Merchant Navy (United Kingdom)

The Merchant Navy is the maritime register of the United Kingdom and comprises the seagoing commercial interests of UK-registered ships and their crews. Merchant Navy vessels fly the Red Ensign and are regulated by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA). King George V bestowed the title of "Merchant Navy" on the British merchant shipping fleets following their service in the First World War;[1] a number of other nations have since adopted the title. Previously it had been known as the Mercantile Marine or Merchant Service, although the term "Merchant Navy" was already informally used from the 19th century.

British Merchant Navy
Badge of the Merchant Navy
Active1835 โ€“ present
Country United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Channel Islands
TypeCivil
Size10th Largest;
  • 30 Million Gross Registered Tonnage
  • 40.7 Million Deadweight Tonnage
Colours  Red
Fleet
  • Cargo
  • Cruise
  • Civilian/Pleasure
Engagements
Insignia
Red Ensign
Civil Jack

Share this article:

This article uses material from the Wikipedia article Merchant Navy (United Kingdom), and is written by contributors. Text is available under a CC BY-SA 4.0 International License; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.