As in the navies of other countries, the Russian Imperial Navy had a rather complicated system for naming ships.
The first name of a large ship of the Russian fleet known to us is Frederick. It was given in 1636 to a ship built in Holstein {21} during the reign of Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich (grandfather of Peter the Great). Duke Friedrich III, who ruled from 1616-1659, became his "godfather".
As for the first large Russian-built warship, the Orel, his name was chosen by Peter's father, Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich. In the royal decree issued on the occasion of the completion of the construction of the ship, it was ordered to “sew” (attach) an eagle on the bow and on the stern. From then until 1917, there was a tradition to decorate the ends of ships of the 1st and 2nd rank with gilded heraldic birds. Losing the crown was considered a bad omen (at least the dressing down from the authorities).
First frigate Baltic Fleet, laid down in 1703 at the Olonets shipyard (modern Karelia), was called the "Standart". The name, according to Peter the Great, was given "in an image, because then the fourth sea was added" {22} . The last to bear this name was the imperial yacht, which later, after a radical restructuring, served in the Soviet Navy as a minelayer "March 18" {23} , "Marty" {24} and "Oka".
And the very first ship of the line of the Russian fleet - the 58-gun "Goto Predestination" ("God's Omen") was laid down on November 29, 1698 in Voronezh according to the drawings of Peter the Great. Note that there was no other such ship in the lists of the fleet.
In the era of steam and armored fleets (that is, from the middle of the 19th century), battleships and battleships were usually named after battleships of the sailing era. Yes, flagship Black Sea Fleet The dreadnought "Empress Maria", which died on October 7, 1916 in Sevastopol under circumstances not yet fully clarified, bore the name of the flagship of Vice Admiral Pavel Nakhimov (1803–1855), on board of which the famous Russian naval commander won Sinop battle with the Turkish squadron.
Another story is connected with the flagship of Nakhimov, which is also directly related to the succession of the names of the ships of the Russian Imperial Navy. On its predecessor, Emperor Nicholas I in October 1828 survived a severe storm on the way from Varna to Odessa - the ship miraculously was not thrown onto the Turkish coast. We add that the voyage took place during the next war with Ottoman Empire. In memory of this journey, the emperor ordered, during the construction of the new "Empress Maria", to insert a piece of the stem (fore end) of the old ship into the stem of the new "Maria".
Another large group of names - in the places of famous battles won by the Russian armed forces on land and at sea. Examples are such ships as Gangut, Sinop, Borodino, Sevastopol, Izmail, Kinburn, Navarin and Petropavlovsk. There were also ships named after battles against "internal enemies" - for example, "Vola" (in memory of the victory over the Polish rebels at the place of the same name).
The sailing and steam ships of the line, bearing the name of the most august persons - the emperors and General-Admiral Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolayevich, stand apart. Moreover, even the Tsushima battle, catastrophic for the Russian fleet, could not break this tradition. Recall that in its course the squadron battleship "Emperor Alexander III" was lost, and the squadron battleship "Emperor Nikolai the First" was surrendered to the enemy. Both of these names were revived on the eve of the First World War.
Launched in February 1914, the dreadnought "Emperor Alexander the Third" entered service in June 1917, already under the name "Will". At the end of 1919, he fell under the control of the Whites and was again renamed, this time - in "General Alekseev" (in honor of one of the organizers white movement). In 1920, the ship was taken to Bizerte (Northern Tunisia), where it was interned by the French authorities. In 1936, "Emperor Alexander the Third" was cut into metal in the French port of Brest, and its 305-mm main-caliber guns were installed on French coastal batteries.
As for the battleship-dreadnought "Emperor Nicholas the First", it was only launched in 1916. After October 1917, the unfinished ship (in April 1917 it was renamed Democracy) was laid up for a long time, and in 1927, after lengthy disputes about the need for completion, it was transferred to one of the plants in Nikolaev for dismantling.
But there were also exceptions. So, the lightweight battleships-cruisers "Oslyabya" and "Peresvet" were named in memory of the powerful screw frigates of the middle of the 19th century. And those, in turn, reminded of the exploits of the heroes of the Battle of Kulikovo in 1380. Note that "Peresvet" at the end of 1904 was captured by the Japanese during the surrender of Port Arthur. For more than 10 years, the battleship served under the flag of the Land of the Rising Sun and was called "Sagami" (Sagami is a lake near Tokyo). In 1916 the government bought it Russian Empire, after which the veteran ship was enrolled in the Russian Imperial Fleet under the same name, but with a decrease in class - from squadron battleships (according to the new classification - a battleship) "Peresvet" was reorganized into a cruiser.
Frigates and corvettes, as well as clippers (until 1892, cruisers were so conventionally called from old memory, technically already very different from former sailing ships) were usually named after their predecessors.
In May 1888, the semi-armored frigate "Memory of Azov" was launched at the Baltic Shipyard in St. Petersburg. Its direct predecessor was a sailing ship of the line, which left the stocks in Arkhangelsk 40 years earlier, in April 1848. In 1860, the battleship was rebuilt into a blockship {25} , and three years later they were excluded from the lists of the fleet.
There was also a ship with the romantic name "Svetlana" among the frigates.
On May 3, 1859, hardly anyone who met new frigate in Kronstadt {26} people could assume that the commander of the ship since 1874, Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich (1848–1907) would connect his fate not only with the propeller-driven Svetlana, but also with the family of the author of the ballad of the same name, the great Russian poet Vasily Andreevich Zhukovsky.
