All pirate ships. Pirate ships

Sometimes you look at the names of the miserable buckets of branded bolts called "yachts", crammed into the marina and think "what do these people even know about the names of ships ?!". Well, you yourself can go and see, at the same time you can easily distinguish those who go by sea a lot and often from those who rot in a joke so that the owner can enjoy membership in the yacht club and glue women.

I'll give you a hint: for the most part, yacht names symbolize the qualities of their captains, and their size is usually (but not always) inversely proportional to the number of miles logged. Exceptions are usually noticed immediately by the features of the equipment and - usually - by the work carried out on board. Barbecue work and sunbathing of busty beauties are carried out on the yachts of the pontorezes.

Ship names

But let's talk about names. The name of the ship is usually given on the slipway, and under this name it appears in the statements. And by and large, you can forget about it, because rarely when it turns out to be successful. The ship acquires its real name during operation, and is usually fixed for life. For example, the name stuck to one schooner "that bitch", and it fully corresponded to her extremely bastard character. Her favorite pastime was mud baths and diving - apparently she had submarines in her family, hence the mania to lie down on the ground right at the pier.

Many good ships that have plied the oceans since time immemorial did not pay attention to what was written on their sides and stern. The crew and the captain knew that it was better not to interfere with their navigation - these ships pulled their crew out of terrible storms and managed to stay afloat regardless of the number of cores that made holes in their sides. Many troughs, on the other hand, had proud and haughty names, but they floated with the same grace as a refrigerator.. And a sailor who wants to be hired on a ship, unless of course he was a fool, or not so desperate as to climb anywhere, usually tried to hear how the sailors talk about the ship.

It should be pointed out that no matter how bad the sailor is, he will never, I emphasize, will never scold his ship. He is more likely to blaspheme, and in swearing at a sailor, few will shut him up in his belt. So, the intonation with which the sailors speak about the ship says a lot about it, and if you're lucky, you can hear its real name. Here, by the way, is another point that is lost in Russian, but which is important to know: the ship / ship is feminine, and they say “she” about them. A good ship for the captain - wife, daughter, girlfriend, goddess - choose any.

And finally, the name of the ship that floats, and does not pretend to be an iPhone, is almost always short. The reason is that in those dashing times of boarding battles, there were peculiar traditions - as the king, referring to all states, said “we”, and the captain, to the question “who is coming?” - called the name of his ship, and during the battle he could yell “to me!”, Calling on everyone who can still fight to get to him and throw the enemy into the sea with joint efforts. Now imagine that your ship is called "Admiral Ivan Ivanovich Molotoboytsev." Yes, you will be killed before you utter it, not to mention the fact that this can create confusion in the presentation.

There are ships that have earned fame for their names, and then when a new ship is laid down, they are given the name of one who has already retired. If you do not remember the Argo paradox, this is one of the hopes to lure good luck with the help of a name, or endow the ship with the name of a glorious person. Few people know, but the Aurora was once a glorious ship of the Russian imperial fleet, whose batteries smashed the British on Far East(Of course, the tea makers do not like to remember this, because in that battle their marines lost the flag, and the admiral shot himself from such a shame). And when the laying of new armored cruisers took place, one of them was named after the glorious sailing ship and - he crowned himself with even greater glory, becoming one of the symbols of the Revolution.

And while the winds will blow, beautiful ships will plow the seas, carrying glorious names through the ages like banners.

If one day you take command of a ship, treat it like a woman. Learn about its history, see how it goes on the waves, its weaknesses, its character, its secret name - and if you get along with the characters, you will understand why the Santa Clara was affectionately called the Nina, why the captains shared the fate of their ships , although they could have escaped ... Well, if you don’t get off, then it’s better to change the ship, otherwise only one of you will remain afloat by the end of the journey.

ship, flag and appearance- only these three things could put a pirate above the rest of the world. A fast ship, a flag with a bad reputation, and an intimidating appearance - these are often enough to make the enemy surrender without a fight. When success depends on how much fear you can instill in the victim, these three things were of no small importance, and they also served as evidence of the pirate's luck.

