fore and aft= front and back
port=left side, starboard= right side.
Boarding axes have been discussed on the forum before.
Both axes are fire axes, as I mentioned at the end of my post. Both descended from boarding axes.
The english and French kept their languettes on the same side as their boarding axes had once had, despite any earlier military connotations or then current fire service use..
The penchant for targeting each nations enemy ships in the hull or the rigging is/was well known, as was the english habit of boarding to capture and force surrender, as opposed to the stand-off, disable and board after surrender used by the French.
The English axes thus had side languettes as they were more likely to be used in combat, while the french ones had the front/rear ones as they were more likely to be used to clear wreckage of broken spars, lines, timbers, etc. o protect the haft from overstriking.
Just more ammo for what you said too.
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