Likewise, while not trying to split hairs, perhaps we need to more closely define who we are calling the 'crew'. I never meant to only concentrate attention on the common sailor on ships. We are in agreement that midshipmen and officers carried dirks in French/English/American crews. Who is to say what the officers of other navies carried (knives, navajas). When we see that some on these ships were likewise separate from the average sailor, such as the Royal Marine squads that served in the Tops and dispensed discipline on board, one can question what these soldier-types carried. On the Treasure Fleets, many of the Spaniards and Portuguese personnel on board were 'soldiers' and not crew. These men apparently always had their weapons at the ready to stave off pirate and enemy boarding. I will agree that knives on board ships was probably restrictive and not the rule, but I can't accept that they were non-existent in this setting-
Perhaps with more data in the future, I will feel confident to fully come aboard with the idea of "no knives, ever"-
