18th Century Sailing Battleship: HMS Victory

Introduction

• Presenter: Jake O'Neal, creator of Animagraffs
• Topic: How an 18th-century sailing battleship worked, using HMS Victory as a model
• Goal: Present period-correct generalizations for educational purposes

Ship Construction

Frame

• Materials: Primarily oak, also elm, pine, and fir
• Techniques: Pinning diagonal surfaces in a scarf joint, secured with wood/metal fasteners
• Structure: Vertical timbers, floor beams, horizontal and vertical knee braces
• Hull: Thick planks inside and out, nearly 2 feet thick at the waterline
• Masts: Tallest over 200 feet, anchored at the keel beam with large wooden blocks
• Exterior: Copper plating below waterline for protection and water tightness

Decks and Compartments

Hold

• Location: Belly of the ship
• Contents:
  • Rocks for drainage and stability
  • Ballast: 38 tons on one side, iron blocks
  • Storage: Flour (10 tons), beer (50 tons), water (300 tons), coal/wood (50 tons), timber (20 tons), salted meat (30 tons), biscuits (45 tons), peas (15 tons), butter (2 tons)
  • Shot locker: 120 tons of cannon balls
  • Grand magazine: 35 tons of gunpowder, copper-lined
• Ventilation: Wooden ducts at fore and aft
• Special Areas: Filling room for gunpowder cartridges, hold well for water collection

Orlop Deck

• Location: Above the hold, straddles the waterline
• Features:
  • Removable floor gratings for ventilation and item transfer
  • Bread room, steward’s room, purser’s cabin and store, marines’ clothing store, dispensary, surgeon's cabin, stores for captain and lieutenant
  • Midshipman’s berth with hammocks, hanging magazines for gun cartridges, cockpit area for medical treatment
  • Sail rooms, cable tiers, boatswain’s cabin and store, carpenter’s cabin and workshop, carpenter's walk for hull access
  • Gunner’s store for armaments

Lower Gun Deck

• Features:
  • 30 guns, 32-pounder class
  • Procedures for firing guns: worm, wet sponge, rammer, shot loading, fire buckets, pitch control, recoil management
  • Manger for animals, anchor cables storage
  • Bilge/chain pumps, capstans, elm tree pump

Middle Gun Deck

• Features:
  • 28 guns, 24-pounder class
  • Main entry port, sick bay, galley with iron stove, capstans, officer’s quarters, wardroom, pantry
  • Emergency rudder access

Upper Gun Deck

• Features:
  • 30 guns, 12-pounder class
  • Roundhouses for officers, open-air toilets (seats of ease), sick bay, non-commissioned officer’s cots
  • Skylight for galley, chests for rifles and pistols, removable tables
  • Admirals’ quarters, day cabin, quarter gallery with private toilet

Quarter Deck

• Features:
  • Captain’s accommodations: toilet, day cabin, dining area, sleeping cabin
  • Cabin for captain’s secretary, ship master’s cabin
  • Steering wheel, binnacle with compasses, lamp, fire buckets
  • Various boats: launch, pinnacle, barge, cutters
  • Belfry and bell, forecastle with 68-pounder carronade-style guns

Poop Deck

• Features:
  • Skylight for captain’s dining quarters, davits for hoisting items, shelves for flags

Crew Accommodations

Hammocks

• Usage: Officers and higher ranks, 800+ crew with shoulder-width space
• Storage: Cannons secured to ship sides for sleeping space, rolled hammocks for protective barrier during action

Anchors

• Quantity: 7 in total
• Main Anchors: Bowers anchors at the front, backup pair, weighing 10,000 lbs each
• Deployment: Cathead cranes, 8-inch diameter cables, messenger rope system for capstans
• Raising/Lowering: Capstans connected through lower and middle decks, many sailors involved

Masts, Sails, and Rigging

Masts

• Types: Mizzen, main, fore masts
• Sails: Horizontal beams (yards), square-rigged ship, triangular staysails, bowsprit, driver/spanker sail, studding sails

Rigging

• Types: Shrouds, stays, running rigging
• Setting Sail: Sailors climb shrouds, untie gaskets, let down buntlines and leechlines, loose clewlines, haul sheet and tack lines, secure yard brace lines
• Operation: Lines operated from deck level, tied off at shrouds or fife rails

Summary

An 18th-century sailing battleship like HMS Victory is a complex vessel with intricate construction, multiple decks and compartments for various purposes, extensive rigging for its sails, and specific protocols for handling its numerous cannons and anchors. The ship's design and functionality showcase advanced maritime engineering of the time.