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Plymouth, Devon: HMS Lion and HMS Implacable

 


HMS Lion and HMS Implacable: Plymouth’s Naval Giants

The maritime history of Plymouth is written in the steel and timber of the ships that have called the Devonport Dockyard home. Among the thousands of vessels associated with the city, HMS Lion and HMS Implacable stand out—not just for their combat records, but for their deep, physical connection to the Hamoaze and the people of Plymouth. One was a locally built masterpiece of the industrial age; the other was a captured relic that became a permanent fixture of the city's skyline for nearly a century.

HMS Lion: The Pride of Devonport

HMS Lion was the embodiment of Edwardian naval ambition. Laid down at Devonport Dockyard in 1909 and launched in 1910, she was the lead ship of the "Splendid Cats." These were battlecruisers designed with a singular philosophy: speed was the best protection. By mounting massive 13.5-inch guns on a hull capable of 28 knots, the Navy created a ship that could outrun anything it couldn't outgun.

The launch of Lion was one of the greatest public spectacles in Plymouth's history. Tens of thousands of people lined the shores of the Tamar to watch the massive hull slide into the water. For the dockyard workers, she was a source of immense pride, representing the pinnacle of their engineering skill. During World War I, she served as the flagship of the Battlecruiser Fleet under Admiral David Beatty. Her survival at the Battle of Jutland, despite a catastrophic turret hit, remains a testament to the bravery of her crew and the robustness of her Devonport-built hull. After the war, she returned to her birthplace, eventually being sold for scrap in 1924 as part of the international treaties designed to end the naval arms race.

HMS Implacable: From Trafalgar to the Hamoaze

While Lion was built in Plymouth, HMS Implacable arrived as a "prize of war." Originally the French ship Duguay-Trouin, she fought against Lord Nelson at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805. Captured by the British shortly after, she was renamed and integrated into the Royal Navy. Her service was distinguished, notably in the Baltic, but it was her "second life" in Plymouth that made her a local legend.

From 1855 until the early 20th century, Implacable was moored in the Hamoaze at Devonport. She was "hulked"—stripped of her masts and rigging—to serve as a training ship for young naval recruits. For generations of Plymouth boys, the Implacable was their first introduction to life at sea. She became a landmark, as much a part of the Plymouth landscape as the Hoe or the Guildhall. By the 1940s, she was the oldest ship in the Navy after HMS Victory, and her presence in the river was a constant reminder of the Napoleonic era.

The Scuttling of a Legend

The end of the Implacable in 1949 was a moment of national mourning, particularly in Plymouth. Despite a fierce campaign by historians and the public to save her as a museum ship, the post-war government claimed it could not afford the repairs. Because her hull was too fragile to be towed into a dry dock, the decision was made to scuttle her.

On December 2, 1949, she was towed out of Plymouth Sound for the last time. In a gesture of respect, she flew both the British White Ensign and the French Tricolour. As she was sunk by explosive charges in the English Channel, she was given a full naval salute. Many Plymouth residents watched from the Hoe as the silhouette they had known their entire lives disappeared beneath the horizon. Though she was gone, her ornate stern gallery was saved and preserved, and her name was passed on to a modern aircraft carrier that would continue the connection to the city.

Why They Were at Plymouth

The presence of these two ships in Plymouth was defined by the city's dual role as a builder and a trainer.

  • HMS Lion was at Plymouth because she was born there. Her construction sustained thousands of families in the West Country, and her return to the reserve fleet in the 1920s brought her back to the waters where her story began.

  • HMS Implacable was at Plymouth because the city was the Navy’s classroom. Her eighty years as a training ship meant that she was the foundational experience for thousands of sailors who would go on to serve in two World Wars.

Both ships remain central to the narrative of Devonport, representing the transition from the "wooden walls" of the age of sail to the "iron dukes" of the modern era.

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Location: Plymouth, UK

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