British And French Naval Architecture In The 18 And Early 19Th Centuries...

[sandyRoe]

Watching television advertisements for Les Miserables prompted the thought, 'Why did the French naval designers opt for galleys while the British didn't?'

[humbersloop]

How do you mean Sandy?

[sandyRoe]

There were banks of convicts manning the oars in French ships.

[Fitzer]

They didn't, they used oared gunboats to protect important ports and they intended to use them for the invasion of Britain but apart from that they had the normal range of men of war, cutters, frigates, ships-of-the-line etc.

[Octavius]

sandy, an overview if you are genuinley interested.

http://www.napolun.com/mirror/napoleonistyka.atspace.com/navy.htm

[sandyRoe]

That'll make an interesting read, Octavus. TY.

[jno]

good question, where did British naval cooks prepare dinner if they didn't have galleys? On the poop deck perhaps.

[Peter Pedant]

jno - no I think the Cap'n was on the Poop Deck looking at all those Frenchies, and incoming exocets.

So if they were cooking there as well - it must have been crowded.

Just think - if someone else was shouting - please I am trying to do my laundry here !


At the time Jean Valjean was in a galley - the British convicts were either being transported or in Hulks ( de commissioned warships) see Gt Expex.

As happened in North Africa (both sides recycled the enemies' tanks)
if you read the battle order for Trafalgar, the names in italics, are captured French ships- altho Foudroyant sounds pretty French to start off with. Recrewed with British crews I hasten to add.