Changes in Organising the Royal Navy and Recruitment Flashcards
(65 cards)
1
Q
What was impressment? Who was it carried out by, and how?
A
- It was the forcing of men to join a Royal Navy ship as a member of the crew
- This was done by ‘press gangs’
- They would patrol coastal areas and look out for sailors
- Once found by a press gang, sailors would give up and go with them
2
Q
How were most men pressed to serve for the Royal Navy? What limitation was there to this?
A
- They were taken from merchant ships at sea
- The only limitation to this was that the navy captain was required to replace any men
3
Q
Why was impressment disadvantageous for merchants, and what did some do as a result?
A
- Captains often took the most experienced sailors
- They then replaced them with a poor quality sailor, or someone who was not a sailor at all
- Some therefore dropped off their best sailors in Ireland or hid them
4
Q
How common was impressment? Why was it allowed? Give a figure.
A
- It was common practice, especially during times of war
- By 1805, half of the navy’s crews were made up of pressed men
- It was legal since the Royal Navy was allowed to conscript merchant seamen during times of war
5
Q
What happened to the navy’s recruitment methods during the French wars, and why?
A
- A quota system was introduced where each county had to produce a set number of volunteers according to the size of its population, and the number of seaports
- It was intended to supplement the numbers coming from impressment
6
Q
What did counties do when they could not produce enough men to fill their quota? What were 2 advantages of them?
A
- They offered criminals the possibility of serving out their sentences in the navy
- These men were often in poor physical condition
- Too many in one crew would reduce the warship’s efficiency
7
Q
What were 4 problems with using impressment for naval recruitment?
A
- The navy was filled with men who were unwilling (note the contrast with French armies with the Revolutionary Wars, who showed that enthusiasm led to high morale and good performance)
- The fact that so many of the men were unwilling meant that they needed to be controlled using punishment
- The practices of flogging and branding were becoming less popular with the public in the 19th century, and there was pressure to abolish them
- Britain wanted a professional army made up of willing volunteers
8
Q
When did the navy stop using impressment? When was it banned?
A
- The navy no longer used the press gang after 1815
- It only became illegal for the navy in the 20th century
9
Q
What were 2 reasons why the use of impressment ended?
A
- After the Napoleonic Wars, the problem was that there were too many sailors
- Throughout the 1800s there was a steady stream of volunteers, so men did not need to be forced into joining
10
Q
What innovation was invented in the 1780s that benefitted the navy? Explain what it was.
A
- Coppering
- Covering the wooden hull of a ship with copper sheets
11
Q
What 2 benefits did coppering have for warships, and how?
A
- It made them faster and able to remain at sea for longer
- It also prevented a thick crust of barnacles and seaweed from growing on hulls, which slowed down ships
- The metal protected the wood and nails from rot and corrosion
12
Q
Why was there a reduction in the size of the Royal Navy after 1815?
A
- The 1815 Congress of Vienna started an era of peace, so all of the combatants in the Napoleonic Wars recognised the need to reduce the size of their armed forces
13
Q
How extensive was the reduction in the size of the Royal Navy after 1815? Give 2 figures.
A
- By 1817:
- Britain only had 13 battleships on active duty, while this figure had been over 100 during the wars
- 90% of commissioned officers were on half pay
14
Q
How did the role and composition of the Royal Navy change after 1815, and what were 2 reasons why?
A
- There was no longer any navy of significance that could threaten the Royal Navy
- This meant that Britain itself was safe
- Therefore the only job left to do was to protect trade
- This meant that the main strength of the navy was then in frigates
- Battleships were left in Mediterranean waters as a reminder of Britain’s naval dominance
15
Q
After the French wars, why was the navy no longer struggling to find recruits? Give 3 reasons.
A
- The Royal Navy was the most successful branch of the armed forces, which made joining appealing
- Conditions such as pay were better in the navy than the army
- Expanding trade meant there was a larger pool of seamen, and this therefore created a larger pool of possible recruits for the navy
16
Q
Even though the navy had enough volunteers, what problem did it face with the number of seamen? What was done to deal with this issue?
A
- In the case of war, they would need to rapidly expand numbers
- The Royal Navy Reserve was created in 1859
- In times of war, the reserve could be drafted into the Royal Navy
17
Q
What was done to ensure seamen in the reserve were capable of serving in the navy during times of war?
A
- They were given gunnery training for one month every year
18
Q
What were press gangs replaced by? How did they convince men to join up?
A
- Specialist recruiting sergeants
- They could only use persuasion
19
Q
List 3 similarities between the recruitment methods of the army and the navy in the 19th century.
A
- They both used:
- newspaper adverts
- posters
- reforms to improve conditions to make joining seem more appealing
20
Q
Just like for the army, why did the use of printed material (newspaper adverts and posters) become more effective?