Pirates didn't build their own ships. Pirates' ship was supposed to be fast, maneuverable and well-armed. When capturing a ship, they first of all looked at its seaworthiness. Daniel Defoe said that a pirate ship is first of all “a pair of light heels that will come in handy when you need to grab something quickly or get away even faster if you get grabbed”. On captured merchant ships, the hold bulkheads, deck superstructures and one of the masts were often removed, the poop was made lower, and additional cannon ports were cut into the sides.

As a rule, pirate ships outperformed ordinary ships in speed, which was very important both in order to catch up with the victim and in order to get away from the chase. For example, when Charles Vane hunted a ship in the Bahamas in 1718, he easily evaded sea patrols, "making two feet on their one".

Most pirate captains haven't changed ships throughout their careers.(which was often very short - we can even talk about months, not years; even Blackbeard's reign of terror lasted only a few years). However, there were those who changed ships like gloves - Bartholomew Roberts had about six of them. As for the captured ships, they were usually sold or simply burned.

A pirate ship needs constant care, it is especially important to clean the bottom of shells and algae in time so that they do not slow down the progress of the ship. This procedure was done every three months. Usually the pirates swam to some safe place, put their cannons at the entrance to the bay to repel a possible attack, and knelt the ship - that is, with the help of hoists they pulled it to the shallows and cleaned the bottom. Cranking was also used in cases where it was necessary to repair the underwater part of the hull. The biggest threat to the ship was the mollusk and shipworm (woodworm), which bit into the wood and could make moves up to 6 feet (2 meters) long in it. These worms were capable of completely destroying a ship's hull.

Vessel dimensions

The size of the pirate ship was quite important. big ship it is easier to deal with storms, and besides, it can carry more cannons. However, large ships are less manoeuvrable and more difficult to roll. In movies, pirates are usually shown on large ships such as galleons because they look very impressive, but in fact, pirates preferred small ships, most often sloops.; they were fast and easy to care for. In addition, due to the smaller draft, they could swim in shallow waters or hide among sandbars where a larger ship could not pass.

They were so large that they could participate in everyday naval duties for everything, however, in battle for one gun, four, or even six, people were required. A ship with twelve guns on board needed seventy men just to fire, and you also had to bring the cannonballs and gunpowder.

Names of pirate ships from the thematic section (website) "Jolly Roger" (from the pirate site Spiral):

"Brig" Black Ghost” . Once belonged to a famous pirate. Merchants were afraid of this ship like fire. He is famous for appearing out of nowhere and carrying out his attacks.

pirate frigate "Le peritone"(peryton)

The mighty flying deer peryton could, perhaps, be compared with the Greek Pegasus. As ancient legends testify, the beast had one distinctive feature.
It cast a human shadow, thanks to which scientists believed that the peryton is the spirit of travelers who died far from home. Winged deer were often seen in ancient times on the islands mediterranean sea and near the Strait of Gibraltar. It was believed that perytons feed on people. They all herd attacked the bewildered sailors and devoured them. No weapon could stop the mighty and terrible beast.

"El corsario descuidado"
Translated from Spanish - "Careless Corsair". The young owner of this most beautiful red-sailed brig never knew defeat. He won battle after battle as he rose higher and higher in the financial ladder. He was hunted - each of the powers wanted to get the head of a corsair.
One day, a young pirate, after another successful robbery, filled the hold of his ship to capacity. The ship moved slowly and constantly sank. Yes, and a leak in the stern of the brig was not by the way ...
The Careless Corsair came to an abrupt halt and staggered. "What's happened?" thought the young pirate. Looking overboard, he realized that the end of his exploits had come. The bottom of his ship was torn to pieces by reefs. Spare boats have already managed to dismantle the team.
The young pirate stood at the prow of his ship, not believing what was happening. Tears welled up in his eyes, and his head drooped. "From what?!" - The pirate raised his hands to the sky. - "For what?"
"For carelessness" - the boatswain standing nearby answered, not wanting to leave his captain.
The ship was sinking.

