy CTL, scrapped 15-Aug-44					❌
Boadicea	13-Jun-44	Torpedoed by Ju.88 off Portland				❌
Fury	21-Jun-44	Mined off Normandy CTL, scrapped Sep-44					❌
Swift	24-Jun-44	Mined off Normandy					❌
Isis	20-Jul-44	Probably mined, but could have been torpedoed by midget sub off Normandy					❌
Goathland	24-Jul-44	Mined off Normandy CTL, scrapped Feb-46					❌
Quorn	3-Aug-44	Human torpedo off Normandy			❌
Rockingham	27-Sep-44	Mined off Aberdeen					❌
Loyal	12-Oct-44	Mined off North East coast of Italy CTL, scrapped Aug-48					❌
Skeena RCN	25-Oct-44	Grounding at Reykjavík, Iceland Salved and scrapped 1946							❌
Wensleydale	21-Nov-44	Collision with HM LST-367 CTL, scrapped Feb-46							❌
Aldenham	14-Dec-44	Mined off Pola					❌
Total			0	1	5	2	8	1	2	0

Losses during 1945

Name	Date	Cause	Gunfire	Ship Torpedo	Submarine Torpedo	Aircraft Torpedo	Mine	Bombs	Accident	Other
Walpole	6-Jan-45	Mined in North Sea					❌
Pathfinder	11-Feb-45	Bombed by Japanese Army aircraft off Ramree Island CTL, scrapped 1948						❌
Total			0	0	0	0	1	1	0	0

Total Losses

Cause	Number
Gunfire	14.5
Ship Torpedo	10
Submarine Torpedo	35
Aircraft Torpedo	5.5
Mine	27 ²
Bombs	48
Accident	12
Other	1
Total	153 ³

Notes

^The Admiralty report on the loss of Khartoum includes a theory that the torpedo air flask explosion that led to her loss could have been the result of corrosion or a manufacturing flaw and that similar air flask explosions had previously been reported in other ships. However, inspections of other destroyers failed to find corrosion problems of this nature and the exact cause of her loss probably cannot be determined.
^The total of losses caused by mining includes those destroyers sunk by mines laid by aircraft and those laid by submarines as well as those laid by surface ships. The breakdown is unavailable at this time.
^The following warships are sometimes noted, but in my opinion they were not RN war losses.

HMS Bruce - I had a chuckle about this one as she is listed as being "Lost" on 22 November 1939 in "Warships of World War II" yet I could not find her listed anywhere else as a war loss. Some references I consulted did not even include her as a World War II warship. I finally found that she had been decommissioned, designated as a target and then sunk during exercises off Hong Kong. The date of her sinking is, of course, after the start of the European War but prior to the start of the Pacific War. Having been sunk as a target, she cannot be considered as a war loss.

Branlebas - Ex-French torpedo boat, 600 tonnes class. Foundered in bad weather on 14 December 1940 while under RN control. This was a TB, not a destroyer, and was more the size of a corvette.

RNN Bath (ex-HMS Bath/ex-USS Hopewell) - A Town/Wickes class destroyer transferred to Norwegian control. Torpedoed by U-204 on 19 August 1941. Not an RN warship at the time of her loss.

RNN Eskdale (ex-HMS Eskdale) - A Hunt class destroyer transferred to Norwegian control. Hit by two torpedoes fired by S-90 and sunk on 14 April 1943. Not a RN warship at the time of her loss.

ORP Orkan (ex-HMS Myrmidon) - An M-class destroyer transferred to Polish control. Torpedoed and sunk by U-378 on 8 October 1943. Not an RN warship at the time of her loss.

RHN Adrias (ex-HMS Border) - A Hunt class destroyer transferred to Greek control. Declared CTL after being mined on 22 October 1943. Not a RN warship at the time she was damaged.

USSR Deiatelnyi (ex-HMS Churchill/ex-USS Herndon) - A Town/Clemson class destroyer transferred to USSR control. Torpedoed and sunk by U-956 on 16 January 1945. Not an RN warship at the time of her loss.
HMS Saumarez - Declared CTL after striking a mine on 22 October 1945 while transiting the Corfu Straits in Albanian waters. Note the date, this was a post-war loss.

Sources

"S-Boote: German E-boats in action" by Jean-Philippe Dallies-Labourdette
"The Admiralty Regrets: British Warship Losses of the 20th Century" by Paul Kemp
"Warships of World War II" by H.T. Lenton & J.J. Colledge (Ian Allen Series)
"Struggle for the Middle Sea: The Great Navies at War in the Mediterranean Theater, 1940-1945" by Vincent P. O'Hara
"Destroyers at War" by Gregory Haines
"Crete 1941: The Battle at Sea" by David A. Thomas
"German Destroyers of World War Two (Second Edition)" and "Destroyers of World War Two: An International Encyclopedia" both by M.J. Whitley
Naval History Net entry for HMS Wensleydale

Page History

14 December 2014 - New datapage
24 May 2016 - Minor corrections, converted to HTML 5 format
12 July 2016 - Minor corrections, updated template
26 May 2018 - Minor formatting changes
09 March 2019 - Added notes regarding ORP Orkan, RNN Bath and USSR Deiatelnyi
25 May 2019 - Added location information
09 December 2024 - Added mining total note