HMS Calliope was a British C class light cruiser of the Royal Navy under construction at the outbreak of World War I.

Both Calliope and her sister ship Champion were based on HMS Caroline. They were effectively test ships for the use of geared turbines which resulted in the one less funnel. They also received slightly thicker armour. They led into the first of the Cambrian subclass.

Calliope was built at HM Dockyard, Chatham, Kent. She was laid down in January 1914, launched on 17 December 1914, and completed in June 1915.

She was badly damaged by a fuel oil fire while at sea on 19 March 1916, but was repaired in time to be one of the five ships in the 4th Light Cruiser Squadron at the Battle of Jutland in 1916. She received a number of hits just before night-time (notably by the Kaiser and Markgraf battleships), and 10 of her crew were killed as a result of the battle.

On 1 September 1917 Calliope was involved in the sinking of four German trawlers. She survived the war and was sold for scrapping on 28 August 1931 to Ward, of Inverkeithing.

References

• Jane's Fighting Ships of World War One (1919), Jane's Publishing Company
• Ships of the Calliope class