Guillaume Le Vasseur de Beauplan was a French engineer who worked in Poland between 1630 and 1647. He built fortifications in Ukraine, most of which was then under Polish control, took part in battles with the Cossacks and Tatars, and in 1639 traveled by boat down the Dnieper (Dnipro) River. Beauplan produced two important early maps of Ukraine that were based on his observations and careful astronomical and topographic measurements.
“. . . Brave people, known at present by the name of Zaporousky [Zaporizhia] Cossacks, spread of late years into so many places along the Borysthenes [Dnipro River], and the neighbouring parts, whose number at present amount to 120,000 disciplin’d men, and ready in less than eight days upon the least command they receive from the king, these are the people, who very often, and almost every year, make excursions upon the Euxine Sea [Black Sea], to the great detriment of the Turks. They have several times plunder’d the Crim Tartary [Crimea], ravag’d Anatolia [Turkey], sack’d Trebisond [Trabzon], and run to the mouth of the Black Sea, within three leagues of Constantinople, where they have put all to fire and sword, and then returned home with a rich booty, and some slaves, which are generally young children, whom they breed up to serve them, or present them to some lord of their country; for they keep none that are grown up, unless they think them rich enough to pay a good ransom. They are never more than between six and ten thousand men when they make their ravages, and cross the sea miraculously in pitiful boats they make themselves, and of whose shape and structure I shall speak hereafter.
They are of a strong constitution, able to endure heat and cold, hunger and thirst; indefatigable in war, bold, resolute, or rather rash, not valuing their lives. They show most valour and conduct when they fight in their tabors (camps), and covered with their carts (for they are very expert at their fire-arms, their usual weapons) and in defending strong places. At sea they are not bad…
When they intend to go to sea, it is without the king’s leave, but they take it of their general, and then they hold a rada, that is, a council, and choose a general to command them during that expedition, observing the same ceremonies we have mentioned in the election of their great general, but this now chosen is but for a time. Then they march to their Sczabenisza Worskowa (Arsenal), that is, their place of rendezvous, and there build boats about sixty foot long, ten or twelve foot wide, and twelve foot deep; these boats have no keel, but are built upon bottoms made of the wood of the willow about forty five foot in length, and raised with planks ten or twelve foot long, and about a foot broad, which they pin or nail one over another, like the common boats upon rivers, till they come to twelve foot in height, and sixty in length, stretching out in length and breadth the higher they go. This will be better understood by the rough draught I have inserted here. You may observe they have great bundles of large reeds put together as thick as a barrel end to end, and reaching the whole length of the vessel, well bound with bands made of lime or cherry tree; they build them as our carpenters do with ribs and cross-pieces, and then pitch them and have two rudders one at each end, as appears in the draught because the boats being so very long, they should lose much time in going about when they are forced to fly back.
They have commonly ten or fifteen oars oт a side, and row faster than the Turkish galleys: they have also one mast, which carries an ill‑shaped sail made use of only in very fair weather, for they had rather row when it blows hard. These vessels have no deck, and when they are full of water, the reeds above-mentioned tied quite round the boat, keep it from sinking. Their bisket is in a tun ten foot long, and four foot diameter, fast bound; and they take out the bisket at the bung.
They have also a puncheon or half‑tun of boiled millet, and another of dough p81 dissolved in water, which they eat mixed with the millet, and make great account of it; this serves for meat and drink, and tastes sourish; they call it salamakha, that is, a dainty food. For my part, I found no delicacy in it, and when I made use of it upon my voyages, it was for want of better. These people are very sober, and if there be a drunkard found among them, the general causes him to be turned out; therefore they are not permitted to carry any brandy, being very observant of sobriety in their expeditions and enterprizes.
When they resolve to make war upon the Tartars in revenge for the mischiefs received from them, they take their opportunity in autumn. To this purpose they send all necessaries for their voyage and enterprize, and for the building of ships and other uses, to the Zaporozhe: then five or six hundred Cossacks all good able men well armed take the field, and repair to Zaporozhe to build their boats: sixty of them go about a boat, and finish it in a fortnight; for, as has been said, they are of all trades. Thus in three weeks time they make ready eighty or a hundred boats, such as I described above; between fifty and seventy men go aboard each vessel; with each of them two firelocks and a scymitar, carry four or five falconets upon the sides of the vessel, and provisions proper for them. They wear a shirt and drawers, have a shift, a pitiful gown, a cap, six pounds of cannon powder, and ball enough for their small arms and falconets, and every one carries a quadrant. This is the flying army of the Cossacks on the Black Sea, able to terrify the best towns in Anatolia.
