British Empire: Navy

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Naval Tactics
long line: enabled sustained bombardment, avoid friendly ships firing each other, reduced exposure of sterns to enemy, better speed.Broadside attack: more firepower, avoid friendly fire, protect sterns of middle ship, faster.
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Steam Power
early steam engines were slow/unreliable and needed a lot of coal. French realised potential of them launched Napoleon 1850 signalling end of 35 years of low-cost naval supremacy for Navy start of naval arms race.
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New Technology
1820s: shell firing guns w/flat trajectory. Iron plates fitted to counter guns on wooden ships.all new ships w/ironclads starting w/HMS Warrior 1861. technological superiority was more important than skill.
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Slave Trade
18th century: most lucrative trade for UK shipping. Pro-slave trade called it 'nursery' of the navy as experienced sailors recruited from slave ships.
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Abolition of the Slave Trade
N.o of slave ships shipped across Atlantic increased from 80,000 to 135,000 in 1830.Abolitionists succeeded as slave trade abolished in 1807: navy= slavers enemy
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Attack on Algiers 1816
Pirates/slavers operated out of Algiers to capture shipping, prisoners enslaved.Algiers sank 40 vessels, given £80,000 in ransom and freed 3000 slaves.Piracy there continued till France conquered Algiers in 1830.
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Exploring and Mapping
Reliance on ships of the line to fight problems in long-distance conflict but between 1803-15, 233 of 317 Navy ships lost ran aground on dangerous coastline.high priority to voyages of exploration and mapping.
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Captain Cook
successful in completing circumnavigation of globe 1768-71. showed:stay at sea for 3 years without major life loss,effectiveness of new tech and Est. a British claim to new lands.
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Gibraltar 1783
Port was gateway for British ships to enter Med + separated French Atlantic. obstacle for France's ability to move supplies/warships between main ports.Gibraltar surrounded in 1779 causing food shortage.
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Malta 1798
Malta asked Britain for help. Malta was useful to be retained but not a major naval base until Suez Canal opening placed it on Britain's seaway to India.
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Ceylon
Ceylon had trading ports like Colombo. Ceylon annexed as a British crown colony- successive governors concentrated on est. rail network to open up interior for plantation farming.
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Cape Town
no economic significance but strategically valuable: stopping point between EU + W.Indies so could prevent enemy shipping.
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Faklands 1833
Est. settlement in 1776 but abandoned during US war: islands used by South Atlantic sealing ships. only valuable commodity was seal colonies
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Aden 1839
Important trading entreport: by 1900s, Arabian coffee there replaced by cheaper coffee from slaves in Dutch E.Indies and French E.Indies.
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Growing importance of Aden
Haines arrived in Aden 1837 w/mandate to negotiate use of a coal depot. Aden didn't sit on a crossroades of trade routes so future uncertain till opening of canal made it a boom town
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Cyprus 1878
Extended British interests overseas- purchasing canal shares 1875 and 1876. Aim- limit Russian expansion by supporting powers bordering them
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Ottoman Empire
Ottoman surrendered 1878.Disraeli secures Cyprus as base in Eastern med so Navy can counter Russian expansion and provide link in chain of British ports on route to India/base to protect stake in canal.
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Growing support for future expansion
Gladstone tried to reduce overseas involvement but drawn into conflict w/Egypt to protect canal interests: forced to resign. Salisbury- imperialist: 1889, huge spending increases on Navy
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Other cards in this set

Card 2

Front

early steam engines were slow/unreliable and needed a lot of coal. French realised potential of them launched Napoleon 1850 signalling end of 35 years of low-cost naval supremacy for Navy start of naval arms race.

Back

Steam Power

Card 3

Front

1820s: shell firing guns w/flat trajectory. Iron plates fitted to counter guns on wooden ships.all new ships w/ironclads starting w/HMS Warrior 1861. technological superiority was more important than skill.

Back

Preview of the back of card 3

Card 4

Front

18th century: most lucrative trade for UK shipping. Pro-slave trade called it 'nursery' of the navy as experienced sailors recruited from slave ships.

Back

Preview of the back of card 4

Card 5

Front

N.o of slave ships shipped across Atlantic increased from 80,000 to 135,000 in 1830.Abolitionists succeeded as slave trade abolished in 1807: navy= slavers enemy

Back

Preview of the back of card 5
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