Southern African Navy

Southern African Navy (1920+)

The South African Navy already existed prior to 1920, but it was the most junior of the services of South Africa. With the addition of the ex-Germanic States colonies the size of South Africa more than doubled. The main fleet, such as it was, was based at Simonstown. To acchieve the self sufficiency the South Africans wanted, the base would have to be enlarged and made into a major harbour and shipbuilding center. Eventually the shipbuilding industry based itself at Durban with offshoots at Capetown and Simonstown.

Despite Southern Africas wants, they were unable to get the required infrastructure in place to produce heavy ordinance and armour plate. It took Australis nearly 50 years before they were able to produce quality large armoured ships. Southern Africa by the time WW2 started were producing their own destroyers and below and had started on cruisers.

Part of the Southern African Navy tied up at Simonstown. CVE and CL.

In 1919 the South African Navy consisted of 2 Cruisers and half a dozen minesweepers and minor vessels. All that had been required to keep the shores free of the Germanic States merchant raiders and the mines they had sown. By 1925 the Southern African Navy had Aircraft carriers, Battleships, Battlecruisers, Cruisers of all sorts and minor vessels required of a full navy. Plans were underway for more purchases of new vessels and auxiliaries.

Each purchase of a Capital Ship required the purchase of supporting ships either as escorts or replenishment ships to go with them. Light cruisers and destroyers for the battleships and aircraft carriers, larger cruisers for extended cruising on the shipping lanes. As Southern Africa was to be responsible for the South Atlantic from the narrows of South America / Africa down, and for the western half of the Indian Ocean, the fleet was split between Simonstown and Durban. Refit resources were put into Simonstown while building and refiting was carried out at Durban.

The Southern African Navies natural opponent was the Argentinian Naval Forces. This was one of the main reasons for setting up the Southern African Navy with such a large fleet. To balance the navy Argentina had purchased off of the Allied War Reparations Commission. As it turned out the Southern African Forces had the Chilean and Brazilian battlefleets to assist them with containment and destruction of the enemy forces in the South Atlantic.

Wartime construction from the Southern African yards concentrated on a class of light cruisers, destroyers, destroyer escorts and minor ships of minesweepers and below. Like the Australis and UK shipyards the wartime ships were built to common designs to aid both the ease of construction but also meant that there could be an interchange of equipment from one country to another if facilities and or equipment manufacturers were damaged or production slowed through wartime damage.

Southern African Navy
Aircraft Carriers
HMSAS Eagle	CV	01	1924
HMSAS Lesotho	CVE	01	1908/31
HMSAS Kwazulu	CV	01	1938
HMSAS Pretoria	CVE	04	1939
HMSAS Zambia	CVL	02	1941
Battleships, Battlecruisers
HMSAS Sud Afrika	BC	01	1936
HMSAS Transvaal	BC	01	1926
HMSAS Zimbabwe	BB	01	1916
HMSAS Gauteng	BB	01	1915
HMSAS Natal	BB	01	1914
HMSAS Namibia	BB	02	1913
HMSAS Rhodesia	BC	02	1913
HMSAS Botswana	ADV	01	1908
Cruisers (Heavy, Light, AA & Escort)
HMSAS Mount Kiliminjaro	CLA	06	1942+
HMSAS Angola	CA	06	1938+
HMSAS Stanleyville	CL	02	1937
HMSAS Namaqualand	CL	04	1933
HMSAS Congo	CA	02	1927
HMSAS Capetown	CLA	01	1922
HMSAS Nairobi	CL	02	1916
HMSAS Mombasa	CLA	03	1915
HMSAS Bloemfontein	CLA	03	1912
HMSAS Waterberg	CL	02	1910
Destroyers (Leaders, Escort etc)
HMSAS Capricorn	DDL	12	1943+
HMSAS Lake Victoria	DDE	16	1942
HMSAS Protea	DD	32	1941
HMSAS Drakensberg	DD	12	1939
HMSAS Matabele	DDL	8	1937
HMSAS Immortelle	DD	8	1934
HMSAS Bison	DD	4	1930
HMSAS Etosha	DD	12	1917
HMSAS Okavango River	DDE	9	1916
HMSAS Zambesi River	DDE	13	1915
Miscelaneous (Escorts, Minesweepers, Minelayers, RFA etc)
HMSAS Springbok	ML	2	1943
HMSAS Crocodile	TS/ML	2	1906
HMSAS Rhinoceros	TS/Mon	1	1918
HMSAS Wildebeest	TS	1	1935
HMSAS Duiker Island	Depot	16	1942+
HMSAS
HMSAS
HMSAS
HMSAS

South African and Australis ships awaiting collection 1920. Agincourt, Erin and Iron Dukes.

Rank insignia of the South African Navy
Officer ranks	Admiral	Vice Admiral	Rear Admiral	Rear Admiral JG	Captain	Commander	Lieutenant Commander	Lieutenant	Sub Lieutenant	Ensign	Mid- shipman

Rank insignia of the South African Navy
Warrant Officers and other ranks	Senior Chief WO	Chief WO	Master WO	Senior WO	WO Class 1	WO Class 2	Chief Petty Officer	Petty Officer	Able Seaman	Leading Seaman	Seaman
South African Navy