Square rig: Encyclopedia II - Square rig - Types of square rig

Square rig - Types of square rig

Square rig - Principally square rigged types

• A barque has three or more masts, with the aftermost entirely fore-and-aft rigged, while the fore, main and any others are square rigged.
• A brig has two masts, both square rigged.
• A full rigged ship has three or more masts, including a foremast, mainmast and mizzen, and all masts are square rigged.
• A sloop has only one mast.

All the above rigs normally carry a number of jibs and at least one spanker, and may also carry fore-and-aft staysails between the masts.

Square rig - Fore-and-aft rigs with some square rigged sails

• A barquentine has three or more masts, the fore square rigged, the main, mizzen and any others fore-and-aft rigged.
• A brigantine has two masts: A square rigged foremast and a fore-and-aft rigged mainmast.
• A square-topsail ketch carries one or more square-rigged topsails (commonly two, an upper and a lower topsail) on its mainmast, in addition to its mainsail, mizzen sail and jibs.
• A square-topsail schooner carries one or more square-rigged topsails on its foremast. This rig is often simply called a topsail schooner as topsails above the gaff-rigged sails are a standard part of the schooner rig.
• A square-topsail cutter or sloop carries one or (less commonly) two square topsails on its only mast, in addition to its mainsail and jib or jibs.

Square rig - Ranks and Duties of Officers and Sailors

Fully-rigged sailing vessels required a phenomenal expertise to get them under weigh and out to sea. One of the best scholarly articles on the subject is Organization and Incentives in the Age of Sail, which lists over fifty occupations and positions held by British sailors of the era.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Types of square rig", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki