I was thinking about this the other day. Boats back then were made of wood and cloth, so how come enemy nations didn't send in a few die-hard loyalists to charge the docks and dump kerosene all over the inside?
Even if they couldn't get the boat on fire, couldn't they at least burn the sails down to hinder an attack for a few days?
I'm far from an expert on history, but I can't imagine their fire fighting equipment would be much to stop a boat that's on fire. If it is, what would the response time be? There were no phones or anything so by the time they got to the blaze wouldn't it be out of control?
I know that fire ships existed, but those were utilised on the water. (I think...please correct me if I'm wrong!) I'm specifically asking about boats that are docked at one place, which would make it easy pickings for a few guys or gals to burn down.
Thanks, and sorry if this is a "duh!" question! Genuinely curious!
You are thinking along the right track--it was a real tactic for fire-ships to be sent into ports holding hostile fleets. This was done on at least two famous occasions--during the Spanish Armada (which didn't burn any ships but did scatter the fleet) and during the Dutch raid on the Medway in 1667. Obviously fleets in port made great targets for fire-ships, so this was a viable tactic if it was thought that the potential results justified facing the port's defences.