“Drawn and Coloured in Drops of Blood”: Insights into Mortality, Injury, and Sickness amongst the Pathfinders of the British Royal Navy in the Late Eighteenth Century

My study of the conduct of hydrographic survey in support of frontline operations of the Royal Navy during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars and their tumultuous aftermath (1793–1823) amassed the records of over 350 mainstream officers and sailing masters. Such samples of seafaring personnel, backed up by detailed examination of records and correspondence, are rare. In this instance, they faced the same perils of conflict as their counterparts, but also acted as pathfinders in all the oceans of the world, braving waters where others might fear to venture. This latter aspect of their work was vital, for twice as many British warships were lost to shipwreck in the period than to enemy action. This article uses the original records, and other published sources, to assess how this sample of the mariners of the Royal Navy can throw light on the impact of mortality, injury, or disease on the seafaring world of the day, and particularly on fighting navies.