The oldest operating ship of the Russian Navy. HMS Victory - the oldest combat ship in the world (44 photos)

What ships did ancient Troy have? The question is of interest to so many visitors to VO. And what did the ships of that era look like in general? After all, it is obvious that the famous Greek triremes, known to us from black and red-glazed Greek ceramics, have nothing to do with the Greek Trojan period! Frescoes from Fera? But they belong to an earlier time ... However, it turns out that there is a place in the Mediterranean where there are simply a lot of ancient ships, and of various centuries. This is his seabed! Another thing is that finding them is not so easy. Some ships immediately, as soon as they sank, were smashed by waves. Others are covered with sand and cannot be seen from above. Others may be intact, but they lie very deep. So you need rare luck and a combination of circumstances so that divers, firstly, would stumble upon such a ship, and secondly, there would be something to get there! This matters too. After all, then it can be restored and exhibited in a museum.

Castle of St. Petra in Bodrum. View from the coast.

Here, on the pages of VO, I have already talked about a replica of a ship from Kyrenia, which is located in the Museum of the Sea in Ayia Napa, while its actual remains are in the Museum of the Ship in Northern Cyprus. However, this is not the most ancient Mediterranean ship today! The oldest one is located on the mainland, namely in the Turkish city of Bodrum, which is located on the southwestern coast of Asia Minor between the resorts of Marmaris and Izmir. They say that Bodrum is the capital of Turkey's "Cote d'Azur" and this is true, but it's not about that now.

Castle of St. Petra in Bodrum. View from the sea.

For us, it is much more important and interesting that it was in its place in ancient times that the very city of Helicarnassus was located, which became famous throughout the Oikoumene for the majestic tomb of King Mausolus, which was first called the Mausoleum. In ancient times, the Mausoleum was considered one of the seven wonders of the world, but it was completely destroyed, and only some stone blocks from its walls were used in the construction of the fortress walls of the Crusader castle. And then, nevertheless, they found both the preserved foundation of the Mausoleum, and the miraculously surviving statues and reliefs. In the middle of the 19th century, all this was taken to England in the British Museum. Although a piece of the city wall of Helicarnassus, several towers and the legendary gate of Myndos are still partially preserved.

Map of the place where the “ship from Kas” was found.

But on Cape Zephyrion, prominent in the sea, at the beginning of the 15th century, the knights of the Order of the Hospitallers built a castle for themselves, which they called the castle of St. Peter. And after all the historical tragic collisions in 1973, it housed the Museum of Underwater Archeology, and if you happen to be there somewhere nearby, be sure to visit it!

Tools found on board the ship.

What is there just not there, starting with finds dating back to the 14th century. BC: these are both coins and vessels from a Byzantine ship of the Middle Ages. In the hall of the Carian princess Ada, you can admire her tomb and gold jewelry. It is here that the richest collection of ancient Mediterranean amphorae in the world, the forerunners of containers and cisterns of modern shipping, is kept. But the main highlight of the museum's exposition is the reconstruction of the Ulu-Burun ship, which sank here near the city of Kash at the end of the 14th century. BC. Interestingly, although this ship is small in size, it took 10 years to lift it out of the water!

Ship in section.

A life-size remake of the ship can be seen in detail, starting with the hull made of cedar boards, heavy stone anchors and fragments of oars. On it, historians have found many treasures in the truest sense of the word. For example, this is a golden scarab with the name of Queen Nefertiti, a stone ax, obviously of a ritual purpose, four swords of various shapes, and even ostrich eggs!

Exhibits from the ancient ship and its reconstruction are located in the Uluburun hall, named after the rocky cape on the southern coast near the city of Kasha. Here this ship with all its cargo several thousand years ago just crashed and sank, and all the wealth that was on board went to the bottom of the sea. For many years, he lay quietly at a depth of about 60 m, until he was discovered quite by accident ...

Deck and steering oars.

And it so happened that in 1983, a local diver, who hunted for sea sponges and knew the seabed well, found an unusual accumulation of strange ingots and the remains of a wooden ship. He picked up several samples from the bottom and took them to the museum, where it immediately became clear that these ingots in the form of a ram's skin were made of copper and that they belonged to the late Bronze Age, and this ship itself - to the 14th century BC.

Hold with ingots of copper.

The discovery immediately aroused extraordinary interest not only among specialists in underwater archeology, but also among ordinary citizens who read about this event in the prestigious National Geographic magazine. It is understood that the Bodrum Museum of Underwater Archeology also attracted the attention of the public after that, and the number of visitors from different countries it immediately increased several times. (Here it is a clear and obvious "conspiracy theory": it was all done on purpose to deceive the gullible readers of this magazine and increase the museum's income!) However, income is income, and the work of raising the ship was clearly in no hurry. It was carried out in as many as 11 stages, 3-4 months each, and ran from 1984 to 1994.

