HMS Duke of York (17) - Operational History

Operational History

In mid-December 1941, Duke of York embarked Prime Minister Winston Churchill for a trip to the United States to confer with President Franklin D. Roosevelt. She arrived at Annapolis, Maryland, on 22 December 1941, made a shakedown cruise to Bermuda in January 1942, and departed for Scapa Flow on 17 January with Churchill returning home by air instead of on Duke of York.

On 1 March 1942 she provided close escort for Convoy PQ 12 in company with the battlecruiser Renown, the cruiser Kenya, and six destroyers. On 6 March that force was reinforced with one of Duke of York's sister-ships, King George V, and the aircraft carrier Victorious, the heavy cruiser Berwick, and six destroyers as a result of Admiral John Tovey's concerns that the German battleship Tirpitz might attempt to intercept the convoy. On 6 March the German battleship put to sea and was sighted by a British submarine around 19:40; no contact was made, however, except for an unsuccessful aerial torpedo attack by aircraft from Victorious.

Later that month, Convoy PQ 13 was constituted and Duke of York again formed part of the escort force. In early April, Duke of York, King George V, and the carrier Victorious formed the core of a support force that patrolled between Iceland and Norway to cover several convoys to the Soviet Union. In late April, King George V accidentally rammed the destroyer Punjabi and sustained significant damage; Duke of York was sent to relieve her. She continued in these operations through May, when she was joined by the American battleship USS Washington. In mid-September, Duke of York escorted Convoy QP 14.

In October 1942, Duke of York was sent to Gibraltar as the new flagship of Force H, and supported the Allied landings in North Africa the following month. During this time Duke of York came under air attack by Italian aircraft on several occasions, but the raids were relatively small scale and were swiftly dealt with by the "umbrella" provided by the aircraft from the accompanying carriers Victorious, Formidable and Furious. After this action, Duke of York returned to Britain for a refit.

Once this was completed, Duke of York resumed her status as flagship from 14 May 1943 pending the departure of King George V and Howe for Operation Husky. Operation Gearbox in June 1943 involved a sweep by Duke of York and Anson, in company with the US battleships Alabama and South Dakota, to provide distant cover for minor operations in Spitsbergen and the Kola Inlet, while the following month diversionary operations, codenamed "Camera" and "Governor of Norway", were carried out in order to draw the Germans' attention away from Operation Husky. On 4 October, Duke of York and Anson covered a force of Allied cruisers and destroyers and the American carrier Ranger, which raided German shipping off Norway. The attack resulted in the sinking of four German merchant ships and damage to seven others, which forced many of them to be grounded.