Ship of the line (sailing). Orazio Curti European shipbuilding in the 17th - early 18th centuries Course work on the discipline “Maritime Encyclopedia”

17th Century Navy The 17th century was a rich period in the history of shipbuilding. Ships have become faster, more maneuverable, and more stable. Engineers learned to design the best examples of sailing ships. The development of artillery made it possible to equip battleships with reliable, accurate guns. The need for military action determined progress in shipbuilding. The most powerful ship at the beginning of the century The beginning of the 17th century marks the dawn of the era of battleships. The first three-decker was the British HMS Prince Royal, which left the Woolwich shipyard in 1610. The British shipbuilders took the prototype from the Danish flagship, and subsequently rebuilt and improved it several times.

HMS “Prince Royal” 4 masts were erected on the ship, two each for straight and lateen sails. The three-deck, originally 55-gun, ship in its final version in 1641 became 70-gun, then changed its name to Resolution, returned the name, and in 1663 already had 93 guns in its equipment. Displacement about 1200 tons; Length (keel) 115 feet; Beam (midship) 43 feet; Interior depth 18 feet; 3 full artillery decks. As a result of battles with the Dutch, the ship was captured by the enemy in 1666, and when they tried to recapture it, it was burned and scuttled. The most powerful ship at the end of the century

Soleil Royal The French “Soleil Royal” was built by shipbuilders at the Brest shipyard 3 times. The first 1669 three-masted with 104 guns, created as an equal opponent to the British "Royal Sovereign", died in 1692. And in the same year, a new battleship was already built with an armament of 112 guns and had: 28 x 36-pound guns, 30 x 18-pound guns (on the middeck), 28 x 12-pound guns (on the front deck); Displacement 2200 tons; Length 55 meters (keel); Width 15 m (midship frame); Draft (interior) 7 m; A team of 830 people. The third was built after the death of the previous one, as a worthy heir to the glorious traditions associated with this name. New types of ships of the 17th century The evolution of past centuries shifted the emphasis of shipbuilding from the need to simply move safely across the seas, from the merchant ships of the Venetians, Hanseatics, Flemings and, traditionally, the Portuguese and Spaniards to overcome significant distances, to the affirmation of the importance of dominance at sea and, as a result, defending their interests through military action. Initially, merchant ships began to be militarized to counteract pirates, and by the 17th century, a class of only warships was finally formed, and a separation of the merchant and military fleets took place. The shipbuilders of England and, of course, the Dutch provinces of the Netherlands succeeded in building a navy. The galleon, the basis of the power of the squadrons of Spain and England, originates from the Portuguese shipbuilders.

17th century galleon Having played a significant role until recently, shipbuilders in Portugal and Spain continued to improve traditional ship designs. In Portugal at the beginning of the century, 2 types of ships appeared with new hull proportions in the ratio of length to width - 4 to 1. These are a 3-masted pinnace (similar to a flute) and a military galleon. On galleons, guns began to be installed above and below the main deck, highlighting battery decks in the design of the ship, port-cells for guns were opened on board only for combat, and were battened down to avoid flooding with waves of water, which, given the solid mass of the ship, would inevitably flood it; warheads were hidden in holds below the waterline. The displacement of the largest Spanish galleons of the early 17th century was about 1000 tons. The Dutch galleon had three or four masts, up to 120 feet long, up to 30 feet wide, 12 feet low. draft and up to 30 guns. For ships with such a proportion of long hulls, speed was added by the number and area of ​​sails, and additionally by foils and underlisels. This made it possible to cut the wave steeper into the wind compared to rounded hulls. Linear multi-deck sailing ships formed the backbone of the squadrons of Holland, Britain, and Spain. Three- and four-deck ships were the flagships of squadrons and determined military superiority and advantage in battle. And if battleships constituted the main combat power, then frigates began to be built as the fastest ships, equipped with a small number of guns of one closed firing battery. To increase speed, the sail area was increased and the curb weight was reduced.

"Sovereign of the Seas" The English ship "Sovereign of the Seas" became the first classic example of a battleship. Built in 1637, armed with 100 guns. Another classic example was the British frigate - reconnaissance and escort of merchant ships. Actually, these 2 types of ships became an innovative line in shipbuilding and gradually replaced the European galleons, galliots, flutes, and pinnaces, which were obsolete by the middle of the century, from shipyards. New technologies of the navy The Dutch for a long time maintained the dual purpose of the ship during construction; shipbuilding for trade was their priority. Therefore, regarding warships, they were clearly inferior to England. In the middle of the century, the Netherlands built the 53-gun ship Brederode, similar to the Sovereign of the Seas, its flagship of the fleet. Design parameters: Displacement 1520 tons; Proportions (132 x 32) ft.; Draft - 13 ft.; Two artillery decks.

Flutes "Schwarzer Rabe" At the end of the 16th century, the Netherlands began to build flutes. Due to the new design, the Dutch flute had excellent seaworthiness and had: Shallow draft; Fast sailing rig that allowed steep sailing to the wind; High speed; Large capacity; A new design with a length-to-width ratio starting from four-to-one; Was cost effective; And the crew is about 60 people. That is, in fact, a military transport ship to transport cargo, and on the high seas to repel an enemy attack, and to quickly break away. Flutes at the beginning of the 17th century were built: About 40 meters long; About 6 or 7 m wide; Draft 3÷4 m; Load capacity 350÷400 tons; And a weaponry of 10÷20 guns. For a century, flutes dominated all seas and played a significant role in wars. They were the first to use a steering wheel. From the sailing running equipment, topmasts appeared on them, the yards were shortened, the length of the mast became longer than the ship, and the sails became narrower, more convenient to control, and small in size. Sails of the main, foresails, topsails, topsails on the main and foremasts. On the bowsprit there is a rectangular blind sail, a bomb blind. On the mizzen mast there is a slanting sail and a straight cruisel. A smaller upper crew was required to operate the sailing rig. Designs of warships of the 17th century The gradual modernization of artillery guns began to allow their successful use on board a ship. Important characteristics in the new battle tactics were: Convenient, fast reloading during the battle; Conducting continuous fire with intervals for reloading; Conducting targeted fire over long distances; An increase in the number of crew, which made it possible to fire during boarding conditions. Since the 16th century, the tactics of dividing combat missions within a squadron continued to develop: some of the ships retreated to the flanks to conduct long-range artillery fire on a concentration of large enemy ships, and the light vanguard rushed to board the damaged ships. British naval forces used these tactics during the Anglo-Spanish War.

The wake column during a review in 1849. Ships are classified according to the purpose of their use. Rowing galleys are being replaced by sailing cannon ships, and the main emphasis is transferred from boarding to destructive gunfire. The use of heavy large-caliber guns was difficult. Increased number of artillery crews, significant weight of the gun and charges, destructive recoil force for the ship, which is why it was impossible to fire salvos simultaneously. The emphasis was on 32...42-pound guns with a barrel diameter of no more than 17 cm. For this reason, several medium guns were preferable to a pair of large ones. The most difficult thing is the accuracy of the shot in conditions of pitching and recoil inertia from neighboring guns. Therefore, the artillery crew needed a clear sequence of salvos with minimal intervals, and the training of the entire crew of the team. Strength and maneuverability have become very important: it is necessary to keep the enemy strictly on board, not allow them to go to the rear, and be able to quickly turn the ship around on the other side in case of serious damage. The length of the ship's keel was no more than 80 meters, and in order to accommodate more guns, they began to build upper decks; a battery of guns was placed on each deck along the side.

Galley 17th century The coherence and skill of the ship's crew were determined by the speed of maneuvers. The highest manifestation of skill was considered to be the speed with which a ship, having fired a salvo from one side, managed to turn its narrow bow into the oncoming salvo of the enemy, and then, turning on the opposite side, fired a new salvo. Such maneuvers made it possible to receive less damage and inflict significant and rapid damage to the enemy. It is worth mentioning the galleys - numerous military rowing vessels used throughout the 17th century. The proportions were approximately 40 by 5 meters. Displacement is about 200 tons, draft is 1.5 meters. A mast and lateen sail were installed on the galleys. For a typical galley with a crew of 200 people, 140 oarsmen were placed in groups of three on 25 banks on each side, each with his own oar. The oar bulwarks were protected from bullets and crossbows. Guns were installed at the stern and bow. The purpose of the galley attack is boarding combat. Cannons and throwing weapons began the attack, and when they approached, boarding began. It is clear that such attacks were designed for heavily loaded merchant ships. The most powerful army at sea in the 17th century If at the beginning of the century the fleet of the winner of the Great Spanish Armada was considered the strongest, then later the combat effectiveness of the British fleet fell catastrophically. And failures in battles with the Spaniards and French, the shameful capture of 27 English ships by Moroccan pirates finally diminished the prestige of British power. At this time, the Dutch fleet takes a leading position. This is the only reason why its rapidly growing neighbor encouraged Britain to build up its fleet in a new way. By the middle of the century, the flotilla consisted of up to 40 warships, six of which were 100-gun. And after the Revolution, combat power at sea increased until the Restoration. After a period of calm, towards the end of the century Britain was again asserting its power at sea. From the beginning of the 17th century, the flotillas of European countries began to be equipped with battleships, the number of which determined their combat strength. The first 3-deck linear ship is considered to be the 55-gun ship HMS Prince Royal of 1610. The next 3-deck HMS “Sovereign of the Seas” acquired the parameters of the production prototype: Proportions 127x46 feet; Draft - 20 feet; Displacement 1520 tons; The total number of guns is 126 on 3 artillery decks. Placement of guns: 30 on the lower deck, 30 on the middle deck, 26 with a smaller caliber on the upper deck, 14 under the forecastle, 12 under the poop. In addition, the superstructures have many embrasures for the guns of the remaining crew on board. After three wars between England and Holland, they united in an alliance against France. By 1697, the Anglo-Dutch alliance was able to destroy 1,300 French naval units. And at the beginning of the next century, led by Britain, the alliance achieved an advantage. And the blackmail of the naval power of England, which became Great Britain, began to determine the outcome of the battles. Tactics of naval battles Previous naval wars were characterized by disorderly tactics, there were skirmishes between ship captains, and there were no schemes or unified command. Since 1618, the British Admiralty introduced the ranking of its warships Ships Royal, 40...55 guns. Great Royals, about 40 guns. Middle Ships. 30...40 guns. Small Ships, including frigates, less than 30 guns. Next, the ranks were numbered. And later the 1st rank consisted of up to 100 guns, a crew of up to 600 sailors; 6th rank - a dozen guns and less than 50 sailors.

