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Sea Lane
A sea lane, sea road or shipping lane is a regularly used navigable route for large water vessels (ships) on wide waterways such as oceans and large lakes, and is preferably safe, direct and economic. During the Age of Sail, they were determined by the distribution of land masses but also by the prevailing winds, whose discovery was crucial for the success of long maritime voyages. Sea lanes are very important for seaborne trade. History The establishment of the North Atlantic sea lanes was inspired by the sinking of the US mail steamer SS ''Arctic'' by collision with the French steamer SS ''Vesta'' in October 1854 which resulted in the loss of over 300 lives. Lieutenant M. F. Maury of the US Navy first published a section titled "Steam Lanes Across the Atlantic" in his 1855 ''Sailing Directions'' proposing sea lanes along the 42 degree latitude. A number of international conferences and committees were held in 1866, 1872, 1887, 1889, and 1891 all of which left the de ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Navigable
A body of water, such as a river, canal or lake, is navigable if it is deep, wide and calm enough for a water vessel (e.g. boats) to pass safely. Navigability is also referred to in the broader context of a body of water having sufficient under keel clearance for a vessel. Such a navigable water is called a ''waterway'', and is preferably with few obstructions against direct traverse that need avoiding, such as rocks, reefs or trees. Bridges built over waterways must have sufficient clearance. High flow speed may make a channel unnavigable due to risk of ship collisions. Waters may be unnavigable because of ice, particularly in winter or high-latitude regions. Navigability also depends on context: a small river may be navigable by smaller craft such as a motorboat or a kayak, but unnavigable by a larger freighter or cruise ship. Shallow rivers may be made navigable by the installation of locks that regulate flow and increase upstream water level, or by dredging that ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
SS Vesta
SS ''Vesta'' was a propeller-driven fishing vessel 250 gross tons, built in 1853 at Nantes, France, by Hernoux et Cie of Dieppe for the Société Terreneuvienne of Granville in Normandy. The company had extensive fishing interests in the Grand Banks area off Newfoundland, which it operated from a base in Saint Pierre Island. On 27 September 1854 ''Vesta'' was eastbound with a crew of 50, returning 147 fisherman and salters home. In a heavy fog, ''Vesta'' collided with the Collins Line passenger paddle steamer SS ''Arctic''. A section of ''Vesta''s bow was sheared off, but the watertight bulkhead behind the bow remained intact and kept out the sea, keeping the vessel afloat.Paine, p. 545 The much larger ''Arctic'', which initially had appeared to have sustained only superficial damage, had been fatally holed below the waterline. Lacking watertight compartments, the hull filled with water and the ship sank, four hours later, with great loss of life. By contrast, the only cas ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pax Britannica
''Pax Britannica'' (Latin for , modelled after '' Pax Romana'') refers to the relative peace between the great powers in the time period roughly bounded by the Napoleonic Wars and World War I. During this time, the British Empire became the global hegemonic power, developed additional informal empire, and adopted the role of a " global policeman". Between 1815 and 1914, a period sometimes referred to as Britain's "imperial century", around of territory and roughly 400 million people were added to the British Empire. Victory over Napoleonic France left the British without any serious international rival, other than perhaps Russia in Central Asia. Porter, p. 401. When Russia tried expanding its influence in the Balkans, the British and French defeated them in the Crimean War (1853–1856), thereby protecting the weak Ottoman Empire. Britain's Royal Navy controlled most of the key maritime trade routes and enjoyed unchallenged sea power. Alongside the formal contro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pirate
Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and valuable goods, or taking hostages. Those who conduct acts of piracy are called pirates, and vessels used for piracy are called pirate ships. The earliest documented instances of piracy were in the 14th century BC, when the Sea Peoples, a group of ocean raiders, attacked the ships of the Aegean and Mediterranean civilisations. Narrow channels which funnel shipping into predictable routes have long created opportunities for piracy, as well as for privateering and commerce raiding. Historic examples of such areas include the waters of Gibraltar, the Strait of Malacca, Madagascar, the Gulf of Aden, and the English Channel, whose geographic structures facilitated pirate attacks. The term ''piracy'' generally refers to maritime piracy, although the term has been generalized to refer to acts committed on land, in th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tristan Da Cunha
Tristan da Cunha (), colloquially Tristan, is a remote group of volcano, volcanic islands in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is one of three constituent parts of the British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha, with its own constitution. The territory consists of the inhabited island Tristan da Cunha, which has a diameter of roughly and an area of ; the wildlife reserves of Gough Island and Inaccessible Island; and the smaller, uninhabited Nightingale Islands. , the main island had 250 permanent inhabitants, who all carry British Overseas Territories citizenship. The other islands are uninhabited, except for the South African personnel of a weather station on Gough Island. As there is no airstrip on the island, the only way of travelling to or from Tristan is by ship. There are six-day journeys from Cape Town, South Africa, and some cruises offered departing from Ushuaia, Argentina. History Discovery The islan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rio De Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the Americas, sixth-most-populous city in the Americas. Founded in 1565 by the Portuguese people, Portuguese, the city was initially the seat of the Captaincy of Rio de Janeiro, a domain of the Portuguese Empire. In 1763, it became the capital of the State of Brazil, a List of states of the Portuguese Empire, state of the Portuguese Empire. In 1808, when the Transfer of the Portuguese Court to Brazil, Portuguese Royal Court moved to Brazil, Rio de Janeiro became the seat of the court of Queen Maria I of Portugal. She subsequently, under the leadership of her son the prince regent John VI of Portugal, raised Brazil to the dignity of a kingdom, within the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves, United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil, and Algar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cape Town
