The War at Sea

• Nelson had his band of brothers, his officers that he had his utmost trust in.
• In 1793, the British had 115, whilst the French only had 76 ships
• The Royal navy deployed coppering techniques, to copper plate the bottom of a ship, to prevent ship worm when damaged.
• The Royal Navy had a shorter-ranged canon called the Carronade, which was effective at shorter ranges, causing devastating damage, when mainly aimed at the hull, with the nickname 'smasher'.
• 25% of sailors needed to be skilled in the Royal Navy.
• A lot of Royal Navy sailors were recruited abroad.
• The French Navy aimed their canon shots at the rigging and sails, whilst the Royal Navy aimed their shots at the hull.
• Nelson's command style consisted of: favouring melee combat, leading from the front and trusting his men. Losing his Right arm in the Battle of Santa Cruz de Tenerife and having his Band of Brothers.
• There were two mutinies in the Royal Navy in 1797.
• 1796, Docks in Portsmouth refitted. speeding up turn around time for ships and ended problem of excess ships needing refitting.
• The Royal Navy was more of a meritocracy. Officer education consisted of at least 6 years at sea joining at the age of 13/14 and having to pass left-tenant exams.
• An organisation called the Royal Ordnance, was run by Major General Blanfield, improved the quality of guns by firing them up to 30 times to prove their validity.