Frigate "Omnipresent Death" It's a storm in the Caribbean. Unknown Pirate who walks on it plundered all the colonies of the new world. When meeting this ship at sea, merchants simply pray to stay alive, which does not happen. Since there is no money in the colonies, now he is heading for the waters of Madagascar to a paradise for pirates
most romantic name
corvette "Violet" - named after the captain's daughter. This name was given to her by her father in honor of the most magnificent flower
the most majestic name
betlisp "Peter I" is a thunderstorm from Russian State for Britain. This is the flagship of the squadron containing 6 other ships.

Corvette "Victoria Bloody Baroness"- the ship is named after a pirate girl who is known for her quick temper and incredible cruelty. She sailed on this ship herself. Graceful, fast as the wind, corvette, with white sails and incredibly beautiful. But, as always expected, justice prevailed - the pirate was executed, and the ship itself was given to the Spanish governor.

Frigate "Black Revenge" the horror of all sailors, his captain is a real devil, his ship develops unprecedented speed, and the hull is impenetrable for nuclei, according to rumors, the boatswain on the ship can break a small ship with 1 blow ...

Corvette "Luck Prize" walked on it unknown pirate to whom
was lucky. His Corvette was quite powerful and fast. To catch up and break.

Frigate "Bad Girl"
This is the popular name of the ship, since no one knows its exact name ..
A certain captain appeared in the waters of the Caribbean archipelago, who robbed ships, leaving only two witnesses: one without eyes, the other without a tongue ... Apparently in order to terrify people ... I must say that the "couples" succeeded in this with a vengeance ... From the words of the "lucky ones" a picture of the attacks was drawn up.
Everything happened in cloudy weather, in the early morning before sunrise, when there was still fog over the water ... The dead silence was broken by girlish laughter penetrating to the bones. It was heard from everywhere, now from one side, then from the other ... From this sound, people's eardrums burst, blood flowed, some of them, unable to endure it any longer, were thrown overboard, while others from panic fear could not move from their place. The frigate approached silently, without firing a single shot. The team of the "girl" took away the cargo, the surviving people, and also quietly set off, leaving two witnesses ... No one saw more captured people and did not hear anything about them ...
Apparently, the pirate captain made a deal with Lucifer himself, who got the souls of people ..

the most majestic name
battleship "Sentence"
The captain of this pirate ship was a man of honor, so he always gave his victims a choice - to surrender, and then they would be given life, or to fight and then let the Devil judge them ... By their actions, people themselves signed the Judgment

Most profound title
Bombardier ship "Bell"
The motto of this ship is: "Ringing it is not for him"
The ship was created specifically to fight against coastal fortifications, equipped with the most powerful and long-range guns.
When a "ringing" was heard from one of the sides of this ship, it could mean only one thing - for a long time the fateful volley would echo in the ears of the survivors.
the name of the ship was given by Peter I during the construction of the Azov fleet

Frigate "Cerberus".
For a long time, the pirate island of Bermuda has been a haven for corsairs. But this skeleton did not have a strong defense in the form of a fort or other fortifications. Its only protection was numerous rocks and reefs. But over time, maps of this island were drawn up and in calm weather these natural obstacles no longer posed a danger. A large number of pirate ships were sunk off the coast of Bermuda by English and Spanish squadrons. The corsairs were in deep despair and even wanted to leave this island forever. And in these most difficult times for them, the black frigate under the banner of the Jolly Roger single-handedly began to resist all the ships trying to attack the Pirate Settlement. Like a ghost, he emerged from the mist and crushed his enemies. This ship has always stood guard over the island of Bermuda, like a watchdog, it did not let any enemy near the island. The crew of this ship was numerous, characterized by incredible rage and bloodlust. At the head of the team was their captain and two lieutenants loyal to him. For this, the corsairs dubbed the black frigate the name "Cerberus" in honor of the three-headed dog with a snake's tail, and on the back of the head of snakes. Just like the mythical dog guarding the exit from the kingdom of the dead Hades, so this frigate stood guard over the pirate island.

Battleship "Shakespeare".
This battleship - flagship English squadron of the island "Jamaica". In the entire Caribbean Sea, and indeed beyond its borders, there is not a single ship that could compare with it in terms of firepower or speed. He was named "Shakespeare" after the English playwright William Shakespeare. Each of the battleship battles was a work of art, and "Shakespeare" was the author of these works. When you watch his fight, one of William's dramatic plays immediately comes to mind. Just as sad, but still great.

