British numbers versus American heavy frigates

The Royal Navy's answer to frigate competition was not always to build the heaviest individual ship. It could sustain a large production run of regular frigates and retain its third-rate strength. The War of 1812 exposed the limit of the American heavy-frigate model because British ships of the line stationed off American harbours ended any prospect of challenging them with frigates. Britain commissioned additional fifth rates to counter privateers and protect global commerce, including movements of silver, while heavier units imposed the blockade. Tactical superiority within one class could not replace a balanced fleet's ability to control a maritime theatre.