“Thus provided, they run down the Borysthenes (Dnieper Riv.); the admiral carries his distinction upon the mast, and generally has the van, their boats keep so close that the oars almost clash. The Turk has commonly notice of their coming, and keeps several gallies ready at the mouth of the Borysthenes, where the gallies dare not go, having far’d ill there formerly, and think it enough to wait their coming out, in which they are always surprised: yet the Cossacks cannot slip by so swiftly but they are discovered, then all the country takes the alarm, and it runs as far as Constantinople. The grand seignior sends expresses all along the coast of Anatolia, Bulgaria, and Romania, that all people may be upon their guard, giving them notice that the Cossacks are at sea. But all this is to no purpose, for they make such use of their time, that in thirty‑six or forty hours time they are in Anatolia, where they land with every man his firelock, leaving but two men, and two boys to keep each boat: There they surprize towns, take, pillage, and burn them, and sometimes go a league up the country, but return immediately, and go aboard with their booty, hasting away to try their fortune in another place. If they find any Turkish gallies or other ships, they pursue, attack and make themselves masters of them, which they do in this manner: their boats are not above two foot and a half above water, and they discover a ship or galley before they themselves can be perceived by them. Then they strike their masts, observe how the enemy winds, and endeavour to have the sun upon their backs at night; then an hour before sun‑setting they row with all their might towards the ship or galley till they come within a league of it, for fear of losing sight of it, and so continue: Then about midnight (the signal being given) they pull up again amain towards the vessel, half the crew ready to fight, only expecting when they come together to board. Those in the ship or galley are astonished to be attacked by eighty or a hundred vessels, which fill them full of men, and in a moment bear all down; this done, they pillage what they find in silver, or goods of no great bulk, that cannot be spoil’d by the water, as also the brass guns, and what they think can serve them, then sink the vessel and men in it. This is the practice of the Cossacks: had they skill to manage a ship or galley, they might carry it away, but they have not that knack. When they are to return home, the guards are doubled upon the mouth of the Borysthenes: but tho’ weak they laugh at that, for when they have been forced to fight, they have often lost many men, and the sea has swallowed some of their vessels, for they cannot be all so good, but some must fail. Therefore they land in a creek, three or four leagues east of Oczakow (Ochacov), where there is a valley very low, about a quarter of a league in length, the spring tides sometimes overflowing it half a foot deep, and is about three leagues over to the Borysthenes: there two or three hundred Cossacks draw their boats across one after another, and in two or three days they are in the Borysthenes with their booty. Thus they avoid fighting the gallies that keep the mouth of the river of Ochacov. To conclude, they return to their Karbenicza, where they share the spoil, as was said before. Besides this, they have another refuge; they return by the mouth of the Don, through a strait that lies between Taman and Kerch and run up the mouth to the river Mius, and as far as this river is navigable, from whence to Taczawoda is but a league, and Taczawoda falls into the Samara, which runs into the Dnieper a league above Kodac, as may be seen in the map. But they rarely return this way, because it is too long for them to return to Zaporozhe. Sometimes they go this way out to sea, when there is a great force at the mouth of the Borysthenes to obstruct their coming out, or that they have but twenty or twenty-five boats.
When the gallies meet them at sea in the daytime, they set them hard with their guns, scattering them like so many rooks, sink several, and put them in such a consternation, that those who escape make haste to put in wheresoever they can. But when they fight with the gallies, they do not ply their oars, which are lashed to the side by withes; and when they have fired a musquet, their comrades give them another ready loaden to fire again and thus they ply it without ceasing, and effectually. The gallies are not able to board one of them, but their cannon does them much harm. Upon these occasions they commonly lose two‑thirds of their men, and seldom come off with half, but they bring rich booty, as Spanish pieces of eight, Arabian sequines, carpets, cloth of gold, cotton, silks, and other commodities of great value. Thus the Cossacks live, and these are their revenues; for as for trades they use none, but drinking and debauching among their friends when they return home.
‘Ukraine’ and ‘Muscovy’ names in 1650 Beauplan’s book title >
‘Gardariki, Ukraine’ ebook has description of Kyiv Rus’ boats of the 10th century. Some similarities are striking.
The second way to Kyiv via the Don River was used by a famous Viking king of that period. “Kyiv Rus in Heimskringla Sagas and Byzantine Texts” has this and many other details.
