On 21 April, HMS Amethyst was refloated, and on 22 April Lieutenant Commander Kerans arrived on board from Nanking, where he was assistant naval attaché, and took command. In order to prevent further loss of life, 60 of the crew tried to evacuate the ship but this was aborted after personnel were fired on in the water. £14.99. Using the HMS Amethyst, her last job before she went to the breakers . As it sunk, only 114 of the ship’s passengers survived — one of them Unsinkable Sam. P&P: + £9.99 P&P . 30th July, at 2209 with the Yangtze at its highest, HMS Amethyst started her famous escape. On the way back to the United Kingdom, the ship stopped at many ports and the news of the cat who brought hope and tranquility to the sailors spread across the world. 'Courage and comradeship' FOR THE ATTENTION OF ALL MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT Political Deceit & Deception . During the battle, some of the seamen were killed and the ship sailed into shore. HMS Amethyst was a modified Black Swan-class sloop of the Royal Navy.She was laid down by Alexander Stephen and Sons of Linthouse, Govan Scotland on 25 March 1942, launched on 7 May 1943 and commissioned on 2 November 1943, with the pennant number U16. HMS Amethyst Famously attacked by the PLA in 1949 while on the Yangtze, before being captured. As a perhaps trivial subscript to this amazing story, the surviving crew of HMS Amethyst, recommended that Simon also receive a medal for continuing to serve as part of the crew. situation he took command of HMS Amethyst. One of the HMS Amethyst crew giving speech after the Amethyst Incident, also known as Yangtze Incident, England, United Kingdom, 1949 Amethyst at the Hong Kong naval dockyard. HMS Amethyst was caught up in the fighting between nationalist and communist forces on the river Yangtze in April 1949. Later that day, HMS Consort attempted a rescue but came under heavy fire and was forced to continue down river. She was fired on and hit once immediately. Showing at 1315 on Friday on Film4. For anyone not up with it Kerans was the officer sent to get HMS Amethyst out of the mess she had got into after being attacked by Red Chinese artillery way up the Yangtse. HMS Amethyst. Amethyst remained incarcerated for 100 days, and the fact that HMS Concord entered the Yangtze to aid Amethyst in the aftermath of her escape has been denied. The battered HMS Amethyst after her escape from the Yangtze. Buy it now + EUR 3.03 postage. Prior to this there were three other ships involved in assisted escape attempts; the destroyer HMS Consort, the frigate HMS Black Swan and the cruiser HMS London. EUR 2.19. Later that day, HMS Consort attempted a rescue but came under heavy fire and was forced to continue down river. 1 Second World War 2 The Yangtse … RNSC Cover HMS - Funeral of Sir WINSTON CHURCHILL - Signed WS Churchill & Oswald. Celebrated for its daring July 1949 escape from Communist Chinese forces on the Yangtze River, HMS AMETHYST remains one of the Royal Navy's most famous ships. As the legend goes, another British battleship, the HMS Cossack, began attempting to rescue survivors of the sunken Bismarck in the open sea. The attempted cover-up of the part played by HMS Concord has now been well publicised but I must say the extent of the steps taken by certain individuals to hide the truth amazes me. As wikipedia has it: On 30 July 1949 Amethyst slipped her chain and headed downriver in the dark, beginning a 104-mile (167 km) dash for freedom running the gauntlet of Communist guns on both banks of the river. His famous signal announcing his success went around the world: ‘HMS Amethyst has rejoined the Fleet. The Amethyst was sent to protect the British people on the Yangtze River in China, but one day in April, the ship was attacked. HMS Amethyst (Navy Photos, click to enlarge) return to Contents List Modified BLACK SWAN-class Sloop ordered from Denny at Dumbarton under 1941 Build Programme on 19th December 1941. After the Second World War she was modified and redesignated as a frigate, and renumbered F116.. She was laid down by Alexander Stephen and Sons of Linthouse, Govan Scotland on 25 March 1942, launched on 7 May 1943 and commissioned on 2 November 1943, with the pennant number U16. Communist artillery opened fire but mistakenly focused forst on the civilian steamer, which allowed HMS "Amethyst" to escape. Escape from Greece RAFES signed pack of 2 FDC. The Amethyst Incident, also known as the Yangtze Incident, was a historic event which involved the Royal Navy ship HMS Amethyst being trapped on the Yangtze River for three months during the Chinese Civil War in the summer of 1949. Go to The Yangtse Incident to read Kerans' Naval Review account of the filming which Soleil lifted for us in 2011. HMS AMETHYST made her escape down river where, in the morning of 31 July, she was met by HMS CONCORD sent upriver earlier that morning to offer assistance if required. Nov 17, 2020 #7 ArtosStark. Image from 'Escape of the Amethyst" “Simon”, the ships’ cat on HMS Amethyst was also injured in the engagement. Heads Up! Escape from France multiple