Frigate, Sailing

A single-gun-deck cruising warship of the 18th and 19th centuries, full-rigged on three masts, carrying its main battery on one continuous covered deck. Rated below the ship of the line, frigates of roughly 28 to 44 guns served as the navy’s scouts, commerce raiders, convoy escorts, and dispatch vessels; Nelson called them the eyes of the fleet. British classification ran them as fifth and sixth rates. The American 44-gun heavy frigates such as USS Constitution (1797) carried 24-pounders and outmatched standard British frigates in the War of 1812.