The sail training ship Amerigo Vespucci

24 January 2015 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: Tall ships, Yacht of the Month Reading Time:  6 minutes

Americo Vespucio in Venice © Celio Maielo/GFDL

Americo Vespucio in Venice © Celio Maielo/GFDL

The Amerigo Vespucci is a tall ship of the Marina Militare, named after the explorer Amerigo Vespucci. Its home port is Livorno in Tuscany, and it is in use as a training ship. In 1925, the Regia Marina ordered two school ships to a design by General Lieutenant Francesco Rotundi of the Italian Navy Engineering Corps, inspired by the style of large late 18th century 74-cannon ships of the line (like the neapolitan ship “Monarca”). The first, the Cristoforo Colombo, was put into service in 1928 and was used by the Italian Navy until 1943. After World War II, this ship was handed over to the USSR as part of the war reparations and was shortly afterwards decommissioned. The second ship was the Amerigo Vespucci, built in 1930 at the (formerly Royal) Naval Shipyard of Castellammare di Stabia (Naples). She was launched on February 22, 1931, and put into service in July of that year.   read more…

Lady Washington

14 January 2015 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Tall ships Reading Time:  7 minutes

Lady Washington on Morro Bay © flickr.com - Michael L. Baird/cc-by-2.0

Lady Washington on Morro Bay © flickr.com – Michael L. Baird/cc-by-2.0

Lady Washington is a ship name that is shared by at least 4 different small wooden merchant sailing vessels during two different time periods. The original sailed for about 10 years in the 18th century. A somewhat updated modern replica was created in 1989. Lady Washington has appeared in various films, portraying HMS Interceptor in the film Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl and the brig Enterprise, a namesake of the Starship Enterprise, on the holodeck in Star Trek Generations.   read more…

The museum ship Balclutha

23 November 2014 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: Tall ships, Museums, Exhibitions, San Francisco Bay Area, Yacht of the Month Reading Time:  7 minutes

Historic ships of the San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park moored at Hyde Street Pier in Aquatic Park, with Alcatraz and Angel Island in the background © chris j wood/cc-by-sa-3.0

Historic ships of the San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park moored at Hyde Street Pier in Aquatic Park, with Alcatraz and Angel Island in the background © chris j wood/cc-by-sa-3.0

Balclutha, also known as Star of Alaska, Pacific Queen, or Sailing Ship Balclutha, is a steel-hulled full rigged ship that was built in 1886. She is the only square rigged ship left in the San Francisco Bay area and is representative of several different commercial ventures, including lumber, salmon, and grain. Balclutha was built in 1886 by Charles Connell & Co. Ltd., of Glasgow, for Robert McMillan, of Dumbarton. Her namesake is said to be the eponymous town of Balclutha, New Zealand, but her name can also refer to her first homeport, Glasgow, which is a “City on the Clyde” – the meaning of her name derived from the Gaelic Baile Chluaidh.   read more…

The four-masted barque Sedov

1 September 2014 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: Tall ships, Yacht of the Month Reading Time:  8 minutes

© Żeglarz

© Żeglarz

The STS Sedov, formerly the Magdalene Vinnen II (1921–1936) and the Kommodore Johnsen (–1948), is a 4-masted steel barque that for almost 80 years was the largest traditional sailing ship in operation. Today, it’s the second larges after Royal Clipper. Originally built as a German cargo ship, the Sedov is today a sail training vessel. She participates regularly in the big maritime international events as a privileged host and has also been a regular participant in The Tall Ships’ Races.   read more…

The sail training ship Danmark

1 August 2014 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: Tall ships, Yacht of the Month Reading Time:  6 minutes

Danmark - Tall Ships Races 2012 © flickr.com - Miguel Mendez/cc-by-2.0

Danmark – Tall Ships Races 2012 © flickr.com – Miguel Mendez/cc-by-2.0

The Danmark is a full-rigged ship owned by the Danish Maritime Authority and based at the Maritime Training and Education Centre in Frederikshavn. Danmark is 252 feet (77 m) in overall length with a beam of 32 feet (9.8 m) and a depth of 17 feet (5.2 m), with a gross tonnage of 790 tons. She was designed for a crew complement of 120 but in a 1959 refit this was reduced to 80.   read more…

The sail training ship Christian Radich

1 December 2013 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: Tall ships, Yacht of the Month Reading Time:  6 minutes

Christian Radich in Trondheim © flickr.com - beagle84/cc-by-sa-2.0

Christian Radich in Trondheim © flickr.com – beagle84/cc-by-sa-2.0

Christian Radich is a Norwegian full-rigged ship, named after a Norwegian shipowner. The vessel was built at Framnæs shipyard in Sandefjord, Norway, and was delivered on 17 June 1937. The owner was The Christian Radich Sail Training Foundation established by a grant from an officer of that name. The homeport is Oslo.   read more…

The HM barque Endeavour

1 September 2013 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: Tall ships, Museums, Exhibitions, Yacht of the Month Reading Time:  6 minutes

Captain Cook's ship 'HM Bark Endeavour' leaving Whitby Harbour © geograph.org.uk - colin f m smith/cc-by-sa-2.0

Captain Cook’s ship ‘HM Bark Endeavour’ leaving Whitby Harbour © geograph.org.uk – colin f m smith/cc-by-sa-2.0

HMS Endeavour, also known as HM Bark Endeavour, was a British Royal Navy research vessel that Lieutenant James Cook commanded on his first voyage of discovery, to Australia and New Zealand from 1769 to 1771. She was launched in 1764 as the collier Earl of Pembroke, and the Navy purchased her in 1768 for a scientific mission to the Pacific Ocean and to explore the seas for the surmised Terra Australis Incognita or “unknown southern land”. The Navy renamed and commissioned her as His Majesty’s Bark the Endeavour.   read more…

The sail training ship USCGC Eagle

1 May 2013 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: Tall ships, Yacht of the Month Reading Time:  3 minutes

© USCG - Brown, Telfair H. PA1

© USCG – Brown, Telfair H. PA1

The USCGC Eagle is a 295-foot (90 m) barque used as a training cutter for future officers of the United States Coast Guard. She is the only active commissioned sailing vessel in American military service. She is the seventh U.S. Navy or Coast Guard ship to bear the name in a line dating back to 1792. Each summer, Eagle conducts cruises with cadets from her homeport at the United States Coast Guard Academy in New London (Connecticut) and candidates from the Officer Candidate School for periods ranging from a week to two months. These cruises fulfill multiple roles; the primary mission is training the cadets and officer candidates, but the ship also performs a public relations role. Often, Eagle makes calls at foreign ports as a goodwill ambassador.   read more…

The Spanish sail training ship Juan Sebastian de Elcano

1 January 2013 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: Tall ships, Yacht of the Month Reading Time:  4 minutes

Museo Naval in Sevilla © Lobillo

Museo Naval in Sevilla © Lobillo

The Juan Sebastián de Elcano is a training ship for the Royal Spanish Navy. She is a four-masted topsail, steel-hulled schooner. At 113 metres (370 feet) long, she is the third-largest Tall Ship in the world.   read more…

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