The poet died in 1852, and his ten-year-old daughter Alexandra became the maid of honor of Empress Maria Alexandrovna, wife of Emperor Nicholas I. Zhukovsky's widow suffered from a mental disorder and could not take care of her children (besides Alexandra, the family also had a son, Pavel). The romance of Alexandra Zhukovskaya and the Grand Duke was short-lived - the royal father, Emperor Alexander II, sent Alexei to sail.
The son of Alexandra Zhukovskaya and the future last general-admiral of the Russian fleet at first bore the title of Baron Seggiano - Alexandra got married and left for Germany. She died in Dresden in 1892 at the age of 50.
The child was fully provided for by the father, and subsequently received Russian nobility. By decree of brother Alexei, Emperor Alexander III, on August 21, 1884, Baron Alexei Seggiano was elevated, with his descendants, to the dignity of a count of the Russian Empire, with the assignment of the surname Belevsky and patronymic Alekseevich to him. We add that it was no coincidence that Alexander Seggiano became Count Belevsky - Vasily Zhukovsky came from the city of Belev.
Svetlana was decommissioned in 1892. The cruiser-yacht of General Admiral Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich (as we can see, he was distinguished by constancy) who replaced her, died in the Battle of Tsushima.
The last Svetlana was launched in 1915. After 10 years, the cruiser, which was being completed already at Soviet power, was renamed "Profintern" (in honor of the Red International of Trade Unions), and in 1939 - in "Red Crimea" (two years before that, the Profintern had ceased to exist). In 1942, the ship was awarded the rank of guards, and 17 years later it was scrapped.
The sailing frigate "Aurora", which made in 1853-1857 circumnavigation, transferred his name to the armored cruiser of the 1st rank, known to almost everyone. As a last resort - to representatives of the older generation of Russians. Much less is known about the fact that, perhaps, only the beginning of the Great Patriotic War.
From September 1940 to June 16, 1941, "Aurora" was also called the light cruiser "Admiral Butakov" {27} , launched by the Putilov plant back in July 1916, and since 1917, laid up in a mothballed state. In 1926-1935 it was called "Voroshilov". In the late 1930s, Butakov was planned to be turned into a training cruiser, but they did not manage to complete the ship. In April 1942, he died as a result of a heavy artillery shell hit in a parking lot in the Leningrad Commercial Port.
But back to June 16, 1941. On this day, under the name "Aurora", a light cruiser of the "Chapaev" type was enlisted in the lists of the Navy of the USSR. However, in connection with the beginning of the Great Patriotic War, neither the Aurora, nor the same type Lenin, Dzerzhinsky and Lazo began construction.
Let's take a few more examples.
The armored frigate (later an armored cruiser) "Admiral Nakhimov" was actually laid down on December 7, 1883, and officially on July 12, 1884. Apparently, they wanted to protect high-ranking guests from Russian frosts.
The armored cruiser Rossiya was laid down a year and a half after it was included in the lists of the fleet.
The oldest plaque stored in the Central Naval Museum in St. Petersburg dates back to 1809. It was made for the Phoenix brig. It is noteworthy that, unlike most of its "descendants", it is not rectangular, but round. This is due to the fact that initially freshly minted coins were traditionally hidden in the keel. Such a coin was found, for example, in 1877 during the dismantling of the Courier steamship, which was laid down in 1856.
Initially, the boards were iron, copper or brass. A little later, silver appeared (for high-ranking persons), but it still didn’t reach gold or platinum.
The builder and the management of the shipyard had to think about a lot of things - ordering sets of embedded boards, building walkways and gangways for high-ranking guests and the "ordinary" public, decorating the place of celebration, as well as landscaping the territory of the enterprise to that brilliance that so caresses the eyes of the inspectors. The headquarters of the port commander or even the commander of the fleet was responsible for developing a detailed ceremonial descent, as well as working out the actions of the guard, including its solemn procession.
For example, the laying of the coastal defense battleship "Admiral Ushakov" was timed to October 22, 1892 - the date of the launch of the armored cruiser "Rurik". The builder of both ships - the Baltic Shipbuilding and Mechanical Plant in St. Petersburg - as well as the Main Naval Headquarters and the capital's office over the port had to temporarily forget about the "churn" and deal almost exclusively with the preparation of the celebration. Invitation cards were printed, a front imperial tent was built. A disposition was drawn up for saluting ships - the imperial yachts "Alexandria", "Marevo" and "Strela", as well as the steamships "Neva" and "Onega".
At the request of the plant, the necessary materials were provided "from the treasury". According to the application of the meticulous manager Mikhail Kazi (1839–1896), the Maritime Department allocated a stern flag and a guis, 600 coloring flags to decorate the boathouse on which the battleship was built, 550 arshins (391 meters) of red cloth, 600 arshins (427 meters) of gray cloth. Even the dish for the foundation board, the brush and the hammer were not forgotten.
Why, when laying a warship, was a brush required, as well as a vase with minium? The main participant in the ceremony - the emperor, admiral general or other person of the corresponding rank - first smeared with paint the recess where the mortgage board should have stood. Then the board itself was laid, which, for fidelity, was fixed in red lead with hammer blows. After that, the recess was closed with a metal sheet and rivets were placed.
As we remember, mortgage boards were very often made of precious metals. So, a silver plate measuring 125 by 97 mm was laid in the vertical keel on the 41st frame of the Admiral Ushakov. The same "souvenirs" relied Maritime Museum, as well as high-ranking participants of the ceremony. Simpler guests most often received copper plates.
The text on the front side of the Ushakov mortgage board read:
Coastal defense battleship Admiral Ushakov. Laid down in St. Petersburg at the Baltic Shipyard on October 22, 1892 in the presence of: Their Imperial Majesties the Emperor and the Empress.
