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Merchant Fleet

The emergence of Kefalonia as the main maritime centre of the – under British protection – United States of the Ionian Islands, and, in general, of the Ionian Sea (during the 19th century), was based on the strong growth of her deep-sea sailing commercial vessels. The Kefalonian fleet, according to the findings of the most recent archival research and compared to the fleets of the other Ionian Islands, was not only numerically dominant, but in terms of capacity as well.

(Sources: (a) Odysseus, Ionian Maritime History Database, 1810-1864∙ (b) Kapetanakis, Panayiotis S., ‘The deep-sea going merchant fleet of the Seven Islands during the time of British conquest and protection and the Cephalonian prominence (1809/15-1864). Fleet and ports, cargoes and sea-routes, maritime centres and seamen, entrepreneurship and networks, society and shipowning elites,’ Ph.D. thesis, Dpt of History, Ionian University, Corfu 2010 typescript. (http://phdtheses.ekt.gr/ead d/handle/10442/18428) (in Greek); (c) Harlaftis, Gelina, with Vlassopoulos Nikos, Pontoporeia, Historical Registry Books of Greek cargo sailing ships and steamships, 1830-1939, E.L.I.A./Niarchos Foundation, Athens 2002 (in Greek)).



The Ionian deep-sea sailing, commercial fleet, during the 19th century, specifically during the British occupation and protection of the Ionian Islands (1809-1864), was composed mainly by Kefalonian merchant vessels. The latter represented a percentage between 65 and 70 of the total tonnage of the Ionian State’s commercial fleet (vessels sailing under the formal Ionian flag). It is worth noticing that this dominant, in terms of capacity, presence of the Kefalonian fleet was accompanied by its dominance in absolute number of commercial vessels, as well.
In the mid-19th century the Kefalonian vessels represented more than three fifths of the total number of the Ionian State’s sea-going, merchant vessels. As regards the commercial fleets of the other islands of the Ionian State, the picture is as follows: Ithaca and its vessels represented an amount of 18% out of the total tonnage of the Ionian fleet; Zakynthos (Zante) represented an average of 5%, the same amount being represented by the Paxiot vessels, whereas the fifth position was occupied by Corfiot vessels (3%). Finally, the sixth position was occupied by the commercial vessels of Lefkada (Santa Maura, 3%), and the seventh position was occupied by the merchant vessels of Kythira (Cerigo, 1%).
However, the island of Kefalonia had the largest ocean-going, commercial fleet of the Ionian State. The Kefalonian supremacy was based not only on the capacity of her vessels, but on the total number of her available vessels, as well. According to the recent archival research findings, the picture of the Kefalonian commercial fleet, for the period from 1820 until the First World War, was as follows:

1820: 98 sailing vessels = 10,459 tonnes
1825: 182 sailing vessels = 21,938 tonnes
1830: 144 sailing vessels = 24,201 tonnes
1835: 44 sailing vessels = 9,054 tonnes
1840: 23 sailing vessels = 4,808 tonnes
1845: 154 sailing vessels = 21,649 tonnes
1850: 164 sailing vessels = 25,027 tonnes
1855: 196 sailing vessels = 27,830 tonnes
1860: 225 sailing vessels = 33,602 tonnes
1865: 40 sailing vessels = 8,563 tonnes
1870: 138 sailing vessels = 25,054 tonnes
1875: 110 sailing vessels = 19,857 tonnes
1880: 124 sailing vessels = 24,639 tonnes
1890: 43 sailing vessels = 9,712 tonnes
1895: 33 sailing vessels = 8,929 tonnes
1900: 7 sailing vessels = 2,738 tonnes
1905: 5 sailing vessels = 1,166 tonnes
1910: 4 sailing vessels = 854 tonnes
1914: 1 sailing vessels = 235 tonnes

As already mentioned, in the mid-19th century, the island of Ithaca followed Kefalonia occupying the second position, with a commercial fleet ranging between 40 and 60 vessels. According to the recent archival research findings, the picture of the Ithacan commercial fleet, for the period from 1820 until the First World War, was as follows:

1820: 20 sailing vessels = 2,389 tonnes
1825: 45 sailing vessels = 4,676 tonnes
1830: 40 sailing vessels = 5,720 tonnes
1835: 11 sailing vessels = 1,983 tonnes
1840: 26 sailing vessels = 4,339 tonnes
1845: 45 sailing vessels = 7,691 tonnes
1850: 54 sailing vessels = 8,991 tonnes
1855: 62 sailing vessels = 7,891 tonnes
1860: 54 sailing vessels = 8,490 tonnes
1865: 27 sailing vessels = 4,568 tonnes
1870: 56 sailing vessels = 9,195 tonnes
1875: 49 sailing vessels = 8,221 tonnes
1880: 54 sailing vessels = 10,473 tonnes
1890: 21 sailing vessels = 5,101 tonnes
1895: 15 sailing vessels = 3,174 tonnes
1900: 1 sailing vessels = 192 tonnes
1905: 0 sailing vessels = 0 tonnes
1910: 0 sailing vessels = 0 tonnes
1914: 0 sailing vessels = 0 tonnes

As regards the other “maritime” Islands of the Ionian State, the third and fourth position was occupied by Zakynthos and Corfu, with Zakynthos owning a commercial fleet consisting of no more than 20 vessels, whereas Corfu’s fleet counted an average of 15 to 25 sailing vessels. Finally, what is worthy of note, is the dynamic presence of the Paxiot sea-going, commercial fleet, especially during the period after mid-19th century. To be more specific, in 1860 the Paxiot fleet counted a total number of 27 large sailing vessels, with a capacity of almost 2,600 tonnes. It is a size that positioned the island of Paxos as the third most powerful and dynamic maritime centre of the Ionian State, following those of Kefalonia and Ithaca.