These well-armed vessels relied on sails while being also accommodated with secondary oars (or sweeps) until the latter mechanism was totally relegated by the 1560s. 2014. The Spanish Governor of the Mariana Islands and the Saga of the Palacio. To that end, one hypothesis put forth in the academic circles relates to how the galleon was based on the design of caravels, possibly because of its ‘sleeker’ form-factor. To that end, it should be noted that the Spanish Armada consisted of different kinds of vessels and warships, ranging from the naos, galleasses to smaller crafts. If you want to sail in a galleon, the max crew is four players. And this space was rather reduced for the rank-and-file mariner, especially with the captain and his officers occupying the relatively ‘comfortable’ quarters of the upper deck. “Where the Galleons Rest.” Edited by Sonia P. Ner. She served as a hospital ship after 1791, and was finally broken up in 1813. Also, because finding skilled Spanish seamen became a problem, some of the ships officers were foreigners. So after the delivery of the galleon, it was the responsibility of the crown to outfit the vessel with various components and armaments, ranging from navigational instruments, ordinance, ship boats to even the decoration of the craft (usually comprising religiously-inspired figures). Look at the cannons on one side of every ship, slop has 1, brig has 2, galleon has 4. One such case was the Frenchman, Antoine Limarie Boucourt who was the pilot on the Santissima Trinidad in 1755. The adoption of such tactics translated to ships being used as floating artillery platforms, thereby resulting in the design of heavier vessels with more number of guns – better known as the ‘ship of the line’. On the westward voyage, a Maestre de Plata or Master of the Silver was in sole custody of the chests of silver containing two or three million pesos destined for the shippers in Manila. Quite intriguingly, even the English designed their own version of a galleon (or a vessel that was somewhat visually akin to a galleon) in 1545 AD known as the gallyon, but the craft was smaller in size with sweeps. During the time of King Philip II’s reign (1556-98), the Spanish galleon increased in size and capacity. Their disposition is most humble in the presence of a Spaniard, and they show him great respect; but they can teach many of the Spanish mariners who sail these seas.”, “The little I understand about them makes me think that these are people most suited for the sea; and if the ships are manned with crews one third Spaniards and the other two-thirds Indians, the best mariners of these islands can be obtained, and many of them can be employed in our warships. Moreover, proper rationing onboard was a common practice in galleons, with most sailors given their daily share of the ship biscuit made of wheat, menestra – a hearty stew of chickpeas, rice, lentils, and broad beans, and rough red wine. According to historian Angus Konstam, the early 16th century was a period of innovation for ship designs, with the adoption of better sailing rigs and onboard artillery systems. Gunners were expert sailors that had mastered the use of the cannon. Mangilao, GU: Micronesian Area Research Center, University of Guam. War Galleon The War Galleon is the first remarkable one of the family, with a good size crew capacity and good firepower. By 1520s, a solution was hatched in the form of the averia – a special tax levied on goods traded across the Atlantic, and the money, in turn, was used to fund the crafting of warships that were to escort the merchant vessels. Those with family ties to a high-ranking officer or who were able to forge a friendship with a crew member had the best protection. And while during the early half of the 16th century, such escorting duties were carried out by naos, the further increase in averia (due to risks of foreign attack on the flotas), along with the advent of more evolved shipbuilding techniques, allowed the galleons to take center stage in such Spanish flotas. The Galleon is a sailable ship in Sea of Thieves. Essentially, this translated to a Spanish crown’s near monopoly on the transatlantic trade route that not only covered coins and ingots of silver and gold but also a wealth of other valuable items like emeralds and pearls. Clumsy and slow, but seaworthy, this ship above all others fired a pirate’s imagination. The predicament was even exacerbated by the rats polluting the clean food and water sources and even damaging the sails. In that regard, while earlier galleons and other warships were the products of ill-conceived ‘agreements’ that forced shipbuilders to work within the confines of royal shipyards, by the early 17th century, the crown offered incentives to private contractors and financiers to build their warships from the ground up. Such escorting galleons, called the Armada de la Guardia, were part of the Armada del Mar Oceano (Atlantic Fleet) from the 1580s, and the latter organization ultimately morphed into a permanent navy in the 17th century. It should also be noted that the Spanish may have used the term galleon (or galeón) for most types of warships in their navy, while the Portuguese possibly used it to denote a particular type of warship. And in mainland Spain, Bilbao and its surrounding regions became the most important center for shipbuilding, not only because of access to good-quality timber but also because the nearby Basque area iron-industries furnished the artillery needed for the galleons. For example, two galleons, the Santisima Trinidad (in 1754 and 1755) and the Nuestra Señora del Rosario(1749) had crews of over 384, as presented in the table which you can access by clicking the link below. The surgeon was charged with the physical health of the crew while the chaplain was concerned with their spiritual heath. But such ratios were only devised for the mariners (or crew members) of the vessel. One of the team members remembers hearing about some formula that looked at the ratio of cycle time to takt time to come up with the, so-called, optimal crew size. The Galleon was the ship of the line for its day. Viking style: The wiki article is pretty good and has an excellent list of external links for the layman. Simply put, most of the ships, including the galleon varieties, were undermanned during their cargo-carrying voyages across the Atlantic. So without further ado, let us take a gander at ten things you should know about the history and evolution of the galleon – the exemplary warship of the 16th-17th century. Intelligent and skilled sailors could advance to the position of gunner or sea officer and in some cases, if they had the means and wherewithal to stop work and attend classes in Seville, they could eventually advance to the position of pilot. 