Shipbuilding in the Middle Ages. Ship history

The first and foremost among the crafts of the Normans in the Viking Age should be considered shipbuilding. The Viking spent almost less time at sea than on the shore, and the northern waters were always extremely difficult for navigation. The Viking ship had to meet a number of requirements. They can be summed up in one word: versatility. The capacious ship was equally suitable for a merchant voyage and for a band of robbers. On the same ship it was possible to transport a lot of goods and a well-equipped squad. The high landing made it possible to sail both on the sea and on navigable rivers.

Shipbuilders were held in high esteem by the Scandinavians. The lives of several dozen people depended on the quality of the ship. The ship had to hold up well in deep water, for which the Normans developed a T-shaped keel, which provided the ship with good stability. The steering beam (helm) of the Norman boats was located at the stern and was long and heavy.

When starting the construction of a new ship, the shipbuilders laid the keel and frames, and then began the sheathing. Already in the early era, cladding boards were fastened with iron rivets. The uniqueness of the Norman boats lay precisely in the fact that these frame ships had a very flexible and elastic lining. These properties allowed the sides to “dampen” wave impacts during a storm.

The Viking ships - drakkars and snekkars - were sailing and oared. The ship had one composite mast. If necessary, it was inserted into a socket in the bottom of the ship and a wide straight sail - square or rectangular - was pulled. The rowlocks for the oars ran in one row along the sides, and when rowing, the entire crew of the ship sat on the oars.

The need to use oars forced shipbuilders to make the sides of ships low. To protect sailors from water, at the beginning of the 8th century, the sides began to be equipped with low bulwarks. Initially, the ships did not have a deck, and the rowers' benches were attached directly to the frames and bottom. The deck flooring appeared somewhat later, according to some sources - not earlier than the 9th century.

The appearance of the deck is associated in the history of Norman shipbuilding with another important innovation. Previously, ships were approximately the same size, since they were always used for the same tasks. In addition, there were only the most primitive amenities on board (and more often than not, none at all). But as Viking activity increased in all areas, more comfortable ships were needed, suitable for transporting a family of immigrants with belongings and livestock, and for delivering large quantities of goods, and for transporting a large number of warriors. The first solution was deck flooring, the second was a purely mechanical increase in the length of the ship. By the end of the 9th - mid-10th centuries, the size of the vessel became an indicator of the social status of the owner. The longest ships naturally belonged to the kings. However, it was possible to increase the length of the hull only to certain limits, as long as the structural safety margin allowed. Subsequently, Scandinavian shipbuilders followed the line of creating specialized ships. Thus, in the 11th century, a spacious cargo ship, the knorr, appeared, no less reliable, but not as maneuverable as the battle boat of the earlier era. Other types of ships also emerged, gradually replacing the original models.

But in the early era, all the needs of the Vikings were served by one type of ship. In addition to purely practical ones, it also met military and even “military-psychological” requirements. Wide rectangular sails that appeared near a coastal settlement or monastery caused no less horror among the inhabitants of the European coast than the stem of a ship, decorated with a carved wooden head of a monster - a dragon or a snake. From these decorations came the famous names of Norman ships - drakkar and snekkar.

The battle boat is one of the most interesting cultural phenomena of Scandinavia of the Viking Age. Voyages often dragged on for more than one month, and the ship’s crew (aka the fighting squad) found themselves virtually locked between two sides. On board the boat during the voyage, very special, very harsh laws were in effect.

In general, during the Viking Age, various vehicles experienced a clear rise, which is quite natural for a civilization that had moved away from its homes. Water transport was certainly the most important means of transportation at that time. On land, the horse is increasingly used. Horse harnesses appear in Scandinavia during the Viking Age (possibly under the influence of Europeans). During the same period, following the emergence and rapid development of urban construction and the emergence of internal trade, good roads and bridges began to be built in Scandinavia. In large settlements, as the results of archaeological excavations show, the streets were paved with cobblestones. The development of roads is also evidenced by the four-wheeled cart, which gradually replaced the sleigh.

Along with all the innovations, the Normans also used traditional equipment - skis and skates. Due to the fact that iron was constantly coming from Europe, the Normans began to produce iron “crampons” in large quantities - spikes that were attached to shoes and made it possible to easily walk on ice. This was especially important for hunters, who often climbed to the icy islands in the north of the country in search of new hunting grounds. During excavations in our time, similar “cats” were discovered, attached to horse hooves.

The Vikings made skates from bone. When making skis, the same technique was obviously used that northern peoples use even today - wide skis were lined with reindeer skin from below. The skin was fastened in such a way that the hairs followed the direction of movement. Smooth and dense wool ensured easy gliding forward and prevented the skis from sliding backwards.

