HMS Eclipse

HMS Eclipse (H08)

Navy:	Royal Navy
Type:	Destroyer
Class:	E
Pennant:	H 08
Built by:	William Denny & Brothers (Dumbarton, Scotland)
Laid down:	22 Mar, 1933
Launched:	12 Apr, 1934
Commissioned:	29 Nov, 1934
Complement:	145
Lost:	24 Oct, 1943 HMS Eclipse (Cdr. Edward Mack, DSO, DSC, RN) was mined and sunk east of Kalymnos Island, Greece in position 37º01'N, 27º11'E.

History:	23 Jul, 1943 The Italian submarine Ascianghi was sunk off Augusta, Sicily by the British destroyers HMS Eclipse and HMS Laforey. 23 Sep, 1943 On this day HMS Eclipse damaged the German torpedo boat TA 10 (Oberleutnant Jobst Hahndorff) (former French torpedo boat La Pomone and later Italian FR 42) and sank the merchant Gaetano Donizetti, carrying Italian POWs, south west of Rhodes. The Gaetano Donizetti went down with her entire crew and at least 1.576 Italian POWs. (Italian sources speak of 1.835 POWs on board the Gaetano Donizetti) The POW's were mostly sailors and airmen from the Garrison of Rhodes. The heavily damaged TA 10 is towed back to Rhodes but is scuttled a few days later.