Galleys were the first to be equipped with guns, the weapons being upon the upper deck and fired above the bulwarks. Some galleys, particularly in the Mediterranean, carried only one gun forward, a bow chaser. The desire to carry more guns and to fire them over the sides led to the raising of the sides of the vessel; and in order to avoid the strain to the ship’s structure when the guns were fired, the weak point apparently being the connection between the sides and beams, the sides were given an inclination inboard, or tumble home, the connecting beams being thus shortened. The practice was carried to such an absurd extent that the beam of a Venetian galleon--as such vessels now began to be called--at the deck might be only half that of the vessel at the water line. The narrower deck space left less room on which to place the stern castle, which instead of being an addition became a structural part of the ship, provided with three and sometimes four decks, all carrying cannon. [Illustration: A MEDITERRANEAN WAR GALLEY. _From an Old Print._] [Illustration: SHIP OF WAR, 1486-1520. _From a Model in the Museum of the Royal United Service Institution._] On the Atlantic coasts the problem of cannon was solved in its own way. Guns were placed broadside and fired over the bulwark. But the disadvantages of this method were so obvious, especially when an enemy returned the fire, that portholes in the bulwarks were devised through which the guns could be discharged. A French shipbuilder at Brest, named Decharges, is said to have been the inventor of portholes, and also to have designed some other improvements. His portholes, however, were so small that the muzzles of the guns could only just protrude. It was impossible to give them any traverse, that is, to train or aim them. The general adoption of artillery led to numerous modifications in the shape of the ships; they were built of greater dimensions, were more fully masted and rigged, and could show a considerable press of sail. It was also considered advisable that ships should be built especially for war purposes, the French taking the lead after the battle of La Rochelle.