qwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqw ertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwert yuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyui opasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopa The Forgotten Commodity Ships as a Commodity from the 16th to sdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdf 18th Centuries

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4/13/2014 Charles Charrier CXC8494

Commodities of the 16th through 18th centuries such as cotton, indigo, mahogany, cocoa/chocolate/cacao, etc. have been repeatedly researched and discussed time and time again with an almost nauseous repetition, but one key commodity seeming slips through the cracks of discussion and is merely passed over and left to stand in the background of the history when it comes to being discussed as an actual commodity itself: ships. A commodity is defined by Merriam-Webster as: (1) an economic good; (2) something useful or valued; (3) a good whose wide availability typically leads to smaller profit margins and diminishes the importance of factors (such as brand name) other than price; (4) one that is subject to steady exchange or exploitation within a market. Ships have, since the early days of sea faring, been the backbone and work horse of all coastal nations. From the ancient Mediterranean fisherman and Persian fleets iconic images pictured in the movies to the modern day military aircraft carriers and the immense transoceanic cargo freighters, ships have been a staple of economic development and growth. During the 16th to 18th centuries, many historians look at the development of the global market and the interconnected trade webs and supply routes and discuss how this or that was the key to how this country gained its power and wealth. It can be staggering how the lynch pin/connecting factor of all of the historic commodities listed above and the many more not listed be left unmentioned as if it was not the greatest and most vital of them all. It is easy for modern persons today to imagine the ticker tape of all the various company stock values whizzing by seemingly at the speed of thought, and for those that
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catch the evening news watching the prices of modern commodities such as cattle, gold, natural gas, and oil all pop onto a screen for a fraction of a minute. But how many take the time in the modern era to think of their automobile as a commodity? What about the smart phone that millions of Americans use every day? This is the same attitude historians seem to have and propagate towards ships during what can be considered some of the most influential times of trade and colonial development that shaped the modern world as it is known today. This is where the definition of being an economic good comes into play. These ships required skilled laborers in order to have their quality upheld to the highest standards. Such standards of dimensions, weight, draft, etc. became matters of utmost importance when designing a vessel. Various passages required a ship to have a relatively shallow draft depth. The Spanish actually laid out very specific guidelines as to how they would have their galleons constructed. The Spanish needed shallower drafts (the depth of water required for a ship to sail without touching the bottom or running aground) to exit from their ports and to gain access to the less developed ports in the Indies. The following table shows some of the dimensions of several Spanish galleons to be built along with the year of completion.
Table 1. Dimensions of the first Spanish galleons Year D3 2 galleons Tons L K B HB D1 D2

1568 --

P. Menndez

240

44 30 12 4

3.5 3.5 -

1582 7 Small -1582 2 Large 3.75 1589 4 small -1589 4 medium 3.5 1589 4 large 3.5

420

52 34 15 6

3.5 3.5 -

550

56 36 16 4

3.5 3.5

574

54 34 17 4

3.5 3.5 -

742

59 38 18.5

4.4 3.5

974

64 42 20.5

4.5 3.5

All dimensions are in Shipbuilder s or Royal Cubits of 0.57468 m Tons are Spanish tons of burthen or tonnage = 8 cubic cubits L = length; K = clean keel; B = breadth; HB = depth from floor to hold beams; D1 = from hold beams to deck; D2 = 1st tweendeck; D3 = 2nd tweendeck. 1 The Spanish were extremely strict on their specifications on their galleons due to the need

and desire to have them able to be readily converted from merchant/cargo ships into ships ready for war when the time arose.2 The combination of raw materials that were required to construct such a vessel as some of the above mentioned galleons was a vast undertaking. The Spanish were also one of the first to use its colonial supplies of mahogany to build its ships due to the fact that West Indian mahogany was an excellent shipbuilding materialstrong, rot resistant, and shatterproof even when pummeled by cannonballsthe Spanish Royal Navy commandeered as much as possible to construct galleons.3 The Spanish were not the only country that needed shallow draft ships to reach the underdeveloped shallow water harbors of their colonies, the English did as well. The English used smaller ships such as Schooners (2 masts) and Brigantines (3 masts) to reach their Caribbean as well as Central and South American ports. The Schooners were only around 100 tons and provided much easier access to these shallower-water ports than the Brigantines (shortened to just Brigs) but both were designed to be light and swift.4Such a synthesis of other resources further strengthens the argument for Ships as a commodity during this time period. This is where the second definition of commodity comes into play: something useful or valued. Ships have been a staple of many coastal livelihoods primarily due to their ability to venture out and return with fish and food from the sea. From the simple oar powered ships of the people of Iceland, to the larger vessels of other countries, they chased the fish until they reached the northeastern shores of the North American and Canadian coastlines. The following of such dietary staples drove many of the original voyagers
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across the Atlantic in the chase of the Atlantic Cod which was prized for its use as food stores aboard long voyages due to its long storage life and the very high protein content.5 After the American Revolution, many light New England Schooners were armed with cannons, the first of which named the Britannia, and captured over 300 British ships that tried to hinder their fishing of the Grand Banks.6But more bounties than solely fish and food staples awaited those that traveled west to get east. The discovery of a water route around the horn of Africa leading to the bountiful lands of the Middle and Far East allowed for Europeans new access to a land once guarded by Arabic Muslim traders. Much of the goods were expensive due to the immense effort that was required to haul them through deserts, over mountains, and through areas where bandits and thieves lurked around every turn. These routes had been well established coming into the 16th century and several of these routes have been covered in illustrious and grandiose detail from the writings and explorations of Marco Polo. As time went on, the friction between Christian Europeans and Muslim traders in the Middle East grew. Another route was needed to bypass the Arab middle men and gain access to the wealth of India, the Orient, and the remainder of the Far East. By finding a route around the middlemen, European merchants were able to lower the cost of these foreign fineries and treasures. The discovery of these various trade routes with the Far East pushed Europeans to find a possible Western route to China and the rest of the Orient. This is the processes that lead to the discovery of the West Indies and many of the lands of opportunity so to speak. Here in the West Indies many European nations discovered areas to plant many cash

