England Royal Navy History - International Institute

Royal Navy
The geography of Britain necessitated a strong seafaring tradition, and for centuries the Royal Navy has been responsible for protecting British commercial interests on the high seas and for the defence of its shores. The following paragraphs are an attempt to provide a basic framework for the novice of a vast field of history, records and literature. The history and organization of the Royal Navy are far more complex than indicated here, and ranks and duties changed a great deal over time, and are acknowledged to be unclear in many places by the archival staff at the Public Record Office (Rodger 1998). The author is not an old sailor and begs the forgiveness of navy buffs for condensing their favourite section of the senior service in the provision of a text of manageable size. Its purpose is to act as a stepping stone, allowing the student to proceed to the more complex texts, references and documents mentioned herein. Rodger’s classic volume is a necessity for serious research but has the drawback of only dealing with material housed at the Public Record Office. It should be used together with the FHLC catalogue, and with complementary texts covering other archives’ holdings.

History of Royal Navy
Prior to the Tudor kings, the monarch could call upon merchant ships to supplement his own small fleet in times of war. In particular, trading privileges were granted in the Middle Ages to the south eastern coastal towns of Dover, Hastings, Hythe, Romney, and Sandwich (and later, Rye and Winchelsea), known as the Cinque Ports, in return for contributions to naval defence. The first Tudor king, Henry VII, had seven merchant ships, which in those days were easily convertible to defensive use. The Tudors recognized the need to have a strong navy to defend England as well as to develop trading and colonial interests abroad. His son, Henry VIII, greatly expanded this fleet and founded the English Navy Board in 1546 to oversee it. The latter’s daughter, Elizabeth I, developed it further, and it was during her reign that the Spanish Armada was repulsed in 1588. The fame of Samuel Pepys (1633-1703) as a diarist has obscured the fact that he was the energetic and capable naval reformer who superbly administered the Navy Board after 1660, during the reigns of Charles II and James II.

Most families have some connection with the Royal Navy as it was one of the country’s largest employers for over 200 years. During the Napoleonic War period in the early 1800s a large sailing ship required nearly a thousand men. Sailor’s careers consisted of intermittent periods of paid work, especially during wartime, and unemployment. Many would alternate between naval and merchant service wherever they could find work. Captains were responsible for manning their own ships and keeping their own records, thus a great variety is seen today amongst those that survive.

Seamen’s lives are often depicted as adventurous and exciting, but underneath the glamour there was another side as conditions were harsh in the navy, particularly for those below deck. Pay was poor and often delayed for months or years; food was atrocious; conditions dangerous; and punishment frequent and severe. There were people who chose the navy as their career voluntarily, but pay and conditions were better in the merchant service. Most seamen of the Royal Navy up to 1815 were recruited forcibly by the press system that favoured men used to the sea such as merchant seamen, ferrymen, fishermen etc. Navy recruiting centres were opened up in taverns termed rendezvous, where candidates were persuaded to touch the King’s shilling, the typical sign-up bonus. Harbour taverns, and merchant vessels at sea were raided by press gangs, and if these didn’t bring forth enough recruits then the prisons were emptied for the King’s hard bargains. Many men disappeared from parishes this way until the Press Gang died out in the early 19th century. Former sailors of any kind tended to move away from ports and inland to avoid the attentions of the press gangs. Certain numbers of sailors per fishing boat or merchant vessel were able to procure protection from the press and records of this from 1702-1828 are in ADM 7.

It should also be noted that for various reasons many men used one or more aliases for different periods in the navy, or for navy and shore life. A clever idea was to enroll under an alias so that if later impressed he could revert to his real name and claim mistaken identity to be released (Michael Wood). Burnard paints a good picture of the press gang’s activity, and in an article about the press’s effect on the fishing villages of NE Scotland Mathewson states that only in 1830 was a limit of 5 years put on time served as an impressed man, and contends that impressing is still legal today.

Conditions did improve in the 19th century, even flogging was abolished (during peacetime only) in 1871, and a regular scheme of entrance into the Navy came about with the Continuous Service Act of 1853. Men could enlist for a 10-year period from age 18, with regular increases in pay and a right to a pension after 20 years service. Those already in service often took up this offer as well, and thus it becomes far easier to trace them through the Continuous Service Engagement Books. In 1903 another system was introduced whereby men could sign on for 5 or 7 years, and commit another period of 7 or 5 years respectively, making a total of 12 years, to the Royal Fleet Reserve.

Officers Commissioned by the Admiralty
They commanded ships, naval stations and detached squadrons; during peacetime many were put on a kind of retainer with no work, but receiving half-pay and liable for call-up as needed. Until 1860 appointment to the upper levels of officer rank was only by commission, which depended upon the ability to pay and the right social connections. It was possible, especially in wartime, for an outstandingly capable man to rise through the ranks from ordinary seaman through to commissioned officer.


 * The Lord High Admiral commanded the whole battlefleet consisting of three squadrons of 3-7 ships-of-the-line and a number of supporting frigates and smaller vessels. The three squadrons were in a strict order of seniority:


 * 1. Firstly, the Centre Squadron commanded by the Admiral of the Red


 * 2. Secondly, the Van Squadron commanded by the Admiral of the White


 * 3. Lastly the Rear Squadron commanded by the Admiral of the Blue

The admirals were the flag-officers who each oversaw his squadron from a ship recognized by a red, white or blue flag (hence flag-ship), but didn’t actually command that ship, which had its own captain. Admirals were promoted strictly on seniority.


 * Commodores were in charge of isolated divisions or squadrons of ships; it was a function rather than a rank.