Schooner "Black Widow".
After death famous pirate in an unequal battle with Spanish battleships, his wife, being the daughter of a captain and firsthand familiar with maritime affairs - a desperate and brave woman, having sold her house and all property, buys a schooner, and having hired a team of brave men, goes to sea to take revenge on her husband's killers

Schooner "Alkonavtika".
This name was given to the ship for the wild addiction of its captain and crew to rum, wine, ale, well, by the way, to all liquid substances that have alcohol in them. It was impossible to see the personnel of this ship without drinking. Not a single corsair can remember when at least one member of the crew of the Alkonavtika ship was sober, or at least hungover. Even the ships of England or Spain do not attack them when they meet them on the high seas. For the friendly attitude of these pirates to others, they became welcome guests on all the islands that pirates were allowed to swim on.

Brig "Horizon".
Being philosopher, the captain of this ship often liked to meditate on board his ship, looking at the sea stretching across the horizon. He said that at the most inopportune moment, a ship belonging to any nation could appear on the horizon. Whether he was friendly or hostile to the captain was not known. And this circumstance did not depend on anyone except God alone. For the mystery and unpredictability that the horizon combined, it was decided to call this brig "Horizon" by that name.

Frigate "Zodiac"

No one knows where he came from and where he was built, since his mizzen wore slanting sails, which made him even faster. Attacking exclusively at night and even in a storm, he did not leave anyone a single chance for salvation. Rumor has it that after his appearance, Morgan himself began to feel uncomfortable in the archipelago.

Corvette "Angels tears"

Got my name after a tragic story happened to one corsair
For a long time, one fearless, daring and noble corsair on his corvette "Sword of the Apocalypse" terrified the entire Spanish coast of the New World. From Belize to Kumana, in every city, in the squares and in the taverns, there were signs with the promised reward on his head. But they could not catch this "El Diablo" in any way. And yet somehow he fell into a trap arranged for him. Having withstood a terrible battle with superior forces and miraculously remained afloat, the Sword of the Apocalypse, almost completely broken, with the remnants of the team, headed to its lagoon to lick its wounds, but a fierce storm broke out along the way. With the last of their strength, struggling with the elements, the already wounded team did everything possible to save their beloved ship. Realizing that all efforts were in vain, the captain ordered: - Everyone in the boats! Leave the ship! - The team rushed to fulfill the order, and soon the boat with the surviving sailors began to move away from the sinking corvette. And only after moving a certain distance, the sailors suddenly noticed that the captain was not with them. And the captain, standing on the bridge, looked at the sea and, together with the ship, plunged into the water. Soon the sea completely swallowed the ship.
- A real captain never leaves his ship - said the boatswain. - But we must survive.
They managed to get to the land and for a long time in the taverns the surviving sailors retold this story and swore that when the last klotik disappeared through the water, they saw an angel in the sky.

Longboat "Daring and Beautiful". The captain of this ship considers himself the most daring pirate of the Caribbean, and his longboat - the most beautiful ship of all times and peoples. I thought ... Until one day I ran into the open sea with the Golden Fleet of Spain. The pirate was daring. The boat was beautiful.

Manowar "Leviathan". This masterpiece was built by the British at the shipyard of the city of Portsmouth. The best shipbuilders of the state participated in its creation. A huge amount of money has been invested. The construction of the ship was very difficult and slow. And the result ... fully justified itself. And Leviathan was born. A vessel of unprecedented power and beauty. Manowar was sent to the Caribbean to reinforce the British naval forces. And soon became the strongest ship in these waters. It's not even a ship, it's a force of nature that degrades a person. Sea monster. Leviathan.

Corvette "Shaving Water". This ship belongs to one of the most dangerous pirates in the Caribbean. A man called Raven. No one knows the true history of this ship, except for the captain himself. It is known that the Shaving Water is the fastest ship in the Caribbean. Not one ship can match it in speed. When people see how a corvette plows the sea, it seems that the ship is shaving the water. Like a sharp razor it cuts through the waves.

