These numbers are from the second volume of Glete*, pages 396-400. The number represents ships of the line (for most countries 64 guns and above), in commission, in reduced commission (limited manning; not fitted out for sea), or in ordinary (not manned) at five-year intervals. The numbers represent the strengths at the END of the year. Thus, the 1805 column is the strength after Trafalgar.
-Mark Hayes
| Nation | 1790 | 1795 | 1800 | 1805 | 1810 | 1815 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Great Britain | 130 | 123 | 127 | 135 | 152 | 126 |
| France | 73 | 56 | 44 | 41 | 46 | 52 |
| Spain | 72 | 76 | 66 | 40 | 28 | 16 |
| Russia-Baltic | 51 | 50 | 54 | 35 | 25 | 33 |
| Russia-Black | 7 | 11 | 13 | 12 | 10 | 15 |
| Denmark | 32 | 30 | 28 | 20 | 2 | 2 |
| Sweden | 16 | 13 | 14 | 12 | 13 | 13 |
| Holland | 48 | 28 | 16 | 15 | 13 | 19 |
| Portugal | 11 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 11 | 11 |
We can treat the raw numbers as a relative index of European seapower. Dividing by 12, the number of game-squadrons is as follows (remember, the '1805' column is AFTER the Fall 1805 turn):
| Nation | 1790 | 1795 | 1800 | 1805 | 1810 | 1815 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Great Britain | 11 | 10 | 11 | 11 | 13 | 11 |
| France | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 |
| Spain | 6 | 6 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| Russia-Baltic | 4 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 3 |
| Russia-Black | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Denmark | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Sweden | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Holland | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Portugal | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
Historically speaking, each squadron represents 12 ships of the line, not all of which are necessarily ready to sail at any given time. The actual number of ships of the line represented by one of the game's squadron counters is 8 to 10 under sail and the balance in port (reduced commission or in ordinary).
Note that Britain (and early on, Spain as well) had to maintain ships on global trade routes. In 1805, for example, Britain had two squadrons in the Western Hemisphere, and perhaps one or two squadrons in the far east, and these must be deducted from the totals above.
[Note too that all calculations in last month's newsletter were based upon 24 ships of the line per counter, and so they were all off by a factor of 0.5.]
Many thanks, Mark, for responding to the request for data in the last issue!
* Navies and Nations : warships, navies and state building in Europe and America, 1500-1860 by Jan Glete. Stockholm : Almqvist & Wiksell International, c1993.
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