The master was the senior warrant officer and was responsible for the navigation of the ship and the ship’s sailing qualities. He was responsible for setting courses, finding the ships position, supervising the midshipmen and […]
One aspect of Napoleonic naval warfare that is somewhat difficult for denizens of the modern age to comprehend is the position of Royal Marines on Royal Navy ships. Throughout the Aubrey/Maturin series, we have the […]
Our beloved Dr. Stephen Maturin is an anomaly in the Royal Navy, as he is a physician rather than a surgeon. Ship’s surgeons tended to be barely educated barbers who could pull out teeth and […]
Food Supplying the fleets was an immense undertaking, and was controled by the Victualing Board. The purser on each ship was in charge of supplying the food and consumables; like candles, coal, clothes (or slops […]
This is a simplified version of the watch system as operated in most ships, where the crew were divided into two watches, the larboard and starboard watch.
During the War of 1812, much of the action at sea had less to do with the navies of either Britain or the United States fighting one another and much more to do with those […]
Ratings When signed on to a ship’s books, a man was given a rating according to his experience. Freshmen to the sea were known as landsmen, those with limited experience were ordinary seamen, while knowledgeable […]
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