Intricacies of Naval Warfare
This title of a new chapter, in which I will elaborate on naval arsenals and the employment of fleets, is still in diapers. I wrote an extract about the former and began checking the material about the latter. I realized that speaking about Mediterranean fleets needs to be more professional. Instead of referring to all naval activities at one blow, I must consider the Byzantine, Arab, Norman, Venetian, Genoese, Catalan/Spanish, and Ottoman navies. Until now, I evaluated the data about the Byzantine navy and began developing what I dub "bits & pieces." I transferred some of these "odds and ends" to the first two chapters: "A Tale of the Two Watercraft Brands" and "Early War Galleys." I want to analyze the strategy of leading fleets and what tactics their admirals chose to implement the task instead of describing concrete battles. I will give you a few snapshots of my studies--the first concerns Byzantine horse transports, i.e., cargo galle...