HMNB Portsmouth
Encyclopedia
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
(the others being HMNB Clyde
HMNB Clyde
Her Majesty's Naval Base Clyde is one of three operating bases in the United Kingdom for the Royal Navy...
and HMNB Devonport
HMNB Devonport
Her Majesty's Naval Base Devonport , is one of three operating bases in the United Kingdom for the Royal Navy . HMNB Devonport is located in Devonport, in the west of the city of Plymouth in Devon, England...
). Portsmouth naval base is part of the city
City
A city is a relatively large and permanent settlement. Although there is no agreement on how a city is distinguished from a town within general English language meanings, many cities have a particular administrative, legal, or historical status based on local law.For example, in the U.S...
of Portsmouth
Portsmouth
Portsmouth is the second largest city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire on the south coast of England. Portsmouth is notable for being the United Kingdom's only island city; it is located mainly on Portsea Island...
, located on the eastern shore of Portsmouth Harbour
Portsmouth Harbour
Portsmouth Harbour is a large natural harbour in Hampshire, England. Geographically it is a ria: formerly it was the valley of a stream flowing from Portsdown into the Solent River. The city of Portsmouth lies to the east on Portsea Island, and Gosport to the west on the mainland...
north of the Solent
Solent
The Solent is a strait separating the Isle of Wight from the mainland of England.The Solent is a major shipping route for passengers, freight and military vessels. It is an important recreational area for water sports, particularly yachting, hosting the Cowes Week sailing event annually...
and Isle of Wight
Isle of Wight
The Isle of Wight is a county and the largest island of England, located in the English Channel, on average about 2–4 miles off the south coast of the county of Hampshire, separated from the mainland by a strait called the Solent...
.
The base is home to the oldest surviving dry dock in the world, as well as being the base port for two thirds of the Royal Navy's surface fleet
Royal Navy surface fleet
The Surface Fleet is the name given to the collection of surface vessels of the Royal Navy. In 2008 it consisted of two flotillas based at Portsmouth and Devonport, both on the south coast of England and a flotilla based at the Clyde Naval Base at Faslane in Scotland.The Surface Fleet consists of...
. The base is home to a number of commercial shore activities including shipbuilding and ship repair (operated by BAE Systems Surface Ships); naval logistics, accommodation and messing (delivered by Fleet Support Limited
Fleet Support Limited
Fleet Support Limited is a British company formed to run HMNB Portsmouth's Fleet Maintenance and Repair Organisation on a commercial basis. The FMRO was an agency of the Ministry of Defence responsible for repair and maintenance of Royal Navy vessels. FSL performs this task but also undertakes...
); and personnel support functions (e.g. medical and dental; education; pastoral and welfare) provided by Defence Equipment and Support.
The base is the oldest in the Royal Navy, has been a vital part of its history and the defence of the British Isles for centuries and was at its height the largest industrial site in the world. The Naval Base is also home to the Portsmouth Historic Dockyard, which allows members of the public to visit important maritime attractions such as the Mary Rose
Mary Rose
The Mary Rose was a carrack-type warship of the English Tudor navy of King Henry VIII. After serving for 33 years in several wars against France, Scotland, and Brittany and after being substantially rebuilt in 1536, she saw her last action on 1545. While leading the attack on the galleys of a...
, HMS Victory
HMS Victory
HMS Victory is a 104-gun first-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, laid down in 1759 and launched in 1765. She is most famous as Lord Nelson's flagship at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805....
and HMS Warrior
HMS Warrior (1860)
HMS Warrior was the first iron-hulled, armour-plated warship, built for the Royal Navy in response to the first ironclad warship, the French Gloire, launched a year earlier....
.
The base commander since November 2008 is Commodore
Commodore (Royal Navy)
Commodore is a rank of the Royal Navy above Captain and below Rear Admiral. It has a NATO ranking code of OF-6. The rank is equivalent to Brigadier in the British Army and Royal Marines and to Air Commodore in the Royal Air Force.-Insignia:...
Rob Thompson.
The harbour is under the control of the Queen's Harbour Master
Harbourmaster
A harbourmaster is an official responsible for enforcing the regulations of a particular harbour or port, in order to ensure the safety of navigation, the security of the harbour and the correct operation of the port facilities.-Responsibilities:Harbourmasters are normally responsible for issuing...
, currently Commander Steve Hopper, who is the regulatory authority of the Dockyard Port of Portsmouth, an area of approximately 50 square miles (129.5 km²) that encompasses Portsmouth Harbour and the Eastern Solent. Shipping movements are handled by a team of admiralty pilots headed by the Chief Admiralty Pilot, Anthony Bannister.
