Charles hears Wentworth say that

"he had not made less than twenty thousand pounds by the war. Here was a fortune at once: besides which, there would be the chance of what might be done in any future war; and he was sure Captain Wentworth was as likely a man to distinguish himself as any officer in the navy. Oh! it would be a capital match for either of his sisters." (ch 9)

And then there was the Admiral who is looking forward to the next war:

"When he is married, if we have the good luck to live to another war, we shall see him do as you and I, and a great many others have done. We shall have him very thankful to any body that will bring him his wife." (ch. 8)

The attitude toward war seems odd to me. Where is the worry over loss of life or limb? Of hardship and danger? Of the real possibility that they could die? It all seems very cavalier. But, perhaps I'm looking at it from a 21st c. viewpoint. It was a more pragmatic time, death was a more regular occurrence and companion in the regency than it is now.