Posted in WW2 Japanese Navy

WW2 Japanese Aircraft Carriers

Japan, 1919-45. 34 Aircraft Carriers The third giant of carriers: In December 1941, the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) possessed the…

Posted in ww2 Royal Navy

Courageous class aircraft carriers (1928)

United Kingdom – Aircraft Carrier The Courageous Class were two light battlecruisers intended for an Operation in the Baltic in…

Posted in ww2 Italian Navy

Littorio class battleships

Kingdom of Italy (1937-40) – Battleships Littorio, Veneto, Roma, Impero The Duce’s mighty battleships: Italy had to wait after the…

Posted in ww1 german navy

Irene class cruisers (1887)

German Empire – Irene, Prinzess Wilhelm The first German protected cruisers: Irene and Prinzessin Wilhelm (Prince William) were built respectively…

Posted in cold war us navy

Cold War USN Missile Cruisers

Cold War USN Missile Cruisers 41 missile cruisers 1955-1964 USN Missile cruisers developed in the 1950s testing brand new weapons…

Posted in WW2 Japanese Navy

Kuma class cruisers (1919)

Kuma class cruisers (1919) Japan, 1919. Kuma, Tama, Kitakami, Oi, Kiso The five cruisers of the Kuma class were first…

Posted in Chinese warships

Hai Tien class protected cruisers (1898)

Hai Tien class protected cruisers (1898) Chinese Empire/Republic – Hai Tien, Hai Chi (1898) The largest Chinese cruisers in 1900…

Posted in Coldwar Soviet Ships soviet submarines

Romeo class submarines

Conventional SSK attack submarines (Project 633, 1957) 21 submarines (1958-62) Introduction: Perhaps not the best-known cold war conventional submarine of…

Posted in ww2 Royal Navy

WW2 British Destroyers

WW2 British Destroyers United Kingdom (1917-1945), 400+ destroyers Introduction In 1939, 184 destroyers were in service, dating back for a…

Posted in WW1 Japanese Navy

WW1 Japanese Battleships

WW1 Japanese Battleships Japan (1890-1919) About 30 capital ships Introduction: Japan was introduced the the idea of an ironclad very…

Naval Encyclopedia

Naval Encyclopedia provides a one-stop place for everything related to naval warfare through ships classes, going back to antiquity to the present day, with particular focus on WW1, WW2 and the cold war, with daily articles and weekly fleets. This is a long endeavour, with future entries in opacity both in the top and side menus. Naval encyclopedia also goes through some civilian aspects (clippers, liners, oil platforms, naval tech in general) and battles/tactics as well.

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⚒ Tech

Naval-related technology,
associated tactics & statistics


naval battles from the XIX to WW1, WW2 and cold war sea fights

⚔ Battles

Full history of naval battles,
strategies, tactics, fleets and ships


merchandisiding, plans, photos, illustrations

☘ Medias

Photos, blueprints, illustrations,
and Merch to support this site !


About Naval Encyclopedia

Naval Encyclopedia is the first online warship museum. She was laid down in St Nazaire Yard back in September 1995, launched in December 1996 and completed in March 1997, with 1000+ crew for now, and counting. Dedicated to the history of all ships of the industrial era and 20th century, so 1820 to 1990, but also earlier times. The main difference for this early period is to study ships types through some famous examples. After her last refit in 2023, the present ship has been repainted anew, modernized and made more appealing, ready for even more extensive service, hopefully staying in the current state for the next five years of service. Further improvements will be made if practicable. Numerous additions over the years also led to a complete machinery overhaul, new steam turbines and propellers.

Other ships from the same Yard