Frigate "Beloved". The captain of this ship, Nicholas, was a privateer in the service of France. He honestly and devotedly served his power, carrying out the most difficult assignments of the governor of island N. At one of the audiences with the governor, he met his daughter, charming Jacqueline. Soon the girl was kidnapped. But Nakolas found and snatched Jacqueline from the clutches of scoundrels. Nicholas and Jacqueline fell in love and wanted to get married. But Jacqueline's strict father forbade the wedding until Nicholas became rich and famous. Nicholas accepted these terms. And thanks to his determination and courage, he soon received the title of baron and the rank of admiral of the French fleet. And the governor had no choice but to marry his only daughter to a privateer. And there was a wedding. No one in the Caribbean has ever seen or heard such a wedding. Even the famous Versailles faded. And in honor of this event, the governor gave his son-in-law a magnificent frigate. Without thinking twice, Nicholas named it "Beloved" in honor of his beloved wife.

Caravel "Circle of Life". Lions are predators. They eat antelope. Antelopes are herbivores, they eat grass. The lions die and grass grows in that place. The antelope eats this grass. And this means that all life is closed in a circle. Circle of life. Back in the 17th century, this was noticed by a scientist and researcher who studied the nature of South Africa. And on the same day, he named his caravel "Circle of Life".

"Pandora" Possessing the divine flame stolen by Prometheus, people ceased to obey the celestials, learned different sciences, and got out of their miserable state. A little more - and they would have won complete happiness ...
Then Zeus decided to send punishment on them. The blacksmith god Hephaestus fashioned the beautiful woman Pandora from earth and water. The rest of the gods gave her: some - cunning, some - courage, some - extraordinary beauty. Then, handing her a mysterious box, Zeus sent her to earth, forbidding her to remove the lid from the box. Curious Pandora, barely having come into the world, slightly opened the lid. Immediately all human disasters flew out of there and scattered throughout the universe.

So the appearance of my "Pandora" on the horizon promised only grief and disaster to careless merchants

Corvette "Black Scorpio" (Black Scorpion)
Powerful and swift, he appears from nowhere and disappears into nowhere, like a scorpion, he hunts down his victims and attacks like a ghost, leaving them no chance. When they realize what is happening, it is already too late - their fate is sealed...
This ship and its captain appeared in the Caribbean to take revenge... To take revenge on a beautiful girl whose life ended so quickly, cut off in the dungeons of the Holy Inquisition. The unquenchable thirst for revenge enveloped the soul of the young captain so much and enslaved his mind that he stopped seeing the world in any other colors than black and killed ... He killed without looking back, and indiscriminately, killed in order to kill. His ship, a magnificent corvette - swift as a panther, powerful as a lion and dangerous as a scorpion... Black Scorpion...

Schooner" Weightlessness"
At that time, weightlessness was not known, ships did not fly into space, but there were magnificent sailboats, an endless ocean and endless love, the fire of which swelled even more under the fresh sea breeze. Two people, two halves of one heart were now in the same captain's cabin, and their ship, as if on wings, as if weightless, rushed into the sea, towards infinity ...

Frigate " dead water"
A terrible pirate ship that seems to have gathered on board the most notorious thugs from all over the Caribbean archipelago. The captain of the ship, devoid of any compassion, and his heart must have long ago turned into a hard, cold as marble, stone. At the sight of this ship on the horizon, sailors preferred to jump into the sea before meeting it face to face.
After themselves, these pirates do not leave a single living soul, and dump all the bodies into the sea... The water in these places will remain dead for a long time...

Manowar "Judas"
It was a huge manowar, which was part of the Spanish punitive expedition in the New World. He brought many troubles to the enemies Spanish crown. This powerful ship has become a terrible weapon in the hands of the Holy Inquisition.
But once, sailing away to carry out another assignment to Bermuda, "Judas" never returned ... What happened to him, no one knows to this day ...

Frigate " transcendentis" ("Overflowing") lat.

The ship lived up to its name, instilling confidence in its crew and terror in the opposing team.

Corvette" Grin"- a huge wolf's head with a terrible grin was made on the bow of the ship.
Only her appearance terrified cowardly merchants and made even experienced warriors tremble.
In combination with excellent performance and a team shifted to the full head, led by the captain, for a long time sowed terror throughout the archipelago.

