| (right distance) and the (left distance) in the Indian Ocean 12 May 1944 }} (normal)
(deep load |Ship lengthLength between perpendiculars lt;br />(Length overall |Ship beam |Ship draught |Ship power |Ship propulsion4 × shafts, 2 × Steam turbine sets,
42 × water-tube boiler |Ship speed |Ship armament3 × 2 – guns
6 × 3, 2 × 1 – guns
2 × 1 – Anti-aircraft warfare guns
2 × 1 – submerged British 21 inch torpedo torpedo tube |Ship armourBelt armor lt;br/>Deck (ship) : lt;br/> Barbette : lt;br/>Gun turret : lt;br />Conning tower lt;br />Bulkhead (partition) : |Ship aircraftflying-off platforms on B and X turrets |Ship aircraft facilities |Ship notes }} |Ship displacement |Ship length |Ship beam |Ship draught |Ship power |Ship propulsion4 × geared steam turbine
4 × shafts |Ship speed |Ship range |Ship capacity |Ship complement1,181 officers and men |Ship armament6 × 15 inch /42 (38.1 cm) Mark I naval gun (3x2)
20 × Dual purpose gun (10x2)
24 × QF 2 pounder naval gun Anti-aircraft warfare (3x8)
Oerlikon 20 mm cannon (number varied) |Ship armour |Ship aircraft4 × floatplane |Ship aircraft facilities1 × double-ended catapult launcher |Ship notes }} |} HMS Renown was the [[lead ship]] of [[Renown class battlecruiser|her class]] of {{convert|26500|LT|t|lk=on|abbr=on}} [[battlecruiser]]s of the British [[Royal Navy]], the other being {{HMS|Repulse|1916|2}}. Both ships were originally to be built as [[Revenge class battleship|Revenge -class]] battleship along with a third ship named HMS Resistance but the orders were suspended after the World War I broke out. A few months later, First Sea Lord John Fisher, 1st Baron Fisher used his influence to have Renownand Repulserestarted to a new design as battlecruisers.

First World War

She was built by Fairfield Shipbuilding & Engineering Co. Ltd. at Govan, Glasgow Scotland Completed in September 1916, she was too late to serve in the Battle of Jutland but served with the Grand Fleet in the North Sea during the remaining two years of the First World War. The future First Sea Lord John H. D. Cunningham served aboard her for a period as senior navigator

Inter-war period

Image:HMSRenown1 crop WEFretwellCollection.jpg carrying the George VI of the United Kingdom and Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon back to England in 1927.]] In 1920-21, following a refit, she carried the Edward VIII of the United Kingdom on voyages to Australia New Zealand and the United States During 1923-26, she was extensively refitted to increase her protection against gunfire and torpedoes, and in 1927 also carried the George VI of the United Kingdom and Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon to Australia and New Zealand. Image:HMS Repulse (1919) profile drawing.png Image:HMS Renown (1939) profile drawing.png

Second World War

After 10 years of further service, Renownwas again reconstructed, greatly changing her appearance (receiving a tower bridge similar to Valiant and giving her a modern Anti-aircraft warfare much enhanced aircraft-handling facilities, and up-to-date gunfire controls including the HACS MkIV AA fire control system and the Admiralty Fire Control Table Mk VII for surface fire control of the main armament, as well as working in additional armour. This work was completed in September 1939, just after the outbreak of the World War II During this work, she picked up the nickname "HMS Refit (the ship had first been nicknamed "HMS Refit as early as 1916, due to the hurried addition of extra armour in response to the defensive weaknesses of battlecruisers revealed by losses at Jutland; her sister ship Repulsehad similarly been nicknamed "HMS Repair). Renown}}s high speed made her a valuable asset during the Second World War. In late 1939, she was sent to the South Atlantic to search for the Deutschland class cruiser She was then part of the cover for minelaying operations along the Norwegian coast in early April 1940 (Operation Wilfred and, on the 9th of that month, in heavy weather briefly engaged the German battlecruisers and damaging the latter with three hits and getting hit twice in return. Later in 1940 and into 1941, she operated with Force "H", based at Gibraltar to provide strategic presence in both the Atlantic (ocean) and Mediterranean While with Force "H", she participated in a bombardment of Genoa, Italy in February 1941. In May, she took part in the hunt for the German battleship however, she was specifically ordered not to engage after the loss of the Hood After Home Fleet service in 1942-43, Renownwas sent to join the Eastern Fleet in the Indian Ocean During this period she also carried Winston Churchill to and from a pre-Tehran Conference conference in AmericaCaptainss report of this journey is available in Library and Archives of Canada, Leonard W. Murray papers, Collection MG30 E207 , and was granted a set of handbells for use at or before church services by the people of Leicester, with whom she had become associated in Warship Week 1942 (commemorated by a letter from the captain, still on display at Leicester Cathedral . Operating from Ceylon in 1944-45, she helped contain the Japanese in the East Indies. Renownwas one of only four battlecruisers to survive the Second World War — the others being the two United States Navy Alaska class cruiser built during the war and the Turkish SMS Goeben which had been launched as SMS Goebenin 1911. Renownhad brief post-war service in British waters as a training Hulk (ship) as part of the stokers training establishment HMS Imperieuse (training establishment) and was sold for scrapping in March 1948. She was the last of Admiral John Fisher, 1st Baron Fisher s battlecruisers to see the scrapyard, outlasting by days.

References

*This article incorporates text from http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/sh-fornv/uk/uksh-r/renown.htm, a [[public domain]] publication of the [[Naval Historical Center|U.S. Naval Historical Center]].

Notes

Footnotes

References

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External links

*http://www.maritimequest.com/warship_directory/great_britain/battleships/renown_1916/hms_renown_1916.htm Maritimequest HMS Renown Photo Gallery] *http://www.britishpathe.com/record.php?id12701 Renown engages enemy bombers with her AA armament] Category:World War II battlecruisers of the United Kingdom Category:Renown class battlecruisers Category:Clyde-built ships Category:1916 ships Category:World War I battlecruisers of the United Kingdom cs:HMS Renown (1916) de:HMS Renown (1916) fr:HMS Renown (1916) hr:HMS Renown (1916) it:HMS Renown (1916) nl:HMS Renown (1916) ja:レナウン (巡洋戦艦) no:HMS «Renown» (1916) pl:HMS Renown (1916) pt:HMS Renown (1916) ru:HMS Renown fi:HMS Renown (1916) sv:HMS Renown vi:HMS Renown (1916)