From the Feb. 16, 2013, Hull (England) Daily Mail "Beverly-built HMS Beryl was a true World War hero."
The beryl was a trawler requisitioned by the Royal Navy. It was sent to defend Malta's capital port of Valletta and endured a two year siege by the Axis. It is reportedly the only Royal Navy surface warship to stay afloat during the duration.
It earned the nickname "The Flagship of Malta" and became the symbol of the defiant defense of that important Mediterranean island. Its enduarance lasted from 1940 to 1942 with the effective end in November 1942. During that time, the Luftwaffe and Italian Air Force conducted some 3000 bombing raids.
It was built in 1934 and named the Lady Adelaide. The ship was bought by the Royal Navy in 1939 and adopted and sponsored by the town of Bourne in Lincolnshire for 55,000 pounds during warship week.
Two of the streets there have HMS Beryl-related names: Beryl Mews and Sellwood Terrace (named for Commander Harry Sellwood).
After its service at Malta, the Beryl took part in the Allied landings on Sicily.
Postwar, it went back to being a trawler until it was scrapped in the 1960s Beverly-built ships served in both World Wars.
--GreGen
The USS North Carolina (BB-55) My all-time favorite warship. As an elementary school student in North Carolina, I donated nickels and dimes to save this ship back in the early sixties.
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