Canterbury gets visit from naval namesake

Press, 3 February 1984, Page 18

Canterbury gets visit from naval namesake

By

LINDA HARRISON

The province’s nameship H.M.N.Z.S. Canterbury, makes her first official visit to Canterbury since 1979 next Wednesday. The visit has been timed to coincide with the open day at the Kirt on Sunday, February 12. The oyal New Zealand Navy was also to have been represented by the survey craft H.M.N.Z.S. Monowai, but this has been cancelled for operational reasons. Canterbury, a Leander class frigate, was launched in 1970 by Princess Anne and was commissioned into the Royal New Zealand Navy in 1972. She is a far cry from the first vessel to bear the name. The word Canterbury is a modern form of the Jute name Cantwarabyrig (meaning the fortress of the people of' Kent) and the first vessel to bear this name was a storeship of eight guns and 360 tons, laid down in. Ipswich in 1692. Later the same year she was added to the Royal Navy. She foundered in the Severn with the loss of all hands during a storm in 1703. She was later raised and sold in Bristol, then broken up in 1770. The second ship to bear the name was a 60-gun fourth-rater of 903 tons built at Deptford in 1693. She was part of Sir John Leake’s force that destroyed a French squadron off Marbella in 1705. She later took part in the defeat of the Spanish fleet off Cape Pussaro. After being rebuilt twice, the vessel served as a hospital ship, arid was broken ,up in 1763. _ The third Canterbury was a 79ton “buss” of 6 guns purchased

from the Society of Free British Fisheries in 1756 and wrecked at the bar at the capture of Senegal in 1758.

The name was taken up again in 1914 for a Cambria class light cruiser which saw extensive service in the First World War. In 1924 she was attached to the gunnery school at Portsmouth and 10 years later was broken up. In 1939, the Admiralty requisitioned the Southern Railways cross channel steamer Canterbury for troop-carrying duties, and she later took part in the Dunkirk evacuation, before being returned to her owners at the end of 1945.

The present Canterbury is a 2860-ton frigate designed to fight and steam in conditions of nuclear fallout. She continues the tradition of New Zealand Navy major warships being named after areas and provinces of the country. She made an official visit to Lyttelton in 1972 and has returned several times since then, including during the visit of the Royal Yacht Britannia in 1977 and during the Commonwealth Games in 1974.

Three tours of duty in Canterbury’s New Zealand Navy career stand out as being most interesting. The first occurred in 1973, the year after she was commissioned, when the Canterbury was called on to take part in the Labour Government’s protest at the French testing at Mururoa. The frigate Otago had sailed into the area, carrying Mr Fraser Coleman, M.P., and she was replaced after a time by the Canterbury. Four years later, the Canterbury

represented the New Zealand Navy at the Spithead Review. This was the Queen’s review of the fleet on the occasion of her silver jubilee. More recently, the Canterbury has been loaned to the British to carry out patrols in the Indian Ocean, freeing Royal Navy ships for Falklands-related services. The last of the Indian Ocean deployments ended about nine months ago, after visits to Zanzibar, Mauritius, Pakistan, Colombo, and Singapore. That was followed by a 3% month deployment to Exercise Kangaroo ‘B3, held in Australia. For this official visit to her own province, the Canterbury is scheduled to arrive in Timaru today and sail for Lyttelton on Sunday. She is scheduled to arrive in Lyttelton on Wednesday morning and among the first visitors on board will be representatives of

the Canterbury Rugby Union, who will hand over the Ranfurly Shield for display to the ship’s company of 250 officers and ratings. On Friday, February 10, the ship’s pompany will take part in a charter parade through the streets of Christchurch and will be accompanied by the New Zealand Navy Band. That evening the Christchurch City Council will host a civic reception for the ship.

A contingent from the frigate, again accompanied by the Navy band, will also visit Akaroa on Saturday, February 11. The ship will be open to the public that afternoon, as it will be the next day during the port open day. The ship’s Maori cultural group wjll visit the national marae in Pages Road on Saturday afternoon.

Commander J.E.N. Welch, of Auckland, is the commander of H.M.N.Z.S. Canterbury.