by John Sugden
WATTS, ARTHUR P., ed., Nevis and St Christopher’s, 1782–1784 (Paris, 1925)
WEBB, PAUL, ‘The Naval Aspects of the Nootka Sound Crisis’, MM, 61 (1975), pp. 133–54
WEIGLEY, RUSSELL F., The Age of Battles (1991)
WHITE, COLIN, ed., The Nelson Companion (Portsmouth, 1995)
—1797: Nelson’s Year of Destiny (Stroud, 1997)
—‘The Midshipman and the Commodore’, ND, 6 (1997), pp. 55–7
—‘Nelson and Shakespeare’, ND, 7 (2000), pp. 145–50
—‘The Nelson Letters Project’, MM, 87 (2001), pp. 476–8
—The Nelson Encyclopaedia (2002)
—‘Nelson Ashore, 1780–1797’, in Peter Hore, ed., Seapower Ashore (2001), pp. 53–78
—‘The Nelson Letters Project’, MM, 89 (2003), pp. 464–6
—‘“More Enlarged Ideas Than in Former Times”: New Insights from the Nelson Letters Project,’ TC, 13 (2003), pp. 112–17
WHITE, DAVID, ‘Heralds and their Clients: The Arms of Nelson’, TC, 8 (1998), pp. 56–73
The Whole Proceedings on the King’s Commission of the Peace, Oyer and Terminer, and Gaol Delivery for the City of London (1787) reprinted in TC, 3 (1993), pp. 56–69
WILKINSON, CLENNELL, Nelson (1931)
WILLOUGHBY, RUPERT, ‘Nelson and the Dents’, ND, 1 (1984), pp. 152–6
WRIGHT, D. G., Popular Radicalism, 1780–1880 (1988)
WYNDHAM-QUIN, WILLIAM HENRY, Sir Charles Tyler, G.C.B., Admiral of the White (1912)
YARRINGTON, ALISON, ‘Nelson the Citizen Hero: State and Public Patronage of Monumental Sculpture, 1805–1818’, Art History, 6 (1983), pp. 315–29
—The Commemoration of the Hero, 1800–1864 (New York, 1988)
GLOSSARY
ABLE SEAMAN In theory, a rating given to a prime seaman
ABOUT, GO To change tacks
ADMIRAL An officer eligible to command a fleet and fly a distinguishing flag. In descending order of seniority the three grades were admiral, vice admiral and rear admiral. See also BLUE
ADMIRALTY The senior naval board, whose first lord was a cabinet minister
ADVOCATE An attorney presenting a case
AFT Towards the rear or stern of a ship
ARTICLES OF WAR A statutory disciplinary code, regularly read to the ship’s company
BACK To brace a sail so that the wind blows directly onto the front of it and retards the ship’s progress
BEAM The width of a boat or ship or a frame supporting the decks
BENDING SAILS Attaching sails to yards, gaffs or stays
BITTS A frame to which mooring cables are attached
BLUE, THE The junior of three groups (red, white and blue) across which flag ranks were distributed. They recalled seventeenth-century squadronal colours
BOATSWAIN A warrant officer responsible for much of the routine working of a ship
BOMB VESSEL A vessel reinforced to carry heavy mortars to fire explosive shells. The noun bombard apparently refers to a similar vessel
BOW CHASERS Guns mounted in the bows of a ship
BOWER An anchor on the bow of a ship
BOWSPRIT A spar extending forward from the bows of a ship
BRIG A two-masted, square-rigged vessel, weaker than a frigate but used for similar duties
BULKHEAD An internal partition in a ship
BUMPKIN A short boom used to extend the lower edges of the principal sails on the masts
CABLE’S LENGTH Two hundred yards
CABLE TIER/SCUTTLE An area on the orlop deck used to store cables
CANISTER/CASE SHOT Cased shot designed to scatter among opponents
CAPSTAN A man-powered winch to work anchors, weights or heavy sails
CARRONADE A heavy gun used for close-quarter action
CARTOUCHE BOX A case for ammunition
CASEMATE/BOMBPROOF A place secure from bombardment
CATHEAD A timber projection near the bows of a ship to hold anchors
CHAINS Platforms on the outside of a ship from which the shrouds and ratlines lead to the masts
CHAIN SHOT Shot linked by a bar or chain, used to clear decks of men or bring down sails, spars and rigging
CHASE A ship being pursued
CLERK OF THE CHEQUE A dockyard official responsible for accounts
CLEW UP To draw up the lower edges of a square sail for furling, using the clew and clew-lines
COCKPIT The place below the lower gun deck, near the aft hatchway, used by surgeons in a battle
COMMANDER A ‘rank’ between lieutenant and post-captain, entitling its holder to command a ship no larger than a sixth-rate
COMMISSIONED OFFICER An officer of the rank of lieutenant or above, holding the king’s commission from the Admiralty
COMMODORE A temporary post held by a senior captain, usually one given the command of a squadron; entitled to fly a broad pendant
CORVETTE A French sloop
COXSWAIN The helmsman and commander of a a ship’s boat
CROSS JACKYARD The lower yard of the mizzen
CROW A crowbar used in handling guns
CUTTER A small single-master
DOCKYARD COMMISSIONER The officer in charge of a dockyard, usually by a civil appointment
DOG WATCH Two two-hour watches between 4 and 8 p.m.
