Several ships of the Royal Navy have been named HMS Defence:
Defence, launched in 1763, fought in many battles in the American Revolutionary War, the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars.
Defence was a 74 gun ship of the line, built in 1815 and broken up in 1857.
Defence, launched in 1861, was an ironclad scrapped in 1935.
Defence, launched in 1907, was an armoured cruiser sunk at the battle of Jutland.
Light cruiser Defence was launched in 1945 but work on her was suspended until 1954. In 1957 she was renamed Lion.
