HMS Dido
Seven
ships of the British
Royal Navy have been named
HMS Dido, after
Dido, the legendary founder and queen of
Carthage.
* The first
Dido was a 28-gun
sixth-rate launched in
1784 and sold
1817.
* The second
Dido was an 18-gun
corvette launched in
1836, used as a
coal hulk after
1860, and sold
1903.
* The third
Dido was to be a wooden screw-propelled
corvette. Laid down
14 January 1861, construction was cancelled
12 December 1863.
* The fourth
Dido was a wooden screw
corvette launched in
1869, hulked
1886, renamed
Actaeon in
1906 and sold
1922.
* The fifth
Dido was a
2nd class cruiser launched in
1896, used as a depot ship after
1913 and sold
1926.
* The sixth
Dido, a
light cruiser, was launched on
July 18 1939. The ship took part in the evacuation of troops and defense of
Crete, where she was damaged on B gun, resulting in the deaths of 46 men.
Dido also took part in the
Second Battle of Sirte during
1942, sinking three supply ships off North Africa, and in the
Anzio landings and the invasion of Southern France in August
1944. The ship was broken up after
1958.
* The seventh
Dido (F104) was a
Leander-class frigate laid down in
1959 and launched in
1961 at
Yarrow,
Scotstoun. After being sold to the
Royal New Zealand Navy in
1980 the ship was renamed
Southland and later sunk as an artificial reef.
