The full-rigged pinnace was the larger of two types of vessel called a pinnace in use from the sixteenth century.

Etymology

The word ''pinnace'', and similar words in many languages (as far afield as Indonesia, where the boat " pinisi" took its name from the Dutch ''pinas''), came ultimately from the Spanish ''pinaza'' c. 1240, from ''pino'' ( pine tree), from the wood of which the ships were constructed. The word came into English from the

Middle French Middle French () is a historical division of the French language that covers the period from the mid-14th to the early 17th centuries. It is a period of transition during which: * the French language became clearly distinguished from the other co ...

''pinasse''.

Design

The pinnace is perhaps the most confusing of all the early seventeenth-century types of vessels. Pinnace was more of a use than a type name, for almost any vessel could have been a pinnace or tender to a larger one. Generally speaking, pinnaces were lightly built, single-decked, square-sterned vessels suitable for exploring, trading, and light naval duties. On equal lengths, pinnaces tended to be narrower than other types. Although primarily sailing vessels, many pinnaces carried sweeps for moving in calms or around harbors.

The rigs of pinnaces included the single-masted fore-and-aft rig with

staysail A staysail ("stays'l") is a fore-and-aft rigged sail whose luff can be affixed to a stay running forward (and most often but not always downwards) from a mast to the deck, the bowsprit, or to another mast. Description Most staysails a ...

and sprit mainsail to the mainmast, and a square sprit-sail under the

bowsprit The bowsprit of a sailing vessel is a spar (sailing), spar extending forward from the vessel's prow. The bowsprit is typically held down by a bobstay that counteracts the forces from the forestay, forestays. The bowsprit’s purpose is to create ...

; however pinnaces were also built with a two-masted rig or with a three-masted "ship" rig. Open square-sterned pulling boats were also called pinnaces at least as early as 1626. The larger pinnace 'type' was often much larger than the smaller tender type, and frequently carried enough cannon to be considered an (armed) merchantman, or fast and maneuverable small warship.

Pinnaces

The English pinnace ''Sunne'' was the first vessel reported built at the

Chatham Dockyard Chatham Dockyard was a Royal Navy Dockyard located on the River Medway in Kent. Established in Chatham, Kent, Chatham in the mid-16th century, the dockyard subsequently expanded into neighbouring Gillingham, Kent, Gillingham; at its most extens ...

, in 1586. English pinnaces of the time were typically of around 100 tons, and carried 5 to 16 guns. The Dutch built pinnaces during the early 17th century. Dutch pinnaces had a hull form resembling a small race-built galleon and usually rigged as a ship (

square rig Square rig is a generic type of sail plan, sail and rigging arrangement in which a sailing ship, sailing vessel's primary driving sails are carried on horizontal spar (sailing), spars that are perpendicular (or wikt:square#Adjective, square) to t ...

ged on three masts), or carrying a similar rig on two masts (in a fashion akin to the later "

brig A brig is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: two masts which are both square rig, square-rigged. Brigs originated in the second half of the 18th century and were a common type of smaller merchant vessel or warship from then until the l ...

"). Pinnaces were used as fast merchant vessels, pirate vessels and small

warship A warship or combatant ship is a naval ship that is used for naval warfare. Usually they belong to the navy branch of the armed forces of a nation, though they have also been operated by individuals, cooperatives and corporations. As well as b ...

s. Not all were small vessels, some being nearer to larger ships in

tonnage Tonnage is a measure of the capacity of a ship, and is commonly used to assess fees on commercial shipping. The term derives from the taxation paid on '' tuns'' or casks of wine. In modern maritime usage, "tonnage" specifically refers to a cal ...

. This type saw widespread use in northern waters, as they had a shallow draught. In 2009 the wreck of an

Elizabethan The Elizabethan era is the epoch in the Tudor period of the history of England during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I (1558–1603). Historians often depict it as the golden age in English history. The Roman symbol of Britannia (a female per ...

English pinnace with a set of twelve matched

cannon A cannon is a large-caliber gun classified as a type of artillery, which usually launches a projectile using explosive chemical propellant. Gunpowder ("black powder") was the primary propellant before the invention of smokeless powder during th ...

was discovered, the first of its type for the time. Vessels at that time typically carried a mixture of unmatched cannon using disparate ammunition. The matched armament is considered revolutionary, and a contributing factor to the deadly reputation of the English

naval artillery Naval artillery is artillery mounted on a warship, originally used only for naval warfare and then subsequently used for more specialized roles in surface warfare such as naval gunfire support (NGFS) and anti-aircraft warfare (AAW) engagements. ...

. The first English ship built in North America, Virginia of Sagadahoc, was a pinnace.

References

{{Sailing Vessels and Rigs Sailboat types Pinnaces Pirate ships Tall ships 16th-century ships 17th-century ships Spanish inventions Merchant ships