Irish Naval Service as a permanent component of the Irish Defence Forces. The Naval Service purchased three s from the United Kingdom in 1946 and 1947. The tradition of naming Irish Naval Ships after figures in Celtic Mythology began, and the ships were named , and . These three ships were to become a key part of the Naval Service in the 1950s and 1960s. The first formal training of Irish naval cadets took place at the Britannia Royal Naval College, Dartmouth, UK in 1947. In 1970, "Cliona" and "Macha" were withdrawn from service and scrapped, leaving "Maev" as the sole ship in
HMY Britannia (Royal Cutter Yacht) 1879, and the 216-ton schooner "Aline" (Benjamin Nicholson, 1860) in 1881. "Britannia" faced many opponents in her 43-year career. The most notable were: HMY Britannia (Royal Cutter Yacht) His Majesty's Yacht "Britannia" was a gaff-rigged cutter built in 1893 for RYS Commodore Albert Edward, Prince of Wales, who later became King Edward VII. She served both himself and his son King George V, with a long racing career. "Britannia" was ordered in 1892 by Edward, Prince of Wales and designed by George Lennox Watson. She was a near sister ship to the Watson-designed which challenged for the 1893 America's Cup.