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Books > History > History of specific subjects > Maritime history
Provides deep insights into the roles and responsibilities of men, women and children within naval families. This book explores the competing demands of family, war and duty in the lives of eighteenth-century naval men and their families. It covers not just the men afloat and their wives ashore, but also the rich and complex financial, professional and fraternal networks that were essential to naval lives. By drawing on a substantial body of personal correspondence, the book goes beyond cultural and gendered stereotypes to examine the roles and responsibilities of men, women and children within a naval family and how war shaped and determined those roles. The families considered include those of several famous naval figures, including Philip Broke, Matthew Flinders and George Bass, and also the families of "lower deck" seamen, some of whom could not write for themselves and where data has been gleaned from previously unexplored petitions. The information provided contributes to a wider understanding of gender roles, especially masculinity, in the period and to eighteenth-century social and cultural history more broadly. Moreover, as insights into the intimate and emotional details of family life, especially between husbands and wives, aredifficult to discover in any historical period (such intimacy being rarely recorded), the details presented here constitute a rare resource. Ellen Gill completed her doctorate at the University of Sydney.
The ninth and tenth centuries witnessed the establishment of a substantial network of maritime trade across the Indian Ocean, providing the real-life background to the Sinbad tales. An exceptional exemplar of Arabic travel writing, Accounts of China and India is a compilation of reports and anecdotes about the lands and peoples of this diverse territory, from the Somali headlands of Africa to the far eastern shores of China and Korea. Traveling eastward, we discover a vivid human landscape-from Chinese society to Hindu religious practices-as well as a colorful range of natural wilderness-from flying fish to Tibetan musk-deer and Sri Lankan gems. The juxtaposed accounts create a kaleidoscope of a world not unlike our own, a world on the road to globalization. In its ports, we find a priceless cargo of information. Here are the first foreign descriptions of tea and porcelain, a panorama of unusual social practices, cannibal islands, and Indian holy men-a marvelous, mundane world, contained in the compass of a novella. An English-only edition.
Richard Hakluyt's 12-volume Principal Navigations Voyages Traffiques and Discoveries of the English Nation, originally published at the end of the sixteenth century, and reissued by the Cambridge Library Collection in the edition of 1903-5, was followed in 1625 by Hakluytus Posthumus or, Purchas his Pilgrimes, now reissued in a 20-volume edition published in 1905-7. When first published in four folio volumes, the work was the largest ever printed in England. An Anglican priest, Samuel Purchas (1577-1626) was a friend of Hakluyt, and based his great work in part on papers not published by Hakluyt before his death. As well as being a wide-ranging survey of world exploration, it is notable as an anti-Catholic polemic, and a justification of British settlement in North America. Volume 19 continues with British exploration and settlement in North America, including Newfoundland and the colonies of Jamestown and Plymouth.
The Titanic is one of the most famous maritime disasters of all time, but did the Titanic really sink on the morning of 15 April 1912? Titanic's older sister, the nearly identical Olympic, was involved in a serious accident in September 1911 - an accident that may have made her a liability to her owners the White Star Line. Since 1912 rumours of a conspiracy to switch the two sisters in an elaborate insurance scam has always loomed behind the tragic story of the Titanic. Could the White Star Line have really switched the Olympic with her near identical sister in a ruse to intentionally sink their mortally damaged flagship in April 1912, in order to cash in on the insurance policy? Laying bare the famous conspiracy theory, world-respected Titanic researchers investigate claims that the sister ships were switched in an insurance scam and provide definitive proof for whether it could - or could not - have happened.
Originally published in 1694, this record of recent voyages made by Sir John Narborough, Abel Tasman, John Wood and Friderich Martens includes Tasman's account of discovering Tasmania and New Zealand in 1642. Equally engaging, Narborough's journal records his voyage to the Straits of Magellan and his interest in the lands and peoples he encountered from 1669 to 1671. Here also are Wood's thoughts on his 1676 attempt to find a north-east passage to the East Indies, along with Martens' observations on Spitsbergen and whaling in northern waters in 1671. The extracts given here, translated where necessary, offer valuable insights into seventeenth-century navigation and exploration. A selection of illustrations, ranging from maps to depictions of exotic flora and fauna, accompany the text. A key reference for later navigators and for those interested in the history of maritime exploration, the book was also one of the oldest works in Darwin's library aboard the Beagle.