Portsmouth naval base is home to two thirds of the Royal Navy's surface ships, including the aircraft carrier HMS Illustrious
HMS Illustrious (R06)
HMS Illustrious is the second of three Invincible-class light aircraft carriers built for the Royal Navy in the late 1970s and early 1980s. She is the fifth warship and second aircraft carrier to bear the name Illustrious, and is affectionately known as "Lusty" to her crew...
. The naval base employs 17,200 people. In addition, Portsmouth will help build and be the home port of the two new Royal Navy aircraft carriers ordered in 2008, HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales. This has secured the base's future for the next forty years and will revitalise shipbuilding in the city.
Functioning base
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
including Invincible-class aircraft carriers
Invincible class aircraft carrier
The Invincible class is a class of light aircraft carrier operated by the British Royal Navy. Three ships were constructed, , and . The vessels were built as aviation-capable anti-submarine warfare platforms to counter the Cold War North Atlantic Soviet submarine threat, and initially embarked...
, Type 42 destroyer
Type 42 destroyer
The Type 42 or Sheffield class, are guided missile destroyers used by the British Royal Navy and the Argentine Navy. The first ship of the class was ordered in 1968 and launched in 1971, and today three ships remain active in the Royal Navy and one in the Argentinian Navy...
s, Type 45 destroyer
Type 45 destroyer
The United Kingdom's Type 45 destroyer is an air defence destroyer programme of the Royal Navy which will replace its Type 42 destroyers. The first ship in the class, HMS Daring, was launched on 1 February 2006 and commissioned on 23 July 2009. The ships are now built by BAE Systems Surface Ships...
s, the majority of the Type 23 frigate
Type 23 frigate
The Type 23 frigate is a class of frigate built for the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom. All the ships were first named after British Dukes, thus the class is also known as the Duke class. The first Type 23 was commissioned in 1989, and the sixteenth, was launched in May 2000 and commissioned in...
s, fishery protection vessels and a squadron of mine counter-measures vessels (minesweepers
Minesweeper (ship)
A minesweeper is a small naval warship designed to counter the threat posed by naval mines. Minesweepers generally detect then neutralize mines in advance of other naval operations.-History:...
and mine hunters). Most of the vessels based in Portsmouth form part of the Portsmouth Flotilla, under the Fleet First reorganisation which saw the three (Portsmouth, Devonport and Faslane) port flotillas replace the frigate and destroyer squadrons and other groupings.
In total some 17,300 people work in the base. Until recently it was the base of the Second Sea Lord
Second Sea Lord
The Second Sea Lord and Commander-in-Chief Naval Home Command , commonly just known as the Second Sea Lord , is one of the most senior admirals of the British Royal Navy , and is responsible for personnel and naval shore establishments.-History:In 1805, for the first time, specific functions were...
who flies his flag in HMS Victory
HMS Victory
HMS Victory is a 104-gun first-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, laid down in 1759 and launched in 1765. She is most famous as Lord Nelson's flagship at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805....
, which is the oldest commissioned warship in the world (although it was originally built at Chatham Dockyard
Chatham Dockyard
Chatham Dockyard, located on the River Medway and of which two-thirds is in Gillingham and one third in Chatham, Kent, England, came into existence at the time when, following the Reformation, relations with the Catholic countries of Europe had worsened, leading to a requirement for additional...
). The Second Sea Lord is now at Henry Leach
Henry Leach
Admiral of the Fleet Sir Henry Conyers Leach, GCB, DL was a former First Sea Lord, the professional head of the Royal Navy. Leach was the First Sea Lord and Chief of the Naval Staff between 1979 and 1982, being the professional head of the Navy at the time of the Falklands War...
Building on Whale Island, which is the headquarters of the Commander in Chief Fleet.
Portsmouth Historic Dockyard
In addition to VictoryHMS Victory
HMS Victory is a 104-gun first-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, laid down in 1759 and launched in 1765. She is most famous as Lord Nelson's flagship at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805....
, a portion of the base serves as a maritime museum (now called Portsmouth Historic Dockyard) and plays host to:
- the raised wreck of the TudorTudor periodThe Tudor period usually refers to the period between 1485 and 1603, specifically in relation to the history of England. This coincides with the rule of the Tudor dynasty in England whose first monarch was Henry VII...
carrackCarrackA carrack or nau was a three- or four-masted sailing ship developed in 15th century Western Europe for use in the Atlantic Ocean. It had a high rounded stern with large aftcastle, forecastle and bowsprit at the stem. It was first used by the Portuguese , and later by the Spanish, to explore and...
