2006 14030 The Royal Navy played a vital role in making Great Britain a world superpower in years between

1660 and 1783. The Royal Navy played many roles in this period, such as protecting the home isles, territory abroad, commerce, covering for invasions, wreaking havoc on enemy vessels, and by blockading their enemies ports. After years of development and with the assistance of Great Britains more efficient fiscal and economic system, the Royal Navy finally became an extremely formidable fighting force, which helped wear down the French and Spanish military and economic capabilities until the ultimate collapse of the French Kingdom. The most important role of the Royal Navy was to protect Great Britain from invasion, which it was successful at doing. During the 18th century there were a few attempts at an invasion, the most successful was not a direct continental invasion, but when Prince Charles Edward Stuart to tried to gain the throne by arriving in Scotland in 1745 from the sea.1 He promptly started an uprising that spread fear and panic throughout England. Stuart and his army advanced as far as Derby and were eventually defeated at Culloden in April 1746. However, the Royal Navy cannot be faulted for failing to intercepting Charles Stuart, because it was an extremely difficult task to patrol the seas looking for a single vessel. During the Seven Years War (1756-1763), France hoped that they would defeat Great Britain by landing an army on British soil. However, setbacks at sea would eventually make such an invasion impossible. The Toulon squadron of twelve ships-ofthe-line under De La Clue had left the Mediterranean and was being pursued by a British Squadron.2 De La Clues fleet was separated and five of his vessels sailed to Cadiz while
1

Frank McLynn, 1759: The Year Britain Became Master of the World (London: Random House, 2004) p.76 2 Alfred Thayer Mahan, The Influence of Sea Power Upon History: 1660-1783 (New York: Dover, 1987) p.298-304

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2006 14030 he soon came under attack by fourteen British ships-of-the-line. Eventually, two of De La Clues ships were burned and two were captured by the Royal Navy. France would experience a devastating setback for their Brest fleet under Conflans at the Battle of Quiberon Bay, when Conflans decided to order his twenty-one ships-of-the-line to retreat from a Royal Navy force of twenty-three under Sir Edward Hawke. Sir Edward Hawke gave chase to the fleeing squadron despite being in treacherous coastal waters and in the ensuing battle, captured two French vessels while four more were lost at the cost of two of his warships. Although most of the French fleet escaped, they were too dispersed and would not be able to become a united fighting force for a while. The defeat rendered France being completely incapable of launching an invasion force of an estimated 15,000 to 20,000 soldiers to the River Clyde in Scotland. Furthermore, it allowed for Hawke to maintain his blockade of the French port of Brest. The Royal Navy played a vital role in supporting amphibious assaults on enemy possessions throughout the world. A successful attack on an important enemy city would usually result in helping the British Government use it as a bargaining chip during the peace talks or using it as a base for long term strategic purposes. Navy warships were used not only to escort the troopships, but they also softened certain targets up while covering for the landings. One such important operation was the seizure of Gibraltar on the Spanish coast in 1703 by Sir George Rooke and his fleet, which had long term implications by providing a base of operations for the future.3 Furthermore, the seizure of Gibraltar resulted in repeated attempts by the Spain to capture the stronghold, which diverted their resources from other theatres of war. Another such important amphibious

N.A.M. Rodger, The Command of the Ocean: A Naval History of Great Britain 1649-1815 (London: Penguin, 2004) p.169-173

