The Articles of War were regulations of the Royal Navy that first appeared officially in 1652 and were revised in 1661, 1749, and 1866. They comprised a varied collection of admonitions and rules that dealt mainly with the misconduct of officers and were later expanded to seamen. The Articles of War were supposed to be posted in every ship of the Royal Navy and read once a month to the ship's company.

According to Falconer's Marine Dictionary (1815): "After reciting several acts of parliament relating to the government and discipline of the navy, and declaring them to be repealed, it [the Articles of War] states: That, for the regulating and better government of his Majesty's navies, ships of war, and forces by sea, whereon, under the good providence of God, the wealth, safety, and strength of this kingdom chiefly depend; be it enacted by the king's most excellent Majesty . . . [t]hat from and after the 25th day of December, 1749, the articles herein following, as well in time of peace as in time of war, shall be duly observed and put in execution, in manner herein after mentioned."

The Articles of War paraphrased:

Article One states that all commanders, captains, and officers shall cause the public worship of Almighty Cod, according to the liturgy of the church of England established by law, to be solemnly, orderly, and reverently performed in their respective ships; and shall take care that prayers and preaching be performed diligently and that the Lord's Day be observed according to law.

Article Two condemns profane oaths, cursings, execrations, drunkenness, uncleanness, and other scandalous actions "in derogation of God's honour, and corruption of good manners."

Article Three states that any person who "shall give, hold, or entertain intelligence to or with any enemy or rebel" without proper authority and is convicted by a court-martial will be punished by death.

Article Four states that any letter or message from the enemy or a rebel must be conveyed to a superior officer within 12 hours of the opportunity to do so.

Article Five condemns all spies and anyone who aids a spy or conspires to help an enemy or rebel.

Article Six states that no person in the fleet shall give an enemy or rebel money, victuals, powder, shut, arms, ammunition, or any other supplies whatsoever, upon pain of death or such other punishment as the court-martial shall think fit to impose.

Article Seven states that all original papers of any ship taken as a Prize must be preserved and delivered to the Court of Admiralty or other authorized commissioner to determine that the prize is a lawful capture.

Article Eight states that nothing should be removed from a prize, except to better secure it, until it is lawfully condemned.

Article Nine states that when any ship or vessel is taken as a prize, none of the officers, mariners, or others aboard her will be stripped of their clothes or in any way pillaged, beaten, or abused.

Article Ten condemns any Flag Officer, captain, or Commander who upon the likelihood of engagement fails to make the necessary preparations and encourage his inferior officers and men to fight courageously, and states that any person who treacherously or cowardly yields or cries for quarter will suffer death.

Article Eleven forbids any person to disobey orders of a superior officer in time of action.

Article Twelve condemns any person who through cowardice, negligence, or disaffection withdraws or stays back in time of action, or who does not do his utmost to take or destroy every ship that it is his duty to engage.

Article Thirteen forbids anyone because of cowardice, negligence, or disaffection not to pursue an enemy, pirate, or rebel or come to the aid of a friend.

Article Fourteen forbids any person in the fleet from delaying or discouraging an action or service "upon pretence of arrears of wages, or upon any pretence whatsoever."

Articles Fifteen and Sixteen set death as the punishment for deserters to the enemy and forbid any captain to harbor a deserter from another ship of the Royal Navy.

Article Seventeen commands all officers, seamen, arid ships convoying merchant ships to do so faithfully arid condemns any sort of extortion.

Article Eighteen forbids His Majesty's ships and their officers and men from receiving and transporting goods or merchandise for personal commercial purposes.

Articles Nineteen and Twenty forbid mutinous assembly, sedition, failure to report anyone who utters mutinous words, and contemptuous behavior to a superior officer.

Article Twenty-one orders that any "complaint of the unwholesomeness of the victuals, or upon other just ground," be quietly made known to a superior officer and that the officer should then do whatever is in his power to rectify the situation.

Article Twenty-two forbids quarreling with, striking, drawing a sword on, or offering to draw swords with a superior officer.

Article Twenty-three forbids quarreling and fighting between the men.

Article Twenty-four forbids the waste and embezzlement of a ship's stores and provisions.

Article Twenty-five sets as death the punishment for arson of anything not belonging to an enemy, pirate, or rebel.

Article Twenty-six orders the punishment of anyone who willfully or through negligence grounds or strands a ship.

Article Twenty-seven forbids sleeping on watch and negligence in performing duty.

Article Twenty-eight orders death as punishment for anyone convicted of murder.

Article Twenty-nine orders death as punishment of the "unnatural and detestable sin of buggery or sodomy with man or beast."

Article Thirty condemns any form of robbery. Article Thirty-one forbids any officer or other person in the fleet to make or sign a false muster or muster-book, to command someone else to make a false muster, or to aid or abet another person in making or signing such.

Article Thirty-two orders all provost-martials belonging to the fleet to apprehend criminals and detain prisoners as ordered to the best of their ability; all others in the fleet "shall do their endeavour to detect, apprehend, and bring to punishment all offenders, and shall assist the officers appointed for that purpose."

Article Thirty-three states that any flag officer, captain, commander, or lieutenant belonging to the fleet, convicted of behaving in a scandalous, infamous, cruel, oppressive, or fraudulent manner, unbecoming the character of an officer, shall be dismissed from His Majesty's service.

Articles Thirty-four and Thirty-five state that anyone "being in actual service and full pay, and part of the crew in or belonging to any of his Majesty's ships or vessels of war" is liable to trial by court-martial for offenses and to the corresponding punishment as if committed on board ship at sea.

Article Thirty-six states, "All other crimes not capital, committed by any person or persons in the fleet, which are not mentioned in this act, or for which no punishment is hereby directed to be inflicted, shall be punished according to the laws and customs in such cases used at sea."

Reproduced without permission from "Sea of Words"

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Last updated 19 May 1999