So why was the Constitution attacking British shipping in 1798? Then it was jolly nice of us to reprovision her in Jamaica.

Does anyone really believe that someone anyone could drink well over 180 gallons of spirits (plus the wine) in an eight months cruise?

Mouldy - at the time nearly all the cabins were made of temporary partitions which were struck into the hold on 'clearing for action'. These 'replica' ships can't be that accurate because of modern safety regulations, which is fair enough.

You can get a better idea of what conditions would have been like by visiting the preserved warships, such as HMS Trincomalee at Hartlepool. Our American friends may be interested to know that she was a sister ship of HMS Shannon (Leda class 38gun frigate)

Trincomalee