Editing Xebec (section)

==Description==

Xebecs were ships similar to [[galley]]s primarily used by [[Barbary pirate]]s, which have both [[lateen]] sails and oars for propulsion.  Early xebecs had two [[mast (sailing)|mast]]s while later ships had three. Xebecs featured a distinctive [[Hull (watercraft)|hull]] with pronounced overhanging [[Bow (ship)|bow]] and [[stern]],<ref name=king476>{{cite book|last1=King|first1=Dean|title=A Sea of Words|date=2000|publisher=Henry Holt|isbn=978-0-8050-6615-9|pages=476|edition=3}}</ref>  and rarely [[Displacement (fluid)|displaced]] more than 200 [[tonnage|ton]]s, making them slightly smaller and with slightly fewer guns than [[frigate]]s of the period.

=== Use by Barbary corsairs ===
[[File:Chebeck-Antoine Roux-p43.jpg|thumb|right|Greek-Ottoman xebec]]
These ships were easy to produce and were cheap, and thus nearly every corsair captain (''[[Corsairs of Algiers|Raïs]]'') had at least one xebec in his fleet. They could be of varying sizes. Some ships had only three guns<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|last=Norie|first=John William|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9iBEAAAAYAAJ&q=xebec+40+cannons&pg=PA303|title=The Naval Gazetteer, Biographer and Chronologist: Containing a History of the Late Wars from ... 1793 to ... 1801; and from ... 1803 to 1815, and Continued, as to the Biographical Part to the Present Time|date=1842|publisher=C. Wilson|language=en}}</ref> while others had up to forty.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OzMwAQAAMAAJ&q=xebec+40+guns|title=Journal of the Royal United Service Institution, Whitehall Yard|date=1916|publisher=W. Mitchell|language=en}}</ref> Most xebecs had around 20–30 cannons,  and the overwhelming majority had [[swivel gun]]s equipped.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_wEqAQAAMAAJ&q=xebec+swivel|title=York State Tradition|date=1968|publisher=York State Tradition|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Clarke|first=James Stanier|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=87kPAAAAQAAJ&q=xebec+swivel&pg=PA73|title=The Naval Chronicle [ed. by J.S. Clarke, S. and J. Jones].|language=en}}</ref>

After the 18th century, galleys became increasingly outdated and xebecs became the preferred ships of Barbary pirates<ref>{{Cite book|last=Devoulx|first=Albert|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=f8MTAAAAYAAJ&q=chebec&pg=PA36|title=Le registre des prises maritimes|date=1872|publisher=A. Jourdan|language=fr}}</ref> thanks to their heavy and effective use of wind power, reduced need for slaves to row, ability to carry more cannons than a galley, and overall cheapness, speed,<ref>{{Cite book|last=Fawcett|first=Nick|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9lBrDwAAQBAJ&q=manoeuvrability+xebec&pg=PT162|title=Can I Have a Word?: A Fun Guide to Winning Word Games|date=2019-07-11|publisher=Little, Brown Book Group|isbn=978-1-4721-4311-2|language=en}}</ref> and maneuverability.<ref name=":1">{{Cite book|last1=Laszlo|first1=Veres|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dHYqAQAAIAAJ&q=manoeuvrability+xebec|title=The Story of Sail|last2=László|first2=Veres|last3=Woodman|first3=Richard|date=1999|publisher=Naval Institute Press|isbn=978-1-55750-896-6|language=en}}</ref>

Xebecs were generally faster than contemporary ship types until the introduction of [[steamship]]s.

Corsairs built their xebecs with a narrow floor to achieve a higher speed than their victims, but with a considerable [[beam (nautical)|beam]] in order to enable them to carry an extensive [[sail-plan]]. The [[lateen]] rig of the xebec allowed the ship to sail close hauled to the wind, often giving it an advantage in pursuit or escape. The use of oars or sweeps allowed the xebec to approach vessels which were becalmed. When used as corsairs, the xebecs carried a crew of between 90<ref name=":0" /> and 400 men.

The use of [[square rig]] among pirates was initially rare, although after the 1750s a mix between lateen and square rigs became much more widespread.<ref name=":1" />

=== Use by European powers ===
Some victorious xebecs of the Spanish Navy, about 1770 (see [[Antonio Barceló]] campaigns... in the Spanish version of the page of Wikipedia):
* ''Andaluz'', 30 guns (4 × 8-pounders)
* ''Africa'', 18 guns (4-pounders)
* ''Atrevido'', 20 guns
* ''Aventurero'', 30 guns (3 × 8-pounders)
* ''Murciano'', 16 guns, 4 pedreros (light [[swivel guns]])
* ''San Antonio''

Notable xebecs of the French Navy include four launched in 1750:
* ''Ruse'', 160 tons, 18 guns
* ''Serpent'', 160 tons [[Builder's Old Measurement|burthen]], 18 guns
* ''Requin'', 260 tons burthen, 24 guns
* ''Indiscret'', 260 tons burthen, 24 guns

[[Image:Sail plan xebec.svg|thumb|right|Sail plan for a polacre-xebec]]
In the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, a large [[polacre]]-xebec carried a [[square rig]] on the [[foremast]], [[lateen]] [[sail]]s on the other masts, a [[bowsprit]], and two [[headsail]]s. The square sail distinguished this form of a xebec from that of a [[felucca]] which is equipped solely with [[lateen]] sails.  The last of the xebecs in use by European navies were fully square-rigged and were termed xebec-frigates.

The British brig-sloop [[HMS Speedy (1782)|''Speedy'']]'s (14 guns, 54 men) defeat of the Spanish xebec-frigate ''[[Spanish frigate El Gamo|El Gamo]]'' (32 guns, 319 men) on 6 May 1801 is generally regarded as one of the most remarkable [[Single ship action|single-ship actions]] in naval history. It was the foundation of the legendary reputation of the ''Speedy''{{'}}s commander, [[Thomas Cochrane, 10th Earl of Dundonald|Lord Cochrane]], which has in turn provided the inspiration for [[sea fiction]] such as [[Patrick O'Brian]]'s ''[[Master and Commander]]''.<ref name = Cordingly>{{cite book |title=Cochrane: The Real Master and Commander |author=David Cordingly |pages=3–4 |publisher=Bloomsbury |year=2007 |location=New York |isbn=978-1-58234-534-5}}</ref>

[[Image:Chebec Mistic-IMG 8860.jpg|right|thumb|Squared-rigged xebec of the 1780-1815 period]]