On the reverse side, the participants of the laying were mentioned with a lower rank - General Admiral Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich, Head of the Naval Ministry Admiral Nikolai Chikhachev (1830–1917), Acting Commander of the St. Petersburg Port Rear Admiral Vladimir Verkhovsky {41} , chief inspector of shipbuilding Nikolai Samoilov {42} Nikolai Subbotin, Chief Ship Engineer of St. Petersburg Port, Senior Shipbuilder {43} and supervising ship engineer senior shipbuilder Dmitry Skvortsov {44} .
Initially, the number of guns of the future ship was also written on the boards. This tradition has gradually faded away. After all, it was difficult to compare the power of an armadillo with a multi-gun battleship of the sailing era.
By the laying on August 15, 1901 of the cruiser "Ochakov" the gardener of the Sevastopol Admiralty was sent to the state gardens of the Maritime Department {45} . The purpose of the trip was to decorate with garlands the tents for titled persons, as well as the scaffolding of the slipway, where the future cruiser was assembled. The gardens had to sacrifice two wagonloads of oak branches and wild ivy. And for high-ranking ladies, Wigand's flower shop ordered bouquets of white roses with a diameter of 19 inches. {46} .
Simultaneously with the laying of the ship, they began to build its model.
“When they begin to build a ship, then it is necessary to order the master who builds the ship to make a half model on the board and give it, along with the drawing when the ship is launched, to the Admiralty Board,” Peter the Great pointed out on this occasion. And at first, the purpose of such models was very utilitarian - in the case of a fatal error of the builder, it was always possible to find its cause.
The launching of a capital ship usually also became important event for the shipyard. Lists of invitees were drawn up in advance; tickets were printed for those who wanted to take part in the ceremony. Very often there were not enough invitation cards. So, for the launching of the battleship "The Twelve Apostles" in August 1890, about 8 thousand tickets were prepared, which in the end was hardly enough. Naturally, measures were taken in case emergency- port boats were brought in, divers were preparing.
The pavilion for high-ranking persons was carefully decorated - if the weather allowed, even exotic plants from botanical gardens were delivered (if there were none, then palm trees and other ficuses were rented in flower shops).
Those present during the descent were supposed to be in uniforms {47} , but with ribbons and orders. In cold weather, a uniform coat was put on over the uniform (as the land overcoat was traditionally called in the navy).
By the beginning of the ceremony, a guard of honor arrived, the “music orchestra” and the choir took their places. High-ranking officers of the fleet came - the leaders of the Naval Department (general-admiral or manager of the Naval Ministry), and sometimes the emperor himself with his family, arrived to launch the ship of the 1st rank (battleships and cruisers). Then the stoppers were kicked out, the “music orchestra” played “God save the Tsar!”, the guard of honor took the rifles to the ready and the ship, to the universal shouts of “Hurrah!”, began its first voyage.
Note that all ships launched longitudinally from the stocks go into the water stern first. This is done because the stern has fuller contours (outlines) and greater buoyancy than the bow. And this ensures less digging into the water.
It happened, however, that not everything happened as the organizers thought. The squadron battleship "The Twelve Apostles", for example, on August 30, 1890, could not go into the water - "... the fat, with which the runners were lubricated a few days before the descent, managed to harden during this time and held the sled," the newspaper wrote "Odessa leaf". I had to repeat everything on September 1st. This time, after the traditional prayer service in the presence of the head of the Naval Ministry, the chief of the Main Naval Staff, the Nikolaev governor and the chief of staff of the Black Sea Fleet, as well as to the joyful cries of the large public, the ship nevertheless descended onto the waters of the Ingul River.
Separately, it is worth mentioning the so-called "nasalka", which was used to lubricate the slipway runners. There was no approved recipe for the mixture, and each builder made it at his own discretion. So, during the descent in Nikolaev of the squadron battleship "Rostislav" {48} 470 pounds (about 7.7 tons) of stuffing was used, consisting of beef lard (57%), puff lard {49} (16%), green soap (14%) and hemp oil (13%). Grease consumption was 3.52 lbs. {50} per square foot {51} .
By tradition, the engineers and workers who built the battleship presented its crew with a gift - the icon of the Cathedral of the Holy Apostles. The image was purchased in Moscow and cost 750 rubles - quite a lot of money for that time. The icon was "silver, rather large, with a cypress wood icon case."
Let's try to follow the ceremony of launching the first seaworthy battleship "Peter the Great" (originally it was called "Cruiser" and was renamed to the 200th anniversary of the birth of the emperor), which took place on August 15, 1872 on Galerny Island in St. Petersburg.
At about 11 o'clock in the morning, people began to gather at the slipway, and by noon, General Admiral Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolayevich (1827–1892), who led the "fleet and the Naval Department", arrived on the steam yacht "Dove". In his honor, St. Andrew's flags, guis, admiral-general and imperial standards were raised on five flagpoles installed on the new battleship. The "Orchestra of Music" played the old Petrovsky March.
Descending from the ladder "Doves", Grand Duke greeted the sailors of the guard of the 8th Baltic naval crew (the Peter the Great team was recruited from it), went around the line and boarded the new ship. After greeting the crew, which stood in front on the sides, the admiral-general examined the battleship, on the deck of which a bust of the founder of the Russian fleet, decorated with flowers, was previously installed. Following this, Konstantin Nikolayevich moved to a special tribune-platform, decorated with flowers and flags.
