148 SHIP 
took, in three years, to complete the repair of the fleet, and 
furnish the dock-yards with a proper supply of stores, on an 
estimate of 400,000/. a year, to be issued in weekly pay¬ 
ments j and in two years and a half they finished their task, 
to the satisfaction of the King and the whole nation; the 
number of ships repaired and under repair being 108 sail of 
the line, besides a considerable number of vessels of smaller 
■ size. The same year the King abdicated the throne, at 
which time the list of the navy amounted to 173 sail, contain¬ 
ing 101,892 tons, carrying 6930 guns, and 42,000 seamen. 
The naval regulations were wisely left unaltered at the 
Revolution, and the business of the Admiralty continued to 
be carried on chiefly, for some time, under the immediate 
direction of King William, by Mr. Pepys, till the arrival 
of Admiral Herbert and Captain Russel from the fleet, into 
whose hands, he says, “he silently let it fall.” Upon.the 
general principles of that system, thus established with his 
aid by the Duke of York, the civil government of our navy 
has ever since been carried on. 
In the second year of King William (1690), no less than 
30 ships were ordered to be built, of 60, 70, and 80 guns 
each; and in 1697, the king, in his speech to Parliament, 
stated that the naval force of the kingdom was increased to 
nearly double what he found it at his accession. It was 
now partly composed of various classes of French ships 
which had been captured in the course of the war, amount¬ 
ing in number to more than 60, and in guns to 2300; the 
losses by storms and captures on our side being about half 
the tonnage and half the guns we had acquired. At the 
commencement of this reign, the navy, as we have stated, 
consisted of 173 ships, measuring 101,892 tons; at his 
death, it had been extended to 272 ships, measuring 159,020 
tons, being an increase of 99 ships and 57,128 tons, or 
more than one-half both in number and in tonnage. 
The accession of Queen Anne was immediately followed 
by a war with France and Spain, and in the second year 
of her reign, she had the misfortune of losing a vast num¬ 
ber of her ships by one of the most tremendous storms that 
was ever known ; but every energy was used to repair this 
national calamity. In an address to the House of Lords in 
March 1707, it is declared as “ a most undoubted maxim, 
that the honour, security and wealth of this kingdom does 
depend upon the protection and encouragement of trade, 
and the improving and right encouraging its naval strength 
,.. .therefore, we do in the most earnest manner beseech your 
Majesty, that the sea-affairs may always be your first and 
most peculiar care.” In the course of this war were taken 
or destroyed about 50 ships of war, mounting 3000 cannon; 
and we lost about half the number. At the death of the 
queen, in 1714, the list of the navy was reduced in number 
247 ships, measuring 167,219 tons, being an increase in 
tonnage of 8199 tons. 
George I. left the navy pretty nearly in the same state he 
found it. At his death, in 1727, the list consisted of 233 
ships, measuring 170,862 tons, being a decrease in number 
of 14, but an increase in tonnage of 3643 tons. 
George II. was engaged in a war with Spain in 1739, in 
consequence of which the size of our ships of the line or¬ 
dered to be built was considerably increased. In 1744, 
France declared against us; but on the restoration of peace 
in 1748, it was found that our naval strength had prodi¬ 
giously increased. Our loss had been little or nothing, 
whilst we had taken and destroyed of the French 20, and 
of the Spanish 15 sail of the line, besides smaller vessels. 
The war with France of 1755 added considerably to the list, 
so that, at the king’s decease in 1760, it consisted of 412 
ships, measuring 321,104 tons. 
In the short war of 1762, George III. added no less than 
20 sail of the line to our navy. At the conclusion of the 
American war, in 1782, the list of the navy was increased 
to 600 sail; and at the signing of the preliminaries in 1783, 
it amounted to 617 sail, measuring upwards of 500,000 
tons; being an increase of 185 ships and 157,000 tons and 
upwards since the year 1762. At the peace of Amiens, the 
list of the fleet amounted to upwards of 700 sail, of which 
PING. 
144 were of the line. The number taken from the enemy, 
or destroyed, amounted nearly to 600, of which 90 were 
of the line, including 50 gun ships, and upwards of -200 
were frigates; and our loss amounted to about 60, of which 
6 were of the line, and 12 frigates. 
The recommencement and long, continuance of the revo¬ 
lutionary war, and the glorious successes of Our naval ac¬ 
tions, the protection required for our extended commerce, 
of which, in fact, we might be said to enjoy a monopoly, 
and for the security of our numerous colonies, contributed 
to raise the British navy to a magnitude to which the accu¬ 
mulated navies of the whole world bore but a small propor¬ 
tion. From 1808 to 1813, there were seldom less than from 
100 to 106 sail of the line in commission, and from 130 to 
160 frigates, and upwards of 200 sloops, besides bombs, 
gun-brigs, cutters, schooners, &c., amounting in the whole 
to about 500 sail of effective ships and vessels; to which 
may be added 500 more in the ordinary, and as prison, 
hospital and receiving ships ; making at least 1000 pendents, 
and measuring from 800,000 to 900,000 tons. The com¬ 
missioners appointed to inquire into the state and condition 
of the woods, forests and land revenues of the Crown, state 
in their report to Parliament, in the year 1792, that “ at 
the accession of his Majesty (George III.) to the throne, the 
tonnage of the royal navy was 321,104 tons, and at the end 
of the year 1788, it had risen to no less than 413,467 tons.” 
In 1808 it had amounted to the enormous extent of 800,000 
tons, having nearly doubled itself in twenty years. 
It must not, however, be supposed that the effective navy 
consisted of more than half this amount of tonnage. Since 
the conclusion of the war, it would appear that at least one- 
half of the number of ships then in existence have been sold 
or broken up as unfit for the service ; and as, by the list of 
the navy at the beginning of the year 1821, the number of 
ships and vessels of every description in commission, in or¬ 
dinary, building, repairing, and ordered to be built, has 
been reduced to 609 sail, we may take the greatest extent of 
the present tonnage at 500,000 tons; but the greatest part, 
if not the whole, of this tonnage may be considered as effi¬ 
cient, or in a state of progressive efficiency. 
According to the printed list of the 1st January 1821, the 
609 sail of ships and vessels appear to be as under:— 
No. 
1st Rates from 120 to 100 guns.... 23 
2d Rates — 86 — 80 do. 16 
3d Rates — 78 — 74 do. 90 
4th Rates — 60 — 50 do.20 
5th Rates — 48 — 22 do.107 
6th Rates — 34 — 24 do.40 
Sloops — 22 — 10 do.136 
Making a total of.... 432 
To which being added gun-brigs, 
cutters, schooners, tenders, 
bombs, troop-ships, store- 
ships, yachts, &c. .177 
Grand total.609 
The increase in the size of our ships of war was unavoid¬ 
able. France and Spain increased theirs, and we were com¬ 
pelled, in order to meet them on fair terms, to increase the 
dimensions of ours; many of theirs were, besides, added to 
the list of our navy. 
The following sketch will show the progressive rate at 
which ships of the first rate, or of 100 guns and upwards, 
were enlarged in their dimensions. 
In 1677, the first rates were from 1500 to 1600 tons. In 
1720, they were increased to 1800 tons. In 1745, we find 
them advanced to 2000 tons. During the American war 
they were raised to 2000 tons. In 1795, the Ville de Paris, 
of 110 guns, measured 2350 tons. In 1804, the Hibernia, of 
110 guns, was extended to 2500 tons; and in 1808, the 
Caledonia, carrying 120 guns, measured 2616 tons, and 
here we stopped. 
SHIPPINGPORT. 
