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Sister ship Marmion

HMS Orcadia was a Repeat Admiralty M-class destroyer that served in the Royal Navy during the First World War. The M class was an improvement on those of the preceding L class, capable of higher speed. Orcadia had a largely uneventful war. Joining the Fifteenth Destroyer Flotilla of the Grand Fleet in 1917, the ship was dispatched from the flotilla to the naval base Portsmouth. The vessel was a participant in anti-ship and anti-submarine patrols as part of the flotilla, but did not engage any enemy warships. The Admiralty increasingly used more successful convoys rather than relying on destroyers finding the enemy on patrol. After the Armistice that ended the war, Orcadia was allocated to the Local Defence Flotilla at Portsmouth and was sold in 1921 to be broken up.

Design and development

Orcadia was one of 16 Repeat Admiralty M-class destroyers ordered by the British Admiralty in February 1915 as part of the Fourth War Programme soon after the start of the First World War. The M class was an improved version of the earlier L class, required to reach a higher speed in order to counter rumoured new German fast destroyers. The remit was to have a maximum speed of 36 knots (67 km/h; 41 mph) and, although ultimately the destroyers fell short of that ambition in service, the extra performance that was achieved was valued by the navy. It transpired that the German warships did not exist.

References

Citations

1. McBride 1991, p. 45.
2. Friedman 2009, p. 132.

Bibliography

• Bush, Steve; Warlow, Ben (2021). Pendant Numbers of the Royal Navy: A Complete History of the Allocation of Pendant Numbers to Royal Navy Warships & Auxiliaries. Barnsley: Seaforth Publishing. ISBN 978-1-526793-78-2.
• Colledge, James Joseph; Warlow, Ben (2006). Ships of the Royal Navy: The Complete Record of All Fighting Ships of the Royal Navy. London: Chatham Press. ISBN 978-1-93514-907-1.
• Dittmar, F.J.; Colledge, J.J. (1972). British Warships 1914–1919. Shepperton: Ian Allan. ISBN 0-7110-0380-7.
• Friedman, Norman (2009). British Destroyers: From Earliest Days to the First World War. Barnsley: Seaforth Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84832-049-9.
• Manning, Thomas Davys; Walker, Charles Frederick (1959). British Warship Names. London: Putnam. OCLC 780274698.
• March, Edgar J. (1966). British Destroyers: A History of Development, 1892–1953; Drawn by Admiralty Permission From Official Records & Returns, Ships' Covers & Building Plans. London: Seeley Service. OCLC 164893555.
• McBride, Keith (1991). "British 'M' Class Destroyers of 1913–14". In Gardiner, Robert (ed.). Warship 1991. London: Conway Maritime Press. pp. 34–49. ISBN 978-0-85177-582-1.
• Monograph No. 33: Home Waters: Part VII: From June 1916 to November 1916 (PDF). Naval Staff Monographs (Historical). Vol. XVII. Naval Staff, Training and Staff Duties Division. 1927.
• Monograph No. 34: Home Waters—Part VIII: December 1916 to April 1917 (PDF). Naval Staff Monographs (Historical). Vol. XVIII. The Naval Staff, Training and Staff Duties Division. 1933. Archived (PDF) from the original on 16 August 2016. Retrieved 7 April 2023.
• Moretz, Joseph (2002). The Royal Navy and the Capital Ship in the Interwar Period. London: Routledge. ISBN 978-0-71465-196-5.
• Newbolt, Henry (1931). Naval Operations: Volume V. History of the Great War. London: Longmans, Green and Co. OCLC 220475309.
• Parkes, Oscar; Prendergast, Maurice (1969). Jane's Fighting Ships 1919. Newton Abbott: David & Charles. OCLC 907574860.
• Peebles, Hugh B. (1986). Warshipbuilding on the Clyde, 18891939: A Financial Study Volume 2: Appendixes (Thesis). University of Stirling.
• Preston, Antony (1985). "Great Britain and Empire Forces". In Gardiner, Robert; Gray, Randal (eds.). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1906–1921. London: Conway Maritime Press. pp. 1–104. ISBN 978-0-85177-245-5.

v t e M-class destroyers
Royal Navy	Admiralty M class Murray Myngs Matchless Milne Morris Moorsom Negro Mandate Mons Michael Marmion Marne Mystic Martial Milbrook Prince Pylades Maenad Mameluke Mindful Nessus Magic Minion Opal Manners Marvel Mary Rose Ossory Mischief Menace Moresby Opportune Munster Noble Napier Onslaught Nonsuch Nestor Oracle Narwhal Nepean Nicator Nomad Onslow Nereus Narborough Pigeon Plover Partridge Medina Pelican Norman Orestes Petard Paladin Nizam Penn Pasley Medway Orford Plucky Observer Peyton Pellew Nonpareil Peregrine Offa Orpheus Octavia Parthian Northesk Oriole Portia Norseman Osiris Oberon Orcadia Oriana Ophelia Pheasant Obedient North Star Phoebe Obdurate Nugent Hawthorn M class Mentor Mansfield Thornycroft M class Meteor Mastiff Patriot Patrician Rapid Ready Yarrow M class Miranda Minos Manly Moon Morning Star Mounsey Musketeer Nerissa Relentless Rival Yarrow Later M class Sabrina Strongbow Surprise Sybille Truculent Tyrant Ulleswater
Royal Canadian Navy	Thornycroft M class Patriot Patrician
Preceded by: Laforey class Followed by: R class
List of destroyer classes of the Royal Navy

• 1916 ships
• Admiralty M-class destroyers
• Ships built on the River Clyde
• World War I destroyers of the United Kingdom