View source for HMS Bligh (K467)

{{Short description|Frigate of the Royal Navy}}
{{Other ships|USS Liddle|HMS Bligh}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2023}}
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|Ship country=United States
|Ship flag= {{USN flag|1943}}
|Ship name=USS ''Liddle''
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|Ship builder=[[Bethlehem Steel Company|Bethlehem-Hingham Shipyard Inc.]], [[Hingham, Massachusetts]]
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|Ship laid down=10 May 1943
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|Ship identification=DE-76
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|Ship fate=Transferred to UK, returned 17 October 1945 and sold for scrap, 13 June 1946
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|Ship country=United Kingdom
|Ship flag={{shipboxflag|United Kingdom|naval}}
|Ship name=''Bligh''
|Ship namesake=[[William Bligh]]
|Ship launched=31 July 1943
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|Ship commissioned=23 October 1943
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|Ship identification=K467
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|Ship fate=Returned to US Navy on 17 October 1945
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|Ship class={{sclass|Buckley|destroyer escort}}/{{sclass2|Captain|frigate}}
|Ship displacement={{Convert|1800|LT|t|0}} fully loaded
|Ship length={{convert|306|ft|abbr=on}} overall
|Ship beam={{convert|36.5|ft|abbr=on}}
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|Ship draught={{convert|11|ft|abbr=on}} fully loaded
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|Ship speed={{convert|24|kn|km/h}}
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|Ship endurance={{convert|5500|nmi|km}} at {{convert|15|kn|km/h}}
|Ship complement=Typically between 170 & 180
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'''HMS ''Bligh'''''  was a {{sclass2|Captain|frigate}} active during [[World War II]]. She was named after [[William Bligh]], commander of {{HMS|Director|1784|6}} at the [[Battle of Camperdown]] during the [[French Revolutionary War]], and commander of {{HMS|Bounty}}.
[[File:WilliamBligh.jpeg|thumb|'''William Bligh in 1814''']]

Originally destined for the US Navy as a [[Turbo-electric transmission|turbo-electric]] (TE) type {{sclass|Buckley|destroyer escort|1}}, HMS ''Bligh'' was provisionally given the name USS ''Liddle'', a name that was later reassigned to [[USS Liddle (DE-206)|another ship]]. However, the delivery was diverted to the [[Royal Navy]] before the launch.

==Service history==
HMS ''Bligh'' served exclusively with the 5th Escort Group taking part in operations in the [[Atlantic Ocean|Eastern Atlantic]], the [[English Channel]], and off [[Normandy]].

On 6 May 1944, ''Bligh'', together with {{HMS|Bickerton|K466|6}}, {{HMS|Aylmer|K463|6}} and two [[Fairey Swordfish|Swordfish aircraft]] (Sqdn. 825) of the British [[escort carrier]] {{HMS|Vindex|D15|6}}, attacked and sank the [[U-boat]] {{GS|U-765||2}} at position {{coord|52|30|N|28|28|W|display=inline}} using [[depth charge]]s, resulting in the loss of 37 hands.

On 7 November 1944, an accidental firing of an anti-aircraft gun while docked at [[Liverpool]] caused both death and injury on the troopship {{RMS|Capetown Castle}}.

On 27 January 1945, ''Bligh'', along with {{HMS|Tyler|K576|6}} and {{HMS|Keats|K482|6}} attacked and destroyed the submarine {{GS|U-1172||2}} with depth charges, causing the loss of all 52 hands at position {{coord|52|24|N|05|42|W}}.

==References==
* ''The Captain Class Frigates in the Second World War'' by Donald Collingwood. published by Leo Cooper (1998), {{ISBN|0-85052-615-9}}.
* ''The Buckley-Class Destroyer Escorts'' by Bruce Hampton Franklin, published by Chatham Publishing (1999), {{ISBN|1-86176-118-X}}.
*{{cite book |title=German U-Boat Losses During World War II |first=Axel |last=Niestle |publisher=United States Naval Institute |date=1998 |isbn=1-55750-641-8}}
{{DANFS|https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/l/liddle.html|https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/b/bligh-i.html}}

==External links==
* [http://uboat.net/allies/warships/ship/5646.html Uboat.net page for HMS Bligh]
* [http://uboat.net/boats/u765.htm Uboat.net page for U-765]
* [http://uboat.net/boats/u1172.htm Uboat.net page for U-1172]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070301070801/http://www.captainclassfrigates.co.uk/ captainclassfrigates.co.uk]

{{Captains class frigate}}
{{Buckley class destroyer escort}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bligh (K467)}}
[[Category:Captain-class frigates]]
[[Category:Buckley-class destroyer escorts]]
[[Category:World War II frigates of the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Ships built in Hingham, Massachusetts]]
[[Category:1943 ships]]
[[Category:Ships transferred from the United States Navy to the Royal Navy]]


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