Royal East African Navy
The Royal East African Navy was a unified naval force of the former British colonies of Kenya, Tanganyika, Uganda, and Zanzibar. It was the colonial forerunner of the Kenyan Navy and Tanzanian Navy.[1] Formed in 1953,[1] it was disbanded in 1962.[1]
| Royal East African Navy | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Active | 1953 – 1962 |
| Country | British East Africa: |
| Branch | Navy |
| Garrison/HQ | Mombasa, Kenya |
History
The Royal East African Navy (REAN) had its origins in the Kenyan Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve (RNVR), which after the end of World War II in 1945 operated a small naval force in the waters of East Africa.[1] In 1950, the Kenyan RNVR was replaced by the East African Naval Force, which received contributions from both Kenya and Tanganyika,[1] and later Uganda and Zanzibar as well. The East African Naval Force in turn became the REAN in 1953.[1] It replaced the Tanganyikan RNVR (established in 1939) and Sultanate of Zanzibar′s RNVR (established in 1938) as well as that of Kenya.
The REAN was administered by the East Africa High Commission (composed of the colonial governors of Tanganyika, Uganda, and Kenya) and was responsible to the Royal Navy's Flag Officer, Arabian Seas and Persian Gulf for operational duties.[2] The REAN headquarters was in Mombasa, Kenya, and headed by a resident officer from the Royal Navy. Royal Navy ships were reassigned to the REAN and identified as His/Her Majesty's East African Ship (HMEAS).
Initially, the REAN was a 200-member force. In 1961 The Statesman's Yearbook wrote that the REAN had a complement of eight officers, eight chief petty officers, and 200 ratings.
The REAN conducted training.[1] It also performed useful work in famine relief operations.[1]
After Tanganyika became independent on 9 December 1961, its government decided that the REAN was unsuitable in its existing form,[1] and with Tanganyika pulling out of the force the governments of Kenya, Uganda, and Zanzibar could not afford the cost of modernizing it.[1] In December 1961, it was announced that the REAN would disband in 1962.[1] When it disbanded, its assets were handed over to the East African Railways and Harbours Corporation. Its former ships were discarded or sold.
Fleet
- HMEAS Bassingham - formerly HMS Bassingham, a Ham class inshore minesweeper acquired from the Royal Navy in June 1958 to replace HMEAS Roslaind but deemed unsuitable for the REAN, and returned to the Royal Navy in October 1961.[1]
- HMEAS Mvita - a 70-foot (21 m) motor fishing vessel. Fate unknown.[1]
- HMEAS Rosalind - formerly HMT Rosalind, a Shakespearian-class naval trawler sold to Kenya in 1946 and discarded in 1963.[1]
- HMS Loch Fada - a Loch-class frigate that was not part of the REAN, but patrolled off the waters of the East African colonies on permanent loan from the Royal Navy.
Successor navies
- Kenya Navy (1964–): 21-vessel fleet (patrol boats, missile boats, rigid inflatable boats, etc.).
- Uganda People's Defence Force (1962–) - The land-locked army operates boats on internal waterways; current fleet of eight riverine boats and 400 personnel.
- Tanzania People's Defence Force (1964–) - Following the 1964 merger of Tanganyika and Zanzibar, a small naval force was established with patrol boats and fast attack craft. Current fleet of seven fast attack craft and 12 patrol boats.
References
- Gray, Randal, ed., Conway′s All the World′s Fighting Ships 1947–1982, Part II: The Warsaw Pact and Non-Aligned Nations, Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1983, ISBN 0-87021-919-7, p. 308.
- 1961, p.327