Interesting information:
There are few people these days who have a good knowledge of Old Norse and other languages ​​spoken in Scandinavia during the Viking Age. Historical and pseudo-historical literature has firmly established us in the idea that a longship is a Viking ship decorated with a wooden dragon head. In fact, "drakkar" means "Viking ships decorated with a wooden dragon head." This is the plural form of a word that sounds much less poetic in the singular - “dreki”.

Among the most developed countries in the field shipbuilding of the Middle Ages Scandinavia, England, Holland, Portugal and Greece can be distinguished.

The Normans (Scandinavians) went to sea in the early 8th century and managed to instill fear in the neighboring lands in a very short time. Their ships were distinguished by one feature - versatility; having a high landing, the ship could not be afraid of storms and was capable of transporting heavy cargo. Viking ships could be steered either by wind (sail) or by oars. This gave them additional speed of movement and maneuverability in battle.
The Vikings most often made voyages to longships And augers, which translated means “dragon” and “snake” respectively. The length of such ships ranged from 20 meters, and by the end of the era it could reach up to 50, the width was 5 m. The twelve-meter mast was removable and could be folded and placed on the deck. The side was covered with round shields.
The name drakkar alone inspired fear and respect, and in terms of combat potential during the heyday of the Vikings, the ship had no equal.
For cargo transportation, the Scandinavians usually used Knorrs, the ships had a slightly shorter length, but greater width compared to the longships; their bow and stern also consisted of two decks. There was a load in the middle.

In the 1600s, England pumped up its naval fighting muscles. English ships were distinguished by their large capacity and could carry a large number of cannons on board. Of course, with such dimensions and mass there could be no talk of any maneuverability. Naval duels were decided by the number of cannons and the speed of their reloading. England is famous for its battleships, which could accommodate 500 people or even more on board. In the 17th and 18th centuries, ships were clearly divided by class, and all trade cruises were accompanied by battle cruisers. In the event of a fight with pirates, they took the brunt of the blow.

Holland, simultaneously with England, began the conquest of the sea. Conflicts were inevitable and they eventually resulted in the Anglo-Dutch War. The fleets of both countries were approximately equal in strength, so the resistance continued for quite a long time and the war managed to reap its bloody harvest.
By the way, Holland built the same battleships as England. Dutch ships were more powerfully armed and could even land squads of soldiers to capture ships rather than simply sink them. Dutch frigates (ships with 3 masts) are known for their colossal power and they were the main striking force. There were 4 wars in total, which pretty much battered the economies of both countries, and ultimately a mutual peace was concluded.

Portugal was strictly a trading state and therefore the Karakki came out of their docks- large ships, controlled by sails and capable of very quickly surfing the sea. Portugal knew how to conduct diplomatic relations and tried to avoid military conflicts, and thanks to good shipwrights, the Karakki were able to get away with it, or rather, it was very difficult to catch up with them on the high seas.

The Greeks began their military expansion around the same time as England. But the Greeks had unspeakably more experience in naval battles. Their ships never left the Mediterranean basin and were steered with oars. The galley is the thunderstorm of the Mediterranean Sea, a large and at the same time maneuverable ship. The Greek fighting style is to come close and throw troops on board an enemy ship, and after capture, tow the half-submerged ship to the port.

As we see, each of the countries with access to the sea had its own heyday. Being located off the coast of different seas and having different hull shapes, the ships passed through the same levels of development. In essence, going to sea is expansion and the search for new territories, new ways to influence one’s competitors and the desire to build a maritime empire.

In the 15th century, a new type of ocean sailing ship appeared - the caravel. This ship became known throughout Europe after Christopher Columbus immortalized his name with the discovery of America. Columbus's flotilla consisted of three caravels. Until that time, this was the name given to small undecked ships. Therefore, some historians were deeply mistaken when they claimed that Columbus reached the shores of America “on shells.”

True, the length of his largest caravel, the Santa Maria, was about 25 meters, and the small Niña was only 18. But they were very light on the move and quite seaworthy decked ships with superstructures in the bow and especially in the stern. The crew was housed in the superstructures. These caravels were much stronger and more durable than the largest naves and carracks, although they carried much less cargo.

When Columbus left the port of Paloe on his historic voyage in the summer of 1492, there were 80 people and a huge supply of provisions, equipment and fresh water on board his caravel “Pinta”. In total, the caravel could carry 120 tons of cargo. Columbus, describing the storm that overtook him on his way back from the Azores, said that he escaped death only thanks to the strong construction and good seaworthiness of his caravel.

By the way, in 1892, when they celebrated the 400th anniversary of the discovery of America, the organizers of the celebrations came up with such a thing: they decided to build a real caravel, similar in every way to Columbus’s, and on it exactly repeat Columbus’s historical voyage. And so they did. And again they solemnly “discovered America” after an ocean crossing that was completed quite safely. The only difference was that “just in case” a huge steamer was sailing nearby all the time!

