WEYMOUTH has a long and proud maritime history and Upwey reader Roger Fry has sent in details of HMS Weymouth, one of the borough’s strongest links to the sea.

She was laid down on January 19, 1910 as Hull No 827 at Armstrong Whitworth’s Elswick yard on the Tyne and launched on November 18 the same year.

The vessel was the seventh and, to date, the last HMS Weymouth and was a light cruiser of 5,800 tonnes.

She was commissioned in October 1911 at a cost of £396,363.

Below decks, stokers shifted 750 tons of coal and 250 tons of oil and her range was 5,600 nautical miles at 10 knots or 4,500 at 16 knots. She was armed with eight breech-loading 6” guns, four quick-fire three-pounders and a 21” torpedo tube on each beam below the waterline.

Mr Fry writes: “In common with many cruisers of the period, HMS Weymouth adopted the historic crest of her namesake town on her notepaper and Christmas cards as well as brass badges fixed on to ship’s boats.

“She anchored in Weymouth Bay and welcomed a civic delegation on board on November 15, when the mayor unfurled a white ensign given to the ship by the town.

“After working up 475 crew to operational efficiency, she was posted to Third Battle Squadron Atlantic Fleet until July 1913 when under the command of Captain S Drury-Lowe she transferred to the Second Light Cruiser Squadron Mediterranean Fleet.”

In August 1914, HMS Weymouth was deployed to Sicily as part of the attempt to block the escape of German raiders Goeben and Breslau and the following month was alongside in Port Said awaiting the arrival of Indian troops heading to the western front which she would transport to Marseilles.

It was a busy time for the ship. On October 21 she joined HMS Chatham off the Rufigi Delta in German East Africa where they stalked the SMS Koningsberg which was hiding up-river. They were joined by HMS Dartmouth and shelled the fugitive German ship but to little avail.

HMS Weymouth returned to the delta early the next year with HMS Hyacinth, Pyramus and HMAS Pioneer and formed a naval blockade. In July they were joined by the shallow-draught river monitors Mersey and Severn and proceeded up-river, firing at the Kiningsberg.

HMS Weymouth ran aground, but was able to float free, and Mersey was badly damaged by returning fire and eventually the crew of the German ship blew her up to avoid capture. After this action, HMS returned to dock where she was fitted with a new tripod foremast and a three-inch AA gun. She took part in a battle off Durazzo in December 1915 and formed the lone-ship 6th Light Cruiser Squadron Grand Fleet detached to Bermuda and then Sierra Leone.

Back in the Mediterranean in October 1918, Weymouth joined a fleet of ships from Australia, Italy and Britain for the Second Battle of Durazzo where they were attacked by the Hungarian U-boats U-29 and U-31. On board the U-31, Lieutenant Herman Rigele had Weymouth in his sights and blew off her stern, killing four crew members. The wounded ship was towed to Brindisi while the U-boat escaped depth charges.

From there, HMS Weymouth headed to Malta for a full refit between June 1919 and March 1920, after which she joined the 7th Light Cruiser Squadron in the Pacific and South America Station. Over the next few years she toured the world and transported the Prince of Wales to La Spezia from Port Said.

Further glories awaited and Roger continues her story: “In December 1925, HMS Weymouth was elevated to Flagship Vice Admiral Nore.

“She did not venture much beyond UK waters but her wardroom swelled with the Admiral’s staff, including Flag Commander, Fleet Surgeon and Fleet Engineer.

“She paid off in September 1927 and was sold for breaking on October 2 to Hughes Bolckow of Blyth.”

Roger adds: “While the ship no longer exists, reminders of her do.

“As well as photos, Weymouth Museum has a wonderful large scale model of her and one 7” Admiralty pattern brass boat badge cleaned and repainted – albeit in the wrong colour – by the breakers and presented to the town.

“The mayor’s parlour at the borough council is now the home of the metre-long, sterling silver centrepiece presented to the ship in November 2011.

“The cost of it – £250 – was raised by Weymouth townfolk, and sailors from the ship were entertained at Sydney Hall.

“The centrepiece was made by Sheffield silversmiths James Gibson and Son and carried images of the town crest and the cruiser. It was returned to the town at the closure of HMS Osprey.”