HMAS Parramatta II
A Brief History
The year of 2023 marks the 82nd anniversary of the tragic downfall of HMAS Parramatta II. The Grimsby class sloop was the Royal Australian Navy’s (RAN) second Parramatta which served in the Far East, Red Sea and the Mediterranean during World War II.
HMAS Parramatta II was built by Cockatoo Docks and Engineering Co Ltd at the Cockatoo Island Dockyard, Sydney. She was launched on the 10th of June 1939 and commissioned into the Royal Australian Navy on the 8th of April 1940 under the command of Lieutenant Commander Jefferson H Walker MVO, RAN.
Parramatta began her journey on 29 June 1940, leaving Fremantle to sail to the Red Sea, where she spent nine months torrid conditions undertaking escorting, patrolling and minesweeping duties. In 1941, took part in operations against Italian Eritrea, East Africa, and later transferred to the Mediterranean station, escorting supplies to the Allied Forces besieged at Tobruk, thus gaining the nickname 'Tobruk Ferry Service'.
In the morning of 27 November 1941, HMAS Parramatta II was hit by a torpedo launched by the German submarine U-559. The vessel was sunk off Tobruk and 138 crew members were lost in action. Only 24 crew members survived.
For more information on HMAS Parramatta II ‘s history and service, visit the Royal Australian Navy website: https://www.navy.gov.au/hmas-parramatta-ii
A Lasting Legacy
'Parramatta' is the oldest ship name in the Australian Navy. Four ships bare the name:
- HMAS Parramatta I (D55), a River-class destroyer commissioned in 1910, paid off in 1928, and sold for scrap
- HMAS Parramatta II (U44), a Grimsby-class sloop commissioned in 1939, and sunk by U-559 off Tobruk on 27 November 1941
- HMAS Parramatta III (DE 46), a River-class destroyer escort commissioned in 1961 and decommissioned in 1991
- HMAS Parramatta IV (FFH 154), an Anzac-class frigate commissioned in 2003 and active as of 2016
This video features a montage of HMAS Parramatta services held between 1961 - 2003
Commemorating HMAS Parramatta
Two memorial stones were unveiled in 1981 to commemorate both HMAS Parramatta I and II. In 1986, the two memorials were rededicated together and relocated from the former Bowling Club premises at Parramatta Park to Queens Wharf Reserve and a memorial service was held to honour the 138 men who were killed in action.
To learn more about the memorials, visit this page: http://historyandheritage.cityofparramatta.nsw.gov.au/blog/2013/10/04/the-hmas-parramatta-memorials-one-and-two
HMAS Parramatta Memorial. Photo Peter Arfanis
References
- Royal Australian Navy. (n.d.). HMAS Parramatta (II). Royal Australian Navy. Retrieved on 29 October 2021 from: https://www.navy.gov.au/hmas-parramatta-ii
- Wikipedia. (2021). HMAS Parramatta. Wikipedia. Retrieved on 29 October 2021 from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMAS_Parramatta
Natalie Cassaniti, Cultural Collections Officer, City of Parramatta, 2022
