Terminology from the Age of Sail |
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For an alphabetical listing, select Alphabetical Search. |
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| Complete Terminology Listing
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| Aback: Wind coming in from the front or 'wrong' side of a sail or sails, i.e. coming in to harbour with 'all yards aback'. | ||
| Abaft: Like aft or a preposition indicating further aft, or nearer the stern; as in: the capstan stands abaft the mainmast, i.e. behind it, or nearer the stern. | ||
| Abeam: At right angles to, or beside a ship. | ||
| Aberdeen Bow: A type of sharp bow developed in the 19th century which led to better performance and speed. Used in the construction of the famous China tea clippers such as the Thermopylae and Cutty Sark. | ||
Adze: A shipwright's tool, similar to an axe, used for shaping and dressing wood. It was different from an axe in that it had a long slender curved blade set at a right angle to the handle. *** | ||
| Afore: Before. Examples of usage: Afore the mast, as in before the mast. Also was used as in sailing afore the wind, meaning to sail closer (in) to the wind or sailing larger. | ||
| Aft: The after (or rear) part of a ship or a location towards the stern. | ||
| After-castle: A medieval tower-like structure placed near the stern of a sailing warship such as a cog or carrack on which soldiers (bowmen) stood and fought during battle. | ||
| Afterpeak: The aftermost part of a ship's hold, closest to the stern. | ||
| Alee: In the direction toward which the wind is blowing; downwind. | ||
| Aloft: Overhead or above. | ||
| Altitude: Used in celestial navigation, it is the angle a celestial body makes with a point on the horizon vertically below this object and altitude was measured with an astrolabe, a cross staff, a backstaff or quadrant and finally a sextant or octant. | ||
| Amidship: Midway between the bow and the stern. | ||
| Amsterdam Voet: A Dutch measurement formerly used for shipbuilding, 1 Amsterdam voet was equal to 28.31cm or 11.14 inch. | ||
| Anchor: An object designed to grip the ground, under a body of water, to hold a ship in a selected area. In the Golden Age of Sail it was usually a cast-iron shank with two arms and two flukes, and a wooden stock perpendicular to the arms. The stock often consisted of two long pieces of oak tapered toward each end, held together with iron hoops and treenails. Around the 19th century a typical anchor became of all-iron construction, including the stock. In ancient times an anchor often consisted of a large stone with one or more holes, through which a rope was fastened. A stone anchor would weigh from 20 Lbs for a small anchor to 500 Lbs or more for a large anchor. Often cut from sandstone, limestone or whatever other stone was available. Roman lead and wood anchor. Anchor building tools in the Age of Sail. | ||
| Anchor's Aweigh: Expression for when the anchor is just clear of the bottom. Was also called atrip. | ||
| Anchorage: Any location where a ship savely can and is allowed to drop anchor, most often a location within or just outside a harbour. | ||
| Apeak: When an object such as a cable or an oar is in a vertical or close-to vertical position or direction. The anchor was said to be apeak when directly under the hawse. | ||
| Apron: 1.A planked platform at the entrance to a dock. 2. A rectangular piece of metal mounted over the touch-hole of a cannon to keep the charge covered and dry. 3.A curved timber fixed behind the lower part of the stem, immediately above the foremost end of the keel. The Apron was intended to strengthen the connection between the stem and the keel. Also called gripe or gripe piece. | ||
| Armada: A large fleet of warships. | ||
| Articles: Signed documents indicating a crew member's responsibilities, duties, rank and/or position on board a ship. | ||
| Astern: Any distance behind a ship, as opposed to a-head, which is before her. | ||
| Astrolabe: A navigational instrument. It consisted of a dial, showing degrees, with an arm (alidade) pivoting through the centre. This arm, had a projection with a small hole on each end, you would line these up so a celestial body would be visible through both and the astrolabe's degree markings would indicate the celestial object's angle in the sky. It was used to determine a ships position by finding and predicting the position of the stars and the sun through triangulation. With the mariners astrolabe, latitude could be determined using the Pole Star or the Sun. It was the main navigational instrument until the invention of the sextant in the 16th century. | ||
| Athwart: From side to side; crosswise or perpendicular to the keel. | ||
| Auger: A shipwright's tool for drilling holes in timbers. | ||
| Avast: Stop! Halt! Cease! | ||
| Awning: A canopy, often made from extra sail material, over a weather deck, gallery or quarter gallery, intended to shield the officers and crew from the sun in warmer climates or hot weather. | ||
| Axe: A shipwright's tool, the shipwright's axe came in a variety of shapes. The shape of the blade depended on the function of the axe. De edge of the blade was either straight or curved, most were curved; The angle of the blade also varied depending whether hard or softer wood was to be cut, a thinner blade was required for the hardest woods. A typical size would be a 1.4" (3.5cm) thick blade, a blade height of 4.1" (10.5cm) and a blade length of 7.4" (19cm). | ||
| Azimuth: Used in celestial navigation, it was the angle measured clockwise around the horizon from the North point to a point on the horizon vertically below the observed celestial object. Azimuth was determined with the help of a compass. - North = 0/360 degrees - East = 90 degrees - South = 180 degrees - West = 270 degrees. | ||
| Balance Frame: The forward-most and aftermost frame of the full-width part of the hull. | ||
| Balinger: A small single-masted sailing vessel, used in the 15th and 16th centuries. | ||
