Navy reform Flashcards

1
Q

what was the role of the RN after the Battle of Trafalgar?

A

protect the global trade routes
protect British commerce
secure the growing British Empire

police the abolishment of the slave trade

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2
Q

by 1817, how many RN battleships remained from the Napoleonic Wars?

A

17

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3
Q

what was the RN reorganised into after the Battle of Trafalgar?

A

squadrons to ensure the world was adequately covered by RN ships

allowed for gunboat diplomacy

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4
Q

what was gunboat diplomacy?

A

the navy would be anchored in strategic positions during diplomatic discussions in order to threaten the opposition

used to promote British ideas of:
- free trade
- democracy

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5
Q

examples when gunboat diplomacy was used by the RN

A

in Brazil to persuade the Portuguese into accepting Brazilian independence

in China during the Opium Wars

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6
Q

what were the three major reforms to the RN?

A

changes to RN ships
Graham reforms
Fisher reforms

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7
Q

who oversaw the construction of the first operational steamships in the RN?

A

Sir James Graham

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8
Q

what were the first steam-powered ships?

A

HMS Medea
HMS Gladiator

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9
Q

why did the British govt not pursue the construction of more steam-powered paddle ships?

A

too expensive for a peacetime nation

had many impracticalities

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10
Q

what were the impracticalities with the use of steam-powered paddle ships?

A

the paddle which propelled the boat was vulnerable to enemy fire

the paddle was found in the middle of the ship which meant a full broadside could not be fired

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11
Q

what would replace the steam-powered paddle system in the 1850s?

A

a screw-propellor
found at the back of the ship

typical modern day propellor

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12
Q

what was the first steam-powered battleship used by the RN?

A

HMS Agamemnon

but still had sails

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13
Q

when was HMS Agamemnon commissioned?

A

1852

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14
Q

when was the first steam-powered battleship without rigging used by the RN?

A

1873

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15
Q

what was a major limitation of using steam-power for RN ships?

A

all RN ships at the time were made out of wood which could not handle the weight of the steam engines and the coal needed

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16
Q

what material replaced wood in the RN?

A

iron

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17
Q

what was an ironclad?

A

ship with wooden hulls but with iron sheets on the outside

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18
Q

what was the first fully iron warship produced by the RN?

A

HMS Warrior in 1860

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19
Q

what were the benefits of having iron warships?

A

could hold the steam engine and coal

could hold more guns of larger sizes

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20
Q

which gun was implemented into the RN iron warship fleet?

A

the Armstrong cannon

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21
Q

what had the introduction of the Armstrong cannon to the RN lead to?

A

the end of broadsiding

Armstrong cannons were too heavy to place below deck
instead they were placed on turrets

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22
Q

what was the armour given to the ships made out of?

A

iron sheets attached to the hull

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23
Q

when were the Graham reforms?

A

1832

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24
Q

what did Graham do to the RN fleet?

A

he ordered the refitting of existing RN ships and the construction of new battleships

important in restoring the naval power Britain had lost after 1815 and cuts in spending

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25
Q

what was the impact of Graham’s reform to the RN fleet?

A

made the RN fleet more powerful with more battleships

refitting RN ships also increased the longevity of many RN ships

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26
Q

what did Graham do with gunnery?

A

he ordered all crews at sea or in harbour to perform gunnery related exercises to prepare the crew for combat

commissioned the HMS Excellent to serve as a school for gunnery

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27
Q

who was in charge of HMS Excellent and what did they do?

A

Captain Thomas Hastings

he brought about a standardised system of naval gunnery

all crews were taught how to load and fire single rounds for maximum impact

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28
Q

what was the impact of Graham’s reform to gunnery?

A

improved the training of crews

improved the fighting efficiency of RN ships to prepare them for battle

ended double and triple shotting

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29
Q

what was double and triple shotting?

A

firing more than one projectile at once

this reduced the velocity of the shot which led to weaker impact

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30
Q

what was the Navy List?

A

list of captains serving in the RN

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31
Q

how many names on the Navy List?

A

800

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32
Q

what was the issue with captaincy in the RN before Graham?

A

so many captains and not enough ships

many captains kept their positions and received half pay, despite not being in command of a ship

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33
Q

what was the issue with promotion in the RN before Graham?

A

men of rank and influence would be promoted over their more experienced colleagues

many captains waiting for a ship to become available were superseded by younger and richer captains as they had a greater influence in high places

34
Q

what did Graham do with the issues regarding captaincy and promotion?

A

a minimum service time was introduced before an officer could move up the ranks

35
Q

how many years did a lieutenant need in order to progress to commander?

A

2 years

36
Q

what was the impact of Graham’s reform on captaincy and promotion?

A

did not solve the problem of the long Navy List or problems of patronage

did ensure that captains were at least experienced to take command of a ship

37
Q

what were the issues with supply before Graham?

A

supply and administration of the RN was under the control of governmental offices

meant that readying ships for active service was slow

38
Q

what did the Graham reforms do to the issues of supply?

A

abolished the Naval Office and Victualling Board

instead 5 principal officers would be in charge of the supply and administration of the Royal

overseen by a new Board of the Admiralty

39
Q

what was the impact of Graham’s reform on supply?

A

massively improved communication between those in charge of the supply and the Admiralty

no more procrastination and internal infighting between governmental departments

coordination of supplies became much more efficient

40
Q

how did the Graham reforms increase RN control over dockyards?

