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.

01 January 1939

Pennant number changed to F03

03 March 1939

Arrived at Gibraltar

06 March 1939

Departed Gibraltar for exercises

10 March 1939

Arrived at Gibraltar

19 March 1939

Departed Gibraltar

22 March 1939

Arrived at La Lavandou

02 April 1939

Departed La Lavandou

04 April 1939

Arrived at Palma

08 April 1939

Departed Palma. Order received from CinC Med to proceed to Gibraltar with moderate despatch. (Later the same date changed to ‘reduce to economical speed’.) “Remain two days at Gibraltar and return to Eastern Area unless anything occurs to require your presence earlier.”

(According to ‘Dusty’ Rhodes of L03 the above dates were:

26/3/39 – Gibraltar. 14/3/39 – Depart Gibraltar 17/3/39 – Arrive Le Lavandou and depart 27/3/39. 31/3/39 – Arrive Palma �…

Departed Palma. Order received from CinC Med to proceed to Gibraltar with moderate despatch. (Later the same date changed to ‘reduce to economical speed’.) “Remain two days at Gibraltar and return to Eastern Area unless anything occurs to require your presence earlier.”

(According to ‘Dusty’ Rhodes of L03 the above dates were:

26/3/39 – Gibraltar. 14/3/39 – Depart Gibraltar 17/3/39 – Arrive Le Lavandou and depart 27/3/39. 31/3/39 – Arrive Palma 4/4/39 Depart Palma

12/4/39 – Arrive Malta)

09 April 1939

Gibraltar

12 April 1939

Departed Gibraltar

14 April 1939

Arrived in Malta from Gibraltar, Le Harandon/Plama at 1145 with Captain De Pass and 210 ship’s company. Departure not logged. (Malta Custom Log entry 1000)

26 April 1939

Departed Malta (Manuscript of ships movements)

28 April 1939

Alexandria

01 June 1939

Departed Alexandria

02 June 1939

Arrived at Mersa Matruh

06 June 1939

Departed Mersa Matruh and arrived at Alexandria

27 June 1939

Departed Alexandria

29 June 1939

Arrived at Pors Bay

04 July 1939

Departed Pors Bay

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.

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.

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