For Chris Drage's Flower Class build feature

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In 1938 it became obvious to the British government that war with Germany was inevitable. Permission was therefore granted to the Admiralty to expand the Royal Navy to meet the threat from the Kreigsmarine. It was assumed that the country would be at war by 1940, and it was all too clear that existing designs for escort vessels to accompany the forthcoming convoys would be impossible to build in sufficient numbers in the time available. In 1915, the Middlesborough shipbuilders Smith’s Dock Co. Ltd. had met a similar requirement by the adaptation of an existing whalecatcher design, so the company was again approached for a solution. The design of the recently built whaler Southern Pride was enlarged and adapted to produce a design which could be produced quickly in large numbers. So was born the Flower class corvette. The Flowers were small, cramped and uncomfortable. They were slower than a surfaced U-boat and pitched and tossed in a heavy sea to the extent that numerous crewmen were injured by being hurled around on board. However, the Flowers had a number of important attributes. They were extremely seaworthy, had a long range and could out-turn a U-boat, plus although the hull and machinery were old fashioned, they were equipped with the latest asdic and radar, and crucially, they were available.

269 Flower class corvettes were built in British and Canadian yards, serving with the RN and RCN. 15 were supplied to the U.S. under lend-lease, and four of the six vessels building in French yards in 1940 were completed by the Germans, serving in the Kreigsmarine as patrol vessels PA.1 to PA.4. Production continued until 1942, when more specialised anti-submarine vessels became available. During this period various modifications and improvements were made to the basic design, such as an extension of the forecastle to improve seaworthiness and accommodation, and improvements in the bridge design, reflecting their change in roll from coastal to ocean escorts. Many of the type were completed as minesweepers. HMS Bluebell was built by Fleming & Ferguson, being launched on 24^th April 1940, and completed 19^th July. She was refitted as one of the "long forecastle" versions during early 1942. She served with the Royal Navy until 17^th February 1945, when she was torpedoed and sunk by U711 in the Barents Sea.

The Flower class corvettes were in the thick of the Battle of the Atlantic from beginning to end, with 33 being lost. By the end of the war many were worn out, and they were amongst the first vessels the Royal Navy sold off and scrapped. Only one example now remains of the class of ship that more than any other helped win the Battle of the Atlantic, HMCS Sackville has been restored and preserved in Canada.