One ship of the Royal Navy

Royal Navy

The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...

 and two ships of the Royal Australian Navy

Royal Australian Navy

The Royal Australian Navy is the naval branch of the Australian Defence Force. Following the Federation of Australia in 1901, the ships and resources of the separate colonial navies were integrated into a national force: the Commonwealth Naval Forces...

 have borne the name Australia. A fourth ship was to receive the name, but her transfer from the Royal Navy to the Royal Australian Navy was cancelled:
was an Orlando class cruiser

Orlando class cruiser

The Orlando-class was a seven ship class of Royal Navy armoured cruisers completed between 1888 and 1889.- Building Programme :On 2 December 1884, the Secretary to the Admiralty stated, "The present Board have been gradually developing, and, as I would venture to say, in an effective manner, our...

 of the Royal Navy completed in 1888 and scrapped in 1905. was an Indefatigable class

Indefatigable class battlecruiser

The Indefatigable class were the second class built of British battlecruisersThe Indefatigable-class ships were formally known as armoured cruisers until 1911 when they were redesignated as battlecruisers by an Admiralty order of 24 November 1911. Unofficially a number of designations were used...

 battlecruiser launched in 1911, shortly after the formation of the Royal Australian Navy

Royal Australian Navy

The Royal Australian Navy is the naval branch of the Australian Defence Force. Following the Federation of Australia in 1901, the ships and resources of the separate colonial navies were integrated into a national force: the Commonwealth Naval Forces...

, and sunk in 1924 in accordance with the terms of the Washington Naval Treaty

Washington Naval Treaty

The Washington Naval Treaty, also known as the Five-Power Treaty, was an attempt to cap and limit, and "prevent 'further' costly escalation" of the naval arms race that had begun after World War I between various International powers, each of which had significant naval fleets. The treaty was...

. was a County class

County class cruiser

The County class was a class of heavy cruisers built for the British Royal Navy in the years between the First and Second World Wars. They were the first post-war cruiser construction for the Royal Navy and were designed within the limits of the Washington Naval Conference of 1922...

 heavy cruiser launched in 1927 and broken up in 1956.

• The British aircraft carrier was to be sold to Australia in 1982 and renamed HMAS Australia. This sale was cancelled following the Falklands War
  Falklands War
  The Falklands War , also called the Falklands Conflict or Falklands Crisis, was fought in 1982 between Argentina and the United Kingdom over the disputed Falkland Islands and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands...
  
   and the 1983 Australian federal election
  Australian federal election, 1983
  Federal elections were held in Australia on 5 March 1983. All 125 seats in the House of Representatives, and all 64 seats in the Senate, were up for election, following a double dissolution...
  
  .

Battle honours

Ships named HMAS Australia are entitled to carry ten battle honours:

• Rabaul 1914
• North Sea 1915–18
• Atlantic 1940–41
• Pacific
  South West Pacific theatre of World War II
  The South West Pacific Theatre, technically the South West Pacific Area, between 1942 and 1945, was one of two designated area commands and war theatres enumerated by the Combined Chiefs of Staff of World War II in the Pacific region....
  
   1941–43
• Coral Sea
  Battle of the Coral Sea
  The Battle of the Coral Sea, fought from 4–8 May 1942, was a major naval battle in the Pacific Theater of World War II between the Imperial Japanese Navy and Allied naval and air forces from the United States and Australia. The battle was the first fleet action in which aircraft carriers engaged...
  
   1942
• Savo Island
  Battle of Savo Island
  The Battle of Savo Island, also known as the First Battle of Savo Island and, in Japanese sources, as the , was a naval battle of the Pacific Campaign of World War II, between the Imperial Japanese Navy and Allied naval forces...
  
   1942
• Guadalcanal
  Guadalcanal campaign
  The Guadalcanal Campaign, also known as the Battle of Guadalcanal and codenamed Operation Watchtower by Allied forces, was a military campaign fought between August 7, 1942 and February 9, 1943 on and around the island of Guadalcanal in the Pacific theatre of World War II...
  
   1942
• New Guinea
  New Guinea campaign
  The New Guinea campaign was one of the major military campaigns of World War II.Before the war, the island of New Guinea was split between:...
  
   1942–44
• Leyte Gulf
  Battle of Leyte Gulf
  The Battle of Leyte Gulf, also called the "Battles for Leyte Gulf", and formerly known as the "Second Battle of the Philippine Sea", is generally considered to be the largest naval battle of World War II and, by some criteria, possibly the largest naval battle in history.It was fought in waters...
  
   1944
• Lingayen Gulf
  Invasion of Lingayen Gulf
  The Liberation of Lingayen Gulf was an Allied amphibious operation in the Philippines during World War II. In the early morning of 9 January 1945, an Allied force commanded by Admiral Jesse B. Oldendorf began approaching the shores of Lingayen. U.S...
  
  1945