Now let's give the floor to the eyewitnesses of the event:
“... Axes rattled, blocks, supports and delays began to be knocked out, after which the huge battleship set off smoothly, with the shouts of the command, the entire audience and the thunder of two orchestras of music, and without the slightest delay went down to the water for the first time and stopped near the boathouse at two anchors . The picture of the descent was spectacular and solemn. His Highness thanked Adjutant General Popov {52} and builder Okunev {53} , stayed after the descent for another quarter of an hour, and according to the drawings of the lowered monitor {54} deigned to explain to the guests of the international congress {55} details of the construction of this extremely remarkable armadillo, after which at two o'clock in the afternoon he set off on his yacht around the new monitor and then headed for the Elagin fairway on the seashore.
In the event that the ship went to the water from a closed boathouse, minor adjustments were made to the ceremony - the flags were raised above it at the moment its hull left the building.
The successful launch of the vessel was a legitimate reason for the builders' awards. And not only orders, but also money. So, ship engineers who worked on the Ochakov cruiser were given 5,400 rubles - from 2,500 rubles to 500 rubles to each of the five shipbuilders.
If the ship was built at a foreign shipyard, then its launching was furnished quite modestly. The fact is that the vessel did not descend under the Russian military banner, but under the commercial flag of the builder country. So, when the cruiser Askold was launched in Kiel in 1899, the Naval Ministry and the Russian Foreign Ministry took joint measures and carefully coordinated their actions - the German emperor Wilhelm II could appear at the ceremony, who, according to German naval traditions, could himself name the Russian ship. Morved's instruction in this case ordered the officers of the ship to be in dress uniform(naturally, "as clean as possible"), and on the ship it is mandatory to raise the St. Andrew's flag. If there is no Kaiser, then be in uniforms, and raise the Russian tricolor, commercial flag.
There were extremely rare cases when the launching of a ship was not accompanied by various solemn ceremonies. For example, the Crab underwater mine layer was launched without a pump - according to official data, for reasons of secrecy.
Until the last quarter XIX century, there was a tradition of installing a special decoration on the bow of the ship (most often - wooden), often covered with gilding. The figures traced their history back to ancient times - ancient Roman galleys and Viking dracars carried images of mythical monsters - and served for the primary "psychological treatment" of the enemy.
On sailboats, the nasal figure, in addition to its aesthetic and military-psychological purpose, also played a very utilitarian role. It was behind her that the command latrines (latrines) were located - for this reason, officers have long lived in the stern.
It happened that the latrines were covered with the works of prominent sculptors. Bartolomeo Rastrelli, Nikolai Pimenov, Matvey Chizhov, Mikhail Mikeshin and Peter von Klodt-Jugensburg (better known to us as simply Klodt) worked for the fleet. Moreover, there was a lot of work not only in the latrine area - on sailing ships of the line, magnificent decor also adorned the stern, the upper belt of the sides and galleries.
The last ship for which a bow decoration was made was the squadron battleship "Emperor Nicholas the First" {56} . Moreover, initially they were going to hoist a bust of the emperor, previously installed on the propeller-sailing ship of the same name. battleship sold for scrap in early 1874. The sculpture, however, turned out to be too large and did not fit the shape of the armadillo stem. Then the treasury issued an order to an amateur sculptor, captain of the 2nd rank Pushchin, but the bust of his work was quickly dismantled due to damage caused by constant wave impacts and spray.
It was customary to decorate the stern very magnificently, although by the beginning of the 20th century only the tradition of installing a gilded eagle remained, and balconies on ships of the 1st rank - large cruisers and battleships. The balcony was connected to the admiral's (commander's) quarters. Here, the naval authorities could take a walk or just sit in an armchair in a rare moment of rest. Another thing is that balconies often made it extremely difficult to repair work with propellers, which no one could even imagine in a purely sailing era.
Curiously, the tradition of accommodation commanders at the stern, a pair was preserved even with the advent of the century. And if during the period of the dominance of paddle steamers it still made sense, then the appearance of screw ships immediately showed a lot of inconvenience. The strongest vibration from the operation of the shafts and propellers, the need to create a special well for lifting the propeller (on the first steam ships, the propeller was raised so that it did not interfere with sailing) forced the well-deserved marsoflots {57} sad to sigh under sooty sails about the old days.
Sometimes you look at the names of the miserable buckets of branded bolts called "yachts", crammed into the marina and think "what do these people even know about the names of ships ?!". Well, you yourself can go and see, at the same time you can easily distinguish those who go by sea a lot and often from those who rot in a joke so that the owner can enjoy membership in the yacht club and glue women.
I'll give you a hint: for the most part, yacht names symbolize the qualities of their captains, and their size is usually (but not always) inversely proportional to the number of miles logged. Exceptions are usually noticed immediately by the features of the equipment and - usually - by the work carried out on board. Barbecue work and sunbathing of busty beauties are carried out on the yachts of the pontorezes.
Ship names
But let's talk about names. The name of the ship is usually given on the slipway, and under this name it appears in the statements. And by and large, you can forget about it, because rarely when it turns out to be successful. The ship acquires its real name during operation, and is usually fixed for life. For example, the name stuck to one schooner "that bitch", and it fully corresponded to her extremely bastard character. Her favorite pastime was mud baths and diving - apparently she had submarines in her family, hence the mania to lie down on the ground right at the pier.
Many good ships that have plied the oceans since time immemorial did not pay attention to what was written on their sides and stern. The crew and the captain knew that it was better not to interfere with their navigation - these ships pulled their crew out of terrible storms and managed to stay afloat regardless of the number of cores that made holes in their sides. Many troughs, on the other hand, had proud and haughty names, but they floated with the same grace as a refrigerator.. And a sailor who wants to be hired on a ship, unless of course he was a fool, or not so desperate as to climb anywhere, usually tried to hear how the sailors talk about the ship.
