During the 2nd WW the ship was adopted by Beckenham, Kent. As the sister of Lt Cmdr P Vian (Later Admiral) – Marian Vian had a school in Beckenham named after her. Reg Morrison passed the 11 plus whilst attending in 1942. A plaque marking the adoption was put up in the town hall. This building was demolished in 1991 to make way for a supermarket. The area is now under the London Borough of Bromley.

HMS Cossack F03

Year by Year

Discover the history of the HMS Cossack from 1938 to 1941.

You can search the ‘year’ and ‘month’ to find a specific date and also ‘click’ on the date itself to reveal any images and moments from that date.

10 June 1938

1700 Accepted ship from Messrs Vickers-Armstrong- Departed Newcastle on Tyne for Portsmouth. Course S E 275 – 12 knots.

12 June 1938

Portsmouth (Dented the bow coming alongside the jetty)

14 June 1938

Commissioned at Portsmouth at 0920

17 June 1938

German Naval Attaché visited the ship from 1033 to 1130

24 June 1938

1420 Colours at half- mast until 1530

27 June 1938

0840 Slipped for Spithead
1730 Alongside Pitch House Jetty

04 July 1938

Departed Portsmouth

05 July 1938

Arrived Portland

08 July 1938

Departed Portland

11 July 1938

Arrived Gibraltar

13 July 1938

Departed Gibraltar

Won the Arbuthnot Trophy for destroyer and submarine marathon in Malta (Date unknown)

15 July 1938

Mediterranean, Arrived Malta (The Cairo Bar! Sliema Malta) from Portsmouth/Gibraltar at 0630 with Captain De Pass and 225 ship’s company.

25 July 1938

Departed 1340 (Malta Custom Log entry 1768. The log also shows a further departure of 16 August 1938 against the same entry)

27 July 1938

French Squadron arrived at Malta (Admiral Ollive) to meet with  Cunningham Commander in Chief.

29 July 1938

Departed Malta (‘Dusty’ Rhodes L03))

30 July 1938

Opened to visitors from Gozo (The Tribals). Sailed for Turkish waters with WARSPITE, ZULU, MAORI and NUBIAN (A Sailors Odyssey – Admiral of the Fleet Viscount Cunningham of Hyndhope KT,GCB, OM, DSO)

31 July 1938

Departed Gozo

01 August 1938

Arrived Malta.

Steamed through the Dardanelles and anchored in the Bosphorus

06 August 1938

Departed the Bosphorus with WARSPITE, ZULU, MAORI and NUBIAN (A Sailors Odyssey – Admiral of the Fleet Viscount Cunningham of Hyndhope KT,GCB, OM, DSO)

Exercised on way to Cyprus (A Sailors Odyssey – Admiral of the Fleet Viscount Cunningham of Hyndhope KT,GCB, OM, DSO)

15 August 1938

Alexandria? (A Sailors Odyssey – Admiral of the Fleet Viscount Cunningham of Hyndhope KT,GCB, OM, DSO)

Hidden Gems

The HMS Cossack 1938-1941 was accepted on 10 June 1938 and dented, whilst coming alongside the jetty in Portsmouth on 12 June 1938.

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1806-1816

This is the account of the first vessel named HMS Cossack, a title that would be passed on to five later ships and commemorated by the Royal Navy in the Cossack Building at HMS Raleigh.

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1854-1875

The second Cossack was originally ordered by Russia for the Black Sea Fleet in December 1852 at a cost of 290,000 silver roubles. However, when relations between Britain and Russia deteriorated, Russia sold the vessels to the Hamburg trading firm Henry Mersk & Co.

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1886-1905

This account covers the third vessel named HMS Cossack. Launched on 3 June 1886 and in service until 1905, she spent the majority of her career in the Far East, calling at India, Aden, Ceylon (Sri Lanka), and other ports.

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1907-1919

The fourth HMS Cossack received the first Battle Honour for participating in operations along the Belgian coast from 17 October to 8 November 1914. This section contains copies of the original construction contract and detailed plans showing her launch, deck arrangements, and machinery.

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1938-1941

Credited with battle honours including Baltic 1855, Witu 1890, Dover Patrol 1914–1919, Narvik 1940, Norway 1940, Atlantic 1940–1941, the Bismarck Action 1941, and the Malta Convoys 1941, the HMS Cossack in service from 1938 to 1941 was a formidable presence.

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1944-1960

During Warship Week in February 1942, the town of Esher raised £1,192,211, contributing to the construction of the warship HMS Cossack. The funds were collected by the public depositing money into a rubber-type float in a pool. Remarkably, the surplus was enough to fund a submarine as well. The story continues.

Anchor crest

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