Navy Battles Flashcards
what are the primary roles of the Royal Navy
- protect Britain from invasion
- economic blockade of enemy seaborne trade
- engage the enemy wherever and whenever
what are the secondary roles of the Royal Navy
- command colonial waters and capture enemy colonies (keep empire in check/stop rebellion)
- protect Britain’s Merchant fleet
- expand the navy through the prize system
- transportation of troops, communications and supplies
- sail to new territories and claim them in the name of the crown to expand the British Empire
- escort ships with trade like opium from China
why was the prize system beneficial
- ships are expensive to build and maintain, it was a waste to blow the, up - better to surrender and take ship - board enemy ship - trap it and tow it back to Britain
what did ships have to be a hybrid of
living and war
what type of a fleet did Britain like
a varied fleet of all sized ships - only really need first rate ships in a major battle
mix of power and speed
2nd and 3rd rate still devastating wasn’t a lot of need for loads of 1st rate
larger ships more expensive to build and maintain and longer to build
how many guns are on each rate ship
1st rate - 100+ guns 2nd rate - 80/100 guns 3rd rate - 60/80 4th rate - 50/60 5th rate - 30/44 6th rate - 20/30 below 6th rate are sloops, brigs and cutters whose role was speed with 10-20 guns - transport goods and support bigger ships
what did a career in the Navy entail
- work was physically hard and discipline was harsh
- sailors were away from home and families for lengthy periods sometimes even years
- not exclusively a ‘man’s world’ - wives often accompanied their husbands (helped recruitment)
- diet important - fresh meat/veg until supplies ran out then salted meat and bread - can’t win in a battle with malnourished men
why was it so important to get on with everybody on board
- such a small space
- you’re only as good as you’re weakest member
- if someone ill the whole ship could get ill if not sorted efficiently
discuss the problem of recruitment
- not everyone wants life at sea
- recruit unmarried/history of naval families/fisherman/can’t work in other industries
- wasn’t open to everybody because it was so important to Britain
- only really took those with naval skill - don’t want to waste time training and it helped with professionalism
- wasn’t many other career opportunities at this time especially if you weren’t wealthy
- people were inspired by the opportunity of prize money, fame and glory
- some people forced to join by press gangs who visited costal towns looking for fisherman etc.. - bargaining or kidnap - drastic measures
discuss compartmenting
- key tactic
- if a ship hits a section it stops the whole deck from flooding and ship sinking
discuss canon placement
- broadside
- both lost and destroyed
- if you fire right down length of ship you can rip through compartmenting - easy win
discuss canons
- huge - required teams of men to wheel them into place/aim them
- front loading - have to pull it back to re-load
- clean, fill, wedge before firing - time consuming
- slow - 2 canon balls a minute
- quicker you can fire the better but still have to be accurate
- on deck flying wood more likely to kill you than a canon ball - innacurate
- dangerous re call
what gun lock did Britain develop for their canons
- rope mechanism
- pull to fire
- safer and easier
- more reliable than the hot poker iron the French were using
what were officers of the navy like
- usually middle class or lower aristocracy
- did not purchase commissions like army
- recruited through patronage - who you know not what you know
- if you had enough money and prestige you could buy a rank but there were safeguards in place to make sure naval officers did have some experience
- command too important in the navy
- had to be educated to be in command - know maps, charts and maths - skills which generally come with a wealthier background
what was class hierarchy like in the wooden world
- classes better at associating with each other in the navy than the army - they’re on the same ship working together and so have to tolerate each other but you wouldn’t get anyone from the lower classes in command
what were the ordinary seamen like
- ‘Jack Tar’
- joined the navy to escape the harshness of poverty or prison
- naval life offered three meals a day/discipline
- most ordinary men were pressed into service
- criminals - what good are you in prison if you are a skilled sailor
- many young boys of 8+ served on board as cabin boys and for hard to fit places
what are the marines
- a hybrid force
- part of army and navy
- for going onto foreign land to capture it - fight on land
- not as skilled at firing canons etc…
- on deck in battle trying to snipe the enemy
what were the three main roles of the marines
- as police in the wooden society
- for close combat on upper decks in battle
- as an amphibious landing force as and when required
what was the role of admiral
- first of proper chain of command in the navy
- make all the key decisions
what was the victualling board
supplies
what was the board of ordinance
control of ship building anf supplies
why was a large chain of command so important
because the navy is such a crucial part of how the empire functions
what is a ship of the line
- battleship
- need 60-70+ guns
- anything below 5th rate not a ship of the line as not powerful
what is impressment
recruitment - press gangs
cat o nine tails
The cat o’ nine tails, commonly shortened to the cat, is a type of multi-tailed flail that originated as an implement for severe physical punishment, notably in the Royal Navy and British Army, and also as a judicial punishment in Britain and some other countries.
forecastles
A raised part of the upper deck at the front of a ship. (nautical) Crew’s quarters located at the forward part of a ship.
when was the Glorious First of June
1794
why was the Glorious First of June entitled that
- Britain hadn’t won anything for a long time after losing the American Revolutionary Wars and decades of no success on land
- first (+) military news for best part of 50+ years so they hyped it up
- fades in comparison to Nelson’s victories tho
how many ships did each side have at the Glorious First of June
- Britain had 25 ships of the line, the French had 26
why did the Glorious First of June take place
- Admiral Lord Howe’s fleet engaged a French fleet that was escorting merchant ships carrying grain from the USA to revolutionary France
- At this point the monarchy in France had been overthrown
- Britain a monarchy itself wanted to protect France’s monarchic system and stop the revolution by stopping food getting to France because if the food doesn’t get there maybe the revolution will run out of steam or a famine happens and ends it
what was the outcome of the Glorious First of June
- Howe’s fleet lost 1200 men but captured six prizes and sank one ship
- tactical victory but a strategic loss as the merchant grain ships still reached Brest so averting famine in France
give a brief Nelson fact file
- he was super short with absurdly youthful looks
- he had poor health - he has sea sickness but was good at portraying a beam of strength
- inspirational
- charismatic, leader of men, excellent commander
- extraordinary and infectious enthusiasm towards his duty
- appearance of always been fearless
- Nelson Touch
- influence on his men
- he only naval link was his uncle yet he managed to be in command by late 30s by working his way up the ranks
- tenacity skill, freakish tactics
- lost right eye at Battle of Calvi 1794
how did the Battle of Cape St Vincent come about
- British were blockading the Spanish fleet off the coast of St Vincent
- Nelson and the fleet had order not to engage
- Nelson at the back of the line commanding the HMS Captain got bored, gave an inspiring speech leading to two other ships following him, and they broke rank and engaged the Spanish fleet
what was Nelson risking at the Battle of Cape St Vincent
- he dies
- he gets captured
- the safety of his crew
- getting court marshalled by the British for breaking orders
how does the Battle of Cape St Vincent sit on Nelson’s career arch
- at this point he is a maverick and uncontrollable but it is actions like that that transform him into an immense tactician and someone who is meticulously organised and one of the greatest commanders to ever live
- if he can pull this off in a 3rd ship with no real planning it begs the question of what he can do in the future
- you need risk taking to be a good leader
- John Jervis was Admiral at this point
when was the Battle of Cape St Vincent
14th February 1797