It was possible to find out that the ship was small in size: only 15 meters long, but carried a cargo weighing about 20 tons. Its hull turned out to be quite badly damaged, although some of its parts were preserved very well. It turned out that it was made of cedar boards, which were butted together - that is, on pegs wedged from the inside, inserted into holes drilled in the boards. The remains of oars were found, the largest of which was 1.7 m long and 7 cm thick. As many as 24 stone anchors weighing from 120 to 210 kg and two small anchors weighing 16-21 kg were also found on the ship. Perhaps what is a large number anchors appeared on the ship not by chance. It is possible that they were not used for their intended purpose, but to ballast the ship, although this is nothing more than an assumption.

Ship in section: come in and see.

Finds from the ship made it possible to determine that this ship was a merchant ship from the Middle East, and most likely from Cyprus, and according to the time of the catastrophe, it can be attributed to the 14th century BC, that is, it was the oldest sea vessel in the world.

Egyptian scarabs found at the bottom. White and large (top) double-sided enlarged plaster copies. This is customer care!

This discovery was of great importance, as it automatically shifted the history of the sea international trade to the Bronze Age, since the cargo found on the ship: Ivory, amphorae, small ceramics, household utensils, 10 tons of copper and tin ingots, beautiful glassware and gold jewelry - all this was from Egypt. The ship, apparently, sailed to the shores of Syria and Cyprus, and, perhaps, the shores of the Black Sea were the final destination of its journey. It is assumed that the cargo could be transported to Egypt, but it is, of course, impossible to determine exactly where this ship sailed.

A piece of the seabed, preserved in the museum.

Another piece of the bottom with anchor rods lying on it. Sea Museum in Ayia Napa. Island of Cyprus.

Interestingly, the Bodrum Museum exhibits not only the details of this 15-meter ship mined from the bottom of the sea and its replica, but also shows how its cargo could be located in the hold. There are also exhibits here, and valuable things from other ships that have survived much worse, but still gave something to science, including from Cape Gelidonya, and from other places on this coast.

Copper ingots in the form of skins.

Dendrochronological research wooden parts The vessel was led by Dr. Kemal Pulak of the University of Texas, and they showed the approximate date of its construction - about 1400 BC. e. It turns out that it is 150 years older than the equally conditional date of the fall of Troy. But this also unambiguously indicates that already at that time an established Mediterranean trade existed.

Blue glass is the raw material for melting down.

Professor Peter Kuniholm of Cornell University conducted a study of the wooden parts of a ship's cargo. Their results suggest that the ship may have sunk around 1316-1305. BC e. This dating is confirmed by the ceramics found on board. Such archaeologists find in the layers of the Mursili eclipse of 1312 BC. e., named after the Hittite king Mursili II.

Mycenaean amphoras (copies)

Finds of beads and jewelry.

In total, about 18,000 items were taken from the bottom. Of these, 354 ingots of copper weighing 10 tons, 40 ingots of tin weighing about one ton, 175 ingots of glass. They found fossilized food, just like in the vessels of Tutankhamun's tomb: acorns, almonds, olives, pomegranates, dates. Of the jewels, they found a gold ring with the name of Queen Nefertiti, as well as a number of gold pendants of various shapes, agate beads, faience beads, silver bracelets, a golden bowl, tiny faience beads fused into a lump, gold and silver scrap.

The stone ax is clearly a cult purpose of a very interesting shape.

Greece is a land of seas. The inhabitants of this state have always been famous for their knowledge and skills in the field of shipbuilding and shipping. Greek navigators have preserved all the best traditions since ancient times. The ships of these sailors were rightfully considered and are considered the best in the world.

The capital and other major cities of Greece were major trading posts. Fleet in every locality, adjacent to the sea, was and is quite strong and powerful. To this day, researchers agree that the most famous, maneuverable and strong ship of the Greeks is the trireme. She was talked about, her enemies were afraid of her, who more than once came face to face with her. The ram of the trireme was superior in strength to all available enemy ships. There were other combat and merchant ships that more than once surprised and amazed the imagination of the conquerors who tried to penetrate the land of the Greeks.

Sail, oars and other achievements of shipbuilding

Scientists who studied ancient documents and drawings of Greek shipbuilders came to the conclusion that the invention of the sail belongs to the Greeks. But first, they learned how to pull their boats with the skin of buffaloes and cows, they came up with oars.

Some researchers associate the invention of the sail with the story of the salvation of Daedalus (the myth of Daedalus and Icarus). Daedalus managed to escape from the island of Crete, thanks to the sail he had. Allegedly, it was he who first piled this important element onto his ship.

