English 2nd Rates I was really surprised how "high-charged" the James, and the other Jacobean and Carolean 2nd Rates were (the old Great Ships). For example, the James (as it was called during the First Anglo-Dutch War, and before), was a three-decker. There were only two complete tiers of guns, but there was a complete upper deck. According to Frank Fox, there were 13 gun ports on the lower tier, 12 on the upper tier, 3 ports, forward and 6 aft, above that. There were also 2 ports above that. That would accommodate 66 guns, which is what the James had at the end of the First Anglo-Dutch War. There were the three decks, a quarterdeck, forecastle, and poop. The head rails were low enough to allow a gun to fire forward from the beakhead bulkhead, on either side of the bowsprit. I just finished a drawing based on the Van de Velde drawings for the James, which is why this was brought to my attention.