Mary RoseMary RoseThe Mary Rose was a carrack-type warship of the English Tudor navy of King Henry VIII. After serving for 33 years in several wars against France, Scotland, and Brittany and after being substantially rebuilt in 1536, she saw her last action on 1545. While leading the attack on the galleys of a... - HMS WarriorHMS Warrior (1860)HMS Warrior was the first iron-hulled, armour-plated warship, built for the Royal Navy in response to the first ironclad warship, the French Gloire, launched a year earlier....
- HMS M33HMS M33HMS M33 is an M29-class monitor of the Royal Navy built in 1915. She saw active service in the Mediterranean during World War I and in Russia during the Allied Intervention in 1919...
, a WWI monitorMonitor (warship)A monitor was a class of relatively small warship which was neither fast nor strongly armoured but carried disproportionately large guns. They were used by some navies from the 1860s until the end of World War II, and saw their final use by the United States Navy during the Vietnam War.The monitors... - the Royal Naval MuseumRoyal Naval MuseumThe Royal Naval Museum is the museum of the history of the Royal Navy in the Portsmouth Historic Dockyard section of HMNB Portsmouth, Portsmouth, Hampshire, England. The museum is a non-departmental public body sponsored by the Ministry of Defence. Its current Acting Director is Graham Dobbin....
- Action StationsAction StationsAction Stations is the general signal to the personnel of a warship that combat with a hostile attacker is imminent or deemed probable...
—featuring InterAction - Portsmouth Harbour Tours
- The Trafalgar Sail—foretop sail of VictoryHMS VictoryHMS Victory is a 104-gun first-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, laid down in 1759 and launched in 1765. She is most famous as Lord Nelson's flagship at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805....
from the Battle of TrafalgarBattle of TrafalgarThe Battle of Trafalgar was a sea battle fought between the British Royal Navy and the combined fleets of the French Navy and Spanish Navy, during the War of the Third Coalition of the Napoleonic Wars ....
1805
History
Chatham Dockyard
Chatham Dockyard, located on the River Medway and of which two-thirds is in Gillingham and one third in Chatham, Kent, England, came into existence at the time when, following the Reformation, relations with the Catholic countries of Europe had worsened, leading to a requirement for additional...
, Woolwich
Woolwich Dockyard
Woolwich Dockyard was an English naval dockyard founded by King Henry VIII in 1512 to build his flagship Henri Grâce à Dieu , the largest ship of its day....
, Plymouth
HMNB Devonport
Her Majesty's Naval Base Devonport , is one of three operating bases in the United Kingdom for the Royal Navy . HMNB Devonport is located in Devonport, in the west of the city of Plymouth in Devon, England...
and Deptford
Deptford
Deptford is a district of south London, England, located on the south bank of the River Thames. It is named after a ford of the River Ravensbourne, and from the mid 16th century to the late 19th was home to Deptford Dockyard, the first of the Royal Navy Dockyards.Deptford and the docks are...
, it has been one of the main dockyards for the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
throughout its history. The Portsmouth Royal Dockyard Historical Trust was established in 1994 to foster and promote the history and industrial archaeology of this great organisation and a more detailed history may be found at: Portsmouth Royal Dockyard Historical Trust.
The Tudors
The oldest dry docks in the world were built by Henry VIIHenry VII of England
Henry VII was King of England and Lord of Ireland from his seizing the crown on 22 August 1485 until his death on 21 April 1509, as the first monarch of the House of Tudor....
in 1495. The first warship built here was the Sweepstake of 1497; of more significance were the carracks Mary Rose
Mary Rose
The Mary Rose was a carrack-type warship of the English Tudor navy of King Henry VIII. After serving for 33 years in several wars against France, Scotland, and Brittany and after being substantially rebuilt in 1536, she saw her last action on 1545. While leading the attack on the galleys of a...
of 1509 and Peter Pomegranate
Peter Pomegranate
The Peter Pomegranate was a 16th-century warship completed for service in 1510. Its name most likely was in honour of Saint Peter, founder of the Christian church, and after the badge of Queen Catharine of Aragon, a pomegranate...
of 1510—both were rebuilt here in 1536. The wreck of the Mary Rose
Mary Rose
The Mary Rose was a carrack-type warship of the English Tudor navy of King Henry VIII. After serving for 33 years in several wars against France, Scotland, and Brittany and after being substantially rebuilt in 1536, she saw her last action on 1545. While leading the attack on the galleys of a...
