by Dean King
Rated Ships of the Line. Broadly speaking, the ships of the line were also the rated ships, falling into five or six classes. All of them were normally commanded by a sea officer trained in navigation, seamanship, and gunnery and holding the official rank and title of Captain, that is to say, a Post-Captain. There were gradations of seniority among these men, depending upon their length of service and experience, but all were Post-Captains.
The biggest ships in the Navy, the first-rate ships of the line, were all armed with 100 or more heavy cannons on three decks, with lighter guns on the forecastle and quarterdeck. In 1807, they carried a total complement of about 837 naval officers and men, plus 170 Royal Marines (a special corps of soldiers who served on naval vessels and were called the Royal Marines from 1802). The largest British ship of this period, carrying 120 guns, was H.M.S. Caledonia, launched in 1808. Nelson’s flagship, the 100-gun H.M.S. Victory, was among the biggest ships when it was launched in 1765. In addition to being fighting ships, these large ships had additional naval roles, often carrying an Admiral and his staff either at sea or in port and serving as symbols of naval power and diplomatic prestige.
The next class of ships of the line, the second rates, carried 90 to 98 guns, usually 98, with heavy guns on three decks, lighter armament on the quarterdeck, forecastle, and poop, and a total complement of about 738 naval officers and men, and about 150 Marines. Most naval officers did not like these three-deck ships, since they did not perform as well as either the first or third rates under sail. When Admiral Lord Keith was commanding the Mediterranean Fleet (1799-1802), he preferred as his flagship the two-deck third-rate ships Audacious and Minotaur to the Foudroyant, a three-deck second rate.
Third rates, also ships of the line, usually carried 64, 68, 74, or 80 guns, with the heavy guns on two decks and lighter guns on the quarterdeck and forecastle. Among these, the 74 predominated, carrying a complement of 590 to 640 naval officers and men, plus 125 Marines. Fourth-rate ships carried 50 to 60 guns on two decks and were technically rated as ships of the line, but during this period they were rarely used in the line of battle. In fact, they were rapidly disappearing from the fleet, having been used in peacetime largely as flagships for small overseas squadrons or as large vessels for patrol work. A fourth rate carried a complement of about 343 naval officers and men, plus 59 Marines.
The Composition of the Royal Navy, 1793-1815 (as of January 1)
Year 1st rates (100+ guns) 2nd rates (90-98 guns) 3rd rates (64-80 guns) 4th rates (50-60 guns) 5th rates (32-48 guns) 6th rates (20-32 guns) Unrated (sloops and others)
1793 5 19 114 22 90 41 99
1794 6 19 117 22 94 42 120
1795 6 20 120 20 112 41 164
1796 6 19 117 30 118 44 200
1797 7 19 120 25 130 47 239
1798 8 20 130 25 135 49 293
1799 8 21 137 23 132 51 322
1800 9 19 136 26 132 47 360
1801 8 19 139 26 134 47 362
1802 8 19 138 26 141 44 370
1803 7 15 126 20 124 33 383
1804 7 14 129 20 128 33 291
1805 8 14 131 23 142 34 274
1806 8 15 139 22 153 36 416
1807 8 15 145 20 166 41 470
1808 8 14 165 19 175 46 494
1809 8 15 170 18 179 40 549
1810 8 15 177 17 185 40 534
1811 9 17 177 15 181 38 523
1812 9 15 181 14 173 30 476
1813 9 16 188 13 165 31 477
1814 9 12 183 19 180 40 493
Source: Adapted from Roger Morriss, The Royal Dockyards During the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars (Leicester: Leicester University Press, 1983), table 1, p. 12.
Frigates. Like destroyers in modern navies, frigates were the most glamorous ships. They were the fleet’s fast fighters, involved in all sorts of duties and high drama. Not part of the line of battle, they fought the majority of single-ship actions, convoyed merchantmen with valuable cargoes, raided rich enemy fleets, served as the eyes of the battle fleet, and carried earth-shattering news from all quarters of the globe. There were many different types and designs, but nearly all were fifth rates with 32 to 48 guns on a single deck. Some of these, known as razee frigates, were built as larger ships but had upper decks removed to create single-deck frigates. A fifth rate carried a complement of 215 to 294 naval officers and men, plus 42 to 48 Marines.