Mainers on the Titanic traces the stories of passengers on that fateful ship who had ties to Maine. Many of them were wealthy summer visitors to Bar Harbor, but there were other residents of state aboard as well. Their tales are retold, along with what was occurring in the state at the time. Meticulously researched, this book reveals the agonizing day-to-day wait of Mainers for news of what really happened and tells the stories of Maine passengers from their boarding to the sinking and rescue, and, for those who survived, of their final coming ashore in Halifax, Nova Scotia. It's a unique and fascinating addition to the Titanic story.
Sir Edward Parry (1790-1855) wrote accounts of his three Arctic expeditions, which have also been reissued in this series. This book takes the form of letters written to a sibling by an anonymous member of the crew on Parry's 1819-20 voyage. It was brought out in 1821 by the enterprising publisher Richard Phillips ahead of any other narrative, as all accounts and journals had first to be handed to the Admiralty Board for the extraction of any important details. It seems likely that the work, which is carefully constructed and elegant in style, was elaborated either from notes or from a genuine series of letters, to get round the restriction on publication. This is a fascinating narrative, full of striking details, such as entertainments on board to help morale, the reappearance of the sun at the end of the Arctic winter, and the sight of the aurora borealis.
This is the first detailed and comprehensive study of the shipshed complexes which housed the great navies of the Greco-Roman world, including Athens and Carthage. These complexes represented some of the largest and most expensive building projects of antiquity, and the volume provides a comprehensive survey of the archaeological and literary evidence. It explains how the buildings were carefully designed to keep warships dry and out of reach of shipworm, whilst enabling them to be launched quickly, easily and safely when required. It also serves as a handbook for archaeologists who may excavate such buildings, which are often difficult to identify and interpret. The analytical chapters are complemented by a full and detailed catalogue of known sheds, with plans for all the major sites specially drawn for easy comparison. The book thus provides an indispensable guide for all those interested in these buildings and in the maritime infrastructure of the ancient world.
France, early summer 1794. The French Revolution has been hijacked by the extreme Jacobins and is in the grip of The Terror. While the guillotine relentlessly takes the heads of innocents, two vast French and British fleets meet in the mid-Atlantic following a week of skirmishing. After fierce fighting, both sides claim victory. In The Glorious First of June Sam Willis not only tells, with thrilling immediacy and masterly clarity, the story of an epic and complex battle, he also places it within the context of The Terror, the survival of the French Revolution and the growth of British sea-power.
Following his participation in James Cook's circumnavigation in HMS Endeavour (1768-71), Joseph Banks developed an extensive global network of scientists and explorers. His correspondence shows how he developed effective working links with the British Admiralty and with the generation of naval officers who sailed after Cook.
This book aims to redefine maritime diplomacy for the modern era. Maritime diplomacy encompasses a spectrum of activities, from co-operative measures such as port visits, exercises and humanitarian assistance to persuasive deployment and coercion. It is an activity no longer confined to just navies, but in the modern era is pursued be coast guards, civilian vessels and non-state groups. As states such as China and India develop, they are increasingly using this most flexible form of soft and hard power. Maritime Diplomacy in the 21st Century describes and analyses the concept of maritime diplomacy, which has been largely neglected in academic literature. The use of such diplomacy can be interesting not just for the parochial effects of any activity, but because any event can reflect changes in the international order, while acting as an excellent gauge for the existence and severity of international tension. Further, maritime diplomacy can act as a valve through which any tension can be released without resort to conflict. Written in an accessible but authoritative style, this book describes the continued use of coercion outside of war by navies, while also situating it more clearly within the various roles and effects that maritime forces have in peacetime. This book will be of much interest to students of seapower, naval history, strategic studies, diplomacy and international relations.
