1693 Programme Group Explained

The 1693 Programme of fifth rates were derived from the 1689 programme vessels as demi-batterie ships. The concept was to have one tier of ordnance flush on the upper deck for use in all weathers on a freeboard of at least seven feet. The ordnance would be arranged with a minimum of ten gun ports on the upper deck. The lower deck would be provided with four ports for heavier guns that could only be used in calm weather. For added propulsion ten oar ports per side would be provided with a central loading port. Four 32-gun vessels to these specifications were ordered in early 1693 with three to be built by Contract and one in dockyard.^[1]

Design and specifications

As with most vessels of this time period only order and launch dates are available. The dimensional data listed here is the specification data and the acceptable design creep will be listed on each individual vessel. The gundeck was 103feet with a keel length of 85feet for tonnage calculation. The breadth would be 28feet with a depth of hold of 10feet. The tonnage calculation would be 354 tons (bm). The ships would be sail powered carrying a ship-rigged sail plan. Also there was a provision for ten oar ports per side located between the gun ports on the lower deck. Shoreham would be rebuilt to the 1719 establishment for 20-gun vessels. The establishment dimensions were 106feet with a keel length of 87feet for tonnage calculation. The breadth would be 28feet with a depth of hold of 9feet. The tonnage calculation would be 374 tons (bm).^[2] ^[3]

The gun armament initially was four demi-culverins^[4] ^[5] mounted on wooden trucks on the lower deck (LD) with two pair of guns per side. The upper deck (UD) battery would consist of between twenty and twenty-two sakers^[6] ^[7] guns mounted on wooden trucks with ten or eleven guns per side. The gun battery would be completed by four to six minions^[8] ^[9] guns mounted on wooden trucks on the quarterdeck (QD) with two to three guns per side. In the 1703 Establishment the old gun designations would be replaced by a system that designated the guns by the weight of shot fired. The demi-culverins would become known as 9-pounders, the sakers as 6-pounders and the minions as 4-pounders.^[10] Therefore, their armament as of 1703 for Shoreham and Sorlings would be listed as four 9-pounder guns on the lower deck (LD), twenty 6-pounder 19 hundredweight (cwt) guns on the upper deck (UD) with four 4-pounder 12 cwt guns on the quarterdeck (QD). For Scarborough (renamed Milford) and Winchelsea would be rerated as 36-gun vessels with an increase in the 9-pounders to eight guns. The 4-pounders would be removed in 1714.

Ships of the 1693 Programme Group


Builder	Launch date	Remarks
Thomas Ellis, Shoreham	6 January 1694	rebuilt as 1719 Establishment sixth rate in 1724 sold in June 1744
Woolwich Dockyard	3 March 1690	taken by French on 18 July 1694 retaken 15 February 1697 and renamed Milford Rebuilt at Deptford 1705 Wrecked Cape Corrientes, Cuba on 18 June 1720
Richard Barrett, Shoreham	19 March 1694	Taken by French 20 October 1705 Retaken February 1711 and sold
Mrs Ann Wyatt, Redbridge	13 August 1694	Taken by French 6 June 1706

References

Winfield (2009), British Warships in the Age of Sail (1603 – 1714), by Rif Winfield, published by Seaforth Publishing, England © 2009, EPUB
Winfield (2007), British Warships in the Age of Sail (1714 – 1792), by Rif Winfield, published by Seaforth Publishing, England © 2007, EPUB
Colledge (2020), Ships of the Royal Navy, by J.J. Colledge, revised and updated by Lt Cdr Ben Warlow and Steve Bush, published by Seaforth Publishing, Barnsley, Great Britain, © 2020, EPUB
Lavery (1989), The Arming and Fitting of English Ships of War 1600 – 1815, by Brian Lavery, published by US Naval Institute Press © Brian Lavery 1989,, Part V Guns, Type of Guns
Clowes (1898), The Royal Navy, A History from the Earliest Times to the Present (Vol. II). London. England: Sampson Low, Marston & Company, © 1898
Clowes (1898), The Royal Navy, A History from the Earliest Times to the Present (Vol. III). London. England: Sampson Low, Marston & Company, © 1898

Notes and References

Winfred 2009, Ch 5, The Fifth Rates, Vessels acquired from 16 December 1688, Fifth Rates of 32 and 36 guns, 1693 Programme
Clowes (1898), Chapter XXVI, page 9
Winfield (2007), Chapter 6, Sixth Rates, Sixth Rates of 20 or 24 guns, Vessels acquired from 1 August 1714, 1719 Establishment Group
Lavery (1989), Part V, Ch 18, culverins, page 101
A demi-culverin was a gun of 3,400 pounds with a four-inch bore firing a 9.5-pound shot with an eight-pound powder charge
Lavery (1989), Part V, Ch 18, Sakers, pages 102-103
A sacar or saker was a gun of 1,400 pounds with a 3.5-inch bore firing a 5.5-pound shot with a 5.5-pound powder charge.
Lavery (1989), Part V, Ch 18, Minion, page 103
A minion was a gun of 1,000 pounds with a 3.5-inch bore firing a 4-pound shot with a 4-pound powder charge.
Clowes (1898), Chapter XXII, page 248