A British destroyer seen from HMAS Torrens, which, together with HMS Liverpool and HMAS Yarra, ...

A British destroyer seen from HMAS Torrens, which, together with HMS Liverpool and HMAS Yarra, was visiting the ports of Batum and Novorossiysk on the Black Sea. Formerly a Russian port, Batum was captured by the Turks during the First World War. Upon the surrender of Turkey, the port was evacuated, and was immediately occupied by the British. In October 1918 the six Australian destroyers finished patrolling the Adriatic Sea and went east with other Allied ships in response to a possible threat from Russian ships that had been given to the Germans. After patrols off the Turkish coast, HMAS Torrens and HMAS Yarra were sent to the Black Sea.