1 Captain 2. Dutton & Co., Inc. Searles, USN Commander P.J. He was the administrator of the ship and had to certify to the owners of the ship, owners of the cargo and the government officials that all contracts and laws were followed and taxes paid. Added to the crew number were the other men on board, including the soldiers (who were often carried in ratios of one soldier per four toneladas in the 1630s), officers, and assorted passengers. Vol II. These individuals conceivably could have engaged with the CHamoru people in interactions of trade and cultural exchange under various circumstances. The captain was the supreme commander in this case. 2007. Added to this revolting scope was the danger of other vermin, including cockroaches, fleas, and lice. Ideal crew numbers were probably not often reached but ships had always started the journey with over the minimum number of crew needed in order to account for the loss they will sustain on the journey. He was responsible for not only obtaining the cargo, but the crew, ship’s equipment, arms and provisions. Consequently, the last galleons of the Spanish navy were decommissioned by the late 17th century. These multi-decked ships, with their three masts and fore-and-aft rig, were designed as warships with both cargo and troop-carrying capacity. Suffice it to say, such cramped conditions spelled complications when it came to the sanitation of the galleon. In the Mediterranean, oared galleys were common as fighting ships, and by the early 16thcentury these carried cannons at the front. “The arrival of the Spanish galleons in Manila from the Pacific Ocean and their departure along the Kuroshio stream (16th and 17th centuries),” in Journal of Geographical Research. The master was in charge of the financial and administrative aspects of the voyage. Incredibly enough, the guns, along with the powder and shot, were mostly manufactured by royal foundries and workshops (while in some cases, guns were also imported from abroad) – and as such, the Spanish relied on an ‘economical’ system where guns were specifically furnished for the galleon-type with allocated ammunition that had to be returned to the royal authorities if left unused. McCarthy, William J. The General was the supreme commander of the fleet. Average speed is 7 knots. Because the deportees, prisoners and undesirables could come from South and Central America, Europe and Asia, the makeup of the crew was very diverse. Izquierdo was sentenced to serve on the Royal Manila Galleons for a period of ten years. Baltimore: The John Hopkins University Press. Max Angular Acceleration: 0.389910 Crew Size: 36 (incorrectly says 37 in game) 1. In Sid Meier's Pirates! Menéndez's San Pelayo of 1565 was a 900-ton galleon which was also called a nau and galeaza. The very scope of shipbuilding in Europe witnessed a shift in paradigm after the 1580s. They had to know how to make gunpowder, fill grenades, select the type of projectiles to use against an enemy ship, maneuver, load and fire the cannon, maintain it and keep it steady aboard the moving ship. Blair, Emma Helen and James Alexander (eds.). Such alterations rather reflected on many of the naval battles and encounters till the late 1630s – with the Spanish galleons showcasing their mettle (often buoyed by resourceful commanders) in numerous engagements both in the Americas and European waters. Due to their smaller size, Sloops are easier to repair than the larger Galleons. Honolulu: University of Hawaii. Caribbean Tales - Ships - Galleon. The boatswain was responsible for ensuring the cargo was stowed well and maintained throughout the voyage, maintaining all mechanisms of the ship and ordering repairs. There is hardly an Indian who has sailed the seas who does not understand the mariner’s compass, and therefore on this [Acapulco] trade-route there are some very skilful and dexterous helmsmen.”. 2002. ... A typical crew would consist of around 200 men. Arena crews act very similar to open and closed crews. (2004), the Frigate is the name used to refer both to the specific Ship Type called "Frigate", and the entire family of ships known as Frigates.The "Frigate" is the Smallest member of its class, and is also the most common. Described as ‘steaming like hell and stinking like the devil’ by one Spanish passenger in 1573 AD, the sullied water and the residues even had the tendency to attract rats – one of the major health risks inside ships during the period. Crew. Harking back to our romanticized notions of the veritable Spanish Armada and the early transatlantic trade routes of the 16th century, the Galleon serves as the quintessential template of the Spanish naval might. 