HMS Chatham: A Storied Legacy of Service and Valor
HMS Chatham, a Batch 3 Type 22 frigate of the British Royal Navy, was a vessel with a distinguished history and a unique place in naval tradition. Bearing the rare honor of a motto in English, “Up and at ’em,” which served as the rallying cry for the Medway town football and rugby teams, HMS Chatham’s motto was later translated into Latin as “Surge et vince” (Rise and conquer). Though decommissioned on 9 February 2011, the legacy of HMS Chatham remains a testament to the dedication and bravery of her crew throughout her years of service.
History of HMS Chatham
Commissioned in the late 20th century, HMS Chatham’s service was marked by several significant and high-stakes operations. One of her early notable missions occurred in 1993 when she joined Operation Sharp Guard, an effort to enforce the embargo against the former Yugoslavia. Her most remarkable action during this period took place on 1 May 1994, when she captured the Maltese freighter Lido II, which was suspected of smuggling fuel to Montenegro. The operation turned tense when three Yugoslav Končar-class corvettes challenged the NATO forces, with one attempting to ram HMS Chatham. Displaying tactical superiority, Chatham, supported by Italian Tornado aircraft, successfully drove off the corvettes. Despite sabotage by the Lido II’s crew, Chatham’s engineers contained the damage, allowing the freighter to be diverted to Italy. Additionally, seven Yugoslav stowaways were discovered aboard.
Under Captain Christopher Clayton’s command, HMS Chatham served as the guardship to the royal yacht HMY Britannia during the historic withdrawal from Hong Kong in 1997, overseeing the control of military operations in the months leading up to the handover. In May 2000, during Operation Palliser, HMS Chatham was part of the Amphibious Ready Group sent to Sierra Leone to facilitate the evacuation of British, EU, and Commonwealth nationals, under the command of Captain George Zambellas.
In March 2003, HMS Chatham made history as the first British warship to fire her guns in anger as part of Operation Telic during the invasion of Iraq. Her 4.5-inch gun fired approximately 60 rounds at various targets on the Al-Faw Peninsula, providing crucial support to Royal Marines advancing up the peninsula. Alongside HMS Marlborough, HMS Richmond, and HMAS Anzac, Chatham remained on station for 72 hours, offering immediate fire support to the ground troops.
HMS Chatham’s operational tempo continued with her deployment to the Persian Gulf in early 2003, where she spent nearly 90 consecutive days at sea. The ship’s crew faced the perilous task of navigating mine-laden waters, narrowly avoiding several mines laid by Iraqi forces.
The frigate’s life on the sea was also captured by the BBC television program Shipmates, which documented the daily lives of sailors aboard Chatham during her active service in the Persian Gulf, including her humanitarian efforts following the devastating Indian Ocean Tsunami in December 2004.
On 18 April 2005, HMS Chatham played a poignant role in history when she sent a party ashore in Alexandria, Egypt, to provide a burial for the recently uncovered remains of thirty British sailors and officers who had died during or after the Battle of the Nile in 1798.
In 2008, Chatham continued her legacy of service by contributing to the capture of six tonnes of narcotics, part of the 23-tonne haul seized by the Royal Navy that year. By March 2010, she had become the NATO flagship for international naval operations against Somali piracy. Notably, on 17 May 2010, HMS Chatham destroyed two pirate boats in the Somali Basin, forcing the pirates to return to Somalia. Just days later, on 20 May 2010, Chatham’s helicopters played a vital role in rescuing 23 crew members from the MV Dubai Moon, a cargo vessel disabled by Cyclone Bandu off the Somali coast.
Decommissioning and Final Voyage
Due to defense cuts, HMS Chatham returned to Plymouth for the last time on 27 January 2011. After her decommissioning in February 2011, she was stripped of equipment and laid up in Portsmouth. In July 2013, she was sold to the Turkish company Leyal for demolition.
In the autumn of 2013, HMS Chatham embarked on her final voyage to the Leyal shipyard in Turkey, where she was broken down, ending the chapter of a vessel that had served with distinction across multiple theaters of operation.
HMS Chatham’s storied legacy serves as a reminder of the resilience and dedication of the Royal Navy and its sailors, who have continually risen to the challenges of their time, upholding the motto “Surge et vince” to the very end.
