A Destroyer Escort (DE) is classification for a small, comparatively slower warship designed to be used to escort convoys of merchant marine ships, primarily of the United States Navy in World War II. It is usually employed primarily for anti-submarine warfare, but also some protection against aircraft and smaller attack vessels in this application. The US built roughly 457 destroyer escorts spread out over 8 classes. The Royal Navy also used destroyer escorts but classified them as the Captains class frigate, although somewhat confusingly they referred to the Hunt class and similar ships as "escort destroyers". Diagrams of first and third rate warships, England, 1728 Cyclopaedia. ... A convoy is a group of vehicles traveling together for mutual support. ... The United States Navy, also known as the USN or the U.S. Navy, is a branch of the United States armed forces responsible for conducting naval operations. ... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000... Anti-submarine warfare (ASW or in older forms A/S) is a branch of naval warfare that uses surface warships, aircraft or other submarines to find, track and then damage or destroy enemy submarines. ... The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of the British armed services (and is therefore the Senior Service). ... The Captain class frigates were a class of 78 frigates of the Royal Navy launched in 1942– 1943. ... The Hunt class was a class of destroyer escorts of the Royal Navy. ...

Origins

USS Evarts (DE-5)

The Lend-lease Act was passed into law in the USA in March 1941 enabling the United Kingdom to procure merchant ships, warships and munitions etc from the USA, in order to help with the war effort. This enabled the UK to commission the USA to design, build and supply an escort vessel that was suitable for anti submarine warfare in deep open ocean situations, which they did in June 1941. Captain E.L. Cochrane of the American Bureau of Shipping came up with a design which was known as the British Destroyer Escort (BDE) but this was soon reduced to Destroyer Escort (DE). Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... USS Evarts (DE-5) was launched 7 December 1942 by Boston Navy Yard as BDE-5, intended for transfer to Great Britain; retained for use in the U.S. Navy; and commissioned 15 April 1943, Lieutenant Commander C. B. Henriques, USNR, in command. ... The Lend-Lease program was a program of the United States during World War II that allowed the United States to provide the Allied Powers with war material without becoming directly involved in the war. ... American Bureau of Shipping is a Classification Society with headquarters in Houston, Texas. ... A Destroyer Escort (DE) is classification for a small, comparatively slower warship designed to be used to escort convoys of merchant marine ships, primarily of the United States Navy in WWII. It is usually employed primarily for anti-submarine warfare, but also some protection against aircraft and smaller attack vessels...

When the United States entered the war, and found they also required an Anti-Submarine warfare ship and that the Destroyer Escort fitted their needs perfectly, a system of rationing was put in place whereby out of every five Destroyer Escorts completed four would be allocated to the U.S. Navy and one to the Royal Navy.

General Description

USS Dealey (DE-1006)

A Destroyer Escort (DE) is classification for a small, comparatively slower warship designed to be used to escort convoys of merchant marine ships, primarily of the United States Navy, Royal Navy and the Free French Navy in WWII. It is usually employed primarily for anti-submarine warfare, but also some protection against aircraft and smaller attack vessels in this application. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (864x706, 191 KB) USS_Dealey; http://www. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (864x706, 191 KB) USS_Dealey; http://www. ... USS Dealey (DE-1006), the lead ship of her class of destroyer escort, was a ship of the United States Navy named for Commander Samuel D. Dealey, who was awarded the Medal of Honor as captain of the famous World War II submarine USS Harder. ... Diagrams of first and third rate warships, England, 1728 Cyclopaedia. ... A convoy is a group of vehicles traveling together for mutual support. ... The United States Navy, also known as the USN or the U.S. Navy, is a branch of the United States armed forces responsible for conducting naval operations. ... The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of the British armed services (and is therefore the Senior Service). ... The Free French Forces (Forces Françaises Libres in French) were French fighters who decided to go on fighting against Germany after the Fall of France and German occupation and to fight against Vichy France in World War II. General Charles de Gaulle was a member of the French Cabinet... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000... Anti-submarine warfare (ASW or in older forms A/S) is a branch of naval warfare that uses surface warships, aircraft or other submarines to find, track and then damage or destroy enemy submarines. ...

