From the ancient Greek words "tria", which means "three", and "hereso" - "row" the name "triera" appeared. This is a special type of warship, which played an important role in the formation of not only shipbuilding in the Mediterranean, but also the borders of many states.
What did the ship look like
Few of today's children guess what the ancient Greek triera was. This rarely happens in history, since attention is focused on the course and outcome of the battle, and not on the guns. However, it was thanks to this ship that the Greeks won many victories to us by neighboring countries. So, trireme is a ship up to 40 meters long and up to 6 wide. A pointed beam was mounted on the nose - a ram, which served as a combat weapon during the offensive. Often a metal tip was put on it, which was forged in the shape of a bird or animal. 200 crew members, including 62 transits (rowers of the upper row), 54 zigits and 56 talamites (rowers of the middle and lower rows, respectively) - it was thanks to these people that the triera sailed. This in ancient Greece was the main power of the fleet, commanded by a triarch (in the modern version - the captain). Also on board were warriors and sailors.
Ship analogs
The Romans were also proud of the identical ship, and its name was not much different from the Hellenic - “trireme”. But the Roman ship was more equipped and, as it seemed to many, more advanced. He could boast of having a sailboat and a boarding raven. In addition, a tower was erected on the deck where the arrows were located, and a structure was built for throwing weights. Compared to such a “giant,” it seemed that trireme was just a huge and useless dish, if not one but. The Greek ship was second to none in speed. The reason is obvious - the lack of excessive military equipment and a relatively small crew made it maneuverable and fast.
To work, rowers!
According to some sources, Hellenic triremes sometimes reached a speed of 12 knots, and often their acceleration to the maximum figure took less than a minute. Such results were possible thanks to a special rowing technique and the arrangement of oars. The ports that were made for oars in the bottom row came very close to the water. With a small storm, they could be completely flooded. Therefore, the main task of the thalamite rowers, in addition to the main work, was to “seal” the openings with leather plaster on time. Portals for oars at the upper two rows were cut above the waterline, because the rowers performed their duties without fear of water. Each row had its own height, but at the same time all 170 oars of the ship were equal - 4.5 meters each. They entered the water at various angles, providing maximum speed. Before going to sea, the flute player set the rhythm for the entire crew.
Fighting qualities
In the ancient period, the Mediterranean countries did not have passenger liners, because, like all other units of the fleet, the triera is a warship. His main weapon was a sharpened spire ram. It was used to strike enemy ships on oars or on board. Thanks to the ram, the Greeks often attacked first, and after the first strike, in order not to get stuck in the wreckage of an enemy vessel, they used the following maneuver. It was called a “swim” or “glancing blow." Sailing close to the board of the enemy, all the trireme rowers pulled in the oars. The spire caused significant damage to the oars of the enemy crew, thereby immobilizing the entire ship. After that, it was already possible to attack fully without fear of enemy maneuverability.
Trier Features
We have already said above that the trireme is a sailless vessel, the movement of which is provided by a huge number of rowers. But for the sake of saving potential and team strength, the ship was equipped with removable mast structures. In the absence of a battle, when it was possible to catch a fair wind, one or two masts were mounted on the deck. The main one was in the center of the vessel, always exhibited directly and secured with tension ropes. If you mounted the second, then its place was in the bow of the ship. Such a mast was installed obliquely, resting it on an acrostol.
Additional function of the vessel
In 90 percent of cases, the triers participated in naval battles, but sometimes acted as passenger and cargo liners. Before or after land battles, many warriors needed sea transportation, and long roomy triremes always came to the rescue. True, they were slightly modernized, increasing the height of the bulwark and strengthening the deck. Most often, horses were driven as cargo. For them, in addition to strengthening the deck, they mounted wide gangways.
The ancient Greeks did not put a deep meaning in the meaning of the word “triera,” they simply named this ship based on its structure and qualities. By the 5th century BC, the fleet had over 400 such ships, which were built at the expense of wealthy Athenians. They also became triarchs, or captains, carefully selecting people for their team, including rowers. After the war ended, the triremes were distilled to Piraeus, where they expected their next exit into great waters, and the crew disbanded.