Caribbean Tales - Ships - Brigantine
The Brigantine
was more of a captain's ship for a pirate. This 150 ton, 80 foot vessel could
carry around 100 pirates mounting 10 cannons and a cargo space about twice
as big as the sloop. She had two masts. Her main sail could be fitted with
either square sails that were best in quartering wind, or fore-and-aft sails
for sailing windward. This ship was the clear choice for battle or combat
rather than the quick, hit and run type piracy tactics that were practiced
with the sloops and schooners. Also keep in mind that pirates could not build
a ship to order like the merchants and military did. They had to be opportunists
and having looted a ship, the pirates would either burn the vessel, let it
go on it's way, set it adrift, or take the ship over for their own use. Most
pirate ships were no more then captured vessels taken as prizes and then altered
to suit the pirates needs.
The brigantine was originally a small ship carrying both sails and oars 6-16 oars on each side. It was a favorite of Mediterranean pirates from whence it got its name. Italian word brigantino meant... brigand's ship. Later the ship referred to a two-masted sailing ship with its fore-mast square-rigged and fore-and-aft sails on its main mast. The word eventually was split into brig and brigantines. Each word meaning a different class of ship. The brig was reserved for a re-rigged ship with much greater sailing power.