MODERN WOODEN SAILING-SHIPS.
The naval wars which followed the establishment of the Commonwealth
contributed in a very large degree to the progress of shipbuilding. In
1652 war broke out with the United Provinces, headed by the Dutch, who
were, prior to that period, the foremost naval and mercantile power in
the world. The struggle lasted about two years, and during its
continuance the British fleet increased from fifty-five first, second,
and third rates, to eighty-eight vessels of corresponding classes, while
a proportionately larger increase was made in ships of smaller
denominations, and, in addition, the vessels lost in the war were
replaced. The war with the Dutch was an exceptionally severe struggle,
and ended in the complete victory of this country, which then stepped
into Holland's place as foremost naval power. In addition to this war,
Cromwell undertook an expedition to the Mediterranean, to punish the
piratical states of Algiers, Tunis, and Tripoli. The fleet was commanded
by Blake, and was completely successful in its operations, which
resulted in a security for British commerce with the Levant that had
never been known before. Admiral Penn was at the same time entrusted
with the command of a powerful expedition to the Spanish West Indies.
The annexation of Jamaica followed, and British commerce in the West
increased. In fact, with the progress of the national navy the commerce
of the country also extended itself, and the increased experience thus
obtained in shipbuilding, both for the war and trading fleets,
necessarily resulted in great improvements in the art.
[Illustration: FIG. 49.--The _Royal Charles_. 1673.]
The expenditure on the navy in the time of the Commonwealth was enormous
relatively to the total national revenue. In the year 1656-57
four-fifths of the income of the country was devoted to the sea service,
in the following year two-thirds, and in 1658-59 nearly three-fifths.
These are figures which have never been approached at any other period.
The ships built during this time were of moderate dimensions. Only four
were of 1,000 tons. These were the _Dunbar_, of 1,047 tons and 64 guns,
built in 1656; the _London_, built in the same year, of the same tonnage
and number of guns, though of different dimensions; the _Richard_, of
1,108 tons and 70 guns, built in 1658; and the _Naseby_, built in 1655,
of 1,229 tons and 80 guns. All four were renamed at the Restoration.
Charles II. and his brother, the Duke of York, afterwards James II.,
both possessed in an eminent degree the fondness for the navy which
distinguished all the members of the Stuart dynasty, though,
unfortunately, after the first naval war waged by Charles against
Holland, the condition of the fleet was allowed to deteriorate very
rapidly. As a sample of the type of warship of the first class built in
this reign, we give, in Fig. 49, the _Royal Charles_, which was
constructed at Portsmouth dockyard in 1673, by Sir Anthony Deane, to
carry 100 guns. This illustration and that of the _Sovereign of the
Seas_ are after pictures by Vandevelde. This ship was the largest in the
navy, excepting always the famous old _Sovereign of the Seas_ and the
_Britannia_. The latter was built at Chatham, by Pett, in 1682, and
carried 100 guns, and measured 1,739 tons. The _Royal Charles_ created
as much sensation in its day as did the famous ship built for Charles I.
There is a beautiful model of the _Royal Charles_ in the Museum.
[Illustration: FIG. 50.--The _Soleil Royal_. 1683.]
The following table gives the leading dimensions of the _Royal Charles_
and the _Britannia_:--
--------------+---------+----------+----------+----------+------------
| | | | |
Name of ship. | Length. | Breadth. | Depth of | Draught. | Complement.
| | | hold. | |
--------------+---------+----------+----------+----------+------------
| ft. | ft. in. | ft. in. | ft. in. |
Royal Charles | 136 | 46 0 | 18 3 | 20 6 | 780
Britannia | 146 | 47 4 | 19 7-1/2| 20 0 | 780
--------------+---------+----------+----------+----------+------------
Fig. 50 is an illustration after Vandevelde of a famous French
first-rate of the same period, named the _Soleil Royal_, of 106 guns.
She was destroyed in Cherbourg Bay the day after the battle of Cape La
Hogue, in 1692. Fig. 51 is a Dutch first-rate, named the _Hollandia_, of
74 guns. She was built in 1683, and took part in the battle of Beachy
Head as flagship of Admiral Cornelis Evertsen.
[Illustration: FIG. 51.--The _Hollandia_. 1683.]
The chief difference between the British and foreign builds of warship
of the latter half of the seventeenth century was that the English
vessels were always constructed with the rounded tuck before mentioned,
as introduced by Pett, while the Continental ships all had the
old-fashioned square tuck, which is well illustrated in Fig. 51. The
Dutch ships in one respect excelled all others, in that they were the
first in which the absurd practice of an exaggerated "tumble home," or
contraction of the upper deck, was abandoned. This fashion was still
carried out to a very great extent by the English, and to a less extent
by the French and Spaniards. The chain-plates in the English vessels
were also fixed extremely low, while the Dutch fixed them as high as the
sills of the upper-deck ports would allow. In consequence of the
shallowness of the Dutch harbours, the draught of their ships was also
considerably less than that of the English vessels of corresponding
force.
Most of the ships in a seventeenth-century fleet deemed fit to take
their station in the line of battle were third-rates. The first and
second rates were exceptional vessels, and were only employed in
particular services. A comparative table of the dimensions and armament
of the various rates, or classes in the year 1688, is annexed:--
------------+------+---------+---------+---------+-------+---------+-------
| | | | | | Guns |
|Length| | Depth | Draught | | on war |
Designation.| of | Breadth.| of | of | Tons. | service | Crew.
| keel.| | hold. | water. | | at home.|
------------+------+---------+---------+---------+-------+---------+-------
| Feet.| Feet. | Feet. | Feet. | | |
1st Rate |128 to| 40 to | 17.9 to | 20 to |1100 to| 90 to | 600 to
| 146 | 48 | 19.8 | 23.6 | 1740 | 100 | 815
2nd Rate |121 to| 37 to | 17 to | 16 to |1000 to| 82 to | 540 to
| 143 | 45 | 19.8 | 21 | 1500 | 90 | 660
3rd Rate |115 to| 34 to | 14.2 to | 16 to | 750 to| 60 to | 350 to
| 140 | 40 | 18.3 | 18.8 | 1174 | 74 | 470
4th Rate | 88 to| 27 to | 11.2 to | 12.8 to | 342 to| 32 to | 180 to
| 280 | 34 | 15.6 | 17.8 | 680 | 50 | 230
5th Rate | 72 to| 23.6 to | 9.9 to | 11.6 to | 211 to| 26 to | 125 to
| 81 | 27 | 11 | 13.2 | 333 | 30 | 135
------------+------+---------+---------+---------+-------+---------+-------
The first so-called frigate was designed by Peter Pett, and built at
Chatham in 1646. She was named the _Constant Warwick_. Her dimensions
were: length of keel, 85 ft.; breadth, 26 ft. 5 in.; depth, 13 ft. 2
in.; tonnage, 315; guns, 32; crew, 140. She worked havoc amongst the
privateers of the time.
The bomb-ketch was originally introduced by a famous French naval
architect named Bernard Renan, about 1679. This class of warship was
first employed by Louis XIV. in the bombardment of Algiers, where it
produced an enormous effect. Bomb-ketches were of about 200 tons
burthen, very broad in proportion to their length, and built with great
regard to strength, on account of the decks having to bear the downward
recoil of the mortars. The latter were placed in the fore-part of the
vessel, which was purposely left unencumbered with rigging. The hold
between the mortars and keel was closely packed with old cables, cut
into lengths. The yielding elastic qualities of the packing assisted in
taking up the force of the recoil. The bombs weighed about 200 pounds,
and the consternation and terror produced by them may readily be
realized when it is remembered that, up to that time, the most dangerous
projectile which a warship could discharge at a land fortification was a
thirty-two pound shot. These vessels were fitted with two masts, one in
the middle and the other in the stern.
While referring to this invention of Bernard Renan, it should be
mentioned that France rose to the rank of a great naval power in the
reign of Louis XIV., under the famous minister Colbert, in the latter
half of the seventeenth century. When Louis succeeded to the throne the
French Navy was practically non-existent, as it consisted only of four,
or five, frigates. In 1672 he had raised the strength of the fleet to
fifty line-of-battle ships and a corresponding number of frigates and
smaller vessels. Nine years afterwards, the French marine numbered 179
vessels of all classes, exclusive of galleys. In 1690 the French fleet
in the Channel alone numbered sixty-eight ships, while the combined
British and Dutch squadrons consisted only of fifty-six, and suffered a
defeat at Beachy Head, in which the English lost one vessel and their
allies six. This defeat was, however, amply revenged two years
afterwards, when the allies succeeded in opposing the enormous number of
ninety-nine ships of the line, besides thirty-eight frigates and
fireships, to Tourville's fleet of forty-four ships of the line and
thirteen smaller vessels, and defeated it off Cape La Hogue, inflicting
on it a loss of fifteen line-of-battle ships, including the famous
_Soleil Royal_, of 108 guns, illustrated in Fig. 50. From the time of
Louis XIV. down to the present date French naval architects have always
exercised a most important influence on the design of warships, a
circumstance which was largely due to the manner in which Colbert
encouraged the application of science to this branch of construction.
