HMS Sheffield was one of the Southampton sub-class of the cruisers of the Royal Navy. Completed in 1937, she was active in all major naval European theatres of the Second World War, in the Atlantic Ocean, the Mediterranean Sea and the Arctic Ocean. Sheffield assisted in the sinking of both German battleships sunk at sea; in the Last battle of Bismarck she directed torpedo aircraft to, and during the Battle of the North Cape she took part in the shadowing of .
Her career started with service in the Home Fleet, which took her on patrols against German blockade runners and on actions during the Norwegian Campaign. In August 1940 Sheffield was transferred to Force H stationed in Gibraltar. During the first months of her service with Force H, most of the operations involved either ferrying aircraft or escorting convoys to Malta. Sheffield also operated against German surface raiders in the Atlantic, culminating in the sinking of Bismarck in May 1941.
From 1942 until 1944, Sheffield escorted Arctic convoys to Northern Russia and back. In December 1942 she was part of a cruiser force that repelled a German attack on Convoy JW 51B and in December 1943 Sheffield assisted in the sinking of Scharnhorst whilst escorting convoy Convoy JW 55B. When Arctic convoys were suspended, she returned to the Mediterranean for Operation Torch and Operation Avalanche. Sheffield went in for an extended refit in 1944 and saw no more service during the war. She was placed in reserve for a first time in 1959, and after a short reactivation Sheffield was decommissioned in 1964 and finally scrapped in 1967.
Vickers-Armstrongs built Sheffield at High Walker, Newcastle upon Tyne. Her keel was laid on 31 January 1935, she was launched on 23 July 1936 and she was completed on 25 August 1937. The cruiser displaced 9,100 tons at standard load and 11,350 tons at deep load. The ship had an overall length of, a beam of and a draught of 17feet. She was powered by four geared steam turbine sets, each driving one shaft, which developed a total of and gave a maximum speed of . By 1942 the ship's complement was 796 officers and ratings.
Sheffield mounted twelve BL six-inch (152 mm) Mk XXIII guns in four triple-gun turrets. The turrets were designated 'A', 'B', 'X' and 'Y' from front to rear. The secondary armament consisted of eight QF Mk XVI dual-purpose guns in twin mounts. Their light anti-aircraft armament consisted of a pair of quadruple mounts for the two-pounder (40 mm) AA gun ("pom-pom") and two quadruple mounts for Vickers AA machine guns. By 1942 the latter had been removed and replaced by nine Oerlikon 20 mm cannon in single mounts. The ship carried two above-water, triple mounts for torpedoes. Sheffield was protected by a 4.50NaN0 main armour belt, with deck armour varying between 1.25inchesand2inchesin (andin). The armour protecting the main gun turrets had a thickness of .
The first operational Type 79 radar system was placed into service in August 1938 on the Sheffield. The type 79Y was an air-warning radar, capable of detecting aircraft at, away. In 1940 the set was replaced by a more powerful Type 279 air-warning radar, which could also be used as a barrage predictor for anti-aircraft fire with a range of . By the end of 1942 Sheffield was equipped with a Type 273 surface search radar, a Type 281 air warning radar, Type 282 radars for the 2-pounder pom-pom anti-aircraft guns, Type 283 radar for automatic barrage firing for anti-aircraft fire by the main guns, Type 284 radar for surface target direction and Type 285 radar for the heavy anti-aircraft guns.
The anti-aircraft armament was continuously upgraded. During her 1944 refit Sheffield, like many contemporary British cruisers, had her 'X' turret removed to make space and save top weight for anti-aircraft guns. By 1945 her anti-aircraft defence was to consist of four quadruple Bofors 40 mm guns, ten double and six single Oerlikon cannons in addition to her existing armament of four-inch and two-pounder guns. After several refits in the 1950s, her final light anti-aircraft armament consisted of eight twin Bofors Mk 5 and two single Bofors Mk 7. Unlike most Royal Navy ships of her time, her fittings were constructed from stainless steel instead of the more traditional brass. This was an attempt to reduce the amount of cleaning required on the part of the crew. Her nickname, the "Shiny Sheff", stemmed from this.
