US Navy photo by Journalist 2nd Class Todd Stevens
The USS Constitution sails unassisted for the first time in 116 years. USS Constitution fires her guns in salute while underway in Massachusetts Bay, escorted by the frigate USS Halyburton (FFG-40) (center) and the destroyer USS Ramage (DDG-61) (right), as the United States Navy's "Blue Angels" pass overhead.
The US Naval Institute just completed a poll of its readers to determine the best warships of all time. The Naval Institute urged readers to consider vessels from ancient times to now, and with more than 2,600 votes and almost 900 written responses, they've developed a diverse list spanning hundreds of years.
In some cases, readers wrote in recommending whole classes of ships, like aircraft carriers or nuclear submarines, but the list below will only reflect the five specific ships that made the grade.