It may be truly said that, during the whole of the eighteenth century,
the majority of the improvements introduced in the forms and proportions
of vessels of the Royal Navy were copied from French prizes.
[Illustration: FIG. 52. British second-rate. 1665.]
[Illustration: FIG. 53.--Midship section of a fourth-rate.]
In order to complete the illustrations of British warships of the latter
half of the seventeenth century views of a second-rate are given in Fig.
52, and a cross-section of a fourth-rate in Fig. 53.
It would be impossible in the present work to notice in detail all the
alterations in size and structure of ships which took place during the
eighteenth century. A few of the leading changes may, however, be
mentioned. In the year 1706 an attempt was made to systematize the
dimensions of the various rates, and the figures as given in the
following table were fixed:--
--------------+-------------+--------------+--------------+--------------+---------+-------------
Number of | | | | | |
guns. | 90 | 80 | 70 | 60 | 50 | 40
--------------|-------------+--------------+--------------+--------------+---------+-------------
Length of | | | | | |
gun-deck | 162 ft. | 156 ft. | 150 ft. | 144 ft. | 130 ft. | 118 ft.
| | | | | |
Extreme | | | | | |
breadth | 47 ft. | 43 ft. 6 in. | 41 ft. | 38 ft. | 35 ft. | 32 ft.
| | | | | |
Depth of hold |18 ft. 6 in. | 17 ft. 8 in. | 17 ft. 4 in. | 15 ft. 8 in. | 14 ft. | 13 ft. 6 in.
| | | | | |
Tonnage | 1552 | 1283 | 1069 | 914 | 705 | 532
--------------+-------------+--------------+--------------+--------------+---------+-------------
When the figures were compared with those of contemporary French ships
of the same rates, it was found that the British vessels of every class
were of inferior dimensions. Whenever British men-of-war were captured
by the French, the number of their guns was reduced. It was universally
admitted that the French ships were superior in sailing qualities; so
much so was this the case that, whenever a French squadron was chased,
the English-built ships in it were the first to be overtaken. The
subject of the superiority in size of the French ships was constantly
coming to the front, and in 1719 a new establishment was made for the
dimension of ships in our Royal Navy, according to the following
scale:--
--------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-----------
Number of guns. | 90 | 80 | 70 | 60 | 50 | 40
--------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-----------
Increase of length | 2 ft. | 2 ft. | 1 ft. | 0 | 4 ft. | 6 ft.
Increase of breadth | 2 in. | 1 ft. | 6 in. | 1 ft. | 1 ft. | 1 ft. 2 in.
Increase of tonnage | 15 | 67 | 59 | 37 | 51 | 63
--------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-----------
In addition to the increase in dimensions, much improvement was made in
the same year in the interior arrangements, and in the preservation of
the timber of which ships were constructed. Up till this period both
thick stuff and planks were prepared by charring the inner surface while
the outer surface was kept wet, and this process was continued till the
plank was brought to a fit condition for bending to the shape it was
required to take. In this year, however, the process of stoving was
introduced. It consisted in placing the timber in wet sand and
subjecting it to the action of heat for such time as was necessary in
order to extract the residue of the sap and to bring it to a condition
of suppleness. In the year 1726 the process was favourably reported on
by two of the master shipwrights in their report on the state of the
planking on the bottom of the _Falkland_. Some of the planking had been
charred by the old process, some stoved by the new, and the remainder
had been neither stoved nor charred. The stoved planks were found to be
in a good state of preservation, while many of the others were rotten.
The process remained in use till 1736, when it was superseded by the
practice of steaming the timber. The steaming and the kindred process of
boiling remained in vogue during the whole of the remainder of the era
of wooden shipbuilding. In 1771 the rapid decay of ships in the Royal
Navy once more caused serious attention to be paid to the subject of the
preservation of timber. It was, in consequence, arranged that larger
stocks of timber should be kept in the dockyards, and that
line-of-battle ships should stand in frame for at least a year, in order
to season before the planking was put on. Similarly, frigates were to
stand in frame for at least six months, and all thick stuff and planking
was to be sawn out a year before it was used and stacked, with battens
between the planks, so as to allow of the free circulation of the air.
Similar regulations were put in force for the beam pieces, knees, and
other portions of the ships.
Much trouble was caused by the injurious effects of bilge-water and foul
air in the holds of ships, and various remedies were devised from time
to time. In 1715 structural improvements were devised to allow of the
bilge-water flowing more freely to the pumps, and trunks were fitted to
the lower decks to convey air to the holds. In 1719 it was proposed that
the holds of ships should have several feet of water run into them in
the early spring in order to cool them, and that it should not be pumped
out till August; but this remedy was never extensively practised. In
1753 Dr. S. Hales proposed a system of ventilation by means of windmills
and hand-pumps, which produced excellent results. It was noticed that
the accumulation of carbonic acid gas and foul damp air in the holds,
not only set up rapid decay in the ship, but also most injuriously
affected the health of the crews. Dr. Hales' system was employed in the
_Prince_ from 1753 to 1798, and it was considered that the durability of
this vessel had been greatly increased. It was also reported by Lord
Halifax that the mortality on the non-ventilated ships on the coast of
Nova Scotia was twelve times as great as on those vessels which were
fitted with Dr. Hales' appliances.
There are not many records in existence of the merchant-vessels of this
period. Fig. 54 is a representation of an armed East Indiaman which was
launched at Blackwall in 1752. Her length of keel was 108 ft. 9 in.;
breadth, 34 ft.; and burthen, 668 tons. She was named the _Falmouth_,
and was constructed by the famous shipbuilder, John Perry, of Blackwall
Yard. She was commenced almost exactly two years before the date of her
launch. Like all her class, she was heavily armed.
[Illustration: FIG. 54.--The _Falmouth_. East Indiaman. Launched 1752.]
At the close of the war against France and Spain, which lasted from 1744
to 1748, great complaints were made of the weakness of our warships at
sea. It was also found that the establishment of 1719 had not been
adhered to, and the dimensions of ships were not fixed in accordance
with any particular standard. The first defect was remedied by the
placing of as many standards of wood, or iron, on the different decks as
could be conveniently arranged, so as not to interfere with the guns,
and by the use of larger bolts than had hitherto been employed, as high
up as possible in the throats of the hanging knees. Also the beams of
the quarter-deck and round-house were supported with lodging knees, and
in some instances with hanging knees of wood, or iron. Various other
pieces, such as the stem, were also strengthened and the weights of the
taffrails and quarter-pieces were reduced. The advice of the master
shipwrights of the various dockyards was sought, in order to fix a new
establishment of dimensions, but great difficulties were found in
introducing the much-needed reforms, and for some time afterwards the
ships of the British Navy were at a disadvantage with those of foreign
countries by reason of their contracted dimensions and inferior forms.
The capture, with great difficulty, of a Spanish ship of seventy guns,
named the _Princessa_, in 1740, by three British men-of-war of equal
rating, but far inferior dimensions, was one of the events that first
opened the eyes of the Admiralty to the defects of their vessels. The
first attempt towards introducing a better type of ship was made in
1746, when the _Royal George_, famous for her size, her services, her
beauty and misfortunes, was laid down. She was not launched till 1756.
The following were her principal dimensions:--
Length of keel for tonnage 143 ft. 5-1/2 in.
Length of gun-deck 178 ft.
Extreme breadth 51 ft. 9-1/2 in.
Depth of hold 21 ft. 6 in.
Tonnage 2047
Number of guns 100
Crew 750 men.
Fig. 55 is an illustration of this ship. She rendered great services to
the country under the orders of Admiral Lord Hawke, especially in the
memorable defeat of the French Navy off the island of Belle-isle in
1759. She was lost at Spithead in 1782, when being inclined in order to
have some repairs to her bottom executed. She capsized, and went under,
900 men, women, and children being drowned in her.
The _Royal George_ was followed by several others of various rates and
improved dimensions, notably by the _Blenheim_ (90) and the _Princess
Amelia_ (80). The latter was one of the most famous ships of her day,
and was constantly employed as long as she continued fit for service. In
1747 a French ship of seventy-four guns named the _Invincible_ was
captured, and was found to be such an excellent vessel that her
dimensions were adopted for the _Thunderer_, laid down about 1758. One
of the most interesting models in the Museum is of the _Triumph_ (74),
also built on the lines of the _Invincible_ in 1764. Her length of
gun-decks was 171 ft. 3 in.; breadth, 49 ft. 9 in.; depth of hold, 21
ft. 3 in.
