The women of naval and military families were a unique group within eighteenth- century Britain. Like their male counterparts who enjoyed a fraternal relationship with their fellow officers, women were brought together in a sister-like way through their shared experience and membership of the naval and military communities. Although friendship was not inevitable, these communities often became something of an extended family for women, and indeed family connections within the army and navy were plentiful. The daughters and sisters of sailors, soldiers and officers often married into these communities. The cycle was further perpetuated; naval wives often became naval mothers and, as we saw in Chapter 3, many boys followed their fathers into the armed forces.2 Often separated from their husbands and/or families due to service at sea or abroad, naval wives in particular drew on the support of other naval and military men and women. They looked to other wives for solace, friendship and understanding. Women also relied on information and support from naval officers. Whilst correspondence played a key role in most elite and middle-class women's lives during this period, naval and military women were particularly dependent on it.