10 Biggest Ships with Sails

Ships with sails were quite popular and useful in the bygone days. Technology in the form of engines surpassed these marine marvels, with better speed and thereby higher efficiency. However, even though their utility value diminished, their novelty and uniqueness continue to linger.

Over the years, many replicas of sailing ships have been created. Some of these replicas are used as cruise vessels while some just provide a feel of the years-long gone by.

Detailed below are the 10 biggest ships with sails, ranked based on their lengths.

1. Preussen

The German ship Preussen was the largest sailing ship wonder at the time of its launch at the start of the 20th century.

She had an LOA of 147 m and a 16.4 m beam. She was 68 m high with a 5081 gross tonnage and a displacement of 11,330 tonnes.

Artistically ingenious, the ship’s hull was made of steel and was powered by five fully rigged masts.

At that time, the sailing ship boasted of being the only vessel to have five masts with fully rigged sails.

Used as a cargo ship to transport nitrate in the South American continent, the Preussen had an untimely end when a Brighton – a steamer ran it down.

2. France II

This French sailing vessel was launched in 1912. It boasted a gross tonnage of 5633 tonnes and was a massive ship, square-rigged as a 5-masted steel-hulled barque.

She measured 146.5 m lengthwise and 16.9 m breadthwise. She had a displacement of 10,710 metric tonnes and a sail area of 6350 m2.

The long yards and short masts gave her a wider appearance than other tall vessels. Her striking feature was the three-island deck lining, a long poop deck, forecastle and midship islands and two open deck sections on the upper side, each having her loading hatch.

She had 7 passenger cabins, a library, therapy equipment, a piano, furniture etc.

3. Thomas W. Lawson

Built by the Fore River Ship and Engine Co. based in Massachusetts in the year 1901, the Thomas W. Lawson was a seven-mast schooner used mainly to haul coal and oil by the Eastern Coast of the United States.

However on account of the huge size and bulk of the ship, in her later years, she was used only for oil cargo transportation and was regarded as the first sailing tanker vessel in the world.

This ship was 145 m long and 15 m broad with a 5218 gross tonnage and a displacement of 11,000 tonnes.

Thomas W. Lawson formed a very important role in the sail ships of its era because it was operated without the support of any ancillary engines.

A storm on the island of Scilly caused the ship to be destroyed beyond repair and 16 crew members from the original total of 18 lost their lives in the accident.

4. Wyoming

This wooden 6-masted schooner constructed in 1909 by Percy & Small in Bath, Maine is said to be one of the biggest wooden sailing ships of all time. It was a collier ship, which carried coal around the world.

It had a donkey generator, anchor windlass and winches to raise and lower sails, and get other tasks done. She was 140 m long and 15.3 m wide with a 9.3 m draught.

Her gross tonnage was 3730 tonnes and she displaced approximately 6000 tonnes when fully loaded.

She had a small crew of just 11. Yellow pine was used for her construction and she had long planks which twisted and turned in choppy seas. Pumps were used to drain out the water which occasionally entered her holds. In 1924, Wyoming sank with the loss of all its crew.

5. Royal Clipper

The Royal Clipper is a cruise ship that is built on the lines of the Preussen – a five-mast sail ship that was built in the year 1902.

At present, the Royal Clipper is regarded to be the world’s largest sailing ship with five masts that are rigged fully.

The cruise ship offers a Mediterranean cruise during the summer while offering a Caribbean cruise during the winter.

As one of the tall sailing ships, the Royal Clipper finds a place in the esteemed Guinness Book of World Records as the biggest sailing ship with squarely rigged masts.

She is 134.8 m long, 16.5 m wide and has a gross tonnage of 4425 tonnes. She has five masts, and 42 sails covering 5202.6 m2. Royal Clipper can accommodate 227 passengers and 106 crew members.

6. Barque Sedov

Originally known as the Magdalene Vinnen II, the sailing ship was built in Germany in 1921 and was mainly used as a cargo ship until the year 1936 when she was converted into a naval training vessel.