Frigate " black revenge", the horror of all sailors, huge guns and a bunch of skeleton pirates who survived their lives. Both lugger and battleship fear him. He takes a speed of 19 knots in seconds, 2 hundred guns of 48 caliber, well, how not to be afraid of him? .. "

Pirates, by the very nature of their occupation, needed maneuverable, fast, and well-armed ships. And, of course, they didn't bother building them - why? After all, it is easier to capture a ship, evaluating its seaworthiness in advance. Pirates needed speed in order to catch up with the fleeing prey, and in order to carry their own legs if they ran into military frigates. Having seized merchant ships, pirates usually “tuned” them: they removed deck superstructures, bulkheads in the hold, made them lower, sawed off one of the masts, and sawed out additional ports for guns in the sides.
The most legendary pirate ships were even faster than ordinary ships. For example, Charles Vane, hunting in the Bahamas, moving away from sea patrols in 1718, advanced two of his feet for every foot.

1. "Queen Anne's Revenge"

That's what I named mine famous ship no less famous corsair Edward Teach. It was on this ship that he reached the peak of his filibuster career. Until 1717, this ship was a French merchant ship "Concorde" with 14 guns and a displacement of about 200 tons. Why Teach gave the ship such a strange name remains unknown. There are different versions, one of which says that it was his nostalgia for the past, when Teach was in military service during the reign of this queen.
Having captured the Concorde, Teach showed unexpected nobility - he transferred his captain to his old sloop, added his slaves to him, with whom he managed to swim to Martinique. The name change was only a small part of the metamorphoses that then occurred with the former merchant ship. Teach or "Blackbeard", as he was called, brought the number of guns on the sides of the ship to 40. A small team of pirates then panicked merchant ships, this is not surprising, because now their ship was second in firepower after the ship of Bartholomew Roberts .

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2. "Royal luck"

This ship, with a much more understandable name, belonged to the famous Welsh pirate John Roberts, better known as Bartholomew Roberts. He worked not only in the Caribbean, but also in the Atlantic, managing to capture over 400 ships. His behavior was extravagant. Engaged in piracy for many years, Roberts changed several ships. In 1719 he was chosen captain of the "Royal Tramp", which had 30 guns in service. Leaving on a captured sloop in pursuit of a brigantine, he met with the betrayal of his own assistant Walter Kennedy and the crew, who had deserted. Then Roberts named his 10-gun sloop “Luck”, and forced his sailors to swear allegiance on the Bible.
In 1721, he captured a 42-gun French ship, which he called "King's Fortune". Such a ship was considered impregnable, and mastering it was a glorious victory, especially since the governor of the island of Martinique was on board. The gallows awaited the latter because he had previously hanged many pirates from Roberts' entourage. Driving such a warship, it seemed that it was no longer possible to be afraid of other warships. But the very next year, as a result of a battle with the English warship Swallow, Roberts was killed.

3. Ouida

The famous flagship "Ouida" was in the hands of filibuster Black Sam Bellam. Historians claim that the name of the ship appeared in honor of the city of Ouida, located on the territory of modern Benin - in those days it was the center of the slave trade. This ship was launched into the water in 1715 in the port of London. The ship was intended to transport slaves from Africa. From London, he followed to Africa, in order to sail further to North America. The vessel was lowered from the stocks in the rank of the fastest vessel capable of reaching a speed of 13 knots. This was necessary to reduce the time of transportation of slaves, who died in the holds like flies.

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4. "Adventure"

Scottish privateer William Kidd's favorite ship was the Adventure. "Adventure" was both a frigate equipped with straight sails and a galley, since it also had oars. The latter made the ship especially maneuverable, both in wind and in calm weather. He had 34 guns on the sides and a displacement of 287 tons. The ship's crew consisted of 160 people. The main objective of the "Adventure" was just the destruction of other pirate ships. Kidd himself was accused of piracy and other crimes, but to this day this case remains unfinished.