Cape Town is the legislature, legislative capital city, capital of South Africa. It is the country's oldest city and the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. Cape Town is the country's List of municipalities in South Africa, second-largest city by population, after Johannesburg, and the largest city in the Western Cape. The city is part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality (South Africa), metropolitan municipality. The city is known for Port of Cape Town, its harbour, its natural setting in the Cape Floristic Region, and for landmarks such as Table Mountain and Cape Point. In 2014, Cape Town was named the best place in the world to visit by ''The New York Times'', and was similarly ranked number one by ''The Daily Telegraph'' in both 2016 and 2023. Located on the shore of Table Bay, the City Bowl area of Cape Town, which contains its Cape Town CBD, central business district (CBD), is History of Cape Town, the oldest urban area in the Western Cape, with a signi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Western Europe, with a population of 14.9 million. London stands on the River Thames in southeast England, at the head of a tidal estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a major settlement for nearly 2,000 years. Its ancient core and financial centre, the City of London, was founded by the Roman Empire, Romans as Londinium and has retained its medieval boundaries. The City of Westminster, to the west of the City of London, has been the centuries-long host of Government of the United Kingdom, the national government and Parliament of the United Kingdom, parliament. London grew rapidly 19th-century London, in the 19th century, becoming the world's List of largest cities throughout history, largest city at the time. Since the 19th cen ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
International Convention For The Safety Of Life At Sea
The International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) is an international maritime treaty which sets out minimum safety standards in the construction, equipment and operation of merchant ships. The International Maritime Organization convention requires signatory flag states to ensure that ships flagged by them comply with at least these standards. Initially prompted by the sinking of the Titanic, the current version of SOLAS is the 1974 version, known as SOLAS 1974, which came into force on 25 May 1980, and has been amended several times. , SOLAS 1974 has 167 contracting states, which flag about 99% of merchant ships around the world in terms of gross tonnage. SOLAS in its successive forms is generally regarded as the most important of all international treaties concerning the safety of merchant ships. Signatories The non-parties to SOLAS 1974 include numerous landlocked countries, as well as El Salvador, Micronesia and East Timor. Some others including Boliv ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Guion Line
The Liverpool and Great Western Steamship Company, known commonly as the Guion Line, was a British passenger service that operated the Liverpool-Queenstown-New York route from 1866 to 1894. While incorporated in Great Britain, 52% of the company's capital was from the American firm, Williams and Guion of New York. Known primarily for transporting immigrants, in 1879 the line started commissioning Blue Riband record breakers to compete against Cunard Line, Cunard, White Star Line, White Star and Inman Line, Inman for first class passengers. The financial troubles of one of the company's major partners in 1884 forced the firm to return its latest record breaker, the ''Oregon'', to her builders and focus again on the immigrant trade. The company suspended sailings in 1894 because of new American restrictions on immigrant traffic. History Steerage trade In 1848, John Stanton Williams (c. 1810–1876) and Stephen Barker Guion (1820-1885) formed the New York firm of Williams and Gu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
National Line
The National Line, formally named the National Steam Navigation Company, was a British passenger line that operated steamship service in the North Atlantic Ocean in the late 19th century. The company was founded in 1863, with the intention of serving the southern United States when it appeared that the Confederacy would win the Civil War and secede, as the Confederate states had a substantial cotton trade with Britain. After the Union victory, National quickly changed course and focused on carrying lower-class passengers and cargo on the traditional Atlantic route to New York City, initially from Liverpool and later from London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ... as well. The line was successful for a time, paying a £120,000 dividend in 1869 and expanding its fleet ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Inman Line
The Inman Line was one of the three largest 19th-century British passenger shipping companies on the North Atlantic, along with the White Star Line and Cunard Line. Founded in 1850, it was absorbed in 1893 into American Line. The firm's formal name for much of its history was the Liverpool, Philadelphia and New York Steamship Company, but it was also variously known as the Liverpool and Philadelphia Steamship Company, as Inman Steamship Company, Limited, and, in the last few years before absorption, as the Inman and International Steamship Company. By embracing new technology, Inman Line became the first to show that unsubsidized ocean liners could profitably cross the North Atlantic. With its first steamer, of 1850, Inman led the drive to replace wood-hulled paddle steamers with iron-hulled screw-propelled ships. In 1852, Inman established that steerage passengers could be transported in steamships. Inman's of 1866 was the first screw liner that could match the speed of the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
