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Major British Warship Losses in World War 2
by Gordon Smith, Naval-History.Net

 

LOSS SUMMARY TABLES
Total strength and losses - by year - by theatre - by enemy - by cause

 

HMS Repulse, battlecruiser, lost 10 December 1941

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TOTAL STRENGTH AND LOSSES

 

 

ROYAL NAVIES

Strength as of Sept 1939

 

Commissioned to Aug 1945

Total in service (a)

Losses of pre-war ships

 (as % of 1939 strength) (b)

Total losses

 (as % of total in service) (b)

 

Capital ships

 

 

15

 

5

 

20

 

4 (27%)

 

5 (25%)

Carriers

 

7

58(c)

65 (c)

5 (70%)

10 (15%)

Cruisers

 

66

35

101

24 (36%)

34 (34%)

Destroyers

 

184

277

461

94 (51%)

153 (33%)

Submarines

 

60

178

238

34 (57%)

76 (32%)

 

Totals

 

 

332

 

553

 

885

 

161 (48%)

 

278 (31%)

 

(a) Includes ships lost, transferred from US Navy and later returned, transferred from Royal Navies to Allies, captured from the Axis powers, and old vessels scrapped before end of war

 

(b) British & Dominion Navies only; excludes British Navy warships manned by or transferred to Allies. Also includes ships badly damaged and not repaired or fully re-commissioned. The percentage  (in brackets) of pre-war ships lost gives an indication of just how heavy casualties were in  the early years of World War 2

 

(c) Includes 2 escort carriers manned by Royal Canadian Navy

 

(-)   Many Dominion officers and men served in and sometimes commanded Royal Navy ships

 

 

OF THE ABOVE TOTALS:

 

 

Strength,  Sept 1939

Commissioned to Aug 1945

Total in service

Losses, pre-war ships

Losses in total

Australian

 

 

 

 

 

  Cruisers

6

1

7

3

3

  Destroyers

5

13

18

3

4

Canadian

 

 

 

 

 

  Carriers

-

2

2

-

1

  Cruisers

-

2

2

-

-

  Destroyers

6

29

35

4

7

New Zealand  

 

 

 

 

 

  Cruisers

2

1

3

-

-

 

 


 

 

 

LOSSES BY YEAR, including Not Repaired

 

 

Warship types

1939

1940

1941

1942

1943

1944

1945

Totals

 

Capital ships

 

 

1

 

-

 

4

 

-

 

-

 

-

 

-

 

5

Carriers

 

1

1

2

3

1

1

(RCN)

 

1

10

(1 RCN)

Cruisers

 

-

3

11

(1 RAN)

13

(2 RAN)

 

4

3

-

34

(3 RAN)

Destroyers

 

3

37

(2 RCN)

22

(1 RAN)

51

(3 RAN,

2 RCN)

 

18

(1 RCN)

20

(2 RCN)

2

153

 (4 RAN,

7 RCN)

Submarines

 

1

24

11

19

13

5

3

76

 

TOTALS

 

 

6

 

65

(2 RCN)

 

 

50

(2 RAN)

 

86

(5 RAN,

2 RCN)

 

 

36

(1 RCN)

 

29

(3 RCN)

 

6

 

278

(7 RAN,

8 RCN)

 

Ocean Escorts (a)

 

-

 

6

(1 RIN)

 

11

(1 RAN,

2 RCN)

 

14

(1 RAN,

2 RCN,

1 RIN)

 

9

(2 RCN)

 

29

(6 RCN)

 

12

(2 RCN)

 

72

(2 RAN,

14 RCN,

2 RIN)

 

(a) Includes sloops, corvettes, frigates and cutters, but NOT fleet and sloop minesweepers and armed merchant cruisers. A number of casualties towards the end of the war were not considered worth repairing.

 

 


 

 

 

LOSSES BY THEATRE

 

 

Warship types

Atlantic

Europe

Mediterranean

Indian & Pacific

 

Capital ships

 

 

1

 

1

 

1

 

2

Carriers

 

4

(1 RCN)

 

3

2

1

Cruisers

 

4

4

20

6

(3 RAN)

 

Destroyers

 

23

(5 RCN)

53

(2 RCN)

67

(2 RAN)

10

(2 RAN)

 

Submarines

 

5

21

45

5

 

TOTALS

 

 

37

(6 RCN)

 

 

82

(2 RCN)

 

135

(2 RAN)

 

24

(5 RAN)

 

Ocean Escorts

 

38

 (9 RCN)

 

23

 (4 RCN)

 

13

(1 RAN, 1 RCN)

 

5

(1 RAN, 2 RIN)

 

 


 

 

 

LOSS BY ENEMY

 

 

Warship types

 

German

Italian

Japanese

French

Other (a)

Unknown

Total

 

Capital ships

 

 

3

 

-

 

2

 

-

 

-

 

-

 

5

Carriers

 

8

-

1

-

1

-

10

Cruisers

 

20

6

5

-

3

-

34

Destroyers

 

114

15

8

1 (b)

15

-

153

Submarines (a)

 

24

37

4

-

6

5

76

 

Totals

 

 

169

 

58

 

20

 

1

 

25

 

5

 

278

 

(a) Includes accidental explosion and fire, collision with British or Allied ships, deliberately expended,  and marine loss from grounding or weather

 

(b) French shore batteries

 

(c) Submarines ‘presumed’ or ‘possibly’ lost due to various causes have been allocated to the Axis power most likely to have been responsible

 

 


 

 

  

 

CAUSE OF LOSS

 

 

Warship types

Surface forces

Submarine

Mines

Aircraft

Shore defences

Marine accident (& unknown)

Total

 

Capital ships

 

 

1

 

2

 

-

 

2

 

-

 

-

 

5

Carriers

 

1

7

-

1

-

1

10

Cruisers

 

8

9

2

12

-

3

34

Destroyers

 

22

33

26

55

2

15

153

Submarines

 

29

5

26

7

-

4 (+ 5)

76

 

Totals

 

 

61

 

56

 

54

 

77

 

2

 

23 (+5)

 

278

 

 

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