Everything about Caravels totally explained
A
caravel is a small, highly maneuverable, two- or three-
masted ship used by the
Portuguese and
Spanish for long voyages of exploration from the 15th century. Its origins date back to the
qarib used by muslim
Andalusian explorers in the 13th century.
Although the
carrack (or
Nau) represented the state of the art in later medieval shipbuilding, there were purposes for which it wasn't appropriate. Initially carracks were used for exploration by the Portuguese venturing out along the west African coast and into the Atlantic Ocean. But large, full-rigged ships couldn't always be sailed with the precision necessary for inshore surveying in unknown waters. The explorers soon came to prefer the
Barge (Barca) or the
Balinger (Barinel) of around 50 to 200
tons, or the light two or three-masted Mediterranean
lateen-
rigged vessels known as caravels.
Because of its smaller size, the caravel as shown, was able to explore upriver in shallow coastal waters. With the lateen sails affixed, it was able to go speedily over shallow water and take deep wind, while with the square Atlantic-type sails attached, the caravel was very fast. Its economy, speed, agility, and power made the caravel esteemed as the best sailing vessel of its time. It generally carried two or three masts with lateen sails, while later types had four masts. Although widely used for exploration and discovery it had to be later replaced by the more capacious
Nao more profitable for trading purposes.
Early caravels were usually two-masted boats of around 50 tons with an overall length of between 20–30
m and a high length-to-beam ratio of around 3.5:1 and narrow ellipsoidal (not circular as in the
Nao) frames making them very fast and maneuverable but with somewhat low capacity. Towards the end of the 15th century the caravel was occasionally modified by giving it the same rig as a carrack with a
foresail, square
mainsail and lateen
mizzen, but, unlike the unweatherly carrack, the caravel didn't have a high
forecastle or much of a
sterncastle. In this form it was sometimes known as
caravela redonda (a bulging square sail is said to be
round or
redonda in the Iberian tradition) and it was in such ships that
Christopher Columbus set out on his famous expedition in 1492;
Santa Maria was a small
carrack which served as the flagship, and
Pinta and
Niña were caravels of around 20 m with a beam of 7 m.
In the first half of the 19th century, a specialized fighting ship with that same name
caravela redonda was created by the Portuguese to act as an escort in Brazil and in the East Indies route. It had a foremast with square sails and three other masts with a lateen each to a total of 4 masts. The hull was galleon-shaped (some experts consider this vessel a forerunner of the fighting galleon). The
Portuguese Man o' War was named after this curious fighting ship type which was in use until the 18th century.
Further Information
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