Medieval Shipping A Wikipedia Compilation by Michael A. Linton Contents 1 Caravel 1 1.1 History ................................................. 1 1.2 Design ................................................ 1 1.3 See also ................................................ 2 1.4 References ............................................... 2 1.5 External links ............................................. 2 2 Carrack 6 2.1 Origins ................................................ 8 2.2 Carracks in Asia ........................................... 10 2.3 Famous carracks ............................................ 10 2.4 See also ................................................ 12 2.5 References ............................................... 12 2.6 Further reading ............................................ 12 2.7 External links ............................................. 12 3 Cog (ship) 13 3.1 Design ................................................. 14 3.2 History ................................................. 14 3.3 Gallery ................................................. 15 3.4 See also ................................................ 15 3.5 References ............................................... 15 3.5.1 Footnotes ........................................... 15 3.5.2 Bibliography ......................................... 15 3.6 External links ............................................. 15 4 Fire ship 16 4.1 History ................................................. 16 4.1.1 Ancient era, first uses ..................................... 17 4.1.2 Age of fighting sail, refinement ................................ 17 4.1.3 Use in the Greek War of Independence ............................ 18 4.1.4 19th and 20th centuries, obsolescence ............................ 18 4.2 Notable uses .............................................. 18 i ii CONTENTS 4.3 See also ................................................ 19 4.4 References ............................................... 19 4.5 External links ............................................. 20 5 Hellburners 24 5.1 History ................................................ 24 5.1.1 First use against Antwerp ship bridge ............................. 25 5.1.2 Influence on the Battle of Gravelines ............................. 26 5.2 References ............................................... 26 5.3 External links ............................................. 26 6 Galleon 27 6.1 Etymology ............................................... 27 6.2 History ................................................. 27 6.3 Construction .............................................. 30 6.4 Distinguishing features ........................................ 30 6.5 The oldest English drawings ...................................... 30 6.6 Notable galleons ............................................ 30 6.7 In Literature .............................................. 32 6.8 See also ................................................ 32 6.9 Notes ................................................. 32 6.10 References .............................................. 32 6.11 External links ............................................. 33 7 Galley 34 7.1 Definition and terminology ...................................... 35 7.2 History ................................................. 36 7.2.1 The first warships ....................................... 38 7.2.2 Hellenistic era and rise of the Republic ............................ 39 7.2.3 Roman Imperial era ...................................... 39 7.2.4 Eastern Mediterranean .................................... 40 7.2.5 Western Mediterranean .................................... 41 7.2.6 Development of the true galley ................................ 41 7.2.7 Transition to sailing ships ................................... 42 7.2.8 Introduction of guns ...................................... 44 7.2.9 Mediterranean decline .................................... 45 7.2.10 Use in northern Europe .................................... 46 7.3 Construction .............................................. 48 7.3.1 The trireme .......................................... 49 7.3.2 Roman era .......................................... 50 7.3.3 Middle Ages ......................................... 51 7.3.4 Standardization ........................................ 52 CONTENTS iii 7.4 Propulsion ............................................... 54 7.4.1 Rowing ............................................ 54 7.4.2 Galley slaves ......................................... 55 7.4.3 Sails .............................................. 57 7.5 Armament and tactics ......................................... 57 7.5.1 Introduction of the ram .................................... 57 7.5.2 Boarding prevails ....................................... 57 7.5.3 Gun galleys .......................................... 59 7.6 Royal prestige and power symbolism ................................. 60 7.7 Surviving examples .......................................... 62 7.7.1 Original vessels ........................................ 62 7.7.2 Reconstructions ........................................ 63 7.7.3 Archaeological finds ..................................... 63 7.8 Notes ................................................. 63 7.9 References ............................................... 69 7.10 External links ............................................. 71 8 Junk (ship) 72 8.1 Etymology ............................................... 73 8.2 Building ................................................ 73 8.2.1 Sail plan ............................................ 73 8.2.2 Hull design .......................................... 74 8.3 History ................................................. 77 8.3.1 2nd century junks (Han Dynasty) ............................... 77 8.3.2 10–13th century junks (Song Dynasty) ............................ 78 8.3.3 14th century junks (Yuan Dynasty) .............................. 78 8.3.4 15–17th century junks (Ming Dynasty) ............................ 79 8.3.5 Accounts of medieval travellers ................................ 81 8.3.6 19th century junks (Qing Dynasty) .............................. 82 8.3.7 20th century junks ...................................... 84 8.4 See also ................................................ 86 8.5 Notes ................................................. 86 8.6 References ............................................... 88 8.7 External links ............................................. 88 9 Longship 90 9.1 Types of longships ........................................... 91 9.1.1 Karvi ............................................. 91 9.1.2 Snekkja ............................................ 91 9.1.3 Skeid ............................................. 91 9.1.4 Drekkar ............................................ 92 9.1.5 Transport ........................................... 92 iv CONTENTS 9.2 Construction .............................................. 92 9.2.1 Keel, stems and hull ...................................... 94 9.2.2 Timber ............................................ 96 9.2.3 Sail and mast ......................................... 96 9.2.4 Rudder ............................................ 97 9.2.5 Anchors ............................................ 97 9.2.6 Ship builders toolkit ...................................... 97 9.2.7 Replica longships ....................................... 98 9.3 Navigation and propulsion ....................................... 98 9.3.1 Navigation ........................................... 98 9.3.2 Propulsion ........................................... 99 9.4 Legacy ................................................. 99 9.5 Notable longships ........................................... 100 9.6 See also ................................................ 101 9.7 Notes ................................................. 101 9.8 References ............................................... 102 9.9 External links ............................................. 102 10 Louchuan 103 10.1 Description .............................................. 104 10.2 References ............................................... 104 10.3 See also ................................................ 104 10.4 Text and image sources, contributors, and licenses .......................... 105 10.4.1 Text .............................................. 105 10.4.2 Images ............................................ 107 10.4.3 Content license ........................................ 111 Chapter 1 Caravel Not to be confused with Carvel (boat building). A caravel (Portuguese: caravela, IPA: [kɐɾɐˈvɛlɐ]) is a small, highly maneuverable sailing ship developed in the 15th century by the Portuguese to explore along the West African coast and into the Atlantic Ocean. The lateen sails gave her speed and the capacity for sailing to windward (beating). Caravels were used by the Portuguese for the oceanic exploration voyages during the 15th and 16th centuries in the age of discovery. 1.1 History Until the 15th century, Europeans were limited to coastal cabotage navigation using the barge (barca) or the balinger (barinel), ancient Mediterranean cargo vessels of around 50 to 200 tons. These boats were fragile, with only one mast with a fixed square sails that could not overcome the navigational difficulties of Southward oceanic exploration, as the strong winds, shoals and strong ocean currents easily overwhelmed their abilities. The caravel was developed in about 1451, based on existing fishing