In an extremely important period of development. 1885 is considered the birth of the modern automobile, when German inventor Karl Benz patented his car, but something as crude as the Benz Tricycle wouldn't have made much of an impression. X-rays were discovered by Wilhelm Conrad Roentgen in 1895, but that was nothing compared to modern technology. In 1728, British horologist John Harrison built a bell-type astronomical clock, 150 years earlier than you might think. Harrison's nautical timepieces were extremely useful at sea. It was a watch the size of a large pocket watch, and it was so accurate that it could calculate longitude in five seconds during a month-long voyage from London to Jamaica, covering four thousand miles. What's going on?
Here comes the winner - and it's a simple one: the sail-driven clipper. These ships are incredibly fast. The American Clipper Flying Cloud sailed from New York to San Francisco—remember, this was before the Panama Canal, so around Cape Horn—in 89 days and over 16,000 miles. Her record lasted 135 years. This is "Flying Cloud" - look at the sail she holds! It's worth emphasizing that "Flying Cloud" is a merchant ship carrying cargo, not some old racing boat. The British built and sailed the Cutty Sark, which was launched in 1869 and is still intact and on display in Greenwich, London. The Cutty Sark, as usual, returned with a full load.
At its best, the Cutty Sark cruises at 17.5 knots (20.1 miles). Her maximum record was 418 miles in one day, averaging 15 nautical miles. By comparison, modern container ships can reach speeds of up to 24 knots under ideal conditions. The Cutty Sark was sailed relentlessly and violently at great risk. Once, she covered 3,978 miles in 11 days. Despite its speed, it carries nearly 1,000 tons of cargo.
This was all done without GPS or other modern navigation equipment, and apparently relying solely on wind power. Is this impressive?
First, extreme clipper speed. I sail a modern cruiser that is built for comfortable, stress-free sailing. Occasionally I saw over 10 knots on the gps. It’s a real tummy-clasp, especially when I only have one “crew” – my wife – and I’m at the helm. At this speed, and with my level of sailing skills, I have to concentrate entirely on what I'm doing.
Twice this speed must be like flying a modern fighter jet. Second, it's important to remember that the best speedboats aren't just an hour or a day faster. Their average speed is ridiculously high, exceeding tens of thousands of miles. To do this, their captain took reckless risks—and often went wrong. I'm not good at statistics, so please correct me if my calculations are off. Of the 90 clippers launched in the 1850s, 44 were lost at sea: a dangerous way to make a living!
The seamanship of the crews was very high, and so was their courage. , but the usual practice is to be understaffed, which puts tremendous pressure on the crew.
Even a modern ship like the Cutty Sark sailed with only 18 to 30 crew members. She sailed regularly with a crew of 20 - the ship was 200 feet long, weighed 1,000 tons, had 32 sails, and the highest mast was over 152 feet,
It was a danger beyond words, because in This is illustrated by the huge proportion of clippers lost at sea. The fact that the ship was able to sail was a huge credit to the skill and courage of its crew.
Like many human inventions, the clipper's lifespan was very short at the end of its development cycle. They were very good at sailing quickly before the wind and delivering high-value cargo, but that was about it. Shifting patterns of shipping and global trade killed them all.
I hope we can all celebrate their success in this particular field just as we can celebrate the first moon landing, supersonic airliners, and 200 mph electric cars. They are both miracles—but limited.