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2006 14030 operation was the seizure of Port Mahn on the island of Minorca that allowed for a British Fleet to be based there, which could engage the French fleet based at Toulon on the southern coast of France or keep the Toulon fleet bottled up in port. Another important successful amphibious assault was Edward Vernons seizure of the Spanish colonial port of Portobello in November of 1739.4 His success resulted in the destruction of the Spanish forts there and the inability of the Spanish government to regulate and tax trade there. Furthermore, it gave the British government the confidence in their militarys ability to seize the overseas dominions of the enemy in order to weaken their enemies commerce and power in the region. Later in 1745, the Massachusetts General Assembly decided to attack Louisbourg on Cape Breton Island, in order to secure the cod fishery there, which would have been a big blow to the French maritime economy.5 Louisbourg fell with the assistance of the Royal Navy squadron from Leeward Island in the Caribbean. Furthermore, it forced the French minister, Maurepas to send an ill prepared French squadron to retake the fortress. However, this resulted in failure due to the incompetence of the fleet and their inability to reach the island successfully in full force. The capture of Louisbourg also led to the Allies making up for past failure, by trading it for Madras on the Indian sub-continent and the territory the Dutch lost in the Low Countries.6 In the next great European conflict, the Seven Years War resulted in a massive shift in geopolitics regarding the successful seizure of French and Spanish territories by British forces through a series of amphibious assaults. British forces raided the northern
4

N.A.M. Rodger, The Command of the Ocean: A Naval History of Great Britain 1649-1815 (London: Penguin, 2004) p.236 5 N.A.M. Rodger, The Command of the Ocean: A Naval History of Great Britain 1649-1815 (London: Penguin, 2004) p.247 6 Ibid. p. 255

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2006 14030 French coast and managed to destroy around eighty privateers and merchantmen in their harbors.7 One raid resulted in the destruction of the port and fortifications of Cherbourg. The main purpose of these raids was to take pressure off Britains ally, King Frederick of Prussia, by forcing the French to relocate forces to protect their coast. In 1758, British forces attempted to retake Louisbourg under the command of General Jeffery Amherst and 12,000 men, which were supported by twenty-one ships-of-the-line.8 This resulted in the destruction of the French fleet there and the recapture of the fort, which in turn resulted in the Royal Navy to relocate its vessels elsewhere. In 1759, a small British force of two ships-of-the-line and two hundred marines seized French possessions on the west coast of Africa, which allowed for more favorable trade to British merchants.9 After a failed assault on Martinique, British commanders General Hopson and Sir John Moore decided that they would attempt to seize the French possession of Guadeloupe in 1759. Eventually, despite the devastating effects of disease on British troops and marines, the island surrendered and some of the wealthiest plantations in the world fell into British hands just before the French reinforced the island. The fall of this island with its comparatively good treatment by the British most likely contributed to the voluntary fall of Dominica from the French orbit and the quick surrender of Martinique in 1762. The Royal Navy also played a role in the seizure of Qubec by escorting and supporting General James Wolfes army of 8,000 men through the St. Lawrence River and to skillfully navigate its treacherous waters.10 The eventual result was the placement of that force behind Qubec and the citys eventual fall.
7 8

Ibid. p. 270 Ibid. p.276 9 Frank McLynn, 1759: The Year Britain Became Master of the World (London: Random House, 2004) P.99-120 10 N.A.M. Rodger, The Command of the Ocean: A Naval History of Great Britain 1649-1815 (London: Penguin, 2004) p.278

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2006 14030 These British successes had a devastating effect on France and its position as a global power. The loss of Martinique and Guadeloupe meant that French privateers, who had captured eighty-one prizes operating from Martinique and Guadeloupe, could not as easily prey on British shipping in the area.11 This allowed for Royal Navy vessels to do other critical tasks rather than protecting friendly commerce, such as attacking enemy merchant vessels. Meanwhile, the enemy lost its profitable colonies and trade, which in turn is making it more difficult to get the money to fight the war. For example, the loss of Qubec resulted in the bankrupting of the Mississippi Company and the loss of Martinique and Guadeloupe resulted in its harvest of ten tons of valuable sugar going to Great Britain.12 Why did the French lose so many of their overseas colonies? When British forces seized one colony, it freed up the Royal Navy squadron in that area could focus elsewhere. They might focus their strength on another colony, which would free up resources there, thus becoming a sort of domino effect. Furthermore, France had neglected the protection of its colonies to focus on other fronts. Despite the need for reinforcements, they either came too late or didnt come at all. For example, French forces landed on Guadeloupe just one day after the islands surrender.13 The French government had not built up their forces enough in North America until the point that they were out numbered 60,000 to 11,000 troops. By this point, the French navy was no match numerically for the Royal Navy, so there was little chance of intercepting and
11