A
- The literacy rate increased
- Improvements in technology made it cheaper to produce coloured posters and made it possible to add photos
21
Q
What social change affected recruitment? Give 2 examples.
A
- Sailors (again, like soldiers) were seen in a more respectable way
- Medals for service and valour were introduced for regular sailors
- Another popular music hall song was ‘All the Nice Girls Love a Sailor’
22
Q
What was one other factor that controlled enlistment in the navy?
A
- The economy
- (See changes in organising the army card 26)
23
Q
When did the Royal Navy commission its first steamships?
A
- 1820s
24
Q
What led to the introduction of steam powered ships in the Royal Navy?
A
- The navy were afraid that the French navy was gaining an advantage over them, as they had started to introduce steam-powered ships
25
How quickly did the navy shift from sail to steam? Why?
- It was a slow process
- The sea lords were deeply conservative, and thought that steam would be unreliable
26
What were 2 of the first steamships made? What dictated the speed at which steamships were produced, and what did this mean for their production?
- HMS Medea and HMS Gladiator
- Wars encouraged governments to spend more on the navy
- Since there was no war, the governments was not willing to spend the money needed to create more steamships
27
What were steamships expected to be used for, and what were 2 possible reasons why?
- Auxiliary tasks such as moving supplies
- The (steam-powered) paddle that propelled the boat was thought to be vulnerable to enemy fire
- It also prevented the firing of a full broadside
28
When did the navy start constructing steam-powered battleships? What led to this?
- 1850s
- Paddles were replaced with screw propellers, which were developed in the late 1830s
29
What was the first battleship fitted with a screw propeller, and when was it built?
- HMS Ajax
- 1845
30
What was the first steam-powered battleship built, and what was its name? What limitation did it have?
- HMS Agamemnon was built in 1852
- It still had full rigging
31
When was HMS Devastation built, and what was important about it?
- 1873
- It was Britain's first fully steam-powered battleship without rigging
32
What other development did the shift from sail to steam lead to?
- The shift from wood to iron
33
Who was Sir James Graham, and when did he carry out his reforms?
- First Lord of the Admiralty
- 1832
34
How significant were Graham's reforms for ships? Give 3 details.
- After the wars against the French, naval investment had been into smaller ships, but Graham reversed this policy
- He refitted existing ships
- He began building new battleships
35
Why did Graham focus on increasing the number of large battleships?
- He thought that the navy was being reduced too far, which was unacceptable as Britain's position as a world power depended on it having a stronger navy
36
How significant were Graham's reforms for guns? Give 4 details.
- He issued an order that all crews would have to practise gunnery to ensure that they were ready for combat in the case of war breaking out
- He set up a permanent school of gunnery
- He commissioned the HMS Excellent for the purpose of practising gunnery
- Gunnery routines were standardised, with less effective practices like double and triple shotting discouraged
37
Give 4 of the issues with promotion in the Royal Navy while Graham was First Lord of the Admiralty.
- The end of the French wars and a reduction in the number of vessels meant that there was a large number of officers and not enough ships for them to command
- It was possible for captains to move up to the rank of admiral and retire without going to sea
- By 1830 there were over 800 names on the Navy List (captains who were on active service with the navy, and it was from this list that they were promoted)
- Captains who had waited for a promotion could find themselves overtaken by a younger captain with more influence
38
How significant were Graham's reforms for officers and promotions? Give 4 details and an example.
- He introduced a minimum amount of service officers needed to have completed before they could be promoted
- For example, to be a commander, you had to have been a lieutenant at sea for 2 years
- This did not deal with the length of the Navy List
- It also did not deal with the unfairness of patronage
- However, it did make sure that those being promoted had a certain amount of professional experience
39
How did Graham's reforms change administration and supply? Give ways and a benefit of each.
- He abolished the Naval Office and Victualing Board, and placed these government departments under the control of the navy
- Communication was quicker as all of the officers worked at the Admiralty
- Graham extended naval control to dockyards and victualling yards (where the navy stored its supplies)
- Having naval officers in charge of these led to greater efficiency when servicing and resupplying ships
40
What were 2 reasons why Graham abolished the Naval Office and Victualing Board?
- The fact that they were part of the government and not the navy meant that the preparation of ships was often slow and inefficient
- This was made worse by the fact that the separate government departments would disagree over issues, leading to procrastination
41
What 2 factors led to the introduction of iron warships?
- Wooden hulls could only hold their equivalent weight, which limited them in the size of the steam engine they could carry
- Steam engines were heavy, and also needed coal to power them
- In order to be able to carry a powerful steam engine and have the potential to travel long distances, ships needed iron hulls
- Naval guns were increasing in size
42
Give an example of how the increase in the size of guns led to the introduction of iron warships.
- Armstrong Whitworth had made a revolutionary new cannon in the late 1850s
- However, it was much larger than previous guns, so it needed a larger ship to carry it
43
What was done before the introduction of fully iron warships?
