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The "Sovereign of the Seas" was built by Phineas Pett at the insistence of King Charles 1 , who wanted a really impressive "Great Ship" .
She was to be the largest ship ever , and when finished , the bill - for those days - was truly terrific. She was a 100 gun ship and she was supposed to be the first ship ever to carry royals among her sails . The design of the carving's , which were all finished in gold leaf , not the more usual gold paint or even yellow paint on the cheaper ships , was by Van Dyck , who prepared sketches for them to be carved from . The stern , which was heavily decorated , carries both stern galleries a considerable area of glass windows . The huge stern lantern was a fixture also , the lantern was usually mounted on some form of bracket our over the stern . All in all she was an advanced ship and a ship that was to be most useful in the Navy . She was reputedly known to the Dutch Navy as the "Golden Devil" and avoided wherever possible , because of the weight of artillery that could be brought in to action . She was rebuilt at least twice , some of the rear decks being cut down and the weight of decoration reduced in an attempt to lighten her . Eventually she was re christened " Royal Sovereign" and she was accidentally burned in 1696 . In the time of the Sovereign of the Seas , records exist which give the cost , about £65,586 , as against the average cost of £6,080 for a 40 gun ship.
Length 212 ft.
Beam 48 ft.
Depth 19 1/4 ft.
Tonnage 1,605 tons
Crew (Wartime) 815
The Brigantine or Brig , was a type of ship used in large numbers , both as a Merchant vessel and as a Naval Ship . It carried 16 guns and was rigged for speed , having both Top gallant sails and royals . These ships were used by Navies of the World for scouting and reconnaissance duties . They were used to track down ships of an enemy . Many of the Brigs of the late 18th century could carry sweeps for maneuvering in still weather . In 1814 the British Navy had 71 brigs of various types carrying 10 to 16 guns .
Length 110 ft.
Beam 28 ft.
Depth 16 ft.
Crew 100 to 120
The First Rate ship of the line was THE warship of the sailing era . Because of the size of the ship required to carry the 100 or more guns that the rating required and the 800 or so men needed to work the guns and man the ship , the First Rate was a large ship , carrying large quantities of ammunition and provisions . A first Rate was also the flag ship of any squadron that she sailed in , and so had to carry the Admiral and his staff . A first rate cost about £67,000 in 1760 and because of the difficulty getting sufficient quantities of wood, rope , and guns , no fleet had many . During the 18th Century , the British fleet had usually 5 or 6 First Rates in service , which sometimes rose to 11 . Because they were expected to last a long time , they might last 50 - 70 years or even more , undergoing many changes and re designs . The rigging might be altered too . The Victory , for instance, was over 40 years old when at the Battle of Trafalgar and had been rebuilt twice .
Length 210 ft.
Beam 51 ft.
Depth 21 ft.
Tonnage 2,000 tons
Crew 850
Cost £67,000
Cutters were used chiefly in the Navy as scouts and dispatch boats , depending upon speed to get them out of trouble . They tended to be small tubby little craft , rather deeper than one would think and very cramped for the crew . The carried guns , more to offer defiance than for serious resistance to the enemy . They appear to to be carrying sails that were too big for her , but because of the deep draught , the large sails were needed to drive the ship through the water at speed . Later cutters had more sails than the one shown . The Navy usually had about 20 of these little vessels on the strength . This cutter carries 14 guns .
Length 65 ft.
Beam 20 ft.
Depth 9 ft.
Tonnage 115 tons
The only method open to owners of coal mines in the Tyneside area of Northern England to get their coal to London , was by sea. A large number of cheap to build and cheap to operate ships were required and the type that met these criteria was the Collier Brig . The hull is bluff with no ornamentation , with no beakhead or figurehead . We can assume that life on board was hard , uncomfortable and dirty , dirtier even than was usual in those no too hygienic days . Even the sails were blackened by coal dust in a few short weeks . They generally arrived at the mouth of the Tyne and were loaded by keel boats that had brought the coal from the pits up river . They were carrying "Black Gold" and often subjected to attacks from Pirates , which forced them to travel in convoy , sometimes with an escort . Soon the scene was set for the North East of England to spawn what became the largest Collier fleet based on one river - the Tyne collier brig was born and reigned supreme in the Pool of London with all the resemblance of a black armada ! . This Geordie fleet became the biggest single group of coordinated shipping ever seen around these shores and in consequence , was also a prime target of Press gangs . The masts ,sails and rigging would be as simple and consistent with strength and longevity . Later brigs were longer and had more conventional bows , all in all they kept London warm for over 250 years .
Length 77 ft.
Beam 24 ft.
Depth 12 ft.,
Tonnage 180 tons
Crew 10 - 25 men
From the Tudor period onwards , the fishing fleets of Northern Europe increased until they were very large . The vessel shown is from a Dutch engraving . When fishing and bringing in the catch , the centre mainmast and the foremast seem to have been lowered so that the standing rigging would be cleared out of the way and almost the entire length of the ship could be used to work the nets . Many of the busses were flush decked , with only limited accomodation below deck for the crew .
Length 65 ft.
Beam 16 ft.
Depth 8 ft.
The Hooker or "Howker "as it was often called in England was also called by the French a "Houcre" or "Hourque "and by the Dutch "Hoecker" , was another type of small merchant vessel used in the coastal waters of Northern Europe . The hooker was a vessel that varied according to locality or time . Some hookers had pole masts , while others had the more usual separate mainmast and topmast , with tops ,shrouds and the rest . All of the hookers had bluff rounded bows and sterns , with a high rudder and tiller fitted over the bulwarks .
Length 87 ft.
Beam 22 ft.
Depth 9 ft.
Tonnage 120 tons
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Material Copyright © 2000 Colin
Munro