A light cruiser is a warship that is not so large and powerful as a regular (or heavy) cruiser, but still larger than ships like destroyers.
For instance, in the World War II era, heavy cruisers usually had a battery of 8-inch (203 mm) guns, while light cruisers had 6-inch (152 mm) guns. This was a significant difference in destructive power, since 8-inch shells were over twice the weight of 6-inch shells, but light cruisers were nevertheless useful for fire support and as fleet escorts, and heavily used.
In the United States Navy, light cruisers have the hull classification symbol of CL1.
| United States Navy | ||
|---|---|---|
| Hull Number1 | Class | Years in service |
| CL-1 to CL-3 | Chester | 1908 - 1930 |
| Cl-4 to CL-13 | Omaha | 1923 - 1949 |
| CL-14 | Not Assigned, intended for USS Chicago | |
| CL-15 | USS Olympia | 1895 - 1957 |
| CL-16 to CL-21 | Denver | 1903 - 1933 |
| CL-22 | USS New Orleans | 1898 - 1930 |
| CL-23 | USS Albany | 1900 - 1930 |
| CL-40 to CL-43, CL-46 to CL-48 |
Brooklyn | 1937 - 1992 |
| CL-49 and CL-50 | St. Louis | 1930 - 1951 |
| CL-51 to CL-54 | Atlanta | 1941 - 1959 |
CL-55 to CL-67,CL-76 to CL-94,CL-99 to CL-105 |
Cleveland2 | 1942 - 1971 |
| CL-95 to CL-98 | Oakland | 1943 - 1966 |
| CL-106 to CL-118 | Fargo | 1945 - 1970 |
| CL-119 to CL-121 | Juneau | 1946 - 1966 |
| CL-144 to CL-147 | Worcester | 1948 - 1970 |
| CL-154 to CL-159 | abortive 1945 antiaircraft cruiser project | none built |
| 1 Heavy cruisers and Light cruisers were classified under CL after 1931, hence there are some missing hull numbers |
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| 2Nine Cleveland-class cruisers were converted to Independence-class aircraft carriers |
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(mention light cruisers of other countries)
