This is a list of ships of the line of the royal navy of england, and later from. The first rate ship of the line is a ship type in empire. Hms audacious 1785 third rate shipoftheline warship. Hms victory, launched at chatham in 1765, was a 100gun ship of the line with a length of 186 feet. I state in this video that borodino was the largest napoleonic battle, but the battle of leipzig was actually bigger. The second rate ships of the line were also threedeckers, but smaller and. Hms warrior 1860 british ironclad ship of the line. A ship of the line was a type of naval warship constructed from the 17th century to the mid19th century. Hms victoria was the last british wooden firstrate threedecked ship of the line commissioned for sea service. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading the age of the ship of the line. In historic naval fiction books the author will often refer to ships as third rate, ship of the line or 74. Larger vessels were still built, as command ships, but they were more useful only if they could.
The larger fourth rates of 60 guns continued to be counted as ships ofthe line, but few new ships of this rate were added, the 60gun fourth rate being superseded over. The order of british ships in the table is the one of that moment. The ship of the line takes the best models from the national maritime museum in greenwich to tell the story of the evolution of the ship of the line, known as the capital ship and epitome of british sea power during its heyday from 16501850. These ships were the largest fighting ships of their time, divided into four classes.
Description the first rate is the largest type of ship of the line, intended to be the command ship at the centre of any fleet. In battle weather can play a role, at the beginning the winds allowed the french to sail there first ships of the line against the british. From here, it spread to the spanish, dutch, danish and russian navies. The design was considered a good balance between firepower and sailing qualities, but. Otherwise they would be referred to as schooners, brigs, sloops, cutters etc. Order of battle at the battle of trafalgar wikipedia.
Wellarmed but eventually deemed too small for their carried firepower, the arrogantclass ships nonetheless played an important frontline role in british naval actions heading into the next century. The ship base, ship card and ship log are printed on two sides the game data of a second ship is printed on the back. Constructed in 1814, the ships arrival on the lake ended all naval action and st lawrence finished the war having never gone into battle. Uss pennsylvania centre foreground and north carolina centre background, ships of the line of the u. The line refers to the fact that a standard strategy of naval warfare was to have large ships on the two sides in battle in a line, firing broadsides at one another. The british fleet of the battle consisted of 33 warships, 27 of which were ships of the line. History of the royal navy steam, steel and dreadnoughts 18061918 duration. The list starts from 1660, the year in which the royal navy came into being after the restoration of the monarchy under charles ii, up until the emergence of the battleship around 1880, as defined by the admiralty. Hms warrior is the first ironclad that was built for the royal navy in 1860. Various shots of the galleon hms victory and the new. Such warships would sit in a line of battle following each other. After the squadron of three ships from toulon moored at algeciras near gibraltar, it beat off an attack by six british ships of the line and captured one of them.
Over time ships became larger and better built in order to gain an advantage over their opponent in the line. The design was considered a good balance between firepower and sailing qualities, but more importantly. Ship of the line, type of sailing warship that formed the backbone of the western worlds great navies from the mid17th century through the mid19th century, when it gave way to the steampowered battleship. There he was attacked on 6 july 1801 by rearadmiral saumarez from cadiz with 5 ships of the line. Originating in the jacobean era with the designation of ships royal capable of carrying at least 400 men, the size and establishment of firstrates evolved over the following. What was the difference between a galleon, man o war and. The rating system of the british royal navy was used to categorise warships. A detailed, majestic diagram of two british ships of war. British hms bellona 1760, ship of the line new walmart. The royal navy is the principal naval warfare service branch of the british armed. The smaller fourth rates, of about 50 or 60 guns on two decks, were ships ofthe line until 1756, when it was felt that such 50gun ships were now too small for pitched battles.
Prior to closing with the enemy, they were in a single line, and after engagement, the ships manoeuvred to assume the best firing positions. Audacious displaced at 1,625 tons under load and featured a length of 168 feet with a beam of 46. Ship of the line auvfest 2008 grades 56 earth sciencephysical sciencesocial science focus. Ship ofthe line warfare, also called line ahead battle, columnar navalbattle formation developed by the british and dutch in the mid17th century whereby each ship followed in the wake of the ship ahead of it. After arriving too late to confront british ships in delaware and unable to cross a sandbar to meet them in new york, destaing finally came to grips with british ships in newport harbor. British napoleonic shipoftheline warlord games ltd. British fourth rate ship of the line portland 1770. Hms victory, launched at chatham in 1765, was a 100gun ship of the line with a. This period coincided with the golden age of ship modeling. When do the british open fire on new york 3,000 910 by the end of the war it was about 12,000. Hence, the ship of the line was born, the largest and most powerful of the warships of. The ship is preserved today as a historic relic at portsmouth, eng.
