HMS Kelly 1939 - 1941 World Naval Ships Forums Archive

Naval History by Country :

ROYAL
NAVY

US
NAVY

GERMAN
NAVY

FRENCH
NAVY

*VIEW ALL OF OUR CURRENT ART SPECIAL OFFERS ON ONE PAGE HERE*
NAVAL ART	AVIATION ART	MILITARY ART	SPORT ART

ALWAYS GREAT OFFERS :

20% FURTHER PRICE REDUCTIONS ON HUNDREDS OF LIMITED EDITION ART PRINTS

BUY ONE GET ONE HALF PRICE ON THOUSANDS OF PAINTINGS AND PRINTS

FOR MORE OFFERS SIGN UP TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER

HMS Kelly 1939 - 1941 World Naval Ships Forums Archive

HMS Kelly 1939 - 1941

Posts 1 to 50

Shortly after my father's death I found among his papers a reunion menu of the Kelly Association. As my father was in the RAFVR this must relate to his elder brother who served in the RN both during WW1 and WW2. It would be nice if I could find proof of this in the form of HMS Kelly's crew lists. My uncle would have been a CPO judging by the un-dated photos I have seen.

Just joined-- my wifes Father was on Hms Kelly his name was Harold Barlow he was a gunner on board-- any one out there know of him sorry if i am on wrong page on the forum, maybe someone could direct me to the right one, best of luck mates John

Welcome John! You've posted in a good place. Let's see if anyone can come up with something for you.

Thanks for the replies will have a look, much appreciated regards John

G'Day, my name is Tony, I live in Australia,my Grandfather was Ch.E.R.A. on HMS Kelly, sadly he was killed during the Battle of Crete in 1941.He died before I was born, I do have a list and photo of the ships crew.

Any chance you can scan them and publish them here?

The Destroyer leader KELLY was sunk by aircraft on 23/5/1941 with the loss of 132 of her crew. Anthony, your grandfather's Admiralty death record: FENNEMORE, WILFRED N., C.E.R.A., C/M 8006, KELLY, 23/05/1941, KILLED, SHIP LOSS.

Thanks for the prompt replies,I will try to scan and publish them.

Please find all the photo's of HMS KELLY I have. She has been an elusive ship to find photo's of !! If anyone has anything bigger or better, would they mind posting them here ?
Attachments :

Welcome Anthony You may be inerested in this picture of the 'Kelly Graves' which I posted in one of my 'On this Day' entries. It shows the grave of most of the men that were killed on the Kelly whilst she was in action against e-Boats in the North Sea. Regards...John
Attachments :

G'Day Rik,I'm having problems posting a photo of the ship's crew, do you have an email address ? regards Tony

Sent you a PM, Tony.

Rik - I have more or less the same pics of Kelly that you do plus this one...
Attachments :

Another picture of the Kelly when she had been bombed and sinking. Survivers, including the Captain D. Lord Louis Mountbatten, were rescued by the Kipling.
Attachments :

Ril, Another picture looks like taken at the same time as your picture no8.
Attachments :

Guys All the accounts I have read of the Kellys sinking indicate that her end was very quick. She sank within two minutes of being bombed and was still 'under way' when she turned over on her beam ends. I have even read one account that said some of her guns were still firing as she capsized. I must therefore question the captions that accompany some of the recently posted pictures. Rik ......Your pictures 2 and 4 look to be the same scene and yet one caption gives the date as 23rd May 1941, when Kelly was bombed and sank, whilst the other states she has been torpedoed. I think the latter is the correct version. Both pictures show the destroyer after she had been torpedoed by an E-Boat in the North Sea in 1940. Stan....similarly you say your photo is of Kelly sinking on 23rd May 1941. However, rather than being 'under way' she looks 'dead in the water'. I suspect that this is actually another picture taken after the E-Boat attack in 1940. What do others think? Regards...John

JB, pic 2 doesn't state anything other than the date ???? Pic 4 however does state that she was torpedoed !! However, the caption for pic 3 is totally wrong, as the pic shows her sinking, rather than in for repair !! For the record, Kelly was sunk by an air attack (in 1941). The confusion lies with the reports she was bombed, whereas she was actually torpedoed from from the air, by the said aircraft.

Rik Agreed pic 2 only shows a date. However the date is 23rd May 1941 which was the date she was bombed and sunk. I was therefore making the logical assumption that this is, reportedly, a picture of Kelly after she had been bombed. As previously stated, I believe this to be incorrect. However, now I know you believe the ship was torpedoed rather than bombed, I understand our differences of opinion. Regards....John

The Kelly.....14th Dec.1939 H.M.S.Kelly was badly damaged by a German mine laid by German destroyers off the Tyne ,Repairs were completed in late February 1940. 9th May 1940....During the night of 9th/10th May the destroyer was hit amidships by one torpedo from the German MTB. S-31(obit.z.S Opdenhoff). She was searching for German minelayers in the Skagerrak with one cruiser and six destroyers when the task force was attacked by five MTBs. The badly damaged ship was towed to Newcastle by H.M.s.Bulldog 23rd May 1941 ..She was bombed and sunk by German Stuka dive bombers south of Crete.

