Q&A ยท 1:20:07-1:22:39

How the Royal Navy might have razeed Santisima Trinidad

The panel argues that the captured four-decker would likely lose two upper decks to become a more stable, heavily armed two-decker.

Question

How would Santisima Trinidad have changed if she joined the Royal Navy after Trafalgar?

Short answer

The Royal Navy would probably cut her from four decks to two, creating a more stable and still heavily armed razee.

Notes

Santisima Trinidad is treated as an unstable four-decker that the Royal Navy would probably cut down if it acquired her after Trafalgar. Removing two upper decks would save enough weight to improve stability substantially. The proposal retains the lower decks' heavy guns, creating a powerful third rate. A follow-up asks whether reducing four decks to three would count as a razee, but the answer favors taking the ship down to two decks for the greater weight saving. The discussion compares this with razee conversions that reduced two- or three-deckers to a single gun deck.