5. "Fantasy"

The ship "Fantasy" was commanded by Henry Avery, who had several nicknames - "Lanky Ben", "Archipirate" and was one of the luckiest gentlemen of fortune. The Fantasia was originally a 30-gun frigate, the Charles II, whose crew took pleasure in robbing French merchant ships. When a riot broke out on it (usually a matter for pirates), the first assistant to Captain Avery seized power there. He began by renaming the ship (which is also typical), after which he gloriously rioted on it, and only death separated them.

6. "Happy Delivery"

On this small but glorious vessel, the English pirate George Lauter ironed the expanses of the Atlantic and the Caribbean in the 18th century. His favorite technique was to ram the pursued vessel and then board with lightning speed. "Delivery" was very suitable for such tactics.

7. "Rising Sun"

This ship from beautiful name belonged to one of the most ruthless thugs - Christopher Moody, who did not take anyone prisoner on principle, preferring to quickly send the captives to the next world. Therefore, having seen the 35-gun frigate "Rising Sun" on the horizon, most of the ships sought to slip away beyond the horizon line as quickly as possible. And it could be distinguished by a bright and recognizable flag. This continued until Moody was caught and hanged.

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8. Talkative

During the golden age of piracy, there was a Creole pirate, John Bowen, who sailed on a large 50-gun ship, the Talkative, which had a displacement of 450 tons. Initially, the ship transported slaves, but when Bowen got it, it began to boldly hunt Mauritanian ships.

9. "Retribution"

This 10-gun sloop was sailed by Steed Bonnet, who was called the "gentleman of the pirates" because this Englishman was of noble birth. The life of the ship, though short, was eventful: at first it was owned by a small landowner, then the Blackbeard pirate, who was amnestied, but the ship returned to piracy. The Retribution was a small and agile craft that managed to sink larger ships.

10. Golden Doe

This small galleon belonged to the famous Francis Drake, who, following Magellan's Victoria, managed to sail around the globe. The ship was built in the English Aldenburg and was called the Pelican. It was a galleon - a new type of ships that replaced caravels and caracci in the 16th century. Its body was decorated with the image of a pelican, as well as red and yellow diamonds. When the ship changed its name, the pelican on the hull was replaced by a deer, moreover, under the bowsprit, a deer figure cast from looted and therefore cheap gold was fixed.

Sushi paddles! Now I will tell you about something without which no sailor would become a sailor, about that without which the sea wolves would be ordinary land ragamuffins. I'll tell you about pirate ships!

The pirate ship performed several functions at once. It was a barracks for the crew, as well as a warehouse for trophies. Since the number of pirate crews usually outnumbered those of ordinary ships, there was often not enough space on the ships. The pirate ship was a warship, so it had to carry powerful cannon armament. In addition, the pirates not only attacked, but they often had to get away from the chase, so the ship had to have increased speed. In order for a pirate ship to meet all the requirements for it, the pirates had to rebuild the ordinary merchant or warships they captured. Strictly speaking, in maritime terminology, the word "ship" means a three-masted vessel with complete set direct sailing rig. Such "ships" were very rare among pirates.

American colonial schooner of the 18th century.
The sloop from the schooner was smaller
and having only one mast. Both types were
popular among pirates for their speed and shallow draft.

Pirates received their ships as a result of capture at sea or a mutiny of the crew. If a ship captured in this way turned out to be completely unsuitable for piracy, it was abandoned as soon as something more suitable could be obtained. Pirates were also often former privateers. Privateer ships were originally adapted for piracy. After the expiration of the contract, privateers who did not want to stop their fishing turned into pirates. Some pirates sailed on the same ship for their entire career (usually short), others changed ship several times. So, Bartholomew Roberts changed the ship six times, each time giving the new ship the name Royal Fortune. The pirates either sank the captured ships, or sold them, or used them themselves.