| Ballast: Heavy material, such as iron, lead or stone placed in the bottom of a ship's hold to keep the vessel steady. | ||
| Baltimore Clipper: A two-masted fore-and-aft gaff-rigged schooner-like ship also carrying square sails on the foremast and often used in the role of a blockade-runner or privateer. The masts were set at extreme angles, as it was believed at the time to provide for better speed. Baltimore clippers were also used to transport prospectors and settlers from the East Coast to the West Coast during the California gold-rush. Examples of a Baltimore clipper | ||
| Barca-longa: A two- or three-masted Mediterranean vessel carrying lugsails. | ||
| Barque Longue: A relatively small 17th century two-masted square-rigged sailing vessel best known for its use by early Fench explorers. Examples of a barque Longue | ||
| Barratry: An unlawful act or fraudulent breach of duty on the part of a ship's master or crew, going against, and in conflict with the interests of the ship's or cargo's owner. For example; selling cargo and subsequently claiming it was lost at sea. | ||
| Barge: A 17th century long and narrow ship's boat, rowed by 10 to 20 oars, often used to transport senior officers. | ||
| Bark: A vessel square-rigged on all but the aftermost mast, which is fore-and-aft rigged. Also spelled Barque. Most were three-masted, some were four- or five-masted vessels. Before the mid 18th century the term Barque was also often used for any three-masted vessel not fitting any other accepted nomenclature or category. Examples of a bark | ||
| Barkentine: A sailing ship with from three to five masts of which only the foremast is square-rigged, the others all being fore-and-aft rigged. Also spelled Barquentine. Examples of a barkentine | ||
| Barnacle: A species of shell-fish, often attaching themselves to the hulls of ships. | ||
| Bar Shot: An iron bar with a half-sphere (or full sphere) at each end, fired from a cannon to damage a ship's rigging. | ||
| Basilisk: A generic term for a large brass cannon of exceptional power, used in the 15th and 16th centuries. Named after the 'king serpent' or dragon of legend which had a supposed deadly breath and stare. Later (17th century) a ships cannon firing 14 1/2 pound stone or iron roundshot. | ||
| Battens: 1.Strips of wood or bamboo poles, placed in pockets in the leech of a sail or sewn into a sail, to assist in keeping its form. 2.Narrow strips of wood used to fasten down the edges of the material covering the hatches in bad weather (batten down the hatches). | ||
| Beam: 1.The extreme or main breadth (widest point) of a vessel. 2.One of the transverse members of a ship's frames on which the decks are laid. They are supported on the ship's sides by right angle timbers called knees. | ||
| Bearding Line: A line drawn on the dead-woods and keel showing where the hull planking enters the dead-woods and keel. | ||
Beaufort Scale: Scale named after Sir Francis Beaufort (1774-1857), a British naval officer, for classifying wind velocity, ranging from 0 for calm or no wind to 12 for hurricane strength winds. Explanation of knot, course, royal and reefed. | ||
| Becket: A looped rope, with a knot on one end and an eye at the other end, used to secure loose ropes, spars, or oars. | ||
| Bees: A timber block attached to the outer end of a bowsprit for guiding and tensioning (reefing) the forestays or a block attached to any other spar for changing and holding the spar's position. *** | ||
| Beetle: A shipbuilding tool. A heavy iron mallet used to drive wedges (irons) into the seams of wooden ships to open them before caulking. | ||
| Beakhead: A projection forward of the bow on a sailing ship. It is located below the bowsprit and often highly decorated. | ||
| Belay: To tie and secure a rope. | ||
| Belaying Pin: A removable wooden, iron or brass pin fitted in a hole in the rail of a ship, used for securing and tying the running rigging. They were also handy clubs in case of hand-to-hand combat during boarding. Also called tack pin or jack pin. *** | ||
| Belfry: Usually a single-arch structure, sometimes a more elaborate structure as shown below, from which the ship's bell was hung. After 1660, often located on or near the forecastle. *** | ||
| Bend: To attach a sail, or having been fastened onto it's supporting spar: a direct hit split the yard the mainsail was bent to. | ||
| Berth: 1.Sufficient space for a ship to maneuver. 2.A space for a ship to dock or anchor. 3.Employment on a ship. 4.Another term for bunk. | ||
| Bibb: A wooden bracket supporting the trestle trees. | ||
| Bight: The loop or double part created in a rope or in a strand of a rope when folded, often used in creating complex knots such as the wale knot. | ||
| Bilander: A small two-masted merchant sailing ship, similar to a brigantine, used mainly on Dutch coastal routes and canals. Rarely larger than 100 tons burthen. She carried a fore-and-aft lateen main-sail bent to a yard hanging at about 45 degrees to the mast. | ||
| Bilge: Where the sides of a vessel curve in to form the bottom. | ||
| Bilge pump: A mechanism for emptying the bilge of water. Since all wooden ships would leak to some degree, pumps were always in demand. Spray and waves would only add to how much water a ship took on. The most common was the handpump or elm-pump, often locate on a the highest deck not open to the weather. The more complex but also much more effective chain-pump was used mainly in the British Royal Navy from the late 17th century. *** | ||
| Bilge Stringer: Timbers running the entire length of the hull near the turn of the bilge as an integral girder (part) in a wooden ship's frame. *** | ||
| Billethead: An alternative bow decoration to the figurehead, usually carved flowing shapes, often flowers or leaf like curls, ending in an upward or downward spiral below the bowsprit. | ||
| Binnacle: The housing of the ship's compass, gimbals and, in later times, a binnacle light. It was often a simple wooden box, sometimes mounted on a pedestal. The binnacle was normally placed near or in front of the helm. Earlier was also called bittacle. | ||