The ships of the Greeks for a long time moved only with the help of oar power. For this they used the labor of slaves. The sail could be raised if a fair wind blew. Some experience in shipbuilding and warfare on the water, the mainland Greeks adopted from the sailors of Phenicia and the Aegean island Greece. It is no secret that the representatives of the country of the sea used the fleet more for war purposes, aggressive campaigns and for defensive purposes. Fewer Greek ships went to other countries for the sake of trade. home distinguishing feature the Greek fleet from all the rest - a huge difference between military and merchant ships. The first ones were quite hardy, they could maneuver as much as they wanted, and the merchant ones took on board tons of cargo and at the same time remained reliable until the very finish line.

What were the Greek ships like? Basic principles of construction

The hull of the vessel was necessarily equipped with a keel, sheathed. The Greeks were the first to make paired seams for greater reliability. The thickest plating was under the keel and at deck level. For greater reliability, fastenings were made not only from wood, but also from bronze. Huge metal pins firmly nailed the skin to the ship's hull.

The necessary protection against waves was also made. For this, a bulwark made of canvas was bridged. The ship's hull was always kept clean, painted and updated as needed. A mandatory procedure was rubbing the skin with grease. Above the waterline, the hull was additionally strengthened, tarred and covered with lead sheets.

The Greeks never saved on the raw materials from which ships were built. They took away the best varieties wood, made perfectly strong ropes and ropes, the material for the sail was the most reliable.

The keel was made of oak, the frames were acacia, the spars were made of pine. Complemented by a variety of wood species - beech sheathing. The sails were originally rectangular, but later Greek shipbuilders realized that it was much more practical to use the shape of a trapezoid to create sails.

The very first boats were very light. Their length was only 35-40 meters. In the middle of the hull, the sides were lower than in the rest of the ship. The oars were supported by special beams. From the oars mounted on the stern, they made a control resembling a steering wheel.

There were single-row and double-decker vessels. The lightweight unirema was about 15 meters long, and 25 rowers were placed in it. It was from such ships that the Greek fleet consisted during the siege of Troy. At the same time, each ship was equipped with a ram made of metal in the form of a huge 8-10 meter spear.

Types of courts of the ancient Greeks

Pentecontors. These ships were invented and popular between the 12th and 8th centuries. BC. The vessel was about 30-35 meters long, about 5 meters wide, rowed, had 1 tier. The speed of the ship developed a maximum of 10 knots.

Not at all times the Pentekontors were deckless. In a later period they were retrofitted. The deck well protected the slaves from direct sunlight, enemy shells. Everything needed from provisions was put on deck, drinking water, even drove horses along with chariots to fight, if necessary, on land. The Pentekontors easily housed archers and other warriors.

More often than not, Pentekontors were used to move warriors from the scene of some events to other objects of battles. Actually, they became warships later, when the Greeks decided not only to deliver fighters, but also to use Pentekontors to sink enemy ships by ramming them. Over time, these ships have changed, become taller. Greek shipbuilders added another tier to accommodate more warriors. But such a ship was called differently.

Bireme. This is the modified Pentekontora. Bireme was better protected from the onslaught of the enemy during the naval battle. But at the same time, the number of rowers who were previously trained in synchronized actions during the campaign was increased. In this case, the labor of slaves was not used, since the outcome of the battle often depended on well-trained rowers. Only professional sailors were hired for such work. Their salary they received on a par with the soldiers.

But later they again began to use the labor of slaves, having already previously taught them the skills of the oar move. Often there were only a small number of professional rowers in the team. The rest were complete laymen in this matter.

Birema was intended specifically for combat on the water. Rowers of the lower tier maneuvered at the oars under the command of the captain of the ship, and the upper tier (warriors) fought under the leadership of the commander. This was very beneficial, because everyone had enough to do, and everyone did their job.

Trier. This is the most powerful and powerful ship of the Ancient Greeks. The invention of this type of vessel is attributed to the Phoenicians, but it is believed that they borrowed the drawings from the Romans. But they called their ship a trireme. The name, apparently, was the only difference. The Greeks had entire fleets consisting of triremes and biremes. Thanks to such strength, the Greeks began to dominate the eastern part mediterranean sea.

Trier is a huge ship, designed for 200 people. Most of of them are rowers, the rest are archers. The ship's crew consisted of only 15-20 sailors and several assistants.

The oars on the ship were distributed proportionally into 3 tiers:

1. Upper.
2. Average.
3. Lower.

Trier was a very fast ship. In addition, she maneuvered exquisitely and easily went to ram. Triremes were supplied with sails, but the Greeks preferred to fight battles when the ship was under oar. Huge Trieres on oars accelerated to 8 knots, which could not be done only with a sail. Devices for ramming enemy ships were both under water and above it. What was on top, the Greeks gave a curved shape or made it in the form of a huge head of a monster. Under water, the ram was created in the form of a standard pointed copper spear. The soldiers pinned their greatest hopes on the underwater ram during the battle.

