HMS Victorious joined the Home Fleet on commissioning in May 1941 and just nine days later her pilots encountered and attacked the German battleship Bismarck. On 26 May 1941, the new carrier HMS Victorious whose aircrews, despite their inexperience, succeeded in putting a torpedo into the battleship's midship section, which opened up a fuel tank on the Bismarck. This was, however, insufficient to stop the ship.

After the sinking of the Bismarck, HMS Victorious continued to operate with the Home Fleet, Victorious's Fairey Albacore aircraft were subsequently involved in an attack on the German battleship Tirpitz in March 1942. She provided cover for Russian convoys PQ-15 and PQ-17 in May and June 1942 respectively.

HMS Victorious left the Clyde with the Operation "Pedestal" convoy on 3 August 1942; she left the "Pedestal" convoy on the 10th of August and took part in the North African landings in November 1942.

HMS Victorious was refitted at Norfolk Navy Yard USA, during the winter of 1942-43, after which she was loaned to the US Pacific Fleet until being replaced by the new USS Essex. Despite its massive industrial muscle, the United States still found itself short of carriers in the Pacific, the only American carrier available in the South Pacific was USS Saratoga. HMS Victorious sailed to Pearl Harbor to join USS Saratoga's Battle Group, Task Force 14. She arrived and took up duties under Task Force 14 in the the Southwest Pacific on 17th May 1943. She embarked US aircraft and aircrew, and with the Saratoga swept the Solomon Islands. In May-June 1943, at Noumea, New Caledonia, the light cruiser USS San Diego joined USS Saratoga and HMS Victorious in support of the invasion of Munda, New Georgia, and of Bougainville. During this period Victorious operated 60 British and American Wildcat fighters for air cover. The two carriers sailed on 27th June, the carriers took up position and in the next few days put up 600 sorties against little opposition. The aircraft were reassigned to their parent carriers on 24 July, and the force reached Noumea the next day.

Resuming her former name, HMS Victorious returned to the Home Fleet at Scapa Flow towards the end of 1943 and in early 1944 her aircraft participated in the attack on the Tirpitz. HMS Victorious covered Russian convoys from January-March 1944, then took part in Operation "Tungsten" air strike against the German battleship Tirpitz on 3 April 1944.

In May 1944, Victorious went in for a refit, which on completion she joined the British Eastern Fleet enroute to the Far East. In July 1944, she led a strike against Palembang with HMS Illustrious, then on 25 July she led a strike against the Andaman Islands with HMS Indomitable. In October 1944, she was assigned to the British Pacific Fleet. In early 1945, the carriers HMS Indomitable, HMS Victorious, HMS Illustrious and HMS Indefatigable cooperated with the US Fifth fleet in its battle to take Okinawa. HMS Victorious took part in the January 1945 strikes against Pankalan Brandan (Sumatra) with HMS Indefatigable on 4 January 1945, and then strikes against Palembang with HMS Illustrious and HMS HMS Indefatigable on 24 and 29 January 1945. HMS Victorious returned to Sydney in February 1945, departing again on 28 February 1945 for a strike against Sakishima Gunto. She was hit by a Kamikaze on 9 May 1945 - no damage. On July 1945 an 849 Squadron aircraft from HMS Victorious located and scored the first bomb hit on the Japanese escort aircraft carrier Kaiyo (or Kayo), which was seriously damaged by the FAA aircraft in Beppu Bay, Kyushu, on 24 July 1945. HMS Victorious served with the BPF until the end of war on repatriation duties for former POW troops, 1945-47.

Victorious was decommissioned in January 1947, recommissioned October 1947 as a training carrier from October 1947-October 1950. Then she underwent major reconstruction from October 1950-January 1958, the entire ship being rebuilt from hangar deck upwards with angled flight deck and large increase in hangar height. She then was in Home and Far East service 1958-1968. She was damaged by fire during a 1967 refit when it was decided that she should be decommissioned. This was done on 13 March 1968 and she was sold for scrapping. She arrived at Faslane in July 1969 to be broken up.