In the rating system of the british royal navy used to categorise sailing warships, a first rate was the designation for the largest ships of the line, equivalent to the superdreadnought of more recent times. Eventually around half of britains ships of the line were 74s. Seapower was the key to victory, and the british ship ofthe line was the ultimate arbiter of maritime supremacy. List of ships of the line of the royal navy wikipedia. Each volume depicts over one hundred models in full color photos, including. This ship pack can also be used to represent the british ship ofthe line hms goliath 1781the bellona class is considered a prototype for the iconic 74gun ships of the latter part of the 18th century. Hms bellona was a chathambuilt 74 gun 3rd rate ship ofthe line, which served in the royal navy during the wars against the french in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. First rate ship of the line empire total war fandom. They are armed with cannons, and are classified using a rating system a 3rd rate ship of the line had around 70 cannons, and a 1st rate ship of the line had around 100 cannons. Old sailing shipshms victoryship of the line man of. Another saturday off from work and i get to participate i sail a victory in a trafalgar battle. These wooden walls were more than merely floating gun batteries.
Various shots of the galleon hms victory and the new warship, hms queen elizabeth at portsmouth harbour. A detailed, majestic diagram of two british ships of war, from an. She is best known for her role as lord nelsons flagship at the battle of trafalgar on 21 october 1805 she additionally served as keppels flagship at ushant, howes flagship at cape spartel and jerviss flagship at cape st vincent. The british 74gun ship of the line cornwallis left background chasing the u. The list starts from 1660, the year in which the royal navy came into being after the restoration of the monarchy under charles ii, up until the emergence of the. This is a list of ships of the line of the royal navy of england, and later from 1707 of great britain, and the united kingdom. The ship of the line evolved from the galleon, a three or fourmasted vessel that had a. Hms st lawrence was a 112gun firstrate wooden warship of the royal navy that served on lake ontario during the war of 1812. This is not a serious shortcoming because, armed with around 100 cannons. A ship of the line was a type of naval warship constructed from the 17th century to the mid19th. While these warships are among the most powerful vessels afloat, they are poor sailors being both slow and unresponsive. The 3rd rate 74 gun ship formed the backbone of the royal navy for over 50 years. The seventyfour was a type of twodecked sailing ship of the line which nominally carried 74 guns. History of the ship of the line of the royal navy from the galleons of 1650 to the first rate 120 gun ship of the line of 1845, including caledonia class, queen charlotte, trafalgar, victory, leviathan, royal sovereign, vengeur and black prince class.
Warrior is a ship of the line she is descendant from the same class of. It was developed by the french navy in the 1740s and spread to the british royal navy where it was classed as third rate. Authorized in 1816 and launched in 1837, her only cruise was a single trip from delaware bay through chesapeake bay to the. No british ship was sunk or burnt in any of the great battles, in fact only 8 ships of the line were burnt or blown up throughout the whole war, 17 were wrecked and 3 foundered. To be classified as a ship the vessel had to have 3 masts, all of them squarerigged.
The rating system of the royal navy and its predecessors was used by the royal navy. Victory, flagship of the victorious british fleet commanded by admiral horatio nelson in the battle of trafalgar on oct. Great britains royal navy, which rated its sailing ships by the number of guns they carried, considered ships of the first through third ratesthat is, ships carrying. She was the only royal navy ship of the line ever to be launched and operated entirely in fresh water. The british and french navies, 16501815 studies in war, society, and the military dull, jonathan r. This page seeks to clarify how the ships of the napoleonic era were classified. She was the largest united states sailing warship ever built, the equivalent of a firstrate of the british royal navy.
The british and french navies, 16501815 studies in war, society, and the military. The rating system applied to ships of the royal navy between the 1670s and the early 19th century but in fiction will often be used to refer to ships. This formation maximized the new firing power of the broadside simultaneous discharge of all the guns arrayed on one side of a ship and marked a final break with the. A detailed, majestic diagram of two british ships of war, from an 18thcentury encyclopedia. Rated navy ships in the 17th to 19th centuries explore royal. A dictionary of british ships and seamen 1980 dull, jonathan. The book begins by noting the rating system depending largely on firepower. History of the royal navy the kings ships 15001599. Unlocking the bloody history of the ship made famous by turner, the fighting temeraire. Hms victory is a 104gun firstrate ship of the line of the royal navy, ordered in 1758, laid down in 1759 and launched in 1765. A first, second or thirdrate ship was regarded as a shipoftheline. The french suffered some major tragedies, such as the orient at the battle of the nile and the indomitable at trafalgar, which lost 1250 men from a crew and troops.
My complete version of my first rate ship of the line, hms victory. British napoleonic shipoftheline osprey publishing. Give three facts about the british ship of the line july 4th, 1776. The ship of the line was designed for the naval tactic known as the line of battle, which depended on the two columns of opposing warships maneuvering to fire with the cannons along their broadsides. Dates of service, name changes, previous and next incarnations, dimensions, armament, commanders, officers and. Uss pennsylvania was a threedecked ship of the line of the united states navy, rated at guns, and named for the state of pennsylvania. The brief book begins by noting the importance of this class of vessel page 3. The british royal navy emerged triumphant as the leading world sea power, and the epitome of britannic naval strength was the ship ofthe line.