"Bow/stern chasers" Topic

I am working out special rules for Galleys & Galleons – for those not familiar with Ganesha Games, special rules are bought for models as buffs or add-ons.

At the moment I have a single rule for chasers, allowing vessels to fire out of their bow and stern arcs. However, is there a case to be made for splitting it so that you can buy bow chasers, or stern chasers, or both?

Are there many occasions where a vessel may have had one (bow or stern chasers)without the other?

Galleys are treated a little differently to most vessels and come with just forward firing guns as standard.

I should add that the nominal period is 16th-17th centuries (and, yes, I freely acknowledge that there are big changes to ship design throughout that period).

I believe some galleys (or galeasses?) in the Renaissance period had guns that only fired forward.

There's no reason why a galleon couldn't carry bow and stern chasers, as long as there was sufficient space and structural strength to accommodate them

Large galleys usually had 5 guns firing forward:l large 2 medium and two light. They would mount swivels along the sides. Nothing firing astern. Galleases had fewer oars and more sails and could mount broadside guns as well as bow and stern chasers. Galleons had chasers and many and heavier broadside guns.

Are there any actual examples of sailed vessels (not galleys) having just stern chasers but no bow chasers or vice versa?

I would assume that a vessel capable of carrying either, would be capable of taking both, but I'm sure there are exceptions.

Most gun-armed ships prior to the English Galleon would have included both bow and stern guns but the bow guns would often be much lighter and in the forecastle. They may have reasonable range but limited hitting power.

English galleons of the 'race built' type have a lower fore castle and it is strong enough to take a larger chase gun or two but they may not have been a permanent fitting as such but guns transferred there from a forward broadside port.

The problem with ascertaining exact armament and its position is that few authors of the time gave precise enough or consistent enough detail to be sure what or where they meant.

Also not sure that concept of a combat like the 'bow chase' of Napoleonic times was common during the period you mention so terming guns at the bow and stern 'chasers' is possibly misleading.

Have you read, the similarly named, Galleons and Galleys by John F. Guilmartin? He covers the development in the time span you are looking at.

Galleys mounted a heavy centerline cannon from an early point, usually much heavier than what you would find on a sailing vessel, and they did on occasion sink sailing warships outright with them. Any cannons in the stern would have been very light, usually swivel guns, although possibly something a little bit heavier. Galleys attacked with the front, and it sounds like your rules already take this into account.

When sailing vessels started to carry heavy guns, they often placed them in the back on either side of the rudder. This was for purposes of stability, but also provided a defensive measure if being chased by a galley. This part of the ship became known as the gun room, and often the heaviest cannons would be the stern chasers. As ship design developed more cannons could be carried broadside.

It should be remembered that broadside tactics weren't really developed until the Anglo-Dutch Wars (although there were a few antecedents). The forecastle was the offensive part of the ship, and there were some attempts to improve forward firing artillery. This was always limited on a carrack, with it's high forecastle, but the galleon allowed heavier guns to be placed there. If making an artillery attack (as opposed to trying to force a boarding fight), the standard tactic was to close and fire all the guns on one side of the ship, turning to show other sides of the ship until all the guns had been fired, then pull away to reload. That way both broadsides, bow chasers, and stern chasers were fired at the enemy (I forget the precise order). English galleon captains appear to have felt that the bow guns provided the "knock-out" blow.

I guess the answer is it depends upon the type of ship. A very early 16th century carrack may have only have had stern-chasers. And, as GlidasFacit pointed out, on most sailing ships the stern chasers would be more powerful than the bow-chasers.