In this period, the United States Navy earned a reputation for the quality of its frigates, the most famous, the 44-gun U.S.S. Constitution, being launched in 1797. The military successes of the Constitution and her compatriots, the Chesapeake, Constellation, Congress, President, and United States, rocked the morale of the British Navy during the War of 1812.
There were some sixth-rate frigates of 20-some guns in the Royal Navy, the most common type carrying 28 guns. Jack Aubrey’s Surprise was one of these. A sixth rate carried a complement of about 135 to 195 officers and men, plus 30 Marines.
Unrated Ships and Vessels. A wide variety of other types of warships did not fall under the system of rated ships, the principal ones being sloops, bomb vessels, fireships, brigs, cutters, and gunboats.
Sloops. Unlike the current sailing sloop, which carries only a single mast, in the Royal Navy at this time a sloop of war had two or three masts, all carrying both square and fore-and-aft sails. When it had two masts, it was said to be “brig-rigged,” and with three, “ship-rigged.” Sloops varied widely in appearance, but they carried 10 to 18 guns and were generally commanded by sea officers with the rank of Commander. There were more than 200 of these ships in the Navy during the latter part of this period. Sometimes they carried out the patrol duties of frigates, but, being relatively small, they were also commonly used close to shore for raiding and cutting-out expeditions to capture particular ships. Sloops ranged in their complement of men from 42 to 121 officers and men, with 15 to 20 Marines.
Bomb Vessels and Fireships. Only a small number of these very specialized ships existed in the Navy. Designed to carry heavy ordnance for bombarding cities and fortifications, bomb vessels were named for volcanoes or some other entity that evoked fire and brimstone. When not being used for this purpose, they were employed as sloops. Fireships, also used as sloops when not in their special role, were intended to be set on fire and sent in among an enemy fleet to ignite its ships. No vessels were actually used for this purpose during these wars, but several were kept in readiness. One fireship was used to fire rockets in 1809. Bomb vessels carried a complement of about 67 officers and men, and fireships carried 45 to 56 officers and men.
Brigs. A brig was a smaller version of the brig-rigged sloop of war, and its distinctive feature was square sails on two masts. Brigs usually carried 14 short-range carronade guns and were commanded by Lieutenants.
Cutters. Designed for speed, these vessels carried about ten guns and a lot of sail. Most of them bore both square and fore-and-aft sails on a single mast. Some, however, used a distinctively American schooner rig taken from a type used at Bermuda, having a very large triangular sail, and, with only four to six guns, were categorized as schooners. Cutters carried a complement of 45 to 60 officers and men.
Gunboats. The term “gunboat” comprised a wide variety of vessels that were used primarily for local defense. They were relatively small and carried at least one or two guns mounted in the bow or stern. The smallest being not much bigger than a ship’s boat and the largest approaching the description of a cutter or schooner, gunboats carried a complement of 45 to 50 officers and men.
Yachts. This type of vessel was not a pleasure vessel, but a relatively fast, sleek sailing craft designed to carry high officials on state visits. They carried a complement of 50 to 67 officers and men.
The Royal Dockyards and Ropeyards
The capacity to construct and repair ships was vital to the Navy. By the 1750s, Britain’s dockyards had become the largest industrial organization in the world and remained so until the vast changes brought by the Industrial Revolution in the 19th century. A ke
y part of these establishments, which were under the authority of the Navy Board, were the ropeyards that manufactured the miles of cordage required to rig and operate the ships of the Navy.
At home, the largest concentration of these dockyards was in southern England, at Deptford, Woolwich, Chatham, Portsmouth, and Plymouth, but there were also a number strategically located around the world, the largest being at Malta in the Mediterranean, Halifax in the North Atlantic, Jamaica and Antigua in the Caribbean, and at the East India Company outposts at Bombay in the Indian Ocean. In 1814, they employed a total of 17,374 civilian yard officers and laborers. During the two wars, they built 119 ships (supplementing those built by commercial dockyards) and repaired and outfitted many more.
