700-031 HMS CARDIFF BRITISH CRUISER 1943

HMS Cardiff (D58) was a British light cruiser, the keel of which was laid in July 1916, was launched in April 1917, and entered service with the Royal Navy in the summer of the same year. The total length of the ship at the time of launching was 137 m, width 13.2 m, with a displacement of approx. 4,250 tons. In turn, the maximum speed was up to 29 knots. The ship's armament included: 5 152mm Mark XII guns, 2 single 76mm AA guns and 4 twin 533mm torpedo tubes. HMS Cardiff (D58) was one of the 28 C class cruisers. Units of this type were built with the idea of escorting larger ships of the Royal Navy in mind, and their main task was to protect them against German torpedo boats and destroyers, and especially against the threat of a torpedo attack. They have also been adapted primarily to operate in the North Sea basin. For this reason, they were characterized by relatively strong armament for this class of ships, good seaworthiness, good armor, but limited comfort of the crews and average maximum speed. HMS Cardiff (D58) was built at the Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company in Govan, Scotland, and began serving the Grand Fleet almost immediately after entering service. In November 1917, he took part in the Battle of Heligoland. At the end of 1918, he was sent to the Baltic Sea to support the actions of the Whites in the Russian Civil War, and the following year he was sent to the Mediterranean Sea. In 1920, he operated in the Black Sea basin again supporting the Whites against the Bolsheviks. The ship spent a large part of the 1920s and 1930s in the Mediterranean Sea and in reserve. During World War II, HMS Cardiff played a limited role, operating at its beginning (1939-1940) mainly in the North Sea and on patrols between the Faroe Islands and Iceland (Northern Patrol). At the end of 1940, the unit was converted into a training ship and served this role until 1945. Interestingly, in the years 1940-1945, the unit underwent modernization of its artillery and radar equipment. In 1946, HMS Cardiff was sold for scrap.