Barque

In the 18th century, the British Royal Navy used the term Bark for a nondescript vessel which did not fit any of its usual categories. Thus, when on the advice of Captain James Cook, a collier was bought into the navy and converted for exploration she was called HM Bark Endeavour. She happened to be a ship-rigged sailing vessel with a plain bluff bow and a full stern with windows.

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By the end of the 18th century, however, the term barque, sometimes, particularly in America, spelled bark, came to refer to any vessel with a particular type of rig. This comprises three (or more) masts, fore and aft sails on the aftermost mast and square sails on all other masts. A well-preserved example of a commercial barque, built in 1878 is Falls of Clyde, now preserved as a museum ship in Honolulu. The United States Coast Guard still has an operational Barque, built in Germany in 1936 and captured as a war prize, the Eagle.

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Related rigs are brigantine (2 masts), barquentine (three or more masts, square-rigged on only the fore mast), and the sole instance of a vessel with 2 fore-and-aft rigged masts and 2 square-rigged (the Olympia).

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The advantage of these rigs was that they needed smaller (therefore cheaper) crews than a comparable ship or brig-rigged vessel. The ship rig tended therefore, to be retained for training ships.

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Throughout the period of sail, the word was used also as a shortening of the barca-longa of the Mediterranean Sea.

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Royal Navy: The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the "senior service" of the British armed services, being the oldest of its three branches. From approximately 1692 until World War II, the Royal Navy was the largest and most powerful navy in the world. The navy helped establish the United Kingdom as the domi...

James Cook: James Cook (October 27, 1728 – February 14, 1779) was a British explorer, navigator, and map maker. He made three voyages to the Pacific Ocean, in which its main shorelines were mapped. His most notable accomplishments were the discoveries of the east coast of Australia and the Hawaiian Island...

Collier: Collier may refer to:...

Barque related Images and Photos (experimental)

Barque Bleue a Alvor	The Barque Kilmeny	The Barque Annie Johnson	Barque on the River Hamme
The Barque 'Rival' (335 tons) off the Coast	Trois Mats Barque Belem	Clipper Barque 'Procymatia' Off Dover	The Barque "Undaunted" Off Ailsa Craig with Merchant Ships Beyond
A Three-Masted Barque and a Frigate in Open Seas 1781	The Barque Elizabeth Martin off the Skerries with South Stack and Carmel Head	US Coast Guard Ship the Barque Eagle	The Sun God Ra in His Solar Barque Protected by the Coils of a Serpent from the Tomb of Seti I