crops such as sugar cane, and discovered a vast new variety more such as tobacco and cocoa. This leads into the third part of the definition of commodity that ships fill: a good whose wide availability typically leads to smaller profit margins and diminishes the importance of factors (such as brand name) other than price. Ships became the main source of travel and commerce for goods on the open ocean. The time consuming and expense laden travels over land were no more and the country with the most ships was able to turn out the most profit. This is true when dealing with the development of the trading companies such as the British East India Trading Co. and others. Ships not only supplied the raw materials needed for other enterprises, but they brought the materials for building more ships as well. The key to ship building is that it requires skilled labor. This is what sets it apart from other commodities of the time. The profit margin was rather slim when looking at the actual cost to build a Schooner or Spanish Galleon in comparison to the cash crops of cotton and sugar cane. An example of this is a statement of account in Mr. John Reynells journal detailing the in-depth account of the cost to build a ship for Mr. Richard Deeble and Captain Thomas Warcup totaling 875-12-43/4. This was quite a large sum of money but Mr. Reynell collected 487-7-0.7 This type of turn around into the local economy is always a much needed and
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crucial boost to all other forms of trade. Once a person is able to afford more expensive items or at least just more items of necessity then the entire economy of that local area begins to change. Once the people of an area have more money to spend, they begin to want and afford bigger and better things. The ship is the commodity that allowed other commodities and industries to grow the wealth not only of nations but of the smaller and more local areas surrounding the ports and ship yards. The congregation of traders and merchants due to the locations of these ports allowed for the increase of the availability of goods thus lowering the cost of what was once only something that the wealthy and the aristocracy could have. These allowances of possible vertical integration of the trade networks also increased the rate at which these colonies, cities, and countries could gain large amounts of wealth and material possessions. This quest for wealth originally drove the first explorers to discover and unintentionally colonize these new lands thus allowing for the mother country to acquire more and more areas for cheaper natural resources and raw materials. Many of the largest
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cities of the time in colonial America were actually ports and from there as various needs arose the local economies sprung up and became booming economic centers. But with the appearance of wealth and monetary/material gain also came the darker side of human nature and the need to defend against such forces, thus the final aspect of the definition is answered: one that is subject to steady exchange or exploitation within a market. During these times of international shipping prosperity, the ships and the trade routes/networks that they traveled became highways for pirates, smugglers, and privateers depending upon whose flag the ship sailed under. As aforementioned, New England Schooners raided and captured over 300 ships within a year that flew under the British flag. This was not the first and only example of a ship attacking another ship flying under a different flag. Somalia has the same type of piracy occurring today. Modern day drug smugglers use boats to travel quickly under the cover of darkness to sneak in/out of harbors or the shore and out of the watchful eye of the Coast Guard, etc.
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These modern events are merely the examples of a modern trade that has its routes far into the past. Many merchant ships currently are beginning to arm themselves to fend off attacks from pirates much like in the 17th century, but arming of merchant vessels is not a new approach. The Spanish had exacting specifications of how their ships should be built so that they could be readily converted into warships when the time would arise.8 This type of trying to make double-use of a nations ship was only bettered by the government offering different incentives for ship builders to build ships that would suit this purpose. This was used heavily under Queen Elizabeth I. This type of action allowed for the government to technically have a standing Navy at hand without having the added financial responsibilities and burdens of the upkeep of such a navy themselves. This cost fell to the owners of the ships.9 There is some debate as to when or if the differentiation between the cargo ship and the warship occurred in these times, but the Dutch Fluit was the first to truly specialize as solely on type or the other, but for the most part, especially