The main goal is to break through the hull of the enemy ship so that it goes to the bottom. The Greeks did it skillfully, and most of the ships of the conquerors sank. The fighting technique on Trier was as follows:

1. Try to attack from the rear while other ships take up a distracting position.
2. Before the collision itself, dodge, remove the oars and damage the side of the enemy ship.
3. Turn around as soon as possible and completely ram the enemy.
4. Attack other enemy ships.

At the end of the 20th century, several scientists, representatives of different countries of the world, recreated Trier according to ancient drawings and descriptions. Shipbuilders-enthusiasts set off on this ship by sea. The journey helped the researchers to understand how the waves were moving, battles were carried out, etc. Now this ship is in the museum of Greece, not far from Piraeus.

Most of Greece is surrounded by the sea, so the Greeks have always been considered good shipbuilders and, and Ancient Greek ships- the best watercraft of ancient times. Wealthy trading cities such as Athens and Corinth had powerful navies to protect their merchant ships. The largest and most maneuverable ancient Greek ship was considered triremes, driven by 170 rowers. Her ram, located in the bow of the ship, punched holes in the enemy ship. But creation triremes due to the appearance of other warships, earlier built. This is exactly what my story is about.

pentekontor

In the archaic period from the 12th to the 8th century BC, the most common type of ships of the ancient Greeks were pentecontors.

Pentekontor It was a 30-meter single-tier rowing vessel, driven by twenty-five oars on each side. The width was about 4 m, the maximum speed was 9.5 knots.

Pentecontors were mostly deckless open courts. However, sometimes this ship of the ancient Greeks was equipped with a deck. The presence of the deck protected the rowers from the sun and from enemy projectiles, and also increased the cargo-and-passenger capacity of the ship. The deck could carry supplies, horses, war chariots and additional warriors, including archers, capable of withstanding enemy ships.

Original Ancient Greek pentecontors intended mainly for the transport of troops. At the oars sat the same warriors who later, having gone ashore, entered the battle. In other words, pentekontor was not a warship specifically designed to destroy other warships, but was a military transport. ( Note. Just like, on the oars of which ordinary combatants sat).

The emergence of a desire to drown the enemy along with the troops before they landed on the shore and began to destroy their native fields contributed to the appearance on the ship of the ancient Greek device, called the ram.

For the warship of the ancient Greeks, which participated in naval battles using a ram as the main anti-ship weapon, the following remained important indicators: maneuverability - the ability to quickly escape from a retaliatory strike, speed - contributing to the development of impact force, and armor - protecting against similar enemy strikes.

The preservation of these characteristics nullified the calculations of the Mediterranean shipbuilders of the 12th century BC, thereby forcing the ancient Greeks to look for more rational ideas. And an elegant solution was found.

If the ship cannot be lengthened, then it can be made taller and place another tier with rowers. Thanks to this, the number of oars was doubled without significantly increasing the length ancient Greek ship. So there was bireme.

bireme

As a result of adding a second tier with rowers, security has also increased. ancient Greek ships. To ram bireme, the stem of the enemy ship now needed to overcome the resistance more oars.

The increase in the number of rowers also led to the fact that they were required to synchronize their actions in order to bireme did not turn into a centipede entangled in its own legs. Rowers were required to have a sense of rhythm, so in ancient times the labor of galley slaves was not used. All the merry men were civilian sailors, and received a salary during the war, like professional soldiers - hoplites.

bireme rowers

Only in the 3rd century BC, when the Romans during the Punic Wars had a shortage of rowers due to high losses, they used on their slaves and criminals sentenced for debts, who had undergone preliminary training. The appearance of the image of galley slaves actually went down in history with the advent. They had a different design, which made it possible to have only about 15 percent of trained rowers in the team, and the rest were recruited from convicts.

The appearance of the first bireme the Greeks are dated to the end of the 8th century BC. Birema can be recognized as the first ancient ship specially built to destroy enemy naval targets. The rowers of ancient ships were almost never professional warriors like land hoplites, but were considered first-class sailors. In addition, during the boarding action on board their ship, the rowers of the upper tier often took part in the battles, while the rowers of the lower tier were able to continue maneuvering.

It is easy to imagine that the meeting biremes VIII century with 20 warriors, 12 sailors and a hundred rowers on board with Pentekontor times Trojan War with 50 rowing warriors would be deplorable for the latter. Though pentekontor had 50 warriors on board against 20 biremes, his team in most cases would not be able to use their numerical superiority. First, more high board biremes would have prevented a boarding battle, and a ramming blow biremes would be twice as efficient pentekontor.

Secondly, while maneuvering pentecontors all his hoplites are oared. While 20 hoplites biremes can attack with projectiles.

