Use LEFT and RIGHT arrow keys to navigate between flashcards;
Use UP and DOWN arrow keys to flip the card;
H to show hint;
A reads text to speech;
61 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
|
The British Navy (5) |
- Britain were generally successful in the 18th century - War of American Independence ended in British defeat (lost American colonies) - Navy ensured Britain escaped invasion and held onto rest of the empire - After 1783 Britain kept a considerable number of ships at sea unlike other European countries - Ensured 20,000 officers and seamen maintained skills |
|
|
Naval warfare in the late 18th century (7) |
- Ships made of wood - Dependent on sails - Main battleships = ships of the line (approx. 70 guns) - Also relied on frigates (28-36 guns) for patrolling, scouting or conveying merchantmen - Sloops and gunboats used on convoy and blockade duty - Warships raked the enemy with broadsides - Captured ships repaired |
|
|
Late 18th century - Blockade (3) |
- To prevent enemy ships leaving port - Close blockade - main fleet sailed near to enemy port - Open blockade - frigates patrolled the coast off the enemy port and if enemy ships were put to sea some frigates informed the fleet |
|
|
Late 18th century - Gunnery (6) |
- Each ship obliged to perform daily gunnery practice since 1745 - 32-pounder guns each manned by 7 sailors - Gun captain responsible for aiming and firing - Labourious work - Speed at which fired usually determined battle outcome - British - a broadside every 1 1/2 minutes - much faster than enemies |
|
|
Naval officers (7) |
- Most from professional middle classes - Many sons or relations of naval officers - Learned as lowly midshipmen - Learned practical skills as well as maths, astronomy and navigation - Family influence ensured officers were fasttracked - Many officers had valuable experience from AWoI - Due to French Rev - French officers after 1793 lacked experience of British counterparts |
|
|
Naval crews (2) |
- After 1793, navy's strength around 120,000 men - By 1812, 140,000 in 1000 vessels |
|
|
Naval crews - Recruitment (7) |
- No conscription - Relied on impressment as voluntary recruitment didn't provide enough men - Impressment Service had the power to force seafarers 15-55 to join to navy - Press gangs sent out in and around ports - 1805 - 1/2 navy's crew made of pressed men - Also Quota System - each county to supply a certain number of volunteers (frequently criminals) - Many sailors not British |
|
|
Naval crews - Conditions (7) |
- In 1793 naval seamen paid 22s 6d per month - Merchant seamen paid twice as month - No wage increase since 1652 - Food was monotonous - Work was hard physically - Harsh discipline (cat-o'-nine-tails) - Sailors' main hope to capture enemy ship and win prize money |
|
|
Naval crews - Discipline and teamwork (4) |
- Discipline and teamwork = foundation of British naval strength - Based on ships that 'hummed like well-oiled machines' - Raw recruits and discontented pressed men - obedience achieved through continual threat of punishment - Some officers preferred to win love and respect of crews |
|
|
The navy 1783-93 (10) |
- Ruled the waves due to superior seamenship and gunnery - AWoI exposed some shortcomings - William Pitt the Younger and Rear Admiral Middleton - Dockyards more closely supervised to elimate waste and corruption - Middleton - coppering fleets so ships needed fewer repairs - New docks built at Portsmouth and Plymouth - The carronade - triumph of industrial innovation - French failed to produce a close range weapon as good - Gunlocks replaced slowmatches - more efficient and broadsides became faster and more accurate - Royal Navy t/f more prepared in 1793 than France and Spain |
|
|
The naval war 1793-7 (4) |
- February 1793 Revolutionary France declared war on Britain - French Navy had been allowed to run down - Many French officers inexperienced - Despite this, retaining supremacy was a major challenge for British |
|
|
Toulon (4) |
- August 1793 Admiral Hood seized Toulon - Main French naval base in Mediterranean - French army forced him to abandon the port in December - Hood destroyed or captured large number of ships before leaving |
|
|
The Battle of the Glorious First of June (6) |
- Navy blockaded French ports on the Atlantic coast - 1794 Lord Howe heard grain convoy was returning to France from USA - French had 26 ships of the line, the British 25 - Captured or sank 7 enemy ships - Not a total success as grain ships reached France |
