Submarine Heritage Centre - Art Gallery

Submarine Heritage Centre

Registered Address:

53 Red Oak Avenue

Barrow-in-Furness

Cumbria, LA13 OLJ, UK

Tel: 01229 820993

Fax: 01229 772407

Dimensions: 23.5" x 13.25"

| Sponsorship Comments | Technical Data | Historical Data |

Sponsorship Comments

This painting was sponsored by the Rutland Branch of the Submariners Association. The reason for the choice of this painting, is one of their members served onboard this particular submarine.

Technical Data

Builder:	Vickers-Armstrong Limited-Barrow.
Laid down:	22.09.1931
Launched:	30.08.1932
Completed:	11.03.1933
Yard No:	679
Pennant Nos:	14M to September 1939, 14N to 1940 and N14 to 1945
Dimensions (in feet):	Length 289feet, Breadth 29feet 10inches, Draught 16 feet.
Displacement:	Surface 1,768 tons, Submerged 2,053 tons
Propulsion:	Surface Twin diesels 3,300bhp, Submerged Twin electric motors 1,630hp.
Endurance:	10,750 nautical miles at 8 knots.
Speed:	16 knots, Submerged 8.75 knots.
Armaments:	Six 21 inch bow torpedo tubes, 1 x 4.7 inch gun, 2 machine guns, 50 mines.
Complement:	5 Officers and 54 Ratings.

Historical Data

A class of six boats, of which three, Porpoise Narwhal (N.45) and Roqual (N.74) where built at Barrow.This class was a development based on the trials carried out by HM Submarine M3 when converted to a minelayer. They carried 50 standard mines on a rail system under the casing, discharging the mines through doors in the stern.

Important Dates

1940-41

Porpoise was employed minelaying off the coast of Norway and escorting East Coast convoys.

January 1941

Transferred to North Atlantic, escorting UK/Halifax convoys.

October 1941

Transferred to Alexandria, stopping at Malta with supplies including aviation spirit carried in special containers under the casing.

October 1941/December 1942

Patrolling the Eastern Mediterranean and Aegean. This included running supplies to beleaguered Malta. This become known as the Magic Carpet run, Porpoise and the River class boat Clyde were the boats most regularly employed.The total supplies carried by submarines totalled:

- Aviation Spirit: 90,150 gallons
- Petrol: 89,144 gallons
- General Stores: 30 tons
- Mail: 12 tons
- Munitions: 6 tons
- Essential Personnel: 126

December 1942 to May 1944

Refit at Portsmouth Dockyard.

June 4th 1944

Arrived Trincomalee (Ceylon) to join the 4th Submarine Squadron.

June 1944 to January 1945

Patrolling and minelaying in the Malacca Straights.

Operation RIMAU

September 1944

An operation to land 24 special forces with the aim of sinking Japanese shipping in Singapore harbour. It all went wrong, fourteen were killed and ten captured, the ten that were captured were interrogated and executed by their Japanese captors.

January 16th 1945

Sunk in the Malacca Straight, off Penang by Japanese aircraft. Porpoise was the last submarine of the Royal Navy to be sunk in World War II.

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