Caravel
What was the primary use of caravels in the 15th to 17th century?
How did the caravel contribute to Portuguese exploration?
What was the navigation strategy known as volta do mar?
What were the typical features of a caravel?
Why did caravels decline in favor of carracks and galleons?
Caravel, a light, highly maneuverable sailing ship of the 15th, 16th, and 17th centuries in Europe, much used by the Spanish and Portuguese for long voyages. The caravel was unique in particular for its shallow hull and for its different sail configurations, specifically featuring either triangular lateen sails (for tacking against the wind) or a combination of lateen and square sails (for sailing downwind). These features made it especially well suited to coastal fishing as well as exploration.
Role in exploration
Caravels played a key part in the European exploration of the Atlantic and the western coast of Africa. The ship is thought to have been developed by the Portuguese for the purpose of exploring Africa’s coastal regions, an endeavor encouraged by Prince Henry the Navigator. In particular, the shallow draft and ease of handling of the caravel enabled the approach and navigation of unfamiliar coastlines, bays, and river outlets—places where larger vessels were unable to sail. As Portuguese explorers sailed south, they mapped new sea routes along western Africa’s coastline and established trading posts. Their voyages ultimately facilitated the trade of gold, ivory, and enslaved Africans.
Because the caravel’s chief excellence lay in its capacity for sailing to windward (into the wind), it allowed Portuguese sailors to return home swiftly despite opposing winds and water currents. Indeed, on the return trip to Europe, instead of battling currents directly along the African coastline, Portuguese sailors developed a navigational strategy known as volta do mar (“turn of the sea”), in which sailing westward into the open ocean took them to winds capable of carrying them back in the direction of Europe, greatly speeding their return journey. In this way, the caravel contributed to the growing knowledge of Atlantic wind and current systems acquired during maritime exploration in the 15th and 16th centuries, permitting increasingly ambitious voyages.
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Caravels eventually were used in voyages of greater distance, including journeys across the Atlantic. Two of the three ships in which Christopher Columbus made his historic voyage in 1492 were caravels, the Niña and the Pinta. These vessels proved especially useful for navigating the unfamiliar island networks of the Caribbean.
Sail plan
The design of caravels underwent changes over the years, but a typical caravel of the late 15th century may be described as a broad-beamed vessel, about 75 feet (23 meters) in length. The typical caravel had two or three pole masts, lateen-rigged; such vessels were referred to as caravelas latinas.
The later caravela redonda combined square and lateen sails and was either three-masted or four-masted. In ships with three masts, the main mast and the forward mast were equipped with square sails, while the mizzenmast (aft mast) typically was lateen-rigged; the square sails allowed for running before the wind. Ships with four masts were further equipped with a bonaventure mizzen, which was situated near the stern and was rigged with a lateen sail. Caravels were usually built with a double tower at the stern (the aftercastle, or sterncastle) and a single tower in the bow (the forecastle).
Speed and maneuverability
The caravel was capable of remarkable speed, owing to several factors, including its light weight, hull construction, and sail plan. Weighing generally between 50 and 80 tons, caravels were much lighter than carracks, the other type of exploration ship commonly used at the time. Even later caravels, some of which weighed as much as 150–200 tons, were considered light. Caravels also were often significantly smaller and lighter than the Spanish galleons of the 16th century.
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The caravel’s speed, however, was primarily a function of its hull, which featured a unique plank layout, wherein planks were placed edge to edge, as opposed to overlapping with one another, thereby producing a smooth surface that allowed the vessel to move through water with less friction than other types of ships. The adjustable rigging of the caravel further gave sailors the ability to quickly adjust the sails to match shifting weather conditions, and thus the ship could maintain momentum and speed over the course of long voyages.
The hull of the caravel also was shallow, being about 5.5–6.5 feet (1.7–2.0 meters) deep—much less than that of other ships. This design, along with its rigging, rendered the ship very maneuverable, allowing it to be sailed near to coastlines, into waters that larger ships were unable to navigate safely.
Decline and legacy
In the 16th century the caravel slowly lost favor to the carrack and the galleon, both of which possessed more room for cargo and passengers and were better equipped for battle. Caravels remained in use, primarily for coastal exploration and fishing, into the 17th century.
The name caravel persisted despite the vessel’s decline, rising primarily as a symbol of exploration and history. For instance, it sometimes was applied to a type of Turkish man-of-war, a kind of sailing warship. Into the 20th century in France, the term caravelle was applied to fishing boats used along the French coast. The same name was given to a model of passenger van introduced by German automobile manufacturer Volkswagen AG in 1979.