I just finished building a model of a pirate ship and want the flags to be pointing the right direction. Should the flags be blowing to the bow because the wind is behind the ship, or to the stern as the ship drags the sails along?
Looking at paintings they seem to mostly be blowing to the stern, however there are some that have them blowing to the bow aswell; so I figured it’d be best to ask people who have experience.
Depends on the point of sail, that is, the direction the ship is sailing relative to the wind.
Broad reach / running downwind - the flags point toward the bow.
Close-hauled / tacking upwind - the flags point at an angle, somewhat toward the stern.
Go by the diagram here: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Point_of_sail
The flags will point in the direction of the wind arrow. ⬇️
I think it might be a bit of wishful thinking that a square rigged ship could run close hauled. At least that’s my impression of pirate ships.