Cheers Stan !! That now totally confuses me....;-) Was my pic originally correct, or am I p*****g in the wind ???? Don't you just hate second-hand photo's ..........

Here's that picture again taken from another site and with a caption saying it was 1940. Of course, this could equally be a mistake but it does fit the sequence of events as I have always understood them. Sorry to disagree again Rik but I think your pic 3 is actually correctly captioned. i.e it is of Kelly in the Tyne but probably under tow. If you look behind her I think you can just make out some buildings on the quayside. Also, at the very left hand side of the photo is a ship which looks to be moored to the quayside. Regards ...John
Attachments :

Wonder if vfj who started this is as confused as the rest of us.

I have read a six page extract from an account of the sinking of HMS Kelly,on the 23rd May 1941,in the battle of Crete, given by the Captain.Lord Louis Mountbatten,to his sister Louise,Queen of Sweden. The Squadron consisted of HMS Kelly, Jersey,Kashmir and Kipling. HMS Jersey was sunk just after passing the breakwaters into Grand Harbour by a magnetic mine. The Kelly was sunk on the 23rd May 1941, by Stukas bombers which dived so low, that it was impossible to dodge the bomb,and it hit square on X gun deck, and killed the crew of the gun mounting. The ship listed to 90 degrees and eventually sank. Regards Harry

Hi Stan If I have confused things let me try to clarify matters. In a nutshell what I am saying is this: In my view......All the photos posted yesterday by Rik and yourself showing Kelly in a badly damaged condition were taken after her being torpedoed by an E-Boat during the night of 9th/10th May 1940. None of them relate to her actual sinking on 23rd May 1941. Another difference of opinion is that both you and I state that Kelly was sunk by bombing whereas Rik is of the opinion that an aircraft launched torpedo sank her. I have to say that I can't recall ever seeing any photos of the ship duing her actual sinking. Possibly, as she went down so quickly, none were ever taken. Regards...John

My 87 year old mum (nee Doris Brindley) would dearly love to find any information on one of the crew members aboard HMS Kelly whom she met during the war years. This gentleman was a gunnery officer and we believe was called Howard (Dixon/Dickson/Dickinson ??). His fate has since been a wonder to her and as we have been unable to obtain either a full crew list prior to the Kelly's tragic end or a survivors list afterwards, this has always remained a mystery. I would love to answer her questions and hope that someone may provide them for us. Many thanks. Russ Breslin

Hi Russ, You might try looking at the search engine on [url]http://www.hmscavalier.org.uk[/url] as Kelly was a destroyer a list of all casualties can be found here but alas not survivors. Ron Rymer

Russ, the names Howard, with or without, Dixon/Dickson/Dickinson do not appear in the Admiralty casualty list. The gunnery officer mentioned is HUBERT W.T. BROWNJOHN. Good luck in your search.

A name would be a help please Rimbo(Ron)

Hi everyone,I have just come across your website and joined after reading the post's regarding H.M.S.Kelly.I don't know if I will be able to help anyone but the reason for the reply is that my father in law served on the Kelly and is now in his 92nd year and still recalls his time on board,we have heard many a story and think it is a shame that his stories haven't been documented before it is too late.Anyone interested.

Lloyd Welcome to the forum. We are always pleased to receive any relevant posts and especially first hand accounts from current or ex servicemen and women. I am looking forward to those from your father in law. Regards...John

Lloyd - welcome to the forum. Please read my Private Message to you...

Lloyd. How marvellous to hear about your grandfather. I had recently read there were only ahandful of survivors left (understandable). My great uncle, William Philipson, would be 93 now if he had survived and lived long

Just joined the forum. My reason for joining is trying to trace a relative. I was on a linked site: [url]www.battleships-cruisers.co.uk/hms_kelly.htm[/url] On the site I saw a posted message by a chap writing about his grandfather Victor Robert Crisp who served on the HMS Kelly and was awarded a DSM. Victor was my uncle and I would love to be able to trace the chap that posted the message as he is a relative of mine I was previously unaware of. On the posting on the linked site there are no user names displayed and I cannot find the message in these archives so am unsure of how to trace. If anyone could be of assaitance it would be greatly appreciated. Colin.

Colin Welcome to the forum. I think Kc, the site administrator will be able to help you out here. Drop him a private message as I don't think he gets time to read every post on the forum these days. Regards...John

Colin, I have sent you a private message with the contact details we have. (battleships-cruisers.co.uk is our site also - we started worldnavalships.com a year ago to host this forum.)