The British developed linear combat tactics. According to its rules, peer-to-peer formation in wake columns was observed; Building an equal-strength and equal-speed column without breaks; Unified command. What should ensure success in battle. The tactics of equal-rank formation excluded the presence of weak links in the column; the flagships led the vanguard, the center, the command and brought up the rear. A unified command was subordinate to the admiral, and a clear system for transmitting commands and signals between ships appeared. Naval battles and wars Battle of Dover 1659 The first battle of the fleets a month before the start of the 1st Anglo-Dutch War, which formally gave it its beginning. Tromp with a squadron of 40 ships set off to escort and protect Dutch transport ships from English corsairs. Being in English waters close to a squadron of 12 ships under command. Admiral Burn, the Dutch flagships did not want to salute the English flag. When Blake approached with a squadron of 15 ships, the British attacked the Dutch. Tromp covered a caravan of merchant ships, did not dare to get involved in a long battle, and lost the battlefield. Battle of Plymouth 1652 Took place in the First Anglo-Dutch War. de Ruyter took command of the Zeeland squadron of 31 troops. ship and 6 fire ships in defense of the trade caravan convoy. He was opposed by 38 soldiers. ships and 5 fire ships of the British forces. When the Dutch met, they divided the squadron; some of the English ships began to pursue them, breaking the formation and losing the advantage in firepower. The Dutch, using their favorite tactic of shooting at masts and rigging, disabled some of the enemy ships. As a result, the British had to retreat and go to the ports for repairs, and the caravan safely left for Calais. Newport battles of 1652 and 1653 If in the battle of 1652, Ruyter and de Witt, having united 2 squadrons of 64 ships into a single squadron - the vanguard of Ruyter and the center of de Witt - a squadron, gave an equal battle to Black's 68 ships. Then in 1653, the squadron of Tromp, who had 98 ships and 6 fire ships against the 100 ships and 5 fire ships of the English admirals Monk and Dean, was significantly destroyed when trying to attack the main forces of the British. Ruyter, rushing into the wind as a vanguard, attacked the English. the vanguard of Admiral Lauzon, he was energetically supported by Tromp; but Admiral Dean managed to come to the rescue. And then the wind subsided, an artillery exchange began until darkness, when the Dutch, having discovered a lack of shells, were forced to quickly leave for their ports. The battle showed the superiority of the equipment and weapons of the English ships. Battle of Portland 1653 Battle of the First Anglo-Dutch War. Convoy under command. Admiral M. Tromp of 80 ships was accompanied in the English Channel by a returning caravan of 250 merchant ships loaded with colonial goods. Having met with a fleet of 70 British ships under command. Admiral R. Blake, Tromp was forced into battle. For two days of fighting, changing winds did not allow groups of ships to line up; The Dutch, pinned down by the defense of transport ships, suffered losses. And yet, at night, the Dutch were able to break through and leave, ultimately losing 9 military and 40 merchant ships, and the British 4 ships. Battle of Texel 1673 Victory of de Ruyter with Admirals Bankert and Tromp over the Anglo-French fleet at Texel in the third Anglo-Dutch War. This period was marked by the occupation of the Netherlands by French troops. The goal was to recapture the trade caravan. 92 ships and 30 fire ships of the Allies were opposed by a Dutch fleet of 75 ships and 30 fire ships. Ruyter's vanguard managed to separate the French vanguard from the British squadron. The maneuver was a success and, due to the disunity of the allies, the French chose to keep the flotilla, and the Dutch managed to crush the British center in a brutal battle that lasted many hours. And as a result, having ousted the French, Bankert came to reinforce the Dutch center. The British were never able to land troops and suffered heavy losses in manpower. These wars of advanced sea powers determined the importance of tactics, formations and firepower in the development of the navy and the art of warfare. Based on the experience of these wars, classes of division into ranks of ships were developed, the optimal configuration of a linear sailing ship and the number of weapons were tested. The tactics of combat between enemy ships was transformed into a combat formation of a wake column with coordinated artillery fire, quick formation and unified command. Boarding combat was becoming a thing of the past, and strength at sea influenced success on land. Spanish fleet of the 17th century Spain continued to form its armadas with large galleons, the unsinkability and strength of which were proven following the battles of the Invincible Armada with the British. The artillery the British had was unable to inflict damage on the Spaniards. Therefore, Spanish shipbuilders continued to build galleons with an average displacement of 500 ÷ 1000 tons and a draft of 9 feet, creating an ocean-going ship - stable and reliable. Such ships were equipped with three or four masts and about 30 guns.

In the first third of the century, 18 galleons with up to 66 guns were launched. The number of large ships exceeded 60 against 20 large royal ships of England and 52 of France. The features of durable, heavy ships are their high resistance to staying in the ocean and combating water elements. Installing straight sails in two tiers did not provide maneuverability and ease of control. At the same time, the lack of maneuverability was compensated by excellent survivability during storms in terms of strength parameters, and the versatility of galleons. They were used simultaneously for trade and military operations, which were often combined during an unexpected meeting with the enemy in the vast waters of the ocean. The extraordinary capacity made it possible to equip ships with a decent number of weapons and take on board a large crew trained for combat. This made it possible to successfully carry out boarding - the main naval tactics of battles and capture of ships in the arsenal of the Spaniards. French fleet of the 17th century In France, the first battleship "Crown" was launched in 1636. Then rivalry with England and Holland at sea began. Ship characteristics of the three-masted, two-deck “La Couronne” of the 1st rank: Displacement of more than 2100 tons; Length on the upper deck is 54 meters, along the waterline 50 m, along the keel 39 m; Width 14 m; 3 masts; Mainmast 60 meters high; Sides up to 10 m high; The sail area is about 1000 m²; 600 sailors; 3 decks; 72 different-caliber guns (14x 36-pounders); Oak body.

The construction required about 2 thousand dried trunks. The shape of the barrel was matched to the shape of the ship part by matching the bends of the fibers and the part, which gave special strength. The ship is famous for eclipsing the Sovereign of the Seas, the British masterpiece Sovereign of the Seas (1634), and is now considered the most luxurious and beautiful ship of the sailing era. Fleet of the United Provinces of the Netherlands in the 17th century In the 17th century, the Netherlands fought endless wars with neighboring countries for independence. The maritime confrontation between the Netherlands and Britain had the character of internecine rivalry between neighbors. On the one hand, they were in a hurry to control the seas and oceans with the help of the fleet, on the other, to oust Spain and Portugal, while successfully carrying out robbery attacks on their ships, and on the third, they wanted to dominate as the two most militant rivals. At the same time, dependence on corporations - the owners of the ships, which financed shipbuilding, overshadowed the importance of victories in naval battles, which stopped the growth of the Dutch maritime industry. The development of the power of the Dutch fleet was facilitated by the liberation struggle with Spain, the weakening of its strength, and numerous victories of Dutch ships over the Spaniards during the Thirty Years' War by its end in 1648. The Dutch fleet was the largest, numbering 20 thousand merchant ships, and a huge number of shipyards were operating. Actually, this century was the Golden Age of the Netherlands. The Netherlands' struggle for independence from the Spanish Empire led to the Eighty Years' War (1568-1648). After the completion of the war of liberation of the Seventeen Provinces from the rule of the Spanish monarchy, there were three Anglo-Gol. wars, a successful invasion of England, and wars with France. 3 Anglo-Dutch wars at sea tried to determine a dominant position at sea. By the beginning of the first, the Dutch fleet had 75 warships along with frigates. The available warships of the United Provinces were scattered around the world. In case of war, warships could be chartered, or simply hired from other European states. The designs of the “pinnace” and “Flemish carrack” were easily upgraded from a merchant vessel to a military vessel in case of war. However, apart from Brederode and Grote Vergulde Fortuijn, the Dutch could not boast of their own warships. They won battles through courage and skill. By the Second Anglo-Dutch War in 1665, van Wassenaar's squadron was able to assemble 107 ships, 9 frigates and 27 lower ships. Of these, 92 are armed with more than 30 guns. The number of crews is 21 thousand sailors, 4800 guns. England could oppose 88 ships, 12 frigates and 24 inferior ships. A total of 4,500 guns, 22 thousand sailors. In the most disastrous battle in the history of Holland, the Battle of Lowestoft, the Flemish flagship, the 76-gun Eendragt, was blown up along with van Wassenaar. British fleet of the 17th century In the middle of the century, there were no more than 5 thousand merchant ships in Britain. But the navy was significant. By 1651, the Royal Navy squadron already had 21 battleships and 29 frigates, with 2 battleships and 50 frigates being completed on the way. If we add the number of free-hire and chartered ships, the fleet could reach up to 200 ships. The total number of guns and caliber were unrivaled. Construction was carried out at the royal shipyards of Britain - Woolwich, Davenport, Chatham, Portsmouth, Deptford. A significant part of the ships came from private shipyards in Bristol, Liverpool, etc. Over the course of the century, growth gradually increased with the predominance of the regular fleet over the chartered one. In England, the most powerful battleships were called Manovar, as the largest, with the number of guns exceeding a hundred. To increase the multi-purpose composition of the British fleet in the middle of the century, more warships of smaller types were created: corvettes, sloops, bombards. During the construction of frigates, the number of guns on two decks increased to 60. In the first Battle of Dover with the Netherlands, the British fleet had: 60 guns. James, 56-push. Andrew, 62-push. Triumph, 56-push. Andrew, 62-push. Triumph, 52-push. Victory, 52-push. Speaker, five 36-guns, including President, three 44-guns, including Garland, 52-guns. Fairfax and others. What the Dutch fleet could counter: 54 push. Brederode, 35-push. Grote Vergulde Fortuijn, nine 34-guns, the rest of lower ranks. Therefore, the reluctance of the Netherlands to engage in open water combat according to the rules of linear tactics becomes obvious. Russian fleet of the 17th century As such, the Russian fleet did not exist before Peter I, due to the lack of access to the seas. The very first Russian warship was the two-deck, three-masted "Eagle" built in 1669 on the Oka River. But the first flotilla was built at the Voronezh shipyards in 1695 - 1696 from 23 rowing galleys, 2 sailing-rowing frigates and more than 1000 ships, barques, and plows.

