Hence the shipbuilding of the Netherlands was still highly appreciated at that time.
The increase in dimensions of the French fleet found its echo in the English fleet; the following are the characteristics of the latter fleet in 1706:
| NUMBER OF GUNS | 90 | 80 | 70 | 60 | 50 | 40 | ||||||
| ft. | in. | ft. | in. | ft. | in. | ft. | in. | ft. | in. | ft. | in. | |
| Length of gundeck | 192 | — | 136 | — | 130 | — | 144 | — | 130 | — | 118 | — |
| Breadth at midship frame | 47 | — | 43 | — | 41 | — | 38 | — | 35 | — | 32 | — |
| Depth of hold | 18 | 6 | 17 | 8 | 17 | 4 | 13 | 8 | 14 | — | 13 | 6 |
| Tonnage | 1552 | 1283 | 1069 | 914 | 705 | 532 | ||||||
Here is what HOLMES writes, p. 115: “The subject of the superiority in size of the French ships was constantly coming to the front and, in 1719, a new establishment was made for the dimensions of ships in our Royal Navy, according to the following scale:
| NUMBER OF GUNS | 90 | 80 | 70 | 60 | 50 | 40 |
| Increase of: | ||||||
| Length | 2 ft. | 2 ft. | 1 ft. | 0 | 4 ft. | 6 ft. |
| Breadth | 2 in. | 1 ft. | 6 in. | 1 ft. | 1 ft. | 1 ft. 2 in. |
| Tonnage | 15 | 67 | 59 | 37 | 51 | 63 |
In 1765, vessels were already met with carrying 100 guns, measuring 2047 tons and having already 21 ft. 6 in. depth of hold. HOLMES writes on this subject (pp. 124-128): “During the whole of our naval history down to comparatively recent times, improvements in the dimensions and forms of our ships were only carried out after they had been originally adopted by the French, or Spaniards, or more recently by the people of the United States of America.”
In 1719, the process which consisted of heating timbers at an open fire in order to bend them was adopted in England and, in 1736, they were smoked. (HOLMES, p. 115.) Ventilation was improved in 1753 (HOLMES, p. 117) and, in 1761 (HOLMES, p. 121), followed the invention of the process which consisted in covering ships with copper plates. Before this period, lead was used exceptionally for this purpose. Nearly one hundred years earlier, several vessels in Holland were covered in part or wholly with copper plates, as is shown by a passage from VAN YK’s work, De Nederlandsche Scheepsbouwkunst opengesteld, in which he says, p. 121: “Dat het schip on de zuid of west bestieren sal, heeft zy om den houtknagenden worm daarvan te keeren, stevenswaarts met koper doen bekleeden”[13].
Everything which precedes shows sufficiently how far superior the French and English fleets were to our own, about the middle of the XVIIIth century, in the size of their ships. But experience had demonstrated that the power of a fleet did not lie in numbers alone, but also in the intrinsic value of each ship (DE JONGE, Vol. IV, p. 86), just as Martin Harpertszoon Tromp had also, himself, declared some time before.
In order to give an idea of the extraordinary energy displayed by the United Provinces, it will be mentioned that from 1682 to 1700, hence in eighteen years, there were built 15 three-deckers of 90 to 96 guns each, 2 of 80 to 86, 2 of 70 to 74, 29 of 60 to 68, and 26 of 50 to 56 pieces of artillery, together with 2 frigates of 22 guns, 3 fire ships and 9 ketches, in all 107 vessels. Of this number, seven only were built outside of the provinces of Holland and Zeeland. (DE JONGE, Vol. II, pp. 72 to 75.)
Outside of this fleet of which the cost was defrayed by means of extraordinary credits, there were built during the same period, with ordinary credits, 65 other vessels, of which 7 were of 50 to 52 guns, 18 of 40 to 46, 17 of 30 to 38, 13 of 20 to 26, and 10 of 16 guns at least.