Gunboat
A gunboat is a small watercraft armed with one or more guns for the purpose of bombarding coastal targets or harassing larger warships. In the 18th century, European naval forces like the Royal Navy, the Spanish Navy, French Navy, and the Portuguese Navy all included gunboats in their fleets to support their capital ships.[1][2][3]
Description
From the War of Spanish Succession to the Seven Years' War and the American Revolutionary War, the gunboat was used as a quick response attack vessel by not only the navies but civilian operators as well. This was due to its extremely simple design that required very little crew. This lightly armed vessel provided ample speed and a quick rate of fire, with the trade-off being that it bore next-to-no armor whatsoever. Each ship was composed of a single mast and a sleek, low hull, and was capable of fielding just two frontal guns, capable of shooting both the standard round shot and the wide-spray grapeshot.[1][2][3]
Due to their sparse protection and tiny profile, gunboats were highly vulnerable to ramming by larger vessels like frigates, brigs, or Men O' War, almost always being instantly rent asunder by their bows. Single shots from swivel guns would be enough to destroy any gunboat of this era. Their sole function was to act as the naval equivalent of skirmishers, carrying little to no cargo other than ammunition. While fragile and weak in firepower, a common tactic by navies in an age where watercraft were made from wood was to convert these gunboats into fireships which were then sent careening into large enemy ships in the hope of setting them aflame.[1][2][3]
History
In June 1716, the French pirate Alonzo Batilla was given command of a gunboat, the Serpent, by Captain Olivier Levasseur, after the latter saved him and Jumao from John Barnes' captivity.[4] Alonzo and Jumao used the Serpent for a time, until eventually replacing it with a schooner called the Wanderer, which they seized from the Royal Navy.[5]
In February 1725, the Dutch East India Company navigator John Young defected from the company to rescue the British Assassin Edward Kenway from an ambush by Shimazu clan ninja at Macau's harbor, and stole a gunboat, using its cannon to dispatch Edward's assailants.[6] John subsequently kept the ship, using it several times to sail Edward from Zhang's village, where they had both taken refuge, to Macau and back.[7][8][9][10] At one point, Edward and John also used the gunboat to thwart a pirate attack on Lee Huiyin's merchant fleet.[11]
Following the events that transpired at Sun's floating gambling hall, John stole another gunboat to save Edward, Shimazu Saito, and Xialun Qing from Admiral Jeong's fleet, which had destroyed the gambling ship. With the help of the Zhang Wei Union's flagship Fenghuang, which forced Jeong's fleet to retreat, the group ultimately escaped to safety.[12]
Notable gunboats
Appearances
- Assassin's Creed III (first appearance)
- Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag
- Assassin's Creed: Pirates
- Assassin's Creed: Rogue
- Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Assassin's Creed III
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Assassin's Creed: Rogue
- ↑ Assassin's Creed: Pirates – Prologue
- ↑ Assassin's Creed: Pirates – A Legend is Born
- ↑ Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple – Episode 5
- ↑ Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple – Episode 7
- ↑ Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple – Episode 9
- ↑ Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple – Episode 10
- ↑ Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple – Episode 12
- ↑ Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple – Episode 15
- ↑ Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple – Episode 39
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