Privateering, which flourished during the years of the War of the Spanish Succession (1700-1714), led to the fact that many ships were built, originally intended for privateering. English privateers after the end of the war, almost without exception engaged in privateering. Privateering was legal piracy. Privateer ships in equally suitable for piracy, without requiring any alteration. The same privateers who managed to overcome the temptation to become pirates entered the service of the local authorities and engaged in the fight against pirates.
Pirates preferred small but fast ships like sloops, brigandines or schooners. Caribbean sloops were perfect for the role of a pirate ship. Some pirate crews preferred to use larger and more spacious ships. Small ships, in addition to speed, had an advantage over large ones in draft. This allowed them to operate in shallow water, where large ships did not dare to swim. Smaller ships were easier to repair and clean the hulls to maintain speed. To clean the bottom of the ship, they pulled it ashore and peeled off the algae and shells that had grown during the voyage.

During the alteration, extra bulkheads between the decks of the ship were usually removed. This made it possible to free up space on the gun deck. Usually the forecastle was cut off and the quarterdeck lowered so that the upper deck ran from bow to stern. Thanks to this measure, an open combat platform was created. Additional ports for guns were made in the sides, and the load-bearing elements of the hull were strengthened to compensate for the increase in load. Swivel guns were mounted on the gunwale.

The Royal James and the Henry battle off the Cape Fire River, North Carolina, September 27, 1718. Knowing of the close presence of Steed Bonnet,
the governor of the colony of South Carolina sent Colonel William Rhett
to hunt for a pirate. The chase ended in a battle, which resulted in
Bonnet capitulated, was captured and later hanged.

Types of pirate ships

Sloops

V early XVIII For centuries, a sloop meant various ships built in the Caribbean. Sloops were usually small single-masted ships carrying disproportionately powerful sailing weapons. This made them fast and maneuverable, which, combined with their shallow draft, made them the perfect pirate ship. Usually the sloops were equipped with a slanting main sail and a jib on the bow. Sloops could also be called two- and three-masted ships with similar sailing weapons.

Bartholomew Roberts on the West Arfican coast.
Behind him is a fleet of slave ships he captured.
The Royal Fortune and the Great Rinder are also standing there - ships
Roberts. Images of two flags are clearly visible.

Schooners

During the 18th century, schooners became an increasingly common type of ship. Usually schooners are defined as two-masted ships with slanting sails on both masts. The narrow hull and large sail area made them fast, the usual speed of a schooner with a fair wind exceeded 11 knots. The draft of the schooner was also small, which allowed them to swim freely among the shallows and close to the shore. With a displacement of up to 100 tons, the pirate schooner carried 8 guns and a crew of about 75 people. The disadvantage of the schooner was the insufficient cruising range. It was often necessary to call at ports to replenish supplies of water and food. However, with sufficient knowledge and skill, the pirates took everything they needed from the sea.

brigandines

Another type of ship often found off the American coast was the brigandine. The brigandine is a two-masted ship, on the foremast it carries direct sails, and on the mainmast it carries an oblique lower sail and direct topsails. Such sailing equipment allows the brigandine to effectively go both jibe and badewind. The length of the brigandine is about 24 m, the displacement is about 150 tons, the crew is 100 people, and the armament is 12 guns.

A variant of the brigandine was the brig, but this type of ship was quite rare in American waters. The brig carried straight sails on both masts, although slanting sails were sometimes placed between the masts. Sometimes a slanting gaff sail was placed on the main mast. In this form, the ship was called shnyavay. The Royal Navy used shnaves as patrol ships in Caribbean waters.

Three-masted ships (direct sailing)

Three-masted ships with direct sailing weapons could be considered ships in the full sense of the word. Although three-masted ships were slower pirate schooners and sloops, they still had a number of undeniable advantages. First of all, they were distinguished by better seaworthiness, carried heavier weapons and could accommodate a large crew. Many pirates, including Bartholomew Robert and Charles Vane, favored three-masted ships.

Three-masted merchant ships were actively used in that period. Queen's N Revenge by Edward Teach was a converted slave ship, adapted to carry 40 guns. Usually a merchant ship with a displacement of 300 tons carried more than 16 guns. Three-masted warships subdivided into several ranks. A ship of the 6th rank carried from 12 to 24 guns. A ship of the 5th rank already carried up to 40 guns. This weaponry was usually more than enough to defeat any pirate in an artillery fight. The only exceptions were Roberts' Royal Fortune and Teach's Queen En Revenge, as well as several other pirate ships that carried comparable weapons.

Pirate ships at sea