Nossa Senhora da Conceição (ship)
The Nossa Senhora da Conceição was a war galleon of the Portuguese fleet at the beginning of the 18th century. It was built in 1716 and had a crew of 700. She officiated as the flagship of the Catholic associations that defeated the Turks in the sea battle of Cape Matapan (Greece) on July 19, 1717.
Surname
“Nossa Senhora da Conceição” means “Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception ” in German, a widespread Portuguese paraphrase and representation of the Virgin Mary who, as the mother of Jesus, became pregnant by God's decree alone. Many churches and altars in Portuguese-speaking countries are also named this way. Another ship named after Maria is the famous Santa Maria , with which Christopher Columbus sailed to America.
design type
This ship was a transition type between galleon and ship of the line . The rigging of the galleon still came from three masts, each with three tall, narrow square sails plus two latin sails, as well as the tall aft fort. The arranged in two closed decks artillery , the long, narrow hull and straight transom but express the gradual transformation of the military technology of the time to normalized liner.
Sea Battle of Cape Matapan
After the end of the War of the Spanish Succession , John V (Portugal) had agreed to an alliance with the Pope to drive the Turks out of the Mediterranean. As a result of this armed conflict, almost all the major sea powers of the Mediterranean met in the sea battle off Cape Matapan on July 19, 1717: The Turkish and Egyptian fleets on one side initially attacked the Venice fleet , which was able to hold on despite being outnumbered. Shortly afterwards the Maltese and the French came to the aid of the beleaguered Venetians, but could not bring about a decision on their part ( on this occasion the last real galleys were in active combat on the French side ). Only the arrival of the Portuguese contingent ended the exchange of blows, as the Portuguese ships proved to be superior to their Turkish opponents. There the Senhora shot the flagship of the Turkish fleet into a floating wreck and thus decided the battle.
Trivia
Shortly before its independence in 1975, the then Portuguese colony of Mozambique issued a series of stamps dedicated to Portuguese seafaring and detailed images of various, e.g. B. also showed named ships. A stamp for 5 escudos showed the Nossa Senhora da Conceição .
literature
- Jochen Brennecke : History of Shipping . Stürtz, Würzburg 1981.