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| Royal Navy Renown-class Battlecruiser 27,200 Tons (Normal) 32,200 Tons (Loaded) 34,600 Tons (1939-1941) 794' 2.5" x 89' 11.5" x 29' 8" (Armament as built) 3 x 15" guns (5x3) 4" guns 2 x 4" guns 2 x 3" AA guns 2 x 21" torpedo tubes Armor: belt 3-6" deck 1-2.5" (Armament as of 1939) 3x2 15" guns 3x3 x 4" guns 6 x 4" AA guns 2x4 40mm AA guns Vickers machine guns Armor: belt 2-9" deck 1-4" 1 x aircraft catapult 4 x seaplanes  Royal Navy June 12, 1924   IJN December 10, 1941 |
Ship History Built by John Brown and Company in Clydebank, Scotland. On December 30, 1914 ordered by the Royal Navy (RN). Laid down January 25, 1915 as a Renown-class Battlecruiser, the second to last battlecruiser built. Launched January 8, 1916 as as HMS Repulse (34) but was too late to participate in the Battle of Jutland and too late to incorporate lessons learned from the battle. Commissioned August 18, 1916 in the Royal Navy (RN). World War I During September 1916, she joined the Grand Fleet as flagship of the 1st Battlecruiser Squadron. Repulse first saw action on November 17, 1917 at the Second Battle of Heligoland Bight. Commanded by Captain William "Ginger" Boyle she briefly engaged two German battleships, SMS Kaiser and SMS Kaiserin, before they retired. The next month, Repulse was damaged in collision with the battlecruiser HMAS Australia (1911). During 1918 until 1920 underwent her first rebuild including replacement of her 6" / 152mm armor belt with 9" / 229 mm plus an additional 6" / 152 mm section above it protecting what had previously been unarmored. Together with improved anti-torpedo bulges this meant an additional 4,300 tons of armor. Her torpedo tubes were moved from underwater to on deck. During 1924 to 1925, the mixture of low angle 4" guns and high angle 3" guns were changed to 4" high angle guns. Also included were improvements to the anti-aircraft armament, and facilities for a spotter aircraft. During 1933 until 1936 underwent another refit adding more armour, more anti-aircraft guns (2 pdr 40mm anti-aircraft guns "pom-poms" and .50 caliber Vickers machine guns. Also, an aircraft catapult with two hangars for a total of four Fairey Swordfish with floats. After the refit deployed to the Mediterranean Sea. During 1941 her Fairey Swordfish floatplanes were replaced by Supermarine Walrus floatplane. Wartime History In September 1939 at the start of World War II in Europe, Repulse was assigned to the Battlecruiser Squadron of the Home Fleet and patrolled the North Sea off Norway in search of German vessels but found none. During late October 1939 deployed to Halifax with the aircraft carrier HMS Furious (47) to protect Allied convoys and search for German raiders. On November 23, 1939 sortied from Halifax for German battleship Scharnhorst but was damaged in heavy seas and returned. On December 10, 1939 escorts a convoy to the United Kingdom and returned to the Home Fleet. In February 1940 with HMS Ark Royal (91) searches for German vessels unsuccessfully. On April 7, 1940 ordered to intercept what was believed to be a German break out into the North Atlantic and searched for a German cruiser Admiral Hipper and instead rendezvous with HMS Renown south of the Lofoten Islands off Norway. On April 12, 1940 ordered to Scapa Flow to refuel then escorts a convoy. In early June 1940 searches for German raiders. On June 28, 1940 placed under the command of Captain William Tennant. During January 1941, Repulse participates in the hunt for the German battlecruisers Scharnhorst and Gneisenau. In May 1941, diverted from escorting convoy WS8B to search for Battleship Bismarck. On May 25, 1941 broke off low on fuel. During June 1941 began a three month refit adding eight 20mm cannon and a Type 284 surface gunnery radar. In August 1941, escorted a convoy Cape Town in South Africa then transfers to the East Indies Command. On October 28, 1941 arrives India. At the end of 1941, detached to the Far East. On November 29, 1941 joins HMS Prince of Wales (53) off Colombo. On December 2, 1941 arrives Singapore and assigned to Force Z under the command of Admiral Sir Tom Phillips. Wartime History On December 8, 1941 at the start of the Pacific War at 5:30pm Repulse departs Singapore with Force Z including HMS Prince Of Wales (53) escorted by destroyers HMS Electra (H27), HMS Express (H61), HMS Tenedos (H04) and HMAS Vampire (D68) on a mission to attack Japanese transports off Kota