Full size destroyers must be able to keep up with and exceed the speed of fast capital ships, typically needing better than 25-35 knot speeds (dependent upon the era and navy) and carrying torpedoes and a relatively smaller caliber of cannon to use against enemy ships, as well as anti-submarine detection equipment and weapons. USS Lassen, an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet or battle group and defend them against smaller, short-range attackers (originally torpedo boats, later submarines and aircraft). ... The capital ships of a navy are its important warships; the ones with the heaviest firepower and armor. ... A modern torpedo, historically called a locomotive torpedo, is a self-propelled projectile that (after being launched above or below the water surface) operates underwater and is designed to detonate on contact or in proximity to a target. ...

A destroyer escort need only be able to maneuver relative to a slow convoy, which in World War II would travel at 10 to 12 knots, defend itself against aircraft, and detect, chase down and attack a submerged (3 to 6 knot speed) or surfaced (22 knot speed) submarine. These lower requirements greatly reduce the size, cost and crew required for the destroyer escort. While fleet destroyers were still more effective for anti-submarine warfare, the destroyer escort outweighed this by being able to be built considerably faster. Destroyer escorts were also considerably more seaworthy than Corvettes. Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000... French steam corvette Dupleix (1856-1887) Canadian corvettes on antisubmarine convoy escort duty during World War II. A corvette is a small, maneuverable, lightly armed warship, smaller than a frigate but larger than a coastal patrol craft. ...

Combat

Destroyer escorts were also useful for coastal anti-submarine and radar picket ship duty. They were never meant fight against cruisers and battleships, but that is what happened in the Battle off Samar. The destroyer escort ship Samuel B. Roberts of task group Taffy 3 joined other out-gunned destroyers in directly attacking cruisers and battleships. With no armor, only two 5-inch guns, and 3 Mark-15 torpedoes capable of punching a hole in enemy hulls, her crew lacked the weapons and training in tactics to compete with the much larger heavy cruiser Chokai. The Roberts dodged shellfire to fire a salvo of 3 torpedoes which struck the cruiser. The battle continued for an hour, and the Roberts fired over 600 5-inch shells, and hit the upper works with 40 mm Bofors and 20 mm anti-aircraft guns at close range. The Japanese finally landed two hits, setting the bridge of the cruiser Chikuma afire and destroying the number 3 gun turret. The Roberts sank with 89 of her crew, but she become known as the destroyer escort that fought like a battleship. She was an instrumental part of a small task force of light ships that forced a much larger armoured battle force to turn away from American landing forces in Leyte Gulf, though at a high cost. Combatants United States Australia Empire of Japan Commanders Thomas Sprague Takeo Kurita Strength 6 escort aircraft carriers, 9 destroyers, 12 destroyer escorts, 400 aircraft 4 battleships, 6 heavy cruisers, 2 light cruisers, 11 destroyers Casualties 2 escort carriers, 2 destroyers, 1 destroyer escort sunk over 1,000 casualties 3 heavy... In support of the United States Navy’s Seventh Fleet during the Battle of Leyte Gulf, a prelude to the US’ invasion of the Phillippines in World War Two, Taffy (short for “Task Force”) 3 consisted of escort carriers CVE-70 USS Fanshaw Bay, CVE-73 USS Gambier Bay, CVE...

Some 95 Destroyer escorts were converted to APDs (High Speed Transports). This involved adding an extra deck which allowed space for about 10 officers and 150 men. The modern Littoral Combat Ship also adds transport and boat launching capabilities to a ship smaller than a destroyer. Two large davits were also installed, one on either side of the ship from which landing craft (LCVP) could be launched. This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... The Littoral Combat Ship is the first of the U.S. Navys next-generation surface combatants. ... This article needs to be wikified. ... The Landing Craft, Vehicle, Personnel (LCVP) or Higgins boat was a landing craft used extensively in World War II. The craft was designed by Andrew Higgins of Louisiana, based on boats made for operating in swamps and marshes. ...

