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Italian Galleass

italian_galleass

The galleass was an adaptation of the large merchant galley to counter the increasing use of man-of-war. Larger than the galley, the galleass had about 32 oar pairs, each oar manned by up to five men. As an answer to the men-of-war's armament and higher sides, the galleass had forecastles and aftcastles and gun decks above the rowers. This extra weight meant that they also had to rely more on sails, and were slower and less maneuverable compared to galleys. Like the galley, the galleass went out of regular use with the introduction of more advanced oceangoing men-of-war, but remained useful in shallow waters until the 18th century.

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Italian GalleassUnit Type