Sea Officers: Commissioned and Warrant
Sea officers came from every class of society, but without a doubt promotion was dependent upon one’s being liked by senior officers and having connections.
In O’Brian’s Aubrey-Maturin novels this is readily apparent, and usually to Jack Aubrey’s disadvantage. In Post Captain, at Aubrey’s disastrous interview with Lord St. Vincent, the First Lord of the Admiralty, St. Vincent rebukes Aubrey for his doggedness in pursuing post rank and for the attempts of his father and others to curry favor on his behalf: “General Aubrey has written forty letters to me and other members of the Board and he has been told that it is not in contemplation to promote you.... Your friends pepper us with letters to say that you must be made post. That was the very word the Duke of Kent thought fit to use, put up to it by Lady Keith.” Throughout the novels, Aubrey’s connections and actions are double-edged swords. Others far less accomplished than he at warfare but neater in their personal affairs and with better connections are promoted faster and receive the plum assignments.
All sea officers held written documents that gave them their rank and authority. The most important officers received commissions from the Admiralty, and the less important officers, such as Surgeons and Masters, received warrants from the Navy Board or other authorities. Normally, these commissions were given for each assignment or appointment, not just upon first receiving the rank.
Admirals. Admirals, also known as flag officers because they flew a colored flag denoting their rank, were in the highest category of sea officers. They had long been divided into three sets of three groups each. There were three squadrons, each of which flew a different colored ensign. In order of seniority, they were the Red, White, and Blue squadrons. Each squadron had an Admiral, Vice-Admiral, and Rear-Admiral. An Admiral commanded the main body of the squadron and flew the Union flag at the mainmast head; a Vice-Admiral commanded the van and flew his flag on the foremast; and a Rear-Admiral commanded the rear and flew his flag at the head of the mizzenmast.
In the first part of these wars, however, the position of the most senior post, the Admiral of the Red, was not filled, as it was reserved by tradition for the Lord High Admiral or Admiral of the Fleet. From 1805, both the positions of Admiral of the Fleet and the newly created post of Admiral of the Red, coming next below, were filled. At his death in 1805, Horatio Nelson, as a Vice-Admiral of the White, was about halfway up the Admirals’ hierarchy.
Between the Admirals and the established lower officers was another category, the Commodores.
Commodores. This rank was neither permanent nor a necessary step for promotion between Captain and Rear-Admiral. A Commodore was a Captain holding temporary command over a squadron, who had authority similar to that of a Rear-Admiral. Instead of a flag, a commodore flew a swallow-tailed broad pendant, also called a broad pennant. After 1805 there were two distinct types of Commodores: (1) a senior Captain who was appointed Commander-in-chief of a station or a detached squadron and therefore outranked any flag officer who came within his jurisdiction, and (2) a senior Captain appointed by his Commander-in-chief to command a division under him. All Commodores reverted to the rank of Captain upon hauling down their broad pennants and relinquishing their duties.
Captains. A sea officer with the rank of Captain, also called Post-Captain, reached this “post rank” by being appointed to command a “post-ship,” one of the first to sixth-rate square-rigged ships. The term “post” was used to differentiate from officers who commanded unrated vessels and were called captains, even though they may have been only Lieutenants or Commanders in naval rank or even masters of merchant vessels. A Post-Captain’s seniority started on the day he first took command of a rated ship, and if he lived long enough to reach the top seniority, he was, by tradition, entitled to flag rank, that is to say to be made an Admiral. This bottleneck created some obvious difficulties for the Admiralty, which in 1747 circumvented the tradition of automatic promotion by simultaneously promoting Captains they preferred not to have at sea to Rear-Admirals and retiring them without ever having them serve at sea as a flag officer or add the distinctive Red, White, or Blue Squadron color to their rank. Officers in this situation, such as Admiral Haddock in O’Brian’s Post Captain, came to be known as “yellow” Admirals.
