Mathew Baker

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Mathew Baker (* 1530 ; † 1613 ) was a mathematician from Cambridge and royal master shipbuilder under Elizabeth I. He is considered the first master shipbuilder who created exact calculations and plans.

Baker, son of the shipbuilder James Baker, received the title of master shipwright (Eng. Master Shipwright ) in 1572. He built, among other things, the HMS Vanguard , the HMS Merhonour and the HMS Revenge (1577), which later served Francis Drake as the flagship . His main work " Fragments of Ancient Shipwrightery " (1586) is considered to be groundbreaking for shipbuilding in the 16th and 17th centuries. He also made a contribution to the reconstruction of the English fleet to fight the Spanish Armada .

Unlike his predecessors, he was not only based on oral traditions, but also worked with the seafarers and privateer captains Francis Drake , Martin Frobisher and Charles Howard . He decided to build smaller, lightly armed ships ( galleons ), which, however, had high maneuverability and speed. With newly developed guns and the military skills of Sir Francis Drake, who has meanwhile been promoted to Vice Admiral, this enabled the English naval command in 1588 to force the Spanish Armada to retreat to northern sea areas.

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