Even before the outbreak of war, Sheffield was as part of the 18th Cruiser Squadron, together with the Home Fleet already patrolling the waters between Iceland, Scotland and Norway, in search for German merchant ships trying to reach home port before the declaration of war. From 6 to 10 September the cruisers Sheffield and operated with the Home Fleet consisting of the battleships and and the battlecruiser with ten destroyers along the Norwegian coast against German blockade runners. Sheffield and Aurora were then transferred to the 2nd Cruiser Squadron together with the light cruisers and . On 22 September the force sortied into the North Sea but the operation was abandoned when two of the escorting destroyers collided. Three days later the force sailed again, to cover the retreat of the damaged submarine . This sortie marked the first occasion of using an air warning radar by naval forces when Sheffield detected nine German aircraft searching for the British force. On 8 October Sheffield and Aurora were deployed together with the battlecruisers and Repulse as the "Humber Force" against a reported sortie of the German battleship, the light cruiser and nine destroyers in the North Sea. The Germans retreated quickly and no battle ensued. On 21 October Sheffield intercepted and captured the German freighter Gloria.
Following the sinking of the armed merchant cruiser by the German battleships Scharnhorst and Gneisenau off Iceland on 23 November, Sheffield was ordered to set out from Loch Ewe with three destroyers to take part in the search for the German force. Sheffield took part in a tight cruiser patrol line that blocked the return path to Germany but the German ships took advantage of the heavy weather and broke through the patrol line undetected to return home. In April 1940, Sheffield had returned just in time from a refit to get involved in the Norwegian Campaign. When in the evening of 7 April news was received of a massive German naval operation, she set out from Scapa Flow as part of the Home Fleet under the command of Admiral Charles Forbes. On 9 April Forbes detached five cruisers including Sheffield and seven destroyers from the Home Fleet to attack the German forces at Bergen. The force had to abort its mission when attacked by 47 Junkers Ju 88 and 41 Heinkel He 111 bombers. The bombers sank the destroyer and damaged two cruisers. On 14 April Sheffield was part of a covering force for the Allied Namsos campaign and on 23 April transferred part of the 15th Infantry Brigade for the Åndalsnes landings. The landings were not successful and in the night of 30 April Sheffield assisted in the evacuation of British troops from Andalsnes and Molde. On 9 May Sheffield sortied into the North Sea with the cruiser to cover operations against a German mine-laying operation, but when the German invasion of France started on 10 May, she was ordered south. During the Dunkirk evacuation she was stationed with the 18th cruiser squadron in the Humber.
The surrender of France created a void in the Western Mediterranean which was covered by the creation of Force H (Vice admiral James Somerville) in Gibraltar on 27 June. In August 1940, Sheffield and the 8th Destroyer Flotilla joined Force H, which consisting of the battlecruiser and the aircraft carrier . On 7 November Force H executed Operation Coat, escorting reinforcements for the Mediterranean fleet in Alexandria from Gibraltar to Malta. Fairey Swordfish aircraft from Force H attacked Cagliari on 9 November. Italian bombers retaliated but obtained only near-misses. Before Force H returned to Gibraltar, three Fairey Fulmar fighter aircraft were flown off to Malta as reinforcements. In Operation White on 15 November Force H escorted the aircraft carrier to a point West of Malta, where 12 Hawker Hurricanes were flown off at the extreme of their flight endurance. Only four aircraft made it to Malta due to unexpected head wind. On 24 November Sheffield sailed with Force H for Operation Collar, a supply convoy to Malta. The operation was detected by the Italians and the Italian fleet consisting of two battleships and six heavy cruisers, tried to intercept the convoy. During the inconclusive battle of Cape Spartivento both fleets bombarded each other at long distance and retreated. On 10 December Sheffield left Gibraltar again with Force H to meet and escort the battleship on transfer from Alexandria as reinforcement for Force H.
