Glossary

abaft A direction indicating nearer the stern.

a making breeze A breeze increasing in strength.

beam ends The sides of a ship. ‘On her beam ends’ is used to describe the rolling effect of very rough seas on the ship; the ship is almost on her side and possibly about to capsize.

belay To secure a rope.

breadfruit A large and round fruit from the Pacific Islands.

boxed the compass When a wind changes direction through 360 degrees in a very short time.

bulwarks The planking along the sides of a ship above the upper deck which acts as a railing to prevent crew and passengers from going overboard.

bumpkin (boomkin) A small beam or spar usually made of oak or fir projecting outwards from each side of a ship’s bow or the stern.

buntlines Ropes tied to the foot of a square sail that keeps it from opening or bellying when it is being hauled up for furling to the yard.

buttock lines Design lines showing the fore and aft hull shape of a vessel from bow to stern.

cable 1. A long, thick and heavy rope used to moor or keep a ship at anchor. 2. A naval unit of distance – 10 cables is one nautical mile.

caboose A small hut-like galley built on the deck.

calumny Defamation; false accusation.

capstan A large waist-high vertical winch turned by crew manning the capstan bars which lock into the head of the winch. The crew then walk in a circle to work the winch. Used to raise the anchor and other heavy objects.

Captains’ List Each Royal Navy officer who reached Flag Rank came from the Captains’ List. Their seniority determined which officer was next in line for promotion. See also Flag Rank.

carronades A short-barrelled limited-range gun, used for close-quarter action, which was enormously destructive to a ship’s timbers.

carvel-planked A method of ship building where the planks are laid flush and edge to edge.

cathead A sturdy timber projection near the bow to hold the anchor.

cat-o’-nine-tails A lash used as a form of punishment aboard a naval ship.

caulking The material making the ship watertight, such as cotton fibres forced between the planks and covered with paint to stop leaks.

chain shot Two solid cannon balls linked by chain fired from a cannon to inflict major damage to a ship’s rigging or masts.

clew The bottom corners of the square sail, or the lower back corner of a triangular sail.

clewed up To draw up a square sail to the yard by hauling on the clew lines.

colliers A cargo ship that hauled coal.

cutter A fast sailboat with one mast that carries several headsails.

dead-reckoning The method for estimating a vessel’s current position based on its previously determined position then advanced by estimating speed and course over an elapsed time.

dog A hinged catch that fits into a notch of a ratchet.

Dogger Bank An extensive shoal in the North Sea, about 100 kilometres east off the coast of Northumberland, England. It is well known as a fishing ground. Over its most elevated parts there is a depth of only about six fathoms, but the depth is generally from ten to twenty fathoms.

Downs (The) An anchorage off the coast of England between Dover and Deal.

fathoms A unit of measurement for depth. One fathom is 1.83 metres or six feet.

fished/double fished Applying a large piece of wood. To ‘fish the mast’ means strengthening it with an extra piece of timber. Double fishing: reinforcing with two pieces of timber.

Flag Rank An admiral with the right to fly his flag at the masthead. Historically, the British Fleet was divided into three squadrons, and these were defined in order of rank by a colour – red, white and blue. Each of these divisions was then subdivided into three ranks, and the admirals commanding these fleets flew the ensign relating to their position. An officer achieving Flag Rank for the first time became a Rear-Admiral of the Blue Squadron. Each squadron’s colour, and the Admiral’s rank, also decided the formation each fleet would take when they lined up for battle with an enemy: the Red squadron, led by the Admiral of the Fleet, took up a position at the centre of the line; his Vice-Admiral’s fleet would be at the front, and his Rear-Admiral’s fleet would be positioned astern.

flagship The sailing warship carrying the admiral or fleet commander and his flag. Usually the best armed ship in the fleet.

fluke The pointed triangular end of an anchor arm, designed to embed the anchor in the sea floor.

fore castle [foc’sle] fo’c’s’le The living quarters in the bow of the ship where crew is accommodated.

frap a rope To take up the slack on a rope.

frap a sail To make secure by lashing.

freeboard The distance from the water to the ship’s gunwale.

frigate A three-masted sailing warship with two full decks, with only one gun deck. Usually armed with 30–44 guns, located on the gun deck.

grapnel A small anchor with four or five ‘arms’, used for anchoring a small craft and as a grappling hook.

gudgeon Part of a hinge: a socket for the pintle of a rudder.

gunwale/gunnel The top edge of the planking at the sides of the ship, named for the place where you rest your gun to take aim.

gybe Changing from one tack to the other away from the wind, turning the ship’s stern through the wind. See also ‘to wear ship’

HMS His/Her Majesty’s Ship: prefix of Royal Navy ship names since 1789.

hove to Slowing a vessel’s forward progress by fixing the helm and foresail so that the vessel does not need to be steered: a procedure usually applied in very rough weather.

