General Quarters - Beat To Quarters

Beat To Quarters

Historically, a drum pattern called the "beat to quarters" was played to signal the crew. The original ship's bell signal for Beating to Quarters was a rapidly rung bell 5 times, at 5 second repeats. Today, the GQ alarm is a rapidly repeating electronic klaxon bell rung in the same or a similar manner. There are different klaxon signals for different conditions. For example, a chemical-warfare signal (requiring the crew to don gas masks) is a high-pitched solid whistle in the United States Navy, and a klaxon indicates combat stations, battle ensuing. The original "Beat to Quarters" drum signal was a three-second drum roll with two beats in between the rolls, i.e., tap tap roll tap tap roll, etc.

Upon signal, crew cleared the main gun deck(s) by taking all extraneous gear and equipment and stowing it down in the hold. All the cannons were primed with gunpowder and loaded with the proper type of ammunition (roundshot, chainshot, barshot, canister shot/caseshot, or grapeshot), depending on the situation at hand as determined by the ranking officer. It was common during times of war for all ships to "beat to quarters" shortly before dawn, as enemies might be sighted during sunrise. Drum beats were replaced in the 20th century by klaxons or bells.

General Quarters, or Beating to Quarters, is called whenever the ship or crew may face danger beyond what is necessarily expected of them during life at sea (but the call may also be sounded when the ship is anchored, in harbor and/or tied to a dock). Quarters are called during storms, battles, and random sightings in the fog, because the general philosophy is that of preparedness. If a ship is to face the danger of the elements and should happen upon an enemy, it is much better to be prepared.

All crew members are assigned their general quarters upon being accepted as a aboard even a modern naval vessel, with emphasis on where to go and what to do when the call is sounded (see below). When GQ is called, all crewmembers must drop what they are doing, stow any non-battle related gear and/or non-emergency action gear and report to their general-quarters station. Then a roll is called and duties are assigned according to the situation requiring the GQ alarm. It is of utmost importance that each crewmember not only report immediately to their general quarters/battle station assinment, but that no one restrict the movement of any other crew member who is in the process of doing the same. The senior person at each location aboard the ship must ascertain who is present and who is not as a way to account for casualties (wounded, missing or dead crewmembers, men overboard, etc). This is especially important in view of sealing off certain portions of the ship to prevent water damage, fire, smoke, enemy bombardment, etc, because a crewmember might be sealed in a part of the ship that prevents him from reporting to his station. The ships' overall effectiveness and response time in battle or an emergency depends not only on GQ being sounded, but immediate adherence to it, accountability of personnel, and assignment of tasks based on available personnel at hand. The ship's mission must still be carried out in the event of missing personnel at any particular battle station, and redistribution of personnel, equipment, weapons and/or munitions is part of the decision-making process of the senior crewmen in each station, combined with collective decisions throughout the ship. Also, in the event that intruders are aboard the ship and attempt to intermix with the crew, roll-call and face-recognition is useful in weeding them out.