HNLMS Abraham van der Hulst (1946)

History
Netherlands
Name	HNLMS Willem van Ewijck
Builder	P. Smit, Rotterdam
Laid down	1940
History
Germany
Name	M 552
Launched	26 August 1940
Commissioned	1940
Decommissioned	1945
Fate	Returned to the Netherlands
History
Netherlands
Name	HNLMS Abraham van der Hulst
Namesake	Abraham van der Hulst
Acquired	May 1945
Recommissioned	1946
Decommissioned	1961
Status	Scrapped
General characteristics
Class and type	Jan van Amstel-class minesweeper
Displacement	460 long tons (467 t)
Length	56.8 m (186 ft 4 in)
Beam	7.8 m (25 ft 7 in)
Draft	2.2 m (7 ft 3 in)
Propulsion	2 × Yarrow 3-drum boilers 2 × Stork triple expansion engines, 1,600 ihp (1,193 kW) 2 shafts 110 tons fuel oil
Speed	15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph)
Complement	45
Armament	1 × 3 in (76 mm) gun 2 × twin .50-calibre machine guns

HNLMS Abraham van der Hulst was a Jan van Amstel-class minesweeper of the Royal Netherlands Navy.

Service history

Built as a replacement for Willem van Ewijck, she was not yet commissioned when the Netherlands surrendered to Germany in May 1940.

Commissioned into Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine, first as AM 1 (also listed as MH 1) on 26 August 1940. She sailed for Emden on 30 August, where she was renamed M 552. She was converted to a torpedo recovery vessel in December 1940. In August 1944 she was transferred to the 27th U-boat Flotilla, responsible for the tactical training of U-boats.

Returned to the Royal Netherlands Navy in May 1945 and recommissioned as the Abraham van der Hulst (the Dutch naval authorities apparently thought her to be this ship). She sailed for the Dutch East Indies on 16 September 1946 for service as patrol ship. After returning to Europe, she was rebuilt as boom defence vessel. Struck in 1961 and transferred to the Zeekadetkorps Nederland (Dutch Sea Cadets) in February 1962. Later scrapped.