The Suffren-class nuclear attack submarines of the French navy are named after Adm. Pierre André de Suffren, an 18th-century nemesis of the British Royal Navy. All three of the excellent Suffren-class submarines, the newest in the French fleet, are named after French naval officers or privateers who spent their careers fighting the British. A number of other French warships are named after others who made their names fighting the Royal Navy. Put simply, France has no qualms about celebrating its centuries of military rivalry with the United Kingdom.

King Charles III takes the opposite approach. This week, the nominal commander in chief of the U.K. armed forces directed that the Royal Navy’s newest upcoming nuclear attack submarine be renamed. HMS Agincourt will now be christened as HMS Achilles. The erstwhile HMS Agincourt is an Astute-class attack submarine expected to enter service in 2026. The final Astute-class submarine to be built, these submarines are secondary in capability only to the U.S. Virginia-class attack submarines. They are designed to deter enemy action against the U.K. and hold at risk keystone adversary capabilities such as Russia’s nuclear ballistic missile and cruise missile submarine forces.