signed Resistance leaders RAF Escaping cover MY37. She remained a prisoner for 100 days. The American Suspense radio series included an episode entitled "'Log of the Marne" (22 October 1951), largely based on the events of the Yangtze incident.. Richard Todd starred as Kerans in the 1957 film Yangtse Incident: The Story of HMS Amethyst (in the US most commonly released as Battle Hell, but also as Escape of the Amethyst and Their Greatest Glory). An Overview of the Escape of HMS Amethyst July 30, 1949. A total of 46 British sailors were killed when communist Chinese forces shelled HMS Amethyst and the vessels that came to her rescue. After World War II she was modified and redesignated as a frigate, and renumbered F116. Buy it now + EUR 3.30 postage. It's not just ... as a distress signal and people on the beach fixed rope between the ship and the shore to allow some of the crew to escape, while others were rescued by boats. Fascinating (and amusing) reading I thought). I believe my brother E A Dixon [aged 19 ] was serving on HMS Amethyst at the time of the Yangtze incident but have been unable to confirm this, he later served n HMS Belfast, I would be grateful for any data as I am putting together a family history and at age of 77 may not have a … On the night of July 30th, the Amethyst finally managed to escape with the help of bad weather and limited visibility. All three suffered heavy damage and casualties in their attempts to save the Amethyst. HMS Amethyst was a modified Black Swan-class sloop of the Royal Navy.She was laid down by Alexander Stephen and Sons of Linthouse, Govan Scotland on 25 March 1942, launched on 7 May 1943 and commissioned on 2 November 1943, with the pennant number U16. HMS Amethyst's escape from the Yangtze in 1949, during the closing stages of the Chinese civil war, gave the People's Liberation Army its first internationally recognised slap in the face. June 4, 2009. The incident is widely interpreted by IWM as one of the key post-1945 'stories', no les so given HMS BELFAST's role in the operation as C-in-C's flagship based at Hong Kong. The ship's escape was made into a film starring Richard Todd in 1957. When it was obvious negotiations for safe passage down river were leading nowhere Lt Cdr Kearns planned the escape of HMS Amethyst. HMS Amethyst's ship's cat Simon was awarded the Dickins Medal for bravery but died before it could be awarded to him. HMS Amethyst launched in 1799. King George VI sent his congratulations and ordered that the mainbrace be spliced. ... as a distress signal and people on the beach fixed rope between the ship and the shore to allow some of the crew to escape, while others were rescued by boats. During WW2, Maria Dickin, founder of the People's Dispensary for Sick Animals, had instituted the Dickin Medal for acts of bravery in wartime by animals serving with the police, Civil Defence, or any branch of the armed forces. HMS Amethyst bravely escaped to open sea 101 days after the original incident and returned to England. So, on the night of 30 July 1949, Amethyst left under cover of darkness, and after a further series of adventures and more damage from Communist guns on shore, made it to the open sea, to be met by HMS Concord.The ordeal was over, after 101 days. Men tried to escape from the ship, but many were killed as soon as they left the Amethyst. GB Stamps Souvenir Postmark HMS Amethyst Escape from Yangtse River, Navy 1979. After the Second World War she was modified and redesignated as a frigate, and renumbered F116. HMS Amethyst became grounded during the attack and was therefore unable to escape. From United Kingdom. From United Kingdom. HMS Amethyst became grounded during the attack and was therefore unable to escape. HMS Amethyst was a Modified Black Swan-class sloop of the Royal Navy. By Derek Hodgson, RN . Soon after the sunset on 30 July HMS "Amethyst", profitting of a moonless night and of the passage of a Chinese steamer departed and dashed downriver. EUR 8.81. The Amethyst left Shanghai on April 19, 1949, with a crew of 171, some assorted Chinese cooks and launderers, and Simon the cat.At first, it seemed like another cruise on the China station. Members of Parliament, for your information, upon the above shown date sixty-five years ago the Commander-in-Chief, Far East Station, Admiral Sir Patrick Brind whose photograph is being posted here below, did as part of his endeavour to bring about H.M.S. Both ships subsequently reached safety, seemingly without being recognised and without having had to go into action. Details about 1979 ROYAL NAVY 30th ANNIVERSARY OF ESCAPE HMS AMETHYST DOUBLE SIGNED COVER See original listing. In order to prevent further loss of life, 60 of the crew tried to evacuate the ship but this was aborted after personnel were fired on in the water. In 1949 a British warship, HMS Amethyst, launched a daring escape after it was held captive for months by Chinese Communists on the Yangtze river. By April 1949, most of northern China, beyond the Yangtze, was under communist control. God save the King’. 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