What culture or country created the first sailboat! Or boat!?

Question

Did mesopotamia?! I need to knwo A.S.A.P.!

Answer 1

The Celts had better ocean going vessels than the Romans but they were defeated by Admiral Brutus in 54 AD. There is considerable belief in ancient transoceanic voyages, (Dr. Barry Fell "America B.C." 1976), oddities like traces of cocaine from South America in Egyptian mummies, the pyramids and stone spheres in the jungles of Costa Rica matching those in the hills of Bosnia, and the Antikytheria device, the Minoan and Phoenician civilizations made excellent use of sails and there is some speculation that stone obelisks may have been moved and raised with help of sails.

Answer 2

I would bet it was in mesopotamia

Answer 3

The first "ship" was probably a log that was used to cross a lake or river. People probably used their hands as paddles. Later, people learned to build rafts by lashing logs together. In time, they discovered how to make dugouts and bark canoes. In regions where wood was scarce, early people made boats of other materials. For example, they sewed animal skins into a bag, which they then inflated and used as a float. Several floats tied together could support a raft. In some areas, the people found that little clay pots tied together could hold up a raft. They also learned that a large pot made a boat for one person.

In ancient Egypt and certain other regions, the people made their first rafts of bundles of reeds. In time, the Egyptians learned to lash bundles of reeds together to make boats that had a spoonlike shape. By about 4000 B.C., they had learned to build long, narrow boats powered by a row of oarsmen. During the next 1,000 years, the Egyptians made two more great advances in the development of ships. By about 3000 B.C., they had discovered that sails could harness the power of the wind and propel their boats. In addition, the Egyptians had learned to build boats out of planks of wood. After people knew how to make plank boats, they could even build ships-vessels that are big enough to cross the oceans.



The age of sailing ships

The basic pattern for ships became set with the invention of the sail and then of the vessel built of planks. For about the next 5,000 years, shipbuilders concentrated on designing bigger and bigger ships and on improving the rig-the sails with their masts and ropes. Shipbuilders of ancient times succeeded in building ever-larger ships, but they made little progress with the rig. Big improvements in the rig began during the 1400's and reached a high point with the development of the great sailing ships of the mid-1800's.

Egyptian ships.
The ancient Egyptians designed many kinds of vessels, including small, graceful canoes, beautiful yachts, and heavy freighters. Their most outstanding achievement was probably the huge barges that carried enormous stone pillars called obelisks from quarries up the Nile River. The biggest barges measured more than 200 feet (61 meters) long and carried 750 tons (680 metric tons) of cargo.

One sail and a line of oarsmen on each side propelled the yachts and other light Egyptian vessels. The heavier craft were driven by only a sail. The Egyptians used a rectangular sail, which is called a square sail. At first, they made the sail tall and narrow. But after 2000 B.C., they made it much wider than it was tall. The Egyptians steered their ships with large oars on each side near the stern.

The Egyptians built their vessels chiefly for use on the Nile. As a result, they made all their craft-even ships used on the sea-rather light. Today, boats of planks are built by first making a skeleton of keel (backbone) and ribs and then fastening the planks of the hull to the ribs. But the Egyptians built their river craft without a keel or ribs. They simply fitted the planks together by means of joints to form the hull. These vessels were sturdy enough to sail on the Nile, but they were too weak for the rougher Mediterranean Sea.

The Egyptian seagoing ships probably had some kind of keel and a few ribs. But the bow and stern of these ships tended to droop, especially in rough seas. So the Egyptians wound a heavy rope around the bow, stretched it tightly across the deck, and looped it around the stern. The rope strengthened the vessels and kept the bow and stern from sagging. The Egyptians sailed chiefly on the Red Sea and along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean.

Minoan and Mycenaean ships.
The Minoans, who lived on the island of Crete, became the first true seafaring people of the Mediterranean region. As early as 2500 B.C., their ships ranged the eastern Mediterranean and as far west as the island of Sicily. About 1450 B.C., the Mycenaeans, who lived on what is now the Greek mainland, won control of the sea. The Minoans and Mycenaeans both helped develop the seagoing sailing ship. However, historians know little about their ships. All they know for sure is that these peoples built cargo vessels that were sturdy and roomy and had one square sail. The Minoans and Mycenaeans also built strong war galleys-long, narrow ships that were propelled by a row of oarsmen on each side.