- At first, there was a transition where 'ironclads' were built; ships were with wooden hulls, but with iron sheets on the outside
44
When was the first fully iron warship launched, and what was it called? What guns was it equipped with? What was it a response to?
- HMS Warrior
- 1860
- Armstrong Whitworth 110 pounders
- The French had started building ironclads in 1858
45
How did iron warships change naval fighting tactics?
- As iron warships got bigger, so did their guns
- They eventually got so big that they needed to be mounted on on-deck turrets rather than below deck
- This caused the end of the full broadside
46
What other impact did the development of naval guns have?
- They now fired high explosive shells, which could rip huge holes in wooden hulls
- This meant that hulls needed iron sheets
47
How did the role of the Royal Navy change after 1846?
- In 1846 parliament repealed the Corn Laws, which meant that British farmers were no longer protected against cheap foreign imports
- The amount of food that was being imported therefore rapidly increased
- This meant that Britain was now most vulnerable to a naval blockade, rather than an invasion, as a blockade would starve Britain into surrender
- The role of the navy therefore became protecting Britain from a naval blockade and ensuring supplies could still reach the country
48
What was another threat posed to British maritime supremacy in the late 1800s? How did Britain respond to this?
- German naval expansion from 1898
- The 1889 Naval Defence Act formally adopted the two power standard
49
What was the two power standard?
- The aspiration that Britain's navy should be equal to the size of its two biggest rivals' navies combined
50
What were 4 reasons why German naval expansion posed such a big threat to Britain?
- The German kaiser wanted a fleet the same size as Britain's (two power standard!)
- Since Germany was only unified in 1871, they would be starting from scratch, so any battleships they built would be modern while many of Britain's ships were old and no longer fit for purpose
- As Germany's ships would be of better quality, they estimated that they only needed a navy two-thirds of the size of Britain's in order to defeat the Royal Navy
- Germany just needed to concentrate its forces in German waters, while Britain needed to maintain its naval presence across the world
51
Who was Jackie Fisher, and when did he carry out reforms?
- First Sea Lord from 1904-10
- 1904-10
52
What were the 4 main areas that Fisher's reforms concerned?
- Officer training
- Reorganising fleets
- Reserves
- A new building programme
53
What was the Selbourne Scheme? What difference did this have from Fisher's other reforms?
- A new system where all naval officers were trained in common
- They would later specialise in engineering, navigation or gunnery (as opposed to being educated separately from the beginning)
- Fisher introduced it while he was Second Sea Lord from 1902-03
54
What was the main benefit of the Selbourne Scheme?
- After its implementation, all officers would be able to command ships and be promoted to admiral
- Before, only those who had been educated for command within the navy had this opportunity, and looked down on the other officers, which caused friction
- This created more of a meritocracy
55
What consideration did Fisher have in mind that impacted some of his reforms? Which reforms were affected? Give 4 examples how.
- The government wanted to cut defence spending
- Reorganisation:
- he sold off 90 ships
- he put 64 in reserve
- the 5 battleships stationed near China were recalled
- the South Atlantic fleet was abolished
56
What other motive was behind the reorganisation of the fleets?
- The new strategic aim of keeping Germany in check
57
What other reorganisation did Fisher carry out?
- He created the Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve to augment the Royal Navy Reserve
58
What 2 types of vessels did Fisher's building programme focus on? Why?
- Submarines
- Fisher believed submarines would render battleships obsolete
- Submarines were 25 times cheaper to build than battleships
- Battlecruisers
- Battlecruisers were ships that were as large and as heavily armed as battleships, but were much faster
59
What was the impact of the Russo-Japanese War on British naval strategy?
- It made it clear that long-range gunnery would decide future naval battles
60
How far were Fisher's reforms implemented? Give 2 examples.
- His efforts to open up higher ranks to talented young seamen had little success
- While Fisher supported the production of battlecruisers, other top naval officials were determined to introduce a new type of battleship- the Dreadnought
61
When was HMS Dreadnought launched?
- 1906
62
List 5 features of HMS Dreadnought.
- It was 2000 tons heavier than its closest rival
- Older ships had a mixture of medium and large guns, but it only had 12-inch guns
- It could fire shells 18,000 yards
- It was the first ship to be powered by steam turbines which gave it a top speed of 21.6 knots, faster than any other large battleship
- Technical innovations such as devices that enabled deflection shooting (aiming somewhere ahead of a moving target so that by the time that projectile arrives, the target would have moved into its path)
63
How significant was the development of HMS Dreadnought?
- It made every other warship in the world obsolete
64
How did Germany respond to the development of HMS Dreadnought? What did this lead to?
- In 1908 Germany began building 9 Dreadnoughts
- A naval arms race
65
How did the naval arms race end, and why? Give figures.
- Germany focused more of their resources on their army as their primary objective was to be able to beat France on land
- By 1914 Germany had 17 dreadnoughts while Britain had 29
