Shipboard Life and Organisation, 1731-1815

by Brian Lavery (Editor)

The idea behind this volume, according to its editor Brian Lavery, was to give a rounded picture of life at sea during the age of sail. It concentrates on the daily routine of shipboard life rather than more dramatic events such as battles and mutiny. It supplements other volumes produced by the Navy Records Society, notably Five Naval Journals 1789-1817 (vol 91, 1951, ed H G Thursfield) and The Health of Seamen (vol 107, 1965, ed C C Lloyd.) The selection begins in the second quarter of the eighteenth century because, stated Brian Lavery, ‘there are no suitable documents from earlier periods’ and closes in 1815, when the navy entered a new era with the advent of steam and a long period of peace. One of the most important aspects of shipboard life was that it was intensely self-contained, especially in the later part of the age of sail. After the conquest of scurvy, ships were able to stay at sea for many months at a time and the world-wide battle for empire caused them to make very long voyages, often away from their home bases over a period of years. Even in port seamen often stayed on board and shore leave was not in any sense a right. This volume throws a spotlight on the way in which a crew of up to 850 men could be crammed into a small space for many months at a time, and the ways in which they were fed, clothed, allocated space for eating and sleeping, at the same time as they were organised for sailing and battle duties. It contains separate sections dealing with Admiralty Regulations, Captain’s Orders, Medical Journals, discipline and punishment. It also includes an extensive glossary of the nautical terms and descriptions of the time.

Genres: Naval History

686 pages, Hardcover

First published October 1, 1998

About the author

Brian Lavery is a British naval historian, author, and Curator Emeritus at the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich.

Reviews

[Dorothy Piper · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book turned out to be more interesting than I expected, and I learned a lot. For instance, it took sometimes over seventy sailors to raise the big mainsail. How they managed to furl it without getting in each others' way is a mystery. The book is also a good resource for people whose forebears were in the English Navy before the start of civil registration. I read eagerly through lists and lists of names. I was looking for Capt. Piper who was drowned in the Thames in 1732. The big ships accommodated. hundreds of sailors.The author chose four, or was it five? sailing ships to report on conditions on board, the behavior or captains and commanders, the medical treatment given to sick sailors, etc. I have flagged several passages which I intend to read again.