The purpose of chainplates on a sailboat is to transfer the enormous loads from the standing rigging into the hull structure safely. Without chainplates, the mast would not stay upright. The shrouds and stays pull on the mast from multiple directions. The side shrouds keep the mast from falling sideways. The forestay keeps the mast from falling backwards and the backstay keeps the mast from falling forward. Those wires are under tremendous tension. The chainplates are the structural anchor point where those rigging wires attach to the boat.
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