alleys charging in line abreast, that
her hull was stove in, in several places, and she went down with nearly
all hands, only thirty-five, or, according to other accounts forty-six,
having been saved.

These large ships appear to have been used by other Mediterranean Powers
towards the end of the twelfth century. For instance, a great Venetian
ship visited Constantinople in 1172 A.D., of which it was stated that
"no vessel of so great a bulk had ever been within that port." This
vessel is mentioned by Cinnamis, Marino, and Filiasi, and others, but
her dimensions are not given. It is, however, known that she had three
masts. Cinnamis, who was at Constantinople at this very time, states
that she received from 1,500 to 2,000 Venetian refugees on board, and
conveyed them to the Adriatic. The Venetians are said to have employed
another very large ship at the siege of Ancona in 1157 A.D. On account
of its size it was named _Il Mondo_.

The Republic of Venice was, during the time of which we are writing, and
for a long subsequent period, the foremost maritime power of the world.
It is highly probable that many of the improvements which found their
way into mediaeval ships owed their origin to its great naval arsenal,
which was famed for its resources and for the technical skill of its
employes. At one time this arsenal employed 16,000 workmen, and during
the great struggle of the Republic with the Turks at the end of the
sixteenth century it turned out a completed and fully equipped galley
every day for a hundred days in succession. During the Crusades, Venice
and the rival Republic of Genoa secured between them the great bulk of
the business involved in transporting troops and stores to the East, and
they frequently hired out their war and merchant ships to other Powers.

Shortly after the Crusade of Richard Coeur de Lion the trade and
shipping of England appear to have undergone great expansion. In the
reign of Henry III. (1216 to 1272) the historian, Matthew of
Westminster, writes of them in a strain which might almost apply to our
own day:--

"Oh England, whose antient glory is renowned among all nations, like
the pride of the Chaldeans; the ships of Tarsis could not compare
with thy ships; they bring from all the quarters of the world
aromatic spices and all the most precious things of the universe: the
sea is thy wall, and thy ports are as the gates of a strong and
well-furnished castle."

In anot