Bharu on Malaya. The warships were to have Royal Air Force (RAF) air cover, but none were available. On December 9, 1941 at 2:15am spotted by Japanese submarine I-65. Later in the evening, spotted by Japanese reconnaissance planes. Sinking History On December 10, 1941 at midnight Force Z was informed the Japanese were landing at Kuantan and were diverted to investigate. At 2:11am again spotted by Japanese submarine. At 8:00am arrived off Kuantan and learned the reported landing was a diversion and turned southward. Meanwhile, Japanese land based bombers from the 22nd Air Flotilla in Saigon were launched armed with bombs and torpedoes to sink the battleships. At 10:15am a Type 96 / G3M2 Nell spotted Force Z and shadowed the warships and broadcast a signal for the inbound formation of bombers. At 11:00am the first attack by eight Type 96 / G3M2 Nells armed with 250kg bombs that targeted Repulse from 11,500' / 3,505m with an aerial photograph both battleships during the attack. Repulse was straddled by two bombs with a third scoring a hit that penetrated the hangar and exploded against the armor deck causing casualties aboard and damaging the Supermarine Walrus inside that was immediately pushed overboard. Anti-aircraft fire damaged five bombers. At 11:30am the second attack by seventeen Type 96 / G3M2 Nells armed with torpedoes that divided into two groups and made torpedo attacks. HMS Prince of Wales (53) was hit by a single torpedo. Meanwhile, Repulse avoids seven torpedoes and bombs dropped by six other Type 96 / G3M2 Nells. A third torpedo attack targets Repuse but she was not hit. A fourth attack by Type 1 / G4M1 Bettys armed with torpedoes scored five hits on Repulse and twenty minutes later severely lists to port then capsized and went down by the stern at 12:33pm off Kuantan in the South China Sea at roughly Lat 3° 33′ 36″ N, Long 104° 28′ 42″ E. A total of 508 crew were lost in the engagement and sinking. Meanwhile HMS Prince of Wales was hit by three torpedoes and a bomb and sunk at 1:20pm. Rescue The surviving crew including Captain William Tennant were rescued by HMS Electra (H27) and HMAS Vampire (D68). Meanwhile, HMS Express (H61) rescued survivors of the HMS Prince of Wales. Even after they were rescued, some survivors of the Repulse manned Action Stations on HMS Electra, to free up Electra crew to rescue more survivors. In total, 1,285 survivors of the Repulse were rescued, of which Electra saved 571. Afterwards, Electra and the other destroyers returned to Singapore to drop off the survivors. Shipwreck The shipwreck is at a depth of 54m / 177'. After the sinking, the Japanese Navy sent a team to search for the shipwreck and salvaged some equipment including the radar, guns and other materials from a depth of approximately 100'. During 2002, the shipwreck was designated as a "Protected Place" under the Protection of Military Remains Act 1986, during the 60th anniversary of her sinking. The Royal Navy maintains a White Ensign flag on the mast of the shipwreck. During 2014, the shipwreck of Prince of Wales and Repulse were illegally salvaged by scrap metal salvagers using explosives and divers. The illegal salvages were first reported in the Daily Telegraph on October 25, 2014. During May 2023, it was reported that a Chinese vessel Chuan Hong 68 illegally salvaged more steel from both shipwrecks and was seized by Malaysian authorities. Memorials On September 28, 1968 her sucessor, Resolution-class ballistic missile submarine HMS Repulse (S23) was commissioned in the Royal Navy. On December 10, 2023, a memorial was unveiled by the King Abdullah of Pahang at Teluk Cempedak beach, commemorating Prince of Wales and Repulse. References National Museum of the U.S. Navy Loss of HMS Prince of Wales and HMS Repulse Naval History and Heritage Command (NHHC) Disaster in the Pacific, December 1941 pages 556-559, 562, 564, 565 (map), 566, 568-569 The Telegraph "Celebrated British warships being stripped bare for scrap metal" by Julian Ryall October 25, 2014 The Times "Malaysia seizes Chinese ship suspected of looting wartime British wrecks" by Gavin Blair May 30, 2023 Free Malaysia Today "King unveils memorial for HMS Repulse and HMS Prince of Wales" December 10, 2023 Thanks to Kevin Denlay for additional information, research and analysis Contribute
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 Photo Archive  Map December 8-10, 1941  54m / 177' |
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