| Bireme: An ancient Greek or Roman war galley propelled by two tiers of oars on each side. *** | ||
| Bitt: A vertical post set on the deck of a ship; used to secure and tie ropes or cables. | ||
| Bitter End: The inboard end of a rope or (anchor) cable, receiving it's name from that end being wound around a bitt. | ||
| Block: A wooden or metal case in which one or more sheaves (rollers) are fitted through which lines can run, either to increase the purchase or to change the direction of the line. They are commonly known as pulleys. In the 17th and 18th centuries the pins of blocks were often made from greenheart. *** | ||
| Bluff: The bow of a ship is said to be bluff when it has a full broad rounded or flat shape (not sharp). The term bluff originates back to the early 17th century. | ||
| Boarding: To Go Aboard a ship is to enter by invitation or consent. To Board a Ship is to force one's way onto a ship without consent. | ||
| Boat: A small open vessel for travel on water by rowing or sailing. In the age of sail, boats were essential equipment on any ship. Used as a tender, for shore landing parties, towing, warping, rescue missions, patrols, escape from mutiny, to mention only a few purposes. Boats came in a variety of shapes and sizes depending on time-period and function: barges, cutters, dinghies, gigs, launches, longboats, pinnaces, shallops, skiffs and yawls. | ||
| Boatswain: The officer who is responsible for the boats, sails, rigging, colours, anchors, and cables. Also called bosun. | ||
| Bobstay: A rope or chain used to steady the bowsprit of a ship. | ||
| Bollard: A heavy post on a ship or wharf, used for securing mooring ropes or cables. | ||
| Bolster: A substantial timber used as a temporary support or to strengthen and reinforce a ship's frame or cradle while under construction. | ||
| Boltrope: A rope sewn into the outer edge of a sail to prevent it from tearing. | ||
| Bomb Vessel: Developed by the French to battle the Barbary corsairs, these vessels used high trajectory mortars instead of conventional guns. The hull was strengthened to take the weight of one or more mortars and the foremast was completely omitted. Late 18th century bomb vessels would have had a full three-masted rig, and were often used for polar expeditions since their hulls were so sturdily built and would hold up better in the ice. Examples of a bomb vessel | ||
| Bonaventure Mizzenmast: Small fourth mast abaft the mizzenmast, often seen in larger galleons. | ||
| Bonnet: An extra strip of canvas fixed to the foot of a fore-and-aft sail. *** | ||
| Boom: A spar used to hold or extend the foot of a sail. In fore-and-aft rigged vessels such as schooners, a boom is a spar at the foot of the mainsail and also of the foresail and the mizzen. It is pivoting and connected at the fore end to the mast by means of a gooseneck. In square-rigged vessels booms were temporary extensions to the yardarms to allow the rigging of studdingsails. *** | ||
| Bow: The fore end of a vessel. Also called prow. | ||
| Bow Chaser: Cannon located in the bow of a sailing warship for the purpose of firing forward while pursuing an enemy ship or hapless victim. | ||
| Bowline: A line attached to the weather leech of a square sail to haul it forward, allowing the ship to point as high into the wind as possible. | ||
| Bowsprit: A large spar projecting over the stem of a vessel to carry the stays for the fore-topmast and from which the jibs are set. Could be thought of as a nth mast. A standing bowsprit is fixed in position while a running bowsprit can be taken in (movable). *** | ||
| Brace: A rope by which a yard is swung around and secured to shift a sail into a favourable position to the wind and the course of a square-rigged ship. Performing this action was thus called 'bracing the yard'. | ||
| Brail: One of a number of thin lines attached to the leech of a sail for hauling it in. Brailing. | ||
| Breast Hook: 'Bow shaped' timbers used to strengthen the bows of a ship, positioned horizontally at different heights across the stem. A breast hook would be located below each deck and the deck planking would be supported by and rabbeted onto this timber. | ||
| Breech: The solid metal base of a cannon, from the cascabel to the start of the concave inside bore. *** | ||
| Breeching Rope: A thick and heavy rope used to secure a cannon to the side of a ship for the purpose of controlling and limiting the recoil when the gun was fired. It was often wound around or spliced to the cascabel of a cannon and looped through a ring on either side of a gun-carriage. Both ends had an eye-splice by which the rope was connected on either side of the gun to a heavy ringbolt attached to the side of a ship. As a rule of thumb, a breeching rope was three times the length of the gun barrel. The rope itself could be up to 6 1/2 inches in diameter for a large gun such as a 32 pounder. *** | ||
| Brig: A two-masted vessel, square-rigged on both masts. The rear mast carries a fore-and-aft boom-sail as well. In the 17th century the term Brig was also used as short for Brigantine, which then could be any variety of two-masted square-rigged vessels depending on nation and region. Examples of a brig | ||
| Brigantine: A two-masted vessel with square sails on the foremast and fore-and-aft sails on the mainmast. See also Hermaphrodite Brig. In the 17th century the term Brigantine was also used to describe any variety of small two-masted square-rigged vessels. Examples of a brigantine | ||
| British East India Company: Sometimes referred to as "John Company", was a joint-stock company of investors, which was granted a Royal Charter by Elizabeth I on December 31, 1600, with the intent to favour trade privileges in India. The Royal Charter effectively gave the newly created British East India Company a monopoly on all trade in the East Indies. The Company transformed from a commercial trading venture to one which virtually ruled India as it acquired auxiliary governmental and military functions, until the Company's dissolution in 1858. Typical ships of the British East India Company | ||
