Hood, the last of the eight Royal Sovereign-class battleships to be built, differed significantly from the other ships of her class in that she had a forward freeboard of only compared to of the other ships. The Royal Sovereigns had reverted to a higher freeboard after several classes of low-freeboard vessel had been constructed, the last being the Trafalgar class. Low freeboard had been popular for around ten years since it required less armour and made a smaller target for gunfire to hit, although it had the disadvantage that it reduced seaworthiness. This low freeboard meant that Hood was very wet in rough weather and her maximum speed reduced rapidly as the wave height increased, making her only suitable for service in the relatively calm Mediterranean. This was seen as a vindication o