HMS Warwick ( D25 ) HMS " Warwick " ( D - 25 ) was an Admiralty ' W ' class destroyer built in 1917 . She saw service in both the First and Second World War s , before being torpedoed and sunk in February 1944 . Construction . HMS " Warwick " was built during the First World War as part of the Royal Navy ’ s War Emergency Programme . She was part of the Admiralty W Class of 21 ships , representing the last word in destroyer design at the time . " Warwick " was built by Hawthorn Leslie & Company , Hebburn , being laid down 10 March 1917 . She launched on 28 December 1917 , and completed 18 March 1918 . Service history . First World War . " Warwick " commissioned in March 1918 and saw action in the last months of World War I . She took part in the raid on Zeebrugge in April , the attempt by the RN to blockade Germany ' s U - boat force stationed in Flanders . She also participated in the second raid on Ostend in May and was heavely damadged by mine . " Warwick " was present at Scapa Flow in November 1918 when the Grand Fleet received the surrender of the German High Seas Fleet at the end of the war . Inter - war years . Following the end of World War I " Warwick " was stationed in the Mediterranean , serving there during the 20 ’ s , before joining the RN Reserve in the 30 ’ s . With the onset of war in 1939 " Warwick " was re - activated , re - commissioning in August , and joining the fleet at Plymouth in September . Second World War . During World War II " Warwick " served as a convoy escort , being too out - dated for modern destroyer work . In February 1940 she was deployed to the Western Approaches Escort Force for Atlantic convoy defence . In this role she was engaged in all the duties performed by escort ships ; protecting convoys , searching for and attacking U - boats which attacked ships in convoy , and rescuing survivors . In November 1940 , with the formation of distinct escort groups , she joined 7 EG . In December she was mined and spent the next four months in dock for repairs . In March 1941 she rejoined Western Approaches Command and saw out the year in the Atlantic . In January 1942 , following the US entry into the war and the opening of the U - boat offensive off the US east coast ( Operation Drumbeat ) , " Warwick " she transferred there , on loan to the USN . In June 1942 she was transferred to the West Indies serving with USN and RCN ships of the Caribbean Escort Force on anti - submarine patrol and convoy escort duty . In December " Warwick " returned to Britain for conversion as a long range escort . This entailed , among other modifications , removal of one of her boilers to allow extra fuel capacity , thus sacrificing speed for endurance and range . She remained in dock at Dundee for the first half of 1943 while this was carried out . In July she was on anti - submarine duties in the Bay of Biscay , supporting Operation Musketry , the RAF Coastal Command ' s Bay offensive In November she took part in Operation Alacrity , the establishment and supply of Allied air bases in the Azores which served to close the Mid - Atlantic gap . In January 1944 , having returned to Britain , " Warwick " was assigned to lead an escort group operating in the SouthWest Approaches , guarding against attacks by German E - boats . It was while engaged in this she was torpedoed and sunk on 20 February 1944 . Fate . On 20 February 1944 , while patrolling off Trevose Head , and under command of Cdr . Denys Rayner , " Warwick " was torpedoed by " U - 413 " . She sank in minutes , with the loss of over half her crew .