The Royal Navy rating system and fleet mass

The familiar rate labels form a Royal Navy system, illustrated here through the service's distribution in 1794 and 1814. In 1794 the totals include five first rates and nine second rates against seventy-one third rates and seventy-eight fifth rates; by 1814 the comparable figures were seven, eight, 103, and 134. At the lower end, the listed sloops of war rise from 76 to a theoretical 360, though the later category may include some larger gun brigs and brigs. Small ships could also be hired, captured, or taken up from trade, making their real strength less tidy than a formal table suggests. The pattern is a high-low fleet: scarce prestige ships, a large third-rate battle-line core, abundant frigates, and numerous small craft. Admiral Robert Calder's departure with a second rate before Trafalgar shows why losing even one rare heavy ship carried political as well as operational weight.