# Prize ships and crews in the wooden navy
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prize-ships-and-crews-in-the-wooden-navy/316598
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [August 11, 2005, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prize-ships-and-crews-in-the-wooden-navy/316598 "2005-08-11T15:57:44Z")
**Posts on this page:** 2
**Page:** 2
### Author:  [@Mk\_VII](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mk_VII)
#### Post date: [August 12, 2005, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prize-ships-and-crews-in-the-wooden-navy/316598/21 "2005-08-12T17:40:03Z")
after Trafalgar a gale blew up, which in fact destroyed more ships than the battle. Aboard the _Bucentaure_ the senior surviving French officers met and agreed to retake the ship, as she had broken her tow and was driving toward the shore. The prize crew was very small and had made no progress towards getting sail on her or making repairs. The English agreed to surrender, to save useless loss of life. A jury mast was rigged and the ship shaped course for Cadiz. Before arriving they struck a rock and began to sink, so another French ship took off everyone still alive on board.
On board the _Algesiras_ the prize crew also found themselves drifting onto the shore and the French lent a hand to rig a jury mast. The French officers informed the English that they proposed retaking the ship as they, as prisoners, had had a right to expect the protection of the British fleet and no tow had been provided. The ship would plainly be wrecked unless everyone pulled together. Whoever was in command there were only two places the ship could go, into Cadiz or onto the rocks. The English officers argued their case, and extracted a promise that the prize crew would be set free on reaching a Spanish or French port, which seems to have been honoured.
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### Author:  [@Raguleader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raguleader)
#### Post date: [August 13, 2005, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prize-ships-and-crews-in-the-wooden-navy/316598/22 "2005-08-13T17:06:20Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#):
>
> Beg to differ with you **Raguleader** , but since **Paul in Saudi** specifically says that the ship was rebelling in the English Channel, it’s clearly **Hornblower During the Crisis** he’s recalling.
>
> And I don’t know how yuou could first say that **Lieutenant Hornblower** didn’t have prisoner rebellions and then say in your spoiler box that the prisoners rebelled.
Except that both incidents happened in the English Channel, IIRC, and only the one in Midshipman Hornblower had him being captured. In The Crisis, he was part of a boarding party that boarded a French ship, sabotaged it, and then left before the French crew could rally against them.
And what I said about Lt. Hornblower was a bit too vague in reference to prisoner revolts. I meant that there was no prisoner rebellion on Hornblower’s prize ships. I then went on to talk about the prisoner rebellion that did happen on the Retribution. I should have been more clear in my pre-spoiler reference, I guess.
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