<p>As an addition to my last history lesson, I will use a couple of quotes out of one of my books “The Military Experience in the Age of Reason” (Duffy) purely for additional historical knowledge, but mainly to get some reactions… ;)</p>
<p>“The English and Hessian soldiery had to concede that the sailors of the transports and warships were masters of their trade. Such was not always the case among the French, for the officers of Rochambeau’s expeditionary force (1780) were appalled by the professional ignorance of their naval opposite numbers, who seemed to know very little about navigation, basic geography or how to manage their ships”</p>
<p><em>cough</em></p>
<p>On the same note however, and made immediately before the previous statement…</p>
<p>“Altogether the English seamen were discovered to be a 'thieving, arrogant, debauched and drunken species of mankind, much given to profanity and swearing. They scarcely utter a a word without adding their favorite oaths ‘God d@mn my soul! God d@mn me!’ (Dohla, 1912, 95)”</p>