~ A Large Copper Wall Plaque For HMS Howe 1940 ~
This large hand hammered and engraved solid copper wall plaque was made by W. E. Hollowayand and shows a profile view of H.M.S.Howe, a King George class battleship built in 1942 with ships badge and places visited May 1944 – June 1945. The design is very boldly raised and engraved on thick copper and mounted to the wood.
~ HMS Howe ~
HMS Howe was the last of the five British King George V-class battleships of the Royal Navy. Built by Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company, she was laid down on 1 June 1937 and launched 9 April 1940. She was originally to have been named Beatty but this was changed to Howe, after Admiral Richard Howe. Howe was completed on 29 August 1942 after her building time was extended, as needed war supplies were diverted to work of a higher priority such as the construction and repair of both merchant ships and escort ships. Like her sister-ship Anson, Howe would spend most of her career in the Arctic providing cover for Russian convoys.
In 1943 Howe took part in Operation Husky and bombarded Trapani naval base and Favignana in support of the allied invasions. Along with King George V, Howe escorted two surrendered Italian battleships to Alexandria. Howe was also sent to the Pacific and attached to Task Force 113, where she provided naval bombardments for the Allied landings at Okinawa on 1 April 1945.
Following the end of the war, Howe spent four years as flagship of the Training Squadron at Portland, before she was placed in reserve in 1950. The battleship was marked for disposal in 1957, sold for scrap in 1958, and completely broken up by 1961.
~ Dimensions ~
The plaque is 23.5 inches (59.5cm) high by 19.6 inches (50cm) wide.
It weights 4 kg.
~ Condition ~
The condition of the plaque is very decent with minor age wear.