In the following year was built the _Victory_, 100 guns, famous as
Nelson's flagship at Trafalgar, and still afloat in Portsmouth Harbour.
Her dimensions are: length of gun-deck, 186 ft.; breadth, 52 ft.; depth
of hold, 21 ft. 6 in.; tonnage, 2,162.
[Illustration: FIG. 55.--The _Royal George_. 1746.]
The following table gives the dimensions of typical ships of war
constructed about the middle of the eighteenth century:--
---------------+---------+---------+---------+---------+---------+--------
Number of | 100 | 90 | 80 | 74 | 64 | 50
guns. | | | | | |
---------------+---------+---------+---------+---------+---------+--------
Length of | 178 ft. | 176 ft. | 165 ft. | 171 ft. | 159 ft. | 146 ft.
gun-deck | | 1 in. | | 3 in. | 4 in. |
| | | | | |
Length of keel | 143 ft. | 142 ft. | 133 ft. | 138 ft. | 130 ft. | 120 ft.
for tonnage | 6 in. | 7 in. | | 8 in. | 9-1/2 in.| 8-1/2 in.
| | | | | |
Extreme | 51 ft. | 49 ft. | 47 ft. | 49 ft. | 44 ft. | 40 ft.
breadth |9-1/2 in.| 1 in. | 3 in. | 9 in. | 6-1/2 in.| 4-1/2 in.
| | | | | |
Depth of hold | 21 ft. | 21 ft. | 20 ft. | 21 ft. | 18 ft. | 17 ft.
| 6 in. | | | 3 in. | 9-3/4 in.| 2 in.
| | | | | |
Tonnage | 2,047 | 1,827 | 1,580 | 1,825 | 1,380 | 1,046
| | | | | |
---------------+---------+---------+---------+---------+---------+--------
The genuine frigate--that is to say, a large cruiser, of relatively high
speed, carrying its main armament on one deck--was introduced into the
Royal Navy in 1741, when the _Adventure_ was built. She carried
thirty-two guns, of which twenty-two were 12-pounders. The first British
36-gun frigates were the _Brilliant_ and _Pallas_, built in 1757. Their
main armament also consisted of 12-pounders. French frigates of the same
date were of larger dimensions, as is proved by the following table
which compares the principal measurements of the _Brilliant_ and of the
French frigate _Aurore_:--
----------+-----------+-----------+----------------------------------
Name of | Length of | Breadth. | Depth of | Tonnage. | Complement.
ship. | gun-deck. | | hold. | |
----------+-----------+-----------+----------+----------+------------
| ft. in. | ft. in. | ft. in. | |
| | | | |
Brilliant | 128 4 | 35 8 | 12 4 | 718 | 240
Aurore | 144 0 | 38 8-1/2 | 15 2 | 946 | 250
| | | | |
----------+-----------+-----------+----------+----------+------------
In the year 1761 a most important improvement was introduced, which
greatly increased the usefulness of ships. This was the discovery of the
value of copper plates as a material for sheathing their bottoms.
Previously to this period lead was the metal used for sheathing
purposes, and even it was only employed occasionally. In other cases the
bottoms of vessels were paid over with various compositions, the
majority of which fouled rapidly. The first vessel in the navy that was
copper-sheathed was the _Alarm_, a 32-gun frigate. At first the use of
copper caused serious oxidation of the iron bolts employed in the bottom
fastenings, and copper bolts were substituted for them.
About the year 1788 the dimensions of the various rates were again
increased in order to keep pace with the improved French and Spanish
ships. In the year 1780 the 38-gun frigate founded on a French model was
introduced into the navy, and continued to be much used throughout the
great wars at the close of the eighteenth and the commencement of the
nineteenth century. The first British frigate of this rating was the
_Minerva_, which measured 141 ft. in length of gun-deck; 38 ft. 10 in.
width of beam; 13 ft. 9 in. depth of hold, and 940 tons--figures which
were evidently based on those of the _Aurore_, captured in 1758 (see p.
128). In 1781 and 1782 two very large French frigates were captured.
Their names were the _Artois_ and _Aigle_, and they exceeded in size
anything in this class that had yet been built. The length of gun-deck
measured 158 ft.; width, 40 ft. 4 in.; depth of hold, 13 ft. 6 in.;
tonnage, 1,152; they each carried 42 guns and 280 men.
Again, in 1790, the force of new ships of the various rates was much
increased. The largest line-of-battle ship then built was the
_Hibernia_, of 110 guns. She was the first of her class introduced into
the navy. Her dimensions were as follows:--Length on gun-deck, 201 ft. 2
in.; extreme breadth, 53 ft. 1 in.; depth of hold, 22 ft. 4 in.; burthen
in tons, 2,508. The armament consisted of thirty 32-pounders on the
lower deck, thirty 24-pounders on the middle, and thirty-two 18-pounders
on the upper decks, while eighteen 12-pounders were mounted on the
forecastle and quarter-deck. It is worthy of remark that, for some time
previously, the large line-of-battle ships carried 42-pounders on the
lower deck, but it was found that the 32-pounders could be loaded much
more quickly, and that a great advantage arose in consequence.
[Illustration: FIG. 56.--The _Commerce de Marseille_. Captured 1792.]
In the year 1792 the first 40-gun frigate, the _Acasta_, was built. This
type of vessel was intended to replace the old 44-gun two-decker. The
_Acasta_ measured 150 ft. on deck; 40 ft. 9-1/2 in. extreme breadth; 14
ft. 3 in. depth of hold; with a burthen of 1,142 tons. Her armament
consisted of thirty 18-pounders on the main deck, and ten 9-pounder long
guns on quarter-deck and forecastle.
[Illustration: FIG. 57.--British first-rate. 1794.]
During the whole of our naval history down to comparatively recent
times, improvements in the dimensions and forms of our ships were only
carried out after they had been originally adopted by the French, or
Spaniards, or more recently by the people of the United States of
America. Thus, we find that, shortly after war had been declared against
the French Revolutionary Government in 1792, Admiral Hood took
possession at Toulon, amongst other vessels, of a French first-rate
called the _Commerce de Marseille_, which was larger and mounted more
guns than any vessel in the service of Great Britain. Fig. 56 is an
illustration of this fine man-of-war, which was 208 ft. 4 in. long on
the lower deck, 54 ft. 9-1/2 in. broad, of 25 ft. depth of hold, and of
2,747 tons burthen. As an instance of the progress in size, as related
to armament, made during the century, we may compare the dimensions of
this French first-rate with those of the _Royal Anne_, an English
100-gun ship built in 1706. The length of gun-deck of the latter ship
was 171 ft. 9 in., and tonnage 1,809, the more recent vessel showing an
increase of nearly fifty per cent. in tonnage for an increased armament
of twenty guns.
As further examples of the naval architecture of this period, in Figs.
57 and 58 are given views of an English first-rate of the year 1794, and
in Figs. 59 and 60 corresponding views of a heavy French frigate of
about the year 1780.
One of the greatest improvements made at the end of the eighteenth
century was the raising of the lower battery further above the water,
so as to enable the heavy guns to be fought in all weathers. It was
frequently observed that the old British men-of-war of seventy-four guns
when engaging a hostile vessel to leeward were, on account of the
crankness of the ship and the lowness of the battery, obliged to keep
their lower ports closed; whereas the French ships, which were
comparatively stiff, and carried their lower guns well above the water,
were enabled to fight with the whole of their battery in all weathers.
[Illustration: FIG. 58.--British first-rate. 1794.]
After the capture of the _Commerce de Marseille_, an English first-rate,
named the _Caledonia_, to carry 120 guns, was ordered to be laid down.
She was not, however, commenced till 1805. Her dimensions and
proportions closely approximated to those of her French prototype, and
need not, therefore, be more particularly referred to. She was the first
120-gun ship built in this country.
[Illustration: FIG. 59.--Heavy French frigate of 1780.]
In the year 1812 the United States declared war against Great Britain.
The struggle was memorable for several naval duels between the frigates
of the two nations. When the war broke out the United States possessed
some frigates of unusual dimensions and armament. The British cruisers
were quite overmatched, and in several instances were captured. In
consequence of these disasters a new and improved class of frigate was
introduced into the Royal Navy. What had happened in the case of the
frigates took place also in regard to the sloops employed as cruisers.
They were completely outmatched by the American vessels of corresponding
class, and many of them were taken.
[Illustration: FIG. 60.--Heavy French frigate of 1780.]
In 1815, on the conclusion of the long wars with France, there was, of
course, a marked diminution in the number of ships built for purposes of
war. The _Howe_, of 120 guns (Fig. 61), is given as an illustration of a
first-rate of this period.
