Royal Navy

The Royal Navy of Great Britain was the world’s greatest navy at the outbreak of the Second World War. Britain went to war with mainly First World War-vintage vessels and at the outbreak of WWII Britain had far more battleships than most other nations, albeit with smaller guns than those of the most modern ships.

British capital ships saw action in the Arctic and the Atlantic against German commerce raiders, in the Mediterranean against Italian forcs, and ventured into the Pacific in an attempt to stem the Japanese advance. Though the great fleet actions planned for and desired by the architects of the Royal Navy did not materialize, the Royal Navy adapted well to the war it was destined to fight and emerged with great honour.