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Launched in December 2009, HMS Defender is the fifth of the Royal Navy’s six Type 45 destroyers. Together with her sister vessels, Defender is one of the most advanced warships ever constructed.
HMS Defender (D36) is currently on deployment
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The Carrier Strike Group is our nation's spearhead. The role of the Carrier Strike Group is to act as a self-contained force that can work independently or as part of wider operations.
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Along with her fellow Type 45 destroyers, HMS Defender’s primary role is to provide the Fleet with air defence using the ferocious Sea Viper anti-air missile system. With a range of up to 70 miles, the Sea Viper is truly a force to be reckoned with.
At any one time, this high-tech warship could be hunting pirates, drug runners and submarines, defending the Fleet air attack, or providing humanitarian aid after a natural disaster.
There have been seven previous ships of this name. The first was a 12-gun brig that was disposed of in 1802 during the Peace of Amiens.
The second HMS Defender was a 14-gun brig launched in 1804 and wrecked in 1809.
The third Defender was a captured French privateer, previously the Beau Marseille. Captured by HMS Royalist, she was sold in 1814.
The fourth Defender was a second class colonial torpedo boat, and can still be seen on display at the Torpedo Boat Museum in Lyttleton, New Zealand.
The next HMS Defender was a destroyer commissioned in 1911. She saw extensive action throughout World War I before being sold in 1921.
Heligoland 1914.
Dogger Bank 1915.
Jutland 1916 - Defender was damaged by a German shell but carried out sufficient repairs to return to base in Aberdeen with HMS Onslow in tow. The Captain, Lieutenant Commander L R Palmer, receives the DSO.
The fifth Defender took part in the action at Spartivento and the victory off Cape Matapan. She was lost off Egypt in 1941 after being bombed on a convoy run to Tobruk.
The penultimate HMS Defender detected the wreck of the Prince of Wales off Malaysia, supported operations at Suez in 1956, and took part in the Coronation Review of 1953.
Named briefly as a shore-based unit in Liverpool during the Battle of the Atlantic, the Defender name returned to sea in 1950 as a Daring-class destroyer.
The current HMS Defender is the fifth Type 45 Destroyer. She was launched in 2009.
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Mine hunter ships, frigates, destroyers and assault ships, among others, form the backbone of our naval prowess.
A vital element of the Royal Navy's role is keeping the peace, preventing conflict and containing situations before they develop.
The UK has a responsibility to its citizens and its allies to endeavour to safeguard the high seas. This is why the Royal Navy protects home and international waters.
