Naval Historywith Dr. Alex

Q&A · 11:09-12:06

Why HMS Falkland is absent from the Colony frigates

A naming aside traces earlier ships called Falkland and identifies the 1696 vessel as the first Royal Navy warship built in what became the United States.

Age Of SailHMS FalklandRoyal NavyShip NamingWarship Construction
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Question

Was there an HMS Falkland among the Colony-class frigates?

Short answer

No. Earlier Royal Navy ships carried the name, but it was absent from the Second World War Colony-class frigate list.

Notes

A viewer question about an HMS Falkland opens a short excursion into Royal Navy naming practice. The two earlier ships called Falkland were probably named for the royal burgh in Fife instead of the South Atlantic islands, and the service also used Falkland Prize for a captured vessel. The ships mentioned are described as an 18-gun sloop and a 54-gun fourth rate. The 1696 Falkland is identified as the first Royal Navy warship built in the territory that became the United States. Despite being a plausible colony name, Falkland does not appear among these Second World War frigates. The naming history links Royal Navy geography with early transatlantic warship construction.