(which capsized in 1545, but was raised in 1982) is on display in a purpose built museum. A fourth Tudor warship was the galleasse Jennett, built in 1539 and enlarged as a galleon in 1558; no further new naval vessels were built here until 1648, but ships from Portsmouth were a key part of the fleet that drove off the Spanish Armada
Spanish Armada
This article refers to the Battle of Gravelines, for the modern navy of Spain, see Spanish NavyThe Spanish Armada was the Spanish fleet that sailed against England under the command of the Duke of Medina Sidonia in 1588, with the intention of overthrowing Elizabeth I of England to stop English...
in 1588.
Seventeenth century
Naval shipbuilding at Portsmouth recommenced under the English Commonwealth, the first ship being the eponymous Fourth-rateFourth-rate
In the British Royal Navy, a fourth rate was, during the first half of the 18th century, a ship of the line mounting from 46 up to 60 guns. While the number of guns stayed subsequently in the same range up until 1817, after 1756 the ships of 50 guns and below were considered too weak to stand in...
frigate Portsmouth
HMS Portsmouth (1650)
Portsmouth was a 38-gun fourth-rate frigate of the English Royal Navy, originally built for the navy of the Commonwealth of England at Portsmouth, and launched in 1650....
launched in 1650. In 1689, Parliament ordered one new dry dock and two new wet docks (or non-tidal basins) to be built at Portsmouth and work began in 1691 around the area of what is now No. 1 Basin. It was built to new designs developed by Edmund Dummer
Edmund Dummer (naval engineer)
Edmund Dummer was an English naval engineer and shipbuilder who, as Surveyor of the Navy, founded the Royal Navy dockyard at , Plymouth and extended that at Portsmouth. His survey of the Royal Navy Dockyards is a valuable and well-known historic document...
, surveyor to the Navy Board
Surveyor of the Navy
The Surveyor to the Navy was a civilian officer in the Royal Navy. He was a member of the Navy Board from the inauguration of that body in 1546, and held overall responsibility for the design of British warships, although until 1745 the actual design work for warships built at each Royal Dockyard...
. He substituted brick and stone for wood and increased the number of altars or steps. The stepped sides allowed shorter timbers to be used for shoring and made it much easier for shipwrights to reach the underside of the vessel. As with all future extensions, the new works were built on reclaimed land and the civil engineering involved was on an unprecedented scale. The great stone dock as it was called (extensively rebuilt in 1769 as No.5 dock) was evacuated with chain pumps powered by horses. A building slip was constructed where the Mary Rose is now in No. 3 dock.
Napoleonic Wars
During this period, this (like the other dockyards underwent reforms proposed by Sir Samuel BenthamSamuel Bentham
Sir Samuel Bentham was a noted English mechanical engineer and naval architect credited with numerous innovations, particularly related to naval architecture, including weapons...
, Inspector-General of Naval Works. Among his innovations were Portsmouth Block Mills
Portsmouth Block Mills
The Portsmouth Block Mills form part of the Portsmouth Dockyard at Portsmouth, Hampshire, England, and were built during the Napoleonic Wars to supply the British Royal Navy with pulley blocks. They started the age of mass-production using all-metal machine tools and are regarded as one of the...
, an early example of truly industrial scale production.
From here Nelson
Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson
Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson, 1st Duke of Bronté, KB was a flag officer famous for his service in the Royal Navy, particularly during the Napoleonic Wars. He was noted for his inspirational leadership and superb grasp of strategy and unconventional tactics, which resulted in a number of...
, embarking on HMS Victory
HMS Victory
HMS Victory is a 104-gun first-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, laid down in 1759 and launched in 1765. She is most famous as Lord Nelson's flagship at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805....
, left Britain for the final time before his death at the Battle of Trafalgar
Battle of Trafalgar
The Battle of Trafalgar was a sea battle fought between the British Royal Navy and the combined fleets of the French Navy and Spanish Navy, during the War of the Third Coalition of the Napoleonic Wars ....
.
Victorian
HMS WarriorHMS Warrior (1860)
HMS Warrior was the first iron-hulled, armour-plated warship, built for the Royal Navy in response to the first ironclad warship, the French Gloire, launched a year earlier....
, the first ocean going Ironclad—built at Blackwall
Blackwall
-Places:*Blackwall, London - An area of east London, UK**Blackwall Tunnel - The main crossing of the River Thames in east London**The former shipyard Blackwall Yard**The former shipyard at Leamouth, London of Thames Ironworks and Shipbuilding Company and others....
on the River Thames
River Thames
The River Thames flows through southern England. It is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom. While it is best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows alongside several other towns and cities, including Oxford,...
in 1860—is moored in the dockyard.
