On Monday 17th April, 2023 the Royal Navy formally retired the Type 23 frigate HMS MONTROSE F 236 from service at Portsmouth Naval Base.
HMS MONTROSE was the eight of the sixteen-ship Type 23 or Duke class Frigates, named after the Duke of Montrose. She was laid down in November 1989 by Yarrow Shipbuilders on the Clyde, and was launched on 31 st July 1992 by Edith Rifkind (later Lady Rifkind), wife of (later Sir) Malcolm Rifkind, Secretary of State for Defence. She was commissioned into service in June 1994.
Having once been the flagship of the 6th Frigate Squadron, HMS MONTROSE became part of the Devonport Flotilla, based in Devonport Dockyard in Plymouth. In 2018, it was announced that HMS MONTROSE would become the first Royal Navy frigate to be forward-deployed to the UK Naval Support Facility in Bahrain.
She repeatedly deployed overseas throughout her 29 years in active service, most recently in the waters of the Arabian Gulf and the Indian Ocean where she conducted missions such as anti-narcotics and anti-illicit weapons trafficking patrols.
The Royal Navy is retiring the Type 23 ships to make way for the Type 31 or Inspiration-class frigates, which are scheduled to be introduced into service beginning in 2025.