DORY A small flat-bottomed American boat
DOUBLE SHOTTING The loading of two round shot within a single charge to increase short-range velocity
DRIVER An additional sail for the mizzen
FASCINE Bundles of brush to pack military defences
FATHOM Six feet
FELUCCA A small, oared vessel, sometimes also equipped with a lateen sail
FIFTY An increasingly obsolete warship of fifty long guns
FIGHTING INSTRUCTIONS Code for tactical signals and movements, frequently elaborated by individual admirals
FISH To strengthen or splint a broken spar
FLAG RANK Loosely, an admiral with the right to fly his flag at the masthead
FOREMAST The mast nearest the bow of a ship, extended by the fore topmast and carrying the foresail, fore topsail and fore topgallant sail
FORECASTLE An area beneath the short raised forward deck of a ship; loosely, the living quarters of a crew, distinguished from those of officers aft
FREIGHT MONEY Money received by captains for shipping freight
FRIGATE A three-masted, squarerigged warship mounting between twenty-four and forty-four guns; light and fast, frigates cruised against enemy merchantmen and small warships and gathered intelligence, but were too weak to stand in the line of battle
GAFF The spar on the after side of a mast, used to suspend a supplementary sail
GALLERIES Stern or quarter walkways
GALLEY An oared fighting ship; a rowing boat, usually with one or two masts
GALLIOT A small single-masted galley
GIG A narrow, light, fast ship’s boat
GRAPE Anti-personnel shot that scatters
GUARDA COSTA A Spanish guard boat
GUARDSHIP A warship stationed to protect a harbour or anchorage
GUNBOAT A small, lightly armed boat
GUNWALE Timbers covering the upper edge of a ship’s side
HALYARDS Tackle for raising sails, spars or yards
HAUL UP To turn closer to the direction from which the wind is blowing
HAWSE The space between a ship’s bow and the ground in which her anchor was fastened
HEAD MONEY Money paid to the captors of warships, based on the sizes of their crews
HELM Originally the steering tiller but latterly the wheel
HOWITZER A short, heavy siege gun
IMPRESS SERVICE The service for raising men, operating in and out of ports under the command of a regulating captain
INDIAMAN A merchantman trading with the East or West Indies
JIB An extension of the bowsprit
JOLLY BOAT A small, general-purpose boat
JURY MAST A temp
orary mast
KEDGE ANCHOR A small anchor used to haul grounded ships towards deeper water or to move ships when they are becalmed in shallows
KEELSON An internal keel to strengthen a frame
KETCH A vessel with main and mizzen masts, sometimes used as a bomb vessel
LARBOARD The left-hand side of a ship, looking forward to the bow
LARBOARD TACK To sail with the wind coming over the larboard side of a ship
LATEEN A triangular sail suspended on a yard at an angle of some forty-five degrees to the mast
LEE An area sheltered from the wind
LEEWARD The direction to which the wind is blowing. A vessel to leeward is on the sheltered side of a ship. A lee shore faces an onshore wind. A ship adopting the leeward position in battle places the enemy between herself and the wind. If crippled, such a ship can escape by running to leeward before the wind
LEVANTER A strong easterly or northeasterly Mediterranean wind
LIEUTENANT A commissioned officer, eligible to command unrated ships but usually supporting a commander or post-captain