Due to its obvious advantages, the bireme began to spread rapidly across the Mediterranean, and for many centuries firmly occupied the position of "light" of all large fleets. However, the place "" after two centuries will take triremes- the most massive ancient ship Antiquity.

triremes

Trier is a further development of the idea of ​​a multi-tiered rowing ship of the ancient Greeks. According to Thucydides, the first triremes was built around 650 BC and was about 42 meters long.

in classical Greek triere there were about 60 rowers, 30 soldiers and 12 sailors on each side. Rowers and sailors led " keleist", commanded the whole ship" trierarch».

"trierarch"

The rowers who were on the lower tier triremes, almost at the very water, were called " talamites". There were 27 of them on each side. The ports cut in the hull of the ship for oars were very close to the water, so with little excitement they were often overwhelmed by waves. In this case " talamites"retracted the oars inward, and the ports were battened down with leather patches.

The rowers of the second tier were called " zigits"and, finally, the third tier -" transits". Oars " zigits" and " transits» passed through the ports in « paradox"- a special box-shaped extension of the hull above the waterline, which hung over the water. The rhythm of the rowers was set by the flutist, and not by the drummer, as on the larger ships of ancient Rome.

The oars of all tiers had the same length of 4.5 meters. The fact is that if you look at the vertical slice triremes, then it turns out that all the rowers are located along the curve formed by the side of the vessel. Thus, the blades of the oars of three tiers reached the water, although they entered it at different angles.

Trier was a very narrow ship. At the waterline level, the ship had a width of about 5 m, and allowed a maximum speed of up to 9 knots, but some sources claim that it could reach up to 12 knots. But, despite the relatively low speed, triremes was considered a very power-armed ship. From a stationary state ancient ships reached maximum speed in 30 seconds.

Like later Roman ships, Greek triremes equipped with a buffer ram-proembolone and a battle ram in the form of a trident or head.

ram trireme

The most effective weapon of ancient ships was a ram, and auxiliary, but also enough effective tool armed struggle - boarding battle.

The success of the naval battle primarily depended on a swift strike at full speed on the side of the enemy ship, after which the crew also had to quickly reverse to change position. The fact is that the attacking ship was always at risk of attack, since it could receive more damage and get stuck in the wreckage of the oars, and therefore lose its course, and its crew would be instantly attacked by various projectiles from the side of the enemy ship.

trireme tactical maneuver - swim

One of the common tactical maneuvers during sea ​​battle v Ancient Greece was considered " diek plus"(swimming). The purpose of the tactical technique was to choose a course of attack that was advantageous from the point of view of the position and deprive the enemy of the opportunity to evade the blow. For this triremes moved towards the enemy ship, inflicting a glancing blow. At the same time, while passing along the side of the enemy, the rowers of the attacking ship had to retract the oars on command. After that, significant damage was inflicted on the oars of the enemy ship from one side. In a moment, the attacking ship moved into position and delivered a ramming blow to the side of the immobilized enemy ship.

Trieres did not have stationary masts, but almost all were equipped with one or two removable masts, which were quickly mounted when a fair wind appeared. The central mast was installed vertically and stretched for stability with cables. Bow mast designed for a small sail - " artemon", was installed obliquely, based on" acrotable».

Sometimes triremes modernized for transportation. Such ships were called hoplitagagos" (for warriors) and " hippagos"(for horses). Fundamentally these ancient ships were no different from trier, but had a reinforced deck, a higher bulwark and additional wide gangways for horses.

biremes and triremes became the main and only universal ancient ships Antique period from the 4th to the 5th century BC. Alone or as part of small formations, they could perform cruising functions: conduct reconnaissance, intercept enemy trade and deliver critical cargo and attack the enemy on the coast.

Exodus naval battles was decided primarily by the level of individual training of the crews - rowers, sailing team and soldiers. However, much also depended on the battle formations of the formation. On the passage, the ancient ships of the Greek fleet, as a rule, followed in the wake formation. Rebuilding in line was carried out on the eve of a collision with the enemy. Wherein ships sought to line up in three or four lines with a mutual shift of half a position. This tactical move was carried out in order to make it difficult for the enemy to maneuver " diek plus", because having broken the oars of any of the ships of the first row, the enemy ship exposed his side to the ramming of the ships of the neighboring line.

In ancient Greece, there was another tactical arrangement of ships, which in modern tactics corresponds to a deaf defense - this is a special circular formation. It was called " hedgehog”And was used in cases where it was necessary to protect ships with valuable cargo or avoid linear battles with superior enemy ships.

As ancillary ships, or raiders used single-tier galleys - " unirems", heirs of archaic triaccounts and pentecontors.

In the classical period of the 5th century BC, the fleet of Ancient Greece formed the basis of military power and was important component armed forces of the coalitions of Hellas.

