Allied Warships

HMS Tuscan (R 56)

Destroyer of the T class

Navy	The Royal Navy
Type	Destroyer
Class	T
Pennant	R 56
Built by	Swan Hunter and Wigham Richardson Ltd. (Wallsend-on-Tyne, U.K.): Wallsend
Ordered	13 Mar 1941
Laid down	6 Sep 1941
Launched	28 May 1942
Commissioned	11 Mar 1943
End service
History	Scrapped at Bo'ness in May 1966.

Commands listed for HMS Tuscan (R 56)

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	Commander	From	To
1	Lt.Cdr. George Ian Mackintosh Balfour, RN	24 Jan 1943	6 Jun 1943

2	Lt.Cdr. Cecil Hugo de Boisville Newby, RN	12 Jul 1943	Mar 1944
3	Lt.Cdr. Ernest Norman Wood, DSC, RNVR	Mar 1944	22 Jan 1945
4	Lt.Cdr. Peter Barthrop North Lewis, DSC, RN	22 Jan 1945	mid 1946

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Notable events involving Tuscan include:

1 Apr 1943
HrMs O 14 (Lt.Cdr. H.A.W. Goossens, RNN) conducted A/S exercises at / off Scapa Flow with HMS Anthony (Lt.Cdr. J.H. Wallace, DSC, RN), HMS Arrow (Lt.Cdr. W.W. Fitzroy, RN) and HMS Tuscan (Lt.Cdr. G.I.M. Balfour, RN). (1)

3 Apr 1943
HrMs O 14 (Lt.Cdr. H.A.W. Goossens, RNN) conducted A/S exercises at / off Scapa Flow with HMS Tuscan (Lt.Cdr. G.I.M. Balfour, RN), HMS Anthony (Lt.Cdr. J.H. Wallace, DSC, RN) and HMS Troubridge (Capt. C.L. Firth, MVO, RN). (1)

5 Apr 1943
HrMs O 14 (Lt.Cdr. H.A.W. Goossens, RNN) conducted A/S exercises at / off Scapa Flow with HMS Tuscan (Lt.Cdr. G.I.M. Balfour, RN), HMS Anthony (Lt.Cdr. J.H. Wallace, DSC, RN) and HMS Arrow (Lt.Cdr. W.W. Fitzroy, RN). (1)

7 Apr 1943
HMS Universal (Lt. C. Gordon, RN) conducted practice attacks at Scapa Flow with officers participating in the C.O.Q.C. (Commanding Officers Qualifying Course). HMS Tuscan (Lt.Cdr. G.I.M. Balfour, RN) served as target. (2)

9 Apr 1943
HrMs O 14 (Lt.Cdr. H.A.W. Goossens, RNN) conducted A/S exercises at / off Scapa Flow with HMS Tuscan (Lt.Cdr. G.I.M. Balfour, RN), HMS Lauderdale (Lt. G.D. Pound, DSC, RN), HMS Stevenstone (Lt. P.B.N. Lewis, DSC, RN) and HMS Anthony (Lt.Cdr. J.H. Wallace, DSC, RN). (1)

12 Apr 1943
HrMs O 14 (Lt.Cdr. H.A.W. Goossens, RNN) conducted A/S exercises at / off Scapa Flow with HMS Stevenstone (Lt. P.B.N. Lewis, DSC, RN), HMS Milne (Capt. I.M.R. Campbell, DSO, RN), HMS Troubridge (Capt. C.L. Firth, MVO, RN) and HMS Tuscan (Lt.Cdr. G.I.M. Balfour, RN). (1)

15 Apr 1943
HrMs O 14 (Lt.Cdr. H.A.W. Goossens, RNN) conducted A/S exercises at / off Scapa Flow with HMS Tuscan (Lt.Cdr. G.I.M. Balfour, RN) and HMS Active (Lt.Cdr. P.G. Merriman, RN). (1)

14 May 1943
HMS Tuscan (Lt.Cdr. G.I.M. Balfour, RN) is damaged when she hits a drifting mine in the Bristol Channel. She is out of action for about 4 months.

13 Nov 1943
HMS Spiteful (Lt.Cdr. F.H. Sherwood, DSC, RCNVR) conducted A/S exercises at Scapa Flow with HMS Ariadne (Capt. Lord Ashbourne, RN), HMS Tuscan (Lt.Cdr. C.H.de B. Newby, RN), HMS Virago (Lt.Cdr. A.J.R. White, RN), HMIS Cauvery (A/Cdr. A.W. Beeton, RIN) and another vessel. (3)

22 Nov 1943
HMS Taku (Lt. A.J.W. Pitt, RN) participated in A/S exercises off Scapa Flow together with HMS Tenacious (Lt.Cdr. D.F. Townsend, RN), HMS Termagent (Lt.Cdr. J.P. Scatchard, DSC, RN) and HMS Tuscan (Lt.Cdr. C.H.de B. Newby, RN). (4)

27 Nov 1943
HMS Taku (Lt. A.J.W. Pitt, RN) participated in A/S exercises off Scapa Flow together with HMS Tuscan (Lt.Cdr. C.H.de B. Newby, RN) and HMS Virago (Lt.Cdr. A.J.R. White, RN). (4)

30 Nov 1943
HMS Taku (Lt. A.J.W. Pitt, RN) participated in A/S exercises off Scapa Flow together with HMS Bellona (Capt. C.F.W. Norris, RN), HMS Meteor (Lt.Cdr. D.J.B. Jewitt, RN), HMIS Cauvery (A/Cdr. A.W. Beeton, RIN) and HMS Tuscan (Lt.Cdr. C.H.de B. Newby, RN). (4)

10 Dec 1943
HMS Telemachus (Cdr. W.D.A. King, DSO, DSC, RN) conducted A/S exercises off Scapa Flow together with HMS Tuscan (Lt.Cdr. C.H.de B. Newby, RN), HMS Tenacious (Lt.Cdr. D.F. Townsend, RN), HMS Meteor (Lt.Cdr. D.J.B. Jewitt, RN) and HMS Hardy (Lt.Cdr. R. Horncastle, RN). (5)

11 Aug 1945
HMS Virtue (Lt. R.D. Cairns, DSC, RN) conducted A/S exercises off Sydney with (at least) HMS Tuscan (Lt.Cdr. P.B.N. Lewis, DSC, RN). (6)