Jack tar A sailor.

jolly boat An all-purpose boat on board the ship.

larboard The old name for port, the left hand side of the ship.

league A unit of distance in the eighteenth century equal to three nautical miles.

lee The sheltered side.

leeward The direction away from the wind; opposite of ‘windward’.

logs Captains, masters and lieutenants all kept logs. The master’s log was the critical log of the ship. It kept a record of a ship’s movements and the weather for navigational purposes. From these the captain’s logs (and the lieutenant’s) were copied with the addition of whatever general information they chose to add (e.g. incidents, observations, shipboard routine, notes on stores). Private journals, particularly on the voyages of exploration were often kept in addition to the official logs.

luff The leading edge of a fore-and-aft sail. Or to change course into the wind.

lugsail A square sail that’s bottom is wider than the top and is hung slanted to the mast.

lying-to/lying-a-hull Waiting out a storm by lowering all sails and letting the boat drift.

mal de mer Seasickness (Fr)

messed Dined

mizzenmast On a ship with three masts this is the mast nearer the stern.

packet ship A vessel that sailing a regular service between two ports, usually carrying mail.

pinnace A small sailing vessel with two fore-and-aft rigged masts.

pintle A pin forming the pivot of one of the hinges on which a rudder turns.

plantain A banana-like fruit.

poop deck The short deck towards the stern above the quarterdeck of a ship.

pooped To have a wave break over the stern of the ship and onto the deck.

Post-Captain An alternative form of the rank of captain. It distinguishes those who were captains by rank, from officers in command of a naval vessel who were recognised as captain regardless of rank, and commanders who received the title of captain regardless of them being in command or not.

press-ganged Forced recruitment into labour i.e. crew.

prow An alternative term for bow – the front end of the vessel.

quadrant A very simple instrument used to determine the altitude of a heavenly body.

quarterdeck The upper exposed deck at the stern of the ship from the mainmast to the back, usually the territory of the ship’s officers.

ratlines Bands of ropes lashed across the shrouds like steps that allow crew to easily climb aloft.

reef/reefed To take in or reduce the area of a sail without furling it.

rigging All ropes, wires and chains used to support the masts and yards.

roads A sheltered place to anchor safely.

sextant A navigational instrument used to measure the angle of elevation of an object above the horizon.

shaddock A large pear-shaped fruit similar to a grapefruit.

Sheerness Docks An important naval dockyard at Sheerness, on the Isle of Sheppey, in the Thames estuary.

ship-of-the-line A sailing warship built to fight in the line of battle. In battle, each ship would form in a line, allowing them to fire broadsides at the enemy. First rate – a sailing ship-of-the-line warship with 100 or more guns on three decks. Second rate – a sailing ship-of-the-line warship with 84-98 guns on three or two gun decks. Third rate – a sailing ship-of-the-line warship with 64-80 guns on two gun decks. Fourth rate – a sailing ship-of-the-line warship with 50-60 guns on two decks. Fifth rate – a sailing warship with 32–44 guns.

slatted A sail flopping backwards and forwards in near windless conditions.

sloop A single masted sailing ship usually carrying a main sail and a single jib or headsail.

Spithead A stretch of water at the eastern end of the Solent located between Portsmouth and the Isle of Wight.

staving the boat To hole the boat.

stern sheets The stern area of an open boat.

taffrail A railing around the stern of the ship.

tenesmus Constipation over a long period of time.

thwart A seat across the boat, especially in a rowboat.

topgallant In a square-rigged ship, these are the spars and rigging at the very top of the masts above the topsails.

to wear ship A manoeuvre that comes when a square rigged ship changes course by turning the ship’s stern through the wind so that the direction of the wind comes onto the opposite side of the ship. Today it is referred to as a gybe.

transom The surface that makes the structure of the stern from keel to deck.

warp To move or re-position a ship by hauling on a line or anchor line.

windage The exposed part of the hull and rig of a vessel causing wind resistance.

windlass A horizontal and cylindrical barrel used as a lifting device for a rope or anchor cable. It was turned by rods called handspikes.

Yarmouth Roads An anchorage in the Solent off Yarmouth on the Isle of Wight.

Venturi effect The decrease in pressure resulting from liquid flowing through a thinner section of pipe.