Ensign of HMS Penelope, flown during the Siege of Malta during WWII
This white ensign was formerly part of the collection of Wall Street financier, business man and promoter of Anglo-American goodwill, Calvin Bullock. His 1 Wall street offices in New York City contained the world leading collections of memorabilia pertaining to Napoleon & Lord Nelson. In the 1930s he sought to collect Confederate Flags and during World War II he acquired a representative collection of US, British, French and other allied ensigns from his many notable international, military and naval acquaintances. After his death in 1944 his son, Hugh Bullock kept the flags on display as a memorial to his late father until his death in the 1980s.
In 1864 the Admiralty decided to end the ambiguity caused by the Red Ensign being both a civil ensign and a naval ensign, and the White Ensign became the sole ensign of the Royal Navy. It was also used by vessels from the Empire serving with the Royal Navy.
One of the jewels in the Bullock Collection is this White Ensign battle flag from the Battle of Malta in 1942 against German and Italian air and naval forces. The damage to this ensign is testimony to the fury of the engagements.
This was the second flag hanging "clockwise from S.W. door" on the "Telephone wall" of Calvin Bullock's offices at No. 1 Wall Street NY., Though Calvin Bullock died June 21, 1944 this flag among others continued to be displayed in the offices and Lecture Room till his son's death in the 1980s. His papers identified the flag as "From H.M.S. PENELOPE - Black with battle smoke and oil, and with lowest quarter shot away (at Malta). (1942) (Given to Mr. CB by Commander J.W. Grant, R.N.)"
The reference in the narrative below states the PENELOPE was sent to the New York Navy Yard in 1942 for repairs suffered during the Malta campaign. It is likely that was the occasion Calvin Bullock was given this flag. The battle damage to the flag is quiet evident and the smell of those battles was still noticeable 60 years later when the flag was checked into the Zaricor Flag Collection.
HMS Penelope - Short History by Christopher Cooke
"Laid down in May 1934, HMS Penelope was the third of the four 5,000-ton Arethusa-class cruisers. Mounting three twin 6" gun turrets, she had a top speed of over 32 knots. Serving in the Mediterranean when war broke out, she ran aground in the Norwegian campaign and returned to service in July 1941. In October 1941 she joined Force K at Malta and, after sustaining further damage from mines and bombs, she was sent to New York Navy Yard for repairs in April 1942. She was back in the Mediterranean in early 1943, joining Force Q at Bone. During that year, she took part in the bombardment of the Italian islands of Pantellaria and Lampedusa in June, the Sicily landings in August and the Salerno landings in September. After spells in the Aegean and the Bay of Biscay, she supported the landings at Anzio in January 1944 and, while returning to Naples on 18th. February, she was torpedoed and sunk by U-410. She was the last British cruiser lost in WW2. Nicknamed "HMS Pepperpot" because of the considerable shrapnel damage she sustained, HMS Penelope is thought to have been the inspiration for C.S. Forester's novel, "The Ship"."
Provenance:
• H.M.S. Penelope, 1942
• Retained by Royal Navy Commander J.W. Grant.
• Given to Calvin Bullock by Royal Navy Commander J.W. Grant, 1942.
• Presented to Calvin Bullock, New York, New York, August 1942.
• Calvin Bullock Collection, until passing, June 1944.
• By bequest to Hugh Bullock, until passing. 1966.
• By descent in Bullock family to daughter of Hugh Bullock, until 1997
• Purchased for the Zaricor Flag Collection by private treaty from the estate of Calvin Bullock, New York City, 1997.
Sources:
Kimmins, Anthony, Half-Time: The Autobiography of Captain Anthony Kimmins, London, William Heinemann Ltd., 1947.
United Kingdom: the White Ensign, Flags of the World, 17 November 2011, from: http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/gb-ensw.html
White Ensign, Wikipedia, 17 November 2011, from:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Ensign
THE COLOURS OF THE FLEET, The Flag Institute, 17 November 2011, from: http://www.flaginstitute.org/pdfs/the_colours_of_the_fleet.pdf
John William Grant DSO, RN, Allied Warship Commanders, U Boat Net, 17 November 2011, from:
http://www.uboat.net/allies/commanders/1028.html
HMS Penelope, Wikipedia, 17 November 2011, from:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Penelope_%2897%29
Image Credits
Zaricor Flag Collection
RTZFC