During the earlier years of the present century great improvements were
introduced by Sir Robert Seppings and others into the structural
arrangements of ships. During the long wars abundant experience had been
gained as to the particular kinds of weakness which ships exhibited when
exposed to the strains produced by waves. It had been felt for many
years that the system of building was very defective, and the life of a
man-of-war was consequently short, only fifteen years for a ship built
of English oak in the Royal dockyards, and about twelve years for
similar vessels built in private yards. Amongst the greatest defects was
the absence of longitudinal strength to enable a ship to resist the
effects of hogging and sagging strains in a sea-way.
[Illustration: FIG. 61.--The _Howe_. 1815.]
When a ship at sea is so placed that the crest of a large wave is
passing about the midship section, the two ends may happen to be in the
hollows between the waves, and in this case are to a great extent
unsupported by the water, and consequently have a tendency to droop. The
result is that the ship tends to arch up in the centre like a hog's
back, and the upper decks are put into a state of tension, while the
bottom of the vessel, on the contrary, undergoes compression. The
strains set up in this way are called hogging strains. When the position
of the waves is exactly reversed so that the two ends are supported by
the crests, while the hollow between them passes under the middle, the
latter part of the ship has a tendency to droop or sag, and the bottom
is consequently extended, while the upper works are put into a state of
compression.
It will be noticed, on referring to the illustration of the _Royal
George_ (Fig. 55), that the framework of ships built on the old system
consisted of a series of transverse ribs which were connected together
in the longitudinal direction by the outside planking and by the
ceiling. As there was no filling between the ribs, the latter tended
alternately to come closer together, or recede further apart, according
as they experienced the influence of hogging or sagging stresses. The
French during the eighteenth century had at various times proposed
methods of overcoming this defect. One was to cross the ceiling with
oblique iron riders. Another was to lay the ceiling itself and the
outside planking diagonally. Sometimes the holds were strengthened with
vertical and sometimes with diagonal riders, but none of these plans
gave lasting satisfaction.
The means adopted by Sir Robert Seppings were as follows:--
Firstly, the spaces between the frames were filled in solid with timber
(Fig. 62). In this way the bottom of the ship was transformed into a
solid mass of timber admirably adapted to resist working. At the same
time the customary interior planking below the orlop beams was omitted.
[Illustration: FIG. 62.--Sir Robert Seppings' system of construction.]
Secondly, the beams were connected with the sides of the ship by means
of thick longitudinal timbers below the knees running fore and aft,
called shelf-pieces, _a_, _a_ (Fig. 63), and similar pieces above the
beams, _b_, _b_ (Fig. 63), called waterways. These not only added to the
longitudinal strength of the ship, but formed also very convenient
features in the connection between the deck-beams and the ship's sides.
[Illustration: FIG. 63.--Sir Robert Seppings' system of construction.]
Thirdly, a trussed frame was laid on the inside of the transverse frames
in the hold of the ship. This frame consisted of diagonal riders making
an angle of about 45 deg. with the vertical, together with trusses crossing
them, and longitudinal pieces, as shown in Fig. 62. This trussed frame
was firmly bolted through the transverse frames and the planking of the
ship.
Fourthly, it was proposed to lay the decks diagonally; but this system
does not appear to have ever come into general use.
It should here be mentioned that the use of shelf-pieces and thick
waterways in connection with the ends of the beams was first adopted by
the French in very small vessels; also the system of fillings between
the frames was an extension of a method which had been in use for some
time, for it was customary to fill in the spaces as far as the heads of
the floors, in order to strengthen the ship's bottom against the shocks
and strains due to grounding.
[Illustration: FIG. 64.--Sir Robert Seppings' system of construction.]
Sir Robert Seppings further introduced many minor improvements into the
details of the construction and the forms of ships. Amongst these may be
mentioned the method of combining the frame-timbers. The old method of
shaping the heads and heels of these timbers and of combining them with
triangular chocks is shown on the left-hand side of Fig. 64. In the new
method the heads and heels were cut square, and combined with circular
coaks, as shown on the right-hand side in the same Fig.]
[Illustration: FIG. 65.--The _Waterloo_.]
The principal alterations in the forms of ships introduced by Sir Robert
Seppings, were connected with the shapes of the bow and stern. Hitherto
the bow was cut straight across at the cathead, so as to form a vertical
wall extending down to the level of the upper deck portsills, and formed
of thin boarding and stanchions. The old shape of the bow is clearly
shown in Figs. 52 and 55. The disadvantage of this arrangement was that
it exposed the ship to the raking fire of an enemy. The old form of bow
was also deficient in structural strength, and was liable to cause
leakage. Sir Robert Seppings carried the rounding of the bow right up to
the upper deck, and made it as strong as any other part of the ship to
resist either shot or stresses. This alteration also enabled him to
provide for firing several guns in a line with the keel. The old square
stern was also abolished and a circular one introduced, which enabled a
more powerful battery to be carried aft.
In order to bring up the account of British sailing line-of-battle ships
to the period when they were superseded by the adoption of steam-power
in the Royal Navy, we give illustrations of a first-rate launched in the
reign of William IV., called the _Waterloo_ (Fig. 65), of 120 guns, and
of the _Queen_ (Fig. 66), of 110 guns: the latter was the first
three-decker launched in the reign of Queen Victoria. A comparison of
these illustrations with those representing the largest men-of-war in
the time of the Stuart sovereigns, will do more than any verbal
description to show the great alterations in form and size which had
taken place during two centuries. The _Waterloo_ had a length on deck of
205 ft. 6 in., extreme breadth of 54 ft. 9 in., and a tonnage of 2,718;
while the corresponding dimensions of the _Queen_ were 204 ft. 2-1/2
in., 55 ft. 2-1/2 in., and 3,104 tons.
[Illustration: FIG. 66.--The _Queen_.]
[Illustration: FIG. 67.--The _Thames_. East Indiaman. 1819.]
During the epoch covered in this chapter the chronicles of the British
Mercantile Marine were extremely meagre. The seaborne commerce of the
country had increased enormously since the time of the Restoration. It
had, in fact, kept pace with the development of the Royal Navy, and, in
proportion as the naval power of the country was increased so was her
commerce extended and her Mercantile Marine increased. In the year 1801
the total amount of British Mercantile shipping was about 1,726,000
tons; in 1811 it had increased to 2,163,094 tons, and in 1816 to
2,489,068; while in 1846 it had reached 3,220,685 tons. The East India
Company was by far the largest mercantile shipowner and ship-hirer in
the country. In the year 1772 the Company employed 33 ships of the
aggregate burthen of 23,159 tons, builders' measurement. It was about
this period that the Company commenced the construction of a larger type
of vessel for their own use. These vessels afterwards became famous for
their exploits, and were called East Indiamen. Fig. 67 is an
illustration of one of them named the _Thames_, built in 1819, of 1,360
tons register. She carried 26 guns, and had a crew of 130 men.
East Indiamen were designed to serve simultaneously as freight-carriers,
passenger-ships and men-of-war. In the latter capacity they fought many
important actions and won many victories. Having had to fill so many
purposes, they were naturally expensive ships both to build and work.
Their crews were nearly four times as numerous as would be required for
modern merchant sailing-ships of similar size.
At the close of the great wars in the early part of this century
commercial pursuits naturally received a strong impetus. Great
competition arose, not only between individual owners, but also between
the shipowning classes in various countries. This caused considerable
attention to be paid to the improvement of merchant-ships. The objects
sought to be attained were greater economy in the working of vessels and
increased speed combined with cargo-carrying capacity. The trade with
the West Indies was not the subject of a monopoly as that with the East
had been. It was consequently the subject of free competition amongst
shipowners, and the natural result was the development of a class of
vessel much better adapted to purely mercantile operations than were the
ships owned or chartered by the East India Company. Fig. 68 is a late
example of a West Indiaman, of the type common shortly after the
commencement of the nineteenth century. The capacity for cargo of ships
of this type was considerably in excess of their nominal tonnage,
whereas in the case of the East Indiamen the reverse was the case. Also,
the proportion of crew to tonnage was one-half of what was found
necessary in the latter type of vessel. While possessing the above-named
advantages, the West Indiamen were good boats for their time, both in
sea-going qualities and in speed.
[Illustration: FIG. 68.]
When the trade with the East was thrown open an impetus was given to the
construction of vessels which were suitable for carrying freight to any
part of the world. These boats were known as "Free Traders." An
illustration of one of them is given in Fig. 69. They were generally
from 350 to 700 tons register. The vessels of all the types above
referred to were very short, relatively, being rarely more than four
beams in length.
To the Americans belongs the credit of having effected the greatest
improvements in mercantile sailing-ships. In their celebrated Baltimore
clippers they increased the length to five and even six times the beam,
and thus secured greater sharpness of the water-lines and improved speed
in sailing. At the same time, in order to reduce the cost of working,
these vessels were lightly rigged in proportion to their tonnage, and
mechanical devices, such as capstans and winches, were substituted,
wherever it was possible, for manual labour. The crew, including
officers, of an American clipper of 1,450 tons, English measurement,
numbered about forty.
