EDEXCEL A LEVEL HISTORY: THE BRITISH EMPIRE:
THE NAVY Exam |Questions with answers
|Verified Solutions
What did the octant and sextant do? - ✔✔The octant measured altitude of the sun or other
celestial body and the sextant measured the angular distance between 2 visible objects
How was speed measured at sea? - ✔✔A wooden block was tied to a knotted line and the
number of knots that passed in a given time was the speed in 'knots'
What was the main ship used in battles? - ✔✔Ships of the line - a ship deemed strong
enough to take its place in the line of battle
How was naval strength expressed in the Age of Sail? - ✔✔Numbers of ships of the line and
sailor strength
What were first and second rate ships like? - ✔✔They were the biggest ships of the line with
3 gun decks and 80-120 cannon. Admirals often used these as their flagships but because of
their extra firepower, they were top-heavy and less manoeuvrable so less were made
What were third rate ships like? - ✔✔These were the 'backbone' of the fleet. They had 64-80
guns, two gun decks, and a crew of 500 men. Third rate ships made up 76% of all RN ships of
the line
What were fourth rate ships like? - ✔✔They had less than 64 cannon, and were phased out
from the late 18th century as they lacked sufficient firepower
What event proved the power of ships of the line? - ✔✔The Battle of Trafalgar where Britain
defeated a Franco-Spanish fleet and achieved naval supremacy
,Why were ships of the line disadvantageous outside of battle? - ✔✔They were less
manoeuvrable and fast, making them dangerous to sail near the shore. They were also unable
to catch more lightly armed warships or merchantmen and admirals needed to keep their
firepower assembled in one place to be decisive, so ships of the line were rarely used for
patrolling, destroying enemy trade and escorting friendly shipping
What rating of ships carried out jobs like this? - ✔✔Fifth and sixth rate ships (frigates)
What were frigates like? - ✔✔They were slightly shorter than ships of the line with one gun
deck. This made them faster and more manoeuvrable, and more able to sail closer to shore
Why were frigates attractive to young captains? - ✔✔Prize money could be made by using
them for searching for enemy shipping. For example, the frigate Speedy, sailed by Captain
Cochrane, captured or destroyed 53 French ships in just over a year
Which other countries in particular used frigates successfully? - ✔✔France and the USA
(France built 59 of them between 1777-90 and many of them raided British shipping after the
Battle of Trafalgar)
Why was the RN still supreme after further reductions in its ships? - ✔✔It was able to rebuild
quickly after a period of peace, and no other country embarked on a major rebuilding
programme
What is naval hegemony? - ✔✔Authority over the other navies
Why did naval hegemony affect the desire to experiment with new ship types? - ✔✔Because
the RN was already supreme, there was little desire in the admiralty to experiment with new
ship types. Wooden warships with cannon were the most powerful and the Royal Navy was
able to produce them quickly, so admirals had no incentive to develop ships which could upset
this beneficial situation
, Why weren't steam ships adopted before the 19th century? - ✔✔There was experimenting
with steam engines, such as the Kent in 1794, but early steam engines were unreliable, slow
and consumed a lot of coal for the power they produced. Propulsions were based on paddle-
wheels, which were unsuitable for heavy seas, difficult to protect and took up broadside space
which could be used for guns
What was the first steamship produced in America? - ✔✔The Demologos was constructed in
1816, but it was little more than a floating gun battery which wasn't able to go out to sea
When did steam ships first become effective? - ✔✔When used in areas where sailing ships
did not have room to navigate using wind, in particular, river systems
What was the job of the 'hybrid' ships? - ✔✔To tow British warships up rivers, rather than
disrupt the order of sailing ships of the line and frigates
When was more powerful screw propulsion invented? - ✔✔In the 1830s - these made
ocean-going steam travel more practical. Although sailing ships were the main method of
transport, steam engines could be used for greater manoeuvrability
What did the invention of the French steam-powered 'Napoleon' show? - ✔✔In 1850, France
invented the 'Napoleon'. This signalled the end of the 35 years of naval supremacy for the RN
and the beginning of supremacy challenged - a naval arms face between major powers until
WW1
What was created by the French engineer Henri-Joseph Paixhans? - ✔✔In the 1820s,
Paixhans created shell-firing guns with the flat trajectory needed to hit an enemy ship at sea.
These were called Paixhans guns, and when other powers began to use them, there was
concern about how much damage could be done to wooden ships
What were the ships with iron armour called? - ✔✔'Ironclads' - these made wooden
steamships obsolete
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