Phoenician and Greek ships.
Scholars know much more about the ships used on the Mediterranean Sea after about 1200 B.C. At that time, the leading seafaring peoples were the Phoenicians, who lived along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean, and the Greeks.

The Phoenicians and Greeks built broad, roomy cargo ships and greatly improved the ship rig. By about 500 B.C., they built vessels with two masts. The second mast sloped forward over the bow. It supported a small square sail that made steering easier. After 300 B.C., the Greeks set a triangular sail above the mainsail. On their biggest ships, they added another square sail near the stern. This simple four-sail rig was the most advanced rig ever developed by the peoples of ancient times. As a result, ancient ships were slow and could travel at an average speed of only about 5 knots with the wind. The standard Greek freighter measured about 100 feet (30 meters) long and could carry 100 to 200 tons (90 to 180 metric tons) of cargo.

The Phoenicians and Greeks used galleys for warships. Their galleys were driven by oars. After 1000 B.C., a large, sharp ram (point) was added to the prow at the water line for use in battle. By about 700 B.C., the Phoenicians built biremes, galleys with two banks (rows) of oarsmen on each side. The Greeks adopted these ships and made them lighter and faster. By about 500 B.C., the Greeks developed the trireme. It had three banks of rowers on each side.

The Greeks-and later the Romans-built the hull of their ships first, as the Egyptians had done. But they used more and tighter joints to fit the planks together. They also inserted a system of ribs to stiffen the hull. As a result, Greek and Roman ships had strong hulls.

Roman ships.
The Romans became rulers of the Mediterranean region during the 100's B.C. They used chiefly the same kinds of ships the Greeks had used.

The Romans built up the largest merchant fleet of ancient times. Their biggest cargo ships carried grain from Alexandria, Egypt, to Rome. The largest ones measured up to 180 feet (55 meters) long and 45 feet (14 meters) wide. They could haul more than 1,000 tons (910 metric tons) of cargo and as many as 1,000 passengers.

Roman cargo ships, like all freighters of ancient times, carried travelers because no ships were designed only for passengers. Travelers simply reserved space on any freighter going their way. The ships had a few cabins for important people. The other passengers lived on the open deck. These people slept under little shelters that they set up each night.

Viking ships
were the best vessels built in northern Europe between the A.D. 700's and the late 1000's. The bold Vikings sailed their famous long ships across the North Atlantic Ocean to Greenland and even to North America. They raided, traded, and colonized. As pirates, they were the terror of the seas.

We know much about the superb Viking ships because many Viking lords arranged to be buried in their boats. Scientists have found several such tombs. A well-preserved example of a Viking warship was uncovered in 1880 near Gokstad, in southeastern Norway. The Vikings built the ship about A.D. 900. It measures 78 feet (24 meters) long and 16 feet 9 inches (5.1 meters) wide. Like all Viking ships, the hull is clinker-built-that is, the planks overlap like siding on a house. The ship carried 16 oarsmen on each side. It had a square sail mounted on a mast probably 40 feet (12 meters) high and a steering oar near the stern. The Gokstad ship was small. Most vessels had 20 oars on each side, and some had 30. See VIKINGS (Shipbuilding and navigation).

In 1893, a group of Norwegians built a full-scale replica of the Gokstad ship. They sailed it across the Atlantic Ocean from Bergen, Norway, to St. John's, Newfoundland, in only 28 days in spite of bad weather.

The cog.
The power of the Vikings gradually declined. By the late 1000's, they had lost control of the northern seas. Trade then began to increase among the countries of northern Europe. Merchants needed roomier vessels to carry larger shipments. By about 1200, shipbuilders in the north had developed a sturdy ship called the cog. It became the standard merchant vessel and warship of northern Europe for about 200 years.

Cogs could stand up against the rough seas and high winds of the North Atlantic Ocean. Their deep, wide clinker-built hulls held bulky cargoes. These ships had one large square sail. They also had a high structure called a castle at the prow and the stern. The forecastle, at the prow, served as a platform from which marines could fire arrows and stones at enemy ships. The sterncastle provided a shelter for important passengers. Cogs also had a new kind of steering apparatus. Instead of steering oars along the sides near the stern, cogs had a large rudder in the middle of the stern. This rudder, introduced by about 1200, was stronger than oars.

