At the top of the system were the first-rate ships, which featured over 100 guns arranged on three gun decks, manned by over 800 officers and men. Navy vessels were organized along a rating system that broadly defined their size and their use. In the later years of the war, the navy would be crucial in holding off the French, Spanish, and Dutch as the war spread across the globe. During the American Revolution, the navy played a critical role in supporting the Army’s attempts to crush the American rebellion, allowing the army to strike anywhere along the coast. Britain also relied on her navy to defend trade flowing in from her far-flung colonies. The navy served as Britain’s “wooden walls,” protecting the home islands from invasion by much larger continental powers. By the end of the war that number would nearly double as the navy expanded to meet the threat posed by other European powers fighting alongside the Americans. These ranged from massive ships-of-the-line to tiny sloops and coastal vessels. At the start of the American Revolution, the Royal Navy numbered over 250 vessels of all sizes.
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