When during Operation Nordseetour the German heavy cruiser attacked on 25 December convoy WS 5A destined for Gibraltar, Force H left its base for the Atlantic to search for the German raider and to cover the convoy. She was back in Gibraltar on 30 December. In Operation Excess, some of the Convoy WS 5A ships continued to Malta and Piraeus, and between 7 and 9 January 1941 Force H with Sheffield provided cover for these ships as far as Skerki Banks. An attack by ten Italian bombers was detected by Sheffield
Between 31 January and 4 February Force H launched an air strike against the Tirso dam in Sardinia, but a further planned attack on Genoa had to be abandoned because of bad weather. The operation against Genoa was repeated in Operation Grog between 6 and 11 February. Renown and Malaya fired 273 rounds of 15-inch shell into the harbour and Sheffield added 782 rounds of 6-inch but to not much effect; only five out of 55 ships in the harbour were sunk. This sortie left the Gibraltar convoys without cover. The German cruiser Admiral Hipper sailed towards Gibraltar and on 12 February attacked Convoy SLS 64 and sank seven ships. On 17 March Force H left Gibraltar for the Atlantic in search of the German battleships Scharnhorst and Gneisenau, which were raiding in the North Atlantic. Aircraft of Ark Royal found in the morning of 20 March two tankers that were taken as prizes by the German battleships and which were scuttled by their prize crews on approach of surface units of Force H. In the afternoon the German battleships were sighted by a reconnaissance plane of Ark Royal but the German ships managed to escape during the night. Force H continued to search for the German ships after refuelling in Gibraltar on 24 March, but after air reconnaissance reported the ships in the harbour of Brest, Force H put back to Gibraltar on 28 March.
Two days later, Sheffield and four destroyers were dispatched to check some Vichy French merchant vessels for contraband but the ships escaped being boarded when they reached the cover of coastal batteries at Nemours. During April, Sheffield participated with Force H in two more aircraft transfer runs to Malta : In Operation Winch twelve Hurricanes were flown off to Malta on 3 April and twenty more were delivered in Operation Dunlop on 24 April. Operation Tiger involved two supply convoys from Alexandria to Malta, whilst from Gibraltar a convoy was to sail through the Mediterranean to Alexandria, instead of going round the Cape, in order to deliver 295 tanks and 53 aircraft which were urgently needed for the upcoming Operation Battleaxe. Force H with Sheffield escorted the convoy until Skerki Banks. They were attacked on 8 May by Italian Savoia-Marchetti SM.79 Sparviero torpedo bombers and German Junkers Ju 87 dive-bombers with fighter escort, but none of the ships suffered any damage. Between 19 and 22 May Sheffield sortied once more with Force H together with the aircraft carrier in Operation Splice to fly 48 Hurricane fighters to Malta.
After the disastrous Battle of the Denmark Strait in which the German battleship Bismarck and heavy cruiser sank the British battlecruiser and damaged the battleship, Force H left Gibraltar on 24 May with the aircraft carrier Ark Royal, the battlecruiser Renown, Sheffield and six destroyers to counter the German ships' breakout attempt into the Atlantic from the South. After learning through intelligence that the damaged Bismarck was heading for France, Swordfish from Ark Royal and a RAF Coastal Command Catalina were able to locate Bismarck on 26 May. Whilst Ark Royal was recovering her reconnaissance Swordfish and arming them for a torpedo attack, Sheffield was ordered ahead to make contact with Bismarck but the aircrew were not informed of that and were even told that no friendly ships were in the vicinity of Bismarck. As a result, the fifteen Swordfish, which were armed with torpedoes equipped with magnetic pistols, accidentally attacked Sheffield. Some of the magnetic detonators failed to work properly and about half of the torpedoes exploded prematurely, whilst Sheffield was able to dodge the others.
A second attack by the Swordfish was ordered with torpedoes equipped with contact detonators. This time the aircrew were told to make contact with Sheffield before attacking. In the deteriorating weather some of the aircraft did not find Bismarck and had to return to Sheffield, asking for a bearing to the enemy. After the Swordfish had rendered her un-manoeuvrable with a hit on the rudder compartment, Bismarck fired six salvos at Sheffield. The first salvo went a mile astray but the subsequent salvos straddled her, causing splinter damage and killing three crewman. Sheffield retreated under a smoke screen and lost contact with the Bismarck. Still she was able to vector five destroyers under the command of Philip Vian to Bismarck and these destroyers took over the task of shadowing the enemy. Force H remained in the vicinity until the next morning when Bismarck was finally sunk by the battleships Rodney and, and the heavy cruisers and .