Harold Lowe, Fifth Officer of RMS Titanic, was described by another survivor as 'the real hero of the Titanic.' After taking an active role in the evacuation, Lowe took command of a raft of lifeboats, distributing passengers among them so he could return to the wreckage and look for survivors - the only officer to do so. He succeeded in raising a sail, rescued the drenched inhabitants of a sinking lifeboat and towed another boat to safety. Lowe had a long and fascinating life at sea. The tragic sinking of the Titanic was only the most notorious incident in a career that took him as a fifteen-year-old runaway to the coast of West Africa and into action in Siberia during the Russian Revolution. Titanic historian Inger Sheil has worked closely with Lowe's family to compile a gripping biography of this heroic Welshman.
Little is known of Captain Alexander Hamilton other than what he tells us in this work, first published in 1727. Written during his retirement, it is both an invaluable source of information on south-east Asia at the time and a lively travelogue of Hamilton's adventurous seafaring life in the service of the East India Company and independently between 1688 and 1723. An engaging storyteller, Hamilton writes of encounters with pirates, the Portuguese, and of a poisoning in Malacca, as well as providing vivid descriptions of the countries he visited - from Africa to Japan via India, Sumatra and China - and their social customs, religions, trade and commerce. His idiosyncratic maps and illustrations enhance his narrative despite his admission that he makes 'but little use of the pencil'. Volume 1 takes the reader up the east coast of Africa to the Middle East, and round the coast of India to Ceylon.
Privateers were essentially freelance ships, sanctioned during wartime to sail and do battle on behalf of adversary governments, and this tale follows Alexander Musgrave, a privateer-turned-adventurer, across three continents and into the arms of a beautiful woman.
In the fifth volume of the In Those Days: Collected Writings on Arctic History series, Kenn Harper shares tales of European explorers who came to the Arctic seeking adventure, riches, and the elusive Northwest Passage, and Inuit they encountered there. Inuit were invaluable in adding to Western knowledge of the Arctic, serving as guides, clothing-makers, and interpreters. But not every meeting was friendly. This collection sheds light on Inuit who played a pivotal role in the expeditions of some of the most famous Arctic explorers, including the unfortunate John Franklin. This volume also includes dozens of rare, historical photographs.
Abby Jane Morrell (b. 1809) was the wife of ship captain and explorer Benjamin Morrell (1795 1839). During the nineteenth century it became more common for women to join their husbands on voyages, and Abby insisted on accompanying her husband on his fourth voyage. They left America for the Pacific in 1829 on board the Antarctic, which visited the Auckland Islands and Pacific Islands in search of commercial gain, before returning via the Azores in 1831. First published in 1833, this is Abby's account of their journey. It was ghostwritten by the American author Samuel Knapp (1783 1838) and followed the publication of Benjamin Morrell's own account as part of A Narrative of Four Voyages (also reissued in this series). It includes an account of the violent conflicts with the inhabitants of some of the Pacific Islands, and also contains Abby's comments on the 'amelioration of the condition of American Seamen'.
Following his participation in James Cook's circumnavigation in HMS Endeavour (1768-71), Joseph Banks developed an extensive global network of scientists and explorers. His correspondence shows how he developed effective working links with the British Admiralty and with the generation of naval officers who sailed after Cook.
Why does the story of the Titanic retain such a hold on the popular imagination, one hundred years after it sank on the night of 15 April 1912? In this new centenary edition, Howells explores the myths around the Titanic legend, showing what they reveal about the culture of their time, as well as the role that myth still plays in our lives today.
Ships have histories that are interwoven with the human fabric of the maritime world. In the long nineteenth century these histories revolved around the re-invention of these once familiar objects in a period in which Britain became a major maritime power. This multi-disciplinary volume deploys different historical, geographical, cultural and literary perspectives to examine this transformation and to offer a series of interconnected considerations of maritime technology and culture in a period of significant and lasting change. Its ten authors reveal the processes involved through the eyes and hands of a range of actors, including naval architects, dockyard workers, commercial shipowners and Navy officers. By locating the ship's re-invention within the contexts of builders, owners and users, they illustrate the ways in which material elements, as well as scientific, artisan and seafaring ideas and practices, were bound together in the construction of ships' complex identities.
