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This is the largest storage area on the ship, where up to 6 months worth of food and drink could be stored. Most of the provisions were stored in barrels. The largest of these were the water barrels, called leaguers. Each leaguer could hold 150 gallons (682.5 ltrs) of water.
| Amount of Water |
Number of Barrels |
Time Expected to Last |
| 355 tons/362 tonnes |
530 |
6 months |
| 380 tons/387 tonnes |
567 |
4 months |
The water leaguers were placed at the bottom because of their size. On top of these were stacked smaller barrels that held items such as salted meat, peas, sugar, vinegar and wine.
|
Type of Food |
Amount carried |
|
Salted Beef |
50 tons/51 tonnes |
|
Salted Pork |
45 tons/46 tonnes |
|
Peas |
15 tons/15.3 tonnes |
|
Butter |
2 tons/2.04 tonnes |
|
Beer |
50 tons/51 tonnes*
(11,200 gallons/50,960 ltrs) |
* The crew would drink this much in 2 weeks
Also in the Hold:
BALLAST ~ CHAIN PUMPS ~ ELM TREE PUMPS ~ SHOT LOCKERS
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 Ballast: All ships carry ballast in order to stay upright when floating in the water. Victory carried 2 types of ballast. Placed at the very bottom of the ship was 257 tons (262 tonnes) of pig iron (iron ingots). This was used to counter-act the weight of the great guns and masts. On top of this was placed approx. 200 tons (204 tonnes) of shingle. The shingle was used for two reasons: the barrels could be sunk into the shingle so that they did not move when the ship was at sea; it could also be moved around the hold in order to alter the trim of the ship as the food, water etc. was used up. This ensured that the ship remained level and upright in the water. Some of the empty barrels were also refilled with sea water to replace some of the lost weight as the provisions where used.
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 Chain Pumps: Centred around the bottom of the main mast, in the pump well, are the 4 chain pumps. Operated from the lower gun deck, they were used to pump out the bilge water that all ships collect. They were also used to pump out water if the hull had been holed (damaged). Together they could lift 120 tons (122 tonnes) of water over the side of the ship per hour.
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 Elm tree pumps: Also located at the bottom of the main mast, the 2 elm tree pumps supplied 'fresh' seawater for washing down the decks and fighting fires. Made from the trunks of elm trees they operated in a similar way to a simple village pump. One pump discharged onto the lower gun deck, while the other emptied out onto the upper gun deck. When working efficiently they could supply 25 gallons (113 ltrs) of water per minute.
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 Shot lockers: Either side of the pump well are 4 shot lockers. These held a total of 80 tons (82 tonnes) of shot (ammunition). A further 40 tons (41 tonnes) of shot was stored further forward near the grand magazine. This gave a total of 120 tons (122 tonnes) of shot. The shot was lifted onto the gun decks using whips. These were simple block and tackles, with a net or basket to carry the shot. At the Battle of Trafalgar Victory used 2669 round shot (cannon balls) that weighed a total of 27 tons (27.5 tonnes).
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HMS Victory 
