Man of War

The man-of-war is a British Royal Navy expression for a powerful warship or frigate from the 16th to the 19th century. The term often refers to a ship armed with cannon and propelled primarily by sails, as opposed to a galley which is propelled primarily by oars. The man-of-war was developed in England in the early 16th century from earlier round ships with the addition of a second mast to form the carrack. The 16th century saw the carrack evolve into the galleon and then the ship of the line.

 