Xebec Sailing Characteristics

[Dobbs]

Wow very nice job . I will use both Spaniard and Algerian flags . Thank you .

Xebecs were used in south and west Spain and South France as merchants and patrol ships . There were mostly 3 kinds of Xebecs here :

Biggers, 680 tons , y 38 cannons .
Middlers Ones , 420 tons and similar cannons .
Smallers , 275 tons , 20 cannons , used to coast patrol .

Similar ships with 2 mast were named “ Faluchos “

One of the most known pictures is this one . One Spaniard Xebec against 2 Algerian Xebecs ( Antonio Barceló was the captain of the Spaniard , he is known for his gunboats invention )

It's a cool picture, but there's a lot of artistic license at play. On the left Algerian, how did the yards get in front of both port and starboard shrouds? On the Spaniard, where is the starboard foremast shroud (maybe lost to damage)? The flags suggest a wind speed of 11-16 knots. I would think it would be tricky, perhaps even dangerous to try using sweeps while the boat is moving under sail.