Name the top five war ships in naval history

1. Iowa Class - Fast Battleship; United States

2. Nimitz Class - Aircraft Carrier; United States

3. Queen Elizabeth Class - Battleship; Great Britain

4. Ticonderoga Class - Missile Cruiser; United States

5. Fletcher Class - Destroyer; United States

Why not post in Ships?

1. Yamoto

2. Hms dreadnought

3. Bismark

4. Uss enterprise

5. Hms victory

Honorable mention: uss nautilus

The replies seem very heavily aimed at 20th Century ships.  There were warships that existed before 20th Century- lots of them!

In addition to the Victory, already mentioned, I'd have to mention Constitution, Warrior, Gloire, British standard 74s, Sovereign  of the Seas (warship, not clipper).

I suspect the ranking in terms of effectiveness would go very much by date.  Newer is better, more powerful.

Zuiho...

That one ship that one all those battles...I think Jefferson Starship!

jadgpanther302

That one ship that one all those battles...I think Jefferson Starship!

HMS Victory, the Trafalgar one. Represents all First rates.

Any of the type 7 u-boats. As a class, they defined naval warfare for a period of time.

USS Missouri because that was  the last and best battleship class that served.

IJN Yamato because if the USN had three of them, it would have been a fight...but only if protected by carriers....

The Essex class carrier. Superior in design, by the fact that they were converted and useful for 30 years,; numerous; twelve were in service by mid 1945.

I will be lazy and just add one to the list. The sailing frigates that were used by the British and the French in the period around the Napoleonic wars were fantastic ships and performed many tasks that the larger ships of the line were unable to do.

Chris

I think that  listing five leaves out several imortant ships in history. Too many to list from Destroyers to Flat Tops but here's mine:

1. CSS Hunley.  Firt submarine used in combat. Although it met a tragic end, it was the beginning of

                          things to come for the submarine service.

2. CSS Monitor. A different concept or armor in fighting ships, sinking two wooden Federal ships.

3. HMS Victory. Saved England from a seaborne invasion.

4. Bismarck. Germany's massive battleship that squared off against a large Royal Navy Battle

                    Battle Group and almost won.

5. USS Missouri. Earned 11 Battle Stars in WWII, Korea and The Gulf. Site where Japan signed

                           the surrender document.

Don't know exactly how to rate the "top five" warships, as I am as interested in the men who sailed them and the historic situations in which they operated, as I am in the machines themselves - probably more so.  But it is hard to imagine a list of the top five warships of all time without it including CV-6, the USS Enterprise.  She stood-to in the PTO from start to finish, and had herself in the thick of it all the way, retiring only long enough to give her wounds a lick or two before burrowing right back into it.  It is hard to believe she got scrapped for her steel - a completely sad and totally unfitting end for such a tried and true warrior.

I would add HMS Victory, as it is also difficult to imagine such a list without her on it as well.  Other than that, I'm not sure how to determine.

The Hunley was one of the first submarines in combat but the first was the Turtle used in the Revolutionary War. New York Harbor was under blockade by the British Royal Navy and the Turtle Tried to attack the Flag ship HMS Eagle but it failed since the bottom of Eagle was covered by iron plates. the charge that was going to be attached to Eagle was detonated in the harbor and the British fearful of a underwater attack did break the blockade so it was also a success at the same time

Old Ironsides

The Merrimack/Virginia-revolutionized naval warfare in the 1860's

Monitor-one upped the Virginia with a turret

The Big E-sole American carrier at one point in the pacific. Fought in numerous major battles

Dreadnaught-revolutionized naval warfare and made obsolete every capital ship in the world.

A very nice Line up of war ships. A bit pro American. Then again, they built many powerful battle ships such as The New Jersey and Missouri. They were the pride of the American navy. Really good stuff.