Bomber ship

Sailing 2-, 3-masted ship of the late 17th - early 19th centuries. with increased hull strength, armed with smooth-bore guns. They first appeared in France in 1681, in Russia - during the construction of the Azov Fleet. Bombardier ships were armed with 2-18 large-caliber guns (mortars or unicorns) to fight against coastal fortifications and 8-12 small-caliber guns. They were part of the navies of all countries. They existed in the Russian fleet until 1828

Brig

A military 2-masted ship with a square rig, designed for cruising, reconnaissance and messenger services. Displacement 200-400 tons, armament 10-24 guns, crew up to 120 people. It had good seaworthiness and maneuverability. In the XVIII - XIX centuries. brigs were part of all the world's fleets

Brigantine

2-masted sailing ship of the 17th - 19th centuries. with a straight sail on the front mast (foresail) and an oblique sail on the rear mast (mainsail). Used in European navies for reconnaissance and messenger services. On the upper deck there were 6- 8 small caliber guns

Galion

Sailing ship of the 15th - 17th centuries, predecessor of the sailing ship of the line. It had fore and main masts with straight sails and a mizzen with oblique sails. Displacement is about 1550 tons. Military galleons had up to 100 guns and up to 500 soldiers on board

Caravel

A high-sided, single-deck, 3-, 4-mast vessel with high superstructures at the bow and stern, with a displacement of 200-400 tons. It had good seaworthiness and was widely used by Italian, Spanish and Portuguese sailors in the 13th - 17th centuries. Christopher Columbus and Vasco da Gama made their famous voyages on caravels

Karakka

Sailing 3-mast ship XIV - XVII centuries. with a displacement of up to 2 thousand tons. Armament: 30-40 guns. It could accommodate up to 1200 people. Cannon ports were used for the first time on the karakka and guns were placed in closed batteries

Clipper

A 3-masted sailing (or sail-steam with a propeller) ship of the 19th century, used for reconnaissance, patrol and messenger services. Displacement up to 1500 tons, speed up to 15 knots (28 km/h), armament up to 24 guns, crew up to 200 people

Corvette

A ship of the sailing fleet of the 18th - mid-19th centuries, intended for reconnaissance, messenger service, and sometimes for cruising operations. In the first half of the 18th century. 2-masted and then 3-masted vessel with square rig, displacement 400-600 tons, with open (20-32 guns) or closed (14-24 guns) batteries

Battleship

A large, usually 3-deck (3 gun decks), three-masted ship with square rigging, designed for artillery combat with the same ships in the wake (battle line). Displacement up to 5 thousand tons. Armament: 80-130 smoothbore guns along the sides. Battleships were widely used in wars of the second half of the 17th - first half of the 19th centuries. The introduction of steam engines and propellers, rifled artillery and armor led in the 60s. XIX century to the complete replacement of sailing battleships with battleships

Flutes

A 3-mast sailing ship from the Netherlands of the 16th - 18th centuries, used in the navy as a transport. Armed with 4-6 cannons. It had sides that were tucked inward above the waterline. A steering wheel was used for the first time on a flute. In Russia, flutes have been part of the Baltic Fleet since the 17th century.

Sailing frigate

A 3-masted ship, second in terms of armament power (up to 60 guns) and displacement after a battleship, but superior to it in speed. Intended mainly for operations on sea communications

Sloop

Three-masted ship of the second half of the 18th - early 19th centuries. with straight sails on the forward masts and a slanting sail on the aft mast. Displacement 300-900 tons, artillery armament 16-32 guns. It was used for reconnaissance, patrol and messenger services, as well as a transport and expedition vessel. In Russia, the sloop was often used for circumnavigation of the world (O.E. Kotzebue, F.F. Bellingshausen, M.P. Lazarev, etc.)

Shnyava

A small sailing ship, common in the 17th - 18th centuries. in the Scandinavian countries and in Russia. Shnyavs had 2 masts with straight sails and a bowsprit. They were armed with 12-18 small-caliber cannons and were used for reconnaissance and messenger service as part of the skerry fleet of Peter I. Shnyava length 25-30 m, width 6-8 m, displacement about 150 tons, crew up to 80 people.

Schooner

A sea sailing vessel with a displacement of 100-800 tons, having 2 or more masts, is armed mainly with oblique sails. Schooners were used in sailing fleets as messenger ships. The schooners of the Russian fleet were armed with up to 16 guns.

Battleship(English) ship-of-the-line, fr. navire de ligne) - a class of sailing three-masted wooden warships. Sailing battleships were characterized by the following features: a total displacement from 500 to 5500 tons, armament, including from 30-50 to 135 guns in the side ports (in 2-4 decks), the crew size ranged from 300 to 800 people when fully manned. Ships of the line were built and used from the 17th century until the early 1860s for naval battles using linear tactics. Sailing battleships were not called battleships.

General information

In 1907, a new class of armored ships with a displacement from 20 thousand to 64 thousand tons was called battleships (abbreviated as battleships).

History of creation

“In times long past... on the high seas, he, a battleship, was not afraid of anything. There was not a shadow of a feeling of defenselessness from possible attacks by destroyers, submarines or aircraft, nor trembling thoughts about enemy mines or air torpedoes, there was essentially nothing, with the possible exception of a severe storm, drift to a leeward shore, or a concentrated attack by several equal opponents, which could shake the proud confidence of a sailing battleship in its own indestructibility, which it assumed with every right." - Oscar Parks. Battleships of the British Empire.

Technological innovations

Many related technological advances led to the emergence of battleships as the main force of navies.

The technology of building wooden ships, considered today to be classical - first the frame, then the plating - finally took shape in Byzantium at the turn of the 1st and 2nd millennia AD, and thanks to its advantages, over time it replaced the previously used methods: the Roman one used in the Mediterranean, with smooth lining boards, the ends of which were connected with tenons, and clinker, which was used from Rus' to the Basque Country in Spain, with overlapping cladding and transverse reinforcement ribs inserted into the finished body. In southern Europe, this transition finally took place before the middle of the 14th century, in England - around 1500, and in Northern Europe, merchant ships with clinker lining (holkas) were built back in the 16th century, possibly later. In most European languages, this method was denoted by derivatives of the word carvel; hence the caravel, that is, initially, a ship built starting from the frame and with the skin smooth.

The new technology gave shipbuilders a number of advantages. The presence of a frame on the ship made it possible to accurately determine in advance its dimensions and the nature of its contours, which, with the previous technology, became fully obvious only during the construction process; ships are now built according to a pre-approved plan. In addition, the new technology made it possible to significantly increase the size of ships - both due to greater hull strength and due to reduced requirements for the width of the boards used for plating, which made it possible to use lower quality wood for the construction of ships. The qualification requirements for the workforce involved in construction were also reduced, which made it possible to build ships faster and in much larger quantities than before.

In the 14th-15th centuries, gunpowder artillery began to be used on ships, but initially, due to the inertia of thinking, it was placed on superstructures intended for archers - the forecastle and sterncastle, which limited the permissible mass of the guns for reasons of maintaining stability. Later, artillery began to be installed along the side in the middle of the ship, which largely removed the restrictions on the mass of the guns, but aiming them at the target was very difficult, since the fire was fired through round slots made to the size of the gun barrel in the sides, which were plugged from the inside in the stowed position. Real gun ports with covers appeared only towards the end of the 15th century, which paved the way for the creation of heavily armed artillery ships. During the 16th century, a complete change in the nature of naval battles took place: rowing galleys, which had previously been the main warships for thousands of years, gave way to sailing ships armed with artillery, and boarding combat to artillery.

Mass production of heavy artillery guns for a long time was very difficult, therefore, until the 19th century, the largest ones installed on ships remained 32...42-pounders (based on the mass of the corresponding solid cast-iron core), with a bore diameter of no more than 170 mm. But working with them during loading and aiming was very complicated due to the lack of servos, which required a huge calculation for their maintenance: such guns weighed several tons each. Therefore, for centuries, they tried to arm ships with as many relatively small guns as possible, which were located along the side. At the same time, for reasons of strength, the length of a warship with a wooden hull is limited to approximately 70-80 meters, which also limited the length of the onboard battery: more than two to three dozen guns could only be placed in several rows. This is how warships arose with several closed gun decks (decks), carrying from several dozen to hundreds or more guns of various calibers.

In the 16th century, cast iron cannons began to be used in England, which were a great technological innovation due to their lower cost relative to bronze and less labor-intensive manufacturing compared to iron ones, and at the same time possessing higher characteristics. Superiority in artillery manifested itself during the battles of the English fleet with the Invincible Armada (1588) and has since begun to determine the strength of the fleet, making boarding battles history - after which boarding is used exclusively for the purpose of capturing an enemy ship that has already been disabled by fire from the guns of an enemy ship.

In the middle of the 17th century, methods for mathematical calculation of ship hulls appeared. Introduced into practice around the 1660s by the English shipbuilder A. Dean, the method of determining the displacement and waterline level of a ship based on its total mass and the shape of its contours made it possible to calculate in advance at what height from the sea surface the ports of the lower battery would be located, and to position the decks accordingly and the guns are still on the slipway - previously this required lowering the ship’s hull into the water. This made it possible to determine the firepower of the future ship at the design stage, as well as to avoid accidents like what happened with the Swedish Vasa due to the ports being too low. In addition, on ships with powerful artillery, part of the gun ports necessarily fell on the frames; Only real frames, not cut by ports, were power-bearing, and the rest were additional, so precise coordination of their relative positions was important.

History of appearance

The immediate predecessors of battleships were heavily armed galleons, carracks and the so-called “big ships” (Great Ships). The first purpose-built gunship is sometimes considered to be the English carrack. Mary Rose(1510), although the Portuguese attribute the honor of their invention to their king João II (1455-1495), who ordered the arming of several caravels with heavy guns.

The first battleships appeared in the fleets of European countries at the beginning of the 17th century, and the first three-decker battleship is considered HMS Prince Royal(1610) . They were lighter and shorter than the “tower ships” that existed at that time - galleons, which made it possible to quickly line up with the side facing the enemy, when the bow of the next ship looked at the stern of the previous one. Also, battleships differ from galleons in having straight sails on a mizzen mast (galleons had from three to five masts, of which usually one or two were “dry”, with oblique sails), the absence of a long horizontal latrine at the bow and a rectangular tower at the stern , and maximum use of the free area of ​​the sides for the guns. A battleship is more maneuverable and stronger than a galleon in artillery combat, while a galleon is better suited for boarding combat. Unlike battleships, galleons were also used to transport troops and trade cargo.

