HMS Formidable

At least six ships of the British Royal Navy were named HMS Formidable after the French word for "strong" or "mighty".

• The first Formidable was a French ship of the line with 80 cannons, which was captured by the British in 1759 in the naval battle in the Bay of Quiberon and renamed HMS Ham .
• The second Formidable was 1778 a battleship second class with 90 guns, which in 1777 was launched at the naval battle of Ouessant participated and in 1782 as the flagship of Rodney in the Battle of the Saintes served. It was scrapped in 1813.
• The third Formidable was a French 74-gun ship of the line that was captured by the British in 1795 and placed in service with the Royal Navy under the name HMS Belleisle .
• The fourth Formidable was an 80-gun ship of the line launched in 1825 and sold for scrapping in 1906.
• The fifth Formidable was a battleship and named for the Formidable class . It was launched in 1898 and was sunk off the Isle of Portland in 1915 by the German submarine U 24 , killing 547 crew members. She was the first British battleship sunk by the enemy in World War I.
• The sixth Formidable (R67) was an aircraft carrier of the Illustrious class . It was launched in 1939, took part in World War II - u. a. at the Battle of Cape Matapan , the Invasion of Sicily and the Battle of Okinawa - and was scrapped in 1956.