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In the Royal Navy in the middle of the 18th century, the term Able Seaman (abbreviated AB) referred to a seaman with at least two years' experience at sea. Seamen with less experience were referred to as landmen or ordinary seamen.

In 1653 the Royal Navy introduced a new pay scale as part of reforms following defeat in the Battle of Dungeness the previous year. Included in these reforms were, for the first time, separate pay scales for more experienced seaman. It distinguished between an ordinary seaman and an able seaman. The higher ranked able seaman could steer, use the lead and work aloft, traditionally to “hand, reef, and steer.” An able seaman received about 25% higher pay than an ordinary seaman.

In time of war (such as the Seven Years' War or the Napoleonic Wars), with many more warships in service, the navy, merchant marine, and privateers competed ferociously for the limited pool of able seamen, leading to the unpopular use of impressment by the Royal Navy to keep its ships manned. In peacetime, with many fewer active warships, there was usually a surplus of unemployed able seamen willing to work in the navy. As late as the Napoleonic Wars, the Royal Navy's practice of stopping American ships to press American sailors, who may have been born British subjects, into involuntary service, was one of the main factors leading to the War of 1812 with the United States.

Some notable Able Seamen from the Royal Navy include:

• Simon (Amethyst's cat), ship's cat on HMS Amethyst, promoted to Able Seaman in the Royal Navy. Also said to have been promoted to "Able Seacat"
• Alistair MacLean, author
• Sir Fairfax Moresby, English admiral of the Fleet, entered the Navy as an AB
• William Charles Williams, recipient of the Victoria Cross
• George Hinckley, recipient of the Victoria Cross
• William Bligh, best known as "Captain Bligh" for the famous mutiny that occurred against his command aboard HMS Bounty, entered the Navy as an AB
• Admiral of the Fleet Sir Provo William Perry Wallis entered the Navy as an AB at age four
• William Alfred Savage, recipient of the Victoria Cross
• Albert Edward McKenzie, recipient of the Victoria Cross
• Edward Robinson (VC), recipient of the Victoria Cross
• Sir John Borlase Warren, 1st Baronet, English admiral, entered the Navy as an AB
• Michael Byrne (sailor), signed as an able seaman by Captain Bligh on the Bounty primarily to play the fiddle
• Matthew Quintal, able seaman and mutineer aboard HMS Bounty

	Ratings and Other Ranks of the British Armed Forces
	OR-1	OR-2	OR-3	OR-4	OR-5/OR-6	OR-7	OR-8	OR-9
Royal Navy:		AB		LH	PO	CPO	WO2	WO1
Royal Marines:		Mne	LCpl	Cpl	Sgt	CSgt	WO2	WO1
Army:	Pte	Pte	LCpl	Cpl	Sgt	SSgt / CSgt	WO2	WO1
Royal Air Force:	AC	LAC - SAC - Jnr Tech		Cpl	Sgt	Chf Tech - FS		WO / MAcr

In the Canadian Navy, Able Seaman (AB) is the second-lowest of the non-commissioned member ranks, ranking above Ordinary Seaman and below Leading Seaman. Able Seamen wear a single gold chevron, point down, as an insignia of rank; it is worn on the upper left sleeve of the Service Dress tunic, and on slip-ons on both shoulders on other uniforms.

Able Seaman is the equivalent rank to Private (Trained), or simply Private, in the Army and Air Force. In French the rank is called Matelot de 2e classe.

• N.A.M. Roger. The Wooden World: An Anatomy of the Georgian Navy. W.W. Norton and Company, 1986.
• N.A.M. Roger. The Command of the Ocean: A Naval History of Britain, 1649-1815 W.W. Norton and Company, 2004.