The Mail, on Thursday, September 15 in 1966 recorded the launch of Resolution in far from ideal conditions.

It noted: "High winds buffeted Barrow shipyard when the Queen Mother pulled a ship's telegraph lever and launched Britain's first Polaris submarine Resolution today.

"Wind and broken glass showered on workmen and photographers standing beneath the Royal launching platform as thousands cheered - and a major milestone had been reached to keep Britain a deterrent power.

"The launch of the 7,500-ton submarine was another 'first' for Vickers Shipbuilding Group at Barrow, where the Dreadnought, Britain's first nuclear fleet submarine was built."

Winds of up to 58mph two hours earlier had abated enough for the boat to make a smooth entry into Walney Channel.

The article noted: "Workmen leaving the Resolution in the early hours after putting finishing touches to the £76m submarine had to cling to the rails on the superstructure."

One welder said: "We had to go hand over hand to prevent ourselves being blown off."

The article noted: "Along the route and inside the shipyard thousands of townsfolk lined up to welcome the Queen Mother and celebrate a major event in Barrow history.

"Flags flew from town centre buildings and office workers crowded at windows to watch the royal party go past.

"Among the spectators were many of the 12,000 schoolchildren who had been given a day off for the occasion."

The keel of Resolution had been laid down in Barrow on February 26 in 1964 but before this symbolic public start of the construction process more than 500,000 working hours had been needed in planning and preparation.

A full-scale wooden mock-up was built to allow for the correct fitting of equipment and fittings so that future crew members could familiarise themselves with the lay-out.

In the autumn of 1967 Resolution successfully completed her contractors' sea trials and was accepted into the Royal Navy fleet on October 2.

HMS Resolution was decommissioned at a ceremony at the Clyde Submarine Base at Faslane, Scotland, on October 22 in 1994.

A booklet for the event noted: "No space was wasted yet good lighting and careful layout resulted in accommodation which was comfortable and pleasant.

"The galley consists of refrigerators, infrared ovens and a host of labour saving devices all neatly fitted into a 12 foot square area.

"There are abundant supplies of fresh water.

"Resolution has two distilling plants; each with an output of over 5,000 gallons a day, and quite sufficient for the reactor systems and the domestic services.

"Showers are available and a fully equipped laundry was operated.

"For recreation, the submarine has cinema equipment with a large selection of modern films, a large library, facilities for language and correspondence course.

"Each crew member could receive messages from home."