Stern / Rigging (USS Constellation)

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Constellation had no engine, and her only way to move was wind power. She was the last US Navy ship built with no engine and incorporates the latest designs for a sailing vessel of the 19th century. Her sail-power made her very cost-effective, and she made several trans-Atlantic voyages during her 100 years of service. She last sailed under her own power in 1893, for a return trip from Gibraltar. A Full-Rigged Ship USS Constellation is a full-rigged ship, which means she has 3 masts with sails that are square. “Square” refers to both the shape of the sail, and that fact that it is rigged perpendicular, or “square” to the ship. Sails hung from the “yards”, which are the black horizontal poles on each mast. When fully rigged, she had 4 sails per mast, plus small, triangular Jib sails on the bow, totaling over 20,000 square feet of canvas. Constellation’s sail plan allowed for speeds of 19 kts, (21 mph) made her very fast when the wind was right. However, her square-rigged design also limited her maneuverability to the direction of the wind. Rigging Statistics To sail, USS Constellation used A 155 ft (47m)- tall Main Mast 20,000 ft² (6100m²) of canvas sails 5 ½ miles (8.8 km) of standing rigging (structural support rope) 15 miles (24 km) of running rigging (moving rope) Manning the rigging To operate the sails, sailors had to climb up the ropes called shrouds to reach the tops. Sailors worked the sails by climbing out on the yards using foot ropes. If you look carefully, you can see the foot ropes beneath each yard. The inherent danger of working aloft restricted this job to only the more experienced seamen. “Fighting Tops” are the large white platforms on each mast. Often mistaken for a traditional “crow’s nest,” warships usually only had fighting tops which served as an elevated fighting position. US Marines were stationed here during combat to act as sharpshooters and supplied fire from above the regular enemy defenses.

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