Lateen-rigged ships.
While northern shipbuilders were developing the cog, Mediterranean shipbuilders were also making important changes in ship construction and design. The Mediterranean shipbuilders began a new way of shipbuilding that became standard. They built a skeleton of keel and ribs first and then fastened the planks of the hull to the framework. They also greatly increased the use of triangular sails called lateens. Square sails worked well with winds blowing from behind. But unlike lateen sails, they did not work well when sailing into the wind.

Galleys had always been used in the Mediterranean region as cargo and passenger ships as well as warships. But about 1300, the use of cargo and merchant galleys increased greatly. These galleys generally used their oars only when there was no wind and when entering or leaving a harbor. The rest of the time the vessels were driven by lateen sails. Most galleys had two masts, with the forward mast carrying the large sail. Some had three masts. The merchant galleys were longer and wider than the warships. The standard galley could carry about 140 tons (127 metric tons).

The full-rigged ship.
About the mid-1400's, Mediterranean shipbuilders combined the best features of the sturdy cog with those of their own lighter lateen-rigged vessels. The result was a sailing ship that became standard throughout Europe for about 300 years. The Mediterranean shipbuilders continued to build the hull by fastening the planking to a skeleton of keel and ribs. But they replaced the steering oars with a rudder in the stern. They also adopted the forecastle and sterncastle of the cog. Most important, they changed the rig to gain more power and better maneuverability-and so developed the full-rigged ship.

The basic full-rigged ship, or square-rigger, had a mainmast in the middle of the ship, a foremast in the forward part, and a mizzenmast in the back part. The mainmast and foremast each carried a big square sail and, above it, smaller square sail. The mizzenmast held a lateen sail. A pole that stuck out from the bow carried a small square sail. During the late 1400's and 1500's, such great explorers as Christopher Columbus, Vasco da Gama, Sir Francis Drake, and Ferdinand Magellan used ships rigged in this way.

The new three-masted ships were relatively small and had few comforts. Only the captain, other high-ranking officers, and guests had cabins. The rest of the crew slept on the deck or in hammocks below deck. The hammock was an American Indian invention that Columbus brought back to Europe.

The galleon.
About the mid-1500's, a type of sailing ship called the galleon appeared on the seas. Galleons were big vessels with lower forecastles than other ships and a high sterncastle that housed elaborate living quarters. The foremast and mainmast each carried two or three sails, and the mizzenmast carried one or two. On the biggest galleons, a second mizzenmast was added near the stern.

Galleons served as both warships and cargo vessels. Guns had been used aboard ships since about the mid-1300's. But the galleons carried more and heavier guns. In 1588, the English and Spanish fleets fought one of the most famous sea battles in history. Both sides used galleons. But the English galleons were faster, more maneuverable, and better armed. They helped defeat the Spanish fleet. The Spaniards had called their fleet the Invincible Armada because they thought it could not be defeated (see SPANISH ARMADA).

Spain, Portugal, and other countries also used galleons for trading. Spain used them to bring back gold and silver from its possessions in the New World. These treasure ships became a favorite target of pirates who roved the Caribbean Sea.

East Indiamen.
For centuries, ships had served as both cargo vessels and warships. But by about the 1600's, cannons had become so heavy that ships needed specially built hulls to carry the added weight. The design of warships and unarmed cargo vessels thus became, in time, greatly different.

In the 1600's, trading companies in several European countries began to build merchant ships especially for trade with India and the Far East. These ships brought ivory, silks, spices, and other products from India, China, and the East Indies. The Portuguese controlled the trade with the Far East until about 1600, when England and the Netherlands began to compete. Then Denmark and France also moved in. East India companies in each country built their own ships, called East Indiamen. Although the Indiamen were designed as cargo carriers, they carried guns for defense against attacks by pirates and fleets of enemy countries.

The size of the East Indiamen grew steadily larger. In 1700, for example, most English Indiamen carried 400 tons (360 metric tons) of cargo. By 1800, they carried 1,200 tons (1,090 metric tons).