1 First Mate 3. Quezon City: In press. As for the guns themselves, according to Angus Konstam, there were several varieties, including the larger canones (cannon), culebrinas (culverins), pedreros (stone-shotted guns), bombardettas (wrought-iron guns), and versos (swivel guns). The reduction in their war-capability possibly also reflects how the Spaniards faced little to no opposition on their maritime trade routes, especially during the period between the 1590s till 1620s. Thus in the following decades, the galleon design and armaments went through numerous changes that rather propelled its status as a dedicated warship rather than an armed carrier. Few galleons sank from enemy attacks, though. The Galleon is a multi-decked vessel with a large hold. Less than a third of the crew was Spanish and they usually held key positions onboard the galleon. Francisco Leandro de Viana wrote in 1765 about the native seaman serving on the Manila galleons: “There is not an Indian in these islands who has not a remarkable inclination for the sea; nor is there at present in all the world a people more agile in maneuvers on shipboard, or who learn so quickly nautical terms and whatever a good mariner ought to know. These ships were also progressively used as escort vessels (in place of the ponderous naos) for the naval convoys that traveled between Spain and the Americas. So by the 1590s, till the mid-17th century, the galleons tended to be even more trimmed, with their capacities averaging around 500 toneladas. To that end, records of the Spanish navy from the early 17th century show that each galleon had an average of 90 to 100 crew members, excluding the soldiers. ... Of course, this is much easier when you have the numbers of a galleon crew and you swarm a solo player on a sloop. The steward was in charge of the food stores and for dispensing rations to the crew. One such case was Fernando Antonio Izquierdo, who in 1754 was found guilty of murdering Cayetano Méxica, a Mexican surgeon serving in Anigua, Guam. But in the majority of cases, he writes, “this charge was more or less honorific, and the onboard activity of the captain consisted in nothing more that directing the defense of the ship in case of enemy attack.” He says that the general of the fleet could honor a distinguished gentleman by naming him as captain. The so-called “captain” would travel as a passenger with no specific duties. Galleon is the largest of the buildable Ships in ATLAS. For example, while the earlier galleons had capacities for 120 toneladas (Spanish tons), the post-1560 galleons tended to cross thresholds of 330 toneladas. Consequently, the galleons were breeding grounds for various diseases, including yellow fever (and its high mortality rate) exported from the Caribbean. 1732. Typically 130 feet (40 meters) along the keel and 30 feet (9.1 meters) across the beam, galleons had three full masts and three decks that could hold a maximum of 800 crew and passengers. Suffice it to say, the canones and culebrinas (subdivided into various weights and sizes) were the mainstays of the Spanish galleon; and the capacity of the vessel itself often mirrored the number of guns on board. Every afternoon the pages recited the tenets and principal prayers of the Christian faith. Most were entered into service at the age of eight, although boys as young as seven were known to be pressed into service. Phillips, Carla Rahn (transl.). Featured Image Source: Painting by Roland Davies (1stDibs), Book Reference: Spanish Galleon 1530-1690 (By Angus Konstam), Online Sources: The Mariner’s Museum / Pirate Glossary / Encyclopedia.com. How many sails does the ship have? By circa 1560 AD, Spain alone accounted for 99 tons of gold shipped from the New World. Upon their return and the completion of their expedition they were unemployed. This unstable employment led many to seek outside sources of income. He needed to ensure that all the material and human resources required to reach its destination were obtained and that the passengers and cargo were delivered in good condition. A Voyage round the World containing the most remarkable things he saw in the Philippine Islands. Unfortunately, in spite of the many modifications (both structural and organizational) made on the Spanish galleon, naval warfare in the decades of the mid 17th century changed significantly in terms of formations and maneuvers. By the late 1700’s indios from the Philippine islands were valued for their seamanship. Home » Blog Posts » Military » Spanish Galleon: 10 Things You Should Know. She carried 77 crewmen, 18 gunners, transported 317 soldiers and 26 families, as well as provisions and cargo. Based on the details available it seems like a pretty strong chance that the new ship type will be a 2-3 man Crew size ship with two masts/sails that rests between the Sloop and Galleon in the spectrum of things. A good carpenter had to know how to cap a breach in the hull, make a pulley, a cabin or a launch. It possesses three masts and is currently the largest ship in the game. Minimum Cost: 130 VP Mass: 60,000 Max Thrust: 30,000 Max Speed: 15 km/h 1. The officer in charge of the artillery was a sergeant. Well, by taking 300 seconds (cycle time to produce one part) over 50 seconds (takt time) … The guns were also supported by larger four-wheeled carriages instead of the feeble two-wheel ones. By Chris Caswell. Thus in the initial phases of galleon development during the 16th century, the onboard artillery only took a secondary role, while boarding actions were still given preference by the Spanish commanders. According to Pablo E. Perez-Mallaina in Spain’s Men of the Sea, the captain’s sole duty was to defend the ship from enemy attack. As the time passed, more and more robust clipper ships were made with iron keels and strong inner frame work. In this case, the page was exclusively at the service of his protector, unlike “ship’s pages” that were at the service of the entire crew. The largest were up to 1200 tons, but they were clumsy and slow They trade power and durability for maneuverability and simplicity. If we go by the aforementioned ratio-based formula, the very same vessel would have additionally carried around 120-125 soldiers onboard. Virtually all types of galleys had sails that could be used in favorable winds, but human effort was always the primary method of propulsion. MGTR Personnel However, it can hold 10 more cargo than a frigate, which will likely be needed for food to make up for the speed while traveling. The majority would have died from starvation, disease and scurvy. He was also in charge of directing the crew during maneuvers on board the ship. A good sailor was one that could thread a cable through an anchor ring or deploy a sail in storm conditions. 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