Military navy of ancient greece numbered up to 400 trier. ancient ships were built at state shipyards. However, their equipment, repairs and even the hiring of rowers was carried out at the expense of wealthy Athenians, who, as a rule, became trierarchs- ship captains. At the end of the voyage trier returned for storage at the base of the navy in Piraeus, and the crew was disbanded.

Development ancient greek navy contributed to the emergence of a new category of citizens - sailors. According to their hierarchical position, they were not rich people and outside the maritime service they did not have sources of permanent income. In times of peace, when the demand for highly skilled sailors declined, they were engaged in small trade or were hired as farm laborers to wealthy landowners. Sailors who were written ashore inhabited the urban poor in Piraeus and Athens. Along with this, these were the people on whom the military power of Ancient Greece depended.

Interestingly, an ordinary worker earned about half a drachma a day, and rowers on ships and hoplites during the military campaign received 2 drachmas daily. With this money, one could buy 40 kg of grain, four buckets of olives or 2 buckets of inexpensive wine. A ram cost 5 drachmas, and renting a small room in a poor quarter cost 30 drachmas. Thus, for a month of sea wanderings, an ordinary rave could provide himself with provisions for a whole year.

Most the capital ship of the ancient Greeks, built in Antiquity, is considered a mythical tesseracontera, created in Egypt by order of Ptolemy Philopator. Sources claim that this ancient ship reached a length of 122 m and a width of 15 m, and on board there were about 4,000 rowers (10 per oar) and 3,000 warriors. Some historians believe that it was rather a large double-hull catamaran, between the hulls of which a grandiose platform was built for throwing machines and warriors.

Sorry about the names Greek ships little is known. Athens had two triremes with luxurious exterior trim, which had the names " Paralia" and " salaminia". These two ships were used for solemn processions or for sending especially important orders.

A brief history of shipbuilding, sailboats from the beginning of time to the present day...

In this world, it is difficult to imagine something more romantic than a sailboat. Of course, traveling by sea is romantic in itself, but a sailboat is the pinnacle of romantic dreams.
We have been dreaming of sailboats since childhood, reading Jules Verne, Jack London or Robert Louis Stevenson. But sailing even on a small sailing yacht will not leave an adult indifferent. And when a real big sailboat with several masts and a full set of oblique and straight sails appears on the horizon, it simply takes your breath away and stops your heart.
For me, who was born and raised on the seashore, a sailboat is not just a sound, it is a part of life, a particle of a bygone childhood, pleasant memories and dreams that, alas, were not destined to come true ... But anyone who has ever seen a sailing ship entering the the port remembers this all his life ... We are fascinated by the names: frigate, brigantine, caravel ... But few people know how these ships differ, why they bear such names and how sailing ships appeared ... Let's try to figure it out ...

HISTORY OF SHIPBUILDING

I. BIBLICAL BEGINNING

“Make yourself an ark out of gopher wood; you shall make compartments in the ark, and cover it with pitch inside and outside. And make it like this: the length of the ark is three hundred cubits ... And it must have three bottoms. "" So, according to the Bible, Noah's ark, the first ship in the history of mankind, should have looked like.
It is worth noting the extremely remarkable fact that already the “book of books” is trying to answer the question of the origin of navigation. The word “Bible” itself probably comes from the name of the ancient center of shipbuilding, the city of Byblos, located on the Syrian coast and now called Jebel. Here, among other things, the Greeks got acquainted with the Egyptian papyrus - in Greek “biblios” - and accordingly named the city.
Agreeing with the Bible, one should assume that the first means of transportation by sea were invented when the lives of people began to be threatened by the global flood - a giant water element. Trying to escape the flood is the biblical explanation for man's first step into the sea. The instinct to preserve the family is what prompted people to turn to the development of new paths.

II. ANCIENT EGYPT

Egyptian vessel from the Old Kingdom, Dynasty 5, 2550 BC. Drawing from the tomb of Pharaoh Sahor, Memphis.

What were the courts of the Middle Kingdom, unfortunately, is unknown. The courts of the New Kingdom differed significantly from those that preceded them. Their hulls were stronger, since beams hewn from long trunks were used for construction. coniferous trees brought from Libya.
Vessels in profile have become much sharper, the bow and stern are slightly higher. A strong mast carried a square, low, but very wide sail, mounted on two yards. The oars had oarlocks.


Egyptian vessel of the New Kingdom, XVIII Dynasty, 1500 BC. Drawing from a relief from the Temple of Queen Hatshepsut, Deir el-Bahri.

Thus, Ancient Egypt stands, as it were, at the source of shipbuilding.
The Egyptians themselves were not great seafarers. So, Pharaoh Necho (612 - 576 AD), in order to expand his trade relations, instructed the Phoenicians to go around Africa, who were considered not only good navigators, but also great shipbuilders of antiquity.

