Ship bell of HMS Kent, 1903
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Ship bell of HMS Kent 1903
August 28, 1983
The ship's bell of HMS Kent is located in the South Quire Aisle accompanied by a painted wooden plaque of the White Horse of Kent.
H.M.S. Kent was an armoured cruiser of 9,800 tons built in 1903. She was present at the battle of the Falkland Islands in World War I when Admiral Sturdee destroyed the German Fleet under Admiral Graf von Spee, following the German victory over Admiral Craddock in the battle of Coronel.
HMS Kent launched in 1903.
She also took part in the pursuit of S.M.S. Dresden, which was finally cornered in the Juan Fernandez Group off the coast of Chile, where the German ship after having hoisted the white flag, was blown up by her crew.
The second Kent was a Chatham ship launched in 1926. She was a County class cruiser and served during the Second World War.
HMS Kent launched in 1926.
After serving as flagship of the 5th Cruiser Squadron on the China Station she operated with the 4th Cruiser Squadron in the Mediterranean in 1940. Her wartime career seems to be a tale of one disaster after another.
On 18th September 1940, whilst east of Bardiyah, North Africa she was extensively damaged after an attack by two torpedo aircraft. In November she was transferred to Devonport and spent most of the next year in dockyard hands. On 21 April 1941, and again on 29th April she was struck by bombs during a raid on Plymouth. In september she joined the 1st cruiser Squadron of the Home Fleet, operating in Northern Waters protecting Russian convoys.
On 5th December 1944 she collided with the merchant ship Blue Ranger, and proceeded to the Clyde for repairs. On completion she remained in the Careloch as flagship of the Resrve Fleet. After the war she became the flagship of Chatham Reserve. She ended her career being used in target trials, and was eventually sold for breaking up in January 1948.
From the notebooks ‘The Naval and Military Memorials of Rochester Cathedral’ (1979)
by Roy Trett, OBE, TD,
Rochester Cathedral Chapter Library
Gillett and Johnston of Croydon to recast the existing eight bells and to add two more in 1921.
