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HMS ''Duncan'' was a D-class destroyer leader built for the Royal Navy in the early 1930s. The ship was initially assigned to the Mediterranean Fleet before she was transferred to the China Station in early 1935 where she remained until mid-1939. ''Duncan'' returned to the Mediterranean Fleet just after World War II began in September 1939. She was transferred to the Home Fleet in December 1939, although she was badly damaged in a collision the following month, and required repairs that lasted until July 1940. The ship joined Force H at Gibraltar in October, escorting the larger ships and various convoys until March 1941 when she was transferred to West Africa for convoy escort duties for a few months. ''Duncan'' rejoined the 13th Destroyer Flotilla at Gibraltar in July and escorted several convoys to Malta during the rest of the year. After a refit, she briefly returned to the 13th Destroyer Flotilla before joining the Eastern Fleet in the Indian Ocean to participate in Operation Ironclad in May 1942. The ship was recalled home to be converted into an escort destroyer in late 1942. ''Duncan'' was assigned to Escort Group B-7 in the North Atlantic after her conversion was complete in May 1943. She escorted a number of convoys before she required a lengthy refit from November to May 1944. She helped to sink two German submarines in October 1943. The ship was assigned to anti-submarine duties in the Western Approaches after her refit was finished in May 1944, and ''Duncan'' remained there until April 1945. At that time she was transferred to coastal anti-submarine patrols to counter any last-gasp effort by the Kriegsmarine to interfere with the Allied supply lines to the Continent. Placed in reserve the following month, ''Duncan'' was in bad shape and was sold for scrap later that year. The demolition, however, was not completed until 1949. ==Design and construction== ''Duncan'' displaced at standard load. The ship had an overall length of , a beam of and a draught of . She was powered by Parsons geared steam turbines, driving two shafts, which developed a total of and gave a maximum speed of . Steam for the turbines was provided by three Admiralty 3-drum boilers. ''Duncan'' carried a maximum of of fuel oil that gave her a range of at . The ship's complement was 175 officers and men.〔Whitley, p. 101〕 The ship mounted four 45-calibre 4.7-inch Mk IX guns in single mounts designated 'A', 'B', 'X' and 'Y' from front to rear. For anti-aircraft (AA) defence, ''Duncan'' had a single 12-pounder AA gun between her funnels and two quadruple Mark I mounts for the QF 0.5-inch Vickers Mark III machine guns mounted on the sides of her bridge. She was fitted with two above-water quadruple torpedo tube mounts for 21-inch torpedoes.〔 One depth charge rail and two throwers were fitted; 20 depth charges were originally carried, but this increased to 35 shortly after the war began.〔English, p. 141〕 In 1936, the 12-pounder was replaced by two QF 2-pounder Mk II AA guns. Sometime after the Dunkirk evacuation, the ship's rear torpedo tube mount was removed and replaced by a 12-pounder AA gun and the quadruple 0.5-inch machine guns were replaced by Oerlikon AA guns.〔Lenton, pp. 155–56〕 ''Duncan'' was ordered under the 1930 Naval Estimates on 2 February 1931 from Portsmouth Dockyard. She was laid down on 25 September 1931, launched on 7 July 1932 and finally commissioned into the Navy on 31 March 1933. Built as a flotilla leader, she displaced 25 long tons more than the rest of her class and carried an extra 30 personnel. These personnel formed the staff of the Captain (D) of the flotilla.〔English, p. 51〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「HMS Duncan (D99)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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