| Broach: When a ship veers or turns suddenly and uncontrollably broadside to the wind and waves. Broached, broaching. | ||
| Broadside: 1.The simultaneous discharge of some or all of the guns fitted on one side of the ship. 2.The side of a ship. | ||
| Brow: The gangway or entrance onto a ship while docked. | ||
| Buccaneer: Another term for pirate, pertaining to and origination from pirates who preyed on Spanish 'treasure' ships in the West Indies during the 17th century. | ||
| Bucekarl: A mercenary seaman for hire by anyone who's willing to pay. Generally not the most trusted crew members, since mutiny was often instigated or carried out by crew members with a different nationality than the ship or ship's owner. | ||
| Bulkhead: A vertical partition, running either fore-and-aft or athwart ships, dividing the hull into separate compartments. | ||
| Bull Rope: A rope used for hoisting a topmast or topgallant mast in a square-rigged ship. | ||
| Bulwark: The planking along the sides of a ship, above the upper deck and below the gunwales, to act as a railing to prevent crew and passengers from falling or being washed overboard. | ||
| Bumkin: A small spar, usually made of oak or fir, projecting from each side of a ship's bow providing for tack fairleads. Also called 'boomkin'. | ||
| Bunk: A built-in wooden bed on board of later ships, often built in tiers, one above the other. | ||
| Buntline: A rope tied to the foot of a square sail that keeps it from opening or bellying when it is being hauled up for furling to the yard. Normally there were multiple somewhat evenly-spaced buntlines leading through blocks on a yard to the foot of the square sail bent to that yard. | ||
| Buntline Hitch: A knot used to tie a buntline to the foot of a square sail. *** | ||
| Buoy: A float of different shape and size, attached by a cable or chain to the seabed to mark navigational channels or underwater hazards such as shallow banks, rocks or reefs. A ship's buoy could be attached by rope to the anchor, to indicate the underwater location of the anchor so that the ship could stay clear of the anchor and the anchor-cable. | ||
| Burthen: An older term used to express a ship's carrying capacity. About 40 cubic feet per ton burthen. Also spelled burden. | ||
| Buss: A relatively large three-masted European vessel dating from the 15th century, used mainly for the herring fishery. Up to about 200 tons in size. *** | ||
| Buttock: The width or part of a vessel where the hull rounds down to the stern. | ||
| Cabin: A room or space partitioned off by bulkheads to provide a private compartment for officers, passengers and crew members for sleeping and/or meals. The Great Cabin was the Captain's or Master's quarters. | ||
| Cabin Boy: A (often young) man acting as a servant on a ship; fetching water; helping out with the cooking; cleaning etc. | ||
| Cable: 1. A thick and heavy rope of considerable length, used to moor or retain a ship at anchor. 2. A naval unit of distance. The British cable was 0.1 nautical (Admiralty) miles or 608 feet (1830), the American equivalent was 120 fathoms or 0.1185 nautical miles. Still used by some navies as a distance measure of 200 meters. | ||
| Caique: (Caïgue) A long narrow rowboat, similar to a skiff, used in the Middle East and is also the name of a light sailing vessel used in the eastern Mediterranean. | ||
| Camber: The slight convex athwart curvature of a ship's deck, providing for water drainage. *** | ||
| Cannon: An artillery gun made from brass, bronze and later iron (16th century), usually mounted on a wheeled gun-carriage. The angle of elevation could be altered by moving a wooden wedge-like block, the quoin, under the base of the barrel. It's size ranged greatly, from a 4 pounder to a 60 pounder, with 'pounder' meaning the weight of the shot, or ball the cannon fired. In and before the 16th century a cannon was classified according to size, with such names as "cannon-royal", "demi-cannon", "cannon-perier", "culverin", "demi-culverin", "saker", "falcon", "falconet", "minion", "fowler", "base", "bastard" and "murderer". By the 18th century a cannon was classified by the weight of the roundshot it fired. A cannon's muzzle velocity was anywhere between 900 and 1700 fps and a typical cannon had a practical range of 400 to 600 metres. Smoothbore, black-powder cannon remained the dominant naval artillery until the middle of the 19th century.  Note: While a brass saker would have weighed 1400 - 1600 Lbs, an iron saker would have almost doubled the weight to about 2500 lbs. *** | ||
| Cannon-Perier: A ships cannon firing 24 1/2 pound stone or iron shot. | ||
| Cannon-royal: The original designation for a cannon, firing 60-66 pound stone or iron roundshot. | ||
| Cant Frame: Frames fore and aft, not set at right angles to the keel; introduced in English ships around 1715. | ||
| Cap: The wooden block at the top of a mast through which the mast is drawn when being stepped or lowered, often elm was used. *** | ||
| Capsquare: A metal covering plate, part of a gun-carriage, which passes over the trunnions of a cannon, and holds it in place while allowing it to pivot. | ||
| Capstan: A cylindrical barrel used for heavy lifting, also called Capstern. It was located in the centre line of a ship, sometimes on several deck-levels. Wooden rods were inserted into receiving holes in the head of the capstan to rotate the barrel. Link to a good working model of a capstan from Texas A&M. *** | ||
| Captain: From the Latin caput, meaning head. Rank or commanding officer of a ship or squadron. | ||
| Caracore: A small, light and swift sailboat with a single triangular sail and an outrigger, originating in the East Indies. Also called Proa. | ||
| Caravel: A relatively small but highly manoeuvrable Portuguese vessel of the 15th and 16th centuries setting lateen sails on two or three masts and sometimes a square sail on the foremast. Each mast increased in size from the one aft of it. When lateen-rigged was classified as a 'caravela latina', when modified as a square-rigged vessel was classified as a 'caravela redonda'. Examples of a caravel | ||
