The Bomb Vessel: Shore Bombardment Ships of the Age of Sail

One of the first specialist warships, the bomb vessel was a floating siege engine carrying huge shell-firing mortars for the purposes of bombarding stationary targets, such as coastal towns, fortifications or harbours. For its time, it was a complex and high-tech weapons system, and was widely used by the British in every conflict between 1689 and the War of 1812. Because of their strength, bomb vessels played a major role in Arctic exploration.