I may chat about my books, what I'm writing or reading, or just general thoughts. You may read posts about my cats or just my crazy life in general. Comments are welcome, if anyone wants to interact with me. Maybe we can share war stories, whether it's writing related or just about life in general.

Tuesday, April 28, 2015

Xebec




Here’s a bit of old history.  The xebec is a Mediterranean sailing ship common from the sixteenth to the nineteenth centuries.

These ships were small and fast, thus ideal for use in warfare or by pirates.  They were useful in raids. 

The Spanish and French Navy used these vessels in the 1700’s.  The early boats had two masts and the later ones three.  In wartime, the ship could hold up to 400 men and 16-40 guns depending on its size.  In peacetime, this ship could transport merchandise.

Drawing of xebec

Xebecs were equipped with a lateen rig (large triangular sail mounted at an angle to the mast).  This allowed the vessel to “tack against the wind” and gave it an advantage when maneuvering around other ships or making a fast getaway.  The bow and stern extended in length over the hull giving the boat a lot of area for sails.  The sails could also be lowered quickly for passage under bridges.

Because of the lateen rig on the xebec, they were most useful in the Mediterranean Sea.  Square sails served better when sailing in the Atlantic Ocean due to the wind.

The Portuguese also used these vessels for long distance exploration.

So there you have it.  I bet this is something you didn’t know about history.

22 comments:

  1. I never knew about xebec before. Thanks for sharing this neat little history lesson. :)

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    Replies
    1. Chrys,

      I never knew about this either and I have read about pirates.

      Thanks for reading and leaving a comment.

      Sunni

      Delete
  2. Can you imagine getting caught storm in that thing? Oh my!
    http://enchantedfantasies.blogspot.com/

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    Replies
    1. Thea,

      Pirates were a tough bunch, but I bet many of these sank in bad storms. It would be interesting if any of the treasure hunters were to ever find any of these ships.

      Thanks for reading.

      Sunni

      Delete
  3. That's a new word! I'm learning all kinds of new words that start with X today...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Steph,

      I bet you are. I'm just starting to read the X posts. You have to get creative with this letter of the alphabet.

      Thanks for reading and leaving a comment.

      Sunni

      Delete
  4. No, I didn't. But this was a great topic! X is a toughie!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Megan,

      Thanks for visiting and leaving a comment. X is a tough topic.

      Sunni

      Delete
  5. Another new word I learned today.

    I had to get creative on both my blogs for X :-)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Rasheed,

      I think we all had to get creative for X. It's probably the hardest letter besides Q. I'm visiting blogs and haven't been to yours yet, but I will shortly. I can't think of any TX towns starting with X.

      Thanks for reading.
      Sunni

      Delete
  6. That is very interesting, I learned something new. :)

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    Replies
    1. Pilch,

      I learned a lot of things on the A to Z, but I do every year because, as Rasheed mentioned above, we all have to get creative for some of the letters.

      Thanks for reading and leaving a comment.
      Sunni

      Delete
  7. Another new word I learned today.

    I had to get creative on both my blogs for X :-)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Rasheed,

      Glad you learned a new word. I'm learning a few myself.

      Thanks for leaving a comment.
      Sunni

      Delete
  8. LOL, I knew this word before I came to your blog, but not before someone else had written about it for the A/Z challenge that I had visited earlier. Otherwise, I had not heard of this word before. Looking at it, I want to think French, maybe beause it is so close to Quebec.

    betty

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Betty,

      You mean someone else wrote about this word today? Wow! I'm a bit surprised. I did a search of X words before I wrote this post. I guess someone else was doing the same search. Interesting.

      Thanks for reading and leaving a comment.

      Sunni

      Delete
  9. Nope, I didn't. That's what's so fun about X.

    Liz A. from Laws of Gravity

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    Replies
    1. Liz,

      Yeah, you can't say that the A to Z isn't entertaining and educational. :-)

      Thanks for reading and leaving a comment.

      Sunni

      Delete
  10. Here is an X word! I had no idea there was a ship that began with the letter X-interesting

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    Replies
    1. Birgit,

      I didn't either until I was researching words for X.

      Thanks for commenting.

      Sunni

      Delete
  11. Gosh with the ability to carry that many men and guns it doesn't seem like that small of a ship. I'd heard the word before but forgotten what it meant. My first thought was that it was a musical instrument, but I guess I was thinking of a "rebec".

    Good word with an interesting background.

    Arlee Bird
    A to Z Challenge Co-host
    Tossing It Out

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    Replies
    1. Lee,

      Thanks. I had to do some digging and research for the letter X. The challenge does make you grab the thinking cap and turn to Google or the encyclopedia/dictionary.

      Thanks for stopping by.

      Sunni

      Delete

Thank you for stopping by to read and
comment on my posts. I appreciate it.
Sunni