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AND ALL I WANT IS A TALL SHIP..... Part I
By : M.R.Sethi


Try your knowledge of ships with this quiz. And wish you a smooth sailing!

1. In his poem `Sea Fever' the poet, longing for a sea journey, exclaims, "And all I want is a tall ship and the star to steer it by." Who is the poet?

2. The remains of one of the ships that Columbus took on his first voyage across the Atlantic in 1492 were discovered in 1968. Can you name the ship?

3. This luxury liner was considered to be unsinkable and yet it sank during its maiden voyage after having struck against an iceberg. Can you name the ship?

4. HMS Nelson and HMS Rodney were two famous battleships of the British navy. What principal armaments did they carry?

5. Can you name the first steam ship to operate successfully?

6. This small ship was found abandoned in the Atlantic in 1872 with its captain and the crew missing. The mystery regarding their disappearance has still not been solved. Can you name the ship?

7. This liner was sunk by a German submarine on 7th May 1915, and over 1200 passengers were drowned. Can you recall its name?

8. John Masefield's famous poem `Cargoes' describes a different kind of ship in each of its three stanzas. Can you name these three ships?

9. Lord Nelson, the British naval hero won many a naval battles. What was the name of his flag ship?

10. The Roman warship of ancient days was propelled by three rows of oarsmen. What was it called?

ANSWERS


1. John Masefield (1878-1976), English poet, playwright and dramatist. He ran away to sea in 1891 and did menial jobs while travelling around the world. He described his love for sea journey in a number of his works.

2. The Santa Maria. It was his flagship and was wrecked off Haiti after his first discoveries. The two other ships which formed part of his fleet were the Nina and the Pinta.

3. The Titanic. On the fateful night of 15th April, 1912, The Titanic struck against an iceberg in the north Atlantic and sank within two hours. Of the 2207 passengers amd crew the ship carried, 1635 were drowned.

4. These battleships carried three turrets of three 16 inches guns, mounted in line, one higher than the next, in the fore part of the ship.

5. It was Charles Dundas. It plied the Forth-Clyde canal in Scotland, starting in 1802.

6. Marie Celeste. This small ship left the United States in 1872 with a captain and crew. Later it was found abandoned in the Atlantic with no sign of anyuone aboard or any evidence as to where the ship's complement had gone.

7. Lusitania, a Cunard trans-Atlanmtic liner. It was sunk off the Irish coast by a German submarine on 7th May, 1915.

8. Quinquireme, galleon and coaster. A quinquireme was an ancient ship with five rows of oars. A galleon was an old and stately warship or a trading ship. A coaster belongs to the modern times and is small.

9. Its name was HMS Victory. The ship had been launched in 1765 and remained in service till the battle of Trafalgar in 1805. Though Nelson lost his life, the ship survived the battle. It is still in dry dock at Portsmouth Harbour.

10. Trireme. A triereme was generally about 100 feet long, had two masts and a ram.



 

  
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     

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