The resulting multi-deck sailing battleships were the main means of warfare at sea for more than 250 years and allowed countries such as Holland, Great Britain and Spain to create huge trading empires.

By the middle of the 17th century, a clear division of battleships by class arose: the old two-deck (that is, in which two closed decks one above the other were filled with cannons firing through ports - slits in the sides) ships with 50 guns were not strong enough for linear battle and were used in mainly for escorting convoys. Double-decker battleships, carrying from 64 to 90 guns, made up the bulk of the navy, while three- or even four-decker ships (98-144 guns) served as flagships. A fleet of 10-25 such ships made it possible to control sea trade lines and, in the event of war, close them to the enemy.

Battleships should be distinguished from frigates. Frigates had either only one closed battery, or one closed and one open battery on the upper deck. The sailing equipment of battleships and frigates was the same (three masts, each with straight sails). Battleships were superior to frigates in the number of guns (several times) and the height of their sides, but they were inferior in speed and could not operate in shallow water.

Battleship tactics

With the increase in the strength of the warship and with the improvement of its seaworthiness and fighting qualities, an equal success has appeared in the art of using them... As sea evolutions become more skillful, their importance grows day by day. These evolutions needed a base, a point from which they could depart and to which they could return. A fleet of warships must always be ready to meet the enemy; it is logical that such a base for naval evolution should be a combat formation. Further, with the abolition of galleys, almost all the artillery moved to the sides of the ship, which is why it became necessary to always keep the ship in such a position that the enemy was abeam. On the other hand, it is necessary that not a single ship in its fleet can interfere with firing at enemy ships. Only one system can fully satisfy these requirements, this is the wake system. The latter, therefore, was chosen as the only combat formation, and therefore as the basis for all fleet tactics. At the same time, they realized that in order for the battle formation, this long thin line of guns, not to be damaged or torn at its weakest point, it is necessary to introduce into it only ships, if not of equal strength, then at least with equal strength. strong sides. It logically follows from this that at the same time as the wake column becomes the final battle formation, a distinction is established between battleships, which alone are intended for it, and smaller vessels for other purposes. Mahan, Alfred Thayer

The term “battleship” itself arose due to the fact that in battle, multi-deck ships began to line up one after another - so that during their salvo they would be turned broadside to the enemy, because the greatest damage to the target was caused by a salvo from all onboard guns. This tactic was called linear. Formation in a line during a naval battle first began to be used by the fleets of England and Spain at the beginning of the 17th century and was considered the main one until the middle of the 19th century. Linear tactics also did a good job of protecting the squadron leading the battle from attacks by fireships.

It is worth noting that in a number of cases, fleets consisting of battleships could vary tactics, often deviating from the canons of the classic firefight of two wake columns running parallel courses. Thus, at Camperdown, the British, not having time to line up in the correct wake column, attacked the Dutch battle line with a formation close to the front line followed by a disorderly dump, and at Trafalgar they attacked the French line with two columns running across each other, wisely using the advantages of longitudinal fire, striking not separated by transverse bulkheads caused terrible damage to wooden ships (at Trafalgar, Admiral Nelson used tactics developed by Admiral Ushakov). Although these were extraordinary cases, even within the framework of the general paradigm of linear tactics, the squadron commander often had sufficient space for bold maneuver, and the captains for exercising their own initiative.

Design features and combat qualities

The wood for the construction of battleships (usually oak, less often teak or mahogany) was selected with the most care, soaked and dried for a number of years, after which it was carefully laid in several layers. The side skin was double - inside and outside of the frames; the thickness of one outer skin on some battleships reached 60 cm at the gondeck (at the Spanish Santisima Trinidad), and the total internal and external - up to 37 inches, that is, about 95 cm. The British built ships with relatively thin plating, but often spaced frames, in the area of ​​which the total thickness of the side of the gondeck reached 70-90 cm of solid wood; between the frames, the total thickness of the side, formed by only two layers of skin, was less and reached 2 feet (60 cm). For greater speed, French battleships were built with thinner frames, but thicker plating - up to 70 cm between frames in total.

To protect the underwater part from rot and fouling, an outer lining of thin strips of soft wood was placed on it, which was regularly changed during the timbering process at the dock. Subsequently, at the turn of the 18th and 19th centuries, copper cladding began to be used for the same purposes.

• List of men-of-war 1650-1700. Part II. French ships 1648-1700.
• Histoire de la Marine Francaise. French naval history.
• Les Vaisseaux du roi Soleil. Contain for instance list of ships 1661 to 1715 (1-3 rates). Author: J.C Lemineur: 1996 ISBN 2906381225

Notes

For early ships “This name of a warship is a compound abbreviated word that arose in the 20s of the 20th century. based on the phrase battleship." Krylov's Etymological Dictionary https://www.slovopedia.com/25/203/1650517.html

List of galleons of the Spanish Navy

Source: Central Maritime Club DOSAAF RSFSR. Publishing house DOSAAF. Moscow, 1987

§1. Spar.

A spar is the name given to all wooden, and on modern ships, metal parts that are used to carry sails, flags, raise signals, etc. The masts on a sailing ship include: masts, topmasts, yards, gaffs, booms, bowsprits, props, spears and shotguns.

Masts.

Salings and ezelgofts, depending on their location and belonging to a particular mast, also have their own names: for-saling, for-bram-saling, mast ezelgoft. for-sten-ezelgoft, kruys-sten-ezelgoft, bowsprit ezelgoft (connecting the bowsprit with the jib), etc.

Bowsprit.

A bowsprit is a horizontal or slightly inclined beam (inclined mast), protruding from the bow of a sailing ship, and used to carry straight sails - a blind and a bomb blind. Until the end of the 18th century, the bowsprit consisted of only one tree with a blind topmast (), on which straight blind and bomb blind sails were installed on the blind yard and bomb blind yard.
Since the end of the 18th century, the bowsprit has been lengthened with the help of a jib, and then a bom-blind (), and blind and bomb-blind sails are no longer installed on it. Here it serves to extend the stays of the foremast and its topmasts and to attach the bow triangular sails - jibs and staysails, which improved the propulsion and agility of the ship. At one time, triangular sails were combined with straight ones.
The bowsprit itself was attached to the bow of the ship using a water-vuling made of a strong cable, and later (19th century) and chains. To tie the wooling, the main end of the cable was attached to the bowsprit, then the cable was passed through the hole in the bowdiged, around the bowsprit, etc. Usually they installed 11 hoses, which were tightened in the middle with transverse hoses. From the sliding of the guards and stays along the bowsprit, several wooden attachments were made on it - bis ().
Bowstrits with a jib and bom-jib had a vertical martin boom and horizontal blind gaffs for carrying the standing rigging of the jib and bom-jib.

Rhea.

A ray is a round, spindle-shaped spar that tapers evenly at both ends, called noks ().
Shoulders are made at both legs, close to which perts, slings of blocks, etc. are pinned. Yards are used for attaching straight sails to them. The yards are attached in the middle to the masts and topmasts in such a way that they can be raised, lowered and rotated horizontally to set the sails in the most advantageous position relative to the wind.
At the end of the 18th century, additional sails appeared - foxes, which were placed on the sides of the main sails. They were attached to small yards - lisel-spirits, extended to the sides of the ship along the main yard through the yoke ().
Yards also take names depending on their belonging to one or another mast, as well as on their location on the mast. So, the names of the yards on various masts, counting them from bottom to top, are as follows: on the foremast - fore-yard, fore-mars-yard, fore-front-yard, fore-bom-front-yard; on the main mast - main-yard, main-marsa-ray, main-bram-ray, main-bom-bram-ray; on the mizzen mast - begin-ray, cruisel-ray, cruis-bram-ray, cruis-bom-bram-ray.

Gaffs and booms.

The gaff is a special yard, strengthened obliquely at the top of the mast (behind it) and raised up the mast. On sailing ships it was used to fasten the upper edge (luff) of the oblique sail - trysail and oblique mizzen (). The heel (inner end) of the gaff has a wooden or metal mustache covered with leather, holding the gaff near the mast and encircling it like a grab, both ends of which are connected to each other by a bayfoot. Bayfoot can be made of vegetable or steel cable, covered with leather or with balls placed on it, the so-called raks-klots.

To set and remove sails on ships with oblique rigs and mizzen oblique sails, the gaff is raised and lowered with the help of two running rigging gear - a gaff-gardel, which lifts the gaff by the heel, and a dirik-halyard, which lifts the gaff by the toe - the outer thin end ().
On ships with direct rigging, the oblique sails - trysails - are pulled (when they are retracted) to the gaff by gaffs, but the gaff is not lowered.
Booms are used to stretch the lower luff of oblique sails. The boom is movably fastened with a heel (the inner end to the mast using a swivel or mustache, like a gaff (). The outer end of the boom (knob) when the sail is set is supported by a pair of topenants, strengthened on one side and the other of the boom.
Gaffs and booms, armed with an oblique sail on the mizzen, began to be used in the Russian fleet approximately from the second half of the 18th century, and in the times of Peter the Great, a Latin yard (ryu) was hung obliquely on the mizzen to carry a Latin triangular sail. Such a yard was raised in an inclined position so that one leg (rear) was raised high, and the other was lowered almost to the deck ()
Having familiarized ourselves with each spar tree separately, we will now list all the spar trees according to their location on the sailing ship, with their full name ():
I - knyavdiged; II - latrine; III - crumble; IV - bulwark, on top of it - sailor's bunks; V - fore-beam and stay-stays; VI - mainsail channel and stay cables; VII - mizzen channel and shrouds; VIII - right sink: IX - balconies; X - main-wels-barhout; XI - chanel-wels-barhout: XII - shir-wels-barhout; XIII - shir-strek-barkhout; XIV - rudder feather.

Rice. 9. Spar of a three-deck 126-gun battleship from the mid-19th century.

