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How many British ships were present at the Battle of

Trafalgar, was it 33, 34, or 35?

ANSWER: 33

Twenty seven ships of the line and six others. Nelson’s fleet was formed into two columns. One was led by Nelson on board HMS Victory, the other led by Collingwood on HMS

Royal Sovereign.

A ship of the line was a type of naval warship constructed from the 17th through the mid-19th century to take part in the naval tactic known as the line of battle, in which two

columns of opposing warships would manoeuvre to bring the greatest weight of broadside guns to bear.

During which century was the title

HMS first used on ships?

ANSWER: 18th Century

It is believed that it was during the 1700’s that naming ships HMS came into practice but no actual date can be found.

It is also possible of course that there is no one ship but rather a change in naming convention so that several ships

were declared HMS at the same time.

Which title does the professional head of the Royal

Navy have?

ANSWER: First Sea Lord

The title of "First Sea Lord" goes back to the early 19th century when the appointment of civilians, exclusively, to the position

of First Lord of the Admiralty, began. To differentiate the civilian naval head from the senior serving Royal Navy Officer,

the title First Sea Lord was created.

In which year did British Naval Flying begin?

ANSWER: 1909

British Naval Flying started in 1909, with the construction of an airship for naval duties. In 1911 the Royal Navy graduated its first aeroplane pilots at the Royal Aero Club flying ground at Eastchurch, Isle of Sheppey under the tutelage of pioneer aviator George Bertram Cockburn, but in May 1912 naval and

army aviation were combined to become the Royal Flying Corps (RFC). The Naval Wing of the RFC lasted until July 1914 when the Royal Navy reformed its air branch, under the Air Department of the Admiralty naming it the Royal Naval Air

Service (RNAS).

Can you name the first ‘airship’ purchased by the

Royal Navy ?

ANSWER: Mayfly

His Majesty's Airship No. 1, more commonly known as the Mayfly, was designed and built by Vickers, Sons and Maxim at

their works in Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, England, as an aerial scout airship for the British Royal Navy. She was the

first British rigid airship to be built, and was constructed in a direct attempt to compete with the German airship

programme.

The Women’s Royal Naval Service was first formed in November1917 under the direction of Dame Katherine Furse. The purpose was to substitute women in naval

administrative and shore roles so that the men could serve at sea. The WRNS recruited 6000 women to undertake a

variety of tasks. It was disbanded in October 1919. As part of the planning for the Second World War, the WRNS was resurrected, this time under the leadership of Mrs Vera Laughton Mathews. This time, 74,000 women were in

service by 1944 taking on over 200 different jobs in the navy, serving overseas and in other branches. As a reward

for valuable service, the WRNS was made a permanent service in 1949. It was not until 1977 that the service

became subject to the Naval Discipline Act and in 1993 it was finally disbanded as a separate service with full

integration into the Royal Navy.

In which year was the W.R.N.S. first formed?

ANSWER: 1917

What is the "Perisher" course?

ANSWER: The British Submarine

Command Course

Since 1917 the Royal Navy has conducted a rigorous, semi-annual course, to qualify RN officers in the submarine service

for command.

In which year was the Fleet Air Arm formed?

ANSWER: 1924

On 1st April 1924, the Fleet Air Arm was initially formed as an off-shoot of the Royal Air Force, encompassing those RAF units that normally embarked on aircraft carriers and other fighting

ships. On 24 May 1939 the Fleet Air Arm was returned to Admiralty

control and renamed the Air Branch of the Royal Navy.

What famous words did Nelson signal to his fleet when engagement was

imminent?

ANSWER: "England expects that every man will do his duty." Nelson's original message was, "Nelson confides that every man will do his duty." His chief signalman, Lieutenant John Pasco, persuaded Nelson to change 'confides' to 'expects'

since the word 'expects' was in the signal corps vocabulary while 'confides' would have to be spelled out. Another officer persuaded Nelson to use 'England' rather than his own name in the message. The wording caused some resentment among

the men of the fleet as they took the message to question their devotion to duty

In the Royal Navy, what does "Black Tot Day" refer to?

ANSWER: The day of the last fleet wide issue of the daily grog allowance. On 31 July 1970, the last "tot" of grog was issued. The recipe for grog has varied over the years but in 1970 the standard issue was an eight of a pint of rum diluted 2 to 1 with water. The loss of the grog ration was compensated by issuing an

extra can of beer.

The traditional "tub" from which grog was dispensed in

the Royal Navy was embellished with which

motto?

