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HMS Ganges
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Those known to have sailed in HMS Ganges during the Second World War 1939-1945. The names on this list have been submitted by relatives, friends, neighbours and others who wish to remember them, if you have any names to add or any recollections or photos of those listed,
please
Add a Name to this List
Records of HMS Ganges from other sources.
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Library contains an ever growing number diary entries, personal letters and other documents, most transcribed into plain text. |
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Want to know more about HMS Ganges? There are:1 items tagged HMS Ganges available in our Library
These include information on officers, regimental histories, letters, diary entries, personal accounts and information about actions during the Second World War. |
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Able Sea. Geoffrey Charles "Bill" Bayley HMS Pembroke HMS Quebec HMS Copra HMS Ganges My dad, Geoffrey Bayley joined the Royal Navy at 18, on 17th of August 1942. His first ship was HMS Ganges, then he went to HMS Pembroke for a couple of weeks. He went on to have three more postings with the Pembroke, in between those dates he also served on six more ships, HMS Copra, HMS Rajah and HMS Quebec were amongst them. left the Royal Navy 30th of June 1946.
Dad was very proud of the Royal Navy and being part of the War effort.
The information I have given is from his Certificate of Service.
His Port Division was Chatham.
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Able Sea. John Charles Pitchforth HMS Cabot John Pitchforth was my Father. He served in the Royal Navy from 17th of November 1941 to 30th of May 1946. He served on HMS Drake on 5 occasions, also also served on HMS Chitral, Ganges, Cabot, Ferret, Caroline, Dommett, Louis and Curzon, in that time and was awarded the 1939 to 1945 Star, The Africa Medal, The Italy Medal,The F and C Medal and the War Medal.
He was released Class A to shore in 1946.
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Able Sea. Eric Haywood HMS Osako My Father, Eric Haywood joined up for the Royal Navy at the old Derby Assembly Rooms in Derby, Derbyshire, on the 21st of October 1942 and was posted to HMS Ganges, Shotley, with a lasting memory of climbing the mast and managing to balance on the button at a height of 6' 2in was a tricky job.
After finishing his training stage he was assigned to HMS Osako where he said the man in charge was a fair and more amenable in attitude and therefore had a bit of an easier war than most.
His operations of duty were going on the Nor Campaign up to Norway on another ship where it was mostly herrings to eat which he wasn't keen on. Partaking in Coastal patrol off Frinton on Sea and Walton on Naze Essex.
I don't have Naval records to confirm, however he was placed in Paris on Liberation Day carrying a flag and said he was given Freedom of the City.
He died in 2010.
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Ord Sea. John Herbert James Fanning HMS Ganges My father, John Fanning, died when I was three in 1959. He served with HMS Ganges as an ordinary seaman (since promoted). He was injured in his right hand on 19th of January 1943. I have found a certificate for wounds and hurts amongst my mother's possessions.
It states: He slipped on steps on returning from the heads and in trying to prevent himself from falling, put his right hand out and struck it on a sharp rail and the spike went right through his hand. Captain W. Fallowfield.
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Sea. Jack Archer HMS Europa Jack Archer had many stories to tell us one was when he was told to go off duty and just as the other two seaman went to take over the ship hit something and half was blown up so Jack was lucky to be alive.
Jack joined the Navy in 1943 and his first ship was HMS Ganges on the 19th April 1943, he went on a few other ships including HMS Europa, HMS Eskimo, HMS Eday and mine sweepers, HMS BYMS 2154, MMS 233 and MMS 1062.
He spent is 18th birthday in New York, USA when they had to go over to collect the ship.
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Desmond Graham HMS Ganges I believe I remember being told that my Uncle Desmond Graham, my father's half brother, served on HMS Ganges during WW2 as a cook.
I was just reading a news article about a 93 year old veteran from HMS Ganges who recently went to the cinema for the first time in 50 years to see 1917.
I would love to know if he knew him.
My uncle died many years ago from cancer. He was a lovely man.
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Sea. Victor Alfred "Knocker" White HMS Osprey Victor White was my grandfather who served on HMS Osprey, TD1. He also served on HMS Ganges, HMS Europa, HMS Nimrod, HMS Paris, and HMS Hannibal.
His son (my uncle) also served, and I went on to serve in the RAN.
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Edward William Richbell HMS Pembroke Edward Richbell served in HMS Bristol, HMS Ganges, HMS Swiftsure, HMS Highflyer, HMS Mayma, HMS Lanka, HMS Tragina and HMS Pembroke.
