A smack was a

traditional fishing boat Traditionally, many different kinds of boats have been used as fishing boats to catch fish in the sea, or on a lake or river. Even today, many traditional fishing boats are still in use. According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Org ...

used off the coast of Britain and the Atlantic coast of America for most of the 19th century and, in small numbers, up to the Second World War. Many larger smacks were originally

cutter Cutter may refer to: Tools * Bolt cutter * Box cutter * Cigar cutter * Cookie cutter * Cutter (hydraulic rescue tool) * Glass cutter * Meat cutter * Milling cutter * Paper cutter * Pizza cutter * Side cutter People * Cutter (surname) * Cutt ...

-rigged

sailing boat A sailboat or sailing boat is a boat propelled partly or entirely by sails and is smaller than a sailing ship. Distinctions in what constitutes a sailing boat and ship vary by region and maritime culture. Types Although sailboat terminology ...

s until about 1865, when smacks had become so large that cutter main booms were unhandy. The smaller smacks retained the gaff cutter rig. The larger smacks were lengthened and re-rigged and new ketch-rigged smacks were built, but boats varied from port to port. Some boats had a

topsail A topsail ("tops'l") is a sail set above another sail; on square-rigged vessels further sails may be set above topsails. Square rig On a square rigged vessel, a topsail is a typically trapezoidal shaped sail rigged above the course sail and ...

on the

mizzen mast The mast of a sailing ship, sailing vessel is a tall spar (sailing), spar, or arrangement of spars, erected more or less vertically on the median plane, median line of a ship or boat. Its purposes include carrying sails, spars, and derricks, givi ...

, while others had a

bowsprit The bowsprit of a sailing vessel is a spar (sailing), spar extending forward from the vessel's prow. The bowsprit is typically held down by a bobstay that counteracts the forces from the forestay, forestays. The bowsprit’s purpose is to create ...

carrying a

jib A jib is a triangular sail that sets ahead of the foremast of a sailing vessel. Its forward corner (tack) is fixed to the bowsprit, to the bows, or to the deck between the bowsprit and the foremost mast. Jibs and spinnakers are the two main ty ...

. Large numbers of smacks operated in fleets from ports in the UK such as

Brixham Brixham is a coastal town and civil parish in the borough of Torbay in the county of Devon, in the south-west of England. As of the 2021 census, Brixham had a population of 16,825. It is one of the main three centres of the borough, along with ...

Grimsby Grimsby or Great Grimsby is a port town in Lincolnshire, England with a population of 86,138 (as of 2021). It is located near the mouth on the south bank of the Humber that flows to the North Sea. Grimsby adjoins the town of Cleethorpes dir ...

and

Lowestoft Lowestoft ( ) is a coastal town and civil parish in the East Suffolk (district), East Suffolk district of Suffolk, England.OS Explorer Map OL40: The Broads: (1:25 000) : . As the List of extreme points of the United Kingdom, most easterly UK se ...

as well as at locations along the Thames Estuary. In England the sails were white cotton until a proofing coat was applied, usually after the sail was a few years old. This gave the sails its distinctive

red ochre Ochre ( ; , ), iron ochre, or ocher in American English, is a natural clay earth pigment, a mixture of ferric oxide and varying amounts of clay and sand. It ranges in colour from yellow to deep orange or brown. It is also the name of the col ...

colour, which made them a picturesque sight in large numbers. Smacks were often rebuilt into steam boats in the 1950s. Smacks were developed to transport live lobsters during the late 1700s. They were designed to allow seawater to circulate in a tank with holes in it.

Military use

Smacks were used in British coastal waters during World War I as

Q-ship Q-ships, also known as Q-boats, decoy vessels, special service ships, or mystery ships, were heavily armed merchantman, armed merchant ships with concealed weaponry, designed to lure submarines into making surface attacks. This gave Q-ships the c ...

s. Actions involving smacks include the

action of 15 August 1917 The action of 15 August 1917 was a naval engagement which occurred during the First World War. The action was fought between a German U-boat (believed to be ) and two naval trawlers, ''Nelson'' and '' Ethel & Millie'', in the North Sea. Backgrou ...

, when the armed smacks ''

Nelson Nelson may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Nelson'' (1918 film), a historical film directed by Maurice Elvey * ''Nelson'' (1926 film), a historical film directed by Walter Summers * ''Nelson'' (opera), an opera by Lennox Berkeley to a lib ...

'' and ''Ethel & Millie'' engaged a German U-boat in the

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Denmark, Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. A sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Se ...

. During this action the ''Nelson'' was sunk and its skipper,

Thomas Crisp Thomas Crisp VC, DSC, RNR (28 April 1876 – 15 August 1917) was an English sailor and posthumous recipient of the Victoria Cross. Crisp, in civilian life a commercial fisherman operating from Lowestoft in Suffolk, earned his award after bein ...

, was posthumously awarded the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious decoration of the Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom, British decorations system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British ...

. Another

smack, HM Armed Smack ''Inverlyon'', commanded by Ernest Jehan, sank the German U-boat ''UB-4'' earlier in the war, the only example of a wooden sailing vessel sinking a modern steel submarine.

Current use

Some old smacks have been re-rigged into ketches and are now used as training boats for young sailors. Other smacks are preserved in museums or used as floating museums. The ''

Excelsior Excelsior may refer to: Arts and entertainment Literature and poetry * "Excelsior" (Longfellow), an 1841 poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow * "Excelsior", an 1877 picture book in verse by Bret Harte, published as an advertisement for the Sa ...

'' is an example of a preserved smack. Built in Lowestoft in 1921, she is a member of the

National Historic Fleet The National Historic Fleet is a list of historic ships and vessels located in the United Kingdom, under the National Historic Ships register. National Historic Ships UK is an advisory body which advises the Secretary of State for Culture, Media ...

and operates as a sail training vessel. ''Boadicea'' is another example of a well-preserved smaller smack. She was built in

Maldon, Essex Maldon (, locally ) is a town and civil parish on the Blackwater Estuary in Essex, England. It is the seat of the Maldon District and starting point of the Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation. It is known for Maldon Sea Salt which is produced i ...

, in 1808. The last working Class One East Coast Smack, ''

Britannia The image of Britannia () is the national personification of United Kingdom, Britain as a helmeted female warrior holding a trident and shield. An image first used by the Romans in classical antiquity, the Latin was the name variously appli ...

'', built in King's Lynn in 1914 and currently undergoing a restoration in Devon, was scheduled to be relaunched in April 2022 though that has been delayed. She was returned to the water in September of 2023, but restoration work continues. When complete, she will be used as a sail training vessel operating out of Cornwall.

References

{{fisheries and fishing Sailboat types Types of fishing vessels Tall ships

Military use

Current use

See also

References