20th Century
In 1900 the Third class cruiser HMS PandoraHMS Pandora (1900)
HMS Pandora was a of the Royal Navy. There were eleven "Third class" protected cruisers in the class, which was designed by Sir William White...
was launched, followed by the armoured cruiser HMS Kent
HMS Kent (1901)
HMS Kent was a Monmouth-class armoured cruiser of 9,800 tons displacement, of the British Royal Navy. She was launched on 6 March 1901, with her heaviest guns being 6 inch quick-firers...
in 1901 and her sistership HMS Suffolk
HMS Suffolk (1903)
HMS Suffolk was a Monmouth class armoured cruiser of the Royal Navy built in 1903 and sold out of the Royal Navy in 1920. She had a displacement of 9,800 tons, a speed of 23 knots, and a crew complement of about 680. Her primary armament consisted of 14 quick-firing 6-inch guns, arranged in a...
in 1903. Two battleships of the pre-Dreadnought King Edward VII Class were launched in 1904—HMS Britannia
HMS Britannia (1904)
The sixth HMS Britannia of the British Royal Navy was a pre-dreadnought battleship of the King Edward VII class. She was named after Britannia, the Latin name of Great Britain under Roman rule.-Technical characteristics:...
and HMS New Zealand
HMS New Zealand (1904)
HMS New Zealand was a King Edward VII class battleship of the Royal Navy. Like all ships of the class she was named after an important part of the British Empire, namely New Zealand...
. The first modern battleship HMS Dreadnought
HMS Dreadnought (1906)
HMS Dreadnought was a battleship of the British Royal Navy that revolutionised naval power. Her entry into service in 1906 represented such a marked advance in naval technology that her name came to be associated with an entire generation of battleships, the "dreadnoughts", as well as the class of...
was built in 1905-06, taking one day more than a year. Further dreadnoughts
Dreadnought
The dreadnought was the predominant type of 20th-century battleship. The first of the kind, the Royal Navy's had such an impact when launched in 1906 that similar battleships built after her were referred to as "dreadnoughts", and earlier battleships became known as pre-dreadnoughts...
followed—HMS Bellerophon
HMS Bellerophon (1907)
HMS Bellerophon was a dreadnought of the Royal Navy. She was the lead ship of the Bellerophon class, and the fourth Royal Navy vessel to bear the name of the mythic Greek hero...
in 1907, HMS St. Vincent
HMS St. Vincent (1908)
HMS St. Vincent was the lead ship of the St. Vincent class battleships of the British Royal Navy.She was commissioned on 3 May 1910 as 2nd flagship of 1st Division Home Fleet at Portsmouth. She was commanded by Capt. Douglas R. L. Nicholson and was flagship of Rear-Admiral Richard H...
in 1908, HMS Orion
HMS Orion (1910)
HMS Orion was a dreadnought battleship of the Royal Navy. Launched in 1910, she was the lead ship of her class; she was the first so-called "super-dreadnought", being the first British dreadnought to mount guns of calibre greater than twelve inches, and the first British dreadnought to have...
in 1910, HMS King George V
HMS King George V (1911)
The first HMS King George V was a King George V-class of 1911 dreadnought, with a displacement of 23,400 tonnes and an armament of ten 13.5 inch guns in twin gun turrets and a secondary armament of sixteen 4 inch guns and had a crew complement of 870, though this increased...
in 1911, HMS Iron Duke
HMS Iron Duke (1912)
HMS Iron Duke was a battleship of the Royal Navy, the lead ship of her class, named in honour of Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington. She served as the flagship of the Grand Fleet during the First World War, including at the Battle of Jutland...
in 1912 and HMS Queen Elizabeth
HMS Queen Elizabeth (1913)
HMS Queen Elizabeth was the lead ship of the Queen Elizabeth-class of dreadnought battleships, named in honour of Elizabeth I of England. She saw service in both World Wars...
in 1913.
First World War
The largest vessel launched at Portsmouth during WWI was the 27,500-ton battleship HMS Royal Sovereign in 1915. The only other launchings during the war were the submarines HMS J1 and HMS J2 in 1915, and the submarines HMS K1HMS K1
HMS K1 was a First World War steam turbine-propelled K-class submarine of the Royal Navy.She was sunk to prevent her from being captured following a collision with off the Danish coast. She had been patrolling on the surface as part of a flotilla of submarines operating in line ahead...
