Was doing some reading last night on HMS Victory. It was estimated it had cost around 1000 oak trees to construct Victory. With each tree taking up to 100 years to mature and 14 years to treat. Of course I understand Victory was a first rate ship, one of the largest of its time and it was built 10 years before napoleon was even born. But there must have been many ship of the line, frigates and other war ships built during this era, so can anyone shed some light on subject? Did europe experience a shortage of shipping building material, mainly oak after the wars? Thank you.
This is from Patrick O'Brien's "Men-of-War:"
"A 74(Third Rate) needed some 2,000 oak trees to be built- 57 acres of forest. In the 1790s England could supply much of the wood, but as the years went by the forest began to look very thin... at least half the timber had to be imported."
I know a lot of the imported wood came from the Americas. Canada imported quite a bit of timber to England during the Napoleonic. Additionally, the masts had to be imported as they were made from Fir trees.
I know there was a booming trade for wood in the Baltic states and Russia. Russia was also notorius in defying Napoleon's 'Continental Blockade' of English trade and commerce.