In the 18th century, England, the then “mistress of the seas,” took first place in the construction of sailing ships. This was largely helped by the fact that the English ships were built from first-class Russian materials exported from Arkhangelsk. So, the British sewed sails from Russian canvas. The masts were made from trees grown in Russian pine forests. The gear was made from Russian hemp. When the anchors and chains were forged, the ringing of Ural iron was heard. But how did the development of the Russian sailing fleet proceed?

It dates back to the 11th-12th centuries. Already the fleet of Novgorod the Great consisted of many sailing ships. In 1948, during excavations near Staraya Ladoga, the remains of an ancient ship were discovered. These remains tell us about the high skill of Novgorod shipbuilders. Traces of wooden nails are clearly visible on the frame ribs preserved from this seaworthy type-built boat.

Back in the 12th century, Novgorodians made long voyages across the Baltic Sea, reaching the ports of Sweden and Denmark.

In Russian epics there are preserved references to the time when, on their “buss-ships”, merchants - “guests of Novgorod” - and their “brave squads” “walked along the blue Varangian Sea”, “walked along the Volga and ran along the Khvalynsky Sea” ( Caspian Sea). The Novgorodians even reached the White Sea and founded several settlements here on the coast.

The Tatar-Mongol invasion, and then the Swedish-German invasion in the north-west, deprived Rus' of access to the seas. The development of the Russian fleet was interrupted for several centuries. Navigation at this time developed only in the North of our country. The descendants of the Novgorodians - the Pomors - felt at home on the “icy sea”. Moreover, they went to hunt for animals and fish all the way to Novaya Zemlya and even penetrated into the Kara Sea. They visited Grumant before foreign sailors, as the island of Spitsbergen was then called. The Pomors built wonderful sea vessels. Fearless explorers set out on light, undecked lugs. And a little later, the already familiar single-masted cabs appeared. They were flat-bottomed, single-deck vessels about 20 meters long, with a durable hull adapted for navigation among ice. Most often, the kochi sailed. For a long time, the quadrangular sail was sewn from skins; the gear was belt. To build such a vessel, skilled sailors did not need a single iron part. They say that even anchors were made from driftwood by tying a heavier stone to it.

Of course, over time the koch changed and iron fastenings appeared.

The Pomors also built three-masted sailing ships - sea boats that lifted up to 200 tons of cargo. Sailing on such ships, Russian sailors at the end of the 16th and beginning of the 17th centuries discovered the northern and eastern shores of Asia to the world. And the navigator Semyon Dezhnev was the first to sail between Asia and North America in 1648. By this he proved that there is a strait between both continents. But scientists in Western Europe believed then that Asia and America were parts of the same continent.

In the 17th century, the construction of individual large-sized sailing ships began in an overseas manner. The first such vessel - the three-masted, still flat-bottomed "Frederik" ("Friedrich") - was built back in 1635 in Nizhny Novgorod.
Novgorod. It was intended for trade with Persia. His fate was sad. In the same year, he crashed on underwater rocks off the Caucasus coast.

The second attempt to create a fleet of large sea vessels was made under Alexei Mikhailovich on the Volga - in the village of Dedinovo. A large three-masted ship "Eagle" was built here. He also suffered a sad fate: Stepan Razin’s troops took Astrakhan and burned the “Eagle” stationed there.

Only under Peter I did the creation of a strong navy begin. There is a small boat in the hall of the Central Naval Museum. This little boat played a very important role in the life of Peter I and in the history of the Russian fleet. It is not for nothing that this old-fashioned little ship is respectfully called the “grandfather of the Russian fleet.” Riding along the Yauza on this boat, young Peter became ignited with a passion for the sea and maritime affairs. The banks of the river seemed cramped. He moved the boat to Lake Pereyaslavl-Pleshcheyevo, built several dozen more boats there and conducted entire “sea battles” with his “amusing” flotilla. These games of the young king became the harbingers of a great thing.

This was the creation of a military and merchant fleet in our country and the conquest of access to the sea. Russia took an honorable place among the great maritime powers.

During the reign of Peter 1, a strong battle fleet was created, consisting of 48 powerful battleships and frigates, 790 galleys and other sailing and rowing vessels. American naval historian Mahan called it “a unique historical miracle.”

Peter I paid great attention to the development of the merchant fleet and shipping. He visited Arkhangelsk three times, sailed on the White Sea; visited the shipyard of the Bazhenin brothers on the Vavchuga River. Large merchant ships were built at this shipyard. In 1703, the first such ship, “Andrew the First-Called,” sailed with Russian goods to England and Holland.

