What was a Trireme?
Q: What was a Trireme?
A: A Trireme was an ancient oar-driven warship powered by about 170 oarsmen. It had three tiers of oars and one sail, and on the bow was a battering ram made of bronze that could easily slice through the side of wooden ships.
Q: Who manned the rowing positions in a Trireme?
A: The rowing men were not slaves, but rather free men who were paid to row. In Ancient Greece, soldiers (called Hoplites) too poor to afford their own armour and weapons became trireme rowers in wartime.
Q: How many people were on board a Trireme?
A: There were around 200 people on board a trireme; 170 oarsmen, 30 sailors and soldiers, as well as the kubernete who steered the ship.
Q: What did the kubernete do?
A: The kubernete was responsible for steering the trireme during battle or voyage. From this we get the English word Governor, for a person who leads a state.
Q: How long could triremes stay at sea?
A: Because there were many men crowded onto a small ship, triremes could not stay at sea very long and often came to land each evening where they would pull it out of water and sleep next to it on the beach.
Q: What happened before battles with Triremes?
A: Before battle, the mast and sail would be taken off and left on shore so that more room would be available for soldiers shooting arrows or attempting to board enemy ships with swords and spears.
Q: How many ships participated in Battle of Salamis?
A: In Battle of Salamis there were around 360 ships on Greek side and 600-800 ships on Persian side.
