Close Combat: “Boarding Axes” & Naval Warfare

Oct 15

Written in conjunction with Charles Johnson, Erie Maritime Museum Educator

According to the ICRC, the act of naval warfare is defined as “tactics of military operations on, under, or over the sea”. With that said, we humans have been contemplating and exacting violence upon one another since the earliest days of our existence. This includes take our arguments out to the many seas, oceans, rivers, and lakes around the world. Since the earliest recorded naval battle in human history, the concept has remained, more or less, the same. As the old saying goes, “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”. Essentially, opposing warships would sail toward one another, projectiles of various sizes and shapes would then be launched, and boarding would most likely ensue. Examples of this stretch deep into the annals of human history. Historian Barry Strauss in The War That Made the Roman Empire stated that “the standard Roman warship…carried up to 120 legionaries. Those soldiers aimed to board, fight, and win control of the enemy vessels.” It seems that, much like Oliver Hazard Perry and his contemporaries, Roman naval commanders were focused on assuming control of their enemy ships - not sinking them.

What Is Boarding?

*Boarding of TRITON*, by Ambrose Louise Garneray - Courtesy of Royal Museum, Greenwich

Naval History and Heritage Command, *“Boarding and Taking the American Ship Chesapeake”*

In the years leading up to stronger hulls and more precise artillery, boarding served as a key element to engagements on the sea. The goal was relatively easy - naval officers sought to capture enemy ships for profit or purpose. It would have been a travesty to let a prize ship sink to the depths. This is where disabling of enemy warships came into play. With this, hand-to-hand combat would, more often than not, transpire. In the introduction of On War, On Board, a collection of essays on perspectives of “maritime violence and warfare”, editor Johan Ronnby wrote, “the practice of hand-to-hand combat can be said to be characterized by a distinctive properties…generally, [it] has revolved around two overarching concerns, namely boarding and anti-boarding”.

Boarding tactics were a primary offensive tool in a commander’s arsenal. Ronnby defines this method as “a forceful, non-consented entry aboard a ship which carried out with the intention of defeating the crew or taking control of their vessel [and] cargo.” Anti-boarding, unsurprisingly can be defined as the prevention of boarding and defense of their ship.

We know the basics of what boarding is but, how was it done. In the Epitoma rei militaris, written by Publius Flavius Vegetius Renatus in the 4th or 5th century BCE, it is stated:

Land warfare requires many types of arms; but naval warfare demands more kinds of arms, including machines and torsion-engines as if the fighting were on walls and towers. What could be crueler than a naval battle, where men perish by water and by fire? Therefore, protective armor should be a particular concern, so that soldiers may be protected with cataphracts, cuirasses, helmets and also greaves. No one can complain about the weight of armor, who fights standing on board ships. Stronger and larger shields are also taken up against the impact of stones.

Centuries later, technology led to even more bloodshed. By the time the War of 1812 came around - the boarding axe had most definitely become of the more important parts of every wooden ship’s equipment and that’s certainly true during the Naval War of 1812 on the Great Lakes.

Boarding Axes

Boarding Axe - Erie Maritime Museum. Collections ID: FN2002_5_1

The design of boarding axes varies from country to country, and does evolve over time. As common with most, if not all, designs are the following characteristics: a curved blade, a significant spike, and a long wooden shaft - given that these are meant to be wielded with two hands. They are known for their use as a naval combat tool, used to physically disable your opponent’s vessel.

The boarding axe was not designed for hand-to-hand combat, although it could be. A boarding axe is actually a pretty versatile tool. In a naval boarding action, it can be used to cut through nets and lines set to prevent you and your better-armed shipmates from boarding in the first place. They can cut through the lanyards that hold gun ports open, making it almost impossible for your enemy to run out their cannon to fire. And once on board, you can use the boarding axe to cut the enemy ship’s rigging, making it impossible for them to maneuver. That said, you still would not want to startle someone carrying one of these in his hands. The Erie Maritime Museum is fortunate to have these five examples of boarding axes and axe heads on exhibit.

British Pattern Boarding Axes

These two examples are British, as you can see from the broad arrow and letters marking them as Board of Ordnance. They were referred to as “tomahawk”, a name clearly influenced by indigenous North American people. They may date from the 18th Century through the first half of the 19th Century – without a marker’s mark to help narrow down the dates made, or information about where these were found, it’s difficult to say, but these are appropriate to represent what was still in use during the War of 1812. Except for a ¼ inch difference in width, they are almost identical. This tomahawk design remained essentially the same until replaced in 1859.

The American Model 1797 “Type 1”

The fledgling United States Navy is using very much the same design as the British, but at the very end of the 18th Century and through the War of 1812, our Navy makes significant changes to the design of the boarding axe. This boarding axe head, referred to as Model 1797 “Type 1” shows design innovation – it incorporates two teeth, facing the shaft behind the bottom section of the blade, and a rear spike that’s longer and thicker, almost square in cross-section. Unlike the two British examples just seen, this head does not have langlets to secure the head to its shaft. Once in place, a wedge would have been driven into the top of the shaft, widening it to tightly fit the socket of the axe head. The blade bears a “US” mark within a square.

This Model 1797-type boarding axe was seen in underwater photos of HAMILTON and SCOURGE, two US Navy vessels sunk in bad weather on Lake Ontario in August of 1813, so it is documented to be in use on the Great Lakes.

“Type 3” US Navy Boarding Axe

This Type 3 US Navy boarding axe shows further design development. A single tooth is cut into the bottom of the axe blade, facing downward, and the spike is narrower with more of a downward curve. This model uses langlets secured by three rivets to hold the blade to the shaft, but they are a separate piece attached to a socket that holds the head in place. In the earlier Model 2, as with the British tomahawk, the langlets are a part of the head. This blade is marked “US”, with “N.Y.W.” below to indicate that it was made in the Washington Navy Yard. Below that are the initials “J.T.” for Captain Joseph Tarbell, US Navy Inspector of Arms from 1798 to 1815

A Murky Discovery

Finally, we have our fifth piece, discovered by a mud dredge in a channel off Kelly’s Island, Ohio, near the site of the Battle of Lake Erie. While its location found would imply that it could be a part of the equipment on either the British or American squadrons in the Battle of Lake Erie, further research is needed, as this boarding axe head’s silhouette very much resembles the British 1859 design.

The boarding axe is proven to be a formidable tool in action, but in truth, it seems to be even more important in the after action. Prior to any possible boarding action, various objects shot from your opponent’s cannon were also designed to bring down your ship’s masts and rigging, creating dangerous debris on your deck or a sea anchor dragging behind and hampering mobility. Masses of ropes and canvas needed to be cleared, and the curved blade of the boarding axe helped cut these masses effectively. The rear spike grabbed into tangles and with its long shaft, gave needed leverage to quickly drag debris away.

*Illustration by William Gilkerson, used with permission*

And finally, we must remember the danger of fire on board a ship. Made of wood, rope, and canvas, dressed with highly combustible paints, tars, tallows and oils, and carrying a magazine full of gunpowder, the ships from this era are a small spark away from conflagration on any day.

The value of a boarding axe as a fire suppression tool made it invaluable on all ships – perhaps it’s time to recognize a most dangerous weapon as an irreplaceable tool, recognizable today on any fire truck.