Roberts-class monitor

The Roberts class of monitors of the Royal Navy consisted of two heavily-gunned vessels built during the Second World War. They were the Roberts, completed in 1941, and Abercrombie, completed in 1943.

Features of the class, apart from two 15" guns in a twin mounting (taken from two First World War era Marshall class monitors), were shallow draught for operating inshore, broad beam to give stability (and also resistance to torpedoes and mines) and a high observation platform to observe fall of shot.

Ships

 * HMS Roberts (F40), named after Field Marshal Frederick Roberts, 1st Earl Roberts.
 * Built by John Brown & Company, Clydebank, laid down 30 April 1940, launched 1 April 1941 and completed on 27 October 1941. She reused the turret of the  World War I monitor Marshall Soult. Roberts provided bombardment support during Operation Torch in north Africa, where she was damaged by two 500 kg bombs. She was repaired in time to support Operation Husky (the invasion of Sicily), Allied landings near Salerno Operation Avalanche, the D-Day landings and the Walcheren operations. She was scrapped in 1965.

One of HMS Robert's guns (formerly in HMS Resolution) is mounted outside the Imperial War Museum in Lambeth, South London, together with one from the battleship Ramillies. HMS Roberts herself was sold for scrapping shortly after the war, but hired back by the Royal Navy as an accommodation ship at Devonport until 1965. It was widely rumoured that the ship-breakers who bought her had more than recovered their purchase price in rent before they then sold her remains as scrap metal.


 * HMS Abercrombie (F109), named after General James Abercrombie, built by Vickers Armstrong, Tyne. She was laid down 26 April 1941, launched 31 March 1942 and completed 5 May 1943. She used a 15-inch gun turret originally built as a spare for HMS Furious. She was damaged by contact mines on several occasions while supporting the invasion of Italy, but was repaired. She was scrapped in 1954.