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Books > History > History of specific subjects > Maritime history
An interesting and insightful book exploring the author's efforts
to follow in his father's footsteps and succeed in the tumultuous
fishing industry. The reader is invited to experience the author's
life as a Hull trawlerman; from his first trip out as a teenager,
to achieving the highest rank of skipper. The intense highs and
lows in between are relayed in great detail, with photographs
adding to the reading pleasure. This is a story of hard work,
courage, and the importance of following your heart. The author's
infinite love for his family and high regard for his shipmates add
a touching element to the book.
The islands surrounding Scapa Flow made one of Britain's best
natural harbours, while the location at the north of Scotland
protected the approaches to the North Sea and Atlantic. The naval
base was important during both wars but what makes Scapa Flow
famous is its wrecks, the remains of a German fleet, which once
numbered some 74 vessels, most of which were scuttled in 1919, as
well as the war graves of HMS Royal Oak and HMS Vanguard. The
wrecks of the navy ships still survive, along with eight German
warships for which a second war came and prevented salvage. Now a
divers' paradise, the wrecks of Scapa Flow bring divers from all
over the world and employ many in Orkney itself. This is the story
of the ships of Scapa Flow, their sinking and their salvage, using
many previously unseen images of the recovery and subsequent
removal of many of the German battleships and cruisers to Rosyth
dockyard in Fife for breaking up.
This book thoroughly explores and analyses naval policy during the
period of austerity that followed the First World War. During this
post-war period, as the Royal Navy identified Japan its likely
opponent in a future naval war, the British Government was forced
to "tighten its belt" and cut back on naval expenditure in the
interests of "National Economy". G.H. Bennett draws connections
between the early 20th century and the present day, showing how the
same kind of connections exist between naval and foreign policy,
the provision of ships for the Royal Navy, business and regional
prosperity and employment. The Royal Navy in the Age of Austerity
1919-22 engages with a series of important historiographical
debates relating to the history of the Royal Navy, the failures of
British Defence policy in the inter-war period and the evolution of
British foreign policy after 1919, together with more mundane
debates about British economic, industrial, social and political
history in the aftermath of the First World War. It will be of
great interest to scholars and students of British naval history.
A familiar sight on the Thames at London Bridge, HMS Belfast is a
Royal Navy light cruiser, launched in March 1938. Belfast was part
of the British naval blockade against Germany and from November
1942 escorted Arctic convoys to the Soviet Union and assisted in
the destruction of the German warship Scharnhorst. In June 1944
Belfast supported the Normandy landings and in 1945 was redeployed
to the British Pacific Fleet. After the war she saw action in the
Korean War and a number of other overseas actions. She has been
part of the Imperial War Museum since 1978, with 250,000 visitors
annually.
This fascinating book comprises a series of documents
that give information on the building of the ship, her wartime
service history and life on board.
Paul Kennedy's classic naval history, now updated with a new
introduction by the author This acclaimed book traces Britain's
rise and fall as a sea power from the Tudors to the present day.
Challenging the traditional view that the British are natural 'sons
of the waves', he suggests instead that the country's fortunes as a
significant maritime force have always been bound up with its
economic growth. In doing so, he contributes significantly to the
centuries-long debate between 'continental' and 'maritime' schools
of strategy over Britain's policy in times of war. Setting British
naval history within a framework of national, international,
economic, political and strategic considerations, he offers a fresh
approach to one of the central questions in British history. A new
introduction extends his analysis into the twenty-first century and
reflects on current American and Chinese ambitions for naval
mastery. 'Excellent and stimulating' Correlli Barnett 'The first
scholar to have set the sweep of British Naval history against the
background of economic history' Michael Howard, Sunday Times 'By
far the best study that has ever been done on the subject ... a
sparkling and apt quotation on practically every page' Daniel A.
Baugh, International History Review 'The best single-volume study
of Britain and her naval past now available to us' Jon Sumida,
Journal of Modern History
In 1789, as the Bounty made its return voyage through the western
Pacific Ocean, disgruntled crewmen seized control from their
captain, William Bligh. The mutineers set Bligh and the eighteen
men who remained loyal to him adrift in one of the ship's boats,
with minimal food and only four cutlasses for weapons.In the two
centuries since, the mutiny and its aftermath have become the stuff
of legend. Millions of words have been written about it; it has
been the subject of novels, plays, feature films and documentaries.
The story's two protagonists - Bligh and his mutinous deputy,
Fletcher Christian - are cast as villain and hero, but which is
which depends on which account you read.In Mutiny, Mayhem,
Mythology, Alan Frost looks past these inherited narratives to shed
new light on the infamous expedition and its significance.
Returning to the very first accounts of the mutiny, he shows how
gaps, misconceptions and hidden agendas crept into the historical
record and have shaped it ever since.
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