For some unknown reasons, pirates are always fascinating. Young kids dress up in pirate costumes and movies are constantly being made about them. Pirate ships are also offer much interesting food for thought. There are kinds of pirate ships.

Sloops

A sloop is a type of boat that has a fore-and-aft rig as well as a single mast that is set further forward than other kinds of ship masts. Merchant sloops had fore-triangles that tended to be smaller than the fore-triangle of a cutter, which is a similar type of ship. There were also ships known as �sloops of war� which were basically sloops that were mounted with close to 20 guns � perfect for attacking unsuspecting merchant ships! The rigging on sloops of war was very different. They had two or even three masts instead of the single mast a merchant sloop had. They were very fast for the time and could function with a crew as small as 20. The typical ship weighed around 100 tons and carried around 75 pirates.

Schooners

A schooner, meanwhile, used fore-and-aft sails and always had two or more masts. The mast that was placed in front was always at least the same height as the ones behind it, although commonly it was shorter. Their gaff topsail � which is a triangular topsail that has a �foot� extended upon the gaff � was very similar to a sloop�s. They had a similar gun capacity as that of a sloop but it could hold a slightly narrower hull.

Barques/Barks

A barque ship, which is also known as either a barc or bark ship, had a very unique sail-plan. These ships had three or more masts and fore-and-aft-sails on the masts. They were known as the �workhorse ship� at the time because they could carry as much cargo and as many passengers as a full rigged ships, but they could be operated with smaller crews. They were also easier to handle than a schooner. The most popular type of sailing school ships used today is a barque ship.

Brigantines

A brigantine ship was different in that it only had two masts and only the forward mast has square rigging on it. Square rigging is a sail arrangement where the sails are carried on horizontal spars � it�s what you see in most movies depicting pirate ships. Originally these were very small ships used by Mediterranean pirates, but by the 18^th century, the term �brigantine� changed so that it wasn�t really referring to a ship type anymore, but rather to that unique square rigging. These ships had very good maneuverability and weighed around 150 tons. They carried 100 plus men and had around 12 guns.

Three-Masted Vessels/Square-Riggers

Square-rigger ships had large sails hanging from their three masts and were true ships. Many different styles were constructed by different countries but they were known for being far faster than merchant ships, meaning pirates could catch up easily. However, square-riggers were run by a very small crew of about 20 men that could only fire a few of their 16 guns at a time.

Warships

A warship is just a ship made for war. Always armed, it�s designed to withstand intense amounts of damage. A warship is much faster and far more maneuverable than a merchant ship. These ships carried guns so heavy that they had to rely primarily on their sails. They came in many different styles depending on the country that built them although they almost always had at least two masts and were square-rigged.

Frigates

A frigate was a type of warship. They came in all shapes and sizes. In the 18^th century, a typical frigate had three masts and was square-rigged. They were often not as heavily armed as full warships so they were used more as patrols and escorts. They were much heavier than other ships, weighting around 360 tons and carrying around 190 men.

Pirate ships were very common and there is a lot of information about them:

• Famous Pirate Ships : Has information on famous pirate ships.

• Pirate Ships : Goes into more detail about certain type of pirate ships.

• Pirates Ships And Crews : Provides information on pirate ships and their crews.

• Pirate Ship Images : Has information on ship types as well as good pictures.

• Pirate Vessels : Describes all types of pirate vessels.

• Sloop: Has a great illustration of a sloop ship and other information.

• Barque : Provides a diagram of a barque ship as well as paintings and images. There is also a list of all barque ships recorded.

• Types of Ships : Offers good information on ships and their �rates� or ranks.

Pirates and their ships still hold some magic for people today � you can even find adult Halloween costumes that allow men and women pretend to be pirates!