And in the same year the first foreign ship arrived in St. Petersburg. And in the last year of Peter’s life, more than nine hundred ships visited the port of the young capital.

Russian battleship of Peter the Great's time - "Poltava".

The rapidly growing Russian fleet required many sailors and shipbuilders. Peter I sent a large group of young people abroad to train them in maritime

business. He himself worked as a carpenter at a shipyard in Amsterdam for over four months and studied the theory of shipbuilding under the guidance of the best masters in Holland and England. In Moscow, the “School of Mathematical and Navigational Sciences” was created in 1701, and the “Naval Academy” opened in St. Petersburg in 1716.

Under Peter I, about twenty textbooks on navigation and shipbuilding were first published. Peter I cared a lot about improving the ships being built.

The successors of Peter I paid little attention to the development of the fleet, and the construction of ships was greatly reduced. Only under Catherine II did shipbuilding temporarily resume its former scope.

One can name many names of talented Russian shipbuilders. True, most of them had to build mainly warships, but many of them also distinguished themselves in the construction of merchant ships.

Thus, when ordering ships from the Vavchug shipyard, the British and Dutch specifically paid a lot of money so that Stepan Kochnev himself would build them. Self-taught and a friend of Lomonosov, Stepan Kochnev became famous for his “solid construction and with special skill” of large seaworthy ships.

Arkhangelsk master M.D. Portnov built sixty-three ships in twenty-three years of work.

A. M. Kurochkin also worked in Arkhangelsk at the beginning of the 19th century. He created such strong and beautiful ship hulls that the government ordered “to engrave a drawing of this hull on copper for the edification of posterity, in order to preserve it unchanged in the future.”

Kurochkin's contemporary, Ivan Afanasyev, was famous for his work on the Black Sea. During his life he built 38 large and many small combat and merchant ships.

The Russian flag began to appear in the most remote and little-explored corners of the globe. The merits of Russian sailors are great. In the 18th century they explored the shores of Northwestern America. In the 19th century, they completed 42 voyages around the world, during which important geographical discoveries were made. Such famous navigators as Bering, Chirikov, Golovnin, Nevelskoy, Kruzenshtern, Litke, Malygin and others put a lot of work into the discovery and study of the shores of the Pacific Ocean and the Arctic.

Around this time, of course, with great gradualness, like any progress in the Middle Ages, a significant revolution in the development of sailing shipping occurred. This revolution consisted in the transition from single-masted, clumsy (with any significant size) ships, which during the first one and a half thousand years of our chronology could only sail along the coast and, moreover, at a favorable time of year - to those equipped with improved spars and rigging, with onboard artillery , ships of modern times, which sailed quite safely across all seas at all times of the year.

This revolution was facilitated mainly by three circumstances: 1) the introduction of a permanent rudder suspended from the ship and improvement of the spars and rigging; 2) the invention and distribution of the ship's compass; and 3) the improvement of ship cannons and improved methods of mounting them. In this regard, the construction of larger, faster and more capable of maneuvering ships began, the seamanship and strength of which in long-range combat was constantly increasing.

In the 13th century, the largest ships in the North Sea had (we accept English data) a little more than 80 tons of displacement (today's coastal ships); The crew in wartime, on average, consisted of 30 people, and on the ships belonging to the Five Ports there were only 25 people, including 2 officers. Merchant ships on the Mediterranean Sea (Venetian and Genoese) were much larger and had up to 110 crew members. These ships, with their sharp bow and stern contours, resembled rowing ships and, indeed, were often forced to use oars. The platforms for warriors and throwing machines built at the bow and stern were gradually transformed into permanent towers. Tops were also introduced on the masts to accommodate shooters. The ratio of the width of these ships to their length was very unfortunate - 1:2.9, i.e. less than 1:3. The mast consisted (as in the battle of Dover) of 1 mast and 1 sail on the yard, while on the Mediterranean Sea there had long been two-masted ships with lateen sails. Later, “coggs” appeared, large, clumsy ships of Low German origin, which already in the first quarter of the 14th century had more than 80 crew members; These ships had high settings at the bow and stern. The same were the Spanish "carracks", large ships with a high forecastle and quarterdeck, on the upper deck of which riflemen and heavily armed infantry were usually placed during the battle. Due to their high superstructures, the British often called these ships "tower ships."

Little by little the size of the ships increased. "Thomas", on which Edward III went into battle at Sluys in 1340, had about 250 tons of displacement and 137 crew, but both at that time and later, until the beginning of the 15th century, almost all ships had only 1 mast; two masts were extremely rare on large carracks, which in those days had up to 500 tons of displacement; in these cases both masts carried quadrangular sails on the yards and a topsail; The third mast, which was sometimes found, had only one lateen sail (in order to be able to stay steeper to the wind), from which the mizzen was subsequently developed.

