A distinct area of artillery development was warfare at sea. Ships’ guns were used to bombard shore positions in support of amphibious operations, and in ship-to-ship or fleet actions to de-mast, demobilize, and sometimes sink enemy ships.
French warships are known to have used guns in 1356; an Iberian ship mounted guns in 1359; and Genoese and Venetian ships used guns against each other from 1379. In the evolution of artillery at sea pirates and privateers, and the armed merchants on whom they preyed, played a greater role than the primitive state navies that marked most of this period. Big guns were brought to bear in war at sea earlier than in land warfare because ships solved the key problem of early artillery: its weight and lack of mobility. Cannon were housed and employed differently by galleys and ships of sail. Because of the weak hull construction of galleys and their straight ahead, hard-charging tactics, all cannon were mounted forward, with perhaps a small chase gun or two at the rear. The prow was cut away to accommodate big, multi-ton culverins and demi-culverins, along with smaller anti-personnel pieces such as swivel guns. Arming galleys stimulated demand for naval artillery (there were 600 war galleys in all Mediterranean fleets in the late 16th century).
Existing foundries had difficulty meeting the need. Once Atlantic-built armed merchants and purpose-built sailing warships armed with cast-iron cannon arrived in the Mediterranean, and with Venetian deployment of the hybrid galleass, the days of strict galley-to galley warfare ended. Ships of sail progressively substituted weight of guns for sheer numbers of fighting men and developed new broadside tactics to match the change. In turn, reducing the size of a ship's crew reduced the amount of food and potable water carried in the hold. When that change was combined with new building techniques that greatly increased tonnage, long-distance navigation and commerce became possible and lucrative. And with that, cruiser warfare and long-range naval attrition of an enemy's merchant marine became feasible and perhaps even command of the sea.