, HMS K2
HMS K2
HMS K2 was the second of the K class submarines and was built at HM Dockyard, Portsmouth, England. She was laid down on 13 November 1915 and was commissioned in May 1917 one year before the end of World War I.K2 had an unsuccessful start...
and HMS K5
HMS K5
HMS K5 was one of the K-class submarines that served in the Royal Navy from 1917-1921. She was lost with all hands when she sank en route to a mock battle in the Bay of Biscay.-War service:...
in 1916. The Belfast-built HMS M33
HMS M33
HMS M33 is an M29-class monitor of the Royal Navy built in 1915. She saw active service in the Mediterranean during World War I and in Russia during the Allied Intervention in 1919...
, a WWI monitor, has been on display at Portsmouth since 1999 after being refurbished at Hartlepool.
The Inter-War Years
The majority of warships launched at Portsmouth following the end of the War were cruisers—HMS EffinghamHMS Effingham (D98)
HMS Effingham was a Hawkins-class heavy cruiser of the Royal Navy. She was commissioned at Portsmouth in 1925, having had her construction halted for several years following the end of the First World War in 1918...
in 1921, in 1926, HMS London
HMS London (69)
HMS London was a member of the second group of the County class heavy cruiser of the Royal Navy. She and her sisters; Sussex, Shropshire, and Devonshire differed from the earlier group of Counties, , by having a smaller forward superstructure, which was positioned slightly further aft, and next...
in 1927, HMS Dorsetshire in 1929, in 1933, and HMS Amphion and in 1934. There were also four destroyers— and her sister in 1931, and the leaders HMS Duncan
HMS Duncan (D99)
HMS Duncan was a D-class destroyer leader built for the Royal Navy in the early 1930s. The ship was initially assigned to the Mediterranean Fleet before she was transferred to the China Station in early 1935 where she remained until mid-1939. Duncan returned to the Mediterranean Fleet just after...
in 1932 and HMS Exmouth
HMS Exmouth (H02)
HMS Exmouth was an E-class destroyer flotilla leader built for the Royal Navy in the early 1930s. Although assigned to the Home Fleet upon completion, the ship was attached to the Mediterranean Fleet in 1935–36 during the Abyssinia Crisis...
in 1934. The only other vessels launched between the wars were the mining tenders HMS Nightingale in 1931 and HMS Skylark in 1932.
Second World War
The destroyer flotillas (the capital ships having been evacuated to Scapa FlowScapa Flow
right|thumb|Scapa Flow viewed from its eastern endScapa Flow is a body of water in the Orkney Islands, Scotland, United Kingdom, sheltered by the islands of Mainland, Graemsay, Burray, South Ronaldsay and Hoy. It is about...
) were essential to the defence of the English Channel
English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
particularly during Operation Dynamo and against any potential German Invasion
Operation Sealion
Operation Sea Lion was Germany's plan to invade the United Kingdom during the Second World War, beginning in 1940. To have had any chance of success, however, the operation would have required air and naval supremacy over the English Channel...
and the base itself served a major refit and repair role. The German military realised this importance and the city and base in particularly was heavily bombed as a result.
Portsmouth and the Naval Base itself were the headquarters and main departure point for the military and naval units destined for Sword Beach
Sword Beach
Sword, commonly known as Sword Beach, was the code name given to one of the five main landing areas along the Normandy coast during the initial assault phase, Operation Neptune, of Operation Overlord; the Allied invasion of German-occupied France that commenced on 6 June 1944...
on the Normandy
Normandy
Normandy is a geographical region corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy. It is in France.The continental territory covers 30,627 km² and forms the preponderant part of Normandy and roughly 5% of the territory of France. It is divided for administrative purposes into two régions:...
coast as a part of Operation Overlord
Operation Overlord
Operation Overlord was the code name for the Battle of Normandy, the operation that launched the invasion of German-occupied western Europe during World War II by Allied forces. The operation commenced on 6 June 1944 with the Normandy landings...
and the D-Day
D-Day
D-Day is a term often used in military parlance to denote the day on which a combat attack or operation is to be initiated. "D-Day" often represents a variable, designating the day upon which some significant event will occur or has occurred; see Military designation of days and hours for similar...
landings on 6 June 1944. Troops destined for each of the landing beaches left from Portsmouth aboard vessels such as the armed merchant cruisers HMCS Prince Henry and HMCS Prince David, escorted by the destroyers HMCS Algonquin and HMCS Sioux. The majority of the naval support for the operation left from Portsmouth, including the Mulberry Harbour
Mulberry harbour
A Mulberry harbour was a British type of temporary harbour developed in World War II to offload cargo on the beaches during the Allied invasion of Normandy....
s.
