On 1 October 1941, royal decree turned the New Zealand Division into the Royal New Zealand Navy. Achilles and Leander changed their prefix from HMS to HMNZS, establishing the third Dominion fleet after Canada and Australia. Their wartime service ranged across the Atlantic, Indian Ocean, Mediterranean, South Pacific, United States Seventh Fleet, and British Pacific Fleet. After Achilles was badly damaged in South Pacific fighting, the Royal Navy lent the Fiji-class cruiser Gambia as a replacement in 1943. Bellona and Black Prince were earmarked for postwar transfer, while Achilles passed to the Royal Indian Navy in 1946.
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Royal New Zealand Navy cruisers at war
A book on wartime cruisers opens a concise survey of the Royal New Zealand Navy's creation and the global service of Achilles, Leander, and Gambia.