Postwar

After World War II United States Navy destroyer escorts were referred to as ocean escorts, but retained the hull classification symbol DE. However other navies, most notably those of NATO countries and the USSR, followed different naming conventions for this type of ship which resulted in some confusion. In order to remedy this problem the 1975 ship reclassification reclassified ocean escorts (and by extension, destroyer escorts) as Frigates (FF). This brought the USN's nomenclature more in line with NATO, and made it easier to compare ship types with the Soviet Union (see Cruiser gap). As of 2006 there are no plans for future frigates for the US Navy. The DDG Zumwalt and the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) are the main ship types planned in this area. One major problem with ship classification is whether to base it on a ship's role (such as escort or air defense), or on its size (such as the amount of tons). One example of this ambiguity are the Ticonderoga-class air defense ships, which are classified as cruiser even though they use the same hull of the Spruance class destroyer. This is a list of destroyer escorts of the United States Navy, listed both by hull number and by name. ... Ocean escort was a United States Navy warship. ... The United States Navy uses hull classification symbols (sometimes called hull codes) to identify the types of its ships. ... NATO 2002 Summit in Prague. ... The United States Navy reclassified many of its surface vessels in 1975, changing terminology and hull classification symbols for aircraft carriers, cruisers, frigates, and ocean escorts. ... For the bird, see Frigatebird. ... USS Zumwalt (DDG-1000) is scheduled to be the lead ship of her class of guided missile destroyers in the United States Navy. ... The Littoral Combat Ship is the first of the U.S. Navys next-generation surface combatants. ... Ticonderoga class cruiser is a class of warships in the US Navy, first ordered and authorized in FY 1978. ... USS Port Royal (CG-73), a Ticonderoga-class guided missile cruiser (really an uprated guided missile destroyer), launched in 1992. ... The Spruance-class destroyer was developed to replace a large number of World War II-built - and Gearing-class destroyers, and was the primary destroyer built for the U.S. Navy during the 1970s. ...

• List of destroyer escorts of the United States Navy

This is a list of destroyer escorts of the United States Navy, listed both by hull number and by name. ...

US Navy Destroyer escort class overview

USS Evarts (DE-5) The Evarts class destroyer escorts were 73 destroyer escorts launched in the United States in 1942–1944. ... USS Evarts (DE-5) was launched 7 December 1942 by Boston Navy Yard as BDE-5, intended for transfer to Great Britain; retained for use in the U.S. Navy; and commissioned 15 April 1943, Lieutenant Commander C. B. Henriques, USNR, in command. ... April 15 is the 105th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (106th in leap years). ... 1943 (MCMXLIII) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1943 calendar). ... USS Varian (DE-798) The Buckley class destroyer escorts were 102 destroyer escorts launched in the United States in 1943 - 1944. ... USS Buckley (DE/DER-51), a Buckley-class destroyer escort of the United States Navy, was named in honor of Ordnanceman John D. Buckley ( 1920– 1941), who was killed in action during the Japanese attack on the Hawaiian Islands. ... April 30 is the 120th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (121st in leap years), with 245 days remaining. ... 1943 (MCMXLIII) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1943 calendar). ... The Cannon class destroyer escorts were built primarily for ocean Anti-Submarine Warfare escort service during World War II. The lead ship, USS Cannon (DE-99) was commissioned on 26 September 1943 at Wilmington, Delaware. ... USS Cannon (DE-99) was launched 25 May 1943 by Dravo Corporation, Wilmington, Delaware. ... September 26 is the 269th day of the year (270th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1943 (MCMXLIII) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1943 calendar). ... The Edsall class destroyer escorts were built primarily for ocean ASW escort service during World War II. The lead ship, USS Edsall (DE-129) was commissioned on 10 April 1943 at Orange, Texas. ... USS Edsall (DE-129) was the lead ship of her class of destroyer escort in the United States Navy. ... April 10 is the 100th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (101st in leap years). ... 1943 (MCMXLIII) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1943 calendar). ... Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ... USS Rudderow (DE-224) was laid down 15 July 1943 at the Philadelphia Navy Yard; launched 14 October 1943; sponsored by Mrs. ... May 15 is the 135th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (136th in leap years). ... 1944 (MCMXLIV) was a leap year starting on Saturday. ... USS , lead ship of this class The John C. Butler class destroyer escort originated during World War II. The lead ship was the USS , commissioned on March 31, 1944. ... USS (DD-339) was the lead ship of World War II-era -class destroyer escorts in the service of the United States Navy, named after Ensign John Clarence Butler, who was posthumously awarded the Navy Cross for his actions in the Battle of Midway. ... March 31 is the 90th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (91st in leap years), with 275 days remaining. ... 1944 (MCMXLIV) was a leap year starting on Saturday. ... The Dealey class destroyer escorts were the first post-World War II escort ships built for the United States Navy. ... USS Dealey (DE-1006), the lead ship of her class of destroyer escort, was a ship of the United States Navy named for Commander Samuel D. Dealey, who was awarded the Medal of Honor as captain of the famous World War II submarine USS Harder. ... June 3 is the 154th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (155th in leap years), with 211 days remaining. ... 1954 (MCMLIV) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Claud Jones class destroyer escorts was a Diesel version of the earlier Dealey class. ... USS Claud Jones (DE-1033) was launched May 27, 1958 by Avondale Marine Ways, Inc. ... February 10 is the 41st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1959 (MCMLIX) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Captains class frigates of the Royal Navy