It should be pointed out that no matter how bad the sailor is, he will never, I emphasize, will never scold his ship. He is more likely to blaspheme, and in swearing at a sailor, few will shut him up in his belt. So, the intonation with which the sailors speak about the ship says a lot about it, and if you're lucky, you can hear its real name. Here, by the way, is another point that is lost in Russian, but which is important to know: ship / vessel - female, and they say "she" about them. A good ship for the captain - wife, daughter, girlfriend, goddess - choose any.
And finally, the name of the ship that floats, and does not pretend to be an iPhone, is almost always short. The reason is that in those dashing times of boarding battles, there were peculiar traditions - as the king, referring to all states, said “we”, and the captain, to the question “who is coming?” - called the name of his ship, and during the battle he could yell “to me!”, Calling on everyone who can still fight to get to him and throw the enemy into the sea with joint efforts. Now imagine that your ship is called "Admiral Ivan Ivanovich Molotoboytsev." Yes, you will be killed before you utter it, not to mention the fact that this can create confusion in the presentation.
There are ships that have earned fame for their names, and then when a new ship is laid down, they are given the name of one who has already retired. If you do not remember the Argo paradox, this is one of the hopes to lure good luck with the help of a name, or endow the ship with the name of a glorious person. Few people know, but the Aurora was once a glorious ship of the Russian imperial fleet, whose batteries smashed the British on Far East(of course, tea-leavers do not like to remember this, because in that battle they Marines lost the flag, and the admiral shot himself from such a shame). And when the laying of new armored cruisers took place, one of them was named after the glorious sailing ship and - he crowned himself with even greater glory, becoming one of the symbols of the Revolution.
And while the winds will blow, beautiful ships will plow the seas, carrying glorious names through the ages like banners.
If one day you take command of a ship, treat it like a woman. Learn about its history, see how it goes on the waves, its weaknesses, its character, its secret name - and if you get along with the characters, you will understand why the Santa Clara was affectionately called the Nina, why the captains shared the fate of their ships , although they could have escaped ... Well, if you don’t get off, then it’s better to change the ship, otherwise only one of you will remain afloat by the end of the journey.
Names of pirate ships from the thematic section (website) "Jolly Roger" (from the pirate site Spiral):
"Brig" Black Ghost” . Once belonged to a famous pirate. Merchants were afraid of this ship like fire. He is famous for appearing out of nowhere and carrying out his attacks.
pirate frigate "Le peritone"(peryton)
The mighty flying deer peryton could, perhaps, be compared with the Greek Pegasus. As ancient legends testify, the beast had one distinctive feature.
It cast a human shadow, thanks to which scientists believed that the peryton is the spirit of travelers who died far from home. Winged deer were often seen in ancient times on the islands of the Mediterranean Sea and near the Strait of Gibraltar. It was believed that perytons feed on people. They all herd attacked the bewildered sailors and devoured them. No weapon could stop the mighty and terrible beast.
"El corsario descuidado" In Spanish - "Careless Corsair". The young owner of this most beautiful red-sailed brig never knew defeat. He won battle after battle as he rose higher and higher in the financial ladder. He was hunted - each of the powers wanted to get the head of a corsair.
One day, a young pirate, after another successful robbery, filled the hold of his ship to capacity. The ship moved slowly and constantly sank. Yes, and a leak in the stern of the brig was not by the way ...
The Careless Corsair came to an abrupt halt and staggered. "What's happened?" thought the young pirate. Looking overboard, he realized that the end of his exploits had come. The bottom of his ship was torn to pieces by reefs. Spare boats have already managed to dismantle the team.
The young pirate stood at the prow of his ship, not believing what was happening. Tears welled up in his eyes, and his head drooped. "From what?!" - The pirate raised his hands to the sky. - "For what?"
"For carelessness" - the boatswain standing nearby answered, not wanting to leave his captain.
The ship was sinking.
Frigate "Omnipresent Death" It's a storm in the Caribbean. An unknown pirate who walks on it plundered all the colonies of the new world. When meeting this ship at sea, merchants simply pray to stay alive, which does not happen. Since there is no money in the colonies, now he is heading for the waters of Madagascar to a paradise for pirates
most romantic name
corvette "Violet" - named after the captain's daughter. This name was given to her by her father in honor of the most magnificent flower
the most majestic name
betlisp "Peter I" is a thunderstorm from Russian State for Britain. This is the flagship of the squadron containing 6 other ships.
Corvette "Victoria Bloody Baroness"- the ship is named after a pirate girl who is known for her quick temper and incredible cruelty. She sailed on this ship herself. Graceful, fast as the wind, corvette, with white sails and incredibly beautiful. But, as always expected, justice prevailed - the pirate was executed, and the ship itself was given to the Spanish governor.
Frigate "Black Revenge" the horror of all sailors, his captain is a real devil, his ship develops unprecedented speed, and the hull is impenetrable for nuclei, according to rumors, the boatswain on the ship can break a small ship with 1 blow ...
Corvette "Luck Prize" it was ridden by an unknown pirate who
was lucky. His Corvette was quite powerful and fast. To catch up and break.
Frigate "Bad Girl"
This vernacular name ship, since no one knows its exact name ..
A certain captain appeared in the waters of the Caribbean archipelago, who robbed ships, leaving only two witnesses: one without eyes, the other without a tongue ... Apparently in order to terrify people ... I must say that the "couples" succeeded in this with a vengeance ... From the words of the "lucky ones" a picture of the attacks was drawn up.