|
|
Developments in 1795-6 (5) |
- 1795 Jervis took over command in the Med - Loathed inefficiency and forged an excellent relationship with officers he respected and trusted (e.g. Nelson) - Navy became seriously strained as the Netherlands and Spain changed sides to France - French preparing to break out at Brest - After a week of gales, French abandoned mission, fortunately for Britain |
|
|
Developments 1795-6 - The Battle of Cape St Vincent (4) |
- 14th February 1797 Jervis's fleet encountered Spanish force twice the size - Jervis's ships cut through enemy line - Nelson played major role - acting with speed and courage he boarded and captured the much large San Josef - Became the darling of the Royal Navy |
|
|
The Spithead Mutiny (7) |
- 16th April 1797 Admiral Lord Bridport ordered fleet at Spithead to sea - Crew of every ship refused - Discontent centred on pay, quality of food and brutal officers - Petition sent to the Admiralty - gov agreed to raise wages and made concessions on some other issues - 7th May - fresh mutiny broke out - Led by the navy's backbone - petty officers - Lord Howe dealt with it in person - banquet and visited each ship guaranteeing their needs would be met |
|
|
The Nore Mutiny (7) |
- 12th May 1797 - ships at Nore mutinied - Men had more far-reaching demands (e.g. longer leave and power of veto over officers) - Mutineers attempted to blockade the Thames - Pitt's gov took steps to isolate and starve mutineers - Mutiny ended mid-June - Mutiny's leader hanged (Richard Parker) and 28 ringleaders - Discipline on the verge of collapse |
|
|
The Battle of Camperdown (9) |
- 11th October 1797 - Restored the navy's reputation - Admiral Lord Duncan's North Sea Fleet vs similar number of Dutch ships (16) - Duncan's ships smashed enemy line - Captured 11 battleships - Provided immense boost to national morale - Britain continued to be threatened by French invasion - French army and fleet preparing to sail at Toulon (not sure where to) - Nelson set to Med to discover intentions |
|
|
The Nelson touch 1798-1805 |
- The Battle of Cape St Vincent made Nelson's reputation |
|
|
The Battle of the Nile (11) |
- May 1798 Napoleon 50,000 left Toulon (nelson unaware) - Nelson gambled on the fact he was heading to Egypt - Sailed, no sign of French, left - Napoleon arrived day after - Nelson found French fleet 1 month later - same no. of ships h/e French had the Orient (120 gun) - Nelson gave battle at nightfall against conventional rules of naval warfare - Superior British gunnery devastated the French - Destroyed the Orient - Nelson's influence was before the fighting - Inspired officers and men - Only raised 9 signals - National hero |
|
|
The Mediterranean 1798-1801 (5) |
- French and Spanish ships continued to pose a major threat - British naval forces severely overstretched - Admiral Keith appointed commander-in-chief of Med fleet - Nelson's long sulk - Nelson seemed more attracted to Emma Hamilton than life at sea - Eventually returned home with Keith's permission |
|
|
The Baltic threat/the Battle of Copenhagen (9) |
- British blockade of French and Spanish ports deprived Baltic nations of markets - League of Armed Neutrality posed a serious threat to Britain - Possible that the league could keep Britain out of the Baltic (where most naval stores were) - Nelson 2nd in command - led attack on Copenhagen - 2nd April attack began - Danes suffered but continued to retaliate - Parker raised signal to discontinue - Nelson ignored - Nelson sent letter to Crown Prince - agreed to a truce - Enhanced Nelson's reputation - Replaced Parker |
|
|
The situation 1802-5 (7) |
- March 1802 - Britain and France signed Peace of Amiens - St Vincent cancelled shipbuilding contracts and dismissed hundreds of workers - May 1803 - war recommenced - Napoleon gathered 100,000 to invade Britain - British fleets short of men, ships and supplies (St Vincent) - December 1804 - Spain allied with France - 102 ships vs 83 - French invasion a serious possibility |
|
|
The chase (6) |
- Napoleon's plan - overwhelm British Channel Fleet and enable army at Boulogne to invade Britain - April 1805 - Villeneuve's fleet left Toulon, headed towards Caribbean and Nelson gave chase - False intelligence sent N south - N discovered plan and sent frigate to warn of the danger - British fleets intercepted off Cape Finisterre - Napoleon's plan failed and threat of invasion lifted |
