Only a True Sailor Can Pass This Quiz about the Navy!

In 1775, during the American Revolution, the Founding Fathers created the Continental Navy. Officials approved the building of 13 brand new frigates to fight the British.

After the revolution, Americans saw no need for a standing military. They disbanded the Navy just as they did the Army.

The U.S. Navy is an incredibly powerful tool of the Department of Defense. There are currently around 325,000 active duty personnel in the Navy.

The Navy sails by the motto of "Semper Fortis." It means "Always Courageous." The service's official march is titled, "Anchors Aweigh."

The Continental Navy's frigates were laughably weak in the face of the British juggernaut. Only eight made it into battle, and most of those were either captured or sent to the bottom of the sea.

Currently, the Navy has about 500 ships at its disposal. That includes small ships and huge aircraft carriers.

Submarines are cramped places with no windows -- and not just anyone can thrive in that kind of environment. That's one reason that sub duty is for volunteers only.

The Battle of Leyte Gulf was one of the biggest naval battles in human history. Dozens of ships and hundreds of planes clashed between U.S. and Japanese forces in this mammoth WWII battle.

The USS Hannah is regarded as the very first warship of the American Revolution. It was a fishing schooner outfitted with four 4-pound guns.

The Secretary of the Navy has the privilege of naming ships. He or she can delve into suggestions from sailors, the general public, or any number of other sources.

The Continental Navy struggled mightily against superior British ships and crews in the American Revolution. Just 11 of the Navy's 65 ships made it through the war.

Navy SEALs are special operations troops who tackle small, complex (and often dangerous) military missions. They are among the most highly-trained soldiers on the planet.

NCIS stands for Naval Criminal Investigative Service, the law enforcement segment of the Navy. It pursues criminal matters within the Navy and Marines, but it is also tasked with counter-terrorism and sweeping national security matters.

Richard V. Spencer is the Secretary of the Navy. Spencer was a Marine and flew as an aviator in the '70s.

Washington knew sea power was vital to the revolutionary cause. He backed the development of a strong Navy for the war effort.

In June 1942, the U.S. Navy fought with a huge Japanese force near a tiny atoll in the Pacific. Tipped off by code breakers, U.S. ships sank all four Japanese carriers and turned the tide of the Pacific War.

There's no phrase about building shipyards in the Navy's mission statement. The statement reads: "The mission of the Navy is to maintain, train and equip combat-ready Naval forces capable of winning wars, deterring aggression and maintaining freedom of the seas."

After the Revolution, the Navy was disbanded. But in doing so, the U.S. made itself an easy target for pirates, so in 1794, Congress authorized the branch's resurrection.

For many years, Beverly and Marblehead, Massachusetts, have been arguing to be named the true birthplace of the U.S. Navy. Regardless of the actual town, it was the state of Massachusetts that gave rise to the USS Hannah during the American Revolution.

Navy veterans of WWII earned many accolades from voters. An incredible six WWII Navy men made it to the highest office in the land. That includes John F. Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson, Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, George H.W. Bush, and Jimmy Carter.

The United States Navy Strike Fighter Tactics Instructor program is commonly known as Topgun. It's the place that trains naval aviators, and yes, it was the inspiration for the iconic Tom Cruise movie, "Top Gun."

Alarmed by the poor performance of its fighter pilots in Vietnam, the Navy founded its Topgun school. In short order, pilot kill-loss ratios drastically improved, and American pilots dominated their enemies.

If you believe the Navy is all ships, think again. The current Navy has about 3,700 aircraft, which greatly increase this force's sphere of influence.

The USS Enterprise is a huge aircraft carrier that first saw service in 1961. The Enterprise was the world's first nuclear-powered carrier. It was decommissioned in 2017.

The Navy was tiny at the start of the War of 1812. Its 16 ships were no match for Britain's 600 … and the redcoats capitalized on their numerical advantage, invading even Washington.

The 1864 Battle of Mobile Bay found Union and Confederate ships fighting near Mobile Bay, Alabama. Union forces triumphed, and leader David Farragut gained fame for shouting, "Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!"

In the '50s, the Navy deployed Forrestal-class aircraft carriers. They were the first of the so-called supercarriers, huge ships that made WWII-era carriers look small by comparison.

The USS Hannah did battle with a British ship and was run aground. She survived the fight but was decommissioned shortly afterward.

The USS Enterprise isn't the longest ship in American history -- she's the longest ship ever built. Now decommissioned, she measures 1,123 feet long, enough room for more than 4,500 sailors.

The Seabees are part of the United States Naval Construction Forces. In combat zones, they built everything from roads to airstrips and a whole lot more -- whatever the Navy needs to fight the enemy.