The three-decker force mix at Trafalgar

Trafalgar shows why ship ratings affected tactics rather than merely organizing fleet lists. Britain brought 27 ships of the line against 33 in the Franco-Spanish fleet. Its force included three first rates, four second rates, and twenty third rates. The seven British three-deckers therefore outnumbered the combined fleet's four despite the enemy's larger total battle line. That concentration of high gun decks gave the Royal Navy a reason to close the range, where they could fire down into two-deck opponents. First- and second-rate procurement produced a tactical advantage visible at the point of contact.