What is a galley? Definition

Many people have heard the word "galley". Where did it come from, what kinds of galleys are known, what was so special about these ships, that they were built even in tsarist Russia? Let's find the answers to all these questions.

What is a galley?

This word refers to a special type of sea-going vessel, on which oars were used as the driving force. Moreover, the galleys also had sails, usually triangular in shape.

Especially popular such ships used in pirates and military sailors. While other types of vessels were more often used for trade .

The etymology of the word "galley"

The name "galley" was first recorded by the Greeks. They had such ships called γαλέη, which later gave rise to the Latin term galea.

After the Romans, this name fell into virtually all European languages, where it has survived to this day. Thanks to which of them the term "galley" came into the Russian language is unknown. Judging by the spelling, after Latin, it was borrowed by the Italian (galera), and after either through the Polish (galera), or through the German (Galeere), or through the French (galère) got into Russian.

It is unambiguously known that this noun could not be borrowed from the English language, because in it it lost the letter "p" - turning into a galley, which could not but be reflected in the Russian spelling.

A little bit about the history of galleys

What is the galley, and also the origin of this term has already been discussed above. Now we should pay attention to the history of this type of ship.

Due to the fact that in the old days the ships were built of wood, to this day few exhibits have been preserved, with the help of which it is possible to determine exactly which ships were used in the era of the ancient world. Despite this, scientists suggest that on ships similar to galleys, sailors actively sailed in the days of Ancient Egypt and Phenicia.

Much more information has been preserved about the use of these vessels in ancient Greece. It is commonly believed that the galleys in this state served as warships as far back as 800 BC. After the Greeks fashion for such ships was adopted by the Romans, and after them all the countries that had access to the Mediterranean.

Apart from the Greeks, especially famous for the use of the Turkish galleys. Thanks to the high speed and maneuverability of such ships, they for many centuries could retain the primacy of military power.

In the Russian Empire, the first galleys appeared in the second half of the 17th century. Creation of their drawings and construction was due to the influence of Peter I. He achieved that ships of this type became an integral attribute in the naval arsenal of the empire until the end of the XVIII century. They helped in the future Russian-Turkish wars. But later they were superseded by vessels with steam engines.

What kinds of galleys existed in the old days?

What are the galleys, we found out. Now we learn what kinds of these ships existed:

• Galley-bastards were less fast and maneuverable. But because of their voluminous body, they contained more cargo than on conventional warships. Due to this property, such merchants used to float on such galleys from the time of the Ancient World.
• Censer galleys were real combat ships. They were less capacious, but more speedy. Such ships were actively used for combat operations. In addition, such ships were a favorite means of transportation of pirates.

Also, the galleys are divided into three types according to the number of benches for rowers.

• Brigantines numbered eight.
• Galeots - from fourteen to twenty.
• Fusts - from eighteen to twenty-two.

The hard life of oarsmen on the galleys: truth or fiction

As the main driving element of the galleys were the oars, it is worth paying attention to who was sitting on them. According to the common misconception, every rower on the galley is a slave, cruelly tortured by a supervisor. In fact, in different countries and at different times, rowers were treated differently.

So in the days of Ancient Greece and the Roman Empire on warships, oarsmen were most often specially trained soldiers. Their work was respected and paid well.

The same practice was also applied during the Middle Ages. After all, it was necessary to sail on the ship for a long time and it was dangerous. Therefore, those who swam in the galleys preferred to trust their lives to professional rowers. And they, in turn, were interested in ensuring that their employers safely swam to the goal and paid for their work.

But closer to the beginning of the 17th century, when the galleys gradually began to be replaced by new more progressive types of ships, a tradition appeared to be used as rowers - convicts and slaves. And on Christian ships rowing captured Muslims, and the followers of the Prophet Muhammad turned into slaves-oarsmen of Orthodox and Catholics.

With the discovery of America and the beginning of the era of trade by blacks, slaves from Africa began to be used more often on galley.

At the same time, everyone at all times treated oarsmen much better than slaves on land. Since the survival of the ship's crew depended on them, they were fed enough, watched for their health and given time for rest. After all, in the case of the death of most of them, the crew itself would have to sit on the oars.

It is worth noting that many convicts preferred to be more rowers on the galleys than just sitting in jail. After all, captains of ships often treated them much better than jailers.

Modern "galleys"

In the distant past there were galleys. Today they can be found only in museums. However, in Turkey there is a very popular holiday destination, whose name is consonant with the word "galley". Speech ideas about the five-star hotel Galeri Resort ("Galeri Resort"), located on the Mediterranean coast (the city of Alanya). Despite the notorious 5 stars, this institution is still inferior to many Mediterranean resorts located in other countries.

If financial possibilities do not allow you to spend a vacation in the five-star Galeri Resort, you can find another hotel in Alanya - Galeri 4, for example. He is located in the same city and, although he is only one star behind the aforementioned Galeri Resort 5, is a great place to relax. It will be affordable for most domestic tourists.

In addition to the names of Turkish hotels, consonant with the word "galley" is the name of the whole collection of grades of dahlias - "Galeri" (Gallery). This series consists of 17 varieties. Each of them is named after a famous artist, for example Gallery Pablo or Gallery Rembrandt. A feature of the varieties of "Galeri" is that they are not only very beautiful, but also resistant to weather adversity.