However, small ships of the old type were still the predominant ones in those days; for example, in 1415, the fleet of Henry V, with which he crossed from Southampton to Normandy, before the battle of Agincourt, according to available information, consisted of 1,400 ships; Even if we consider this figure to be significantly exaggerated, there is still no doubt that most of these were small coasting ships.

The time of invention of a permanent rudder, suspended from the sternpost and turned by a tiller, instead of the previous wide steering oars, which operated on both sides of the stern, is unknown; in 1300 such a rudder was already in use, but it spread very slowly, so that old steering oars were encountered much later. The slow spread of the outboard rudder must be attributed to the fact that the width of the ships of that time compared to their length was very large, which adversely affected the action of such a rudder. In 1356, the new steering device had already been applied to all larger English ships.

However, much more important was the introduction of the ship's compass, which, according to Humboldt, “was the beginning of a new era in the history of culture.” The property of a magnetic needle, i.e., a needle magnetized by the friction of magnetic iron ore, to turn north (towards the North Star) was known to the Chinese already several thousand years before, and they probably used this property from time immemorial for navigation. Information about this came from the east, probably through the Arabs, who had extensive knowledge of astronomy and the art of navigation; they could have brought them to Europe during their great campaigns of conquest in the 7th and 8th centuries.

The magnetic needle, after magnetizing it (for which there was a piece of magnetic iron ore on the ship), was inserted into a piece of reed or reed split in the middle, the ends of which were protected from the penetration of water by knotted partitions; this piece of reed or reed floated in a vessel with water, and if there was no outside influence, the needle always turned in the direction of the magnetic meridian, or, as they said in those days, always pointed to the North Star. Particular precision in measuring angles was not observed and errors in the arrow readings went unnoticed. To maintain the needle on the water, a piece of cork was sometimes used. It is clear that such a device was only suitable when the ship was standing still, which is why it was used much more often in the Mediterranean Sea than in the ocean.

This highly primitive device was in use at the beginning of the 13th century on English ships (under Damme) and survived until approximately 1400, despite the fact that the ship's compass was invented a hundred years earlier. The inventory of an English ship of that time included a piece of magnetic iron ore and several needles.

The invention of the ship's compass dates back to approximately 1300, and was made by the Italian sailor Flavio Gioia, originally from Amalfi near Naples; the property of a magnetic needle pointing to the north, which had long been known, was not discovered by him, and he was not the first to hang such an arrow in a box, which had also been done before, but he was the first to attach a card (wind rose), which was already known at that time , to a magnetic needle, freely suspended in a closed box, and thus protected from external influences; this made it possible to constantly monitor the course of the ship and, therefore, more accurately maintain a course in a given direction, as well as accurately make notches (bearings). Until this time, it was only possible to determine the direction to the north.

Thanks to the compass, it became possible, with the help of serifs, to draw up more accurate sea maps (that is, of course, compared to those that existed before), according to the Mercator projection; the principle was not known, but the serif itself gives the rhyme. In those days, quite satisfactory maps of the Mediterranean Sea were compiled, but without a geographic network, that is, without indicating latitude and longitude, which, however, did not have any meaning for the sailors of that time, since they did not know a way to determine their location.

Apparently only in the middle of the 12th century. ships in the Mediterranean began to be equipped with maps; in Spain in 1360, every warship was required to carry charts. The first English nautical charts from the English Channel to Cape Verde date back to 1448. General nautical instructions and precise descriptions of shores were in great use.

It is not unlikely that Flavio Joya introduced the use of hanging a compass in cruciform axles, the so-called. cardan suspension, which in any case was known before Cardan, who lived in 1501-1576.

Be that as it may, the introduction into use of the ship's compass had a tremendous impact on shipping in general, and in particular on naval affairs, since the compass made it possible to make passages across the open sea from one place to another over long distances, which made it possible significantly shorten these distances, and travel them with much more confidence than before.

Despite this, the ship's compass spread extremely slowly; a whole century passed from the time of its invention before single copies came into use in England, and even this information cannot be considered completely reliable.

The same applies to firearms, namely ship guns. Gunpowder was also known to the Chinese many centuries earlier, and information about it reached Europe, probably through the same route. Guns were first mentioned at the beginning of the 14th century; in 1311 the Genoese made stone throwers, in 1323 several cannons were cast in Metz, and in 1325-26 - in Florence; after that they very soon appeared in other places. They were undoubtedly used for the first time in 1339, during the siege of Cambrai. In 1346, at the Battle of Crecy, the British apparently had cannons.