On 8 June Sheffield left Gibraltar again together with Force H to avoid air attacks from the Vichy French Air Force as reprisal for the Syria–Lebanon campaign. Sheffield detached from Force H to return to Britain and on her way she located and sank one of Bismarcks tankers, Friedrich Breme on 12 June. Sheffield returned briefly to the Mediterranean in September for Operation Halberd, another supply convoy to Malta. On 24 September the convoy consisting of nine ships left Gibraltar, escorted by the aircraft carrier Ark Royal, the battleships Nelson,Rodney and Prince Of Wales, the cruisers Edinburgh, Kenya, Sheffield, Euryalus, Hermione and eighteen destroyers. On 26 September the British fleet was detected by air reconnaissance and the Italian fleet sailed to intercept with two battleships, three heavy cruisers, two light cruisers and fourteen destroyers.
The next day the Italian fleet hesitated to engage the British fleet as the Italian commander gradually realized he was facing superior forces. A strike from Ark Royal did not find the Italian fleet but Italian torpedo bombers damaged Nelson. Sheffield shot down one of the attacking torpedo bombers. Unlike in previous operations, not all covering forces turned back at Skerki Banks: the battleships did so, but the five cruisers remained with the convoy and sailed on to Malta. Italian torpedo aircraft attacked the convoy at dusk on 27 September. Sheffield avoided two torpedoes but one freighter was lost. The convoy arrived at Malta at noon on 28 September. The escorts refueled at Malta and returned the same day, reaching Gibraltar at dusk on 29 September. On her return to the UK Sheffield participated together with the light cruiser in the search for German blockade runners in the North Atlantic, which had been located by ULTRA. Only Kenya was able to intercept and sink the supply ship Kota Penang on 3 October West of Cape Finisterre.
On 7 January 1942 Sheffield arrived in Scapa Flow and was allocated to the 10th Cruiser Squadron together with the light cruiser . In March Sheffield participated briefly in the operations in support of Convoy PQ 12, Sheffield sailed to replace the heavy cruiser which had engine trouble, in the Home Fleet, just when Operation Sportpalast based on threatened the convoy. Sheffield hit a mine off Iceland on 4 March 1942 and was under repair until July. In September 1942 Sheffield was stationed at Spitsbergen as part of a force for the relief and supply of the escort for Convoy PQ 18. Arctic convoys were then suspended to reinforce the Allied landings in North Africa in November. Sheffield joined "Force O" under the command of Rear Admiral Cecil Harcourt, which was part of the Eastern Task Force responsible for the landings in Algiers. On 9 December Sheffield damaged the minesweeper in a collision.
In December 1942, the Arctic convoys were resumed. Dudley Pound, the First Sea Lord and Chief of the Naval Staff, insisted that these convoys were given protection against an attack by the German surface fleet stationed in Norway, by giving them cover of a cruiser force all the way to North Russia. The Home Fleet usually sailed as well but kept its distance. Sheffield and formed "Force R", under the command of Rear-Admiral Robert Burnett (in Sheffield). Force R escorted the first Convoy JW 51A into Kola Bay on 24 December and left on 27 December to meet Convoy JW 51B. The convoy was attacked on 31 December by two German forces, consisting of a heavy cruiser, Admiral Hipper and Lützow, and three destroyers each. In the Battle of the Barents Sea, both German forces were able to reach the convoy but whilst German: Admiral Hipper tried to lure the convoy escort vessels away from the convoy, German: Lützow failed to press on and did not sink any merchant ship. Force R arrived and damageD German: Admiral Hipper. Whilst the Germans were withdrawing, Sheffield sank the German destroyer . There were some more skirmishes, but the Germans were under strict orders not to risk their big ships against equal opponents and avoided battle. In the bad visibility and the polar nights, the British were at a clear advantage with their superior radars.
In January 1943 Sheffield is part of the distant cover force based on the battleship, for the outbound Convoy JW 52 and the homebound convoy RA 52. In February 1943, the 10th Cruiser Squadron consisting of the cruisers Sheffield, and as Force R were assigned to escort the next convoy JW 53. On 19 February she was damaged in a gale when a giant wave buried her forecastle and took away half of the roof of 'A' turret. Sheffield had to be replaced by and returned to Iceland for repairs. At the end of August 1943, Sheffield operated briefly together with the heavy cruiser as a cover force for British anti-submarine forces attacking U-boats in the Bay of Biscay. At the conclusion of this operation she rushed to the Mediterranean, to give fire support on 14 September to the troops facing a German counter-attack after the Operation Avalanche the landings at Salerno.
