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Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

for "Irish ship") is the designation given to ships in the Irish Naval Service's fleet. In this context it is abbreviated to ''LÉ'', as in LÉ ''Eithne'' or LÉ ''Deirdre''. It has been used since December 1946 when the Irish Naval Service was established with purchase of three corvettes from the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...

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