HMS Arethusa was the name ship of her class of eight light cruisers built for the Royal Navy in the 1910s. She saw a considerable amount of action during the early years of the First World War, participating in the Battle of Heligoland Bight and the Battle of Dogger Bank.

Design and description

The Arethusa-class cruisers were intended to lead destroyer flotillas and defend the fleet against attacks by enemy destroyers. The ships were 456 ft long overall, with a beam of 49 ft and a deep draught of 15 ft. Displacement was 5185 LT at normal and 5795 LT at full load. Arethusa was powered by four Brown-Curtis steam turbines, each driving one propeller shaft, which produced a total of 40000 shp. The turbines used steam generated by eight Yarrow boilers which gave her a speed of about 28.5 kn. She carried 840 LT of fuel oil that gave a range of 3200 nmi at 16 kn. The main armament of the Arethusa-class ships consisted of two BL 6 in Mk XII guns that were mounted on the centreline fore and aft of the superstructure and six QF 4 in Mk V guns in waist mountings. They were also fitted with a single QF 3-pounder 47 mm anti-aircraft gun and four 21 in torpedo tubes in two twin mounts.

Construction and career

She was laid down at Chatham Dockyard in October 1912, launched on 25 October 1913, and commissioned in August 1914 as flotilla leader for the Harwich Force. On 28 August 1914, she fought at the Battle of Heligoland Bight, flying the flag of Commodore Reginald Tyrwhitt. She was seriously damaged by the German cruisers SMS Frauenlob and SMS Stettin and had to be towed home. On 25 December, Arethusa took part in the Cuxhaven Raid and on 24 January 1915 she fought at the Battle of Dogger Bank. Later in the same year, she was transferred to the 5th Light Cruiser Squadron of the Harwich Force. In September 1915, she captured four German trawlers. On 11 February 1916, she struck a mine off Felixstowe, drifted onto a shoal while under tow, and broke her back. Approximately near Harwich (51.925, 1.295)

Legacy

One of the four relief panels on Brierley Hill War Memorial, in Dudley, England, depicts Arethusa sending out its boats to rescue German sailors from a ship it had sunk. One of Arethusa's 4-inch guns was salvaged from the wreck on 27 March 1916. It was fitted to the yacht Vittoria, serving as a minesweeper, until 27 February 1918. It was then taken on by the drill ship HMS Satellite on 25 September 1920, where it was used in anti-submarine training until the beginning of the Second World War. It was presented by the shipbreaking firm J. G. Potts to the Armstrong & Aviation Museum at Bamburgh Castle on 16 February 1948, where it remains as of 2024.