HMS Invincible was the lead ship of her class of three, and the first battlecruiser to be built by any country in the world. Launched on 13 April 1907, she was commissioned on 20 March 1909.

 In WWI she participated in the Battle of Heligoland Bight. She fired on the light cruiser Coln, but did not hit her before Cöln was sunk by the battlecruiser HMS Lion. 

During the Battle of the Falkland Islands, Invincible and her sister Inflexible sank the armoured cruisers Scharnhorst and Gneisenau almost without loss to themselves, despite numerous hits by the German ships.

She was the flagship of the 3rd Battlecruiser Squadron during the Battle of Jutland. The squadron had been detached from Admiral David Beatty's Battlecruiser Fleet a few days before the battle for gunnery practice with the Grand Fleet and acted as its heavy scouting force during the battle.

During the battle Invincible engaged Lützow and Derfflinger. The two German ships fired three salvoes each at Invincible and sank her in 90 seconds. At least one12 inch shell from the third salvo struck her midships. The shell penetrated the front of 'Q' turret, blew off the roof and detonated the midships magazines, which blew the ship in half. The explosion possibly ignited 'A' and 'X' magazines. Of her complement, 1026 officers and men were killed, including Rear-Admiral Hood. There were only six survivors picked up by HMS Badger