The part played by the Americans in the carrying trade of the world
during the period between the close of the great wars and the early
fifties was so important that a few illustrations of the types of
vessels they employed will be interesting. Fig. 70 represents an
American cotton-ship, which also carried passengers on the route between
New York and Havre in the year 1832. In form she was full and bluff; in
fact, little more than a box with rounded ends.
[Illustration: FIG. 69.--Free-trade barque.]
[Illustration: FIG. 70.--The _Bazaar_. American cotton-ship. 1832.]
In 1840, when steamers had already commenced to cross the Atlantic, a
much faster and better-shaped type of sailing-packet was put upon the
New York-Havre route. These vessels were of from 800 to 1,000 tons. One
of them, the _Sir John Franklin_, is shown in Fig. 71. They offered to
passengers the advantages of a quick passage, excellent sea-going
qualities, and, compared with the cotton-ships, most comfortable
quarters. The Americans had also about this time admirable
sailing-packets trading with British ports.
In the early fifties the doom of the sailing-packet on comparatively
short voyages, such as that between New York and Western European ports,
had been already sealed; but, for distant countries, such as China and
Australia, and for cargo-carrying purposes in many trades, the
sailing-ship was still able to hold its own. Fig. 72 represents an
American three-masted clipper called the _Ocean Herald_, built in the
year 1855. She was 245 ft. long, 45 ft. in beam, and of 2,135 tons. Her
ratio of length to breadth was 5.45 to 1.
Fig. 73 is an illustration of the _Great Republic_, which was one of the
finest of the American clippers owned by Messrs. A. Law and Co., of New
York. She was 305 ft. long, 53 ft. beam, 30 ft. depth of hold, and of
3,400 tons. She was the first vessel fitted with double topsails. Her
spread of canvas, without counting stay-sails, amounted to about 4,500
square yards. She had four decks, and her timber structure was
strengthened from end to end with a diagonal lattice-work of iron.
The speed attained by some of these vessels was most remarkable. In 1851
the _Nightingale_, built at Portsmouth, New Hampshire, in a race from
Shanghai to Deal, on one occasion ran 336 knots in twenty-four hours. In
the same year the _Flying Cloud_, one of Donald McKay's American
clippers, ran 427 knots in twenty-four hours in a voyage from New York
to San Francisco. This performance was eclipsed by that of another
vessel belonging to the same owner, the _Sovereign of the Seas_, which
on one occasion averaged over eighteen miles an hour for twenty-four
consecutive hours. This vessel had a length of keel of 245 ft., 44 ft. 6
in. beam, and 25 ft. 6 in. depth of hold. She was of 2,421 tons
register.
[Illustration: FIG. 71.--The _Sir John Franklin_. American Transatlantic
sailing-packet. 1840.]
[Illustration: FIG. 72.--The _Ocean Herald_. American clipper. 1855.]
English shipowners were very slow to adopt these improvements, and it
was not till the year 1850, after the abolition of the navigation laws,
that our countrymen really bestirred themselves to produce sailing-ships
which should rival and even surpass those of the Americans. The
legislation in question so affected the prospects of British shipping,
that nothing but the closest attention to the qualities of vessels and
to economy in their navigation could save our carrying trade from the
effects of American competition. Mr. Richard Green, of the Blackwall
Line, was the first English shipbuilder to take up the American
challenge. In the year 1850 he laid down the clipper ship the
_Challenger_. About the same time, Messrs. Jardine, Matheson, and Co.
gave an order to an Aberdeen firm of shipbuilders, Messrs. Hall and Co.,
to build two sharp ships on the American model, but of stronger
construction. These vessels were named the _Stornoway_ and _Chrysolite_,
and were the first of the celebrated class of Aberdeen clippers. They
were, however, only about half the dimensions of the larger American
ships, and were, naturally, no match for them in sailing powers. The
_Cairngorm_, built by the same firm, was the first vessel which equalled
the Americans in speed, and, being of a stronger build, delivered her
cargo in better condition, and consequently was preferred. In 1856 the
_Lord of the Isles_, built by Messrs. Scott, of Greenock, beat two of
the fastest American clippers in a race to this country from China, and
from that time forward British merchant vessels gradually regained their
ascendency in a trade which our transatlantic competitors had almost
made their own.
[Illustration: FIG 73.--The _Great Republic_. American clipper. 1853.]
It was not, however, by wooden sailing-ships that the carrying trade of
Great Britain was destined to eclipse that of all her rivals. During a
portion of the period covered in this chapter, two revolutions--one in
the means of propulsion, and the other in the materials of construction
of vessels--were slowly making their influence felt. About twelve years
before the close of the eighteenth century the first really practical
experiment was made on Dalswinton Loch, by Messrs. Miller and Symington,
on the utilization of steam as a means of propulsion for vessels. An
account of these experiments, and of the subsequent application and
development of the invention, are given in the "Handbook on Marine
Engines and Boilers," and need not, therefore, be here referred to at
greater length.
The other great revolution was the introduction of iron instead of wood
as the material for constructing ships. The history of that achievement
forms part of the subject-matter of Part II. During the first half of
the nineteenth century, good English oak had been becoming scarcer and
more expensive. Shortly after the Restoration the price paid for
native-grown oak was about L2 15_s._ a load, this being double its value
in the reign of James I. The great consumption at the end of the
eighteenth and the beginning of the last century had so diminished the
supply, that in 1815, the year in which the great Napoleonic wars
terminated, the price had risen to L7 7_s._ a load, which was, probably,
the highest figure ever reached. In 1833 it sank to L6, and then
continued to rise till, in 1850, it had reached L6 18_s._ per load. In
consequence of the scarcity of English oak many foreign timbers, such as
Dantzic and Italian oak, Italian larch, fir, pitch pine, teak, and
African timbers were tried with varying success. In America timber was
abundant and cheap, and this was one of the causes which led to the
extraordinary development of American shipping in the first half of the
nineteenth century, and it is probable that, but for the introduction of
iron, which was produced abundantly and cheaply in this country, the
carrying trade of the world would have passed definitely into the hands
of the people of the United States.
The use of iron and steel as the materials for construction have enabled
sailing ships to be built in modern times of dimensions which could not
have been thought of in the olden days. These large vessels are chiefly
employed in carrying wheat and nitrate of soda from the west coast of
South America. Their structural arrangements do not differ greatly from
those of iron and steel steamers which are described in Part II.
APPENDIX.
DESCRIPTION OF A GREEK BIREME OF ABOUT 800 B.C.
During the year 1899 the British Museum acquired a new vase of the
Dipylon class, which was found near Thebes in Boeotia, and dates
from about 800 B.C. On one side of the vase are represented chariots
and horses, apparently about to start for a race. On the other side is
a painting of a complete bireme, which, on account of its antiquity
and the peculiarities of its structure is of extraordinary interest.
The galley in question, Fig. 74, is reproduced from an illustration,
traced direct from the vase, and published in the "Journal of Hellenic
Studies," vol. xix. (1899). The chief peculiarity of the construction
is that the rowers are seated upon a two-storied open staging, erected
upon a very shallow hull and extending from an elevated forecastle to
an equally raised structure at the stern. The stage, or platform, on
which the lower tier of oarsmen is seated, is supported by vertical
struts rising out of the body of the boat. The platform for the upper
stage is also supported by vertical struts, which rise, not from the
boat itself, but from an intermediate stage, situated between the two
tiers of rowers. In the absence of a plan it is not possible to say if
these platforms were floored decks, with openings cut in them, where
necessary, for the legs of the rowers; or if they were simply composed
of longitudinal beams connected by cross-pieces which served as seats,
or benches. The latter arrangement appears to be the more probable.
There are twenty oarsmen a-side, on the lower tier, and, apparently,
nineteen on the upper. No attempt is made by the artist to show more
than the rowers on one side, and, to avoid confusion, those on the two
tiers have their oars on the opposite sides of the galley, and only
one of the blades of the far side is shown. The men of the lower tier
rest their feet against supports fixed to the vertical struts which
support their platform, while those of the upper tier rest theirs,
apparently, upon the intermediate stage. The vessel is provided with a
large and a small ram, and is steered by means of two large paddles.
The prow ornament resembles a snake. In some of its features, notably
in the shape of the ram, the shallowness of the hull, and the height
and number of the stages, this galley resembles the Phoenician boat
of a somewhat later date, described on page 28. The arrangement of the
rowers is, however, totally different in the two cases, those in the
Phoenician vessel being all housed in the hull proper, while those
in the Greek galley are all placed on the stages. It is a curious
coincidence that the two specimens of galleys of the eighth and
seventh centuries B.C., of which we possess illustrations, should both
be provided with these lofty open stages.
