In that article we dedicated to the tragic end of the Dutch Prime Minister and his brother in 1672, we explained that the Treaty of Dover, signed between Charles II of England and Louis XIV of France, led to the so-called Third Anglo-Dutch War. In this conflict, the French army was halted by the floods […]
Ships
Posted inModern Era
The Battle of Lake Erie: The Naval Clash Between Americans and British That Prevented an Invasion From Canada
Dear General: We have met the enemy and they are ours. Two ships, two brigs, one schooner, and one sloop. This telegram might not resonate with most readers, but among enthusiasts of Anglo-American naval history, it holds a certain fame. On September 10, 1813, Admiral Oliver Hazard Perry sent this message to his superior, U.S. […]
Posted inIron Age Archaeology, Prehistory
The Hjortspring Boat: The Celts Who Attacked a Danish Island in 350 BCE and Ended as a Votive Offering
The Hjortspring Boat was discovered in 1921 in the Hjortspring Bog on the island of Als, southern Denmark. It is considered the oldest archaeological evidence of naval construction found in Scandinavia. Dating back to around 350 BCE, the boat measures over 19 meters (62 feet) in overall length and 2 meters (6.5 feet) in beam. […]
Posted inArchaeology
The Extraction of Mazarrón II, the Phoenician Ship That Lay Underwater Off the Coast in Southeastern Spain, Is Complete
Mazarrón II, a Phoenician shipwreck found off the coast of Murcia in southeastern Spain, represents a true treasure for maritime archaeology as the most complete ancient vessel discovered in the Mediterranean. This ship, whose structure is in an exceptional state of preservation, offers a unique window into the past, shedding light on the shipbuilding techniques […]
Posted inAge of Exploration
George Anson, the British seafarer who circumnavigated the world to capture the Spanish Acapulco Galleon
The War of Jenkins’ Ear pitted Britain against Spain from 1739 to 1748, leaving three particularly noteworthy episodes in its wake. One was the incident that sparked it, leading the British to name it that way while Spanish call it Guerra del Asiento. Another was Admiral Howard Vernon’s disastrous attempt to conquer Cartagena de Indias, […]
Posted inClassical Archaeology
How Roman Sailors Fed Themselves on the High Seas: A Study Reveals the Cooking Technology Aboard Empire Ships
A recent archaeological study reveals how sailors of the Roman Empire managed to feed themselves in the middle of the Mediterranean, facing long and dangerous voyages with ingenious onboard cooking techniques. In a fascinating investigation published in the Journal of Maritime Archaeology, maritime history expert Herman J. van Vliet uncovers the mysteries of how Roman […]
Posted inModern Era
Charles Joughin, the Titanic’s Baker Who Was the Last One to Leave the Ship and Said He Survived by Being Drunk
In James Cameron’s film Titanic, there’s a deleted scene where a crew member, played by Irish actor Liam Touhy, is seen, bottle in hand and half drunk, tossing deck chairs into the sea so that passengers without spots in the insufficient lifeboats could stay afloat while waiting for rescue. This actually happened; it was the […]
Posted inBronze Age Archaeology
The Lost Shipyards of the Nordic Bronze Age, an Enigma Hidden in Plain Sight
The Nordic Bronze Age, marked by its iconic imagery of ships carved into rocks and metal objects scattered throughout Scandinavia, has always left an unsolved enigma for archaeologists: where were these ships built? Despite the abundance of ship representations in the region’s archaeology, direct evidence of prehistoric shipyards has been extremely scarce. Now a new […]
Posted inGeography
By 2100, Ships Could Sail Year-Round Through the Northern Sea Route in the Arctic, Changing Geopolitics and Global Trade
A team of researchers led by Pengjun Zhao has presented a revealing report on the future of maritime trade in the Arctic, specifically along the Northern Sea Route. This study, published in the journal Communications Earth & Environment, explores how climate change could allow navigation along this route year-round by the year 2100. Currently, Arctic […]
Posted inClassical Archaeology
The minimum impact speed to break a ship with the ram of an ancient trireme is 1.3 knots
A recent study has shed light on the capabilities of ancient triremes, revealing that the minimum speed needed to break a single plank of an enemy ship with a ram is 1.3 to 3 knots. This finding highlights the technical sophistication and advanced understanding of naval engineering in antiquity. Triremes, famous for their efficient design […]