Everything happened in cloudy weather, in the early morning before sunrise, when there was still fog over the water ... The dead silence was broken by girlish laughter penetrating to the bones. It was heard from everywhere, now from one side, then from the other ... From this sound, people's eardrums burst, blood flowed, some of them, unable to endure it any longer, were thrown overboard, while others from panic fear could not move from their place. The frigate approached silently, without firing a single shot. The team of the "girl" took away the cargo, the surviving people, and also quietly set off, leaving two witnesses ... No one saw more captured people and did not hear anything about them ...
Apparently, the pirate captain made a deal with Lucifer himself, who got the souls of people ..
the most majestic name
battleship "Sentence"
The captain of this pirate ship was a man of honor, so he always gave his victims a choice - to surrender, and then they would be given life, or to fight and then let the Devil judge them ... By their actions, people themselves signed the Judgment
Most profound title
Bombardier ship "Bell"
The motto of this ship is: "Ringing it is not for him"
The ship was created specifically to fight against coastal fortifications, equipped with the most powerful and long-range guns.
When a "ringing" was heard from one of the sides of this ship, it could mean only one thing - for a long time the fateful volley would echo in the ears of the survivors.
the name of the ship was given by Peter I during the construction of the Azov fleet
Frigate "Cerberus".
For a long time, the pirate island of Bermuda has been a haven for corsairs. But this skeleton did not have a strong defense in the form of a fort or other fortifications. Its only protection was numerous rocks and reefs. But over time, maps of this island were drawn up and in calm weather these natural obstacles no longer posed a danger. A large number of pirate ships were sunk off the coast of Bermuda by English and Spanish squadrons. The corsairs were in deep despair and even wanted to leave this island forever. And in these most difficult times for them, the black frigate under the banner of the Jolly Roger single-handedly began to resist all the ships trying to attack the Pirate Settlement. Like a ghost, he emerged from the mist and crushed his enemies. This ship has always stood guard over the island of Bermuda, like a watchdog, it did not let any enemy near the island. The crew of this ship was numerous, characterized by incredible rage and bloodlust. At the head of the team was their captain and two lieutenants loyal to him. For this, the corsairs dubbed the black frigate the name "Cerberus" in honor of the three-headed dog with a snake's tail, and on the back of the head of snakes. Just like the mythical dog guarding the exit from the kingdom of the dead Hades, so this frigate stood guard over the pirate island.
Battleship "Shakespeare".
This battleship is the flagship of the English squadron of Jamaica Island. In the entire Caribbean Sea, and indeed beyond its borders, there is not a single ship that could compare with it in terms of firepower or speed. He was named "Shakespeare" after the English playwright William Shakespeare. Each of the battleship battles was a work of art, and "Shakespeare" was the author of these works. When you watch his fight, one of William's dramatic plays immediately comes to mind. Just as sad, but still great.
Schooner "Black Widow".
After death famous pirate in an unequal battle with Spanish battleships, his wife, being the daughter of a captain and familiar with maritime affairs firsthand - a desperate and brave woman, having sold her house and all property, buys a schooner, and having hired a team of brave men, goes to sea to take revenge on her husband's killers
Schooner "Alkonavtika".
This name was given to the ship for the wild addiction of its captain and crew to rum, wine, ale, well, by the way, to all liquid substances that have alcohol in them. It was impossible to see the personnel of this ship without drinking. Not a single corsair can remember when at least one member of the crew of the Alkonavtika ship was sober, or at least hungover. Even the ships of England or Spain do not attack them when they meet them on the high seas. For the friendly attitude of these pirates to others, they became welcome guests on all the islands that pirates were allowed to swim on.
Brig "Horizon".
Being a philosopher, the captain of this ship often liked to meditate on board his ship, looking at the sea stretching across the horizon. He said that at the most inopportune moment, a ship belonging to any nation could appear on the horizon. Whether he was friendly or hostile to the captain was not known. And this circumstance did not depend on anyone except God alone. For the mystery and unpredictability that the horizon combined, it was decided to call this brig "Horizon" by that name.
Frigate "Zodiac"
No one knows where he came from and where he was built, since his mizzen wore slanting sails, which made him even faster. Attacking exclusively at night and even in a storm, he did not leave anyone a single chance for salvation. Rumor has it that after his appearance, Morgan himself began to feel uncomfortable in the archipelago.
Corvette "Angels tears"
It got its name after the tragic story that happened to one corsair
For a long time, one fearless, daring and noble corsair on his corvette "Sword of the Apocalypse" terrified the entire Spanish coast of the New World. From Belize to Kumana, in every city, in the squares and in the taverns, there were signs with the promised reward on his head. But they could not catch this "El Diablo" in any way. And yet somehow he fell into a trap arranged for him. Having withstood the most terrible battle with superior forces and miraculously remained afloat, the Sword of the Apocalypse, almost completely broken, with the remnants of the team, headed to its lagoon to lick its wounds, but a fierce storm broke out along the way. From last strength, struggling with the elements, the already wounded crew did everything possible to save their beloved ship. Realizing that all efforts were in vain, the captain ordered: - Everyone in the boats! Leave the ship! - The team rushed to fulfill the order, and soon the boat with the surviving sailors began to move away from the sinking corvette. And only after moving a certain distance, the sailors suddenly noticed that the captain was not with them. And the captain, standing on the bridge, looked at the sea and, together with the ship, plunged into the water. Soon the sea completely swallowed the ship.
- A real captain never leaves his ship - said the boatswain. - But we must survive.
They managed to get to the land and for a long time in the taverns the surviving sailors retold this story and swore that when the last klotik disappeared through the water, they saw an angel in the sky.