[Illustration: FIG. 74.--Archaic Greek bireme. About 800 B.C.]
This Greek bireme, with its shallow hull and lofty, open
superstructure, could hardy have been a seaworthy vessel. The question
arises, What purpose could it have been intended to serve? The rams,
of course, suggest war; but the use of rams appears to have been
pretty general, even in small Greek rowing-boats, and has survived
into our own day in the Venetian gondola. The late Dr. A. S. Murray,
keeper of the Greek and Roman antiquities at the British Museum, who
wrote an account of the vase in the "Journal of Hellenic Studies," is
of opinion that both the subjects on this vase represent processions,
or races, held at the funeral ceremonies of some prominent citizen,
and that, in fact, all the subjects on Dipylon vases seem to refer to
deceased persons. He points out that Virgil mentions in the _AEneid_
that games, held in honour of the deceased, commenced with a race of
ships, and that he could hardly have done this if there were no
authority for the practice. The large figures at the stern seem to
point to the bireme of Fig. 74 being about to be used for racing
purposes. The man who is going to step on board is in the act of
taking leave of a woman, who holds away from him a crown, or prize,
for which he may be about to contend. If this view be correct we have,
at once, an explanation of the very peculiar structure of this bireme,
which, with its open sides and small freeboard, could only have been
intended for use in smooth water and, possibly, for racing purposes.
There are several other representations of Greek galleys, or of
fragments of them, in existence. Nearly all have been found on
eighth-century Dipylon vases, but, hitherto, no other specimen has
been found in which all the rowers are seated on an open stage. In the
collection of Dr. Sturge there is a vase of this period, ornamented
with a painting of a bireme, which is as rakish and elegant in
appearance as Fig. 74 is clumsy. It also is propelled by 78, or
perhaps 80, rowers. Those of the lower tier are seated in the body of
the boat, while those of the upper bank on what appears to be a flying
deck connecting the forecastle and poop, and about 3 ft. to 3 ft. 6
in. above the seats of the lower tier.
In the Museum of the Acropolis there are also some fragments of
Dipylon vases, on which are clearly visible portions of biremes. The
rowers of the lower bank are here again, seated in the hull of the
galley and appear to be working their oars in large square portholes,
while the upper row are seated on a flying deck, the space between
which and the gunwale of the hull is partly closed in by what appear
to be patches of awning or light fencing. The portholes above referred
to are in fact merely open intervals between the closed-in spaces.
Similar lengths of fencing may be seen in the representation of a
Phoenician galley (Fig. 7, p. 27).
From the above description it is not difficult to see how the galley,
with two tiers of oars, came to be evolved from the more primitive
unireme. First, a flying deck was added for the accommodation of the
upper tier of rowers. It formed no part of the structure of the ship,
but was supported on the latter by means of struts, or pillars. The
spaces between the hull and the flying deck at the two ends of the
galley were closed in by a raised forecastle and poop. These additions
were necessary in order to keep the vessel dry, and attempts were no
doubt made to give protection to the remainder of the sides by means
of the patches of light awning mentioned above. The step from this to
carrying the structure of the sides up bodily, till they met the upper
deck, and of cutting portholes for the lower tier of oars, would not
be a long one, and would produce the type of bireme illustrated on p.
31 (Fig. 9).
FOOTNOTES:
[1] This illustration is taken from Mr. Villiers Stuart's work, "Nile
Gleanings."
[2] "A History of Egypt under the Pharaohs," by Dr. Henry Brugsch Bey.
Translated and edited from the German by Philip Smith, B.A.
[3] "Nile Gleanings," p. 309.
[4] The inscription is taken from the "History of Egypt under the
Pharaohs," by Dr. Henry Brugsch Bey. Translated and edited by
Philip Smith, B.A. Second edition, pp. 137, 138.
[5] "A History of Egypt under the Pharaohs," by Dr. Henry Brugsch Bey.
Translated and edited from the German by Philip Smith, B.A.
Second edition, p. 358.
[6] Egypt Exploration Fund: _Archaeological Report_, 1895-1896. Edited by
F. L. Griffith, M.A.
[7] "The History of Herodotus," translated by G. C. Macaulay, M.A. 1890.
Vol. i. p. 157. (ii. 96 is the reference to the Greek text.)
[8] In Appendix, p. 157, will be found an account of an eighth-century
Greek bireme, recently discovered.
[9] For latest information on Greek vessels of Archaic period, _see_
Appendix.
[10] This figure is obtained by adding the height of the lowest oar-port
above the water, viz. 3 ft., to 2 ft. 6 in., which is twice the
minimum vertical interval between successive banks.
[11] This illustration is taken from Charnock's "History of Marine
Architecture." It is copied by Charnock from Basius, who, in
his turn, has evidently founded it on the sculptures on Trajan's
Column.
[12] "Caesar, de Bello Gallico," bk. iii. chap. 13.
[13] Vol. xxii., p. 298. Paper by Mr. Colin Archer.
[14] "Archeologie Navale."
[15] W. S. Lindsay, "History of Merchant Shipping and Ancient Commerce,"
vol. ii. p. 4.
[16] The details, as related by various authorities, differ slightly.
[17] According to some accounts there were 1,497 bronze and 934 iron
guns of all calibres.
INDEX.
A
Aberdeen clippers, 153
_Acasta_, first English 40-gun frigate, 131
_Adventure_, first genuine English frigate, 128
_Alarm_, first copper-sheathed frigate, 128
Alfred the Great founds English Navy, 56
American clipper, the _Great Republic_, 1853..150
----, ----, the _Ocean Herald_, 1855..150
----, clippers, speeds attained by, 150
----, cotton-ship, the _Bazaar_, 148, 149
----, frigates, superiority of, in 1812..133
----, transatlantic sailing-packet the _Sir John Franklin_, 1840..148
Anchors, first use of capstans for weighing, 101
_Ark_, Elizabethan warship, 98
Ark, Noah's, account of, 6
Armada, Spanish, account of, 97
Artillery, effect of introduction on designs of ships, 77
----, first use of, by Venetians on board ship, 77
----, first use of, in naval warfare, 76, 77. _See also_ GUNS
_Artois_ and _Aigle_, French frigates of 1781, dimensions of, 129
Athenian docks, dimensions of, 41
_Aurore_, French frigate of 1757, dimensions of, 128
B
Baltimore clippers, 147
Barge, Egyptian, used for transporting obelisks down Nile, 21
_Bazaar_, American cotton-ship, 148, 149
Bireme, Greek, of about 500 B.C., 31
----, ----, of about 800 B.C., 157.
----, Roman, 44
_See also_ GALLEYS
Boat, Egyptian, of the third dynasty, 12
----, ----, of the fourth dynasty, 14
Boats, Egyptian, in time of Herodotus, 24
----, ----, of the sixth dynasty, 14
----, ----, of the twelfth dynasty now in existence, 25
----, of the ancient Britons, 55
Bomb-ketches, introduction of, 118
_Brilliant_, English frigate of 1757, dimensions of, 128
_Britannia_, warship of Charles II., 114, 116
Britons, boats of, 55
Buccas, or busses, 67
C
Cabins, first mention of, on English ships, 73
Cables, use of, for girding ancient ships, 52
Cabot's voyages to America, 89
_Cairngorm_, clipper, 153
_Caledonia_, English first-rate of 1805..133
Canynge of Bristol, shipowner of the fifteenth century, 84
Capstans first used for weighing anchors, 101
Caravels, 84, 88, 91
Carracks in the fifteenth century, 81
----, in the sixteenth century, 96
----, Spanish and Portuguese, end of the sixteenth century, 101
Carthaginian naval expedition against Greek colonies, 30
Caulking of ancient galleys, 53
Chain-pumps, introduction of, 101
_Challenger_, first English clipper, 153
Charles I., warships of, 108
Charles II., warships of, 114
Classification of ships in time of Henry V., 80
Clipper, American, the _Great Republic_, 1853..150
----, ----, the _Ocean Herald_, 1855..150
----, the _Cairngorm_, 153
----, the _Lord of the Isles_, 153
Clippers, Aberdeen, 153
----, American, speeds attained by, 150
----, Baltimore, 147
----, English, 153 _et seq_.
Columbus' ships, 87 _et seq_.
