''Regina Maria'' (F222) is a

Type 22 frigate The Type 22 frigate also known as the ''Broadsword'' class was a ship class, class of frigates built for the British Royal Navy. Fourteen were built in total, with production divided into three batches. Initially intended to be anti-submarine ...

of the

Romanian Naval Forces The Romanian Naval Forces () is the principal naval branch of the Romanian Armed Forces and operates in the Black Sea and on the Danube. It traces its history back to 1860. History The Romanian Navy was founded in 1860 as a river flotilla on ...

, formerly a Royal Navy ship named HMS ''London'' (F95). It is named after Queen

Marie of Romania Marie (born Princess Marie Alexandra Victoria of Edinburgh; 29 October 1875 – 18 July 1938) was the last queen of Romania from 10 October 1914 to 20 July 1927 as the wife of Ferdinand I of Romania, King Ferdinand I. Marie was born int ...

, wife of King

Ferdinand I of Romania Ferdinand I (Ferdinand Viktor Albert Meinrad; 24 August 1865 – 20 July 1927), nicknamed ''Întregitorul'' ("the Unifier"), was King of Romania from 10 October 1914 until his death in 1927. Ferdinand was the second son of Leopold, Prince of Hoh ...

Service

HMS ''London'' was a

of the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

, originally named ''Bloodhound'' but renamed ''London'' at the request of the

Lord Mayor of London The Lord Mayor of London is the Mayors in England, mayor of the City of London, England, and the Leader of the council, leader of the City of London Corporation. Within the City, the Lord Mayor is accorded Order of precedence, precedence over a ...

. She was flagship of the Royal Navy task force during the 1991

Gulf War , combatant2 = , commander1 = , commander2 = , strength1 = Over 950,000 soldiers3,113 tanks1,800 aircraft2,200 artillery systems , page = https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-PEMD-96- ...

. She was decommissioned on 14 January 1999 and sold to the

Romanian Navy The Romanian Naval Forces () is the principal naval branch of the Romanian Armed Forces and operates in the Black Sea and on the Danube. It traces its history back to 1860. History The Romanian Navy was founded in 1860 as a river flotilla on ...

on 14 January 2003, being commissioned as ''Regina Maria'' on 21 April 2005. Before the sale the Sea Wolf and

Exocet The Exocet () is a French-built anti-ship missile whose various versions can be launched from Warship, surface vessels, Submarine, submarines, Helicopter, helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft. Etymology The missile's name was given by M. Guil ...

missile systems were removed, and the only armament the ship had when delivered was two 30 mm BMARC cannons and two three-tube anti-submarine torpedo launchers. The Romanian Navy had a 76 mm

OTO-Melara OTO Melara was a subsidiary of the Italian company Finmeccanica, today Leonardo, active in the defence sector, with factories in Brescia and La Spezia. From 1 January 2016, the activities of OTO Melara merged into Leonardo's Defence Systems ...

gun system fitted forward where the Exocets had been mounted, but no missile systems or additional weapons have been fitted. There has since been some controversy over the price for which Romania purchased the ship. Romanian authorities are currently working in collaboration with the Romanian to replace two of the Rolls-Royce gas turbine engines with two ST40M turbine engines designed at COMOTI.

Commanding officers

Notable commanding officers include

Iain Henderson William Iain Henderson (born 21 February 1992) is a professional rugby union player who plays as a lock for United Rugby Championship club Ulster and the Ireland national team, and has been selected for two tours with the British & Irish Lions ...

(1990-1991),

Mark Stanhope Admiral Sir Mark Stanhope, (born 26 March 1952) is a retired Royal Navy officer. After serving as a submarine commander, he commanded a frigate and then commanded an aircraft carrier on operational patrol off Sierra Leone. He went on to be Depu ...

(1991-1992) and

Timothy McClement Vice Admiral Sir Timothy Pentreath McClement, (born 16 May 1951) is a former Royal Navy officer who served as Deputy Commander-in-Chief Fleet from 2004 to 2006. Naval career Educated at Douai School and the Royal Naval College, Dartmouth, McC ...

(1992-1994).

Gallery

File:HMS London F95 aft.jpg, HMS ''London'' File:HMS London F95 starboard bow.jpg, HMS ''London'' (F95) docked in port during

Operation Desert Shield , combatant2 = , commander1 = , commander2 = , strength1 = Over 950,000 soldiers3,113 tanks1,800 aircraft2,200 artillery systems , page = https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-PEMD-96- ...

. File:ReginaMaria2005.jpg, Romanian frigate ''Regina Maria'' at the Trafalgar 200th Anniversary. File:Українсько-американське навчання “Сі Бриз - 2016” (28075164024).jpg, ''Regina Maria'' during exercise Sea Breeze 2016.

References

Publications

* {{DEFAULTSORT:London (F95) 1984 ships Type 22 frigates of the Royal Navy Gulf War ships of the United Kingdom Type 22 frigates of the Romanian Naval Forces

Service

Commanding officers

Gallery

See also

References

Publications