| Careen: To turn a ship on her side for repairs or cleaning, or a ship leaning to one side while sailing in the wind. | ||
| Carling: Timbers running fore and aft that connect the transverse beams supporting the deck of a ship. Also used to describe the timbers used to frame the partners. | ||
| Carrack: A large sailing vessel developed from the earlier cog, in use from the 14th to the 17th century, usually with elevated structures known as castles at the bow and stern. Examples of a carrack | ||
| Carronade: A short-barreled limited range gun developed in the 1770s by the Carron Company in Scotland. At short range they were enormously destructive to a ship's timbers. A real ship smasher. The addition of carronades was not reflected in the nominal rate of a ship; a 52-gun ship mounting 10 carronades was still designated as a 42. | ||
| Carvel Built: A method of ship building in which the planks are laid flush with the edges laid close and caulked to make them watertight as opposed to clinker built where the side planks overlap. Generally only small boats and early ships were clinker built. *** | ||
| Cascabel: A rounded projection at the rear of the breech of a muzzle loading cannon's barrel. Also spelled cascable. *** | ||
| Cat: The name of the purchase by which the anchor was hoisted to the cathead in preparation for stowing or letting go. 'To cat the anchor' is the process of hoisting the anchor to the cathead. | ||
| Cathead: A heavy piece of timber projecting from each side of the bow of a vessel to hold the anchors in position and clear away from the bow. Early catheads were often capped off with a carved cat or lion face. *** | ||
| Catwalk: Or gangway. A narrow, elevated walkway, as on either side of a ship, connecting the quarter-deck section to the forecastle. | ||
| Caulk: The process of driving material into the seams of the ship's deck or sides to make them watertight. The tools used were caulking irons and mallets. | ||
| Caulking Mallet: A shipbuilding tool. An iron or wooden mallet (heavy hammer) used to strike a variety of irons, to open and close seams or to fill seams with oakum. *** | ||
| Ceiling: The inside planking in the holds of a vessel, laid across the floors and carried up the sides of the holds to the beams. | ||
| Celestial Navigation: In celestial navigation, the two coordinates used to determine a ship's bearing were the azimuth and altitude of a celestial body. | ||
| Centerboard: A type of retractable keel used on sailing vessels to prevent drifting downwind. Also known as a drop keel. | ||
| Chain: A unit of length equal to 4 rods or (4x16.5) 66 feet. | ||
| Chain Plate: A strip of iron, or a combination of linked strips of iron, with the lower end bolted to a ship's side, and with the upper end carrying a deadeye to which a shroud or stay is connected. | ||
| Chain Shot: A chain with a solid ball (sphere or half-sphere) at each end, fired from a cannon to inflict damage to a ship's rigging and masts. *** | ||
| Channel: A flat, plank-like or platform-like projection from the side of a sailing ship that is used to spread the shrouds clear of the hull. Before 1590 its equivalent was often called a chain wale. *** | ||
| Charter: Late 18th century Dutch equivalent to the English Rates: 1st Charter : 80 guns 2nd Charter : 70 guns 3rd Charter : 60 guns 4th Charter : 50 guns 5th Charter : 36 guns 6th Charter : 20 guns Only the first 4 charters were considered 'ships of the line'. | ||
| Chesstree: A timber fitted on the outside of the hull, just below the gunwale. It had one or more holes through which the main tack or sheets were hauled from within board. Dutch fashion chesstree ornamented with overlapping scales. | ||
| Chine: The line created by the intersection between the side and the bottom of a flatbottom boat or ship. | ||
| Chip Log: A piece of wood tied to a knotted cord. The speed of a vessel was measured by counting the number of knots passing over the stern while being timed. The nautical unit knot came from these equidistant knots tied in a rope. Also called hand log. | ||
| Cleat: A piece of iron or wood often having projecting arms on which a rope can be wound or secured. | ||
| Clew: The lower, aft corner of a fore-and-aft sail or the two lower corners of a square sail. | ||
| Clew Line: A line used for hauling up the clews when furling a sail. | ||
| Clinker Built: A method of ship building in which the hull planks overlap. Early ships such as longships, nefs and early cogs were clinker built, as were, and still are, some small boats. Also called lapstrake construction. *** | ||
| Clipper: A variety of square-rigged speed-built merchant ships built between 1790 and 1870. Often thought of as some of the most beautiful and elegant sailing vessels ever built. The three-masted Cutty Sark on display at Greenwich, England may well be the best known of the clippers. Examples of a clipper | ||
| Close-hauled: The trim of sails when steady sailing close to (into) the wind was required. A vessel was said to be close hauled, because her tacks were drawn close to windward; the sheets hauled close aft and the bow-lines were drawn to their greatest extension, to keep the sails and thus the ship steady. | ||
| Clove Hitch: Also called ratline hitch, as it was used to tie and secure the ratlines to the shrouds. *** | ||
| Coak: To join two scarfed timbers with tenons. Also a hardwood pin joining two timbers or two halfs of a tackle block. | ||
| Coaming: The framing around openings in the upper deck such as hatches, usually about 15-20cm high, which prevented water on deck from running into the ship. | ||
| Cocca: Mediterranean equivalent for a Northern European cog. | ||
| Cockswain: The helmsman or crew member in command of a ship's boat. | ||
| Cofferdam: A watertight chamber or compartment attached to the outside of a ship's hull below the water line so that repairs can be made. Also called caisson. | ||
