HMS Southampton (C85) was the lead ship of ten Town-class light cruisers, as well as her namesake subclass, built for the Royal Navy during the mid-1930s. The Town-class was designed in 1934 to counter the American Brooklyn-class and the Japanese Mogami-class light cruisers, both of which were large and heavily armed. Although both the aforementioned classes were secretly violating the tonnage restrictions of the London Naval Treaty, the Royal Navy nevertheless designed the ship under these restrictions despite growing suspicion.

As for Southampton, she was laid down on 21 November 1934 at the John Brown & Company shipyard in Clydebank, launched on 10 March 1936, and commissioned on 6 March 1937. At the start of the war, Southampton served as flagship of the 2nd Cruiser Squadron. After suffering minor damage from a German raid on 10 October 1939, she underwent a short repair and returned to service in December to take part in the failed hunt for the battleships Scharnhorst and Gneisenau. On 9 April 1940, Southampton was damaged by a German air attack off the coast of Norway and was sent back for another repair. She was then sent to the Mediterranean on 15 November and participated in the Battle of Cape Spartivento on 27 November. A month later, Southampton was sent to the Red Sea to escort convoys and conduct bombardments during the Italian East Africa campaign. On New Year's Day 1941, Southampton was assigned to the 3rd Cruiser Squadron and took part in Operation Excess, a convoy escort mission to Malta, Alexandria and Greece.

In the early afternoon of 11 January 1941, Southampton and her sister ship Gloucester were attacked off the coast of Malta by 12 Ju 87 dive bombers from the StG 2 unit of the Luftwaffe. The Stukas managed to score two hits amidships, resulting in a fire that quickly engulfed the entire ship. After evacuating survivors, Southampton was scuttled by torpedoes from Gloucester and the light cruiser Orion. The attack resulted in the deaths of 81 crewmembers.

HMS Southampton was introduced in Update 1.89 "Imperial Navy". With twelve fast-firing 6-inch guns, Southampton is capable of delivering powerful and consistent punches. However, due to the lack of AP shells, she is forced to get close to heavier targets to deal damage. Despite having thick 114 mm citadel armour, Southampton is highly vulnerable to hits on her unarmoured deck where most of her crew are located. As she is presented in the final 1941 configuration, the ship's AA protection is lacklustre at best.