Longboat "Daring and Beautiful". The captain of this ship considers himself the most daring pirate of the Caribbean, and his longboat - the most beautiful ship of all times and peoples. I thought ... Until one day I ran into the open sea with the Golden Fleet of Spain. The pirate was daring. The boat was beautiful.
Manowar "Leviathan". This masterpiece was built by the British at the shipyard of the city of Portsmouth. The best shipbuilders of the state participated in its creation. A huge amount of money has been invested. The construction of the ship was very difficult and slow. And the result ... fully justified itself. And Leviathan was born. A vessel of unprecedented power and beauty. Manowar was sent to the Caribbean to reinforce the British naval forces. And soon became the strongest ship in these waters. It's not even a ship, it's a force of nature that degrades a person. Sea monster. Leviathan.
Corvette "Shaving Water". This ship belongs to one of the most dangerous pirates in the Caribbean. A man called Raven. No one knows true story of this vessel, with the exception of the captain himself. It is known that the Shaving Water is the fastest ship in the Caribbean. Not one ship can match it in speed. When people see how a corvette plows the sea, it seems that the ship is shaving the water. Like a sharp razor it cuts through the waves.
Frigate "Beloved". The captain of this ship, Nicholas, was a privateer in the service of France. He honestly and devotedly served his power, carrying out the most difficult assignments of the governor of island N. At one of the audiences with the governor, he met his daughter, charming Jacqueline. Soon the girl was kidnapped. But Nakolas found and snatched Jacqueline from the clutches of scoundrels. Nicholas and Jacqueline fell in love and wanted to get married. But Jacqueline's strict father forbade the wedding until Nicholas became rich and famous. Nicholas accepted these terms. And thanks to his determination and courage, he soon received the title of baron and the rank of admiral French Navy. And the governor had no choice but to marry his only daughter to a privateer. And there was a wedding. No one in the Caribbean has ever seen or heard such a wedding. Even the famous Versailles faded. And in honor of this event, the governor gave his son-in-law a magnificent frigate. Without thinking twice, Nicholas named it "Beloved" in honor of his beloved wife.
Caravel "Circle of Life". Lions are predators. They eat antelope. Antelopes are herbivores, they eat grass. The lions die and grass grows in that place. The antelope eats this grass. And this means that all life is closed in a circle. Circle of life. Back in the 17th century, this was noticed by one scientist and researcher who studied nature South Africa. And on the same day, he named his caravel "Circle of Life".
"Pandora" Possessing the divine flame stolen by Prometheus, people ceased to obey the celestials, learned different sciences, and got out of their miserable state. A little more - and they would have won complete happiness ...
Then Zeus decided to send punishment on them. The blacksmith god Hephaestus fashioned the beautiful woman Pandora from earth and water. The rest of the gods gave her: some - cunning, some - courage, some - extraordinary beauty. Then, handing her a mysterious box, Zeus sent her to earth, forbidding her to remove the lid from the box. Curious Pandora, barely having come into the world, slightly opened the lid. Immediately all human disasters flew out of there and scattered throughout the universe.
So the appearance of my "Pandora" on the horizon promised only grief and disaster to careless merchants
Corvette "Black Scorpio" (Black Scorpion)
Powerful and swift, he appears from nowhere and disappears into nowhere, like a scorpion, he hunts down his victims and attacks like a ghost, leaving them no chance. When they realize what is happening, it is already too late - their fate is sealed...
This ship and its captain appeared in the Caribbean to take revenge... To take revenge on a beautiful girl whose life ended so quickly, cut off in the dungeons of the Holy Inquisition. The unquenchable thirst for revenge enveloped the soul of the young captain so much and enslaved his mind that he stopped seeing the world in any other colors than black and killed ... He killed without looking back, and indiscriminately, killed in order to kill. His ship, a magnificent corvette - swift as a panther, powerful as a lion and dangerous as a scorpion... Black Scorpion...
Schooner" Weightlessness"
At that time, weightlessness was not known, ships did not fly into space, but there were magnificent sailboats, an endless ocean and endless love, the fire of which swelled even more under the fresh sea breeze. Two people, two halves of one heart were now in the same captain's cabin, and their ship, as if on wings, as if weightless, rushed into the sea, towards infinity ...
Frigate " dead water"
A terrible pirate ship that seems to have gathered on board the most notorious thugs from all over the Caribbean archipelago. The captain of the ship, devoid of any compassion, and his heart must have long ago turned into a hard, cold as marble, stone. At the sight of this ship on the horizon, sailors preferred to jump into the sea before meeting it face to face.
After themselves, these pirates do not leave a single living soul, and dump all the bodies into the sea... The water in these places will remain dead for a long time...
Manowar "Judas"
It was a huge manowar, which was part of the Spanish punitive expedition in the New World. He brought many troubles to the enemies of the Spanish crown. This powerful ship has become a terrible weapon in the hands of the Holy Inquisition.
But once, sailing away to carry out another assignment to Bermuda, "Judas" never returned ... What happened to him, no one knows to this day ...
Frigate " transcendentis" ("Overflowing") lat.
The ship lived up to its name, instilling confidence in its crew and terror in the opposing team.
Corvette" Grin"- a huge wolf's head with a terrible grin was made on the bow of the ship.
Only her appearance terrified cowardly merchants and made even experienced warriors tremble.
In combination with excellent performance and a team shifted to the full head, led by the captain, for a long time sowed terror throughout the archipelago.
