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HMS Polychrest
HMS ''Polychrest'' is a fictional naval vessel from Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey–Maturin series of historical novels about the Royal Navy during the Napoleonic Wars. The ship features in the second book in the series, '' Post Captain'', and is a very unconventional sloop-of-war with sharp ends at both bow and stern, no tumblehome (inward curvature at the top of the hull), drop keels (similar to daggerboards on some modern sail boats), and the remnants of the launching system for an unsuccessful secret weapon (a giant rocket). The physical form of ''Polychrest'' (except for the secret weapon) was taken from the real ''Dart'' class of sloops. The sliding keels, originally designed by Captain John Schank, were employed upon a number of small Royal Navy vessels around this period, although problems with leaking centerboard cases perhaps discouraged wider experimentation. Unlike ''Polychrest'' with her extraordinary leeway and propensity for missing stays, the real ''Dart'' an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Patrick O'Brian
Patrick O'Brian, Order of the British Empire, CBE (12 December 1914 – 2 January 2000), born Richard Patrick Russ, was an English novelist and translator, best known for his Aubrey–Maturin series of sea novels set in the Royal Navy during the Napoleonic Wars, and centred on the friendship of the English naval captain Jack Aubrey and the Irish–Catalan physician Stephen Maturin. The 20-novel series, the first of which is ''Master and Commander'', is known for its well-researched and highly detailed portrayal of early 19th-century life, as well as its authentic and evocative language. A partially finished 21st novel in the series was published posthumously containing facing pages of handwriting and typescript. O'Brian wrote a number of other novels and short stories, most of which were published before he achieved success with the Aubrey–Maturin series. He also translated works from French to English, and wrote biographies of Joseph Banks: A Life, Joseph Banks and Picasso. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tack (sailing)
A tack is a nautical term both for the lower, windward corner of a sail and, ''separately'', for the windward side of a sailing craft (side from which the wind is coming while under way—the starboard or port tack. Generally, a boat is on a starboard tack if the wind is coming over the starboard (right) side of boat with sails on port (left) side. Similarly, a boat is on a port tack if the wind is coming over the port (left) side of boat. However, confusion can result when a boat is on a 'run', with the wind coming directly from astern and the mainsail and jib/genoa are on opposite sides of the vessel (wing-on-wing). Therefore, the windward side is defined as the side opposite to that on which the mainsail is being carried. On a starboard tack the mainsail is carried on the port side. On a port tack the mainsail is carried on the starboard side. It is the position of the mainsail that determines the tack. Sail corner The tack is the corner on a fore-and-aft sail where the ''luf ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
List Of Fictional Ships
This list of fictional ships lists all manner of artificial vehicles supported by water, which are either the subject of, or an important element of, a notable work of fiction. Anime and manga * ''Advenna Avis'' – ''Baccano!'' * ''Alexandria'' – aircraft carrier in ''Genocyber'' * SS ''Anne'' – ocean liner in ''Pokémon'' * ''Argo'' (made from the wreck of the Japanese battleship Yamato) - space battleship in ''Star Blazers'' * ''Argonaut'' – '' Heroic Age'' *''Arcadia'' – Harlock's ship from the Japanese series ''Harlock Saga'' * ''Asuka II'' (CVN-99) – United Nations (formerly with Japan Maritime Self Defense Force) aircraft carrier from ''Macross Zero'' * ''Bebop'' – '' Cowboy Bebop'' * ''Blue'' – ''Blue Drop'' * ''Blue 6'', ''Shang 9'' – '' Blue Submarine No. 6'' * RMS ''Campania'' – (In anime, the ship is based on the real-life ocean liners the RMS Titanic and the RMS Majestic, but in the manga, the sh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
List Of Ship Names Of The Royal Navy
This is an alphabetical list of the ''names'' of all ships that have been in service with the Royal Navy, or with predecessor fleets formally in the service of the Kingdom of England or the Commonwealth of England. The list also includes fictional vessels which have prominently featured in literature about the Royal Navy. Names are traditionally re-used over the years, and have been carried by more than one ship. Altogether over 13,000 ships have been in service with the Royal Navy.Colledge and Warlow (2006) ''Page viii''. Unlike many other naval services, the Royal Navy designates certain types of shore establishment (e.g. barracks, naval air stations and training establishments) as "ships" and names them accordingly. These establishments are often referred to in service slang as ''stone frigates''. Lists of ship names Due to the large number of names the list has been split into smaller lists: Alphabetical *List of ship names of the Royal Navy (A) *List of ship names o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
HMS Surprise (1796)
HMS ''Surprise'' was the name the Royal Navy gave to the French Navy's corvette ''Unité'' after ''Unité''s capture in 1796. ''Unité'' was launched on 16 February 1794. ''Surprise'' gained fame in 1799 for the recapture of . In 1802 ''Surprise'' was sold out of the service. Historical fiction author Patrick O'Brian set many of his Aubrey–Maturin series aboard HMS ''Surprise'', including the 2003 film. Construction Pierre-Alexandre Forfait designed ''Unité'', the name ship for a class of corvette. Although the French initially rated ''Unité'' as a corvette, the ships of her class bridged a gap between smaller warships and frigates, and at various times were rated as frigates. French service On 20 March 1794, lieutenant de vaisseau Jean le Drézénec, who was 41 years old and had entered the naval service soon after the revolution from a career in the merchant service, arrived to take command of ''Unité''. He supervised the fitting out of the ship, and found the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
