Sail
The Evolution of the Roman Imperial Fleets
 D. B. Saddington Introduction Like the ancient Israelis, who felt concern for those âwho went down to the sea in shipsâ (Ps 107.23), the Romans, especially by comparison with the Greeks, have often been regarded as reluctant seafarers. Before the Battle of Actium Plutarch (Ant. 64) has a centurion adjure Antony, as Shakespeare puts it, not to âfight by…
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NAVAL POWER â THE PELOPONNESIAN WAR Part II
The Rules of Naval Warfare â Peloponnesian War There were eight important rules under which the naval war would be conducted. First, there were two vital theaters of war: Ionia, meaning both the mainland coast and the islands, and the Hellespont. Ionia was important because so many Athenian subjects were…
THE KIEVAN RUS AND THEIRÂ WARSHIPS
From earliest times the life of the Slavs has been connected with water. Like most ancient peoples, the Slavs built settlements near rivers and lakes. Fishing provided an important food source and waterways became main transportation arteries. Even in a rough-hewn boat it was easier and safer to travel long…
Age of Exploration â Vessels
Portuguese Galleon The Frol De La Mar Among the technological advances of the Age of Exploration, one stands out from all the others in the literature of the subject, and everyone tends to agree: there occurred a remarkably fast innovation in ship design and construction that enabled Iberian mariners-and by…
Demologos
Fultonâs Demologos (1813 preliminary design). During the final months of the War of 1812 against Britain, the United States made the first use of a steamship in a military campaign and also laid down the worldâs first steam-powered warship. In January 1815 General Andrew Jackson used the Mississippi river steamer…
Fall Of Constantinople â Ottoman Superguns
Ottoman superguns It is not without some irony that bombards, all but abandoned as obsolete by most European powers by 1453, played a critical role that year in the fall of Constantinople, the last Christian stronghold in the East. For centuries the Byzantine capitalâs great walls and defenders had repulsed…
BATTLE OF SLUYSÂ 1340
âBattle of Sluys â 24 June, 1340. Naval battle between an English fleet, under King Edward lll and a French fleet under Hugues Quieret, Admiral of Franceâ â Medieval naval battle â ship to ship conflict was acted upon by boarding the enemy vessel and going into melee by Peter…