ANSWER: “The Queen/King, God Bless Her/Him“

The grog tub was the container from which the daily ration of grog was issued to messes and/or individual sailors. Over the

years it traditionally became embellished with carefully varnished staves, brass hoops, and the motto "The Queen (King), God Bless Her (Him)". The bosun would pipe "up

spirits" at noon and the crew would line up for their ration.

Who was in the "Wavy Navy"?

ANSWER: Members of the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve.

The term "Wavy Navy" is derived from the distinctive sleeve insignia of rank worn by RNVR Officers. While the individual

rank was indicated by the number of stripes as in the RN/RNR, the RNVR stripes were interlaced rather than straight. This

distinction was discontinued in 2007.

In Royal Naval jargon, what is a

Sky Pilot?

ANSWER: The Chaplain, the Vicar or the Padre. Chaplains, Vicars or Padres, have a number of other amusing

nicknames: Devil Dodger, God Botherer, Bible Basher, Sin Bosun,

Sinister Minister.

What did sailors use to measure the width between the creases when pressing

their trousers?

ANSWER: Pay Book

Until Royal Navy uniforms were modernised in 1977, sailors wore bell bottom trousers with horizontal creases. There

were 5 or 7 creases depending on the height of the sailor.

The horizontal creases came about because sailors' bell bottom trousers had to be kept folded in a locker or kit bag as there was usually not enough room in older ships to hang

clothes.

The Royal Navy game of “Uckers" is based on which

game?

ANSWER: Ludo

Uckers is a four player board game similar to Ludo that is traditionally played in the Royal Navy. It is fiercely competitive

and rules differ between ships and stations (and between other services). It is believed to originate in the 18th/19th centuries from the Indian game "Pachisi" although the first

reference to it in print does not appear until 1946

It is a long-standing tradition in the Royal Navy

that, when a ship is close to a suitable beach and has some spare time, most of the crew will take to the boats, laden with cans of beer, barbecues and food,

and spend a couple of hours relaxing on the beach. What is this activity known as in

the Royal Navy?

ANSWER: A BANYAN

It is not clear how banyan, the name of an oriental fig tree, has come to be applied to a beach barbecue, though there is a

theory that it is based on the fact that outlandish and colourful clothes tend to be worn (Banyan Rig), not unlike a

loose flowing garment worn in the East Indies and known as a banion.

In modern times when did the first Wrens start to serve at

sea as part of the ship’s company?

ANSWER: 1990

By 1990 the Royal Navy had begun to seriously consider the recruitment of women to fill the shortages in 'man power'.

The navies of other nations had already begun to send women to sea. But practical issues of accommodation,

privacy and combat roles mingled with the criticisms of male chauvinists and naval wives.

In October 1990 the first Wrens to serve on an operational warship boarded HMS Brilliant, paving the way to the

eventual scrapping of the WRNS and full integration of women into the Royal Navy in 1993.

Can you put these past or present Air Stations in order

from to west to east,Abbotsinch, Brawdy,

Culdrose, Ford, Lossiemouth, Portland, Yeovilton?

ANSWER: Culdrose, Brawdy, Abbotsinch, Lossiemouth, Yeovilton, Portland, Ford.

Culdrose 5° 15’ west.

Brawdy 5° 7’ west.

Abbotsinch 4° 26’ west.

Yeovilton 2° 38’ west.

Portland 2° 27’ west.

Ford 0° 35’ west.

Nelson was buried at sea after he fell mortally wounded at

Trafalgar, true or false ?

ANSWER: False.

The custom at the time was to send corpses over the side, but Nelson implored Captain Thomas Hardy, Captain of HMS Victory, to not throw him over the side to which Hardy replied, "Oh, no, certainly not." Nelson was given a state funeral and was buried at St. Paul's Cathedral. His victory at Trafalgar ensured his status as a British hero of the highest order.

(Weather Column)

VICTORY TEMERAIRE NEPTUNE LEVIATHAN BRITANNIA CONQUEROR

AFRICA

AGAMEMNON

AJAX ORION

MINOTAUR SPARTIATE

(Lee Column)

ROYAL SOVEREIGN

BELLEISLE MARS TONNANT

BELLERPHON

COLOSSUS

ACHILLE DREADNOUGH

T POLYPHEMUS

REVENGE SWIFTSURE

DEFIANCE THUNDERER

DEFENCE PRINCE

EURYALUS NAIAD PHOEBE SIRIUS PICKLE (Schooner) ENTREPRENANTE

BRITISH SHIPS THAT SERVED AT TRAFALGAR

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