Berthier
01-06-2012, 22:27
From The Trafalgar Companion
Total trees required to build the two combined fleets at Trafalgar was estimated at 286,800! This number would have covered an area of nearly 5,000 acres.
The total tonnage of ships in the RN in 1806 was 776,000 principally made up naturally of lumber. This quantity of timber does not even account for the merchant fleet which was even larger in vessel numbers and total tonnage.
The forests of England between the years 1608 and 1783 had shrunk to less than 1/6 the size. Some forests had virtually disappeared (eg Sherwood Forest) and this is the reason for Britain's need to keep the trade to the Baltic open to obtain trees from Scandanavia, Russia and parts of Germany.
The Victory required over 26 miles of rigging and 5500 square yards of sail. She needed over half million nails for her copper sheathing, the combined weight of her anchors was 15 tons and she carried 14 cables of 120 fathoms length (720 foot) whose diameter varied from 7-24".
There were 22 Americans on board the Victory at Trafalgar.
A single broadside from Mars (74) exceeded the weight of shot fired in a single firing by the entire French Grand Battery at Waterloo
Total trees required to build the two combined fleets at Trafalgar was estimated at 286,800! This number would have covered an area of nearly 5,000 acres.
The total tonnage of ships in the RN in 1806 was 776,000 principally made up naturally of lumber. This quantity of timber does not even account for the merchant fleet which was even larger in vessel numbers and total tonnage.
The forests of England between the years 1608 and 1783 had shrunk to less than 1/6 the size. Some forests had virtually disappeared (eg Sherwood Forest) and this is the reason for Britain's need to keep the trade to the Baltic open to obtain trees from Scandanavia, Russia and parts of Germany.
The Victory required over 26 miles of rigging and 5500 square yards of sail. She needed over half million nails for her copper sheathing, the combined weight of her anchors was 15 tons and she carried 14 cables of 120 fathoms length (720 foot) whose diameter varied from 7-24".
There were 22 Americans on board the Victory at Trafalgar.
A single broadside from Mars (74) exceeded the weight of shot fired in a single firing by the entire French Grand Battery at Waterloo