Falklands Task Force
In 1982 ArgentinaArgentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
invaded the Falkland Islands
Falkland Islands
The Falkland Islands are an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean, located about from the coast of mainland South America. The archipelago consists of East Falkland, West Falkland and 776 lesser islands. The capital, Stanley, is on East Falkland...
. In response a task force
Task force
A task force is a unit or formation established to work on a single defined task or activity. Originally introduced by the United States Navy, the term has now caught on for general usage and is a standard part of NATO terminology...
of British military and merchant ships was dispatched from Portsmouth Naval Base (and other naval bases) to the islands in the South Atlantic to reclaim them for the United Kingdom.
The task force consisted of the following ships:
- 2 aircraft carriers
- 2 landing ship docks
- 8 destroyers
- 15 frigates
- 3 patrol ships
- 5 submarines
- 3 survey vessels
- 5 minesweepers
- 10 fleet tankers
- 6 logistic landing ships
- 5 supply ships
- 1 helicopter supply ship
- 18 merchant ships including troop/cruise ships such as RMS Queen Elizabeth 2RMS Queen Elizabeth 2Queen Elizabeth 2, often referred to simply as the QE2, is an ocean liner that was operated by Cunard from 1969 to 2008. Following her retirement from cruising, she is now owned by Istithmar...
Following some losses, the majority of these ships returned to Portsmouth later that year.
Trafalgar 200
In the summer of 2005 Portsmouth Naval Base and the Solent played host to two special events organised as part of the Trafalgar 200Trafalgar 200
Trafalgar 200 was a series of events in 2005 held mostly in the United Kingdom to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Trafalgar, where a British fleet led by Admiral Nelson defeated a joint Franco-Spanish fleet during the Napoleonic Wars. During the summer of 2005 there was an...
commemorations recognising the 200th Anniversary of the Battle of Trafalgar
Battle of Trafalgar
The Battle of Trafalgar was a sea battle fought between the British Royal Navy and the combined fleets of the French Navy and Spanish Navy, during the War of the Third Coalition of the Napoleonic Wars ....
. These were the International Fleet Review
International Fleet Review
For a full list of ships present, see List of ships present at International Fleet Review, 2005The International Fleet Review took place on 28 June 2005, as part of the Trafalgar 200 celebrations to commemorate the 200th year after the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805.- 2005 Review Line-up :During the...
and the International Festival of the Sea.
Naval Establishments in the Portsmouth area
- HMS NelsonHMS NelsonThree ships and a naval base of the Royal Navy have been named HMS Nelson in honour of Horatio Nelson: was a 120-gun first rate launched in 1814. She was converted to screw propulsion and rearmed to 90 guns in 1860, and was handed over to the government of the Dominion of Victoria, Australia, in 1867...
: HM Naval Base Portsmouth, encompassing both the dockyard and the Naval Personnel Centre on Queen Street. - HMS Excellent: Whale Island, Portsmouth. Including the HQ of Commander in Chief Fleet (CinC FLEET); the Second Sea Lord (2SL); Naval Training facilities operated by VT FLAGSHIP Ltd), all catering, front of house, cleaning and hotel services are sub-contractedSubcontractorA subcontractor is an individual or in many cases a business that signs a contract to perform part or all of the obligations of another's contract....
to Sodexo UK Ltd. - HMS Temeraire: Portsmouth. Training of Naval Physical Training Instructors and sports grounds and facilities for Portsmouth based personnel
- HMS CollingwoodHMS Collingwood (establishment)For ships of the same name see HMS Collingwood.HMS Collingwood is a stone frigate of the Royal Navy. It is the lead establishment of the Maritime Warfare School and the largest naval training organisation in Western Europe...
: Fareham. Naval training provided mainly under contract to VTVT GroupVT Group plc was a British defence and services company, formerly known as Vosper Thornycroft. The Company had diversified from shipbuilding into various engineering and support services, becoming involved in many areas of provision through five main operating groups: VT Communications, VT...
FLAGSHIP Ltd. Catering and cleaning services are sub-contracted to Sodexo. - HMS Sultan: Gosport. Naval (and tri-service) training, home of centre of excellence for mechanical and electrical engineering. Naval training provided mainly under contract to VTVT GroupVT Group plc was a British defence and services company, formerly known as Vosper Thornycroft. The Company had diversified from shipbuilding into various engineering and support services, becoming involved in many areas of provision through five main operating groups: VT Communications, VT...
