Capture des flutes Alcide et Lys en 1755 pres de Louisbourg

''En flûte'' (French: "as a

fluyt A fluyt (archaic Dutch language, Dutch: ''fluijt'' "flute"; ) is a Dutch type of sailing ship, sailing vessel originally designed by the shipwrights of Hoorn as a dedicated ship transport, cargo vessel. Originating in the Dutch Republic in the 16 ...

") is a French naval expression of the

Age of Sail The Age of Sail is a period in European history that lasted at the latest from the mid-16th (or mid-15th) to the mid-19th centuries, in which the dominance of sailing ships in global trade and warfare culminated, particularly marked by the int ...

to designate the use of a warship as a transport with reduced armament.Willaumez, p. 294 Some warships,

ships of the line A ship of the line was a type of naval warship constructed during the Age of Sail from the 17th century to the mid-19th century. The ship of the line was designed for the naval tactic known as the line of battle, which involved the two column ...

frigate A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied. The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and maneuvera ...

s, were occasionally used with limited artillery, by reducing the number and calibre of their guns. Since ships have a limited amount of cargo space, they may be armed ''en flûte'' to make room for other cargo, such as troops and ammunition, reducing the ship's ability to defend herself if attacked. The term emerged from the French name for a type of ship – the cargo-carrying ''flûte'' used extensively as a mercantile ship or as a naval auxiliary vessel. In turn this derived from the Dutch name ''

'', probably the most common type of cargo-carrier during the seventeenth century – when in English usage it was commonly rendered as a flyboat. This tactic was most relevant in the Age of Sail, when

gun deck The term gun deck used to refer to a deck aboard a ship that was primarily used for the mounting of cannon A cannon is a large-caliber gun classified as a type of artillery, which usually launches a projectile using explosive chemical prope ...

s took up most of the space on a warship above the

waterline The waterline is the line where the hull of a ship meets the surface of the water. A waterline can also refer to any line on a ship's hull that is parallel to the water's surface when the ship is afloat in a level trimmed position. Hence, wate ...

. Reducing the artillery of a ship of the line or a frigate entailed a dramatic saving in space, since the removal of certain guns meant that their gunners (and their equipment and provisions) were not needed. The size of the crew of a sailing warship was determined primarily by the number of guns on the ship, sometimes over 100, as each gun needed a crew of several men, and it might be necessary to have all the guns in action simultaneously. The number of men required to fight on board the ship was far higher than the number needed simply to sail it. A typical ship of the line armed ''en flûte'' would have her armament cut down to a quarter of her maximum, and could accommodate over 1,000 troops. For instance, leading up to the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War, 1756 to 1763, was a Great Power conflict fought primarily in Europe, with significant subsidiary campaigns in North America and South Asia. The protagonists were Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of Prus ...

, the French sent 3,000 troops to reinforce French Canada aboard a large squadron of ships-of-war. To make room for these troops, most of the ships were armed ''en flûte''. Mahan, A.T., ''The Influence of Sea Power upon History 1660-1783'' As an opposite, a ship fitted with her entire complement of sailors, guns and ammunition was said to be armed "''en guerre''" (French: "readied for war").

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* Naval warfare tactics Tactical formations {{Navy-stub

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