Editing Cruiser (section)

==Early history==
The term "cruiser" or "cruizer"<ref>The alternative spelling could be found at least as late as 1900: [[John Fisher, 1st Baron Fisher|Jackie Fisher]] wrote "We a require an increase.... in all classes of cruizer" in a letter dated 20th Feb 1900. Mackay, R. ''Fisher of Kilverstone'', p. 242.</ref> was first commonly used in the 17th century to refer to an independent warship. "Cruiser" meant the purpose or mission of a ship, rather than a category of vessel. However, the term was nonetheless used to mean a smaller, faster warship suitable for such a role. In the 17th century, the [[ship of the line]] was generally too large, inflexible, and expensive to be dispatched on long-range missions (for instance, to the Americas), and too strategically important to be put at risk of fouling and foundering by continual patrol duties.<ref>{{Cite book|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Fp63wWByImQC&q=cruiser+etymology&pg=PA80|title=The Language of Sailing|last=Mayne|first=Richard|date=2000|publisher=Taylor & Francis|isbn=978-1-57958-278-4|pages=80|language=en|chapter=cruiser}}</ref>

The [[Dutch navy]] was noted for its cruisers in the 17th century, while the [[Royal Navy]]—and later French and Spanish navies—subsequently caught up in terms of their numbers and deployment. The British [[Cruiser and Convoy Act]]s were an attempt by mercantile interests in Parliament to focus the Navy on commerce defence and raiding with cruisers, rather than the more scarce and expensive ships of the line.<ref>[[Rodger, N. A. M.]]: ''The Command of the Ocean, A Naval History of Britain 1649–1815''. Allen Lane, London, 2004. {{ISBN|0-7139-9411-8}}</ref> During the 18th century the frigate became the preeminent type of cruiser. A frigate was a small, fast, long range, lightly armed (single gun-deck) ship used for scouting, carrying dispatches, and disrupting enemy trade. The other principal type of cruiser was the sloop, but many other miscellaneous types of ship were used as well.