In addition to such awesome names as HMS Indefatigable, HMS Furious, and HMS Invincible, the Royal Navy named a lot of ships after monarchs - Queen Elizabeth, King George V (twice!), Queen Mary…
Why no Queen Victoria? She’s got a whole era named after her, or did she piss off people in the navy enough to never get that nod?
Not an absolute answer but there were several HMS Victorias. The final one was a pre-Dreadnought battleship from 1887, the year of Queen Victoria’s jubilee. Unfortunately HMS Victoria was sunk with great loss of life in a stupid accident caused by a gungho Admiral and timid subordinates. Possibly this put the Navy off naming a another ship Victoria or Queen Victoria.
There were serveral ships named HMS Victoria.
The last was a pre-pre-dreadnought battleship (built in 1887) sunk in an accidental collision with another HMS warship. It actually rests 90 degrees upright like a pole in the bottom of the ocean. link
As to why the word “Queen” was never put in the name, I don’t know. I believe the names of ships approved for construction are submitted by the Admiralty for approval, and it didn’t make the cut.
WAG - because it would be too similar to HMS Victory.
Also, there have been navy ships named after her
Maybe the RN thought it an unlucky name following the accident.
The question’s been answered, but there have been British warships with “Queen” in the name, incidentally:
And might be again someday:
Ah - so there were Victorias, but not Queen Victorias. I didn’t think to look for that. Thanks!
Well, that didn’t stop them from re-using HMS Vanguard (blew up in harbour) and HMS Invincible (exploded at the Battle of Jutland).
I should imagine that to be damned embarrassing.
It gets worse. Prior to the battlecruiser HMS Invincible’s loss at Jutland, two previous Invincibles were wrecked and another foundered in a storm. Not only that, the last two Invincibles have been the lead ships and have given their name to their classes, which is just tempting fate. On the other hand, HMS Buttercup, HMS Candytuft, HMS Poppy and HMS Primrose all survived WWII. The Royal Navy should learn from this hard won experience, and give their ships names like HMS Puppy, HMS Kitten, HMS Meercat and HMS Modest.
It gets worse, the HMS Indefatigable… Turned out tomb rather less so. barely got nicked and blew up.
I thought for sure you were whoosing me.
HMS Irresistible (of the Formidable class) sunk trying to force the Dardenelles, 1915.
Irresistible force not so irresistible, but merely formidable…
Thank you, thank you. Tip the waitress. Please.
RN ships are so few these days that there are plenty of previous names to recycle. The Flower class corvettes did spawn some rather unusual names.
I’m from the UK and so naturally disposed to think highly of our Navy, but regardless of your allegiances you’ve got to tip your hat any organisation that can come up with both HMS Candytuft and HMS Warspite.
I find myself running a little montage in my head of two able seamen opening their mail and reading of their postings. One is off to HMS Warspite, he punches the air! The other to HMS Candytuft, he crumples the letter and hangs his head.
I can only imagine that the crews of the several Royal Navy vessels named “HMS Cockchafer” got into a lot of fights on shore leave.
My favorite military quote remains, “I do not say the French will not come, Sir. I say they will not come by sea.”
Particularly when they met up with the matelots from HMS Gay Bruiser
By the sound of it, they were too busy.
Now, see, that’s just the sort of remark that led to all the fights.