1 - bowsprit; 2 - jig; 3 - bom-fitter; 4 - martin boom; 5 - gaff blind; 6 - bowsprit ezelgoft; 7 - rod guy; 8 - foremast; 9 - top of the foremast; 10 - fore-trisail mast; 11 - topmasts; 12 - mast ezelgoft; 13 - fore topmast; 14 - top fore-topmast; 15 - for-saling; 16 - ezelgoft fore-topmast; 17 - fore topmast, made into one tree with fore top topmast; 18-19 - top forebom topmast; 20 - klotik; 21 - fore-beam; 22 - for-marsa lisel-alcohols; 23 - fore-mars-ray; 24 - for-bram-lisel-alcohols; 25 - fore-frame; 26 - for-bom-bram-ray; 27 -for-trisel-gaff; 28 - mainmast; 29 - top of the mainmast; 30 - main-trisail-mast; 31 - mainsail; 32 - mast ezelgoft; 33 - main topmast; 34 - top of the main topmast; 35 - main saling; 36 - ezelgoft main topmast; 37 - main topmast, made into one tree with the main topmast; 38-39 - top main-bom-topmast; 40 - klotik; 41 - grottoes; 42 - grotto-marsa-lisel-spirits; 43 - main-marsa-ray; 44 - main-bram-foil-spirits; 45 - main beam; 46 - main-bom-bram-ray; 47 - mainsail-trisail-gaff; 48 - mizzen mast; 49 - top of the mizzen mast; 50 - mizzen-trysel-mast; 51 - cruise-mars; 52 - mast ezelgoft: 53 - topmast; 54 - top cruise topmast; 55 -kruys-saling; 56 - ezelgoft topmast; 57 - cruising topmast, made into one tree with cruising topmast; 58-59 - top cruise-bom-topmast; 60 - klotik; 61 - begin-ray; 62 - cruise-marsa-rey or cruisel-rey; 63 - cruise-bram-ray; 64 - cruise-bom-bram-ray; 65 - mizzen boom; 66 - mizzen-gaff: 67 - stern flagpole.

§2. Basic proportions of spar trees for battleships.

The length of the mainmast is determined by the length of the ship along the gondeck, folded to its greatest width and divided in half. The length of the foremast is 8/9, and the mizzen mast is 6/7 the length of the mainmast. The length of the main and foremast tops is 1/6, and the mizzen mast top is 1/8-2/13 of their length. The largest diameter of the masts is located at the forward deck and is 1/36 for the foremast and main mast, and 1/41 of their length for the mizzen mast. The smallest diameter is under the top and is 3/5-3/4, and the spur has 6/7 of the largest diameter.
The length of the main topmast is equal to 3/4 of the length of the main mast. The length of the topmasts is 1/9 of the entire length of the topmast. The largest diameter of the topmasts is found in mast ezelgofts and is equal to 6/11 of the diameter of the mainmast for the main and fore topmasts, and 5/8 of the diameter of the mizzen mast for the cruising topmast. The smallest diameter under the top is 4/5 of the largest.
The length of the topmasts, made into one tree with the boom topmasts and their flagpoles (or tops), is made up of: the length of the topmast equal to 1/2 of its topmast, the boom topmast - 5/7 of its topmast topmast and flagstaff equal to 5/7 of its topmast. The largest diameter of the topmast at the ezelgoft wall is 1/36 of its length, the boom topmast is 5/8 of the topmast diameter, and the smallest diameter of the flagpole is 7/12 of the topmast diameter.
The length of the bowsprit is 3/5 of the length of the mainmast, the largest diameter (at the bulwark above the stem) is equal to the diameter of the mainmast or 1/15-1/18 less than it. The lengths of the jib and bom jib are 5/7 of the length of the bowsprit, the largest diameter of the jib is 8/19, and the bom jib is 5/7 of the diameter of the bowsprit is 1/3 from their lower ends, and the smallest is at the legs - 2/3 largest diameter.
The length of the main yard is equal to the width of the ship multiplied by 2 plus 1/10 of the width. The total length of both legs is 1/10, and the largest diameter is 1/54 of the length of the yard. The length of the main-tops-yard is 5/7 of the main-yard, the legs are 2/9, and the largest diameter is 1/57 of the length of the main-tops-yard. The length of the main top-yard is 9/14 of the main top-yard, the legs are 1/9 and the largest diameter is 1/60 of this yard. All sizes of the fore-yard and fore-tops-yard are 7/8 of the size of the mainsail and main-tops-yard. The Begin-ray is equal to the main-marsa-yard, but the length of both legs is 1/10 of the length of the yard, the cruisel-yard is equal to the main-bram-yard, but the length of both legs is 2/9 of the length of the yard, and the cruis-brow-yard equal to 2/3 of the main beam. All bom-bram-yards are equal to 2/3 of their bram-yards. Blinda-ray is equal to for-Mars-ray. The largest diameter of the yards is in their middle. The yards from the middle to each end are divided into four parts: on the first part from the middle - 30/31, on the second - 7/8, on the third - 7/10 and at the end - 3/7 of the largest diameter. The mizzen boom is equal to the length and thickness of the fore- or main-tops yard. Its largest diameter is above the tailrail. The mizzen gaff is 2/3 long and 6/7 boom thick, its largest diameter is at the heel. The length of the martin booms is 3/7, and the thickness is 2/3 of a jig (there were two of them until the second quarter of the 19th century).
The main topmast is 1/4 the length of the main topmast and 1/2 the width of the ship. The fore-topsight is 8/9, and the cruise-topsight is 3/4 of the main topsea. The main saling has long salings 1/9 the length of its topmast, and spreaders 9/16 the width of the topsail. For-saling is equal to 8/9, and kruys-saling is 3/4 of grot-saling.

§3. Standing rigging spar.

The bowsprit, masts and topmasts on a sailing ship are secured in a specific position using special rigging called standing rigging. Standing rigging includes: shrouds, forduns, stays, backstays, perths, as well as the jib and boom jib of the lifeline.
Once wound, the standing rigging always remains motionless. Previously it was made from thick plant cable, and on modern sailing ships it was made from steel cable and chains.
Shrouds are the name given to standing rigging gear that strengthens masts, topmasts and topmasts from the sides and somewhat from the rear. Depending on which spar tree the cable stays hold, they receive additional names: fore-stays, fore-wall-stays, fore-frame-wall-stays, etc. The shrouds also serve to lift personnel onto masts and topmasts when working with sails. For this purpose, hemp, wood or metal castings are strengthened across the cables at a certain distance from each other. Hemp bleachings were tied to the shrouds with a bleaching knot () at a distance of 0.4 m from one another.

The lower shrouds (hemp) were made the thickest on sailing ships, their diameter on battleships reached up to 90-100 mm, the wall-shrouds were made thinner, and the top-wall-shrouds were even thinner. The shrouds were thinner than their shrouds.
The topmasts and topmasts are additionally supported from the sides and somewhat from the rear by forduns. Forduns are also named after the masts and topmasts on which they stand. For example, for-sten-forduns, for-bram-sten-forduns, etc.
The upper ends of the shrouds and forduns are attached to the mast or topmast using ogons (loops) put on the tops of masts, topmasts and topmasts (). Guys, wall-guys and frame-wall-guys are made in pairs, i.e. from one piece of cable, which is then folded and cut according to the thickness of the top on which it is applied. If the number of shrouds on each side is odd, then the last shroud to the stern, including the forduns, are made split (). The number of shrouds and forearms depends on the height of the mast and the carrying capacity of the vessel.
The shrouds and forduns were stuffed (tightened) with cable hoists on deadeyes - special blocks without pulleys with three holes for a cable lanyard, with the help of which the shrouds and forduns are stuffed (tensioned). On modern sailing ships, the rigging is covered with metal screw shrouds.
In former times, on all military sailing ships and large merchant ships, in order to increase the angle at which the lower shrouds and forduns go to the masts, powerful wooden platforms - rusleni () - were strengthened on the outer side of the ship, at deck level.

Rice. 11. Tightening the shrouds with deadeyes.

The shrouds were secured with shrouds forged from iron strips. The lower end of the shrouds was attached to the side, and the deadeyes were attached to their upper ends so that the latter almost touched their lower part with the channel.
The upper deadeyes are tied into the shrouds and forduns using lights and benzels (marks) (). The root end of the lanyard is attached to the hole in the shroud-jock using a turnbuckle button, and the running end of the lanyard, after tightening the shrouds, having made several slags around them, is attached to the shroud using two or three benzels. Having established turnbuckles between all the deadeyes of the lower shrouds, they tied an iron rod to them on top of the deadeyes - vorst (), which prevented the deadeyes from twisting, keeping them at the same level. The topmast shrouds were equipped in the same way as the lower shrouds, but their deadeyes were somewhat smaller.
The standing rigging gear that supports the spars (masts and topmasts) in the center plane in front is called forestays, which, like the lower shrouds, were made of thick cable. Depending on which spar tree the stays belong to, they also have their own names: fore-stay, fore-stay-stay, fore-stay, etc. The headlights of the stays are made the same as those of the shrouds, but their sizes are larger (). The forestays are stuffed with lanyards on forestay blocks ().
Standing rigging also includes perths - plant ropes on yards (see), on which sailors stand while working with sails on yards. Usually one end of the perts is attached to the end of the yardarm, and the other in the middle. The perths are supported by props - sections of cable attached to the yard.

Now let's see what the complete standing rigging will look like on a sailing 90-gun, two-deck battleship of the late 18th and early 19th centuries with its full name (): 1 - water stays; 2 - Martin stay; 3 - Martin stay from the boom stay (or lower backstay); 4 - forestay; 5 - for-elk-stay; 6 - fore-elk-stay-stay (serves as a rail for the fore-top-staysail); 7 - fore-stay-stay; 8 - jib-rail; 9 - fore-gateway-wall-stay; 10 - boom-jib-rail; 11 - fore-bom-gateway-wall-stay; 12 - mainstay; 13 - main-elk-stay; 14 - main-elk-wall-stay; 15-mainsail-stay; 18 - mizzen stay; 19 - cruise-stay-stay; 20 - cruise-brow-stay-stay; 21 - cruise-bom-bram-wall-stay; 22 water tank stays; 23 - jib-backstays; 24 - boom-jumper-backstays; 25 - fore shrouds; 26 - fore-wall-shrouds; 27-fore-frame-wall-shrouds; 28 - for-sten-forduns; 29 - for-bram-wall-forduns; 30 - for-bom-bram-sten-forduns; 31 - main shrouds; 32 - main-wall-shrouds; 33 - main-frame-wall-shroud; 34 - main-sten-forduns; 35 - grotto-gateway-wall-forduny; 36 - grotto-bom-bram-wall-forduny; 37 - mizzen shrouds; 38 - cruise-wall-shroud; 39 - cruise-bram-wall-shroud; 40 - kruys-sten-forduny; 41 - kruys-bram-sten-forduny; 42 - kruys-bom-bram-sten-fortuny.