Yamato was the first war ship that captured my imagination as a kid. I first discovered it as the futuristic battle cruiser in the sci fi series "Star blazers". I watched "Yamato", the movie, and though I know the vessel's history, it still saddened me that the ship never got a fair fight against the american war ships. Just bombed to bits wave after wave. Nice of you to rate Bismarck a third place on your list. That's my favourite capital ship of them all!  Enterprise or the US Hornet, both amazing aircraft carriers. Yes Victory. A beautiful war ship. One of the finest. I must see it in Portsmouth one day.

Ranking can also be ruled by your personal preference. Steel ships or classic war ships. I like what you have come up with so far. Nice

Hehehe. Must be of the smallest aircraft carriers in naval history. Still every little helps. :c)

Hahaha. That's an old rockband from the 70's. There's another one called "Starship"  Very cheesy band from the 80s. This is not on topic. :c)

Again when you look at the different rankings here, the American vessels come to the very top of the league. American war ships were arguably the best in design, performance and firepower. It's amasing that a war ship as Missouri has had such a long shelf life. Yeah. Yamato would have made a big difference with stronger numbers. Another reason why the Americans are superior on the battlefield both land, air and water. Nothing to do with tactics and skills alone. It's about Numbers! The American war machine churned out more tanks, warships, fighters that the Japanese or the Germans forces could shake a stick at. It was definitely a numbers' game.

I agree. The people commanding  these ships are equally important . These men's demonstration of valour and skills in battle add to the greatness of war ships we still remember today. You make a very fair point. Thanks.

I understand that you have a soft heart for classic war ships. That's true, but the frigates couldn't enter shallow and narrow canals and at the same time launch an invasion on the shores. It's fair to say that the viking ships were perfectly designed for that purpose. Also fast and more seaworthy than most wooden war ships.

Not heard of the CSS Hunley. Just checked it on Wikipedia. Looks a bit ominous. Sacrifices has to be made to further our advancements in technology. Good choice. I like the Monitor. Low silhouette is always an advantage in battle, makes it a hard target to hit. Perhaps all battelship in WWII should have been designed along those lines. Without the tall turret that looks like a band stand of course. Hehehe. HMS Victory is the best wooden ship ever made. That vessel can take a good pounding. So majestic. Yes the Bismarck. It could have change the tide of the war if it only managed to get to Brest for repairs and then join up with Scharnhorst and Gneisenau. That would be a devastating force, capable of sinking so many supply ships, that it would cripple the British army. USS Missouri is one of the most memorable ships in history of naval war fare. Thought the document of capitulation was signed on board USS Iowa. Thanks for sharing your ships and the history.

Nothing speaks louder than success in battle for a warship in her designed role.

USS Enterprise, CV-6, no ship in the USN, and certainly no carrier, had a more successful or distiguished battle record in WWII.

HMS Warspite- say what you want about other newer, more powerful battleships, they were either sunk in battle (Bismark, Yamato) or never fought it out in a surface engagement (Iowa class) more than once. Warspite's battle record is also most distinguished.

The Type VII U-Boat- the one ship that came closest to defeating the Royal Navy

HMS Victory-again a ship second to none in its' era in battle

USS Constituion- the name "Old Ironsides", was not pulled out of thin salt air...

Good point and the Bismark was sunk by a outdated British bi-plane

stikpusher

... USS Constituion- the name "Old Ironsides", was not pulled out of thin salt air...

So true.  And I'll have to read up on HMS Warspite (and admit my ignorance).

bissyboat - As an old aviation ordnanceman, I'll have to call what happened to the Yamato a fair fight ... .

Rambo

Good point and the Bismark was sunk by a outdated British bi-plane

Nah, just crippled enough for the surface ships to catch up and sink her. She was sunk the old fashioned way, with gunfire.

A quick Wiki run later, and I'll add HMS Warspite to my list.  That makes three of five, anyway.

You have my respect. I do not side with the japanese on this matter, only saying the Yamato was met with an overwhelming force, what seemed suicidal as they could only fight of the dive bombers. It was the right thing to do.and it reduced the number of casualties on American side. In an ideal world were history could be tweaked, I would imagined a more glorious battle where the big American capitol ships would come out and fight with their guns blazing like a real classic show down. However, the Yamato wasn't going to perform any miracles. It wanted to inflict as much damage as possible and then to suffer defeat the honorable way. Trust me I'm glad the Yamato went down.

