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British naval dominance during the age of sail

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97 points surprisetalk | 5 comments | 16 May 25 13:14 UTC | HN request time: 0.783s | source
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neonnoodle ◴[16 May 25 14:10 UTC] No.44005752[source]▶
APRIL 1805

NAPOLEON IS MASTER OF EUROPE.

ONLY THE BRITISH FLEET STANDS BEFORE HIM.

OCEANS ARE NOW BATTLEFIELDS.

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1. Lio ◴[16 May 25 14:31 UTC] No.44005972[source]▶
Master and Commander[1], I love that film and the series of books.

A detail I loved from both is that the French are treated with respect as formidable adversaries.

There's no love lost in battle but when either side are captured they generally treat each other well[2].

The other detail is the amount that the protagonists get permanently injured; burned, amputated, broken or just lost overboard. That happened, a lot and people just got on with it.

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Master_and_Commander

2. Maturin does get tortured in one of the books but we'll gloss over that.

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2. tclancy ◴[16 May 25 15:58 UTC] No.44006983[source]▶
Well yes, but the torture is outsourced to a villainous Spainiard!
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3. dghlsakjg ◴[16 May 25 16:26 UTC] No.44007296[source]▶
Maturin gets tortured because he is involved in “ungentlemanly or dishonorable” forms of warfare (phrased to avoid revealing a plotline).
4. turtlesdown11 ◴[16 May 25 17:49 UTC] No.44008090[source]▶
While the torture takes place in Spanish held Port Mahon in Mallorca, the torturers are unarguably French (Colonel Auger, Captain Dutourd, unnamed other Frenchmen).
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5. tclancy ◴[17 May 25 03:15 UTC] No.44011778{3}[source]▶
Ah my memory fails me. Thanks!