HMS Sophie
Three vessels of the British Royal Navy have borne the name ''Sophie'': * was a French merchantman of 802 tons ( bm) that captured in 1782. The Royal Navy took her into service as a sixth rate, but then sold her in 1784. * HMS ''Sophie'' (1798) was the French slaver ''Sophie'' launched in 1790 that became a privateer and that the French Navy requisitioned in 1794. captured her in 1798. The Royal Navy took her into service. It broke her up in 1809. * was a launched in 1809. The Royal Navy sold her in the Far East in 1825. See also * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sophie Royal Navy ship names ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Howitzer
A howitzer () is a long- ranged weapon, falling between a cannon (also known as an artillery gun in the United States), which fires shells at flat trajectories, and a mortar, which fires at high angles of ascent and descent. Howitzers, like other artillery equipment, are usually organized in a group called a battery. Howitzers, together with long-barreled guns, mortars, and rocket artillery, are the four basic types of modern artillery. Mortars fire at angles of elevation greater than 45°, and are useful for mountain warfare because the projectile could go over obstacles. Cannons fire at low angles of elevation (<45°), and the projectile lands much faster at its target than it would in the case of a mortar. But the cannon is not useful if there is an obstacle like a hill/wall in front of its target. Etymology The English word ''howitzer'' comes from the Czech word , from , 'crowd', and is in turn a borrowing from the Middle High German word or (mode ...[...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
HMS Arrow (1796)
was a sloop-of-war in the Royal Navy that the Admiralty purchased in 1796. during the French Revolutionary Wars she participated in many actions, including one that resulted in her crew qualifying for the Naval General Service Medal. On 3 February 1805 she and were escorting a convoy from Malta to England when they encountered two French frigates. ''Arrow'' and ''Acheron'' were able to save the majority of the vessels of the convoy by their resistance before they were compelled to strike. ''Arrow'' sank almost immediately after surrendering, and ''Acheron'' was so badly damaged that the French burnt her. Design ''Arrow'' and her sister ship ''Dart'' were "Two experimental vessels designed by Samuel Bentham, Esq., at that time inspector-general of his majesty's naval works. They were in shape much sharper than vessels of war in general, and projected or raked forward, at each end like a wherry. Their breadth increased from the water-line upwards ; whereby it was considered th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
HMS Dart (1796)
HMS ''Dart'' was one of two sloops built to an experimental design by Sir Samuel Bentham and launched in 1796. She served the Royal Navy during the French Revolutionary wars and the early part of the Napoleonic wars before being sold in 1809 for breaking up. Design Hobbs & Hellyer built six vessels to Bentham's design. ''Dart'' was the second of a two-vessel class of vessels that the Royal Navy classed as sloops, and she and her classmate were the largest of the six vessels. The design featured a large breadth-to-length ratio, structural bulkheads, and sliding keels. The vessels were also virtually double-ended. French Revolutionary Wars ''Dart'' was commissioned in August 1796 under Commander Richard Raggett. On 8 May 1798 ''Dart'' participated in Admiral Home Popham's expedition to Ostend to destroy the sluice gates of the Bruge canal. The expedition landed 1,300 British Army soldiers under the command of Major General Coote. The troops burnt the ships in the harbour a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John Schank
Admiral John Schank (6 February 1823) was an officer of the British Royal Navy known for his skill in ship construction and mechanical design. Biography He was the son of Alexander Schank of Castlerig, Fife, Scotland. He entered the Royal Navy when young. His remarkable skills at mechanical design earned him the nickname "Old Purchase" following his design and construction of a cot fitted with pulleys that allowed it to be adjusted by the person lying in it. As a lieutenant in 1776, he was placed in charge of assembling ships to battle the American Revolutionaries on Lake Champlain. In less than six weeks, he constructed , which he then commanded as part of a fleet that defeated General Benedict Arnold's fleet in October 1776. His talents as an engineer were applied in General John Burgoyne's expedition to the building of floating bridges. After being made a captain in 1783, he brought before the Admiralty his design for ships with a sliding keel which allowed navigation of sh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aubrey–Maturin Series
The Aubrey–Maturin series is a sequence of nautical historical novels—20 completed and one unfinished—by English author Patrick O'Brian, set during the Napoleonic Wars and centring on the friendship between Captain Jack Aubrey of the Royal Navy and his ship's surgeon Stephen Maturin, a physician, natural philosopher, and intelligence agent. The first novel, ''Master and Commander'', was published in 1969 and the last finished novel in 1999. The 21st novel of the series, left unfinished at O'Brian's death in 2000, appeared in print in late 2004. The series received considerable international acclaim, and most of the novels reached ''The New York Times'' Best Seller list. These novels comprise the heart of the canon of an author often compared to Jane Austen, C. S. Forester and other British authors central to English literature. The 2003 film '' Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World'' drew from five books in the series. Russell Crowe played the role of Jack Aubr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
