galleys - Hutchinson encyclopedia article about galleys Printer Friendly
Dictionary, Encyclopedia and Thesaurus - The Free Dictionary
1,526,033,137 visitors served.
forum mailing list For webmasters
?
New: Language forums
Dictionary/
thesaurus
Medical
dictionary
Legal
dictionary
Financial
dictionary
Acronyms
 
Idioms
Encyclopedia
Wikipedia
encyclopedia
?

galley
(redirected from galleys)

    Also found in: Dictionary/thesaurus, Encyclopedia, Wikipedia 0.03 sec.

galley

Ship powered by oars, and usually also equipped with sails. Galleys typically had a crew of hundreds of rowers arranged in banks. They were used in warfare in the Mediterranean from antiquity until the 18th century.

France maintained a fleet of some 40 galleys, crewed by over 10,000 convicts, until 1748. The maximum speed of a galley is estimated to have been only four knots (7.5 kph/4.5 mph), because only 20% of the rower's effort was effective, and galleys could not be used in stormy weather because of their very low waterline.



How to thank TFD for its existence? Tell a friend about us, add a link to this page, add the site to iGoogle, or visit webmaster's page for free fun content.
?Page tools
Printer friendly
Cite / link
 Email
Feedback
?Sign in SSL protected
Email:
Password:
Register

? Mentioned in
 
Hutchinson browser? ? Full browser
 
 
Hutchinson Encyclopedia
?

Disclaimer | Privacy policy | Feedback | Copyright © 2009 Farlex, Inc.
All content on this website, including dictionary, thesaurus, literature, geography, and other reference data is for informational purposes only. This information should not be considered complete, up to date, and is not intended to be used in place of a visit, consultation, or advice of a legal, medical, or any other professional. Terms of Use.