When HMS Vanguard was built, submarines and long-range missiles had turned the concept of a battleship practically useless. Aircraft had also become the spearhead of naval military operations, and the enormous and expensive ships were only being built just because other nations were still making them.
Vanguard was the last ever British battleship, and the almost 700-million-dollar 815-foot behemoth was among the most powerful ships of her kind by the end of World War 2. As a fleet flagship and crown jewel of the British Navy, HMS Vanguard needed nearly 2,000 men to operate.
Built in a whim more than an actual need, the British battleship would represent a turning point in the history of naval warfare, and the surprising use it would serve would have nothing to do with the belligerent battleships from the past…
11 сен 2024