clipper The very fast, square-rigged sailing ships which were used to trans- port tea, wool and other bulk cargoes in the second half of the nineteenth century.
colours The flags worn by a vessel to show her nationality.
companionway The staircase or ladder down to a cabin or the lower deck; or up to the quarterdeck.
cutter A small one-masted vessel rigged with a fore-and-aft mainsail, foresail and jib. In the eighteenth century a cutter usually had a square topsail as well. Also a ten-oared ship's boat used for carrying light stores and passengers.
deadeye A round wooden block with three holes for extending the shrouds.
duff A boiled pudding made from flour, fat, sugar and water. Currants and raisins, when available, were added to make plum duff. ensign The national flag usually flown by ships at or near the stern of the vessel. fathom A measure of about 2 metres (6 feet), used to describe the depth of water.
East Indiaman A large ship engaged in trade with the East Indies. flagship A ship commanded by an admiral and flying the admiral's distinguishing flag.
flag captain The captain of a ship carrying an admiral and flying his flag. (Captain Hardy was Nelson's flag captain on board HMS. Victory at the Battle of Trafalgar.)
fore Situated in front; the front part of a vessel at the bow.
fore-and-aft At bow and stern; backwards and forwards or along the length of the ship.
fore-and-aft rig Having mainly fore-and-aft sails, i.e. sails set lengthwise (and not at right-angles to the ship's hull, as is the case with square-rigged sails).
forecastle/fo'c's'le The short deck built over the fore part of the main deck.
foremast The mast at the front of the vessel.
foretop A platform at the head of the lower foremast serving to spread the
topmast rigging and provide a place for sailors working aloft.
frigate A fast cruising warship, less heavily armed than a ship of the line. Most frigates were fifth- and sixth-rates with between 44 and 20 guns.
galley The ship's kitchen.
gig A light, clinker-built boat carried by a warship and often favoured by captains for their own use.
grog A drink of rum diluted with water.
gunwale The upper planking along the sides of the vessel.
guardship A ship kept in reserve but, unlike a ship in ordinary, she was fully rigged and partly armed and manned, and could be ready for action in a few days. Most guardships were 74s or 64s but in a major port such as Plymouth or Portsmouth a three-decker often served as the flagship of the port admiral.
halyard A rope for raising and lowering a sail or yard.
hatch boat A type of fishing boat used in the Thames Estuary.
hawser A large rope or a small cable.
heave to (past tense: hove to) To check the course of a vessel and bring her to a standstill by heading her into the wind and backing some of the sails.
helm The tiller or wheel which controls the rudder and enables a vessel to be steered.
hulk An old ship taken out of service and moored in a harbour. Hulks were used as prison ships, convict ships, hospitals, floating barracks and receiving ships for pressed men.
jury rig A makeshift arrangement of masts, yards and sails used to replace those damaged by storm or enemy action.
larboard An old word for port (the left side of a vessel facing forward) which was preferred for helm orders. It was abandoned in 1844.
league A measure of distance: 5 km (3 miles).
lee The side or direction away from the wind, or downwind.
lee shore The shore onto which the wind is blowing; a hazardous shore for a sailing vessel particularly in strong or gale-force winds.
log, log-book A journal or diary which recorded the ship's position, speed and course, with notes on the wind direction, weather, sail changes, flag signals, and other vessels met en route. The official log-book in a British warship was kept by the ship's master (navigator) but the captain and lieutenants also kept log-books and so did the midshipmen.
longboat The largest and heaviest boat carried by a warship, used for laying out anchors, and carrying water casks and other heavy loads.
lugger A vessel rigged with one or more fore-and-aft lugsails. Each sail is set on a yard, of which about one-third is on the fore side of the mast.
mainmast 1. The mast at the centre of the ship or vessel, always the largest in square-rigged ships. 2. The name of the first and lowest section of the mainmast in a square-rigged ship; the others are the maintopmast, main-topgallant mast, and main royalmast.
mainsheet The rope at the lower corner of the mainsail for regulating its position.
man-of-war An armed ship belonging to the navy of a country.
mizenmast The mast at the stern or back of a vessel.
(in) ordinary Ships laid up in reserve with their masts, rigging and guns removed.
pendant (pronounced 'pennant') This term can be used for any long tapering flag. The commissioning pendant of a naval ship was a very long flag like a streamer flown from the main masthead and it distinguished a warship in commission from a merchant ship.
pennant See pendant
pink 1. A merchant vessel with a relatively shallow draught and a narrow stern, variously rigged as a brig, a sloop, or a ship. 2. The term also applied to a type of Dutch fishing boat which was launched off the beaches near Scheveningen.
poop deck The aftermost and highest deck of a ship.
port The left side of a vessel facing forward.
press gang A group of men led by an officer, employed to round up men for service in the Royal Navy.
prize A ship or vessel captured from the enemy in time of war.
quarter The side of a ship towards the stern.
quarterdeck A deck above the main deck which stretched from the stern to about halfway along the length of the ship. It was from this deck that the captain and officers controlled the ship.
quarter gallery A covered gallery with windows which projected from each side of the ship at the stern, used as a lavatory or toilet by the captain and officers.
rate (as in first-rate, second-rate, etc) Warships were grouped into six different categories according to the number of guns they carried. In the eighteenth century a first-rate ship had 100 guns, a second-rate ship had 90 guns, a third-rate had 80, 74, or 64 guns, a fourth-rate had between 64 and 50 guns, a fifth-rate had between 44 and 32 guns, and a sixth-rate had between 28 and 20 guns.
reef To reduce the area of a sail by rolling it up or bundling part of it and securing that part with short lines called reef-points.
running rigging Ropes which run through blocks or are moved in any way to operate the sails and gear of a vessel, as distinct from standing rigging,
schooner A two-masted vessel, fore-and-aft rigged on both masts. Some vessels had square topsails on the foremast or on both topmasts.