HMS Lance

Two British Royal Navy warships have been called HMS Lance after the spear.

• The first HMS Lance (1914) was a destroyer launched at Thornycroft in 1914, and fired the first British shot of World War I on 5 August 1914 when she intercepted the German minelayer Königin Luise.
• The second HMS Lance (G87) was an L and M-class destroyer launched in 1940 and sunk by aircraft at Malta on 9 April 1942. She was salvaged and towed to Chatham but found on arrival to be beyond repair.

References

• Colledge, J. J.; Warlow, Ben (2006) [1969]. Ships of the Royal Navy: The Complete Record of all Fighting Ships of the Royal Navy (Rev. ed.). London: Chatham Publishing. ISBN 978-1-86176-281-8.