They were the smaller counterpart to the Battle class (which followed them) and were the first new destroyer designs for the Royal Navy since the Second World War Emergency Programme.

The Weapon class were an intermediate size built to take advantage of slipways that were too small to be used to build Battle-class destroyers.

To remedy this, the Weapon class adopted the "unit" system, of side-by-side boiler and engine rooms with alternate port/starboard arrangement.

The STAAGs were carried on either side aft, and each had its own Type 262 Radar and predictive fire control computer, allowing for automatic blind-fire engagement of targets.

The STAAGs were excellent weapons on paper and the firing range, but when exposed to the vibration of a naval gun mounting and the rigour of the elements they were less than reliable.

The latter arrangement was in fact preferable for the location of the "squid", but less so for gunnery, as it meant that the main weapons were unable to fire aft, which was a criticism also levelled at the Battle class.

This problem proved fatal for Battleaxe, when she was unable to manoeuvre quickly enough to prevent herself being rammed by the frigate Ursa in the Clyde in 1962.

The next seven were ordered on 24 April - Cutlass and Dagger (from Yarrow); Dirk, Grenade and Halberd (from Scotts); Howitzer (from Thornycroft); and Musket (from White).

They lacked specialised height finding and aircraft direction radar sets that the Battles possessed, and so were rapidly superseded and returned to reserve.