§4. The order of application, places of traction and thickness of hemp standing rigging.

Water stays, 1/2 thick of the bowsprit, are inserted into a hole in the leading edge of the bowsprit, attached there and raised to the bowsprit, where they are pulled by cable turnbuckles located between the deadeyes. The water backstays (one on each side) are hooked behind the butts, driven into the hull under the crimps, and are pulled from the bowsprit like water stays.
Then the shrouds are applied, which are made in pairs, with a thickness of 1/3 of their mast. Each end assigned to a pair of cables is folded in half and a bend is made at the bend using a benzel. First, the front right, then the front left pair of shrouds, etc. are put on the top of the mast. If the number of cables is odd, then the latter is made split, i.e. single. The shrouds are pulled by cable lanyards, based between the deadeyes tied into the lower ends of the shrouds, and the deadeyes fastened at the channel with the shrouds. Fore and main stays are made 1/2 thick, mizzen stays - 2/5 of their masts, and elk stays - 2/3 of their stays (hemp cables are measured along the circumference, and spars - according to the largest diameter).
They are put on the tops of the masts so that they cover the long-salings with the lights. The forestay and forestay are pulled by cable turnbuckles on the bowsprit, the mainstay and mainstay are on the deck on the sides and in front of the foremast, and the mizzen stay branches into legs and is attached to the deck on the sides of the mainstay. mast or passes through the thimble on the mainmast and stretches on the deck.
The main-shrouds, 1/4 thick of their topmasts, are pulled on the top platform by turnbuckles, mounted between the deadeyes tied into the main-shrouds and the deadeyes fastened to the eye-shrouds. The topmasts, 1/3 of the thickness of their topmasts, stretch on the channels like shrouds. The mainstays have a thickness of 1/3, and the elk-stays have a thickness of 1/4 of their topmasts, the fore-stay-stay is carried into a pulley on the right side of the bowsprit, and the fore-stay-stay - on the left. The main-stay-stay and the main-elk-stay-stay are carried through the pulleys of the blocks on the foremast and are pulled by the gypsum on the deck. The stay-stay cruise passes through the block pulley on the mainmast and extends on the topsail.
The standing rigging of the jib and boom jib is made 1/4 thick of its spar trees. Each marin stay is passed sequentially into the holes of its martin boom (there are two of them), where it is held with a button, then into the pulley of the block on the toe of the jig, into the pulley on the martin boom and on the bowsprit, and is pulled onto the forecastle. The jib backstays (two on each side) are tied with the middle end to the jib of the jib, their ends are inserted into thimbles near the legs of the blind yard and are pulled on the forecastle. The bom-jugger-backstay is also applied and pulled. The Martin stay from the boom jib is attached with the middle end to the end of the jib jib. and passing through the pulleys on the martin boom and bowsprit, it stretches to the forecastle.
The top stays and top stays are made 2/5 thick, and the top stays are made 1/2 of their top topmasts. The top shrouds are passed through holes in the saling spreaders, pulled up to the topmast and descended along the top shrouds to the top, where they are pulled by turnbuckles through thimbles at their ends. The fore-forestay passes into a pulley at the end of the jib and stretches on the forecastle, the main-forestay goes into a pulley on the fore-topmast, and the cruise-forestay goes into a pulley at the top of the mainmast and both are pulled on the deck.
Bom-bram-rigging is carried out and pulled like a bram-rigging.

§5. Running rigging spar.

Running rigging of a spar refers to all movable gear through which work is carried out related to lifting, selecting, pickling and turning spar trees - yards, gaffs, shots, etc.
The running rigging of the spar includes girdles and driers. halyards, braces, topenants, sheets, etc.
On ships with direct sails, the guards are used to raise and lower the lower yards with sails (see) or gaffs (its heels); dryropes for lifting the topsails, and halyards for lifting the top-yards and boom-yards, as well as oblique sails - jibs and staysails.
The tackle with which the toe of the gaff is raised and supported is called a dirik-halyard, and the tackle that lifts the gaff by the heel along the mast is called a gaff-gardel.
The gear that serves to support and level the ends of the yards is called topenants, and for turning the yards - brahms.
Now let's get acquainted with all the running rigging of the spar, with its full names, according to its location on the ship ():

Gear used for raising and lowering the yards: 1 - fore-yard girdle; 2 - for-mars-drayrep; 3 - fore-tops-halyard; 4 - fore-bram-halyard; 5 - fore-bom-bram-halyard; 6 - gardel of the mainsail; 7 - main-marsa-drayrep; 8 - mainsail-halyard; 9 main halyard; 10 - main-bom-brow-halyard; 11 - gardel-begin-ray; 12 - cruise-topsail-halyard; 13 - cruise-marsa-drairep; 14 - cruise halyard; 15 - cruise-bom-bram-halyard; 16 - gaff-gardel; 17 - dirk-halyard.
Gear used to support and level the ends of the yards: 18 - blind-toppenants; 19 - foka-topenants; 20 - fore-mars-topenants; 21 - for-bram-topenants; 22 - for-bom-bram-topenants; 23 - mainsail-topenants; 24 - main-mars-topenants; 25 - main-frame-topenants; 26 - main-bom-bram-topenants; 27 - beguin-topenants; 28 - cruise-marsa-topenants; 29 - cruis-bram-topenants; 30-kruys-bom-brahm-topenants; 31 - mizzen-geek-topenants; 31a - mizzen-geek-topenant pendant.
Gear used for turning the yards: 32 - blind-tris (bram-blinda-yard); 33 - fore-braces; 34 - fore-tops-braces; 35 - fore-braces; 36 - fore-bom-braces; 37 - main-contra-braces; 38 - mainsail braces; 39 - main-topsail-braces; 40 - main-frame-braces; 41 - main-bom-braces; 42 - beguin braces; 43 - cruise-tops-braces; 44 - cruise-braces; 45 - cruise-bom-braces; 46 - Erins backstays; 47 - blockage; 48 - mizzen-jig-sheet.

§6. Wiring of the running rigging shown in.

The foresail and mainsail are based between two or three-pulley blocks, two are strengthened under the topsail and two near the middle of the yard. The begin-gardel is based between one three-pulley block under the topsail and two single-pulley blocks on the yard. The running ends of the guards are mounted on bollards.
The fore- and main-mars-drires are attached with the middle end to the topmast, their running ends are each carried into their own blocks on the yardarm and under the saling, and blocks are woven into their ends. Marsa halyards are based between these blocks and the blocks on the riverbeds. Their flaps are pulled through the side bollards. The cruisel-marsa-drayrep is taken with its root end in the middle of the yard, and the running gear is passed through a pulley in the topmast under the saling and a block of the top-sailing halyard is inserted into its end, which is based on a mantyl - the root end is attached to the left channel, and the hoist to the right.
The top and boom halyards are taken with the root end in the middle of their yard, and the running ends are guided into the pulley of their topmast and pulled by the hulls: the top halyards are on the deck, and the boom halyards are on the topside.
The gaff-gardel is based between the block on the heel of the gaff and the block under the cruis-tops. The main end of the halyard is attached to the top of the topmast, and the running end is carried through the blocks on the gaff and the top of the mast. Their running ends are attached to bollards.
The blind-toppings are based between the blocks on both sides of the bowsprit eselgoft and on the ends of the blind-yard, and their flaps stretch on the forecastle. The foresail and main-topenants are based between three- or two-pulley blocks, and the beguin-topenants are based between two- or single-pulley blocks on both sides of the mast ezelgoft and on both ends of the yards. Their running ends, passed through the “dog holes”, are attached to bollards. The middle end of the top-stops is attached to the topmast, and the running ends, taken with a half-bayonet by the front shrouds, are inserted into blocks on the yard legs, into the lower pulleys of the butt blocks. through the “dog holes” and are attached next to the lower topenants. The bram- and bom-bram-topenants are put on with a point on the legs of the yard and, carried through the blocks on their topmasts, stretch: the bram-toppenant on the deck, and the bom-bram-topenants on the topsail. The boom-topenants are taken with the middle end of the boom leg, carried out on both sides of it, as shown in the figure, and pulled with grips at the heel of the boom.
The fore-braces are attached with the middle end to the top of the mainmast, are carried, as can be seen in the figure, and are pulled on the bollards of the mainmast. The main-braces are based between the blocks at the side of the poop and on the legs of the main-yard and extend through the side bollards. The main-contra-braces are based on top of the fore-braces between the blocks on the foremast and the yard legs and extend at the foremast. The main ends of the begin braces are taken by the rear main shrouds, and the running gears are passed through blocks on the yard legs and on the rear main shrouds and are attached to the tile strip at the side. Mars braces are attached at the middle end to the topmast, are carried into the shrouds, as shown in the figure, and are pulled on the deck. The fore- and main-braces are attached with the middle end to the gate or boom-brow-topmast and are carried into blocks at the ends of the yards and into blocks near the main end and stretch along the deck. Cruys-brams and all bom-brass are put on the ends of their yards, held as shown in the figure, and pulled on the deck.

The 17th century was a rich period in the history of shipbuilding. Ships have become faster, more maneuverable, and more stable. Engineers learned to design the best examples of sailing ships. The development of artillery made it possible to equip battleships with reliable, accurate guns. The need for military action determined progress in shipbuilding.

The most powerful ship at the beginning of the century

The beginning of the 17th century marks the dawn of the era of battleships. The first three-decker was the British HMS Prince Royal, which left the Woolwich shipyard in 1610. The British shipbuilders took the prototype from the Danish flagship, and subsequently rebuilt and improved it several times.

Four masts were installed on the ship, two each for straight and lateen sails. The three-deck, originally 55-gun, ship in its final version in 1641 became 70-gun, then changed its name to Resolution, returned the name, and in 1663 already had 93 guns in its equipment.

• Displacement about 1200 tons;
• Length (keel) 115 feet;
• Beam (midship) 43 feet;
• Interior depth 18 feet;
• 3 full artillery decks.

