Summary of Mediæval Travel Data

This is part of a a collection of summaries on the fourteenth century.

Size of Ships
Warship 100 to 300 tons missile platform cog, with fighting castles. T
Troop Transport (STUFT?) Usually 30 to 50 tons, sometimes 200 tons. Carried 100 to 200 men and 80 to 100 horses across the channel. T
Typical ship 60 to 100 tuns, 30 crew. Tun is a bit more than a ton. D
Off-coast ship Up to 500 tons cargo. Cutting edge technology. T
Rates of Travel
Venice-Bruges postal system 100 miles per day. 700 miles, 7 days. Stage horses. T
Messenger on foot 20 to 25 miles per day. Only travelling by day. T
Messenger on horseback 40 to 50 miles per day. Only travelling by day. T
Messenger on horseback 15 miles per hour. Emergency rate, not sustained. T
Pack train 15 to 20 miles per day   T
Army 8 miles per day Tuchman seems surprised they weren't faster ("as slow as"). T
Travel Times
Navarre to Flanders 20 to 22 days. One axis France. T
Brittany to Lyons 16 days. Other axis France. T
Paris to Naples 5 weeks.   T
Chambéry to Turin 5 to 7 days. Over a pass. T
Best case channel crossing 1 day. Variable and risky (weather). T
Canterbury to Rome 30 days. Variable and risky (weather, especially channel). T
London to Lyons 18 days. Wine trade, variable and risky (channel weather). T

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