Portuguese Warship ''Botafogo''

By Crusader1307

Originally known as “Sao Joao Baptista” (or “St, John The Baptist”) - “Botafogo” (or “Spitfire”), was another Portuguese Warship well known in the 16th Century. She displaced 1,000 tons and was 300 feet long. Said to carry some 366 bronze cannon and a crew of 400, “Botafogo” was as formidable a ship ever made. Used in The Mediterranean (to protect shipping against Piracy) – and again in The Atlantic (to protect The Slave Trade), “Botafogo” made her fame during The Conquest of Tunis (1535). Defenders had erected large “Sea Chains” across the Harbor inlet (to block) entrance. “Botafogo” was equipped with an iron ram. She sliced through the Sea Chains and with other ships, bombarded Tunis into submission. She was lost to a storm in 1550.