LINE OF BATTLE The regular battle formation of fleets was line ahead, so that each ship presented a broadside towards the enemy
LOWER DECK Deck of a ship above the orlop; colloquially, ordinary ratings were not allowed use of the quarterdeck
LUFF To change course into the wind
MAINMAST The middle mast of a three-masted ship, extended by the main topmast and carrying the mainsail, main topsail and main topgallant
MASTER-AT-ARMS Warrant officer responsible for discipline, also known as corporal
MASTER’S MATE Technically an assistant to the sailing master, but often a trainee commissioned officer analogous to a midshipman
MERCHANTMAN A merchant ship
MERLON A military parapet between embrasures
MIDSHIPMAN A petty officer, generally presumed to be training to become a lieutenant, and usually a boy or youth
MIZZEN MAST In a three-masted ship the rearmost mast, extended by the mizzen topmast
NAVY BOARD A civil body, primarily responsible for the building and maintenance of ships and supplies
ORDINARY SEAMAN A rating given to a seaman superior to a landman but inferior to an able seaman
ORDNANCE BOARD A board, independent of the Admiralty, supplying guns, ordnance stores and ammunition to the armed services
ORLOP The lowest deck of a ship, above the hold
PANGA A small Central American boat
PASSING CERTIFICATE A certificate attesting to a candidate’s success in an examination for lieutenant
PINNACE Oared ship’s boat, sometimes able to raise a temporary mast
PITPAN A long, flat-bottomed canoe, used in Central America
POLACRE A three-masted Mediterranean vessel, generally possessing square sails on the mainmast and lateen sails on the fore and mizzen masts
POOP DECK A short, high deck at the rear of a ship
POST-CAPTAIN An officer eligible to command any size of warship and entered on an official list according to the date of his first captain’s commission.
POWDER MONKEY A boy employed to carry powder from the magazine to the gundeck
PRIVATEER A private man-of-war authorised to attack enemy commerce in wartime
PRIZE AGENT An agent to whom prizes were entrusted, responsible for overseeing cases and handling pay and prize money
PRIZE CREW A skeleton crew put on a prize to conduct her to port
PROCTOR An official of the viceadmiralty courts responsible for preparing a case for an advocate
QUARTER After parts of a ship on either side of the stern; the direction from which the wind blows
QUARTERDECK A raised part of the upper deck to the rear of the mainmast, reserved for the use of officers
QUARTERMASTER A petty officer who assisted the master and his mates
RATE Six categories of warship, based on the number of guns, excluding carronades. First rates (one hundred guns or more), second rates (eighty-four or more) and third rates (seventy or more) were the principal ships of the line
RIGGING The network of ropes supporting a ship’s masts. Standing rigging refers to fixed ropes, and running rigging to ropes managing sails
ROUNDSHOT Fired from smoothbore cannons, the calibres used were of 4, 6, 9, 12, 18, 24 and 32 lbs
ROYALS Auxiliary sails raised above the topgallants
SCHOONER A two- or three-masted vessel rigged fore and aft
SEA FENCIBLES A maritime militia raised after 1798 to defend Britain from invasion
SEA TIME The six years of sea-going experience necessary to become a lieutenant.