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AB. John George "Soapy" Hudson HMS Nyasaland    After basic training at HMS Ganges and HMS Marlborough my dad, John Hudson, was posted to the USA in February 1944 to join a convoy escort Frigate, the Colony Class HMS Nyasaland. Construction seems to have been delayed, presumably by D-Day preparations, and the ship left Boston on 26th of September 1944 to spend 2 weeks working up in Bermuda, and then joined a convoy back to the UK.
The Nyasland then spent the rest of the war on escort/support duty (Escort Group 23) around the West coast of the UK and was a frequent visitor to Londonderry. My dad met mum in Londonderry, so the experience was life changing.
HMS Nyasaland was credited with 2 U-Boat sinkings, pretty good for a new ship.
After the end of the war in Europe HMS Nyasaland was quickly decommissioned, but dad was sent to the far East in Sept 1945 and spent a year on HMS Bonaventure repatriating troops and prisoners in the far east from Hong Kong, Singapore, Ceylon, Japan back to Australia where they were shipped back to England or their homes.
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Able Sea. Frederick Richard Caunter HMS Glasgow Frederick Caunter enlisted in January 1940. He served in HMS Ganges, HMS St George, HMS Victory, HMS Glasgow and HMS Howe. He was discharged in February 1945 as physically unfit for Naval service.
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AB Alex Main "Sandy" Robertson HMS Glasgow My father, Alex Robertson served on the HMS Glasgow, and the Mine sweeper Felixstowe. Later he became one of the first frogmen of the British Navy.
He was born in Clive, Alberta, Canada. In 1921 his father was gassed at Vimy Ridge, died a year later. His mother returned to Scotland and he attended Donaldson's school. Later he attended HMS Ganges and was known to sit at the top of the mast there.
Alex saw service in Gibraltar. He worked at clearing every beach before the Normandy invasion. When asked at the 50th anniversary of D-day, which beaches he was on he replied all of them. Later I found a story of him and another sailor eating a chicken. He was at the siege of Gibraltar, the raid on Normandy. Prior to this raid he and others got caught swimming nude in the Firth of Forth and got sent to Scapa Flow.
He was in Malta when the Exodus came in and was the officer who threw the Captain overboard when he reached under his lapel.
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Wren. Joan Marie "Jay" Holbrook HMS Pembroke Joan Holbrook joined the Wrens and served in HMS Pembroke, HMS Ganges, HMS Drake and HMS Nile.
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AB Joseph Francis "Mick" Rooney HMS Zest Joseph 'Mick' Rooney served with the Royal Navy aboard HMS Ganges where h trained and also served on HMS Pembroke and HMS Zest. HMS Zest provided protection for North Sea convoys to Russia.
Mick was a wireless operator, but spent much of his time recovering Merchant Seaman from the sea following successful attacks by U-boats. He was reputed to have been the only member of his ship's company who was never sea sick.
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AB. Samuel Isaiah Parkes HMS Copra Dad, Samuel Isaiah Parkes didn't talk much about the war.
We know he drove the landing crafts, and he had a perforated eardrum as they fired the guns on board ship before he could get his protection on.
He suffered terribly with his ear after the war.
He served from 1942 until 1946 in HMS Ganges, HMS Pembroke, HMS Dinosaur and HMS Copra.
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Able Sea. Edward John Wright HMS Lanka My father Ted" Wright served in the Royal Navy during WW2 from 20th of September 1943 until his medical discharge on 4th of May 1947.
His training took place in various shore stations, including HMS Ganges, Pembroke, St Christopher, Drake, Hornet, Attack (ML303), Skirmisher (ML303) before setting sail for Gibraltar on 22nd of October 1944 aboard HMS Lanka (ML303).
I have a long list of his ports of call from Algiers to Vizagapatam where the ship arrived on 19th of August 1945.
He was based in Trincomolee, Ceylon on HMS High Flyer and HMS Bambara from the end of the war until his discharge.
I have many photos of boats and shipmates none of which has any form of identification.
He did have a little green notebook where he jotted down some names - presumably his shipmates. I list them below in case one of them (or their relatives) are seeking information.
- Arthur A Hunter from near Glasgow
- Jim Hearst? from Guildford
- V Thorne from Swanscombe
- K Hemsley from Chelmsford
- C Dinmore
- A W Douch from Colliers wood
- L Fennell from Battersea
- John Lawlor from Bradford (see note below)
- W Tight
John Lawlor was obviously a bit of a poet and I have in my possession a poem written by him about the trip from Milford Haven to Gibraltar.
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