As a result of battles with the Dutch, the ship was captured by the enemy in 1666, and when they tried to recapture it, it was burned and scuttled.

The most powerful ship at the end of the century

The French Soleil Royal was built by shipbuilders at the Brest shipyard 3 times. The first 1669 three-masted with 104 guns, created as an equal opponent to the British "Royal Sovereign", died in 1692. And in the same year, a new battleship was already built, armed with 112 guns and had:

• Guns 28 x 36-pounders, 30 x 18-pounders (on the middeck), 28 x 12-pounders (on the front deck);
• Displacement 2200 tons;
• Length 55 meters (keel);
• Width 15 m (midship frame);
• Draft (interior) 7 m;
• A team of 830 people.

The third was built after the death of the previous one, as a worthy heir to the glorious traditions associated with this name.

New types of ships of the 17th century

The evolution of past centuries has shifted the emphasis of shipbuilding from the need to simply move safely across the seas, from the merchant ships of the Venetians, Hanseatics, Flemings and, traditionally, the Portuguese and Spaniards to overcome significant distances, to asserting the importance of dominance at sea and, as a result, defending their interests through military means actions.

Initially, merchant ships began to be militarized to counteract pirates, and by the 17th century, a class of only warships was finally formed, and a separation of the merchant and military fleets took place.

The shipbuilders and, of course, the Dutch provinces succeeded in building the navy. The galleon, the basis of the power of the squadrons of Spain and England, originated from the Portuguese shipbuilders.

17th century galleon

Shipbuilders in Portugal and Spain, who played a significant role until recently, continued to improve traditional ship designs.

In Portugal at the beginning of the century, 2 types of ships appeared with new hull proportions in the ratio of length to width - 4 to 1. These are a 3-masted pinnace (similar to a flute) and a military galleon.

On galleons, guns began to be installed above and below the main deck, highlighting battery decks in the design of the ship, port-cells for guns were opened on board only for combat, and were battened down to avoid flooding with waves of water, which, given the solid mass of the ship, would inevitably flood it; warheads were hidden in holds below the waterline. The displacement of the largest Spanish galleons of the early 17th century was about 1000 tons.

The Dutch galleon had three or four masts, up to 120 feet long, up to 30 feet wide, 12 feet low. draft and up to 30 guns. For ships with such a proportion of long hulls, speed was added by the number and area of ​​sails, and additionally by foils and underlisels. This made it possible to cut the wave steeper into the wind compared to rounded hulls.

Linear multi-deck sailing ships formed the backbone of the squadrons of Holland, Britain, and Spain. Three- and four-deck ships were the flagships of squadrons and determined military superiority and advantage in battle.

And if battleships constituted the main combat power, then frigates began to be built as the fastest ships, equipped with a small number of guns of one closed firing battery. To increase speed, the sail area was increased and the curb weight was reduced.

The English ship Sovereign of the Seas became the first classic example of a battleship. Built in 1637, armed with 100 guns.

Another classic example was the British frigate - reconnaissance and escort of merchant ships.

Actually, these 2 types of ships became an innovative line in shipbuilding and gradually replaced the European galleons, galliots, flutes, and pinnaces, which were obsolete by the middle of the century, from shipyards.

New technologies of the navy

The Dutch for a long time maintained the dual purpose of the ship during construction; shipbuilding for trade was their priority. Therefore, regarding warships, they were clearly inferior to England. In the middle of the century, the Netherlands built the 53-gun ship Brederode, similar to the Sovereign of the Seas, its flagship of the fleet. Design parameters:

• Displacement 1520 tons;
• Proportions (132 x 32) ft.;
• Draft - 13 ft.;
• Two artillery decks.

Flute “Schwarzer Rabe”

At the end of the 16th century, the Netherlands began to build flutes. Due to the new design, the Dutch flute had excellent seaworthiness and had:

• Shallow draft;
• Fast sailing rig that allowed steep sailing to the wind;
• High speed;
• Large capacity;
• A new design with a length-to-width ratio starting from four-to-one;
• Was cost effective;
• And the crew is about 60 people.

That is, in fact, a military transport ship to transport cargo, and on the high seas to repel an enemy attack, and to quickly break away.

Flutes were built at the beginning of the 17th century:

• About 40 meters long;
• About 6 or 7 m wide;
• Draft 3÷4 m;
• Load capacity 350÷400 tons;
• And a weaponry of 10÷20 guns.

For a century, flutes dominated all seas and played a significant role in wars. They were the first to use a steering wheel.

From the sailing running equipment, topmasts appeared on them, the yards were shortened, the length of the mast became longer than the ship, and the sails became narrower, more convenient to control, and small in size. Sails of the main, foresails, topsails, topsails on the main and foremasts. On the bowsprit there is a rectangular blind sail, a bomb blind. On the mizzen mast there is a slanting sail and a straight cruisel. A smaller upper crew was required to operate the sailing rig.

17th century warship designs

The gradual modernization of artillery pieces began to allow their successful use on board a ship. The important characteristics in the new battle tactics were:

• Convenient, quick reloading during the battle;
• Conducting continuous fire with intervals for reloading;
• Conducting targeted fire over long distances;
• An increase in the number of crew, which made it possible to fire during boarding conditions.

Since the 16th century, the tactics of dividing combat missions within a squadron continued to develop: some of the ships retreated to the flanks to conduct long-range artillery fire on a concentration of large enemy ships, and the light vanguard rushed to board the damaged ships.

British naval forces used these tactics during the Anglo-Spanish War.

The wake column during the review in 1849

Ships are classified according to the purpose of their use. Rowing galleys are being replaced by sailing cannon ships, and the main emphasis is transferred from boarding to destructive gunfire.

The use of heavy large-caliber weapons was difficult. Increased number of artillery crews, significant weight of the gun and charges, destructive recoil force for the ship, which is why it was impossible to fire salvos simultaneously. The emphasis was on 32...42-pound guns with a barrel diameter of no more than 17 cm. For this reason, several medium guns were preferable to a pair of large ones.

The most difficult thing is the accuracy of the shot in conditions of pitching and recoil inertia from neighboring guns. Therefore, the artillery crew needed a clear sequence of salvos with minimal intervals, and the training of the entire crew of the team.

Strength and maneuverability have become very important: it is necessary to keep the enemy strictly on board, not allow them to go to the rear, and be able to quickly turn the ship around on the other side in case of serious damage. The length of the ship's keel was no more than 80 meters, and in order to accommodate more guns, they began to build upper decks; a battery of guns was placed on each deck along the side.

The coherence and skill of the ship's crew were determined by the speed of maneuvers. The highest manifestation of skill was considered to be the speed with which a ship, having fired a salvo from one side, managed to turn its narrow bow into the oncoming salvo of the enemy, and then, turning on the opposite side, fired a new salvo. Such maneuvers made it possible to receive less damage and inflict significant and rapid damage to the enemy.

Worth mentioning are the numerous military rowing vessels used throughout the 17th century. The proportions were approximately 40 by 5 meters. Displacement is about 200 tons, draft is 1.5 meters. A mast and lateen sail were installed on the galleys. For a typical galley with a crew of 200 people, 140 oarsmen were placed in groups of three on 25 banks on each side, each with his own oar. The oar bulwarks were protected from bullets and crossbows. Guns were installed at the stern and bow. The purpose of the galley attack is boarding combat. Cannons and throwing weapons began the attack, and when they approached, boarding began. It is clear that such attacks were designed for heavily loaded merchant ships.

The most powerful army at sea in the 17th century

If at the beginning of the century the fleet of the winner of the Great Spanish Armada was considered the strongest, then later the combat effectiveness of the British fleet fell catastrophically. And failures in battles with the Spaniards and the shameful capture of 27 English ships by Moroccan pirates finally diminished the prestige of British power.

At this time, the Dutch fleet takes a leading position. This is the only reason why its rapidly growing neighbor encouraged Britain to build up its fleet in a new way. By the middle of the century, the flotilla consisted of up to 40 warships, six of which were 100-gun. And after the Revolution, combat power at sea increased until the Restoration. After a period of calm, towards the end of the century Britain was again asserting its power at sea.

From the beginning of the 17th century, the flotillas of European countries began to be equipped with battleships, the number of which determined their combat strength. The first 3-deck linear ship is considered to be the 55-gun ship HMS Prince Royal of 1610. The next 3-deck HMS “Sovereign of the Seas” acquired the parameters of the production prototype:

• Proportions 127 x 46 feet;
• Draft - 20 feet;
• Displacement 1520 tons;
• The total number of guns is 126 on 3 artillery decks.

Placement of guns: 30 on the lower deck, 30 on the middle deck, 26 with a smaller caliber on the upper deck, 14 under the forecastle, 12 under the poop. In addition, the superstructures have many embrasures for the guns of the remaining crew on board.

After three wars between England and Holland, they united in an alliance against France. By 1697, the Anglo-Dutch alliance was able to destroy 1,300 French naval units. And at the beginning of the next century, led by Britain, the alliance achieved an advantage. And the blackmail of the naval power of England, which became Great Britain, began to determine the outcome of the battles.

Naval tactics

Previous naval wars were characterized by disorderly tactics, with skirmishes between ship captains and no structure or unified command.

Since 1618, the British Admiralty introduced ranking of its warships

• Ships Royal, 40...55 guns.
• Great Royals, about 40 guns.
• Middle Ships. 30...40 guns.
• Small Ships, including frigates, less than 30 guns.

The British developed linear combat tactics. According to its rules were followed

1. Peer-to-peer formation in wake columns;
2. Building an equal-strength and equal-speed column without breaks;
3. Unified command.

What should ensure success in battle.

The tactics of equal-rank formation excluded the presence of weak links in the column; the flagships led the vanguard, the center, the command and brought up the rear. A unified command was subordinate to the admiral, and a clear system for transmitting commands and signals between ships appeared.

Naval battles and wars

Battle of Dover 1659

The first battle of the fleets a month before the start of the 1st Anglo-Dutch War, which formally gave it its beginning. Tromp with a squadron of 40 ships set off to escort and protect Dutch transport ships from English corsairs. Being in English waters close to a squadron of 12 ships under command. Admiral Burn, the Dutch flagships did not want to salute the English flag. When Blake approached with a squadron of 15 ships, the British attacked the Dutch. Tromp covered a caravan of merchant ships, did not dare to get involved in a long battle, and lost the battlefield.