|
|
The Battle of Trafalgar (8) |
- 11.40am - Nelson signaled - 'England expects every man will do his duty' - Favoured engaging closely with the enemy - Both sets of ships carried a huge weight of armament - 1.15pm - Nelson shot in shoulder by sharpshooter - 4.30pm - Nelson died - Fleet took 18 of Villeneuve's battleships - Not one British ship lost - Decisive victory - did not prevent French invasion but Royal Navy achieved an aura of invincibility and were not seriously challenged for the remainder of the French Wars |
|
|
The Royal Navy 1806-15 (3) |
- Britain ruled the waves but Napoleon ruled most of Europe until 1812 - Possible revival of French Navy t/f couldn't be ignored - Napoleon had ordered a large scale shipbuilding programme |
|
|
The Continental System (7) |
- 1806 - Napoleon introduced Berlin Decrees forbidding Europe to trade with Britain - Attempt at eco blockade = continental system - 1807 - Tsar Alexander agreed to outlaw Russian trade with Britain - Believed it would force Britain to make peace - didn't surrender - Britain hit back and banned trade with ports complying with Berlin Decrees - Europe suffered more eco hardship than Britain - starved of imports from around the world |
|
|
The War of 1812 (4) |
- Britain's blockade of Europe angered US merchants who profited from Napoleonic Wars - Britain's pov - it was a sidesho - American's initally outfought British due to larger frigates with more guns - By 1813-14 Royal Navy successfully blockaded most American ports |
|
|
The British war effort 1793-1815 (2) |
- British victory result of factors other than officers and seamen - The population also helped to ensure success |
|
|
British governments (4) |
- Parliament was at the centre of British war effort - Parliament as far from demoratic and imperfect - E.g. appointed men not up for the job - Still better at waging war than Napoleon's dictatorship |
|
|
British governments - William Pitt the Younger (6) |
- Successful peace time prime minister - Restored Britain's finances after AWoI - Able but not inspiring war leader - Whig Party generally critical of Pitt (a Tory) - Whig leaders favoured appeasing France and making peace - Whigs eventually sided with the government |
|
|
British governments - Henry Addington (6) |
- 1801 Pitt resigned - Addington formed new gov - Made peace with the French March 1802 - Britain had to return all French possessions captured in the war - May 1803 Pitt came out in opposition when war recommenced - May 1804 - Addington fell from power |
|
|
British governments - Pitt's return (4) |
- Pitt returned as prime minister - Lord Melville - stores' contracts quickly renewed - Private contractors employed to repair and build ships - Melville forced to resign 1805 |
|
|
British governments - The Ministry of All the Talents (3) |
- New gov formed February 1806 - Known as MoAtT - Efforts to make peace with Napoleon came to nothing |
|
|
British governments - The Duke of Portland (4) |
- Tories formed a new government led by DoP - Sick and ineffectual and had little control over cabinet - Gov was still a stronger team than the Talents - Team wasn't united, however |
|
|
British governments - Spencer Perceval (3) |
- Portland died 1809 - Perceval replaced him - Ensured his fragile gov provided funds for war |
|
|
British governments - Lord Liverpool (3) |
- May 1812 - Perceval assassinated - Lord Liverpool now formed a gov - Prudent, able, discreet and trusted |
|
|
Government bureaucracy (5) |
- Corruption and inefficiency a major problem - Growing scale and complexity of war put enormous strain on bureaucratic machinery - Patronage resulted in men with inadequate skills being appointed or promoted - Financial and administrative reform only gathered pace after 1806 - Stricter systems and accounting methods = less corruption |
|
|
Financing the war |
- Paying for the war was a central issue 1793-1815 |
|
|
Financing the war - Loans (3) |
- Pitt assumed loans raised from City of London would cover cost - Assumption of a short war - Vast sums raised but inefficient to meet costs |
|
|
Financing the war - New taxes (4) |
- 21 goods and services newly taxed - e.g. salt and spirits - Tax on spirits yielded £51 million in 22 years - 1799 Pitt proposed graduated income tax (immensely unpopular but raised £155 million by 1815) |
