HMS Wilton (L128)
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 Wilton at sea off Bizerte (IWM) | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United Kingdom | |
| Name | HMS Wilton |
| Ordered | 4 September 1939 |
| Builder | Yarrow Shipbuilders |
| Laid down | 7 June 1940 |
| Launched | 17 October 1941 |
| Completed | 18 February 1942 |
| Decommissioned | 19 June 1945 |
| Identification | Pennant number: L128 |
| Honours and awards |
|
| Fate | Scrapped at Faslane 1959 |
| Badge | On a Field White, an eagle's head erased Green gorged with a chain pendant therefrom a bugle horn Gold. |
| General characteristics Type II | |
| Class & type | Hunt-class destroyer |
| Displacement |
|
| Length | 85.3 m (279 ft 10 in) o/a |
| Beam | 9.6 m (31 ft 6 in) |
| Draught | 2.51 m (8 ft 3 in) |
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed |
|
| Range | 3,600 nmi (6,700 km) at 14 kn (26 km/h) |
| Complement | 164 |
| Armament |
|
HMS Wilton was a Type 2 Hunt-class destroyer of the Royal Navy that served in the Second World War.
Wilton was ordered from Yarrow Shipbuilders, Scotstoun on 4 September 1939, one of 17 Hunt-class destroyers ordered on that day as part of the 1939 Emergency War Programme. The ship was laid down on 7 June 1940 and was launched on 17 October 1941, commissioning (with the pennant number L128[1] on 18 February 1942.[2] She was named after "The Wilton Hunt", an annual fox hunt held in Wiltshire. During Warship Week in 1942 she was adopted by the civil community of East Retford in Nottinghamshire.
Wartime service
On completion in 1942 Wilton was sent to Scapa Flow.[3] She took part in escort duties in support of the Russian Convoys. At the end of 1942 she served in the Mediterranean, including support for the Sicily landings in July of the following year.
In 1944 she continued operations in the Mediterranean on convoy duties, and support for operations in the Adriatic, including naval gunfire support. She remained there until February 1945 when she returned to the UK. In June 1945 she was nominated for service in the Far East and travelled to Simonstown for a refit to prepare for deployment.
