Chaika (boat)

{{Short description|Type of boat}} {{Infobox sailboat specifications |image boat = Kozakkenboot Beauplan 1664 Amsterdam.jpg |image caption = Chaika in Beauplan's book ''Description of Ukraine'' (1664 edition in Dutch) |insignia = |hull type = Monohull |design = |construction = Wood |crew = 50 or 60 |loa = {{convert|20|m|abbr=on}} |lwl = |beam = {{convert|3.5|m|abbr=on}} |draft = {{convert|4|m|abbr=on}}<br/>(board down) |hull weight = |mainsailandjib= |mastheight = |sailarea main = |spinnaker = |d-pn = |rya-pn = |phrf = |year = 1500s |role = Marine warfare/transportation |updated = }} A '''chaika''' ({{langx|uk|чайка}}, {{lang|uk-Latn|chayka}}, Hungarian: csajka, {{langx|pl|czajka}}, {{langx|sr|шајка}} / {{lang|sr-Latn|šajka}}, {{langx|sl|šajka}} or {{lang|sl|plitka}}) was a wooden boat that could have a mast and sail, a type of galley, used in early modern warfare and cargo transport in Eastern Europe since the 16th century.

== Types == ===Austrian=== Tschaika were either {{cvt|48|m}} (Double Tschaika), {{cvt|24|m}} (Ganz ("Full") Tschaika), {{cvt|12|m}} (Halb ("Half") Tschaika)<ref>{{Cite web |title= Frontier on the Water|date=27 January 2021 |url=https://dergipark.org.tr/en/download/article-file/1291866}}</ref> or {{cvt|6|m}} (Quarter Tschaika) in length, operated by sail or oars. Between 30 and 50 men were in service, commanded by an officer, with a helmsman, an armourer, a drummer, two bowsmen, and up to 36 oarsmen.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Hollins |first1=Dave |last2=Younghusband |first2=William |title=Austrian auxiliary troops 1792 - 1816 |date=1996 |publisher=Reed International Books |location=London |isbn=1855326205}}</ref>{{rp|11}}

===Zaporizhian Host (Ukraine)=== Chaikas were between {{cvt|18-20|m}} in length, {{cvt|3-3.5|m}} in width, and {{cvt|3.5-4|m}} in depth.<ref>{{Cite web |title= Encyclopedia of Ukraine|date=1984|url=https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofuk0001unse/page/n1/mode/2up| website=University of Toronto Press}}</ref> The bottom of a chaika was carved out of a single tree trunk, with sides built out of wooden planks. To protect the boat from enemy guns or from sinking, reed bales were tied to the gunwales of the boat. One such boat could carry around 50 to 60 men and up to 6 falconets (small cannon). Some chaikas also had two steering oars, so that the boat never needed turning around to switch direction.<ref>{{Cite web |title= The 1736-1739 boats discovered in the Dnipro River, Ukraine|access-date=27 July 2023 |url=https://www.academia.edu/104194630/The_1736_1739_boats_discovered_in_the_Dnipro_River_Ukraine_A_treasure_trove_of_European_design_methods|website=academia.edu}}</ref>

A similar, but larger boat used by the Zaporozhian Cossacks for both transport and warfare was called a baidak.

==Gallery== <gallery widths="180px"> File:Ukrainian cossacks conquer Feodosia.png|17th century woodcut showing Zaporozhian Cossacks in chaikas, destroying the Turkish fleet and capturing Caffa in 1616. File:Ukrainian replica chaika.jpg|''Presviata Pokrova'', replica Ukrainian chaika in the Solent </gallery>

==References== {{reflist}}

==Further reading== * ''Encyclopedia of Ukraine'', Ed. Volodymyr Kubijovyč. Vol. 1. Canada: University of Toronto Press, 1984.

==External links== *[http://www.ukrweekly.com/old/archive/2005/280528.shtml The Viking "drakkar" and the Kozak "chaika"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201101211434/http://www.ukrweekly.com/old/archive/2005/280528.shtml |date=2020-11-01 }} *{{commons category-inline|Chaika (boat)}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chaika (Boat)}} Category:Boat types Category:Ships of Serbia Category:Naval ships of Ukraine Category:Military history of Serbia Category:Military history of Ukraine Category:Early modern history of Serbia Category:History of the Zaporozhian Cossacks Category:Transport in Styria (Slovenia) Category:History of transport in Slovenia Category:Drava Category:Cossack culture Category:Tall ships