Allied Warships

HMS Chelsea (I 35)

Destroyer of the Town class

Navy	The Royal Navy
Type	Destroyer
Class	Town
Pennant	I 35
Built by	Bath Iron Works (Bath, Maine, U.S.A.)
Ordered
Laid down	5 Nov 1918
Launched	24 Jul 1919
Commissioned	9 Sep 1940
End service	16 Jul 1944
History	On 9 September 1940 USS Crowninshield (DD 134) was decommissioned at Halifax, Nova Scotia, and delivered to British authorities in the land bases for destroyers exchange. She was commissioned in the Royal Navy as HMS Chelsea the same day. Chelsea reached Devonport, England, 28 September 1940. Assigned to the Sixth Escort Group, Western Approaches Command, Liverpool, for Atlantic convoy duty, she fought the double-menace submarine and air attacks on vital supplies. On 6 April 1941 she rescued 29 survivors of SS Olga S. which had been sunk by an air attack Chelsea joined Arbutus 5 February 1942 to hunt for a submarine sighted from their convoy. Two hours later Arbutus was torpedoed. Chelsea opened fire on the surfaced submarine and made three depth charge attacks after she dived but contact was lost and she returned to pick up the survivors from Arbutus. In November 1942 Chelsea was lent to the Royal Canadian Navy and until the end of 1943 operated in the mid and western Atlantic Ocean escorting convoys to and from Great Britain. She returned to Londonderry, Northern Ireland, 26 December 1943 and early in 1944 was reduced to reserve in the Tyne. On 16 July 1944 she was transferred to Russia and renamed Derskni.
Former name	USS Crowninshield (DD 134)
Career notes	to Soviet Union as USSR Derzkij

Commands listed for HMS Chelsea (I 35)

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	Commander	From	To
1	Lt.Cdr. Richard Dickon Herbert Stephen Pankhurst, RN	9 Sep 1940	19 Jul 1941
2	Lt.Cdr. Arthur Frank Capel Layard, RN	19 Jul 1941

3	Lt.Cdr. James Edward Rickards Wilford, RNR	6 Jul 1942	early 1944
4	T/Lt. Eric Douglas McMillan, RNVR	early 1944	mid 1944

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Notable events involving Chelsea include:

24 Feb 1941
HMS H 44 (Lt. A.R. Hezlet, RN) conducted A/S exercises off Lough Foyle with HMS Chelsea (Lt.Cdr. R.D.H.S. Pankhurst, RN) and HNoMS Mansfield (Cdr. F. Ulstrup, RNorN). (1)

25 Feb 1941
HMS H 44 (Lt. A.R. Hezlet, RN) conducted A/S exercises off Lough Foyle with HMS Chelsea (Lt.Cdr. R.D.H.S. Pankhurst, RN) and HNoMS Mansfield (Cdr. F. Ulstrup, RNorN). (1)

3 Mar 1941
HrMs O 9 (Lt. H.A.W. Goossens, RNN) participated in A/S exercises off Lough Foyle together with HMS Beverley (Lt.Cdr. J. Grant, RN) and HMS Chelsea (Lt.Cdr. R.D.H.S. Pankhurst, RN). (2)

6 Sep 1941
HMS H 32 (Lt. J.W.D. Coombe, RN) conducted A/S exercises off Lough Foyle with HMS Douglas (Cdr. W.E. Banks, DSC, RN), HMS Skate (Lt. F.P. Baker, DSC, RN), HMS Leamington (Lt.Cdr. H.G. Bowerman, RN), HMS Chelsea (Lt.Cdr. A.F.C. Layard, RN) and HMS Caldwell (Lt.Cdr. E.M. Mackay, RNR). (3)

7 Sep 1941
HMS H 32 (Lt. J.W.D. Coombe, RN) conducted A/S exercises off Lough Foyle with HMS Chelsea (Lt.Cdr. A.F.C. Layard, RN) and HMS Caldwell (Lt.Cdr. E.M. Mackay, RNR) (3)

8 Sep 1941
HMS H 32 (Lt. J.W.D. Coombe, RN) conducted A/S exercises off Lough Foyle with HMS Chelsea (Lt.Cdr. A.F.C. Layard, RN) and HMS Caldwell (Lt.Cdr. E.M. Mackay, RNR) (3)

3 Nov 1941
HrMs O 9 (Lt. H.A.W. Goossens, RNN) participated in A/S exercises off Lough Foyle together with HMS Sabre (Lt. Sir P.W. Gretton, DSC, OBE, RN) and HMS Keppel (Cdr. J.E. Broome, RN) and later with HMS Chelsea (Lt.Cdr. A.F.C. Layard, RN), HMS Venomous (Cdr. H.W. Falcon-Steward, RN) and HNoMS Acanthus. (4)

4 Nov 1941
HrMs O 9 (Lt. H.A.W. Goossens, RNN) participated in A/S exercises off Lough Foyle together with HMS Alisma (A/Lt.Cdr. M.G. Rose, RANVR), HMS Chelsea (Lt.Cdr. A.F.C. Layard, RN), HMS Exmoor (Lt.Cdr. L.StG. Rich, RN) and HMS Campbeltown (Lt.Cdr.(Emgy.) Lord Teynham, RN). (4)

5 Feb 1942
HMS Chelsea (Lt.Cdr. A.F.C. Layard, RN) picks up 33 survivors from the British corvette HMS Arbutus (K 86) that was sunk by the German U-boat U-136 about 340 nautical miles west-northwest of Erris Head, Ireland in position 52°05'N, 19°43'W.

14 Sep 1942
HMS H 43 (Lt. J.C.Y. Roxburgh, DSC, RN) conducted A/S exercises off Lough Foyle with HMS Dunkery (T/Lt. S.M. Booker, RNVR), HMS Fame (Cdr. R. Heathcote, RN) and HMS Chelsea (Lt.Cdr. J.E.R. Wilford, RNR). (5)

18 Sep 1942
HMS H 43 (Lt. B.J.B. Andrew, DSC, RN) conducted A/S exercises off Lough Foyle with HMS Anemone (Lt.Cdr. P.G.A. King, RD, RNR), HMS Chelsea (Lt.Cdr. J.E.R. Wilford, RNR), HMS Sandwich (Lt.Cdr. H. Hill, RD, RNR), HMS Erne (Lt.Cdr. E.D.J. Abbot, RN) and two other vessels [unable to read these names in the log of HMS H 43]. (5)

19 Sep 1942
HMS H 43 (Lt. B.J.B. Andrew, DSC, RN) conducted A/S exercises off Lough Foyle with HMS Chelsea (Lt.Cdr. J.E.R. Wilford, RNR) and HMS Sandwich (Lt.Cdr. H. Hill, RD, RNR). (5)

30 Dec 1943
HrMs O 10 (Lt.Cdr. A. van Altena, RNN(R)) participated in A/S exercises off Lough Foyle together with HMS Skate (Lt. J.C. Rushbrooke, DSC, RN), HMS Saladin (T/A/Lt.Cdr. P.G.C. King, RNVR), HMS Chelsea (Lt.Cdr. J.E.R. Wilford, RNR) and HMS Burdock (T/Lt. F.R.M. Greasley, RNR). (6)