Commanders. The rank below Captain was Commander. The institution of this rank in 1794 caused some confusion, since up to that point, any commanding officer was properly the commander of his vessel, regardless of his rank, and was called captain.
From 1794 onward, those promoted to Captain came only from among those who held the rank of Commander. Officers holding the rank of Commander commanded sloops of war, vessels smaller than rated ships but larger than the cutters and gunboats commanded by Lieutenants.
Lieutenants. The most junior of the traditional sea officers’ ranks in the Navy, a Lieutenant was originally the Captain’s deputy, literally a “place-holder.” While a small nonrated ship might have only one Lieutenant, a first rate carried up to six. So it was common for a Lieutenant’s commission to specify his relative position, for example as First, Second, or Fourth Lieutenant on a particular ship. The Admiralty issued a new commission every time a Lieutenant’s relative position changed. For promotion above the rank of Lieutenant, a sea officer often needed either to have the patronage of an Admiral or political influence in London or to distinguish himself in some extraordinary manner as an officer. That is why a positive mention in a Captain’s letter following a victorious action was so important.
Midshipmen. Ranking just below Lieutenants, Midshipmen were not commissioned sea officers. From 1794, all newly rated Midshipmen were considered to be prospective commissioned sea officers, but this was not the case before that year. During the period of O’Brian’s novels, there were still a number of Midshipmen in the service who were of the pre-1794 type and had no aspirations of being Lieutenants. After 1794, the regulations required that one must serve two years as a Midshipman as well as pass an examination to become a Lieutenant. From 1802 to 1814, Midshipmen who served as second in command to a Lieutenant commanding a small vessel such as a gunboat or cutter were called sub-lieutenants.
Cadets. There was a very small group of prospective commissioned sea officers who held this title while attending the Royal Naval Academy (after 1806, the Royal Naval College) in Portsmouth for up to three years of training before going to sea as Midshipmen.
Masters. Holding warrants, Masters were generally of a lower social class than those who aspired to become commissioned sea officers, but in pay and status they were closely equivalent to Lieutenants. They were specialists in navigation and pilotage, and in order to serve in successively larger ships, had to pass progressively more difficult examinations set by Trinity House, a corporation chartered in 1514 to superintend pilotage, maintain buoys, and license seamen. Masters were qualified to stand deck watches and to command naval vessels engaged in operations other than combat. By 1808, they were considered “warrant officers of commissioned rank” and joined sea officers in messing in the wardroom. They were assisted by Master’s Mates.
Surgeons. The Navy Board qualified Surgeons through an examination at the Barber-Surgeons’ Company, and they were responsible to the Sick and Wounded Board under
the Navy Board. They were the only medical officers on board individual ships, but the Navy Board did appoint Physicians to serve with large squadrons and at naval hospitals. From 1808, Surgeons, like Masters, were considered equivalent to commissioned officers. They were assisted by Surgeon’s Mates, who after 1805 were called Assistant Surgeons.
Pursers. Receiving warrants from the Admiralty, Pursers were responsible to the Victualling Board but were not required to be examined. In the double capacity of an official and a regulated private contractor, the Purser managed the supply and issue of victuals, clothes, and ship’s stores. Pursers were frequently assisted by Purser’s Stewards and Purser’s Yeomen. In 1808, they, like Masters, obtained equivalency with wardroom officers.
Chaplains. Also holding warrants from the Admiralty, Chaplains were examined by the Bishop of London before being accepted by the Navy. From 1808, they obtained wardroom status and from 1812 were qualified to receive pensions. The Articles of War required that religious services be performed every Sunday according to the rites of the Church of England, but religion was not widely and openly accepted among the ranks as an important factor in the Navy. Some naval officers took up the Anglican evangelical movement in this period and tried to bring religion to seamen, but many sailors thought these officers brought bad luck to their ships and derisively called them “blue light” ships.
Chaplains often also served as teachers, though some ships did carry Schoolmasters qualified by Trinity House and holding warrants of a lower status from the Admiralty. They were assigned to teach all young people on board ship. Originally on the same pay level as Midshipmen, Schoolmasters had their pay raised in 1812.