&sq=Qlik&lang=&file=File:HMS_Glowworm_(H92).jpg) Broadside view of Glowworm
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| History | |
|---|---|
 United Kingdom | |
| Name | Glowworm |
| Ordered | 5 March 1934 |
| Builder | John I. Thornycroft & Company, Woolston, Hampshire |
| Laid down | 15 August 1934 |
| Launched | 22 July 1935 |
| Commissioned | 22 January 1936 |
| Identification | Pennant number: H92 |
| Motto | Ex tenebris lux : 'Out of darkness light'. |
| Fate | Sunk by the German cruiser Admiral Hipper, 8 April 1940 |
| Badge | On a Field Blue, a lantern Black with rays issuing Silver |
| General characteristics (as built) | |
| Class and type | G-class destroyer |
| Displacement | |
| Length | 323 ft (98.5 m) |
| Beam | 33 ft (10.1 m) |
| Draught | 12 ft 5 in (3.8 m) |
| Installed power |
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| Propulsion | 2 shafts, 2 geared steam turbines |
| Speed | 36 knots (67 km/h; 41 mph) |
| Range | 5,530 nmi (10,240 km; 6,360 mi) at 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph) |
| Complement | 137 (peacetime), 146 (wartime) |
| Armament |
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HMS Glowworm was a G-class destroyer built for the Royal Navy in the mid-1930s. During the Spanish Civil War the ship spent part of 1936 and 1937 in Spanish waters, enforcing the arms blockade imposed by Britain and France on both sides of the conflict. Glowworm was transferred from the Mediterranean Fleet shortly after the beginning of Second World War to the British Isles, to escort shipping in local waters.
In March 1940, she was transferred to the Home Fleet and participated in the opening stages of the Norwegian Campaign. On 8 April 1940 Glowworm encountered German destroyers transporting troops to invade Norway in Operation Weserübung. The German destroyers tried to disengage and called for help from the heavy cruiser Admiral Hipper. In the battle, Glowworm, severely damaged, rammed Admiral Hipper, losing its bow and sinking shortly afterwards.
Kapitän zur See (Captain) Hellmuth Heye, the commander of Admiral Hipper, recommended that the captain of Glowworm be awarded a posthumous Victoria Cross. There were only two other occasions when a VC was awarded at the recommendation of the opponent in the Second World War.