Packet ships.
By the early 1800's, trade between the United States and European countries had increased tremendously. Also, a great demand had developed for better transatlantic passenger service. American shipowners met the demand by offering something new in service-ships that sailed on regular schedules. Such vessels are called packet ships. Before this time, ships sailed only if they had a full load of cargo and passengers. Also, the weather generally had to be favorable. Packet ships sailed at a scheduled time, fully loaded or not and regardless of the weather. The packets also became the first merchant vessels to stress the comfort of passengers. Packet service began in 1818, between New York City and Liverpool. The Black Ball Line started the service. It was so successful that other U.S. lines, such as Red Star and Swallowtail, quickly followed.

To meet the schedules and the competition, the packet ships had to sail as fast as possible. But the ships themselves were ordinary sailing vessels that had not been designed with especially sharp lines for speed. Their speed came from their captains, who drove the ships furiously night and day in all weather. The eastward crossing took from three to four weeks. The westward crossing took longer-from five to six weeks-because the ships had to sail against the westerly winds and took a longer, more southerly route.

The first packets measured about 100 feet (30 meters) long. By the 1840's, as passenger accommodations became larger and more comfortable, ships 160 feet (49 meters) long had come into use.

Clipper ships, the most beautiful and romantic of all sailing ships, became the queens of the seas during the mid-1800's. The clippers, with their slender hulls and many sails, were designed for speed. Their name came from the way the ships "clipped off" the miles.

The United States built the first true clippers in the 1840's. They were designed to sail from the East Coast, around the tip of South America, to China and bring back tea. The discovery of gold in California in 1848 and in Australia in 1851 hastened the clipper's development as fortune seekers and supplies were rushed to the gold fields. The ship's success led the British to build a fleet to carry tea from China and wool from Australia.

Clippers had as many as six tiers (rows) of sails to a mast. Some ships had as many as 35 sails. Driven at top speed, clippers could cut through the water at 20 knots. Many could race from New York City, around South America, to San Francisco in less than 100 days.

Donald McKay, a Canadian, became the greatest designer of clipper ships. His shipyard in East Boston, Massachusetts, turned out a number of them. McKay's first clippers measured about 200 feet (60 meters) long and could carry 1,500 tons (1,360 metric tons). He steadily increased the size of his ships. In 1853, he launched the Great Republic, which was the largest sailing ship of its time. It was about 335 feet (102 meters) long, had four masts, and could carry more than 4,500 tons (4,080 metric tons).

Sailing ships in the 1900's. Inventors began experimenting with steam-powered boats in the late 1700's. By the early 1900's, the steamship had nearly replaced the oceangoing sailing ship. But coal-burning steamships had to depend on coaling depots, and certain trade routes-such as those along the coasts of South America-had few coaling depots. On these routes, sailing ships still had use. For many years, for example, sailing ships carried nitrate, a fertilizer, from Chile, around the tip of South America, to Europe.

The sailing ships launched during the late 1800's and early 1900's were huge vessels built more for strength than speed. They had strong, straight-sided steel hulls and wire rigging. To operate cheaply, they used small crews and, therefore, carried a minimum amount of sail. The mightiest of these ships was the Preussen, a five-masted, full-rigged German vessel built in 1902. It was the largest sailing ship ever built, measuring 433 feet (132 meters) long and 54 feet (16 meters) wide. It could carry 8,000 tons (7,300 metric tons) of cargo.

Since the early 1900's, the number of seagoing sailing ships has declined steadily. Many have rotted or rusted away at their docks. Today, most of the few remaining square-riggers serve as training ships for cadets in the navies and merchant marines of various countries.

In many developing countries, people still use sailing vessels for coastal and inland shipping and for fishing. Many centuries ago, the Chinese developed the junk, a sturdy wooden vessel that carried its sails parallel to the length of the ship. The Chinese still use junks to carry goods and passengers along coasts and on rivers. For hundreds of years, the Arabs have sailed the Red Sea in long, slim, lateen-rigged vessels called dhows. Various Indian versions of the dhow are common in the harbors of Kolkata, Mumbai, and other port cities of India. The people of New Guinea have long used a sailing vessel called a lakatoi, which consists of several dugouts lashed together. Two-masted sailing ships called schooners carry cargo along the eastern and southern shores of the Mediterranean. Schooners and single-masted sloops sail between Panama and Ecuador and along South America's west coast.