RN Signal Books

[Nascent Engineer]

Have any signal books of the period been reprinted? I know that "Captain repair on board immediately" would have been a code of two or three flags rather than spelled out. Does anyone know how large the signal flags were? My great-grandfather was aboard USS Lexington when she was attacked and sank in WWII, and he thinks her signal flags were about six feet square.

[Mark Arbour]

Have any signal books of the period been reprinted? I know that "Captain repair on board immediately" would have been a code of two or three flags rather than spelled out. Does anyone know how large the signal flags were? My great-grandfather was aboard USS Lexington when she was attacked and sank in WWII, and he thinks her signal flags were about six feet square.

 

Alright, I have a confession to make. The signalling abilities we're seeing in this series may not actually be possible until the release of Home Popham's Signal Book in 1803. Prior to that, signals were designed for transmitting orders, not information. I've allowed myself this bit of anachronism.