III. ANCIENT PHENICIA

The fact that the Phoenicians were not only good navigators, but also master shipbuilders is explained, on the one hand, by the presence of the richest forests (the state was located on the territory of modern Lebanon), and on the other hand, by the desire to expand their trade relations. The Phoenicians founded colonies along the Mediterranean coast; Phoenician merchants were known far beyond the Strait of Gibraltar, including on the Cassetides, or Tin Islands (modern British Isles).
The Phoenicians paid great attention to the shipbuilding of that time. Apparently, they were the first to build ships with a keel and sheathing on frames, and place cargo rooms below deck.


Phoenician merchant ship, 720 BC Drawing from a bas-relief from the palace of King Sargon II, Khorsabad.

The power of the Phoenicians was shaken by the destruction of Sidon by the nomadic Semites (1200 BC), and then by the Assyrians (700 BC) and finally by the Egyptians.
Gradually, other peoples - the Etruscans, Greeks, Carthaginians and Romans - begin to challenge the dominant position in shipbuilding from the Phoenicians. Then the authority of the Greeks as shipbuilders is established.

IV. ANCIENT GREECE.

In their courts the Greeks unite best qualities designs of the Aegean and Phoenician ships, relying on their own achievements in technology. The hulls of Greek ships had a keel, a stem and a stern, the skin was made with paired seams, the belts were fastened with wooden pins.
In the days of Ancient Greece, the differences between merchant and military courts deepened. Military vessels from 30 to 35 m long had a ram, an elevated deck in the front and a single mast. The middle part of the hull was low, 25 oars on each side were supported by outriggers, and two large stern oars served as rudders.
Gradually, this type of ship changed, although the main features were preserved. Due to the introduction of a larger number of oars, which were located in two or three rows, the maneuverability and speed of the vessel increased.
The basis of the Mediterranean fleets was the famous vessel of antiquity, the trireme, called the trireme by the Greeks.


Greek trireme, 100 BC

Later, such warships as cataphracts appeared in Corinth. There is no exact data on these vessels.
The military fleet of Carthage consisted mainly of large kinkerems, or quinkerems (Ships with five rows of oars or five rowers per oar). They protected the Carthaginian merchant ships that sailed in the Mediterranean Sea, and even went out to the ocean.

V. ANCIENT ROME AND BYZANTIA

Roman ships (galleys) were armed with a "raven" invented by Gaius Duilius. The “Raven”, which facilitated the boarding of an enemy ship, was a rotary gangway with a hinged device on one side and a sharp “beak” on the other.
The galleys (penters), built on the model of the Carthaginian kinkerems, were about 70 m long and 8 m wide and could take 300 rowers and 100 armed soldiers ..
Only Rome could measure strength with Carthage at sea.


Roman kinkerma.

With a relatively flat hull, the ships had five keels, on which frames with pine plating were installed ( Italian pine) placed on wooden spikes. The underwater part of the vessel was covered with tipped wool and covered from above with lead plates on copper nails. As you can see, Roman shipping and shipbuilding technology already in 30 BC. reached a high peak. Thanks to this, Rome was able to build ships that were longer than the ships of the line of the middle of the 19th century.
The Roman fleet included multi-oared penthers and triremes armed with catapults.
Roman ships were shaped like fish. Their eyes were depicted on the bow of the vessel, later they began to make clouses in these places. The oars were like fins, and a tail could be recognized in a flexible fan-shaped decoration on the stern. The ships had one mast with a straight or latin sail on two yards. Large ships also had fore and mizzen masts.
For several centuries, Rome had no rivals at sea. Only pirates, Saxon in the north or Illyrian in the south, dared to attack Roman merchant ships. To combat them, light and high-speed vessels with one row of oars were created - liburns.
Approximately in the VIII - IX centuries. in the Mediterranean region, the Latin sail comes into use. It was widely used, as it allowed to go against the wind.
Little is known about Byzantine shipping. It is known that the Byzantine fleet was quite strong. It, as few documents testify, consisted of dromons - ships with two rows of oars, armed with a catapult and two masts. In addition, the Byzantines also built selandia (in Greek - turtles - small auxiliary ships. Later, small tarids with one mast with a Latin sail and two side rudders and usiers appeared - small cargo ships, mainly used to transport horses.
Dromon

VI. VIKINGS

In the Nordic countries, shipbuilding traditions are also long-standing. Gradually, a type of ship developed from primitive boats, which differed from Mediterranean ships in that its skin mainly consisted of boards superimposed on the edges of each other (vnakry.)
In the VIII - XI centuries in northern seas the bold and warlike Vikings dominate. Their ancestors - suioni - are mentioned for the first time by Tacitus in "Germany". He notes the curious shape of their ships - boats, the main features of which have remained unchanged for centuries. The bow and stern of the boat were the same, which made it possible to row in any direction without turning around.
Found during excavations in Oseberg (1880) boat (700 AD) and in Gokstadt (1904) boat 800 AD. e., managed to reconstruct, accurately reproducing all the details.

