Eight ships of 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...

 have borne the name HMS Centaur, after the half-human, half horse Centaur

Centaur

In Greek mythology, a centaur or hippocentaur is a member of a composite race of creatures, part human and part horse...

 of Greek mythology

Greek mythology

Greek mythology is the body of myths and legends belonging to the ancient Greeks, concerning their gods and heroes, the nature of the world, and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices. They were a part of religion in ancient Greece...

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was a 24-gun sixth rate launched in 1746 and sold in 1761. was a 74-gun third rate ship of the line

Ship of the line

A ship of the line was a type of naval warship constructed from the 17th through the mid-19th century to take part in the naval tactic known as the line of battle, in which two columns of opposing warships would manoeuvre to bring the greatest weight of broadside guns to bear...

, formerly the French ship Centaure. She was captured at the Battle of Lagos

Battle of Lagos

The naval Battle of Lagos between Britain and France took place on August 19, 1759 during the Seven Years' War off the coasts of Spain and Portugal, and is named after Lagos, Portugal. For the British, it was part of the Annus Mirabilis of 1759.-Origins:...

 in 1759, and foundered in a hurricane in 1782. was a 74-gun third rate launched in 1797, decommissioned in 1816, and broken up in 1819. was a wooden paddle frigate

Frigate

A frigate is any of several types of warship, the term having been used for ships of various sizes and roles over the last few centuries.In the 17th century, the term was used for any warship built for speed and maneuverability, the description often used being "frigate-built"...

 launched in 1845 and scrapped in 1864.

• HMS Centaur was to have been an Edgar-class
  Edgar class cruiser
  The Edgar-class was a nine-ship class of protected cruiser built around 1891 for the Royal Navy.-Design:Crescent and Royal Arthur were built to a slightly modified design with a raised forecastle and a pair of 6 inch guns replacing the forward 9.2 inch gun, and are sometimes considered a...
  
   armoured cruiser, but she was renamed in 1890, prior to her launch in 1891. was a C class
  C class cruiser
  The C class was a group of twenty-eight light cruisers of the Royal Navy, and were built in a sequence of seven classes known as the Caroline , Calliope , Cambrian , Centaur , Caledon , Ceres and Carlisle classes...
  
   cruiser
  Cruiser
  A cruiser is a type of warship. The term has been in use for several hundreds of years, and has had different meanings throughout this period...
  
   and lead ship of the Centaur- subclass. She was launched in 1916 and sold for scrap in 1934.
• HMS Centaur was to have been a C class
  C class destroyer (1943)
  The C class was a class of 32 destroyers of the Royal Navy that were launched from 1943 to 1945. The class was built in four flotillas of 8 vessels, the Ca, Ch, Co and Cr classes, ordered as the 11th, 12th, 13th and 14th Emergency Flotillas respectively...
  
   destroyer
  Destroyer
  In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, powerful, short-range attackers. Destroyers, originally called torpedo-boat destroyers in 1892, evolved from...
  
  . She was ordered in 1942, but was subsequently redesigned as a Weapon class destroyer
  Weapon class destroyer
  The Weapon class was a class of destroyers built for the British Royal Navy towards the end of World War II. They were the smaller counterpart to the Battle class and were the first new destroyer designs for the Royal Navy since the Second World War Emergency Programme...
  
   and renamed HMS Tomahawk in 1943. She was eventually launched in 1946 as . was a Centaur class
  Centaur class aircraft carrier
  The Centaur class of aircraft carriers of the British Royal Navy was the last of the light fleet carrier designs started during the closing years of World War II.-Ships In Class:HMS Centaur...
  
   aircraft carrier
  Aircraft carrier
  An aircraft carrier is a warship designed with a primary mission of deploying and recovering aircraft, acting as a seagoing airbase. Aircraft carriers thus allow a naval force to project air power worldwide without having to depend on local bases for staging aircraft operations...
  
  , launched in 1947 and scrapped in 1970.