Five ships of the Royal Navy have been named HMS Exeter after the city of Exeter in Devon.
HMS Exeter (1680) was a 70-gun third-rate launched in 1680. She was damaged in an explosion in 1691 and was hulked. She was broken up in 1717.
HMS Exeter (1697) was a 60-gun fourth-rate launched in 1697. She was rebuilt to carry 58 guns in 1744 and was broken up in 1763.
HMS Exeter (1763) was a 64-gun third-rate launched in 1763. She was burned as unseaworthy in 1784.
HMS Exeter (68) was a York-class heavy cruiser launched in 1929. She fought at the River Plate in 1939, and was sunk at the Battle of the Java Sea in 1942.
AHMS Exeter was planned as a Type 61 frigate. She was ordered in 1956, but cancelled in 1957.
HMS Exeter (D89) was a Type 42 destroyer, launched in 1979. She served in the Falklands War and the Gulf War, and was in service until she was decommissioned on 27 May 2009.
During the Falklands War, Exeter was credited with shooting down 2 x A4 Skyhawks, 1 x Canberra and 1 x Photo reconnaissance Lear Jet.