Under the Lend-Lease agreement, the Royal Navy received 32 destroyer escorts of the Evarts class and 46 of the Buckley class. The Royal Navy used the names of captains of the Napoleonic Wars for the ships; hence these ships are known as the Captains class frigates. The Captain class frigates were a class of 78 frigates of the Royal Navy launched in 1942– 1943. ... The Lend-Lease program was a program of the United States during World War II that allowed the United States to provide the Allied Powers with war material without becoming directly involved in the war. ... The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of the British armed services (and is therefore the Senior Service). ... USS Evarts (DE-5) The Evarts class destroyer escorts were 73 destroyer escorts launched in the United States in 1942–1944. ... USS Varian (DE-798) The Buckley class destroyer escorts were 102 destroyer escorts launched in the United States in 1943 - 1944. ... Combatants Allies: Austrian Empire[1] Kingdom of Portugal Kingdom of Prussia[1] Russian Empire[2] Kingdom of Spain[3] Kingdom of Sweden United Kingdom[4] Ottoman Empire[5] French Empire Kingdom of Holland Kingdom of Italy Kingdom of Naples Duchy of Warsaw Kingdom of Bavaria[6] Kingdom of Saxony[7... The Captain class frigates were a class of 78 frigates of the Royal Navy launched in 1942– 1943. ...

The main design difference between the Royal Navy and US Navy ships that the former had the forward torpedo tubes removed along with the ice-cream makers, the iced-water fountains, the dishwashers and the laundries (some ships). More depth charges were fitted on the upper deck each side of the ship (allowing for about 200 in total) and the steel work around the binnacle had to be replaced by non-ferrous materials. Additionally the American gyrocompasses were replaced with the Admiralty pattern ones and the MK IV elevating column Oerlikon mountings were replaced with the simpler MK V1A mountings. A modern torpedo, historically called a locomotive torpedo, is a self-propelled projectile that (after being launched above or below the water surface) operates underwater and is designed to detonate on contact or in proximity to a target. ... Depth Charge used by U.S. Navy later in World War II The depth charge is the oldest anti-submarine weapon. ... Binnacle (before 18th century bittacle, through Span. ... Cutaway of Anschütz gyrocompass The following description refers to the gyrocompasses used on ships. ... Flag of the Lord High Admiral The Admiralty was formerly the authority in the United Kingdom responsible for the command of the Royal Navy. ... Oerlikon has different meanings: Zürich Oerlikon: a quarter in the northern part of Zürich, Switzerland Oerlikon-Bührle: a company in Zürich, Switzerland that also owns Bally Shoes, Oerlikon Contraves, Pilatus Aircraft and Island Aircraft Oerlikon Contraves: a Swiss anti-aircraft artillery manufacturer founded in Zürich...

Free French

Six Cannon class Destroyer Escorts were built for the Free French Navy. Although initially transferred under the Lend-lease Act these ships were permanently transferred under the Mutual Defense Assistance Program. The Free French Forces (Forces Françaises Libres in French) were French fighters who decided to go on fighting against Germany after the Fall of France and German occupation and to fight against Vichy France in World War II. General Charles de Gaulle was a member of the French Cabinet... The Lend-Lease program was a program of the United States during World War II that allowed the United States to provide the Allied Powers with war material without becoming directly involved in the war. ...

