Ships

Ships The Schooner The Schooner has a narrow hull, two masts and is less than 100 tons. She is generally rigged with two large sails suspended from spars reaching from the top of the mast toward the stern. Other sails sometimes were added, including a large headsail attached to the bowsprit. She had a shallow draft which allowed her to remain in shallow coves waiting for her prey. The Schooner is very fast and large enough to carry a plentiful crew. It was a favorite among both pirates and smugglers.



The Frigate

The Frigate is a type of warship only second in size to the Ship-of-the-Line. Frigates had a forecastle and a quarterdeck. Between 24 and 38 guns were on the deck. They were one of the faster ships that pirates used. Few pirates sailed on a frigate as a majority of them would flee from the frigate. These ships were used for escort purposes. Frigates were used in the late 17th and early 18th century. A frigate generally had a lofty ship rig.



The Galleon

Galleons were big ships for trasporting cargo. Spanish treasure fleets were on these ships. Although this ship was slow they weren't the easiest target to expect to have heavy cannon armory. This made this ship hard to attack. Galleons had two to three decks. Most galleons had 3 masts. There were seldom that had 4 masts. Galleons were used in the 15th and 16th century. Galleon's main batteries were in the broadsides of the ship.



The Sloop The sloop was a fast, agile ship. Sloops could weigh up to 100 tons. These ships were generally rigged with a large mainsail that was attached to a spar above. Sloops could sport additional sails both square and lateen-rigged. Sloops were mainly used in the Carribean and Atlantic Ocean. Sloops sometimes had more than 1 headsail. The Sloop mounted at least 20 guns on its deck Next Page