SEVENTY-FOUR The classic ship of the line, with seventy-four guns
SHALLOP A large, heavy boat with fore and aft sails or lug sails, or a shallow-draught boat using oars or a sail
SHEET Ropes manipulating a sail
SHEET ANCHOR An anchor supporting the bower
SHEER-HULK A decommissioned ship equipped with sheers to lift heavy weights. Ships needing masts lifting in or out were brought alongside a sheer-hulk
SHIP OF THE LINE A capital ship, usually of sixty-four or more long guns, strong enough to stand in the line of battle
SHIPS IN ORDINARY Laid up or decommissioned ships
SHROUDS Standing rigging from masts to the ship sides
SICK AND HURT BOARD A subsidiary of the Admiralty, responsible for ships’ surgeons, naval hospitals and (until 1796) prisoners of war
SLING The middle part of a yard, encircled by a sling hoop from which it is suspended from the mast and hoisted or lowered
SLOOP Loosely used in the Navy to describe a warship smaller than a frigate, possibly a two-masted brig or a three-master
SLOPS Clothing supplied by the Navy Board, obtained from a ship’s purser, who deducted the cost from due wages. A slop ship was used to store such clothing
SNOW A two-masted merchantman
SPANKER A supplementary sail raised on a boom attached to the mizzen
SPARS A generic term for masts, yards, booms and gaffs
SPOKE The word used to report an exchange of information between two vessels; this could be by hailing or by a boat from one going alongside the other
SPRINGS Supplementary ropes connected to an anchor, used to manoeuvre a moored ship more adeptly
SPRITSAIL A small sail suspended from the bowsprit
SQUADRON A number of warships too small to constitute a fleet
SQUARE RIG Four-sided sails placed across the yards
STARBOARD Right-hand side of a ship, looking forward to the bows
STARBOARD TACK To sail with the wind coming from starboard
STAYS Fore and aft ropes supporting a mast
STAYSAILS Triangular sails suspended from the stays
STERN CHASERS Guns mounted on the stern
STUDDING SAILS Sails set out upon booms from the square sails in good weather
SUPERNUMERARY A passenger, carried on the books for victuals, but not a member of the regular ship’s company
SWIVEL A light anti-personnel gun that turned on a pivot
TACK To turn a ship by putting her head against the direction of the wind
TARTAN A Mediterranean vessel, generally with one mast, a large lateen sail and a foresail
THREE/TWO DECKER Terms referring to the number of gundecks on a warship
TOPGALLANTS Sails above the principal sails on the masts of a square rigger
TOPMAST Extension to a fore-, main- or mizzen mast
TOPSAIL The sail above the principal sail on a mast of a square rigger
VAN The front of a fleet
VICE-ADMIRALTY COURT An overseas branch of the High Court of the Admiralty
VICTUALLING BOARD A subsidiary of the Navy Board responsible for the provision of victuals and slop clothing
WAD A bundle of rags rammed down the muzzle of a cannon to prevent the shot rolling out
WARD ROOM A mess for commissioned officers
WARRANT OFFICER An officer appointed by a warrant of the Navy Board, such as a master, surgeon or purser
WATCH A period of duty on a ship, usually four hours long; one of two contingents into which the crew is divided, so that some seamen rest while others handle the ship
WEAR To turn a ship by putting the bow away from the wind
WEATHER To pass to windward of a ship or land form
WEATHER GAUGE A ship in the windward position was said to have the weather gauge. Thus situated, it had advantages over an opponent to leeward. Ships with the weather gauge could manoeuvre more easily than those to leeward, which attacked against the wind
WINDWARD Anything to windward of a ship is between that ship and the wind. In a naval action a ship with her enemy to leeward is said to have the windward position or the weather gauge and the advantage of the wind
XEBEC A small, three-masted vessel with both square and lateen sails
YARD A spar across a mast, supporting a sail
YAWL A yacht or small sailing boat
YEOMAN OF THE POWDER ROOM A petty officer with responsibility for the magazine
Picture Section
1. Captain Horatio Nelson, aged twenty-two, painted by John Francis Rigaud in 1781. He stood proudly in the full-dress uniform of a post-captain, with Fort San Juan in the background, commemorating his most notable achievement thus far.
2. Rear Admiral Sir Horatio Nelson, K.B., 1797. This pencil-and-ink drawing made by Henry Edridge in London has the appearance of being the foundation for a new commemorative portrait that was never painted. Nelson wore the undress uniform of a rear admiral, and the gold medal and red ribbon of Bath, awarded him for the victory off Cape St. Vincent, featured in the background. Note the ribbons tying the slashed sleeve over his injured arm.
3. The Reverend Edmund Nelson (1722–1802), Nelson’s father, painted by Sir William Beechey two years before the reverend’s death.
4. Catherine Nelson (1725–67), Nelson’s mother, painted by John Theodore Heins (then based in Norwich). She died leaving her husband five sons and three daughters.
5. Ann Suckling (1691–1768), Nelson’s maternal grandmother. It was through her that the Nelsons inherited their principal social influence. The daughter of Sir Charles Turner and Mary Walpole, Ann was the niece of the first Baron Walpole and Sir Robert Walpole. She outlived her daughter, Catherine, by ten days, and died at Burnham Thorpe.