| Cog: A single-masted clinker-built vessel used until the 15th century. The Cog originated in Northern Europe and spread throughout the Baltic and to the Mediterranean. The first mention of a cog is from 948 AD in Muiden near Amsterdam. The word Cog is derived from the word Kogge, a corruption of the Dutch/Flemish word Kogel, meaning rounded or spherical. Even though the clinker construction limited the ultimate size of a cog, Thomas Walsingham speaks of great cogs in 1331 with three decks and over 500 crew and soldiers. A cog is characterised by high sides, a relatively flat bottom, rounded bilge and a single square sail. Examples of a cog | ||
| Coir: The fibres obtained from the husk of a coconut, used for making rope. | ||
| Collier: A broad beamed and shallow draught merchant sailing ship. They were designed to transport coal between ports. The HMS Bark Endeavour was a Whitby collier. Examples of a collier | ||
| Come About: To change tack and thus the direction or course of a sailing vessel. In other words: changing the position of the vessel and the sails for the wind to come in from the opposite direction, from starboard to port and vice versa. 'Ducking under the boom' comes to mind as an illustration. | ||
| Comito: A galley officer of rank varying from admiral in ancient Byzantine times to captain and to first mate in the Middle Ages and during the Renaissance. | ||
| Companionway: Any staircase or ladder leading from one deck to another. | ||
| Compass: A navigational instrument used since the 12th century for determining a ship's direction and position. A compass was often housed in a binnacle and still consists today of a pivoting magnetic needle which is freely suspended to align itself to the earth's magnetic field, the needle turns until it's ends are aligned with the magnetic north and south poles. The ship's direction would be the angle the needle made with the lubber's line or simply the direction forward. Also used to determine azimuth in celestial navigation. | ||
| Composite Construction: Late 19th century hull construction using an iron or steel frame with wooden planking. | ||
| Coppering: The sheathing of the hull of a wooden vessel below the waterline, to prevent the damage caused by shipworm and the build-up of weed and barnacles which lessened the ship's speed and shortened its life-span. | ||
| Corsair: A raider or pirate normally operating off the Barbary Coast of North Africa (Algiers, Morocco, Tripoli, and Tunis) during the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries. | ||
| Corvette: Smallest of all the three-masted square-rigged sailing ships. Used mainly for reconnaissance also called a 'sloop-of-war' and could be classified as a small frigate. Armed with 8-20 guns on only one deck. Examples of a corvette | ||
| Counter: The overhang of the stern above the waterline. | ||
| Course: A sail set on the lower yard of a square-rigged ship or any principal sail of a ship. The fore-and-aft main-stay-sails of brigs and schooners were also called courses. | ||
| Crab: A small and sometimes portable capstan, for the purpose of lifting equipment and cargo. | ||
| Cradle: The timber frame constructed around the hull of a ship while under construction on the launching ways. The cradle was often designed to slide down the ways with the ship when the ship was launched. | ||
| Crank: 1.A ship which, either because her construction or by the way her cargo was stowed, could not carry a great deal of sail without the danger of capsizing. 2.Any iron brackets for supporting and/or storing items such as the stern lanterns and capstan rods were also called cranks. | ||
| Crayer: A small single-masted and slow merchant vessel. Built solely for maximum hold capacity, not for it's sailing qualities. | ||
| Crimp: A person who coerces, often by force or deception, men into service as sailors. See also shanghai. | ||
| Cross Staff: A relatively accurate tool used in celestial navigation since the early 16th century, it consisted of a scaled wooden staff or rod with one or more sliding perpendicular 'transoms' with which the angle between a celestial object such as the sun or moon and the horizon could be measured (altitude). Later often replaced by the more usable but somewhat less accurate backstaff or quadrant. *** | ||
| Crossjack: The lowest square sail, or the lower yard of the mizzenmast. | ||
| Crosstree: Light oak timber spreader fixed across the trestle trees at the upper ends of the lowermast and topmast. They supported the topmast and topgallant mast shrouds. *** | ||
| Crown: The lower end of an anchor-shank where the arms come together. *** | ||
| Crow's Nest: A platform for a lookout at or near the top of a mast. Named for the cage which housed ravens, often carried by Norsemen at their masthead; for when a raven was released, it's flight direction would hopefully indicate shore. | ||
| Crutch: Oblique or horizontal knee used to reinforce the stern. | ||
| Culverin: A long-barreled heavy cannon used in the 16th and 17th centuries, often an 18 pounder with two serpent-shaped handles and a muzzle velocity of over 1200 fps. | ||
| Currach: A small rounded boat made of hides stretched over a wicker frame; still used in some parts of Great Britain. Also called Coracle. | ||
| Cutter: 1. A fast-sailing single-masted vessel usually setting double headsails and used for patrol and dispatch services. Cutters were the ships of choice for English smugglers during the 18th century. The largest were up to 150 tons burden and could carry up to 12 guns. 2. A clinker built ship's boat used for travel between ship and shore. | ||
| Cutwater: The forward curve or edge of the stem of a ship. | ||
| Danish East India Company: Dansk Ostindisk Kompagni 1616 - 1669. The first Danish East India Company was formed in 1616, modelled after the Dutch VOC, she traded tea and other commodities from Tranquebar in Danish-India to Europe. Founded in 1670, the second Danish East India Company was dissolved in 1729. | ||