 * (Post-) Captains commanded frigates and ships-of-the-line. Promotion to this coveted rank was by examination, merit and influence. He was termed a Flag-Captain if he had an admiral on board.


 * Commanders and Masters commanded the larger vessels such as sloops-of-war.


 * Lieutenants were graded as 1st to 6th according to length of time in the rank, were in charge of deck watches, and commanded a battery of guns; they could also command a small naval vessel such as a schooner or brig.

The Midshipmen (Middies) did not hold commissions, but were young gentlemen, usually from wealthy or aristocratic families, training to become commissioned officers. They joined at age 12-14 as junior midshipmen and slung their hammocks in the gunroom, where they were under the supervision of the gunner. They learned navigation and other skills from the captain or sailing master, and if there was a chaplain on board he would also act as schoolmaster to them. At about age 17 they passed up to senior midshipmen and transferred their hammocks to the orlop deck. Midshipmen had several responsibilities; they made and received flag signals, supervised groups of men aloft, and were in charge of a division of guns (Abranson). There were also Officer Cadets (Snotties) who were one rank lower than a midshipman.

The Royal Naval Academy for training midshipmen opened in 1733 in Portsmouth. In 1806 it was moved to Portsmouth as the Royal Naval College, and similar colleges operated at Greenwich and now Dartmouth, Devon. Rodger describes the various records of these colleges.

Warrant Officers worked for the Admiralty but most were regulated by the Navy Board or Trinity House. They came from the ranks but had passed examinations and were appointed by a warrant from the captain certifying their skills and rank. Surgeons, gunners and engineers had usually either served an apprenticeship or held a professional qualification.


 * (Sailing) Master was the most important non-commissioned officer aboard as he was in charge of navigation and of sailing the ship. In 1808 they became commissioned officers.


 * Carpenters were in charge of the hull and spars.


 * Coopers looked after the barrels.


 * Sailmakers kept the sails, canvas covers, awnings and hammocks in good repair.


 * Armourers were the blacksmiths and responsible for small arms.


 * Master-at-arms taught fencing with swords and cutlasses and was also in charge of discipline on the ship, and ensured that the curfew was observed.


 * Boatswain (Bosun) was in charge of all the rigging.


 * Gunners were in charge of all the artillery and the powder magazines.


 * Quartermasters steered the vessel and acted as leadsmen when soundings for water depth were required.


 * Cooks also held warrants and did the best they could with the meagre provisions they were assigned.


 * Surgeons held warrants after 1815 and were commissioned officers after 1843. Assisted by surgeon’s mates and orderlies known as loblolly boys.


 * Pursers were in charge of the stores and accounts and held warrants after 1815 and were commissioned officers after 1843. They were assisted by purser’s mates.


 * Chaplains.


 * Naval Instructors.


 * Engineers became commissioned officers in 1847.

The term Civil Officer was used to describe surgeons, pursers, chaplains, naval instructors and engineers. Likewise the term Petty Officer was used for Mates, who were assistants to various warrant officers e.g. masters mate, surgeons mate; Midshipmen; the Top-captains in charge of a gang of topmen working from the top; Gun-captains; and sometimes for Warrant Officers. The masters, boatswains and midshipmen were known as Standing Officers because they stayed to maintain the ship even when it was out of commission.

Ratings were the ordinary sailors and so-called because they were rated to various jobs according to their ability and experience. The old experienced men-o’-war men were rated fo’c’sle hands and worked the anchors and jibs etc. The agile younger men were rated topmen and worked aloft with the sails. In order of ability, and thus pay, were:


 * Able Seamen—the most experienced including helmsmen experienced in steering and taking 2-hour shifts at the wheel.


 * Ordinary Seamen—those with less experience.


 * Land(s)men—the inexperienced recruits who trimmed the braces from the waist (waisters) or from the quarter-deck (afterguard).


 * Ship’s boys, aged 12-16, usually paupers and orphans, were at the bottom of the hierarchy and had all the menial jobs. Pauper boys could be apprenticed as young as seven to the navy and other sea service.

The description of a rating is further complicated by the fact that after 1853 he could have a navy rank, which was the highest type of position which he could hold, but actually be rated on his ship by the job he actually did at the time.

Royal Navy Records
The greater the understanding of why and how the records were made, and how they are organized the more the researcher is likely to be able to learn from them about an individual ancestor. There is a huge variety of manuscript sources mainly at the Public Record Office at Kew, and open except for records containing personal information created in the last 75 years for which the confidentiality rule applies. Not a lot has been microfilmed yet; the FHLC listing for Great Britain contains more than that for England but both should be checked. As the naval records are rather complex one should consult a good guide if you are going to do it yourself, or employ a researcher who is very familiar with them. The essential reference from The National Archives (TNA) is Rodger’s Naval Records for Genealogists, whilst Hattendorf’s British Naval Documents 1204-1960 covers many British repositories.

In order to carry out a successful search for any sailor in the complex navy records first carry out a thorough investigation of home sources to ascertain these facts. Assembling them before you start will make the job far easier.


 * The man’s full name and dates and places (or estimates) of birth and death.
 * Was he in the Royal Navy or part of the Merchant Service, or perhaps a Marine? Family stories will likely guide you; if he was in the RN then a battle or medal may be mentioned.
 * The name of a ship he was associated with and a date. You can find out whether this was a navy or merchant ship.
 * Was he likely to have been an officer or an ordinary seaman? If an officer, what kind—commissioned or warrant ?
 * Did he complete his service before 1853 when centralized records started?
 * Did he serve during any time of war?
 * Where was he living just prior to joining the navy? The major Royal Navy ports, for example Portsmouth and Chatham, were in the south and south-east of England. Consult a map and estimate where he may have joined or been pressed into service.

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