Frank McLynn, 1759: The Year Britain Became Master of the World (London: Random House, 2004) P.99 12 Ibid. p.117, .99-120 N.A.M. Rodger, The Command of the Ocean: A Naval History of Great Britain 1649-1815 (London: Penguin, 2004) p.294 13 Frank McLynn, 1759: The Year Britain Became Master of the World (London: Random House, 2004) P.114-115, 135

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2006 14030 destroying an entire fleet before it landed. As of 1760, the Royal Navy had 135 ships-ofthe-line compared to Frances 54.14 Frank McLynn focused too much on just the Seven Years War and neglected that it took trial and error assaults on overseas colonies, decades before 1759. The Royal Navy and the British Army did not just know how seize these islands; it took failure and death before they learned how to manage such offensives. As previously cited, Edward Vernon had earlier figured out how to take enemy overseas possessions and even he came into conflict with the army officers that accompanied him, which hampered such offensives. Why were Great Britain and its Royal Navy so successful against another nation that had a larger population and more resources? Why didnt the British get worn down over time like the Dutch? Mahan stated that the success of the Royal Navy and privateers that hunted enemy commerce played a large role in breaking the French economy, especially after France lost many of its colonies.15 One thing that Mahan failed to do is to determine why Great Britain had been able to stay in these expensive wars for so long. Great Britain had a much more efficient system of taxation than France, because Britain relied upon professional state officials to collect taxes, rather than hiring inefficient locals.16 These profession state officials helped create a more efficient centralized government which helped revenue grow six fold from the time of Charles II to the American Revolutionary War. The fiscal administration needed to double in size from the time of the Glorious Revolution to the American Revolution in order to accommodate
14

N.A.M. Rodger, The Command of the Ocean: A Naval History of Great Britain 1649-1815 (London: Penguin, 2004) p.608 15 Alfred Thayer Mahan, The Influence of Sea Power Upon History: 1660-1783 (New York: Dover, 1987) 16 John Brewer, Contexts and Issues, Lawrence Stone (eds), An Imperial State At War: Britain From 1689-1815 (London: Routledge, 1994) p.58

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2006 14030 such large growth. As of 1821, Great Britain had a population of 20.8 million people in comparison to France with a population of 30 million.17 Britain was able to compensate for their population shortcomings by being more efficient. In the 18th century, there was double the percentage of French laborers working in agriculture than their British counterparts. By 1800, twenty-seven percent of the British population lived in towns; whereas eleven percent of the French population lived in towns. This was due to the greater efficiency of British agriculture, upon which one English family could grow enough crops to feed two more. However, in France, a family could only produce enough food for half of another family. Such agricultural output by the British, may have allowed for London to become among the largest city in Europe during the 17th century. Furthermore, Great Britain had greater productivity when it came to constructing and repairing vessels. The government not only had its own dockyards, but the dockyards of private companies that could also construct ships-of-the-line.18 Meanwhile, the French private dockyards were not as capable, numerous, or as well equipped. The Royal Navy had become an effective instrument of war by the time of the Seven Years War, which had allowed Great Britain to wear down its arch-rival, France. This was in large part due to its ability to assist in the seizure of enemy possessions, its ability to effectively destroy enemy vessels, and its ability to protect and destroy commerce. These abilities with an imperial state that could sustain itself for years of war, which helped wear down its opponents until victory.

17

Wrigley, Lawrence Stone (eds), An Imperial State At War: Britain From 1689-1815 (London: Routledge, 1994) p.73-78 18 N.A.M. Rodger, The Command of the Ocean: A Naval History of Great Britain 1649-1815 (London: Penguin, 2004) p.301

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