HMS Bermuda (C52)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

HMS Bermuda (C52) was a Fiji class cruiser of the British Royal Navy during the mid-20th century. She was named for the British territory of Bermuda, and was the eighth vessel to be so. The first was a Bermuda sloop, purchased in 1795.

The 555 foot long Bermuda was built by the John Brown Shipbuilders on the River Clyde and launched on September 11, 1941. In the same year, the class ship, 'Fiji', was sunk while participating in the evacuation of Crete, and the Bermuda would be the final ship of the class.

[edit] Service

Through 1942, the Bermuda would participate in the North Africa campaign, including Operation Torch. The following year she would serve in both the Atlantic and Arctic. In 1945, the Bermuda was deployed to the Pacific.

Following the war, the Bermuda continued her service. In 1953, she assisted the Greek island of Zakynthos when it was struck by a severe earthquake. Greek officials would later comment, "we Greeks have a long-standing tradition with the Royal Navy and it lived up to every expectation in its infallible tradition of always being the first to help".

The Bermuda was decommissioned in 1962, after only 21 years in service.

[edit] Bermuda

The Bermuda made several visits to her namesake, where she was presented with a number of silver objects, including a large bell — which was occasionally used as a font for Holy Water in the baptism of children of the crew — and four bugles. Two of the bugles later found their way into The Bermuda Regiment. Apart from the bell and the bugles, which were collected together by the Bermuda Maritime Museum at the former Bermuda Dockyard, the other items went missing following the ship's decommissioning.