FLAGSHIP Ltd. Catering and cleaning services are sub-contracted to Sodexo.
Decommissioned
- HMS DryadHMS Dryad (establishment)HMS Dryad was a stone frigate . It was the home of the Royal Navy's Maritime Warfare School until 2004.Originally the school was based in Portsmouth Dockyard. The establishment took its name from the ship used as its tender, the fourth HMS Dryad. During World War II it was moved to Southwick House...
: MOD Southwick Park—Tri-Service Defence Police CollegeDefence Police CollegeThe Defence College of Policing and Guarding is the training centre for the Service Police of the British Armed Forces. The centre is Located at Southwick Park, near Portsmouth, Hampshire, it was established on the former site of HMS Dryad and consolidates training for the Royal Military Police,... - HMS DolphinHMS Dolphin shore-establishmentThe seventeenth Royal Navy 'ship' to be named HMS Dolphin was the RN shore establishment sited at Fort Blockhouse in Gosport. Dolphin was the home of the Royal Navy Submarine Service from 1904 to 1999, and location of the Royal Navy Submarine School....
diesel electric submarine baseSubmarine baseA submarine base is a military base that shelters submarines and their personnel.Examples of present-day submarine bases include HMNB Clyde, Île Longue , Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay, Naval Submarine Base New London, and Rybachiy Nuclear Submarine Base .The Israeli navy bases its growing submarine...
—Now MOD Fort BlockhouseFort BlockhouseFort Blockhouse is a military establishment in Gosport, Hampshire, England, and the final version of a complicated site. It is surrounded on 3 sides by water and provides the best view of the entrance to Portsmouth Harbour. It is unique in two respects - firstly, it was built over a number of... - HMS VernonHMS Vernon (shore establishment)HMS Vernon was a shore establishment or 'stone frigate' of the Royal Navy. Vernon was established on 26 April 1876 as the Royal Navy's Torpedo Branch and operated until 1 April 1996, when the various elements comprising the establishment were split up and moved to different commands.-Foundation...
—Now in Civilian use as Gunwharf QuaysGunwharf QuaysGunwharf Quays is an area of Portsmouth, Hampshire, now home to a large shopping centre.- History:The centre opened on 28 February 2001 and is located on the site of the former Royal Navy shore establishment HMS Vernon, renamed HMS Nelson on March 31, 1986... - HMS Daedalus Fleet Air Arm base
- Haslar Royal Military HospitalRoyal Hospital HaslarThe Royal Hospital Haslar in Gosport, Hampshire, England was one of several hospitals serving the Portsmouth Urban Area. The Royal Hospital Haslar officially closed as the last military hospital in the UK in 2007...
- RMB Eastney—Now the Royal Marines MuseumRoyal Marines MuseumThe Royal Marines Museum is located in Eastney , England, and is open to the public every day of the week throughout the year apart from Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and Boxing Day...
- Forton Barracks—Now in civilian use as St Vincent CollegeSt Vincent CollegeSt Vincent College is a small co-educational sixth form college located in Gosport, Hampshire, England. The majority of students come from the surrounding towns including Gosport, Fareham, Stubbington and Winchester. The nearby Gosport Ferry link with Portsmouth also allows students from that city...
- HMS MercuryHMS MercuryEighteen ships of the Royal Navy have borne the name HMS Mercury, or HMS Mercure, after the God Mercury, of Roman mythology:*HMS Mercury was a 6-gun galley launched in 1592 and sold in 1611....
, East MeonEast MeonEast Meon is a village and civil parish in the East Hampshire district of Hampshire, England. It is west of Petersfield.The nearest railway station is east of the village, at Petersfield....
, Near Portsmouth
Antarctic Patrol Ship
—to be replaced in 2011 by MV Polarbjorn, renamed as (ex-MV Polarbjorn)Further reading
- Stephen Courtney, Brian Patterson, Home of the Fleet: A Century of Portsmouth Royal Dockyard in Photographs (Sutton Publishing, 2005) ISBN 0-7509-2285-0.
- James Goss, Portsmouth-built warships 1497–1967 (Published by Kenneth Mason, 1984)
- C. I. Hamilton, Portsmouth Dockyard Papers, 1852–1869: From Wood to Steel, a calendar (Winchester, 2005).
- R.J.B. Knight, Portsmouth Dockyard Papers, 1774–1783: the American War: a calendar (Winchester, 1987)