Rook

It was found that the Viking boats had a keel; frames made of one piece of wood were attached to it. The sheathing was overlaid; it was attached to the frames with pins and leather cords, and the sheathing boards were connected to each other with iron nails. Holes were made in the upper part of the skin - oarlocks through which the oars passed. The spur of the mast was mounted on a short keelson, made of one bar and having a characteristic shape. A square sail was hoisted on a single yard. The rudder was a large oar attached to the side of the sternpost with a sling. Viking boats reached 30-40 m in length and had 30, and possibly 60 oars from each side. Large boats were called drakkars, or dragons.

drakkar

Our wicker was lucky. It is almost three-quarters covered with water - the cradle of all life. All the inhabitants of the Earth, one way or another, once left the primitive ocean or stayed there. But land people had to look for ways to move through an unfriendly element. So there were boats, ships and ships. The first attempts to create something capable of moving on water date back to cave times. Therefore, information about prehistoric ships has come down to us in the form of rock art. But later designs have been preserved in material form.

The oldest found ship is most often called the ship, which is now stored in the Kyrenia fortress-museum. Several halls are allotted for this exposition. They exhibit the skeleton of the ship itself, the utensils and goods found on it.

Archaeologists claim that the ship belongs to the legendary times of the reign of Alexander the Great, i.e. 300 BC. A small merchant ship was carrying amphorae of wine, almonds and other valuable goods when they were attacked by pirates. The ship was robbed, taking away everything more or less valuable and the ship's cash desk, and sunk.

The ship lay under water for more than two millennia, when in 1968 a diver accidentally stumbled upon it. Archaeologists, with all possible precautions, removed his skeleton from under the water and moved it to the museum to the delight of the audience.

The age of the ancient ship from Kyrenia is considered to be confirmed, which made it possible to put it in first place in our rating. But there are many older vessels that are still undergoing examination. For example, more recently, archaeologists from Turkish city Ankara discovered a ship whose age dates back only approximately - about 4000 years.

So far, the historical relic still lies at the bottom of the sea, near the ancient port. It can take several years to rise, because you need to protect its parts from destruction, carefully disassemble and return to land. The work doesn't end there. Each plank must be cleaned of salt and impregnated with special solutions to stop decay. After proper processing, the ancient ship, of course, will not float, but it will stand in the museum for many years.

So uncomplicated is the name of one of the oldest courts. This is the oldest clipper that has survived to this day relatively unharmed. It was launched in 1864 and served faithfully for many years, transporting emigrants from England to Australia. It is believed that about 70% of the current population of Australia are the descendants of people who arrived on this particular ship. True, then it was called "City of Adelaide". But what does it change?

For a long time it served as a floating hospital, then it became a training ship. And recently it was decided to transfer it to Australia, for which this ship is a valuable relic. It was moved in tow to the coast of the Green Continent, where, after reconstruction and restoration, it will become a floating museum, a symbol of the most important era for the state.

This is just a unique exhibit - the most ancient sailing ship. It has survived to this day unchanged. And although last years the ship is permanently laid up; formally, it is still part of the American combat fleet.

Films can be made about the adventures of this ship. It was launched into the water in 1797, participated in several wars, where it showed itself excellently. Its hull is made of extra strong Virginian oak, making cannonballs simply bounce off of it. For this, he received the nickname "Iron-sided old man."

The year 1830 almost became fatal for him. A ship of this age was already considered junk and was destined for scrapping, but fate intervened. A poem dedicated to the ship was published, which stirred up the public. People demanded to keep the ship for history.

Now Ironsides old man stands at the pier in Boston and receives up to half a million tourists annually. Not surprising, because it closes the famous tourist Freedom Trail. This ship is a real historical relic, but it needs constant care of people. Without it, the ship would die in less than a year, simply from rot.

The American Constitution is the oldest sailing ship that is formally in service. But in Russia there is a ship that actually belongs to the ranks of the navy, is on the move and performs its functions. This is the Commune submarine rescuer.

It was launched back in 1913. Then it was called Volkhov. The ship received its current name in 1922. The list of his merits includes many rescued submarines, participation in the Second World War. Later it was modernized, equipped with an underwater robot.

The Commune recently celebrated a unique anniversary - a century since the launch of the ship. Few ships cross such a boundary, and only a few at this age are able to perform their functions. This ship is one of them. Moreover, this is the oldest ship not only in the Naval Forces Russia, but also in the world.