{{Short description|Byzantine galley warship}} '''''Chelandion''''' ({{langx|el|χελάνδιον}}) was a [[Byzantine Empire|Byzantine]] [[galley]] warship, a variant of the ''[[dromon|dromōn]]'' that also functioned as a [[cargo transport]].
The term ''chelandion'' is derived from the [[Greek language|Greek]] word ''kelēs'', "[[Courser (horse)|courser]]", and first appeared during the early 8th century.<ref>{{harvnb|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|pp=166–169}}.</ref> In the medieval [[Latin]] used in [[Western Europe]], it was rendered ''chelandium'' or ''scelandrium'' (and thence the 12th-century ''sandanum'' transport), while the [[Arabs]] rendered the name as ''shalandī'' (plural ''shalandiyyāt'') and used it for a probably similar type of vessels in their own navies.<ref>{{harvnb|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|pp=xlvi–xlvii, 168–169, 190}}.</ref>
In common with the general characteristics of the ''dromōn'' type, the ''chelandion'' was a [[bireme]] galley, i.e. with two rows of [[oars]], which provided its main means of propulsion, although it also featured one or two [[lateen]] [[sail]]s, and was steered by two [[rudder|quarter rudders]] at the [[stern]]. It could also be equipped with [[siphon]]s for projecting the feared [[Greek fire]], the [[Byzantine navy]]'s secret incendiary weapon.
The term ''chelandion'' is usually used interchangeably with ''dromōn'' in medieval literary sources, leading to much confusion as to the exact nature of the ship and its differences with the ''dromōn'' proper. It appears, however, that the type originated as a [[Horse transports in the Middle Ages|horse-transport]] (''hippagōgon''). This in turn implies some differences in construction from the standard ''dromōn'': at the very least, the presence of a special compartment running the length of the vessel amidships to accommodate a row of [[horse]]s would increase its [[Beam (nautical)|beam]] and [[Hold (ship)|hold]] depth.<ref>{{harvnb|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|pp=166–169, 188–192, 322–325, 449}}.</ref>
In the 10th century, ''chelandia'' formed the bulk of the [[Byzantine navy]], serving in two types: the ''chelandion ousiakon'' ({{lang|grc|χελάνδιον οὑσιακόν}}) or simply ''ousiakon'' or ''ousiakos'', so named because it was manned by an ''ousia'' of 108 men, and the ''chelandion pamphylon'' (Greek: χελάνδιον πάμφυλον), or simply ''pamphylon'' or ''pamphylos'', crewed with up to 120–160 men, its name either implying an origin in the region of [[Pamphylia]] as a transport ship or its crewing with "picked crews" (from {{lang|grc|πᾶν + φῦλον}}, "all tribes").<ref>{{harvnb|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|pp=189–192, 372}}.</ref>
==References== {{reflist|2}}
==Sources== {{refbegin}} *{{cite book|last1=Pryor|first1=John H.|last2=Jeffreys|first2=Elizabeth M.|title=The Age of the ΔΡΟΜΩΝ: The Byzantine Navy ca. 500–1204|location=Leiden, The Netherlands and Boston, Massachusetts|publisher=Brill Academic Publishers|year=2006|isbn=978-90-04-15197-0|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OJPfAAAAMAAJ}} {{refend}}
[[Category:Byzantine ships]] [[Category:Galleys]]