A

abolished the rank of civil commissioner who was replaced by serving naval officers

these naval officers were experienced enough to take control of the RN dockyards

improved the servicing and resupplying of RN ships

41
Q

what made Britain more reliant on food imports?

A

the rapid population growth
repealing of the Corn Laws

42
Q

Britain’s population at the start of the 19th Century

A

10 million

43
Q

Britain’s population by the end of the 19th Century

A

40 million

more mouths to feed so more imports of food needed

44
Q

what was the impact of the repealing of the Corn Laws?

A

domestic produce was no longer protected
foreign imports were much cheaper

Britain began to import much more of it’s food

45
Q

when were the Corn Laws repealed?

A

1846

46
Q

what became the RN’s main concern going into the 20th Century?

A

preventing a naval blockade on Britain and ensuring Britain was kept heavily supplied

47
Q

when was the Naval Defence Act adopted?

A

1889

48
Q

what was the Naval Defence Act?

A

outlined the two power standard

Britain’s naval strength had to be at least equal to it’s two biggest rivals

49
Q

why was there a lack of major naval reform in the mid-1800s?

A

lack of opposition to the British

the French, Germans and Russians were too occupied with their armies

left Britain to dominate with not much to deal or react to

50
Q

when was Germany unified?

A

1871

51
Q

what was the impact of Germany’s unification on the RN?

A

Germany had a larger population and more industrial capacity than Britain

Kaiser Wilhelm II wanted a fleet that could match the British fleet

he ordered the expansion of the German Navy

52
Q

when was German naval expansion granted?

A

1898

53
Q

what was the Tirpitz Plan?

A

aim to construct a navy at least 2/3 the size of the RN

the German Navy would have more modern battleships than the RN

54
Q

what was Fisher’s view on the role of the RN?

A

he believed that the best way to keep peace would be through the RN being the complete dominant naval force in the world

55
Q

what were the issues with officer training before Fisher?

A

officer class was divided into:
- engineers
- commanders
they were trained separately

the commanders often looked down upon the engineers which led to friction in the RN

56
Q

what did Fisher do to reform officer training?

A

introduce the Selbourne Scheme

hoped to make the RN more of a meritocracy

57
Q

what was the Selbourne Scheme?

A

all officers were trained and educated together until the age of 22

training officers studied both engineering and navigation subjects together

officers were then able to specialise into:
- navigation
- gunnery
- engineering

58
Q

impact of the Selbourne Scheme?

A

led to the centralisation of officer training which meant that the RN had greater control over ships

engineers and commanders worked TOGETHER

59
Q

what did Fisher do to improve the use of technology in the RN?

A

brought in officers with technical expertise

60
Q

examples of RN officers with technical expertise

A

John Jelicoe - gunnery expert
Reginald Bacon - submarine specialist

61
Q

how did Fisher deal with the old RN ships?

A

sold them or put them in reserve

Fisher believed they were too slow to operate and ineffective in future naval warfare

BALANCED THE BOOKS

62
Q

how many RN ships did Fisher sell?

A

90

63
Q

how did Fisher reform the RN reserve force?

A

created the Royal Navy Volunteer force

64
Q

what was the impact of Fisher’s reforms to the RN reserve?

A

gave Britain a larger reserve force to rely upon during war time

ships were kept in reserve to reduce running costs

65
Q

how did Fisher reorganise the RN fleets?

A

abolished and changed the size of various fleets across the world

increased the ships in the European fleets in order to deal with threat from Germany

66
Q

what fleet was abolished under Fisher?

A

South Atlantic Fleet

67
Q

how many battleships stationed near China were returned to Britain?

A

5

68
Q

what happened to the Channel Fleet?

A

moved and stationed at Gibraltar

renamed the Atlantic Fleet

69
Q

what became the new Channel Fleet?

A

the original Home Fleet

70
Q

impacts of the reorganisation of the RN fleets under Fisher

A

saved the RN money by abolishing fleets in the East

RN strategic position in Europe against Germany was reaffirmed

71
Q

what type of naval ship did Fisher push for the construction of?

A

submarines
the Dreadnought

72
Q

what was the Dreadnought-class ship?

A

had the firepower of a battleship and the speed/manoeuvrability of a cruiser

73
Q

when was the HMS Dreadnought commissioned into the RN?

A

1906

74
Q

how many 12-inch guns were placed on HMS Dreadnought?

A

10

75
Q

what was the range of the 12-inch guns on HMS Dreadnought?

A

18,000 yards

76
Q

what was the speed of HMS Dreadnought?

A

21.6 knots

made it the FASTEST SHIP IN THE WORLD

77
Q

what innovations to gunnery were present on HMS Dreadnought>

A

devices which calculated gunnery

took into account the speed and direction of the target

allowed for deflection shooting

78
Q

what was deflection shooting?

A

shooting at moving targets at sea

79
Q

impact of Fisher’s creation of the HMS Dreadnought

A

was THE MOST POWERFUL ship in the world

it’s speed and gunnery superseded any rival ships

(nuclear weapon of our time)

innovations in gunnery meant that it had an advantage in precision compared to rival ships

BRITAIN WON NAVAL WAR

80
Q

by 1914 how many Dreadnought-class ships did Britain have?

A

29