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On the afternoon of April 30, 1946, the British Royal Navy light cruiser HMS Black Prince Without the assistance of a harbour pilot or tugboat, the cruiser quietly sailed through the Whakaraupō Lyttelton Harbour towards Lyttelton Harbour Wharf 4. Greeted by a handful of sightseers, the crew were invited to join in celebrations hosted by Christchurch’s Union Jack Club Inc., while its officers were entertained by guests from the Lyttelton Port Authority and Borough Council. Over the next few days, the cruiser was open to the public, with more than 1500 people, many of them school children, aboard what would become the newest member of the Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN).
The Royal New Zealand Navy’s wartime fleet was formed in October 1941 from the New Zealand Division of the Royal Navy, and during World War II it served with distinction in numerous campaigns in the Atlantic and Pacific. However, soon after the end of World War II, the Royal New Zealand Navy sought to adapt to peacetime conditions, which necessitated the modernization of the aging fleet and the expansion of its personnel. As part of the post-war transformation, the old cruisers Royal New Zealand Navy Achilles and Gambia Replaced by two former Royal Navy “Improved” Dido-class light cruisers, with the Royal Navy flagship being HMNZS Bellona Commissioned 17 April 1946, then Royal New Zealand Navy Black Prince May 25, 1946.
HMS was launched in August 1942 and commissioned in November 1943 Black Prince The ship had a long history of service with the Royal Navy during World War II, participating in the North Sea Campaign, the Normandy Landings, and the Mediterranean and Pacific campaigns, including the Battle of Okinawa. The ship displaced 6,050 tons, was 156 meters long, 15.4 meters wide, and had a draft of 4.3 meters. The ship was powered by four naval triple-drum boilers producing 62,000 shaft horsepower (46 MW) driving four geared steam turbines, giving it a top speed of 32.25 knots (59.73 km/h). Black Prince At a cruising speed of 16 knots (30 km/h), the range was 6,824 km. These Royal Navy Dido-class light cruisers had a full crew of 530 men and were armed with eight QF 5.25-inch guns in four twin turrets fore and aft, and were considered suitable “second-hand stock” for the young Royal New Zealand Navy.
After a short stop in Littleton Black Prince On 5 May 1946, the ship sailed for her new base in Auckland for commissioning and a comprehensive refit, and her new commanding officer, Captain Charles Clinton Stevens, resident at Ashburton, would join the ship. Commander Stevens was Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve (New Zealand) While working at Massey Harris in Ashburton. After the outbreak of World War II, he joined Minesweeper Fleet Previously, he served with distinction in the Mediterranean and Pacific theaters. His new assignment is to oversee the modernization of the newly acquired HMNZS Black PrinceHowever, due to budgetary constraints and recruitment difficulties, as well as the “mutiny” of many RNZN aircrew during 1947 over pay and benefits, the RNZN Black Prince It remained out of service until its refit was completed in 1952-3.
this Black Prince Sister ship HMNZS Bellona In 1943, he was also incorporated into the Royal Navy and participated in various World War II operations, including Arctic escort and naval battles against famous Nazi battleships. Tirpitz, and the Normandy landings. In April 1947, her Royal New Zealand Navy crew also participated in the “mutiny” while in Auckland Harbour. The following November, she visited Ōhinehou Lyttelton as part of Te Waipounamu’s South Island tour. While the ship was in port, most of her crew were on leave in the city centre when a fire broke out in Ballantynes Department Store at around 3:48 pm on 18 November 1947. The fierce flames attracted a large crowd, and at this time Bellona Firefighters stepped in to assist the fire brigade and protect the public from harm until police reinforcements arrived. The catastrophic fire killed 41 employees and remains the worst fire in the country’s history.
In the following years, HMNZS Bellona, and Black Prince From 1952 to 1955, she would, along with the newly acquired Locke-class frigates, play a key role in training, regional cooperation and maintaining New Zealand’s post-war naval presence in the Pacific. Bellona In 1956, the ship returned to the Royal Navy and was controversially replaced by another old Dido-class cruiser, HMNZS Royalist. elder Black Prince Representing the Royal New Zealand Navy Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation in 1953and made her final stop at Lyttelton on 18–19 January 1954 while escorting the Royal Yacht Gothic on a New Zealand tour. She was decommissioned in August 1955 and served as an accommodation and spares ship before being towed to Japan for scrapping in 1962.
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