0600. COSSACK detached to pass inside the Techong islands and was fired on by shore batteries at Penyond Do. A short but hot engagement ensured in which COSSACK silenced two guns at ranges of 5000 to 8000 yards firing about 140 rounds. Ten or more enemy shells fell within 200 yards of the ship but she remained undamaged. Course was resumed towards the entrance to Inchon. As its outlying islands were approached from the north-west, a good deal of air activity was noticed over the land within about 25 miles. After standing to the south for an hour or so, course was altered to the northward and during the afternoon the approaches to the Seoul River were examined after which the usual sweep to the north -west was undertaken. About midnight a signal was received which reported that the crew of a B29 had bailed out near Poromu (37o 40’N 126o 10’ E) and that a flying-boat was being sent to search the area at 0900 and would like support. Poromu lies in the estuary of the Seoul River. Shoals and mud banks run some 30 miles to seaward of it and the last survey of the area had been made some 68 years previously. The force remained to seaward of the shoals.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