In November 1943 the Arctic convoys resumed. The first pair of convoys Convoy JW 54A and Convoy JW 54B sailed unopposed but on 19 December, German: [[Großadmiral]] Karl Dönitz asserted Hitler that the Kriegsmarine would attack and destroy the next convoy. Anticipating an attack by the German battleship Scharnhorst, the commander of the Home Fleet Bruce Fraser organized a trap : for the next convoys Convoy JW 55A and Convoy JW 55B, the cruiser escort consisting of the 10th Cruiser Squadron with the cruisers Sheffield, Belfast and Norfolk would keep Scharnhorst at bay and shadow her so that he could stay undetected at distance with the battleship and race to the scene when needed. On 26 December at 09:21 Sheffield was the first to sight Scharnhorst, and in a brief gun duel with the cruisers, the German battleship withdrew and escaped at high speed.
The cruisers were not able to follow but positioned themselves correctly on the other side of the convoy where Scharnhorst tried a second attack three hours later. At 12:10 Sheffield's radar detected Scharnhorst at a distance of 12 miles and a second engagement developed. Sheffield was straddled by several salvoes but then Scharnhorst changed target and hit Norfolk two times. Fearing torpedo attacks, Scharnhorst broke off the action and turned for port in Norway. The cruisers kept shadowing but first Norfolk and then Sheffield dropped behind with engine trouble. Belfast remained in touch with Scharnhorst and guided Duke Of York to the scene. At 19:45 the German battleship was sunk by gunfire from Duke Of York and torpedoes from the escorting destroyers. Sheffield could not catch up in time to participate in the sinking. During the return voyage to the UK, she suffered damage to one of her propellers and went for a small refit to Liverpool.
On 30 March 1944, Sheffield left Scapa Flow as part of the Home Fleet, which was a covering force for Convoy JW 58. After the passage of the convoy to North Russia, the Home Fleet executed Operation Tungsten, a raid by carrier aircraft on Tirpitz at her moorings in the Kaafjord. Tirpitz was damaged and put out of action by this attack, but she was repaired within weeks and hence follow-up attacks were needed. Sheffield assisted in one more carrier operation in May, when she was part of the escort for the escort carriers and . This force made two sorties towards Rørvik and Stadlandet on 14 and 15 May. A lengthy refit in Boston and in Britain kept Sheffield out of action from August 1944 until after the end of the war.
The refit was completed in May 1946 and Sheffield arrived at her new base, the Royal Naval Dockyard in the Imperial fortress colony of Bermuda, on the 30 August 1946, for duties as flagship on the America and West Indies Station. Her commanding officer, Captain K. G. Harkness, D.S.C., was also the Chief Staff Officer to the Commander-in-Chief, Vice-Admiral Sir Irvine Glennie. She departed Bermuda, and the station, on 26 October 1948, for England, replaced as flagship on the America and West Indies Station by Glasgow.
On 12 October 1951, Sheffield returned to Bermuda again as flagship of the America and West Indies Station, replacing . From June 1952 to May 1953, her commanding officer was Capt. John Inglis, who was to become director of Naval Intelligence in July 1954. In 1953 she took part in the Fleet Review to celebrate the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. On 18 October 1954, she was replaced as flagship of the America and West Indies Station by Superb, leaving Bermuda the same day to decommission at Portsmouth. In 1955, she played the part of the cruiser in the war film The Battle of the River Plate.
There were further refits in 1949/50,1954 and 1956-7 when her bridge was enclosed, a lattice foremast added, light anti-aircraft defense was modified and a comprehensive anti-nuclear and biological washdown installed in 1959–60. She became flagship of the Reserve Fleet and served again at sea in 1960 and then as an accommodation ship until September 1964, when she was placed on the disposal list. Her equipment was removed at Rosyth in 1967 and she was then broken up at Faslane in the same year. The stainless-steel ship's bell, which was made by Hadfields of Sheffield, was preserved and today hangs in Sheffield Cathedral along with her battle ensign.