Battle of Plymouth 1652

Took place in the First Anglo-Dutch War. de Ruyter took command of the Zeeland squadron of 31 troops. ship and 6 fire ships in defense of the trade caravan convoy. He was opposed by 38 soldiers. ships and 5 fire ships of the British forces.

When the Dutch met, they divided the squadron; some of the English ships began to pursue them, breaking the formation and losing the advantage in firepower. The Dutch, using their favorite tactic of shooting at masts and rigging, disabled some of the enemy ships. As a result, the British had to retreat and go to the ports for repairs, and the caravan safely left for Calais.

Battles of Newport 1652 and 1653

If in the battle of 1652 Ruyter and de Witt, having united 2 squadrons of 64 ships into a single one - the vanguard of Ruyter and the center of de Witt - the squadron, gave an equal battle to Black's 68 ships. Then in 1653, the squadron of Tromp, who had 98 ships and 6 fire ships against the 100 ships and 5 fire ships of the English admirals Monk and Dean, was significantly destroyed when trying to attack the main forces of the British. Ruyter, rushing into the wind as a vanguard, attacked the English. the vanguard of Admiral Lauzon, he was energetically supported by Tromp; but Admiral Dean managed to come to the rescue. And then the wind subsided, an artillery exchange began until darkness, when the Dutch, having discovered a lack of shells, were forced to quickly leave for their ports. The battle showed the superiority of the equipment and weapons of the English ships.

Battle of Portland 1653

Battle of the First Anglo-Dutch War. Convoy under command. Admiral M. Tromp of 80 ships was accompanied in the English Channel by a returning caravan of 250 merchant ships loaded with colonial goods. Having met with a fleet of 70 British ships under command. Admiral R. Blake, Tromp was forced into battle.

For two days of fighting, changing winds did not allow groups of ships to line up; The Dutch, pinned down by the defense of transport ships, suffered losses. And yet, at night, the Dutch were able to break through and leave, ultimately losing 9 military and 40 merchant ships, and the British 4 ships.

Battle of Texel 1673

Victory of de Ruyter with admirals Bankert and Tromp over the Anglo-French fleet at Texel in the third Anglo-Dutch war. This period was marked by the occupation of the Netherlands by French troops. The goal was to recapture the trade caravan. 92 ships and 30 fire ships of the Allies were opposed by a Dutch fleet of 75 ships and 30 fire ships.

Ruyter's vanguard managed to separate the French vanguard from the British squadron. The maneuver was a success and, due to the disunity of the allies, the French chose to keep the flotilla, and the Dutch managed to crush the British center in a brutal battle that lasted many hours. And as a result, having ousted the French, Bankert came to reinforce the Dutch center. The British were never able to land troops and suffered heavy losses in manpower.

These wars of advanced sea powers determined the importance of tactics, formations and firepower in the development of the navy and the art of warfare. Based on the experience of these wars, classes of division into ranks of ships were developed, the optimal configuration of a linear sailing ship and the number of weapons were tested. The tactics of combat between enemy ships was transformed into a combat formation of a wake column with coordinated artillery fire, quick formation and unified command. Boarding combat was becoming a thing of the past, and strength at sea influenced success on land.

17th century Spanish fleet

Spain continued to form its armadas with large galleons, the unsinkability and strength of which were proven by the results of the battles of the Invincible Armada with the British. The artillery the British had was unable to inflict damage on the Spaniards.

Therefore, Spanish shipbuilders continued to build galleons with an average displacement of 500 ÷ 1000 tons and a draft of 9 feet, creating an ocean-going ship - stable and reliable. Such ships were equipped with three or four masts and about 30 guns.

In the first third of the century, 18 galleons with up to 66 guns were launched. The number of large ships exceeded 60 against 20 large royal ships of England and 52 of France.

The features of durable, heavy ships are their high resistance to staying in the ocean and combating water elements. Installing straight sails in two tiers did not provide maneuverability and ease of control. At the same time, the lack of maneuverability was compensated by excellent survivability during storms in terms of strength parameters, and the versatility of galleons. They were used simultaneously for trade and military operations, which were often combined during an unexpected meeting with the enemy in the vast waters of the ocean.

The extraordinary capacity made it possible to equip ships with a decent number of weapons and take on board a large crew trained for combat. This made it possible to successfully carry out boarding - the main naval tactics of battles and capture of ships in the arsenal of the Spaniards.

17th century French fleet

In France, the first battleship "Crown" was launched in 1636. Then the rivalry with England and Holland at sea began.

Ship characteristics of a three-masted two-deck "" 1st rank:

• Displacement more than 2100 tons;
• Length on the upper deck is 54 meters, along the waterline 50 m, along the keel 39 m;
• Width 14 m;
• 3 masts;
• Mainmast 60 meters high;
• Sides up to 10 m high;
• The sail area is about 1000 m²;
• 600 sailors;
• 3 decks;
• 72 different-caliber guns (14x 36-pounders);
• Oak body.

The construction required about 2 thousand dried trunks. The shape of the barrel was matched to the shape of the ship part by matching the bends of the fibers and the part, which gave special strength.

The ship is famous for eclipsing the Sovereign of the Seas, the British masterpiece Sovereign of the Seas (1634), and is now considered the most luxurious and beautiful ship of the sailing era.

Fleet of the United Netherlands Provinces of the 17th century

In the 17th century, the Netherlands fought endless wars with neighboring countries for independence. The maritime confrontation between the Netherlands and Britain had the character of internecine rivalry between neighbors. On the one hand, they were in a hurry to control the seas and oceans with the help of the fleet, on the other, to oust Spain and Portugal, while successfully carrying out robbery attacks on their ships, and on the third, they wanted to dominate as the two most militant rivals. At the same time, dependence on corporations - the owners of the ships, which financed shipbuilding, overshadowed the importance of victories in naval battles, which stopped the growth of the Dutch maritime industry.

The formation of the power of the Dutch fleet was facilitated by the liberation struggle with Spain, the weakening of its strength, and numerous victories of Dutch ships over the Spaniards during the Thirty Years' War by its end in 1648.

The Dutch fleet was the largest, numbering 20 thousand merchant ships, and a huge number of shipyards operated. Actually, this century was the Golden Age of the Netherlands. The Netherlands' struggle for independence from the Spanish Empire led to the Eighty Years' War (1568-1648). After the completion of the war of liberation of the Seventeen Provinces from the rule of the Spanish monarchy, there were three Anglo-Gol. wars, a successful invasion of England, and wars with France.

3 Anglo-Dutch wars at sea tried to determine a dominant position at sea. By the beginning of the first, the Dutch fleet had 75 warships along with frigates. The available warships of the United Provinces were scattered around the world. In case of war, warships could be chartered, or simply hired from other European states. The designs of the “pinnace” and “Flemish carrack” were easily upgraded from a merchant vessel to a military vessel in case of war. However, apart from Brederode and Grote Vergulde Fortuijn, the Dutch could not boast of their own warships. They won battles through courage and skill.

By the Second Anglo-Dutch War in 1665, van Wassenaar's squadron was able to assemble 107 ships, 9 frigates and 27 lower ships. Of these, 92 are armed with more than 30 guns. The number of crews is 21 thousand sailors, 4800 guns.

England could oppose 88 ships, 12 frigates and 24 inferior ships. A total of 4,500 guns, 22 thousand sailors.

In the most disastrous battle in the history of Holland, the Battle of Lowestoft, the Flemish flagship, the 76-gun Eendragt, was blown up along with van Wassenaar.

17th century British fleet

In the middle of the century, there were no more than 5 thousand merchant ships in Britain. But the navy was significant. By 1651, the Royal Navy squadron already had 21 battleships and 29 frigates, with 2 battleships and 50 frigates being completed on the way. If we add the number of free-hire and chartered ships, the fleet could reach up to 200 ships. The total number of guns and caliber were unrivaled.

Construction was carried out at the royal shipyards of Britain - Woolwich, Davenport, Chatham, Portsmouth, Deptford. A significant part of the ships came from private shipyards in Bristol, Liverpool, etc. Over the course of the century, growth gradually increased with the predominance of the regular fleet over the chartered one.

In England, the most powerful battleships were called Manovar, as the largest, with the number of guns exceeding a hundred.

To increase the multi-purpose composition of the British fleet in the middle of the century, more combat ships of smaller types were created: corvettes, bombards.

During the construction of frigates, the number of guns on two decks increased to 60.

In the first Battle of Dover with the Netherlands, the British fleet had:

60-push. James, 56-push. Andrew, 62-push. Triumph, 56-push. Andrew, 62-push. Triumph, 52-push. Victory, 52-push. Speaker, five 36-guns, including President, three 44-guns, including Garland, 52-guns. Fairfax and others.

What the Dutch fleet could counter:

54-push. Brederode, 35-push. Grote Vergulde Fortuijn, nine 34-guns, the rest of lower ranks.

Therefore, the reluctance of the Netherlands to engage in open water combat according to the rules of linear tactics becomes obvious.

Russian fleet of the 17th century

As such, the Russian fleet did not exist before Peter I, due to the lack of access to the seas. The very first Russian warship was the two-deck, three-masted "Eagle" built in 1669 on the Oka River. But it was built at the Voronezh shipyards in 1695 - 1696 from 23 rowing galleys, 2 sailing-rowing frigates and more than 1000 ships, barques, and plows.

Ship “Eagle” 1667

The parameters of the 36-gun frigates “Apostle Peter” and “Apostle Paul” are similar:

• Length 34 meters;
• Width 7.6 m;
• 15 pairs of oars to ensure maneuverability;
• Flat-bottomed body;
• The anti-boarding sides are curved inward at the top.

Russian masters and Peter himself in 1697 The frigate Peter and Paul was built in Holland.

The first ship to sail into the Black Sea was the Fortress. From the shipyard at the mouth of the Don in 1699:

• Length - 38 meters;
• Width - 7.5 m;
• Crew - 106 sailors;
• 46 guns.

In 1700, the first Russian battleship “God's Predestination”, intended for the Azov flotilla, left the Voronezh shipyard, and it was rebuilt by Russian craftsmen and engineers. This three-masted ship, equal to IV rank, had:

• Length 36 meters;
• Width 9 m;
• 58 guns (26x 16-pounder guns, 24x 8-pounder guns, 8x 3-pounder guns);
• A team of 250 sailors.