RENAISSANCE WARSHIPS A Revolution in Technology a

The Renaissance is most remembered as a period of intellectual and artistic ferment and revolution. However, the Renaissance spirit also had a great impact on practical areas of life. It is no accident, for example, that the Renaissance coincides with the beginning of the Age of Exploration. Improved techniques of navigation were developed, and equally important, new types of ships. It is also not a coincidence that the revolution in warfare due to guns took place during the Renaissance.

The following discussion will center on the Renaissance impact on the technology of naval warfare. War at sea had previously developed along lines going back to the Middle Ages or even, in the Mediterranean, to classical antiquity. New ships and weapons led to dramatic changes, which would ultimately have an impact not only on Europe but on the entire world. The discussion will begin by outlining the situation in the Middle Ages, and explore how naval warfare was affected not only by new techniques but by new ways of thinking.

Medieval Background and Renaissance Developments:

During the Middle Ages, the European seafaring world had been divided into two separate and nearly independent environments, the Mediterranean on the one hand and the Atlantic and North Sea on the other. These regions differed both in climate and sea conditions -- and therefore in the conditions under which people sailed and fo

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s might own a few ships, but chartered them out to merchants for extra cash, or laid them up on mudbanks if they were too big for merchants to use. The situation in the Mediterranean was somewhat different. From ancient times galleys had been used in war, due to their much greater maneuverability. This gave them an advantage not only in battles at sea, but as landing craft in amphibious operations, an important part of naval warfare. Galleys were completely different from the sailing ships used for most trade, and their long, slender hulls and large crews meant that they had very little cargo capacity. They were sometimes used to carry high-value cargoes that needed protection, as the seagoing equivalent of an armored car. For the most part, however, their role was purely military. Because of their great expense, however, galleys were not kept on active service. Instead, kings and city-states built specialized shipyards and storage yards -- the Arsenal of Venice was the most famous -- where galleys were built, and laid up when not in use. In addition, during the Italian Renaissance, just as mercenary condottieri operated armies, hiring out to the highest bidder, there were also naval condottieri who provided galley s
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Approximate Word count = 2855
Approximate Pages = 11 (250 words per page)

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