King Charles returns royal status to iconic Dunkirk warship after more than seven decades
The vessel has been sat in the Thames since the 40s
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The King has officially restored the royal status to an iconic Dunkirk warship after 77 years.
HMS Wellington is the UK’s last remaining Second World War escort ship and has been moored in the Thames near Temple station since 1948.
The vessel lost her status as His Majesty’s Ship when she was decommissioned from the Royal Navy in 1947.
However, The Telegraph reports the King recently approved the use of the HMS title, after the Wellington Trust charity lobbied for the change, with Admiral Sir Ben Key, the First Sea Lord, instrumental in the process.
The vessel has been sat in the Thames since the 40s
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Lord West, a former first sea lord, said: "This is really good news because it now means we will probably be able to save this iconic ship – the last in the UK of the hundreds of escorts that enabled us to survive the predatory U-boats in the last war."
The Princess Royal, a patron of the Wellington Trust, had privately given her backing to the warship, which was first commissioned in 1934. However, the ship is at risk of being scrapped unless £150,000 can be raised to keep her afloat.
Historians believe that returning the royal status to the ship has given her a higher profile which will help in the campaign to save her.
Chairman of the Wellington Trust Professor Dominic Tweddle said: "We are greatly honoured that His Majesty the King has graciously approved our proposed name change. This change of name in her 90th anniversary year is a true testament to her heritage as the sole surviving dedicated Battle of the Atlantic warship in Europe."
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The vessel was used during the Dunkirk rescue
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HMS Wellington was used for 103 convoy escorts between September 3, 1939, and May 8, 1945, protecting vital maritime supply lines and merchant navy vessels. Hundreds of lives were saved as a result.
The ship was also key to the destruction of one enemy U-boat and participated in Operation Dynamo, the evacuation of troops from Dunkirk.
The warship would later come into peril when the Honourable Company of Master Mariners (HCMM), which had rented the ship as its floating livery hall, departed after 75 years.
There were several ideas to keep the ship floating including letting cabins for overnight stays, relaunching her as an event space for dinners and receptions, and introducing historical tours.
HMS Wellington is near Temple station
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Back in May, the trust celebrated the 90th anniversary of the ship’s launch.
Speaking on board, Professor Tweddle said: "Very few of us these days are around or in ships, so will not perhaps appreciate their importance. They are our lifeline to the world.
"She had a hectic career and an interesting career keeping a lifeline open for Britain during the war."
He added that without of ships like HMS Wellington and work by the merchant navy, "we would have been strangled and the war could have been lost".