[1] She was laid down at Smiths Dock Company on the River Tees on 19 October 1939, launched on 24 January 1940, and commissioned on 6 April 1940.

[4] U-26 had been heavily damaged by eight depth charges from Gladiolus, as well as bombs from a Short Sunderland aircraft, and subsequently scuttled herself.

In October 1940 she went into dock for remedial work and was re-fitted with a longer foc’s’le to improve her habitability.

[1] These were satisfactory, and she returned to action in January 1941, assigned to one of the new escort groups, 2 EG, led by HMS Douglas.

During the onslaught Gladiolus and the destroyers gained contact and made a series of attacks; it was subsequently shown this was on U-96, which escaped.

Later that day she sighted a U-boat on the surface and attacked, being rewarded with a gush of air bubbles and wreckage.

Numerous escorts were drafted in as reinforcement; on 11 September Gladiolus arrived with EG 2, led by Douglas.

Following this, Gladiolus was reassigned to the Newfoundland Local Escort Group, led by HMCS Columbia.

[12] However historian Bernard Edwards is clear that Gladiolus was lost without rejoining the convoy; while acknowledging the claim for a loss in the early hours of the 17th, he states it is more likely that she went down before that.

[9] In an interview with the BBC,[1] former crew member Dick Turner speculated Gladiolus was unstable due to her refit, and had overturned during a violent manoeuvre.