_Commerce de Marseille_, French first-rate of 1792, particulars of, 131
Commerce of England in reign of Henry III., 69
----, ----, in reign of Edward IV., 85
Commonwealth, naval expenditure under, 114
----, naval wars of, 112
----, warships of, 114
Competition between Great Britain and the United States for the
world's carrying trade in 1850, 2
----, for the world's carrying trade, probable renewal of, 4
_Constant Warwick_, English frigate, 1646..117
Construction of Greek and Roman galleys, 40
Construction of Viking ship, 59
----, of wooden battleships, 125, 135
Copper-plating ships' bottoms, introduction of, 128
Crews of English ships, end of the twelfth century, 67
----, ----, ----, early fourteenth century, 73
----, ----, ----, reign of Elizabeth, 98
----, ----, ----, seventeenth century, 117
----, of Greek triremes, 42
----, of Roman quinqueremes, 44
Cutters, earliest notice of, 111
D
Danish ship, description of ancient, 63
Decks, use of, in Egyptian ships, 14, 20
----, ----, in Greek galleys, 33, 34, 43, 44, 157, 160
----, ----, in Phoenician galleys, 28
Der-el-Bahari, maritime records on the temple of, 18
Dimensions of American clippers, 150
----, of Athenian docks, 41
----, of Columbus' ship, 89
----, of East Indiaman of 1752..123
----, of English warships, 106, 110, 116, 117, 121, 126, 128, 129,
131, 142
----, of Greek triremes, 41
----, of Italian ships built for France in the thirteenth century, 73
----, of sixteenth century carrack, 96
Dover seal, ship on, 72
Drake circumnavigates globe, 99
Dromons, 67
E
East India Company, early voyages of, 100, 108
----, ----, ----, Elizabeth grants charter to, 100
----, ----, ----, James I. grants charter to, 108
----, ----, ----, origin of, 100
----, ----, ----, in 1772..145
East Indiaman of 1752..123, 124
----, ----, of 1819 (the _Thames_), 144, 145
_Edward Bonaventure_, Elizabethan merchant-ship, 99, 100
Edward III.'s fleet in 1347..76
Edward III., naval wars of, 74
----, ships of, 76
Edward IV., English commerce in reign of, 85
Egypt, favourable situation of, for development of shipbuilding, 7
----, transport of granite blocks down Nile, 9, 14, 15
Egyptian barge for transporting obelisks down Nile, 22
----, boat of the third dynasty, 12
----, ----, of the fourth dynasty, 14
----, ----, of the sixth dynasty, 14
----, boats in time of Herodotus, 24
----, ----, of the twelfth dynasty, now in existence, 25
----, maritime expeditions to the land of Punt, 16, 18
----, naval expedition against the Shepherd Kings, 18
----, religion, influence of, on the development of shipbuilding, 7
----, ships used in Hatshepsu's expedition to Punt, 18
----, warships of Ramses III., 23
_Elizabeth Jones_, Elizabethan warship, 98
Elizabethan fleet, 98, 102
----, maritime expeditions, 99
----, merchant-shipping, 98, 99
English clippers, 153 _et seq._
----, commerce in the reign of Henry III., 69
----, ----, ----, of Edward IV., 85
----, first-rate of 1637, _Sovereign of the Seas_, 110
----, ----, of 1673, _Royal Charles_, 114, 116
----, ----, of 1706, _Royal Anne_, 131
----, ----, of 1746, _Royal George_, 125, 127
----, ----, of 1790, _Hibernia_, 129
----, ----, of 1794..131 _et seq._
----, ----, of 1805, _Caledonia_, 133
----, ----, of 1815, _Howe_, 135
----, ----, time of William IV., _Waterloo_, 141, 142
----, ----, beginning of Queen Victoria's reign, _Queen_, 142, 143
----, fourth-rate, end of the seventeenth century, 121
----, mercantile marine in time of James I., 107
----, ----, ----, in first half of the nineteenth century, 142
----, second-rate, end of the seventeenth century, 121
----, shipbuilding, excellence of, in time of Charles I., 111
----, ships, Sir Walter Raleigh's criticisms on, 107
----, warships in the reign of Henry VII., 92
----, ----, ----, of Henry VIII., 93
----, ----, ----, of Elizabeth, 98
----, ----, ----, of James I., 104 _et seq._
----, ----, ----, of Charles I., 110
----, ----, in the Commonwealth, 114
----, ----, in the reign of Charles II., 114, 117
----, ----, ----, of Anne, 121
----, ----, ----, of George II., 128
----, ----, ----, of George III., 129 _et seq._
----, ----, ----, of William IV., 142
----, ----, ----, of Victoria, 142
----, ----, increase of size of various rates in 1788..129
----, ----, of the middle of the eighteenth century, defects of, 123
F
_Falmouth_, East Indiaman of 1752, 124, 125
Fleet of Richard Coeur de Lion for invasion of Palestine, 67
Fleet of Edward III. for invasion of France in 1347, 76
----, of Henry V. for invasion of France, 82
----, of Queen Elizabeth to oppose Armada, 98, 102
Fleets of the Saxon Kings of England, 56
Forecastles, developments of, 72, 73, 75, 80, 83, 85, 89, 95, 102
Frigate, French, of 1780, 129, 131, 134, 135
Frigates, _Brilliant_ and _Aurore_, of 1757, dimensions of, 128
----, introduction of, 117, 128
----, of thirty-eight guns, introduced 1780, 129
----, of forty guns, introduced 1792, 131
----, superiority of American in 1812, 133
"Free Traders," 147
French first-rate of 1792, particulars of, 131
----, frigates of 1780, 129, 131, 134, 135
----, naval architects, influence of, 118, 120
----, ----, power under Louis XIV., 118
----, Navy, foundation of, 79
G
Galleasses, Spanish, 1588, 97
----, Venetian, end of the sixteenth century, 103
Galleon, Venetian, of the sixteenth century, 78
Galley, Archaic Greek, about 800 B.C., 157
----, Greek, without deck, 33
----, of eleven banks, alleged to have been built in Cyprus, 35
----, of sixteen banks, brought to Rome by AEmilius Paulus, 36
----, Phoenician, of the seventh century, 27
----, Ptolemy Philopater's, criticism of account of, 45
----, Venetian, of the fourteenth century, 77
Galleys, ancient, caulking of, 53
----, ----, structural arrangements of, 51 _et seq._
----, ----, timber used in construction of, 50
----, arrangement of rowers in, 43, 47
----, Greek and Roman, details of construction of, 40 _et seq._
----, Greek, rams of, 31, 52, 53
----, Liburnian, 37
----, many-banked, arrangement of oars in, 47
----, ----, disused after Actium, 37
----, ----, use of, by Ptolemies, 37
----, ----, use of, in Greece, 35
----, reasons for arrangement of oars in banks, 42
----, Roman, use of lead sheathing in, 53
----, ----, use of turrets in, 54
----, ----, used against Carthaginians, 36
----, speeds of, 48, 50
----, use of decks in, 28, 34, 36, 43, 44, 157, 160
----, use of sails in, 43
----, used by Alexander the Great, 35
----, Venetian, number of rowers to oars of, 47
----, with four banks of oars, use of, by Athenians, 35
----, with five banks of oars, use of, by Athenians and Syracusans, 35
_See also_ UNIREMES, BIREMES, TRIREMES, QUINQUEREMES, PENTECONTERS
Genoese ship built for France, 1268, 73
_Great Republic_, American clipper, 1853, 150
Greece, ancient, shipbuilding in, 28
----, favourable geographical situation of, for navigation, 28
Greek bireme of about 800 B.C., 157
----, bireme of about 500 B.C., 31
----, galley without deck, 33
----, galleys, rams of, 31, 52, 53
Greek merchant-ship of about 500 B.C., 38
----, penteconters, 35
----, triremes, crews of, 42
----, ----, details of, 41
----, unireme of about 500 B.C., 31
Greeks (ancient), naval expeditions of, 29
Guns, naval, time of Henry VIII., 95
_See also_ ARTILLERY, NAVAL GUNS
H
Hatshepsu's expedition to the land of Punt, 18
_Henry Grace a Dieu_, warship of Henry VIII., 93
Henry V., classification of ships of, 81
----, fleet of, for invasion of France, 82
----, naval development in reign of, 80
Henry VI., ship of reign of, 83
Henry VII., naval development in reign of, 92
Henry VIII., naval guns in time of, 95
----, warships of, 93
Herodotus, account of Egyptian boats by, 24
_Hibernia_, battleship of 1790, particulars of, 129
_Hollandia_, Dutch warship of 1683..116
_Howe_, English first-rate of 1815..135
I
_Invincible_, French warship of 1747..126
Italian fifteenth century ship, 79
J
James I. appoints Commission to inquire into state of Navy, 104
----, development of merchant shipping under, 108
----, warships of, 104 _et seq._
L
_La Blanche Nef_, loss of, 67
Lancaster's expedition to East Indies, 100
La Rochelle, naval battle of, in 1372..77
Lead-sheathing, use of, in Roman galleys, 53
Lepanto, naval battle of, 103
L'Espagnols-sur-Mer, naval battle of, 77
Liburnian galleys, 37
_Lord of the Isles_, Greenock clipper, 153
Libyan boats in ancient Egypt, 9
M
_Madre de Dios_, Portuguese carrack, 101
_Marie la Cordeliere_, French warship, 1512..93
Maritime expedition round Africa sent out by Nekau, 24
----, ----, to land of Punt, 16, 18
----, ----, Elizabethan, 99
_See also_ NAVAL EXPEDITIONS, NAVAL WARS
Masting of warships in Tudor period, 95
Masts of ancient Egyptian boats, 13
Mediaeval ships, 65 _et seq._
Mercantile Marine of Great Britain in first half of the nineteenth
century, 145
Merchant shipping, development of, under James I., 108
----, ----, foreign, end of the sixteenth century, 101
----, ships, ancient, 38
----, ----, Elizabethan, 99, 100
----, ----, Greek, of about 500 B.C., 38
----, ----, Roman, 38
_Minerva_, first English 38-gun frigate, 129
Museums, technical, value of, 3
N
Naval battle at Lepanto, 103
----, ----, at Sluys, 74
Naval battle of La Rochelle in 1372..77
----, ----, of L'Espagnols-sur-Mer, 77
----, ----, off South Foreland in 1217..70
----, expedition, Carthaginian, against Greek colonists, 30
----, expeditions of the ancient Greeks, 29
----, ----, Persian, against Greece, 29
----, expenditure under the Commonwealth, 114
----, guns in time of Henry VIII., 95
----, power of France under Louis XIV., 118
----, war with United States in 1812..133
----, wars of the Commonwealth, 112
----, ----, of Edward III., 74
Navigation, early notions of, 5
Nekau's attempt to make a Red Sea and Nile canal, 23
----, expedition round Africa, 24
Noah's ark, account of, 6
Norman ships, 65
Norsemen, ships of, 58
O
Oars, arrangement of, in galleys of many banks, 47
----, of Greek triremes, length of, 42
----, of Venetian galleys, number of rowers to, 47
Obelisk, transport of, to Rome in 50 A.D., 39
Obelisks, size and weight of, 21
----, transport of, down Nile, 21
Ocean Herald, American clipper, 1855..150
Olaf Tryggvesson, large ship built by, 67
Overland route to India, closing of, in the fifteenth century, 92
P
Penteconters, Greek, 35
Persian naval expeditions against Greece, 29
Pett, Phineas, 104, 110, 111, 114
Phoenician galley of seventh century, 28
Phoenicians, commerce of, 26
----, origin of, 26
Poole seal, ship on, 74
Portholes of warships in Tudor period, 95, 101
----, raising of lower deck at end of the eighteenth century, 131
Portuguese, discoveries of, in the fifteenth century, 84
_Prince Royal_, warship of James I., 104 et seq.