On ships, cannons came into general use only at the end of the 14th century, but on English ships they were used earlier; for example, on the Christopher, which the French took from the English in 1338, and which was recaptured by the British at Sluys, there were already three iron cannons and, in addition, one hand gun; There were cannons on many other ships. Cannons on the Mediterranean Sea are mentioned five years earlier, when describing one battle of the Tunisian Bey against the Moors.

In 1372, iron, copper and bronze cannons and gunpowder of the same composition as European gunpowder of the 19th century already existed. At the beginning, however, these were only light guns, and forged ones at that, since the casting of guns was not yet known; These guns were loaded from the treasury and at first consisted of two parts - a charging chamber and a long barrel, which were fastened together after loading. One gun often had several charging chambers. At the end of the 16th century, they began to cast guns for the first time, increased their caliber and, due to the impossibility of making a strong breech for such guns, they began to load them from the muzzle.

During the first decades, cannon fire was probably of little effect, since it is completely absent from any account of battle before 1420. Positive evidence of their weak action is that the ships continued to pile closely on each other and the battle was decided by boarding. During this period, English ships that weighed more than 400 tons had only 3-6 guns, and smaller ones had only two.

Significant changes in this branch of maritime affairs occurred only with the advent of new times. The introduction of cannons very soon had an impact on shipbuilding: ships began to be given greater carrying capacity, that is, their sizes increased, the bow and stern began to be given rounded shapes; the superstructures, which until then had the appearance of towers, began to be made longer, so that the aft superstructure began to reach the middle mainmast, and the front one protruded far forward beyond the stem.

"Coggi" in the north and "caravels" in the south were to a certain extent types of warships; the high towers on these ships had a very unfavorable effect on their progress and, in general, on their seafaring qualities. There are already four-masted ships, the displacement of which around 1500 reached 400-700 tons; some of them had guns on the upper deck.

The art of shipbuilding, which was achieved in the north, soon became widely known, so that even for the Mediterranean Sea they tried to get craftsmen from there. However, all shipyards were private affairs. As state institutions of this kind, only warehouses and arsenals for storing guns can be mentioned, and also several royal shipyards in England.

The opening of sea routes to the East Indies and America had a huge impact on shipbuilding; long voyages to inhospitable and sometimes hostile countries required larger and better equipped ships. The activities of the Portuguese prince Henry, nicknamed the Navigator, who died in 1460, were also of certain importance.

However, the Spanish and Portuguese ships, which served for the first, most significant discoveries, were not at all among the largest ships of that time. Columbus set off on his bold voyage across the ocean on small caravels, which, however, were serviceable sea vessels, as he himself spoke of them. These ships had only 120-130 tons of displacement, 80-90 feet in length, their crew consisted of approximately 50 people; they had 3-4 masts, of which only the front one had transverse yards. Likewise, the ships on which Magellan completed his circumnavigation of the world were very small: two were 130 tons, two were 90 tons, and one was even 60 tons; of these, only one returned to Spain three years later.

There was no talk of any real naval tactics then; the forms inherited, so to speak, historically, from ancient times, continued to be used as before without any criticism: as before, the attack on the enemy was carried out on a wide front, and then each ship tried to defeat the enemy ship in a single battle; no attempt was ever made to concentrate forces in any specific place, and no one even thought about ensuring superiority over the enemy in any way, for example, by enveloping the flanks, using any special ships, devices or weapons. It may seem that all tactical sense in those days was completely deadened, and the warships of the northern states showed the least tactical sense; Oars were still in use everywhere, and the only task was close-range combat and then boarding.

More significant fleets were divided into 3-4 detachments, which the fleet commander tried to bring to the enemy in the possible order, after which a general scrum and a single battle of ships began; the fourth squadron often played the role of reserve. The ships approached the enemy one by one, used grappling hooks and hooks, and then hand-to-hand combat began, just as during rowing navigation and even in the very first days of it. The battle took place as if on land, with the only difference that it took place on the shaky deck of a ship: in other words, the ships were not used as weapons, but simply as a place for battle.

Some exceptions in this regard have already been mentioned above: such was the desire of the English at the Battle of Dover in 1217 to win a windward position from the enemy, as well as at the great battle of Sluys, where the king took special measures regarding the placement of his ships, on which some of the riflemen and some heavy infantry.

Special naval tactics could not be developed, since in the north there were, essentially speaking, no permanent fleets, and those fleets that were assembled each time for some special purpose were not intended for naval combat, but to attack the enemy coast or transport the army there. Therefore, fleets, including warships, consisted almost exclusively of recruited merchant ships with their crews, to which soldiers were attached as a fighting force. These merchant ships were rarely large in size, so their crews were few in number, for example, ships of 120 tons had:

These figures, however, refer only to ships that were supposed to serve as real warships; During landing operations, more soldiers were boarded and the number of sailors in these cases was often reduced.

