HMS Thermopylae (P355)

HMS Thermopylae
History
United Kingdom
Builder:	Chatham Dockyard
Laid down:	26 October 1943
Launched:	27 June 1945
Commissioned:	5 December 1945
Fate:	Scrapped, August 1970
Badge:
General characteristics
Class and type:	T class submarine
Displacement:	1,290 tons surfaced 1,560 tons submerged
Length:	276 ft 6 in (84.28 m)
Beam:	25 ft 6 in (7.77 m)
Draught:	12 ft 9 in (3.89 m) forward 14 ft 7 in (4.44 m) aft
Propulsion:	Two shafts Twin diesel engines 2,500 hp (1.86 MW) each Twin electric motors 1,450 hp (1.08 MW) each
Speed:	15.5 knots (28.7 km/h) surfaced 9 knots (20 km/h) submerged
Range:	4,500 nautical miles at 11 knots (8,330 km at 20 km/h) surfaced
Test depth:	300 ft (91 m) max
Complement:	61
Armament:	6 internal forward-facing torpedo tubes 2 external forward-facing torpedo tubes 2 external amidships rear-facing torpedo tubes 1 external rear-facing torpedo tubes 6 reload torpedoes 4 inch (100 mm) deck gun 3 anti aircraft machine guns

HMS Thermopylae (P355) was a T-class submarine of the United Kingdom's Royal Navy laid down on 26 October 1943 at Chatham Dockyard, and launched on 27 June 1945. So far she has been the only ship of the Royal Navy to bear the name Thermopylae, after the Battle of Thermopylae.

Commissioned after the end of the Second World War, she had a relatively quiet career. She immediately joined the 3rd Flotilla based in the Holy Loch. On 15 January 1950 she ran aground on Stevenson Rock, off Skerryvore, Inner Hebrides.^[1] In 1953 she took part in the Fleet Review to celebrate the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II.^[2]

She remained in service until December 1968 when she was put on the sale list. She was broken up at Troon during 1971.^[3]

References

1. "Submarine Captain Charged" The Times (London). Thursday, 6 April 1950. (51659), col F, p. 4.
2. Souvenir Programme, Coronation Review of the Fleet, Spithead, 15th June 1953, HMSO, Gale and Polden
3. HMS Thermopylae, Uboat.net

Publications

• Colledge, J. J.; Warlow, Ben (2006) [1969]. Ships of the Royal Navy: The Complete Record of all Fighting Ships of the Royal Navy (Rev. ed.). London: Chatham Publishing. ISBN 978-1-86176-281-8. OCLC 67375475.
• Hutchinson, Robert (2001). Jane's Submarines: War Beneath the Waves from 1776 to the Present Day. London: HarperCollins. ISBN 978-0-00-710558-8. OCLC 53783010.