Sedov is 117.5 m long, 14.6 m wide and has a displacement of 7400 tonnes. She has a sail area of 4195 m2, a maximum speed of 18 knots and a complement of 220.

After the Second World War, she was handed over to the Soviet navy and her name was changed to Sedov after the famous Soviet explorer Georgy Sedov. The most unique aspect of the Sedov is that at the time of construction, in addition to the four sailing steel masts, it had an ancillary engine.

At present after nearly 90 years past her construction, the Sedov is still in operation and is used as a training vessel for cadets from the Russian universities of St. Petersburg and Murmansk. The biggest sailing ship is also a participant in many of the tall sailing ship races held across the world.

7. Juan Sebastian Elcano

Also known as the Juan Sebastian de Elcano, the schooner was built in the year 1927 and is third among the world’s tall sailing ships.

She is 113 m long and 13.1 m wide with a 7 m draft. It has 21 sails with a sail area of 2870 m2 and a maximum speed of 13 knots. She supports a complement of 300 sailors and has a displacement of 3673 tonnes.

Named after Juan Sebastian Elcano, the man who commandeered the fleet during Ferdinand Magellan’s last expedition, the ship sail is presently used as a training vessel for the Spanish Royal Naval forces.

A steel-hulled four-mast sail ship, the Juan Sebastian Elcano is a very popular ship with sails.

8. Great Republic

This was the biggest wooden sailing ship when launched in 1853, along with the steamship Adriatic. It was also the biggest full-rigged vessel ever constructed in the U.S, by Donald McKay for trading with Australia.

She was a 4-masted Clipper Barque with a gross tonnage of 4555 tonnes and a displacement of 6600 tonnes. She was also 102 m long and 16 m wide.

While loading for her first voyage in New York she suffered a fire which destroyed her. Her wreck was abandoned and she was later rebuilt and served the trans-Atlantic and California shipping routes.

She had difficulty accessing several ports due to her size, especially when fully loaded, and had to be partially unloaded into lighters so she could enter locked basins.

9. Vasa

This warship was built in the early 1600s however sank on its first voyage in 1628, only to be salvaged in 1961.

She was 69 m long and 11.7 m wide with a displacement of 1210 tonnes. She had a crew of 145 and was considered a symbol of the Swedish Empire.

She was constructed on the orders of King Gustavus Adolphus and represented Sweden’s military ambitions.

She was adorned with bronze cannons, especially made for her and though she was powerfully armed, she was highly unstable due to the heavy weight on the hull’s upper parts.

She is now a museum ship and a famous tourist attraction.

10. America

This racing yacht of the 19th century was the first winner of the America’s Cup, a famous sailing competition and the oldest one still operating in a sport.

America was launched in 1851 as a Gaff Schooner. She was 30.8 m long, and 6.9 m wide with a displacement of over 100 tonnes.

She was designed by James Rich Steers and George Steers. America was among the fastest and most seaworthy vessels of the day.

She had several owners and in 1921, the America Restoration Fund donated her to the U.S Naval Academy, Annapolis. However, she was not maintained properly and was damaged when the shed in which she was kept, collapsed during a storm.

Her remains were burned but some of her parts like her rudder posts and a mast are kept in the New York Yacht Club.

Conclusion

The ships with sails are an important part of the world’s marine heritage and represent the technological advancements of their time. Many of these vessels had great designs and seaworthiness along with an aesthetic appeal which is why their replicas are still made today. Though most sailing ships sank in storms or due to accidents, their wreck sites have become popular dive spots. They are nothing less than living histories which take one back to the bygone days.

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About Author

Zahra is an alumna of Miranda House, University of Delhi. She is an avid writer, possessing immaculate research and editing skills. Author of several academic papers, she has also worked as a freelance writer, producing many technical, creative and marketing pieces. A true aesthete at heart, she loves books a little more than anything else.

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