First published in 1813, this comprehensive dictionary of maritime terminology in the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries was designed as a reference work for shipbuilders and navigators. Compiled by the naval historian William Burney, it is a revised and expanded version of the classic Universal Marine Dictionary originally published in 1769 by the poet and lexicographer William Falconer (1732-89). It provides over 800 pages of technical data on shipbuilding, navigation, the operation of ships, weaponry and provisions, as well as historical, legal and medical information, and even French vocabulary lists. It contains extensive tables and illustrations, and longer articles including, for instance, lists of clothing, books and equipment required by a young midshipman. Both Burney and Falconer were leaders in their field, and the book remains a key historical source on seafaring during the age of Nelson and the French wars, for scholars and enthusiasts alike.
A Tudor voyage of exploration - an extraordinary story of daring, discovery, tragedy and pioneering achievement. In the spring of 1553 three ships sailed north-east from London into uncharted waters. The scale of their ambition was breathtaking. Drawing on the latest navigational science and the new spirit of enterprise and discovery sweeping the Tudor capital, they sought a northern passage to Asia and its riches. The success of the expedition depended on its two leaders: Sir Hugh Willoughby, a brave gentleman soldier, and Richard Chancellor, a brilliant young scientist and practical man of the sea. When their ships became separated in a storm, each had to fend for himself. Their fates were sharply divided. One returned to England, to recount extraordinary tales of the imperial court of Tsar Ivan the Terrible. The tragic, mysterious story of the other two ships has to be pieced together through the surviving captain's log book, after he and his crew became lost and trapped by the advancing Arctic winter. This long-neglected endeavour was one of the boldest in British history, and its impact was profound. Although the 'merchant adventurers' failed to reach China as they had hoped, their achievements would lay the foundations for England's expansion on a global stage. As James Evans' vivid account shows, their voyage also makes for a gripping story of daring, discovery, tragedy and adventure.
Marcus Gheeraerts's portrait of a 'Persian lady' - probably in fact an English lady in masquing costume - exemplifies the hybridity of early modern English culture. Her surrounding landscape and the embroidery on her gown are typically English; but her head-dress and slippers are decidedly exotic, the inscriptions beside her are Latin, and her creator was an 'incomer' artist. She is emblematic of the early modern culture of exchange, both between England and its neighbours, and between Europe and the wider world. This volume presents fresh research into such early modern exchanges, exploring how new identities, subjectivities and artefacts were forged in dialogues and encounters between diverse cultures, nations and language communities. The early modern period was a time of creative interactions between cultures and disciplines, and accordingly this is a multidisciplinary volume, drawing together international experts in literature, history, modern and ancient languages and art history. It understands cultural exchange as encompassing both the geographical mobilities of travel and trade and the transmission of ideas across borders and between languages, as enabled by the new technology of print. Sites of exchange were located not only in distant and unfamiliar lands, but also in the bookseller's shop and the scholar's study. The volume also explores the productive and complex dialogues between early modern culture and the classical past. The types of exchanges discussed include the linguistic transactions of translation and imitation; interactions between cultural elites, such as monarchs, courtiers and diplomats; and the catalytic influences of particularly mobile or outward-looking individuals and groups. Ranging from the neo-Latin poetry of an English author to the plays of a nun in seventeenth-century New Spain, from royal portraits exchanged in diplomatic negotiations to travelling companions in the Ottoman Empire, the volume sheds new light
While inquiries into early encounters between East Asia and the West have traditionally focused on successful interactions, this collection inquires into the many forms of failure, experienced on all sides, in the period before 1850. Countering a tendency in scholarship to overlook unsuccessful encounters, it starts from the assumption that failures can prove highly illuminating and provide valuable insights into both the specific shapes and limitations of East Asian and Western imaginations of the Other, as well as of the nature of East-West interaction. Interdisciplinary in outlook, this collection brings together the perspectives of sinology, Japanese and Korean studies, historical studies, literary studies, art history, religious studies, and performance studies. The subjects discussed are manifold and range from missionary accounts, travel reports, letters and trade documents to fictional texts as well as material objects (such as tea, chinaware, or nautical instruments) exchanged between East and West. In order to avoid a Eurocentric perspective, the collection balances approaches from the fields of English literature, Spanish studies, Neo-Latin studies, and art history with those of sinology, Japanese studies, and Korean studies. It includes an introduction mapping out the field of failures in early modern encounters between East Asia and Europe, as well as a theoretically minded essay on the lessons of failure and the ethics of cross-cultural understanding.
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