The contested Saint-class label

This opening explains why the label is striking rather than self-evident. HMS Saint George, an Edgar-class cruiser discarded in 1920, is one of the few recent Royal Navy examples. Most other saint names date from the early eighteenth century and then disappear, while Saint Patrick never returned to British use after the Dutch captured her around 1737. That sparse record makes a proposed run of saint-named capital ships an anomaly that needs firm documentary support.