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The armament of battleships and destroyers was completely different. Intended to attack heavily-armored targets, battleships carried tremendously powerful main batteries. For example, the USS Mississippi, which fought in the Battle of the Surigao Strait in, probably the last battleship battle in history, carried-inch guns as her main armament, along with-inch guns, four3-inch guns and a pair of torpedo tubes. She had a crew of over1, sailors. By contrast, a contemporary destroyer, USS McGowan, carried only five5-inch guns, but anti-aircraft guns along with torpedo tubes and depth charge projectors. Her crew was just over.
2. Differences in Tactical Roles
As can be seen from the differences in armament, the two types of vessel were used differently in battle. The role of the battleship was to engage enemy vessels with its heavy main armament, while the destroyer screened larger vessels from fast attackers such as aircraft, submarnies and smaller boats. The Second World War saw air attack become the dominant form of naval warfare; aircraft carriers could attack targets far beyond the reach of even the biggest battleship cannons. Battleships went into decline following the Second World War, used only for fire support and prestige missions. In, the U.S. Navy removed them from its register. Destroyers are now the heaviest surface combat vessels in most navies, although a handful still employ the heavier cruisers.
