French Wars 1793-1815- Key Vocabulary
Agrarian revolution- term used to describe various improvements in crop growing and
livestock breeding in the 1700s
Bayonet- short sword fixed to the end of a musket or rifle that is used by infantry in close
combat
Broadsides- the firing of all the guns on one side of a ship simultaneously
Carronade- a short, large-calibre cannon of naval use
Cat-O’nine-tails- a whip with nine knotted tails
Comptroller of the navy- the person who headed the Navy Board and was responsible for
building and maintaining ships
Conscript- recruit serving in the army not by choice but obliged when ordered by
government
Continental system- a blockade designed by Napoleon to paralyse Britain
Convoys- groups of merchant ships sailing in formation and protected by warships
Coppering- covering a ship’s hull with copper sheeting to protect it from wear and tear
Cylon- modern day Sri Lanka
French revolution- used to describe the period 1789-94. These years saw the overthrow and
execution of King Louis XVI and an attempted destruction of the aristocracy
Flintock- a gunlock or gun with a flint from which a spark is struck to ignite gunpowder
Frigate- a warship in size and armament just below a ship of the line
Forecastle- the raised deck at the front of a ship
Government stocks- a bold sold by the government sold to offset its national debts-
regarded as a safe investment
Grapeshot- iron shot in a canvas bag that scattered widely when it was fired
Gunlock- the mechanism in some gun by which the charge is exploded
Hansard- the printed reports of debates in Parliament
Habeas Corpus- the legal procedure that prevents authorities from imprisoning people
indefinitely without trial
Headquarters- central planning and supply base where the commanding general laid plans
with his senior officers
Luddites- the people who destroyed Labour-saving machinery, 1811-12. They took their
name from a mythical leader- Ned Ludd
Marines- soldiers on board ships
Martello towers- small coastal forts built along the southern and eastern coasts of England
(and in Ireland and the Channel islands) against the threat of a French invasion
Mutiny- an open rebellion against authority, especially sailors or soldiers aginst their offices
Ordnance board- the government agency responsible for arms, armaments and munitions
Patronage- the process of bestowing jobs and offices
Pell-mell- an aggressive, confused head-to-head brawl
Petty officers- seamen who were not commissioned officers but had some authority
Privateers- private vessels commissioned to seize and plunder an enemy’s ships in wartime
Prize money- captured enemy ships were sold and money made allotted to the men.
Officers took the largest share but ordinary crewmen did receive some too
Reargued action- a defensive engagement by a small force of soldiers to hold off and delay a
pursuing enemy while the main army withdraws
Scurvy- a disease caused by Vitamin C deficiency
Agrarian revolution- term used to describe various improvements in crop growing and
livestock breeding in the 1700s
Bayonet- short sword fixed to the end of a musket or rifle that is used by infantry in close
combat
Broadsides- the firing of all the guns on one side of a ship simultaneously
Carronade- a short, large-calibre cannon of naval use
Cat-O’nine-tails- a whip with nine knotted tails
Comptroller of the navy- the person who headed the Navy Board and was responsible for
building and maintaining ships
Conscript- recruit serving in the army not by choice but obliged when ordered by
government
Continental system- a blockade designed by Napoleon to paralyse Britain
Convoys- groups of merchant ships sailing in formation and protected by warships
Coppering- covering a ship’s hull with copper sheeting to protect it from wear and tear
Cylon- modern day Sri Lanka
French revolution- used to describe the period 1789-94. These years saw the overthrow and
execution of King Louis XVI and an attempted destruction of the aristocracy
Flintock- a gunlock or gun with a flint from which a spark is struck to ignite gunpowder
Frigate- a warship in size and armament just below a ship of the line
Forecastle- the raised deck at the front of a ship
Government stocks- a bold sold by the government sold to offset its national debts-
regarded as a safe investment
Grapeshot- iron shot in a canvas bag that scattered widely when it was fired
Gunlock- the mechanism in some gun by which the charge is exploded
Hansard- the printed reports of debates in Parliament
Habeas Corpus- the legal procedure that prevents authorities from imprisoning people
indefinitely without trial
Headquarters- central planning and supply base where the commanding general laid plans
with his senior officers
Luddites- the people who destroyed Labour-saving machinery, 1811-12. They took their
name from a mythical leader- Ned Ludd
Marines- soldiers on board ships
Martello towers- small coastal forts built along the southern and eastern coasts of England
(and in Ireland and the Channel islands) against the threat of a French invasion
Mutiny- an open rebellion against authority, especially sailors or soldiers aginst their offices
Ordnance board- the government agency responsible for arms, armaments and munitions
Patronage- the process of bestowing jobs and offices
Pell-mell- an aggressive, confused head-to-head brawl
Petty officers- seamen who were not commissioned officers but had some authority
Privateers- private vessels commissioned to seize and plunder an enemy’s ships in wartime
Prize money- captured enemy ships were sold and money made allotted to the men.
Officers took the largest share but ordinary crewmen did receive some too
Reargued action- a defensive engagement by a small force of soldiers to hold off and delay a
pursuing enemy while the main army withdraws
Scurvy- a disease caused by Vitamin C deficiency