With the gradual increase in the size of ships, the strengthening of their armament and the increase in the number of guns, as well as with the improvement of spars and rigging and the development of the ships’ associated ability to maneuver, the number of sailors, compared with the number of soldiers, began to gradually increase. This led to a significant increase in the ability of warships to carry out real military operations at sea.

It should be noted in conclusion that Portugal was the first to acquire a real sailing navy, but its warships, at the same time, were constantly used, and even mainly for commercial needs. However, the Portuguese ships, in frequent battles against Turkish, Egyptian, Indian and Arab ships in the distant Indian Ocean, did not develop any special tactics there either, and the Portuguese fleet soon lost its high position. Spain, England and the Netherlands took the place of Portugal. Only then did the real development of sailing military navigation begin.

History of shipbuilding development

Introduction

1. Historical development of shipbuilding

2. Formation of shipbuilding

3. The rise of the sailing fleet and the transition to mechanical propulsion

Introduction.

Shipbuilding is one of the oldest industries. Its beginning is separated from us by tens of thousands of years. The history of shipbuilding begins from the appearance of the first rafts and boats, hollowed out from a whole wooden trunk, to modern beautiful liners and rocket ships, and goes back to ancient times. It is as multifaceted and dates back as many centuries as the history of mankind itself. The main incentive for the emergence of navigation, as well as the associated shipbuilding, was the development of trade between peoples separated by sea and ocean spaces. The first ships moved with the help of oars, only occasionally using a sail as an auxiliary force. Then, approximately in the 10th - 11th centuries, purely sailing ships appeared along with rowing ships. The shipbuilding industry, being one of the most important sectors of the national economy and possessing scientific, technical and production potential, has a decisive influence on many other related industries and on the country’s economy as a whole, as well as on its defense capability and political position in the world. It is the state of shipbuilding that is an indicator of the scientific and technical level of the country and its military-industrial potential, accumulating in its products the achievements of metallurgy, mechanical engineering, electronics and the latest technologies.

Historical development of shipbuilding.

Since time immemorial, people have used expanses of water - rivers, lakes, the sea - first as hunting grounds, and then as convenient roads for moving and transporting goods. The first primitive ships appeared long before the wheeled cart. Man went to sea at the very dawn of his formation. Mythology, ancient descriptions of travel and sagas allow us to collect information about ships. sometimes they report in great detail about the construction and equipment of the “first ships,” indicating that people built them by the will of the gods. Such is the case with Noah's Ark. The oldest one-tree shuttle is from Pesse, Graningen (Netherlands), -6315 + 275 BC. Already approximately 2500 BC. the ships were different: for transporting goods, for transporting passengers. They were propelled by poles, oars and sails. In those days, ships were mainly military, merchant or fishing. Later, recreational ships appeared, which were sailed simply for entertainment. The Roman Emperor Caligula (37 - 41 AD) ordered the construction of such a vessel for his pleasure trip on Lake Neli. The unusually wide and flat design of the vessel is explained by its purpose: a ship for court entertainment. The hull itself was made of wood, and hollow beams made of baked clay were used as supports for the upper deck. To ensure the impermeability and safety of the vessel, the external cladding boards were covered with lead plates, and the internal flooring consisted of marble tiles. In Rus', shipbuilding and navigation have been known since ancient times. Rock paintings dating back to approximately 3000 BC depicting a harpoon hunt for sea animals were found on the White Sea coast. One of the oldest ships discovered in Russia dates back to approximately the 5th century. BC. In all Slavic languages ​​there is a word for ship. Its root - "bark" - underlies words such as "basket". The most ancient Russian ships were made of flexible rods, like a basket, and lined with bark (later with leather). It is known that already in the 8th century. our compatriots sailed in the Caspian Sea. In the 9th and first half of the 10th century. The Russians were the complete masters of the Black Sea, and it was not for nothing that at that time the eastern peoples called it the “Russian Sea”. In the 12th century decked ships were built for the first time in Rus'. Decks designed to accommodate warriors also served as protection for rowers. The Slavs were skilled shipbuilders and built ships of various designs:

Shitik is a flat-bottomed vessel with a mounted rudder, equipped with a mast with a straight sail and oars;

Karbas - was equipped with two masts carrying straight rack or sprint sails;

Pomeranian boat - had three masts carrying a straight sail;

Ranshina is a ship where the hull in the underwater part was ovoid in shape. Thanks to this, during the compression of the ice, among which it was necessary to swim, the ship was “squeezed” to the surface without being subjected to deformation and was again immersed in the water when the ice diverged.

