Sea Skills: Knots and Ropework
During the Second World War, every sailor was expected to know their knots. A good knot could hold a boat alongside in a gale, secure a tow, hoist stores aboard or haul someone out of the water. A bad knot could slip, jam, or fail when it mattered most.
Knots are part of seamanship that has hardly changed in hundreds of years. The same basic knots you learn today were used by wartime crews in small boats, destroyers and merchant ships.
A few knots you should know
- Figure-of-eight knot – a simple stopper knot to stop a rope running out of a block or fairlead.
- Reef knot – used for joining two ends of the same rope, for example when tying a bundle or sail, but not safe for life-saving.
- Bowline – makes a fixed loop that will not slip and is often used for rescue lines or to secure a rope to a ring or post.
- Clove hitch – a quick way to fasten a rope to a post, bollard or spar.
In this game you will see simple cartoon knot diagrams and choose the best job for each one. Think like a wartime sailor: what is safe, what is quick, and what is likely to hold when the sea gets rough.
Knot Quiz
Look at the cartoon knot and read the hint. Choose the job it is best suited for. You can imagine yourself on a small escort vessel in 1944, working by dim red light and needing to get it right first time.
Knot diagram
These are cartoon-style diagrams, not perfect technical drawings. They are designed to give you the basic idea of the shape.
Click “Next knot” to begin.
What is this knot best for?
Challenge: use a real length of rope or string to copy each knot. Once you can tie it while looking at the screen, try tying it with your eyes closed, as if working in the dark on a rolling deck.