The Naval Service (Irish: an tSeirbhís Chabhlaigh) is the navy of Ireland and is one of the three standing branches of the Irish Defence Forces. Its main base is in Haulbowline, County Cork.
Naval Service vessels are all named with traditional Irish female names, taken from history and Celtic mythology. The ship prefix LÉ stands for Long Éireannach, "Irish ship" in the Irish language.
The Anglo-Irish Treaty of 1921 stipulated that Ireland would be given responsibility to police its customs and fishing, while the United Kingdom would remain in control of Irish Waters. In 1923 the Coastal and Marine Service (CMS) was created, yet merely one year later it was disbanded.
During the Civil War, in August 1922, a ship belonging to the British & Irish Steam Packet Company, the Lady Wicklow, led by Captain Patrick Ryan, was used to bring Irish National Army troops around the coast to Fenit, the port of Tralee in County Kerry. This was probably the first naval involvement of the Irish State. Built in 1890 in Dublin Dockyard, the ship measured 262 feet by 34. 450 troops, including officers were landed. Tralee was later successfully captured from local republican forces.