Organized maritime shipbuilding in Russia began at the end of the 15th century, when a shipyard for the construction of fishing vessels was founded in the Solovetsky Monastery. Later, already in the 16-17 centuries. The Zaporozhye Cossacks took a step forward, carrying out raids on the Turks in their Chaikas. The construction method was the same as in the manufacture of Kyiv rammed boats (to increase the size of the vessel, several rows of boards were nailed to the dugout center from the sides). In 1552, after the capture of Kazan by Ivan the Terrible, and then the conquest of Astrakhan in 1556, these cities became centers for the construction of ships for the Caspian Sea. Under Boris Godunov, unsuccessful attempts were made to establish a navy in Russia. Russia's first marine vessel of a foreign design, the Frederick, was built in 1634 in Nizhny Novgorod by Russian craftsmen. In 1667-69 at the shipyard in the village. The sea ship "Eagle" was built in Dedinovo; the organizer of the construction was the boyar Ordyn-Nashchekin. The further development of the Russian fleet is closely connected with the name of Peter the Great. In June 1693, Peter I founded the first state-owned shipyard in Arkhangelsk for the construction of warships. A year later, Peter visited Arkhangelsk again. By this time, the 24-gun ship "Apostle Paul", the frigate "Holy Prophecy", the galley and transport ship "Flamov" formed the first Russian military flotilla on the White Sea. The creation of a regular navy began. In the spring of 1700, the 58-gun ship Goto Prdistination was built. In 1702, two frigates were launched in Arkhangelsk: “Holy Spirit” and “Mercury”. In 1703, St. Petersburg was founded, the center of which became the Admiralty - the largest shipyard in the country. The first large ship to leave the slipway of the Admiralty Shipyard was the 54-gun ship Poltava, built by Fedosy Sklyaev and Peter the Great in 1712. By 1714, Russia had its own sailing fleet. The largest ship of Peter the Great's time was the 90-gun ship "Lesnoye" (1718). Under Peter I, the following ships were introduced:

Ships - 40-55 m long, three-masted with 44-90 guns;

Frigates - up to 35 m long, three-masted with 28-44 guns;

Shnyava - 25-35 m long, two-masted with 10-18 guns;

Parmas, bueras, flutes, etc. up to 30 m long.

In 1719, the serf Efim Nikonov turned to Peter with a petition for permission to build a model of the first “hidden” ship. The first test, which took place in 1724, ended in failure, and after the death of Peter I, all work was stopped. The period of calm experienced by Russian shipbuilders after the death of Peter I gave way in the second half of the 18th century. a new rise, and by the end of the 18th century. The Black Sea Fleet was created. At the beginning of the 19th century. a technically sound classification of ships was introduced. During the reign of Alexander I, shipbuilding work was reduced, but river shipbuilding continued. A very advanced type of wooden cargo ship appeared for its time (late 18th century) - the bark. In 1782, the “navigable ship” Kulibin was built. At the beginning of the 19th century. Master Durbazhev invented a successful “machine” using horses for traction. The first regular steamship on the St. Petersburg-Kronstadt line was built in 1815. The one that has come down to us shows that its pipe is made of brick. In a later drawing, the pipe is iron. In 1830, the cargo-passenger ship Neva was launched in St. Petersburg, which, in addition to two steam engines, also had sailing weapons. In 1838, the world's first electric ship was tested on the Neva in St. Petersburg. In 1848, Amosov built Russia's first screw frigate, Archimedes. Shipping on the Volga and other rivers began to develop especially rapidly after the abolition of serfdom in 1861. The Sormovo plant, founded in 1849, became the main shipbuilding enterprise. The first iron barges and the first cargo-passenger steamship in Russia were built here. The world's first use of a Diesel engine on river vessels was also carried out in Russia in 1903. In the second half of the 19th century. Wooden ships were replaced by iron ones. It is curious that in Russia the first military metal ships were two submarines in 1834. In 1835, a semi-submersible vessel was built. "Brave". It sank below sea level, leaving only a chimney above the water. At the beginning of the 19th century. Steam engines appeared on ships, and the use of first wrought iron and then rolled steel as a structural material in the construction of ships led in 1850-60. to a revolution in shipbuilding. The transition to the construction of iron ships required the introduction of a new technological process and a complete transformation of factories. In 1864, the first armored floating battery in Russia was built. In 1870, the Baltic Fleet already had 23 armored ships. In 1872, the battleship “Peter the Great” was built - one of the strongest ships in the world at that time. For the Black Sea Fleet, A. Popov developed a project for the coastal defense battleship Novgorod in 1871. In 1877, the Makarovs designed the first torpedo boats in the world. In the same year, the world's first seaworthy destroyer, Vzryv, was launched. Russian transport shipbuilding of the late 19th century. significantly lagged behind the military. In 1864, the first icebreaking ship, the Pilot, was built. The icebreaker Ermak was built in 1899 (sailed until 1964).