HMS Renown (1916) - Second World War

Second World War

Renown was recommissioned on 28 August 1939 as part of the Home Fleet. Much like her sister, she spent September patrolling in the North Sea, but was transferred to Force K in the South Atlantic in October to help search for the German pocket battleship Admiral Graf Spee. The ship joined Force H at the Cape of Good Hope in November to prevent Admiral Graf Spee from breaking into the South Atlantic. She was unsuccessful in this, but sank the blockade runner SS Watussi on 2 December. She remained in the South Atlantic even after Admiral Graf Spee was scuttled on 13 December and did not return to the Home Fleet until March 1940. The ship became flagship of the Battlecruiser Squadron when Hood was paid off to refit that month. Renown supported British forces during the Norwegian Campaign and briefly engaged the German battleships Scharnhorst and Gneisenau on 9 April. Renown spotted the Germans ships and fired first, but she was hit first by two 28-centimetre (11 in) shells that only slightly damaged her. A few minutes later she hit Gneisenau with one 15-inch and two 4.5-inch shells that knocked out the ship's main fire-control director and damaged the rangefinder on 'A' turret. The German ships were faster than Renown in the heavy weather and were able to successfully disengage after about 10 minutes. The ship was under repair from 20 April to 18 May and provided cover during the evacuation from Norway in early June. Renown was transferred to Force H at Gibraltar in August and relieved Hood as flagship.

In November 1940 Force H covered the small aircraft carrier HMS Argus as she flew off Hurricane fighters bound for Malta from a position south of Sardinia. Later that month Force H participated in the inconclusive Battle of Cape Spartivento. Renown bombarded Genoa on 9 February 1941 with little effect. Force H escorted convoys both inside and outside the Mediterranean in March–May 1941 before being summoned into the Atlantic to search for the German battleship Bismarck. The ship intercepted the German supply ship Gonzenheim, which had been intended to resupply Bismarck, on 4 June. Renown and Force H escorted another convoy to Malta in July and the ship returned home for repairs to her starboard bulge the next month. While the exact dates are not known, the ship received a variety of radars in 1941, possibly during this refit. These included Type 284 radar for surface gunnery control, Type 285 anti-aircraft gunnery radar, Type 281 air warning radar and a Type 271 surface search radar. Two quadruple "pom-pom" mounts were also fitted on top of 'B' turret. Renown was transferred to the Home Fleet in November when her repairs were complete and became deputy fleet flagship when Duke of York was detached to take Winston Churchill to the Arcadia Conference in Washington, D.C. on 9 December. She provided cover for the inbound and outbound convoys to the Soviet Union in early March 1942. Renown was relieved as flagship by Duke of York on 3 April, but became flagship of Force W which was formed to escort carriers carrying fighters to be flown-off for Malta in April–May. Renown rejoined Home Fleet once those missions were completed, but was transferred to Force H in October 1942 to participate in Operation Torch. She covered the invasion and follow-up convoys against interference by the French or Italian Fleets.

Renown returned to Britain to refit from February to June 1943; her catapult and aircraft were removed while the hangars were converted to offices. Furthermore she received a total of 72 Oerlikon 20 mm light AA guns in 23 twin mounts and 26 single mounts were fitted between July 1942 and August 1943. Some of these replaced the quadruple "pom-pom" mountings on the roof of 'B' turret. Additional light AA directors with Type 282 radars were also fitted during this time. The ship brought Winston Churchill and his staff back from the Quebec Conference in September and conveyed them to the Cairo Conference in November. She rejoined the Home Fleet in December, just in time to be transferred to the Eastern Fleet a few weeks later. Renown arrived in Colombo at the end of January 1944 where she became flagship of the 1st Battle Squadron. In April she participated in Operation Cockpit, an air strike against port and oil facilities on Sabang, off the island of Sumatra. The ship bombarded Japanese-occupied facilities on Car Nicobar in the Nicobar Islands and Port Blair in the Andaman Islands on 30 April – 1 May. Renown supported the air strike against Surabaya, Java (Operation Transom) on 17 May as well as the follow-on attack against Port Blair on 21 June. After another air strike on 25 July on Sabang the ship bombarded the city. She bombarded facilities in the Nicobar Islands from 17–19 October. On 22 November Renown was replaced as flagship by HMS Queen Elizabeth and the ship began a refit at Durban from December to February 1945. She was recalled in March lest the remaining German heavy ships make a final sortie and reached Rosyth on 15 April. She was given a brief refit when this concern proved illusory and was placed in reserve in May 1945. Renown was partially disarmed in July when six of her 4.5-inch turrets were removed as well as all of her light guns. The ship hosted a meeting between King George VI and President Truman on 3 August when the latter was en route home aboard the heavy cruiser USS Augusta. The decision to dispose of the ship was announced on 21 January 1948 and she was towed to Faslane for scrapping on 3 August. She was the last of Admiral Jackie Fisher's battlecruisers to see the scrapyard, outlasting Furious by days.