The use of promotional beer mats in pubs to encourage recruitment into the armed forces was a popular tool in the 1970s and 1980s. Large sets of beer mats were produced to encourage collecting, and hopefully push those interested in a naval career into a recruitment office. Previously we have looked at a set of RAF mats, and today we have a pair of mats for the Royal Navy:

The first of these mats, No7, depicts a county class destroyer:

Details of the class and ships is printed on the rear:

We can also see that this mat is one of series of 24. The second example in my collection, No 15, depicts a Type 12 frigate:

Again details of the ships in the class are on the rear:

Looking at the ships used in these beer mats and the examples listed on the rear, my guess is that they date from the late 1970s or perhaps the early 1980s. As well as being useful recruitment tools, I would not be suprised if they also saw extensive use in RN messes as a way of encouraging ship recognition amongst the matelots as they enjoyed a pint!