Yes crippling the boat by destroying the rudder. Also before facing the Swordfish torpedo bombers, The Bismarck started limping away, reducing its speed. Much thanks to the The Prince of Wales who shot through the hull by the bow where the fuel tanks are situated. This shot deprived the Bismarck of more than 8.000 tons of fuel until the main event against King George and Rodney.

Bissyboat

You have my respect. I do not side with the japanese on this matter, only saying the Yamato was met with an overwhelming force, what seemed suicidal as they could only fight of the dive bombers. It was the right thing to do.and it reduced the number of casualties on American side. In an ideal world were history could be tweaked, I would imagined a more glorious battle where the big American capitol ships would come out and fight with their guns blazing like a real classic show down. However, the Yamato wasn't going to perform any miracles. It wanted to inflict as much damage as possible and then to suffer defeat the honorable way. Trust me I'm glad the Yamato went down.

I know you're glad the Yamato  went down.  Just funnin' with ya ... but what happened to the Yamato is the reason nobody has built battlewagons since - airplanes (and their carriers), missiles and submarines rule the waves, and have for the last 70 years or so (with missiles the most recent comer).  Battleships, grand as they were, are history.

I'll add another ship to my list, now that I've been thinking about it (actually, I'm adding her skipper and her crew as much as I'm adding the ship):  The destroyer USS Johnston, DD-557 (Fletcher class).

During Battle of Samar (Leyte Gulf), as a member of TF "Taffy 3", a ragtag collection of CVL's, DD's and DE's, the USS Johnston, captained by Lt. Cdr. Earnest E. Evans, distinguished herself as one of the great warships of all time.  Admiral Kurita of the IJN had four battleships, six heavy cruisers, two light cruisers, and eleven destroyers.at his disposal, notably including the IJN Yamato.  Lt. Cdr. Evans (who, upon taking command of the Johnston when she was commissioned in  '43, famously repeated to his crew the words of America's first naval hero, John Paul Jones, "This is going to be a fighting ship.  I intend to go in harm's way, and anyone who doesn't want to go along had better get off right now."), on his own initiative, attacked the Japanese battle fleet headlong.

The Johnston scored damaging hits on the heavy cruiser Kumano with her five-inch guns, then blew the Kumano's bow off with a torpedo, forcing the much larger ship to retire. The Johnston's success against the Kumano inspired Adm. Sprague's order, "Small boys, attack!", which sent the remaining handful of American destroyers and destroyer escorts in amongst the Japanese warships, firing their guns and torpedoes as they went.  The Johnston, after being hit by several 14 inch shells, next took on a Kongo-class battleship, against whose superstructure she scored multiple short-range hits with her guns.  Breaking off that attack to rush to the defense of the CVL USS Gambier Bay, the Johnston drove off another heavy cruiser.  She then fought off a group of IJN destroyers, forcing them to retire beyond her gun range, deftly dodging their fusilade of torpedos.  By then, several of the Johnston's guns had been knocked out, her steering damaged, her 40 mm magazine set afire, and Lt. Cdr. Evans wounded.  Nevertheless, the Johnston continued to fight until her engines were knocked out, leaving her dead in the water. 

Under fire from multiple enemy ships, Lt. Cdr. Evans ordered his crew to abandon ship.  She rolled over as they did so, and a Japanese destroyer closed to fire a final shot into her to make sure she went down.  A Johnston crewman reported that he saw the captain of the Japanese ship salute the Johnston as the shot was fired.  Of 327 crewmen on the Johnston, only 141 survived the battle.  Lt. Cdr. Evans, who was seen alive as the Johnston rolled over, was never seen again.

As a result of "Taffy 3's" valiant stand, the Leyte Gulf landings were preserved in safety.  If the USS Johnston isn't a great warship, I don't know what is.