Evan Canavan has been busy at home, researching the fearsome engineering, logistics and firepower that came together to create the legendary Man-of-War, the mightiest battleship in the Age of Sail.
Well done, Evan, this is a superb piece of historical research and writing.
Man-of-War
Report by Evan Canavan
The Man-of-War was a wooden naval ship that was designed for fighting and not for merchant service. It was in service from the 16th to the 19th century. It resembled a galleon in design, but had heavy fire-power with an average of 65 guns. Sometimes, it could have over 100 guns.
These ships weighed 1,000 tons and had 3 masts. Only the three major sea-powers of the time (Spain, England, and France) had these ships.
A full schematic of a Man-of-War. Click above for a larger view.
The Crew
It took a crew of around 700 for a round the world voyage – 131 marines (soldiers who fought at sea) and 569 seamen.
The admiral commanded the fleet and worked out battle plans.
The captain commanded the ship.
The 1st Lieutenant was the captain’s assistant.
The Lieutenants assisted the captain in carrying out orders.
Next in line were the Warrant Sea Officers. The Master navigated and piloted the ship. The Boatswain was responsible for the rigging and sails. The Gunner was in charge of the cannons. The Warrant Sea Officers also included the Carpenter, the Surgeon and the Purser who was in charge of supplies. Many of the crew hated the purser because they thought that he was stealing the supplies to make a profit for himself.
Next were the Inferior Warrant Officers who included the Chaplain, the Cook, the Schoolmaster and the Sail maker. Next were the petty officers and then the Idlers who included the carpenter’s crew and the sailmaker’s crew.
Fire Power
A Man of War’s guns were very destructive but only at short range. Firing cannon needed a 6 man gun crew. Each man was known by a number. One was the gun captain (he primed, aimed and fired the gun), Two turned and raised the gun barrel, Three loaded the gun, Four damped down sparks before reloading, Five moved the gun barrel and passed ammunition and Six was the “powder monkey” who delivered fresh gun powder. Some “powder monkeys” were only 10 or 12 years old.
The guns used different types of shot- cannonballs, chain shot, grape shot and canister shot. Cannonballs were heavy round balls usually made of iron. Chainshot- were heavy balls joined by a chain. They tangled in the enemy ship’s rigging and tore it down. Grape shot were iron balls, the size of tennis balls bound in canvas sacks. Canister shot were cylindrical cases containing pistol balls. They were used at close range to kill people. The gun crews faced instant death or horrible injuries from a direct hit.
Sometimes the ships were used to transport treasure or to escort merchant ships. Also the ships could stay just beyond the horizon or in the shadow of merchant ships as a trap for would be pirates. While most pirates avoided the Man-O-Wars, some pirates would attack the ships if they knew they were carrying a lot of treasure.
One of the most famous Man of War ships was the HMS Victory. It was best known for her role in the battle of Trafalgar with vice admiral Lord Horatio Nelson. Nelson was killed during the battle and his body was put in a barrel of brandy to preserve his body. When the navy examined the barrel later, they discovered it was empty. DID THE CREW DRINK IT????
