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ship of the line
ship of the line, a warship of the days of sailing navies which carried a sufficiently large gun armament to lie in the line of battle. Until the time of the First Dutch War (1652–4), fleets of warships did not fight in formation, each ship sailing into battle with the purpose of finding an enemy vessel she could engage in single combat. The first attempt to make a fleet fight in formation was made by Robert Blake at the battle of Portland in 1653, but the line of battle as such did not emerge until the Second Dutch War (1665–7), when fleets were more rigidly controlled by their admirals. And because a ship's guns of those days had no means of being trained, but could only fire through their gunports at right angles to the fore-and-aft line of the ship, the line of battle had obviously to be in the line ahead formation, with each ship following in the track of the next warship ahead. This formation was rigidly laid down in the fighting instructions issued to all admirals and captains of ships, and governed the conduct of all British ships in action until the introduction of the general chase signal in the mid-18th century gave the admiral in command a degree of flexibility. See also rate; warfare at sea.
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Cite this article
"ship of the line." The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 28 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "ship of the line." The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (May 28, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O225-shipoftheline.html "ship of the line." The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea. 2006. Retrieved May 28, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O225-shipoftheline.html |
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ship of the line
ship of the line large, square-rigged warship, carrying from 70 to 140 guns on two or more completely armed gun decks. In the great naval wars of the 17th, 18th, and early 19th cent., ships of the line were the largest naval units employed. They passed from use with the advent of the ironclad and the battleship . One of the few remaining examples of a ship of the line is Lord Nelson's flagship, the H.M.S. Victory, which has been preserved at Portsmouth, England. |
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Cite this article
"ship of the line." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. 28 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "ship of the line." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. (May 28, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-shipline.html "ship of the line." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Retrieved May 28, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-shipline.html |
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ship of the line
ship of the line a sailing warship of the largest size, used in the line of battle.
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Cite this article
"ship of the line." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. 28 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "ship of the line." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. (May 28, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O63-shipoftheline.html "ship of the line." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Retrieved May 28, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O63-shipoftheline.html |
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