|
|
Financing the war - Government expenditure and income in 1811 (2) |
- Spending deficit of nearly £16 million - Gov had to rely on loans to meet the shortfall |
|
|
Financing the war - Financial success 1808-15 (3) |
- Grenville convinced in 1807 that Britain could not afford to finance a sig. army - Tory administrations of Portland, Perceval and Liverpool proved him wrong - e.g. these govs met the expenses of Wellington's army in the Peninsular |
|
|
The British economy (2) |
- Growing economy enabled gov to finance war - 1783-1802 eco grew at an annual rate of nearly 6% |
|
|
The British economy - Industrial growth (2) |
- Cotton production increased threefold 1793-1813 - Iron and steel output increased fourfold 1793-1813 |
|
|
The British economy - Agricultural growth (2) |
- Britain had to import grain - High wartime prices for foodstuffs created prosperity for farmers and encouraged investment in farming |
|
|
The British economy - Canals (3) |
- Late 18th century began to develop canal network - Development continued during war - Opening up of more canals greatly reduced cost of transporting bulk goods |
|
|
British trade (4) |
- Overseas trade vital for war effort - British trade expanded during war - Late 1810-12 imports and exports declined and bankruptcies nearly doubled - 1812 Continental System began to collapse and British goods again shipped to Europe |
|
|
British trade - The East India Company (3) |
- Greatly assisted the war effort - Exported great quanities of British goods to India and China - Its ships were chartered to transport troops abroad |
|
|
British trade - The convoy system |
- Proved highly effective in the later stages of the war - ensured fewer ships were lost to privateers |
|
|
British trade - The situation in 1815 (2) |
- Britain's economy strenghtened by the war - e.g. by 1815 manufacturing and mining industries were thriving |
|
|
Military production (3) |
- Transforming bouyant economy into efficient military machine = critical task - State ordnance yards and dockyards unable to achieve increased levels of production - Private sector came to gov's aid and built more ships and weapons than the state |
|
|
Military production - Shipbuilding (2) |
- Wooden ships had a limited life - Navy's warhip construction and refitting programme had to be continual to maintain fleet numbers |
|
|
Shipbuilding - New developments (3) |
- Continuous search to reduce costs in war production - 1804 began to build frigates from fir timber (shorter sea-life but cheaper) - New docks built in London (e.g. the London dock 1805) |
|
|
Military production - The Board of Ordnance (5) |
- Oversaw the manufacture of munitions - Elaborate testing of gunpowder conducted throughout wartime and improvements continued - Ensured British gunpowder was superior to the French - Private contractors enabled the state to expand war production (e.g. cannon provided by Walker's of Rotherham) - Britain able to distribute huge quantities of arms and munitions to its allies |
|
|
Military production - The Victualling Board (4) |
- Responsible for provisioning 10s of thousands of men in the Navy and Army abroad - Enormous logistical task - Most of its food and services provided by private contractors - Nelson's seamen as they went into battle in Trafalgar were in better health than opponents |
|
|
Military production - The Transport Board (2) |
- Responsible for chartering the merchant ships needed for expeditions overseas - Ensured the gov was able to launch all its operations |
|
|
Discontent in Britain (2) |
- Britain remained united throughout the war - Occasions when gov feared revolution was about to spread across the channel |
|
|
Discontent in Britain - 1794-5 |
- Domestic unrest mainly caused by high food prices |
|
|
Discontent in Britain - Ireland (3) |
- Major rebellion broke out in Ireland May 1798 - Large numbers of troops sent to deal with the unrest - Hundreds of rebels executed 21st June |
|
|
Discontent in Britain - Luddites (4) |
- High employment in the Midlands and northern England 1811-12 led to widespread unrest - Particulary affected skilled weavers due to power looms - Luddites smashed new machines and threatened mill and factory owners - Execution or transportation of Luddite leaders ended disturbances in 1813 |