Ptolemies, use of many-banked galleys by, 36
Ptolemy Philopater's galley, criticism of account of, 45
Punt, first recorded maritime expedition to the land of, 16
----, Queen Hatshepsu's expedition to the land of, 18
Q
_Queen_, English first-rate, time of Queen Victoria, 142
Quinqueremes, Roman, crews of, 44
----, use of, by Alexander the Great, 35
----, use of, by Romans, 36, 44
R
Raleigh's criticisms on English ships, 107
Rams of Greek galleys, 31, 52, 53
Ramses III., warships of, 23
_Regent_, warship built 1490..92
Renan, Bernard, 118
Richard Coeur de Lion, fleet of, 67
Richard II., ship of reign of, 80
Rigging, improvements introduced in fourteenth century, 78
----, improvements in, end of the sixteenth century, 101
Roman galleys, use of lead sheathing in, 53
----, ----, use of turrets in, 54
----, ----, used against Carthaginians, 36, 44
----, merchant ships, 38
----, naval power, origin of, 36
----, quinqueremes, crews of, 44
_Royal Anne_, English first-rate of 1706..131
_Royal Charles_, warship of Charles II., 114
_Royal George_, particulars of, 126
Rudders, first use of, in English ships, 74
S
Sailcloth, linen, made by ancient Egyptians, 25
Sailing-ships, excellence of American, in the middle of the nineteenth
century, 3, 147
Sails, early use of, in Egypt, 13
----, papyrus used for, by ancient Egyptians, 25
----, use of, in galleys, 43
Sandefjord ship, description of, 58
Sandwich seal, ship on, 71
_Santa Maria_, caravel of Columbus, 88 _et seq._
Saracen ship of the twelfth century, 68
Saxon kings of England, fleets of, 56
----, ships, 56
Seppings, Sir Robert, improvements introduced by, in naval
construction, 135 _et seq._
Shelf-pieces, introduction of, in shipbuilding, 139
Ship, description of ancient Danish, 63
----, description of Viking, 59
----, Genoese, built for France, 1268..73
----, Greek merchant, 38
----, Roman merchant, 38
----, Italian, of fifteenth century, 79
----, of Columbus, 87 et seq.
----, of Edward III., 76
----, of reign of Richard II., 80
----, ----, of Henry VI., 83
----, on Dover seal, 72
----, on Poole seal, 74
----, on Sandwich seal, 71
----, Saracen, of the twelfth century, 68
----, Venetian, built for France, 1268..73
----, Venetian, of the twelfth century, of great size, 68
Ships, classification of, early fifteenth century, 81
----, earliest mention of, in history, 11
----, Egyptian, used in Hatshepsu's expedition to Punt, 19
----, English, of the end of the fifteenth century, 85
----, mediaeval, 65 _et seq._
----, Norman, 65
----, of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, improvements in, 79,
80
----, of the fourteenth century, crews of, 74
----, of the Norsemen, 58
----, of the Saxons, 56
----, of the Veneti, 55
----, of Vasco da Gama, 91
----, the most ancient known, 9
----, used in Trojan expedition, 31
See also MERCHANT-SHIPS, EAST INDIAMEN, WARSHIPS, WEST INDIAMEN
Shipbuilding, cost of timber for, in the nineteenth century, 155
----, improvements introduced by Sir Robert Seppings, 135 _et seq._
----, in ancient Greece, 28 _et seq._
----, introduction of shelf-pieces and waterways, 139
Shipping statistics of the principal maritime powers, 1
_Sir John Franklin_, American Transatlantic sailing-packet, 1840..148
Sluys, battle of, 74
_Soleil Royal_, French warship, end of the seventeenth century, 116
_Sovereign_, English warship, time of Henry VII., 92
_Sovereign of the Seas_, warship of Charles I., 110
Spanish Armada, account of, 97
Speeds attained by American clippers, 150
----, of galleys, 48, 50
Square buttocks, abandonment of, in English warships, 106
Steam navigation, introduction of, 155
Stern castles, development of, 72, 73, 75, 79, 83, 89, 95, 102
_Stornoway_ and _Chrysolite_, first Aberdeen clippers, 153
Strains, hogging and sagging, on ships, 135
Structural arrangements of ancient galleys, 51 _et seq._
Stuart kings, fondness of for Navy, 104, 108, 114
T
_Thames_, East Indiaman, of 1819, 145
_Thetis_, West Indiaman, 146, 147
Timber for shipbuilding, cost of, in the nineteenth century, 155
----, ----, superstitions of ancients regarding, 50
----, for warships, methods of treating in the eighteenth century, 122
----, used in construction of ancient galleys, 50
Topmasts, introduction of striking, 101
_Trade's Increase_, Jacobean merchantman, 108
Triremes, first use of, in Greece, 29
----, Greek, crews of, 42
----, ----, dimensions of, 39
----, ----, length of oars of, 42
_See also_ GALLEYS
_Triumph_, Elizabethan warship, 98
Trojan expedition, ships used in, 31
"Tumble home," why introduced, 78
Turrets, use of, in Roman galleys, 54
U
Unireme, Greek, of about 500 B.C., 31.
_See also_ GALLEYS
V
Vasco da Gama, ships of, 91
----, voyages of, 91
Veneti, ships of, 55
Venetian galleasses, end of the sixteenth century, 103
----, galleon of the sixteenth century, 78
----, galley of the fourteenth century, 77
----, galleys, number of rowers to oars of, 47
----, ship, built for France, 1268, 73
----, twelfth century ship of great size, 68
Venetians, first use of naval artillery by, 77
----, skill of, in shipbuilding, 69
Ventilation of warships, middle of the eighteenth century, 123
Viking ship, description of, 59
Voyages of Vasco da Gama, 91
W
Warships of Ramses III., 23
----, ventilation of, middle of the eighteenth century, 123
_See also_ ENGLISH WARSHIPS, ENGLISH FIRST-RATES, FRIGATES,
FLEETS, GALLEYS, SHIPS, FRENCH FIRST-RATES
_Waterloo_, English first-rate, time of William IV., 141, 142
Waterways, introduction of, in shipbuilding, 139
West Indiaman, the _Thetis_, 146
END OF PART I.
PRINTED BY WYMAN AND SONS, LIMITED, LONDON AND READING.
End of Project Gutenberg's Ancient and Modern Ships., by George C. V. Holmes