Santa María was the flagship of Christopher Columbus's first expedition to America. She was a nau (carrack) with a single deck and three masts, launched in 1460. She was a modest-sized merchant vessel not intended for exploration. She got wrecked on the return trip to Spain, on 24 December (1492) at Haiti. Her nickname was La Gallega after the Spanish province where she was built.
La Pinta was the fastest of the three ships used by Christopher Columbus in his first expedition across the Atlantic in 1492. She was a caravel smaller than Santa Maria. La Pinta was not the ship's actual name only a nickname, meaning the spotted one or the painted one. Her actual name is unknown.
Zeehaen was a Dutch fluyt in the service of the Dutch East India Company, launched in 1639. She was one of the two ships used by the explorer Abel Tasman. The Zeehaen left Holland in 1640 for Cambodia. In 1642 she and the Heemskerck were put under the command of Abel Tasman and sailed from Batavia (Jakarta) to explore the northern part of Terra Australis. During this expedition he discovered Tasmania and New Zealand.
Roland von Bremen is replica of a cog from 14th century found in the Weser river in Germany. The Bremen cog, as the remains are called, has never sailed out and sank while it was still under construction possibly due to a storm flood. The Bremen cog had one mast and was square-rigged, with a carvel-built bottom and clinch-built sides.
Ark was a 400-ton English merchant ship launched in c. 1630. She was hired by Cecil Calvert to bring English colonists to the new colony of Maryland. Ark set off from Isle of Wight accompanied by a pinnace Dove on 22nd November 1633. They arrived at the site of the new colony on March 25, 1634. In the summer 1634 Ark returned to England.
The representative of galere da mercato (merchantman galleys) which were built in Venice from the first half of the 14th century. They sailed in convoys and were defended by archers and slingsmen.
Griffen or Gribshunden was a Danish warship, the flagship of John, King of Denmark. Griffen served as the king's flagship since 1486. She caught fire near the port of Ronneby, Sweden and sank in 1495. The wreck was discovered in 1970 but the excavation started in 2001.
The ship was originally built in France under the name Pierre de la Rochelle. It arrived in Danzig (Gdańsk, Poland) with a cargo of sea salt in 1462. Here, after being struck by a lightning, it was rebuilt into a warship. It was the largest vessel with carvel planking in the Baltic region in the 15th century.
A hulk was a type of medieval ship, a technological predecessor of the carrack and caravel. The hulk was common mainly in the coastal region of Western Europe where it was used primarily as a river or canal boat.
São Miguel was a Portuguese vessel used as the supply ship of Vasco da Gama's fleet on his first voyage to India. It was a carrack of about 110 or 200 tons with Gonçalo Nunes as captain. The ship got damaged and was broken up near the Bay of São Brás, along the east coast of Africa on the way to India.
São Gabriel was the flagship of Vasco da Gama's armada on his first voyage to India in 1497-1499. The ship was constructed under the supervision of the explorer Bartolomeu Dias, who has reached Cape of Good Hope before. São Gabriel was a carrack with three masts and the tonnage of 90-120t. The ship endured the whole voyage and returned back to Portugal in August 1499.
Genoesse is named after the merchant ships used in the State of Genoa in the 16th and 17th century. If you have more information about this ship, please let us know by contacting our support.
Den Røde Løve was a ship of the Dano-Norwegian Army in service during the 17th century. She took part in the 1605 Hans Køning expedition to Greenland and the Lindenov expedition the next year.
The French ship La Pensée was used by the explorer Giovanni da Verrazzano on his first voyage to North America. He set out for the North American coast in 1508 in the company of captain Thomas Aubert. Verrazzano explored the region of Newfoundland and the St. Lawrence river in Canada.
The sister ship of São Gabriel which was constructed specifically for Vasco Da Gama's voyage to India in 1497. It was of similar dimensions as the São Gabriel. The vessel was burned at the coast of East Africa on the way back to Portugal. It became redundant due to the diminished crew.
Charles was a 44-gun second rank ship of the line of the English navy, built by Peter Pett I at Woolwich and launched in 1632. She was renamed to Liberty in 1649. She was wrecked a year later off Harwich.
Berrio was a caravel that was together with São Gabriel, São Rafael and São Miguel part of Vasco da Gama's fleet. The ship's name comes from the name of its owner Manuel de Berrio - a naval pilot from Lagos. Berrio was the smallest and swiftest ship of the convoy with a tonnage of 50t-90t. It was the first vessel from da Gama's fleet to return to Lisbon on July 10, 1499.
Vasa was a Swedish warship launched in 1627. She sank shortly after setting out on her maiden voyage in 1628. The ship was built on the order of the King of Sweden Gustav Adolf to be used in his military expansion. Upon completion she was one of the most powerfully armed vessels in the world. However, Vasa was dangerously unstable. This instability has caused her early sinking. Her wreck was recovered largely intact in 1961.
La Niña, originally named Santa Clara, was one of the three ships used by Columbus in his voyage to the West Indies in 1492 when he discovered the New World. She was a small caravel type vessel not intended for ocean travel. Nevertheless, she successfully completed the first voyage and returned to New World again in the next few expeditions.
Santa Anna was a carrack of the navy of the Knights Hospitaller, a medieval Catholic military order that preceded the contemporary Sovereign Military Order of Malta. Santa Anna was launched in Nice in 1522. She fought in the successful campaign of the Spanish fleet under Charles V against Tunis. Santa Anna was stripped and abandoned in 1540.
HMS Unicorn was a 46-gun second-rank ship of the line of the English Royal Navy, launched at Woolwich in 1634. She took part in all three Anglo-Dutch Wars. Unicorn was sold out of the navy in 1688.
La Dauphine was a French carrack that served as the flagship of the explorer Giovanni da Verrazzano on his expedition to the New World in 1524. Verrazzano was placed in charge of the expedition by the French king with the purpose of finding the Northwestern passage leading westward to China. Verrazzano explored the coast from Cape Fear heading North to Newfoundland and then returned on La Dauphine back to France.
HMS St George was a 42-gun great ship of the English Royal Navy, built by Andrew Burrell at Deptford and launched in 1622. She took part in the Battle of Santa Cruz de Tenerife in 1657. St George was hulked in 1687, and sank as a blockship in 1697.
Brederode was a ship of the navy of the United Provinces of the Netherlands, and the flagship of the Dutch fleet in the First Anglo-Dutch War. She was launched in 1644 in Rotterdam. After the end of the Anglo-Dutch Wars Brederode was send to Denmark to support them in the Northern Wars against Charles X of Sweden. She ran aground and burned in the Battle of the Sound in 1658.
One of the ships used by Amerigo Vespucci on his first voyage to the New World in 1497-1498. The other ships were San Antiago, Repertago, and the Girmand. Wegiz was a caravel with two lateen sails and one square rig.