Royal Navy, Ranks and Positions
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warrant_officer

The warrant officer corps began in the 13th century in the nascent English Royal Navy. At that time, noblemen with military experience took command of the new Navy, adopting the military ranks of lieutenant and captain. These officers often had no knowledge of life on board a ship—let alone how to navigate such a vessel—and relied on the expertise of the ship's Master and other seamen who tended to the technical aspects of running the ship. As cannon came into use, the officers also required gunnery experts.

These sailors became indispensable to the running of the ship and were rewarded with a royal warrant. The warrant was a special designation, designed to set them apart from other sailors, yet not violate the class system that was prevalent during the time.

Nevertheless, while the class distinctions embodied by the distinction between commission and warrant were important at Court and in society both at home and abroad, on board ship a person's status has always depended more on the practical importance of the job that he did rather than the formalities of commission or warrant. Admiralty commissions were therefore never accorded the unique status that the Queen's commission holds in the Army, and in the hierarchy of a Royal Navy ship important warrant officers such as the Master would outrank commissioned officers such as the marine Lieutenants.

Originally, warrant officers were as described at the top of this article: specialist professionals whose expertise and authority demanded formal recognition. They eventually developed into three categories:

• Wardroom warrant officers
• Standing warrant officers
• Lower-grade warrant officers

Wardroom Warrant Officers

Wardroom warrant officers, formerly called "Warrant Officers of Wardroom Rank", were accorded the same privileges as commissioned officers.

• The Master, like a master of a merchant ship, responsible for the navigation and general sea-handling of the ship.
• The Surgeon
• The Chaplain
• The Purser, responsible for the provisioning of the ship.

It may be noted that the positions listed above are equivalent to commissioned positions in the modern Royal Navy (i.e. navigating officer, surgeon, chaplain and supply officer).

Standing Warrant Officers

The standing warrant officers generally remained with the ship even when she was out of commission, and often were involved in the initial fit-out.

• The Boatswain, (pronounced bo'sun) responsible, under the master, for the rigging, sails and anchors of the ship.
• The Carpenter
• The Gunner, responsible for the maintenance of the guns, but not the actual firing of them.

The carpenter was rendered obsolete with the end of wooden sailing ships, but the roles of boatswain and the gunner in the Royal Navy are now carried out by commissioned officers.

Lower-Grade Warrant Officers
Below the standing warrant officers were various warrant officers, such as the Master-at-Arms, the Sailmaker and the Armourer, although in the hierarchy of the ship these warrant officers might be junior to others who did not hold formal warrants, such as the master's mates or the midshipmen.

Drunkenness was a big problem in the navy, contributing to a large percentage of the floggings ordered. The men were entitled to a gallon of beer per day, this was small beer and not very alcoholic, in addition to this they received a half pint rum ration per day, with which, along with tobacco, they might hope to alleviate some of the tedium of life at sea. The rum ration was mixed with water to make grog and was issued twice a day. Hoarding your ration was a serious offence, but it was still common. As was smuggling of spirits, especially in home ports, the bumboatmen and women who visited the ships could be relied on for a regular supply.
It doesn't take a great leap of imagination to see that the amount of alcohol available to the men must have been a contributory factor to the number of men dying of individual accidents. And the incidence of insanity in the navy was far higher than in the population as a whole. Given the work they did in dangerous conditions, falling, crush injuries and being drowned were almost unavoidable consequences for the unwary.

As can be seen in the picture, women were permitted on board ships when they were in port (where discipline was considerably more relaxed), although this was at the captains discretion. In theory the women were supposed to be the sailors wives and were signed on board by the seaman, who were responsible for their conduct. In practice the majority of the women who came on board were prostitutes and to some of the more puritanical seamen and officers the scenes below deck, where there was no privacy, were shocking and disgusting. When the Prince was in dock in Portsmouth one eyewitness reports that 450 women came on board, and only 50 were actually wives of sailors serving on the ship.
At sea Admiralty regulations forbade the carrying of women, however as with many regulations this was often ignored. Estimates vary as to the numbers of women actually at sea with the fleet, but the wives of important members of the ships company, such as the gunner and the carpenter were often found on board ship. Children were also at sea, the youngest boy at the battle of Trafalgar was just eight years old, and his nine year old friend had been born at sea.

Who were the first pirates?

Pirates have existed since ancient times. They threatened the trading routes of ancient Greece, and seized cargoes of grain and olive oil from Roman ships.

Were pirates sometimes known by other names?

Yes. Pirates were sometimes known as corsairs or buccaneers.

Who were the corsairs?