with the English and their chartered trading companies, allowed the private sector to build ships with some incentive if they made them capable of being easily converted to be battle ready. Small, heavily armed, light ships such as the privateer schooners, etc. attacking and pestering larger vessels was not a new idea or tactic. In the earliest periods of the Caribbean colonization, these small, quicker English vessels were the key instruments in the English raids and capture of gold laden Spanish galleons in the Caribbean during the 15th century. The ability of these ships to be exploited and exchanged in multiple uses/purposes alone (whether intentionally through government commandeering, or unintentionally such as the New England capture of vessels sailing under the British flag) is yet another and final reason for ships to not be overlooked as a crucial commodity. The globalization of the worlds trade routes and various markets that allowed for such an expanded view not only of the world, but also of the various cultures and wonders is the last aspect of how ships and ship building truly conquered the worlds commodity market. Without ships, the world would remain just a small circle of land that people could see, only their parcel of earth where they would merely grow what they needed to survive and the cycle would repeat. Would the world eventually come together. of course it would, but not without the efficiency and speed that was pushed along and forward by the building, developing, and sailing of ships. Every modern first world country owes much or all of its prosperity to the endeavors of the ship as an unspoken aspect of trade and commodity.
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If a country wished to have power during these time periods, that country would need a large naval fleet whether or not it was under government control, at least a fleet of privateers or a strong merchant naval force to be able to handle to newly acquired routes to bring back as much of the new found spoils as possible regardless of where these spoils really came from (raiding another countrys vessel and so forth). The individual effect that the building of one ship had was immense. The ability to transform a small cove into a booming port with thriving businesses and exports was due to the fact of the ship as the main staple commodity of the time. Such a large impact of something that seems so overlooked is bewildering but it goes to show that some of the biggest parts of the economic system are and always have been taken for granted to a point to where they do not even seem to enter the equation or conversation. In the end, with all these options considered, ships are the most important commodity that the period between 1500 and 1750 and even further beyond. The ability to not only supply raw materials for other industries, but to also be the assimilation of those raw materials into its own production is an awe inspiring idea. Many of the discoveries that are currently taken for granted were
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made possible by the voyages of these ships and their crews during this time. Commodities are items that are made from raw materials, whether from agriculture and farming, or mining and metallurgy that are processed and sold to make a living for those that develop it. The ship is the epitome of what a commodity is. Not only does it make income for those that build it, but also for the people that make and grow the individual parts that come together to complete it. Entire cities erupt from around shipyards and ports. Vast global networks are made that allow for the decrease in expense of transportation of goods and the increase of money in the common mans pocket so that he

will be able to purchase these goods that are coming in. In an era where cotton, indigo, gold, silver, mahogany, and furs etc. are deemed to be the major reasons for travel and expanse of the mother countrys boundaries, the ship truly reigns over them all. Regardless of the nationality of the flag, or if the ship does not even fly under one, these vessels paved the way for wealth and prosperity more than any one single commodity such as cotton or indigo ever did.
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Bibliography
Anderson, Jennifer L. Mahogany: The Costs of Luxury in Early America by Jennifer L. Anderson. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 2012. Paper. Fernandez-Gonzalez, Fransisco. "The Spanish Regulations for Shipbuilding (Ordenanzas) of the Seventeenth Century." International Journal of Naval History 8.3 (2010). Harrold E. Gillingham, Elias Bland and Edward Wilsonn. "Some Colonial Ships Built in Philadelphia." The pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography 56.2 (1932): pp.156186. paper. Kurlansky, Mark. Cod: A Biography of a Fish that Changed the World. New York: Penguin Group Inc., 1997. Paper. Richter, K. and N. Ta. Pirates, Prizes, and Profits, in Chocolate: History, Culture, and Heritage. Ed. L. E. Grivetti and H.-Y. Shapiro. Hoboken, NJ: Richter, K. and Ta, N. (2008) Pirates, Prizes, and Profits, in Chocolate: History, Culture, and Heritage (eds L. E. GrivettJohn Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2008. Unger, Richard W. "Warships and Cargo Ships in Medieval Europe." Technology and Culture April 1981: 233-252. Online. 13 April 2014. Vessel, Dutch Shipping. http://images.metmuseum.org/CRDImages/dp/webhighlight/DP823417.jpg. n.d. 13 April 2014.

1 2

Fernandez-Gonzalez, 2010 Fernandez-Gonzalez, 2010 3 Anderson, p. 20, 21 4 Richter and Ta, p. 213 5 Kurlansky, p. 34 6 Kurlansky, p. 98 7 Gillingham p.160-161 8 Fernandez-Gonzalez, 2010 9 Unger, p. 245

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