HMS Dreadnought

A battleship is a kind of large warship. It has metal armour and has large (heavy caliber) guns. Battleships are larger, better armed and armored than cruisers and destroyers. Battleships were mainly around from about 1880 to the 1940s, though some were still used as late as the Gulf War in 1991. For most of this time, battleships were the most powerful and most expensive kind of warship. Today some battleships are still around but these are museums.