| Davit: A purchase for suspending or lowering heavy equipment and objects. For example: fish davits for raising the flukes of an anchor, or boat davits for lowering and raising a ship's boat. | ||
| Deadeye: A round or triangular hardwood disk with one or more holes and a grooved perimeter, used to properly tension and tighten a shroud or stay. As in the image below, the most commonly thought of variety had three holes. *** | ||
| Dead-light: A shutter for a stern or gallery light. | ||
| Deadweight: Deadweight tonnage is the absolute maximum weight that a ship can safely carry when fully loaded. It includes crew, passengers, cargo, fuel, water, and stores. Often expressed in long tons or metric tons. Acronym: dwt. It is measured by measuring the displacement difference when the vessel is empty (or light) and fully loaded. | ||
| Dead-wood: Solid timbers at the bow and stern, just above the keel where the lines narrowed down so that separate side timbers would not fit. They 'extended' the keel upwards, effectively raising the floor-timbers at the bow and stern. | ||
| Deals: Planks cut from pine or fir of a specific size, for instance deals of 3" x 9" x 12' were common. | ||
| Deck: A horizontal platform in a vessel that corresponds to a floor in a building. Decks in wooden vessels often were sloped towards the stern or bow, and always had an athwart camber. | ||
| Demi-cannon: A heavy cannon, usually a thirty to thirty-six pounder. | ||
| Demi-culverin: A long barreled cannon used in the 16th and 17th centuries, normally a 9 to 13 pounder. | ||
| Demurrage: Charges required as compensation for the delay, or the detention of a ship beyond its scheduled time of departure. | ||
| Dinghy: A small rowing or sailing boat, often a tender to a larger vessel. | ||
| Disembark: Leaving a ship to go ashore. | ||
| Displacement Tonnage: The actual weight of a ship and its contents. One displacement ton, measuring the displacement of seawater while a ship is afloat, is equivalent to one long ton or about one cubic meter (35 cubic feet) of salt water. | ||
| Dhow: A lateen-rigged sailing vessel that originated in the Middle East. Early dhows were of shell-first construction. Most dhows are known by names referring to their hull shape. The ghanjah is a large vessel with a curved stem and a sloping, often ornately carved transom. The baghlah, was the traditional deep-sea dhow; it had a transom with five windows and a poop deck similar to European galleons. Double-ended dhows, like the boom, have both stem and stern posts. The battil, featured long stems topped by large, club-shaped stemheads and sternposts decorated with cowrie shells and leather. The badan was a smaller and shallow draught vessel. | ||
| Dog: A hinged catch that fits into a notch of a ratchet to move a wheel forward or prevent it from moving backward. | ||
| Dogger: A two-masted Dutch fishing-vessel resembling a ketch. | ||
| Doldrums: Regions near the equator where there is little or no wind. | ||
| Dolphin Striker: The short perpendicular spar under the cap of the bowsprit used to counteract the upward pull on the jib-boom of the fore topgallant stay or topmast stay. *** | ||
| Dory: A small, narrow, flat-bottomed and shallow draft boat of between 15 to 20 ft in length, usually with high sides and a sharp prow, propelled by oars. Also spelled Dorey (British). *** | ||
| Down Easter: A square-rigged merchant vessel combining large carrying capacity with a relatively sharp hull. They got their name from having been built in Maine, downwind and east of all the major East Coast ports, and were being used largely for the California grain trade (1865-1890). Examples of a down easter | ||
| Drabler: An additional strip of canvas attached to the foot of the bonnet of a fore-and-aft sail. Also spelled drabbler. *** | ||
| Draft: The depth of a ship in the water. The vertical distance between the waterline and the keel, expressed in feet or meters. Also draught. | ||
| Draught: The plans for construction of a ship, showing at least hull cross-sections and water-lines (horizontal sections). Draughts were often at 1:48 scale (quarter of an inch to a foot). Drawings did not exist for ships built before the 17th century, which were constructed solely by and from a shipwright's knowledge and experience. Also draft. | ||
| Drawing Knife: A shipbuilding tool with a long and slender sharp-edged blade and two handles, one on each end. It was used to draw material away from the piece to be worked on. *** | ||
| Dromon: A medium-size, fast-sailing Mediterranean galley often armed with Greek fire for burning enemy ships. | ||
| Druxey: Fungal decay in a ship's timbers, characterized by spongy whitish-colored spots and veins. | ||
| Dubbing: A term used for working with an adze in smoothing or evening timbers. | ||
| Dunnage: Loose wood, laid in the bottom of a ship's hold, to raise the cargo, to keep it from getting water damaged. Most ships would take on some water during rough weather or just through seepage. | ||
| Earing: A rope used to fasten the top corners of a square sail to its yard. | ||
| East Indiaman: A large and heavily armed European merchantman used for trade between Europe and the East-Indies. Examples of an East-Indiaman | ||
| Elm: Wood from various deciduous trees of the genus Ulmus and an important timber in wooden shipbuilding since it's tough and curly grain makes it very resistant to splitting. Elm trees were usually felled in the winter when they contained no sap. Elm was used for bees, bibbs, caps, tops and planking below the waterline. | ||
| Ensign: A large standard, banner or flag, hoisted on the ensign-staff. The ensign is used to distinguish the ships of different nations from each other, and to characterise the different squadrons of the navy. The Red Ensign as carried by English civil vessels from 1707-1800. | ||
| Ensign-staff: A long pole erected over the poop, used to hoist the ensign. | ||
| Entry: The form of the fore part of the ship as it cuts through the water. | ||