Corsairs were pirates who operated in the Mediterranean Sea between the 15th and 18th centuries. Muslim corsairs, such as the daring Barbarossa (red beard) brothers, had bases along the Barbary coast of north Africa. They built many strong fortresses to defend the Barbary ports of Algiers, Tripoli and Tunis. Christian corsairs were based on the island of Malta. Muslim and Christian corsairs alike swooped down on their targets in swift oar-powered boats called galleys to carry off sailors and passengers. Unless these unfortunates were rich enough to pay a ransom, they were sold as slaves or put to work as oarsmen on the corsair galleys.

Who were the buccaneers?

In the 17th century, buccaneers lived on the Caribbean island of Hispaniola and its tiny turtle-shaped neighbour, Tortuga. At first, they lived as hunters, and shot wild pigs with their long-barrelled muskets. Their name came from the special wooden huts called boucans where they smoked their meat.

Later, the governors of Caribbean islands such as Jamaica paid the buccaneers to attack Spanish treasure ships and ports. Some of the largest scale raids were led by the Welsh captain, Sir Henry Morgan. Although raids began in this way, with official backing, the buccaneers gradually became more and more out of control, eventually attacking any ship they thought carried valuable cargo, whether it belonged to an enemy country or not. The buccaneers had become true pirates.

Why did so many pirates operate in the Caribbean Sea and off the coast of America?

The explorer Christopher Columbus established contact between Europe and the lands that were later named America at the end of the 15th century, while searching for a quick route to the east.

As he was working for the king and queen of Spain, these 'new lands' were claimed by the Spanish, who soon discovered them to be a rich source of silver, gold and gems. From the 16th century, large Spanish ships, called galleons, began to sail back to Europe, loaded with precious cargoes that pirates found impossible to resist. So many successful pirate attacks were made that galleons were forced to sail together in fleets with armed vessels for protection.

As Spanish settlers set up new towns on Caribbean islands and the American mainland, these too came under pirate attack.

Why were pirate attacks so often successful?

Pirate ships usually carried far more crew than ordinary ships of a similar size. This meant they could easily outnumber their victims. Pirates altered their ships so that they could carry far more cannon than merchant ships of the same size. Stories about pirate brutality meant that many of the most famous pirates had a terrifying reputation, and they advertised this by flying various gruesome flags including the 'Jolly Roger' with its picture of skull and crossbones. All these things together meant that victims often surrendered very quickly. Sometimes there was no fighting at all.

Why was the pirate Blackbeard particularly feared?

As well as being heavily armed with knives, cutlasses and pistols, Blackbeard tried to make himself look especially fearsome in order to intimidate his victims. He had wild eyes and a mass of thick tangled hair. Into his hair he twisted pieces of fuse which he set alight during battles, so that his face was surrounded with smoke to create an even more terrifying image.

What sort of booty did pirates seize?

The most precious prizes were chests of gold, silver and jewels. Coins were especially popular because pirate crews could share them out easily. Coins were far more likely to be made of silver than gold, because ten times as much silver was mined in America, but wealthy passengers were sometimes robbed of gold doubloons they brought with them from Spain.

Emeralds and pearls were the most common jewels that were mined in America and provided rich plunder. However, pirates did not only seize precious cargoes like these. They also wanted things they could use, such as food, barrels of wine and brandy, sails, anchors and other spare equipment for their ship, and essential tools such as those belonging to the ship's carpenter and surgeon.

Were there any women pirates?

Yes, but only a few. Two of the most famous were Anne Bonny and Mary Read. It was against pirates' rules for women to be on board ship, so they disguised themselves by dressing up in men's clothes.

They each joined the crew of a ship in the West Indies led by 'Calico' Jack Rackham. They took part in many attacks, and fought as fiercely as all the other pirates. Eventually, the crew were all captured in 1720, put on trial in Jamaica, and sentenced to death. Anne Bonny claimed that Rackham would not have been hung like a dog if he had fought like a man!

Although the two women pirates were sentenced to death, they escaped execution when they revealed in court that they were both pregnant.

Mary Read died of fever in prison before her baby was born, but no-one knows what happened to Anne Bonny, for no records exist of her life after her trial.

How did governments fight back against the pirates?

Successful pirate attacks became so frequent and troublesome that governments were forced to take strong action. In the 18th century, they sent heavily armed naval warships to the pirates' favourite hunting grounds. Terrible battles were fought, during which some of the most famous pirates, such as Bartholomew Roberts and Blackbeard were killed. Other pirates were captured and put on trial, and were then executed amidst great publicity. Bodies were coated with tar and hung in special iron cages as a dreadful deterrent to others thinking of taking up piracy.