List of Free French Destroyer escorts

• FFL Algérien (F-1), ex-Cronin (DE-107)
• FFL Sénégalais (F-2), ex-Corbestier (DE-106)
• FFL Somali (F-3), ex-Somali (DE-111)
• FFL Hova (F-4), ex-Hova (DE-110)
• FFL Marocain (F-5), ex-Marocain (DE-109)
• FFL Tunisien (F-6), ex-Crosley (DE-108)

To meet Wikipedias quality standards and make it more accessible to a general audience, this article may require cleanup. ...

Mutual Defense Assistance Program - Post WWII

Under the Mutual Defense Assistance Program (MDAP) the Destroyer Escorts leased to the Free French were permanently transferred to the French Navy. In addition the following navies also acquired Destroyer Escorts: The Mutual Defense Assistance Act commonly known as the Battle Act was a 1949 law passed by the United States. ...

French Navy

DE-1007, DE-1008, DE-1009, DE-1010, DE-1011, DE-1012, DE-1013, DE-1016, DE-1017, DE-1018, DE1019

Italian Navy

DE-1020, DE-1031

Portuguese Navy

DE-1032, DE-1039, DE-1042, DE-1046

Netherlands Navy

DE 195 Burrows, DE 196 Rinehart, DE 182 Gustafson, DE 188 O'Neill, DE 192 Eisner, DE 187 Stern

See also

• The Enemy Below for a movie filmed on a DE.
• Modern Naval tactics.
• Frigate
• Destroyer
• Lists
  • List of destroyer escorts of the United States Navy
    • List of frigates of the United States Navy subset of above with hull numbers DE/FF 1037 and higher plus all DEG/FFGs because of the United States Navy 1975 ship reclassification
  • List of frigates
  • Captain class frigate

The Enemy Below is a 1957 film which tells the story of battle between the captain of an American destroyer escort and the commander of a German submarine during World War II. It stars Robert Mitchum, Curd Jürgens, David Hedison and Theodore Bikel. ... It is tempting to regard modern naval combat as the purest expression of tactics. ... For the bird, see Frigatebird. ... USS Lassen, an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet or battle group and defend them against smaller, short-range attackers (originally torpedo boats, later submarines and aircraft). ... This is a list of destroyer escorts of the United States Navy, listed both by hull number and by name. ... This is a list of frigates of the United States Navy, sorted by hull number. ... The United States Navy reclassified many of its surface vessels in 1975, changing terminology and hull classification symbols for aircraft carriers, cruisers, frigates, and ocean escorts. ... The list of frigates includes all frigates listed alphabetically. ... The Captain class frigates were a class of 78 frigates of the Royal Navy launched in 1942– 1943. ...

External links

• http://www.desausa.org/ Destroyer Escort Sailors Association (DESA).
• http://www.ussslater.org/ USS Slater, the Destroyer Escort Historical Museum.
• USS Slater Photos on board the Destroyer Escort USS Slater DE-766
• USS Bangust WWII Photos of life on board the Destroyer Escort USS Bangust DE-739 in WWII
• Destroyer Escort Bangust DE-739 Home Page
• http://www.captainclassfrigates.co.uk/ the Captain Class Frigates Association.
• Escort http://www.uboat.net/

References

• The most authoritative account of a destroyer escort class and destroyer escorts in general is Bruce H. Franklin's Buckley-Class Destroyer Escorts. Naval Institute Press, 1999 ISBN 1557502803
• For an excellent book on the subject of a particular example of this type of ship in World War II, the USS Abercrombie (DE-343) see Little Ship, Big War: The Saga of DE-343 by Edward Peary Stafford. Naval Institute Press, 2000 ISBN 1-55750-890-9
• For an excellent book on the subject of the Captains class frigate variant of the Destroyer Escort in World War II, see The Captain Class Frigates in the Second World War by Donald Collingwood. published by Leo Cooper (1998), ISBN 085052 615 9.