Hello everyone, I thought I had already posted my 'introduction' but can't seem to find it, so I'll try again....and if I'm repeating myself ....sorry..I'm just new and finding my way around your forum. My late father in law served on HMS KELLY during the battle of Crete, he was quite badly injured and lost a leg.....he never really spoke much of his naval career, and at present I'm researching the family tree etc and would like as much information as possible on my father in law for my husband; all I can tell you is ;- [LIST] his name was Joseph O'Fee, he came from Dundee, he served with Mountbatton, he served on HMS KELLY he was injured age around 22yrs old he lost his leg [/LIST] I would be very grateful for some more help in finding more information on his naval career, no matter how small, It would be great if anyone has any photo's etc.....anything... thanks in anticipation sofee:)

Sofee, This is a picture of H.M.S KELLY ,before she was sunk ,of which many more of the lads will most likely upload for you.of which i have a few . KEW ancestry archives,is a great place to find out things ,which may lead you to the London War Museum,of which we have found out ,checking out my wifes grandads history in WW1. cylla
Attachments :

Thanks for the reply cylla and the photo that a good clear photo too, I'm trying everywhere possible to build up a portfolio for my husband about his father....I'm about to try your suggestion of KEW ancestry archives, I did have a look before but found it quite difficult to find out information....but now I'm a wee bit more 'experienced' in researching I may find it easier to find out some more info on my father in law.. thanks again for your info its appreciated. sofee:)

Sofee, Here is a link for "KEW ARCHIVES" once on line they should help ,my wifes say,s "there may be a small fee,but not as much as your train fair down " [url]http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/militaryhistory/navy/?militarylink=royal-navy[/url] cylla

Here is a image of her doing her "sea trials", not too clear ,i am afraid. cylla
Attachments :

Thats excellent cylla, thanks for that link and your wifes right about the train fare:D even if I was fit enough to travel, I don't mind the fee is I get some interesting info. cheers sofee

[QUOTE=CYLLA;22997]Here is a image of her doing her "sea trials", not too clear ,i am afraid. cylla[/QUOTE] thanks again cylla, another good photo cheers sofee

Hi Sofee and welcome. HMS Kelly has been discussed many times before on this forum. If you trawl through previous posts you will find a lot of info and many great photographs. In the meantime, you may be interested in this site: [url]http://www.battleships-cruisers.co.uk/hms_kelly.htm[/url] Good luck Regards...John

Thanks for the Welcome and the information John. I'll have a good search through the forum on more info on HMS Kelly, thanks for the link too. its appreciated. cheers sofee

Welcome to you Sofee. Hope I'm not stating the obvious, but if you Google hms kelly you will find many and varied sites including old comrades, location of the wreck, history of ship etc etc. Stewart

Thanks for your reply Stewart, I have googled ......I'm just trying all options....you never know what turns up and where. cheers sofee

Does anyone have any information about Leslie Holmes who served on HMS Kelly? (Wireless operator). Dawn Holmes (daughter)

Hi all, Newbie here, just registered to post some photos of HMS Kelly. I don't know my ships but they all say 'Kelly' on the back. They were sent to my office, I thought by mistake, but on calling the sender I was told we may be able to make use of them. We have no need of them so I'd like to see them go to a good home, ideally to someone connected with the vessel in some form, a relative of the crew, etc. rather than a collector. If there any chance of a small donation in return towards the [URL="http://www.jst.org.uk"]Jubilee Sailing Trust[/URL] to cover the P&P then that would be great. Thanks Andy Heres's the pics:
Attachments :

Andy, Thank you for posting these. Apart from the one named as Kelly I dont think any of the rest are of Kelly. Most seem to have been taken from a cruiser, perhaps of the County Class. The destroyer in pictures 2, 8, 9 & 12 is HMS Onslow. Cheers

The photo's are of Hms Onslow when she had the King onboard visiting the Home fleet in 1943. here's the copy of Onslows duties Aug 1943. August 14th Embarked HM King George VI at Scrabster for visit to ships of Home Fleet. (Note : HM Destroyer MATCHLESS escorted during passage to Scapa Flow.) 15th Ship's company attended Royal Inspection on board HM Depot Ship TYNE. 16th Took part in Fleet exercises witnessed by HM King. 22nd Deployed for anti-submarine patrols in NW Approaches with HM Destroyers MATCHLESS, ORWELL and ULSTER (Operation SF). 25th On completion returned to Scapa Flow with HMS ORWELL. Regards Alan

More Posts

Everything we obtain for this site is shown on the site, we do not have any more photos, crew lists or further information on any of the ships.

COPYRIGHT NOTICE. ALL IMAGES DISPLAYED ON THIS WEBSITE ARE PROTECTED BY COPYRIGHT LAW, AND ARE OWNED BY CRANSTON FINE ARTS OR THEIR RESPECTIVE OWNERS. NO REPRODUCTION OR COPYING ALLOWED ON OTHER WEBSITES, BOOKS OR ARTICLES WITHOUT PRIOR AGREEMENT.

Contact Details
Shipping Info
Terms and Conditions
Cookie Policy
Privacy Policy

Sign Up To Our Newsletter!

Stay up to date with all our latest offers, deals and events as well as new releases and exclusive subscriber content!

This website is owned by Cranston Fine Arts. Torwood House, Torwoodhill Road, Rhu, Helensburgh, Scotland, G848LE

Contact: Tel: (+44) (0) 1436 820269. Email: cranstonorders -at- outlook.com

Return to Home Page