HMAS Parkes explained

HMAS Parkes (J361), named for the town of Parkes, New South Wales, was one of 60 Bathurst-class corvettes constructed in Australia during World War II, and one of 36 initially manned and commissioned by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN).[1]

Design and construction

See main article: Bathurst-class corvette. In 1938, the Australian Commonwealth Naval Board (ACNB) identified the need for a general purpose 'local defence vessel' capable of both anti-submarine and mine-warfare duties, while easy to construct and operate.[2] [3] The vessel was initially envisaged as having a displacement of approximately 500 tons, a speed of at least, and a range of [4] The opportunity to build a prototype in the place of a cancelled Bar-class boom defence vessel saw the proposed design increased to a 680-ton vessel, with a top speed of, and a range of, armed with a 4-inch gun, equipped with asdic, and able to be fitted with either depth charges or minesweeping equipment depending on the planned operations: although closer in size to a sloop than a local defence vessel, the resulting increased capabilities were accepted due to advantages over British-designed mine warfare and anti-submarine vessels.[2] [5] Construction of the prototype did not go ahead, but the plans were retained.[6] The need for locally built 'all-rounder' vessels at the start of World War II saw the "Australian Minesweepers" (designated as such to hide their anti-submarine capability, but popularly referred to as "corvettes") approved in September 1939, with 60 constructed during the course of the war: 36 (including Parkes) ordered by the RAN, 20 ordered by the British Admiralty but manned and commissioned as RAN vessels, and 4 for the Royal Indian Navy.[2] [7] [8] [9] [1]

Parkes was laid down by Evans Deakin and Company at Brisbane on 16 March 1943.[1] She was launched on 30 October 1943 by Mrs Brown, wife of the President of the Senate, and commissioned into the RAN on 25 May 1944.[1] The ship was originally to be named Mudgee, for the town of Mudgee, New South Wales.[10]

Operational history

The corvette earned two battle honours for her wartimes service: "Pacific 1944" and "New Guinea 1944".[11] [12]

Fate

Parkes paid off to reserve on 17 December 1945 in Fremantle, Western Australia.[1] The vessel was sold for scrap to Hong Kong Rolling Mills Ltd on 2 May 1957.[1]

References

Books
Journal and news articles

Notes and References

  1. Web site: HMAS Parkes (I) . 15 September 2008 . Sea Power Centre Australia . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20121104182237/http://www.navy.gov.au/hmas-parkes-i . 4 November 2012 .
  2. Stevens, The Australian Corvettes, p. 1
  3. Stevens, A Critical Vulnerability, p. 103.
  4. Stevens, A Critical Vulnerability, pp. 103–104.
  5. Stevens, A Critical Vulnerability, pp. 103–105.
  6. Stevens, A Critical Vulnerability, p. 104.
  7. Stevens, A Critical Vulnerability, pp. 105, 148.
  8. Donohue, From Empire Defence to the Long Haul, p. 29.
  9. Stevens et al., The Royal Australian Navy, p. 108.
  10. Straczek . Joe . Winter 2003 . What's in a name: a chronological list – part 2 . Australian Sea Heritage . Australian Heritage Fleet . 75 . 13 . 0813-0523.
  11. News: Navy Marks 109th Birthday With Historic Changes To Battle Honours . 1 March 2010 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110613184920/http://www.navy.gov.au/Navy_Marks_109th_Birthday_With_Historic_Changes_To_Battle_Honours . 13 June 2011 . Royal Australian Navy . 23 December 2012.
  12. Web site: Royal Australian Navy Ship/Unit Battle Honours . 1 March 2010 . Royal Australian Navy . https://web.archive.org/web/20110614064156/http://www.navy.gov.au/w/images/Units_entitlement_list.pdf . 14 June 2011 . 23 December 2012.

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