On This Day
1919-1938 > Depresssion and between the wars
On This Day - 1919-1938
- June 4, 1937
HMA Ships SUCCESS, STALWART, TASMANIA, and TATTOO, (destroyers), were sold for scrap. All four ships had been built in the United Kingdom towards the end of World War I, and gifted to the RAN in 1920. They had been decommissioned in the early 1930’s due to the financial constraints imposed upon the RAN due to the Great Depression, and been placed into reserve.
- January 21, 1937
The Grimsby class escort sloop, HMAS SWAN, (CMDR R. R. Dowling, RAN), was commissioned. SWAN was laid down in Cockatoo Island Dockyard, Sydney, 1 May 1935, and launched on 28 March 1936. Mrs J. A. Lyons, (Wife of the Australian Prime Minister), performed the launching ceremony.
- January 9, 1937
HMAS SWORDSMAN, (destroyer), was sold out of service.
- November 9, 1936
HMAS VENDETTA, (destroyer), was despatched from Sydney to search for the 32 foot launch VIKING, missing between Sydney and Lord Howe Island. Although five steamers and numerous smaller craft joined in the search, no trace of the missing vessel was ever found.
- August 11, 1936
HMAS Australia (II) arrived in Sydney after an absence of 615 days on exchange service in company with HMAS Sydney who made her long awaited entry through Sydney Heads and into Port Jackson where her arrival was viewed from the shore by thousands of citizens who had turned out to see her. As she slowly made her way through the channel she was saluted with the sound of ferry whistles as she made her way to a buoy off Garden Island.
- July 14, 1936
HMA Ships AUSTRALIA and SYDNEY, (cruisers), were attached to the Mediterranean Fleet during the Abyssinian crisis.
- July 12, 1936
VADM Sir George Francis Hyde was promoted to Admiral. He was the first seagoing officer of the RAN to achieve the rank.
- June 19, 1936
HMAS Tattoo paid off and eventually sold for breaking up on 4 June 1937.
- June 15, 1936
HMS AMPHION, (cruiser), later HMAS PERTH, was commissioned at Portsmouth.
- May 7, 1936
HMAS ANZAC, (destroyer leader), was sunk as a target off Sydney Heads.