HMS M16

HMS M16 was a First World War Royal Navy M15-class monitor.

Design

Intended as a shore bombardment vessel, M16's primary armament was a single 9.2 inch Mk X gun which had been held as a spare for the Drake-class cruiser and Cressy-class cruiser^[1]. In addition to her 9.2 inch gun, she also possessed one 12 pounder and one six pound anti-aircraft gun. She was equipped with Triple Expansion steam engines rated to 800 horse power that allowed a top speed of eleven knots. The monitor's crew consisted of sixty nine officers and men.

Construction

HMS M16 was ordered in March, 1915, as part of the Emergency War Programme of ship construction. She was laid down at the William Gray shipyard at Hartlepool in March 1915, launched on 3 May 1915, and completed in June 1915.

World War 1

M16 served in the Mediterranean from July 1915 to October 1918.

Disposal

M16 was sold on 29 January 1920 for mercantile service as an oil tanker with Anglo Saxon Petroleum Co, and renamed 'Tiga'.

References

• Colledge, J. J.; Warlow, Ben (2006) [1969]. Ships of the Royal Navy: The Complete Record of all Fighting Ships of the Royal Navy (Rev. ed.). London: Chatham. ISBN 978-1-86176-281-8. OCLC 67375475. 
• Dittmar, F. J. & Colledge, J. J., "British Warships 1914-1919", (Ian Allan, London, 1972), ISBN 0-7110-0380-7