Frigate " black revenge", the horror of all sailors, huge guns and a bunch of skeleton pirates who survived their lives. Both lugger and battleship fear him. He takes a speed of 19 knots in seconds, 2 hundred guns of 48 caliber, well, how not to be afraid of him? .. "
Pirates have always been associated with adventurers, robbers, robbers and brawlers who have gained fame not only at sea, in love affairs, but even in politics. But let's look at their activities in the open sea, since it was she who brought those fabulous riches that are still being sought. Even the names of pirate ships were intended to intimidate their opponents, and the Jolly Roger flag instilled panic in the crew of the attacked ship.
The most famous pirates
Speaking about the era of piracy, it should be borne in mind that not all adherents of this way of earning and existence were exactly pirates in the direct sense of the word. In those days, there was a division into outright robbers, corsairs, privateers, filibusters, etc.
Interestingly, privateering was legalized in England, which did its best to prevent Spain from New World. Roughly speaking, the English crown secretly issued patents for the robbery of Spanish galleons, which returned with gold and silver from both Americas.
But in general, if you make a list of the most desperate and famous personalities of that era in their field, it could look something like this:
- Captain Kidd.
- Edward Teach "Blackbeard".
- Henry Morgan.
- L'Ollone.
- Jetrow Flint.
- Olivier Le Wasser.
- William Dampier.
- Aruj Barbarossa.
- Jen Shi and many others.
Famous names of pirate ships. List
Naturally, each of these thugs preferred to have his own ship, and, if possible, a fleet of three or more ships. However, if the secondary ships had sometimes even satirical names, the flagship had to bear such a name without fail so that it was on everyone's lips. Allegories or frankly defiant names were often used. Here is an incomplete list of the most famous ships of that time (the names of pirate ships in English or French are given along with the Russian translation):
- "Golden Doe" (Golden Hind);
- Galley "Adventure" (Adventure Galley);
- "Revenge of Queen Anne" (Queen Ann's Revenge);
- "Careless Corsair" (El corsario descuidad);
- "Periton" (Le Periton) - a flying deer;
- "Avenger" (Avenger);
- "Ouida" (Whydah);
- "Royal Fortune" (Royal Fortune);
- "Fantasy" (Fancy);
- "Happy Delivery" (Happy Delivery);
- "Rising Sun";
- "Retribution" (Revenge), etc.
And that's not all. Very often one could come across the names of pirate ships like "Omnipresent Death", "Victoria - Bloody Baroness", "Prize of Luck", "Bell", "Cerberus", "Black Widow", "Leviathan", "Shaving Water", in In general, fantasy was enough in abundance. But let's dwell on what the famous pirate ships were. Their names did not always reflect the true nature of the threat, because by and large the Spanish galleons were 36-48-gun frigates, which it was not possible to board for capture. A pirate ship would have been shot on approach, no matter how well it maneuvered.
Therefore, usually the robbers were content with frigates of a lower rank. To have 24, 36 or 40 guns on board was considered riding. And escort by several ships with 20 or even 12 guns on board could play a decisive role in the battle.
The main characteristics of the ships
Despite the loud and sometimes intimidating names of pirate ships, they could not always be compared with the same Spanish ships or the English fleet.
So, for example, "Adventure" by William Kidd was a 34-gun frigate brigantine of an unusual type (with straight sails and an oar crew).
"Queen Anne's Revenge", originally called "Concorde", was more powerful, with 40 guns. "Golden Doe" first descended from the stocks as under the name "Pelican", according to various estimates, with 18-22 guns.
The most famous literary hero and his squadron
In the literature, the names of pirate ships were replenished with one more famous character- Captain Blood (Rafael Sabatini - “Odyssey of Captain Blood”, “Chronicles of Captain Blood”), whose unrequited love for the daughter of the governor of Barbados (and then Jamaica) made the 36-gun frigate Cinco Llagos captured from the Spaniards named after her. Since then, "Arabella" has become a thunderstorm of the seas.
By the way, the work mentions and but the name is Levasseur, and his ship is called "La Foudre" ("Lightning"). There is also the name "Avenger" (Avenger) of one of the constant opponents of the protagonist - Captain Easterling.
Captain Blood himself, in his characteristic humorous manner, gave names to minor ships like "Elizabeth" (in honor of the Queen of England) or in honor of the three Greek goddesses - "Atropos", "Clotho" and "Lachesis".
Only towards the end of the story was the 80-gun frigate Victorieuse, commanded by Baron de Rivarol, captured. But according to the plot, the author could not rename it, because Blood became the governor, and his ships became part of the Jamaican squadron.
Cinema
And how to do without the "Black Pearl" from the quadrology "Pirates of the Caribbean"? Here, too, there are nuances. The name of Captain Barbossa clearly echoes Barbarossa.
And there is no need to talk about the "Flying Dutchman" at all. In the film, it is indicated that this is a ship, although in fact no one knows who owned this ghost ship, and whether it exists at all and whether it is only in a single copy.
Instead of an afterword
Well, if we take into account that kids love this kind of adventure, it’s not difficult to come up with the name of a pirate ship for children, because their imagination is often much more developed than that of an adult. Even common names like "Thunderstorm" or "Thunder" will do. Here, children are masters of using associations that frighten their peers.
But, seriously, the names of pirate ships are very often associated not with abstract concepts or mystical phenomena, but rather with the history of England, because most of these seekers of luck, one way or another, were associated with the English crown, and by and large fought against the Spaniards. Naturally, there were those who robbed indiscriminately, but privateering in those days was, so to speak, the most gentlemanly trade with a huge number of restrictions. Take the same Henry Morgan, who later became the vice-governor of Jamaica, or sir (English admiral). History is full of surprises...