| Escutcheon: A shield-shaped emblem located on a ship's stern, bow or sides, bearing a coat of arms, name, or owners symbol. | ||
| Even Keel: When the draft of a vessel fore and aft is equal. In other words: the ship's keel is parallel to the ship's waterline. | ||
| Eye: A circular loop on the end of a shroud or stay. | ||
| Eyes of a ship: The extreme bows of a ship. Originated from the ancient custom of painting an eye on each side of the bow so a ship could find her way. *** | ||
| Fack: A full circle of any coiled rope or cable. | ||
| Fairlead: A means, often a pulley-block, of leading a line in the proper direction and prevent snagging or chafing. | ||
| Falcon: A small anti-personnel cannon, usually a 2 to 3 pounder. | ||
| Falconet: A small anti-personnel cannon, usually a 1 to 1 1/2 pounder. | ||
| False Keel: An extra timber attached to the underside of a ship's main keel, either to protect the keel from damage and/or to increase the draft and improve the sailing characteristics. | ||
| Fashion Piece(s): The aft most timbers in the submerged hull of a ship forming the shape of the stern. | ||
| Fathom: A unit of measurement for depth. One fathom is 1.83 meters or 6 feet. From the Anglo-Saxon "faehom" for the act of stretching two arms wide or 'embracing arms' as a rough measurement of six feet. | ||
| Fay: To fit together two pieces of timber so there is no perceptible space between them. | ||
| Felucca: A narrow, swift, lateen-rigged sailing vessel used on the Nile and in the Mediterranean. | ||
| Fender: Originally timbers running along the outside of the hull from the gunwale downward, later a cable hung over the side of a ship, to prevent it from striking or rubbing against a wharf, or another vessel moored alongside it. | ||
| Fid: A bar of wood or iron which takes the weight of a topmast when it is stepped on the lowermast. A hole in the topmast corresponds with a hole in the lowermast and the fid is driven through to hold them together. | ||
| Fiddlehead: The scrolled stemhead of a vessel lacking a true figurehead. | ||
| Fife Rail: A rail around the mast or along a ship's sides with holes for belaying pins, used to secure the running rigging. | ||
| Fifth Rate: Sailing warship with 32-44 guns (1779). Examples of a fifth rate | ||
| Figurehead: An ornamental carved and painted figure on the stem, below the bowsprit, generally expressing some aspect of the ship's name or owner. *** | ||
| Filling Frame: A frame in between the master frames. | ||
| Fireship: A ship or boat that is deliberately set on fire and steered to collide with a larger enemy ship in order to set it on fire and destroy it. Fireships were often used in the 17th century to finish off disabled enemy vessels. | ||
| First Mate: The officer below the master on a ship. | ||
| First Rate: Sailing 'ship of the line' warship with 100 or more guns on three gun decks (1779). Examples of a first rate | ||
| Fish: A piece of timber, somewhat resembling a fish, used to strengthen a mast or yard. | ||
| Fish Davit: A spar used as a purchase to hoist the flukes of the anchor to the top of the bow, without damaging the ship's hull. | ||
| Fisherman's bend: A knot used to secure the end of a line to a ring or spar, made by two turns with the end passed back under both. *** | ||
| Flag: On a sailing warship the flag distinguished the admiral's ship from the other ships of his squadron; also the colours by which one nation is distinguished from another, flown from either the fore, main, or mizzenmast. | ||
| Flagship: The sailing warship carrying the admiral (or fleet commander) and his flag. Normally the most powerful ship in a squadron or fleet. Examples of a flagship | ||
| Flax: Fibres of the flax plant stem were often used in creating oakum. | ||
| Fleet: 1.A number of ships sailing together. 2.The number of merchant ships owned by a shipping company. 3.The whole of a national navy in a region or territory. In 18th century naval terms anything more than five ships-of-the-line would have been considered a fleet. | ||
| Flitch: One of a number of planks used in creating a heavy beam. | ||
| Floor: The lowest timber of a frame, centered on the keel. | ||
| Fluke: The pointed triangular blade at the end of an anchor arm, intended to grab hold of the sea-bottom. It is usually the broadest part of an anchor and was also called the palm of an anchor. *** | ||
| Flush Deck: A continuous deck of a ship laid from stem to stern without any break. | ||
| Fluyt: A classic three-masted, square-rigged merchant ship of the 17th century, invented by the Dutch to be economical in operation, carrying the largest cargo and smallest crew possible. It had a wide, balloon-like hull rounding at the stern and bow and a very narrow, high stern. Lightly armed, they were not well-suited for dealing with pirates, privateers or any other armed opposition. Examples of a fluyt *** | ||
| Flying Jib: The outermost triangular fore-and-aft sail that extends beyond the jib and is carried on a stay attached to the flying-jib boom. *** | ||
| Foot: The bottom edge of a sail. | ||
| Footrope: A rope in square-rigged ships suspended below the yard on which the topmen stood when furling sails. | ||
| Fore: The forward part of a ship or a position towards the bow. | ||
| Fore-and-aft Rigged: Rigged with sails bent to gaffs or set on stays in the midship line (parallel to the centerline) of a vessel. | ||
| Fore-and-aft Sail: A sail set parallel to the centerline of a vessel. A fore-and-aft rigged vessel is often simpler to rig then a square-rigged vessel, it requires less crew and can sail closer to the direction from which the wind is blowing. | ||
| Forecastle: Originally a tower-like structure placed near the bow of a sailing warship on which soldiers stood and fought from during battle. Later the space between the short raised forward deck, pronounced focstle. Also a generic term for the living space of the crew in sailing vessels. | ||
| Foremast: The mast on a sailing vessel set closest to the bow or front. | ||
| Forepeak: The foremost part of a ship's hold. | ||
| Forward: Toward the bow. | ||
