by John Barnum
1/600 HMS Cumberland (Airfix)
HMS Cumberland- in China Station colours.
Built using the Airfix 1/600 HMS Suffolk kit hull..
Rebuilt the hull and added the missing stern. Used the funnels and a few parts-the remainder is scratchbuilt.
The Chinese junk was also scratchbuilt
HMS Cumberland was built at Vickers-Armstrong and was launched in 1926 .
She sent her early career 1927 - 1938 on the China Station 1939 found her as part of the South Atlantic Station based in Simonstown South Africa. At the beginning of WW2 she patrolled the South Atlantic,July 1939 she sank the Vichy French Munitions Transport ship Poitiers. In December of1 939 she was in the Falkland Islands from where she made a high speed run to relieve HMS Exeter after she had been damaged in the Battle of The River Plate; 1000 miles in 30 hours...
After the Graf Spee was scuttled HMS Cumberland returned to her patrol duties in the South Atlantic.
Damaged off Dakar by the Vichy French shore batteries which she had attacked she returned to Chatham for repairs.
1941-1944 she was on Russian Convoy escort duty including the infamous PQ17.
As WW2 closed in Europe she deployed to the Far East where she took the surrender of Japanese forces in Java and Burma. Returning to the UK she went trooping to Australia and in 1946 was placed in reserve.
In 1951 the Admiralty decided to turn HMS Cumberland into the first and only Trials Cruiser, a duty she continued to carry out until l958.
She was broken up at Newport 1959-60
