Only three officers remained alive on Royal Sovereign's quarterdeck, leading witnesses to describe Collingwood as having a charmed existence. That reputation prompts a comparison with the World War II Tribal-class destroyer HMS Ashanti, remembered for surviving repeated danger without catastrophic damage. Ashanti was presented as the only member of the class to meet the people for whom she was named and to receive their tokens and blessing. Meeting the namesake community gave the ship's name a direct meaning for its crew. The blessing and the ship's reputation belong to naval tradition surrounding remarkable survival, with no claim that either explains her survival technically.
Notable Point · 34:22-35:24
HMS Ashanti and the language of a charmed ship
Collingwood's apparent luck prompts a comparison with HMS Ashanti, whose namesake connection became part of the destroyer's survival story.