£90,000 was raised in Hungerford and district in "Warship Week" in 1941 to pay for the Freesia. Flower Class ships were small convoy escort vessels armed with one 4 inch gun, a crew of 70, and reached a speed of 16 knots. Almost 300 were built during the 1939-45 war.

The Freesia was laid down on 18th June 1940 at Harland & Wolff in Belfast, launched just 15 weeks later on 3rd October, and went into service on 19th November.

Flower class corvettes were convoy escort boats, capable of being built quickly, of mounting the then available anti-submarine equipment, of surviving the heavy seas around the British Isles, and of matching U-boat speeds.

145 Flower-class corvettes were eventually built, and they inflicted considerable damage to attacking U-boats, sinking over 50 enemy submarines.

In May 1942 HMS Freesia took part in "Operation Ironclad". Following the successful operation, her Captain wrote to the crew:

"Freesia had the honour to  lead in Force "F" to Courier Bay through mined and narrow waters which  were commanded by hostile battery of guns. Complete surprise was  achieved and the gunners were captured all asleep in the battery by our  commando troops. I believe it is necessary to go back in history as far  as General Wolfe and Quebec to find a case of complete surprise in a  combined operation. I was very proud of you."

On 12th December 1942, HMS Freesia (under Lt. R.A. Cherry, RNR) helped to pick up 44 survivors when the British merchant Empire Gull was torpedoed and sunk west of Maputo, Portuguese East Africa.

The original captain Commander Crick lived to the age of 95 years, and died in 1997. The crew visited Hungerford in 1946.

In July 1946 HMS Freesia was sold to the merchant fleet and was sunk on 1st April 1947.

HMS Aricula, another corvette, which struck a mine during operation Ironclad, the taking of Madagascar to prevent a Japanese flanking movement. Fortunately there were no casualties.

H.M.S. Freesia K43 1940-1947

One of the sailors on HMS Freesia was Archie Coverdale, who served for three years from 1941-1943.

Archie was born in Southwark London in 1920 and moved to Boxted a small village near Colchester in Essex when he was 4 when his father took up an agricultural job.

We are grateful to Archie's son Les Coverdale who has kindly contacted the Virtual Museum to offer a large number of photographs taken on board ship during this period, some of which are shown here.

Archie Coverdale (back row, 2nd from right) with crewmates of HMS Freesia

Archie Coverdale on HMS Freesia firing the twin Lewis gun during target practice

Captain Crick's letter to the ship's company on leaving HMS Freesia  to assume command of HMS Keren.

Click the letter to open a transcription.

Archie Coverdale on HMS Freesia (with HMS Frittilary in the background

Picking up some of the 44 survivors after the sinking of the Empire Gull by a torpedo off Maputo, Portuguese East Africa on 12th December 1942.