In this work, two senior naval historians analyze the discussions held in leading Soviet political, military, and naval circles concerning naval strategy and the decisions taken for warship-building programmes. They describe the reconstitution of the fleet under difficult conditions from the end of the Civil War up to the mid-1920s, leading to a change from classical naval strategy to a Jeune ecole model in the first two Five-Year Plans, including efforts to obtain foreign assistance in the design of warships and submarines. Their aim is to explain the reasons for the sudden change in 1935 to begin building a big ocean-going fleet. After a period of co-operation with Germany from 1939-41, the plans came to a halt when Hitler attacked the Soviet Union in 1941. Finally, this work covers the reopening of the naval planning processes in 1944 and 1945 and the discussions of the naval leadership with Stalin, the party and government officials about the direction of the new building programmes as the Cold War began.

After suffering devastating losses in the huge naval battles at Midway and the Soloman Islands, the Imperial Japanese navy attempted to counter-attack against the US forces threatening the Home Islands. Involving the US Fifth Fleet and the Japanese Mobile Fleet, the battle of the Philippine Sea took place during the United States' amphibious invasion of the Mariana Islands during the Pacific War. The two fleets clashed on 19-20 June 1944 and the Japanese carrier fighters were shot down in devastating numbers by US aircraft in what became known as the "Great Marianas Turkey Shoot", before US counterattacks and submarine strikes forced the withdrawal of the Japanese fleet. Fully illustrated with stunning specially commissioned artwork, Mark Stille tells the enthralling story of the last, and largest, carrier battle of the Pacific War, the one that saw the end of the Imperial Japanese Navy as a formed fighting force.

The story of the British Eastern Fleet, which operated in the Indian Ocean against Japan, has rarely been told. Although it was the largest fleet deployed by the Royal Navy prior to 1945 and played a vital part in the theatre it was sent to protect, it has no place in the popular consciousness of the naval history of the Second World War. So Charles Stephenson's deeply researched and absorbing narrative gives this forgotten fleet the recognition it deserves. British pre-war naval planning for the Far East is part of the story, as is the disastrous loss of the battleship Prince of Wales and battlecruiser Repulse in 1941, but the body of the book focuses on the new fleet, commanded by Admiral Sir James Somerville, and its operations against the Japanese navy and aircraft as well as Japanese and German submarines. Later in the war, once the fleet had been reinforced with an American aircraft carrier, it was strong enough to take more aggressive actions against the Japanese, and these are described in vivid detail. Charles Stephenson's authoritative study should appeal to readers who have a special interest in the war with Japan, in naval history more generally and Royal Navy in particular.

European Navies and the Conduct of War considers the different contexts within which European navies operated over a period of 500 years culminating in World War Two, the greatest war ever fought at sea. Taking a predominantly continental point of view, the book moves away from the typically British-centric approach taken to naval history as it considers the role of European navies in the development of modern warfare, from its medieval origins to the large-scale, industrial, total war of the twentieth century. Along with this growth of navies as instruments of war, the book also explores the long rise of the political and popular appeal of navies, from the princes of late medieval Europe, to the enthusiastic crowds that greeted the modern fleets of the great powers, followed by their reassessment through their great trial by combat, firmly placing the development of modern navies into the broader history of the period. Chronological in structure, European Navies and the Conduct of War is an ideal resource for students and scholars of naval and military history.

This book explores the political emergence of the Imperial Japanese Navy between 1868 and 1922. It fundamentally challenges the popular notion that the navy was a 'silent, ' apolitical service. Politics, particularly budgetary politics, became the primary domestic focus - if not the overriding preoccupation - of Japan's admirals in the prewar period. This study convincingly demonstrates that as the Japanese polity broadened after 1890, navy leaders expanded their political activities to secure appropriations commensurate with the creation of a world-class blue-water fleet. The navy's sophisticated political efforts included lobbying oligarchs, coercing cabinet ministers, forging alliances with political parties, occupying overseas territuries, conducting well-orchestrated naval pageants, and launching spirited propaganda campaigns. These efforts succeeded: by 1921 naval expenditures equaled nearly 32 percent of the country's total budget, making Japan the world's third-largest maritime power. The navy, as this book details, made waves at sea and on shore, and in doing so significantly altered the state, society, politics, and empire in prewar Japan

"Ashore and Afloat" tells the early history of the Halifax Naval Yard. From the building of the yard and its expansion, to the people involved in the enterprise, to the nuts and bolts of buying the masts and paying the bills, Julian Gwyn's history of the Halifax Naval Yard leaves no stone unturned. Dozens of illustrations and copious appendices, including a biographical directory, accompany this compelling history.

Hiram Iddings Bearss was a legendary U.S. Marine whose 20-year career showed outstanding service to the United States in a variety of historically significant locations and periods. His comrades included Smedley Butler, Frederick Fritz Wise, and David Porter, and he was admired by many others, including General Pershing. He was awarded every American medal of consequence (including the Medal of Honor for actions at the Sohoton Cliffs in 1901 and a Distinguished Service Cross for his command of the 102nd Infantry at Marcheville in 1918), as well as a host of important foreign decorations. This biography recounts his life and career, providing intimate details of crucial historical events. It also explores the psychology of a man whose uncompromising and sometimes destructive personality helped his many enemies block his advancement. Highly respected by others, he was known for believing a commander should never send his men where he himself would not go; he was a brave man dedicated to his beloved Corps with few reservations. An opening chapter covers Bearss' ancestry, birth in 1875, and youth in Indiana. The main text covers his actions in various Marine campaigns, from early service in the Philippines and the Caribbean to World War I action in France, where he served as part of the 4th Marine Brigade and commanded the 102nd Infantry and the 51st Brigade. The concluding chapters cover his retirement and 1938 death in an automobile collision. Appendices include lists of those who served under him, his awards, and relevant military reports.

"Ashore and Afloat" tells the early history of the Halifax Naval Yard. From the building of the yard and its expansion, to the people involved in the enterprise, to the nuts and bolts of buying the masts and paying the bills, Julian Gwyn's history of the Halifax Naval Yard leaves no stone unturned. Dozens of illustrations and copious appendices, including a biographical directory, accompany this compelling history.

This is the first book to attempt a comprehensive analysis of the state of Spain's naval forces in the years following the defeat of the Great Armada in 1588 and during the seventeenth century. This was a period in which all of Europe's maritime powers were attaching increasing importance to naval warfare in their bid to topple Spain and to seize the rich pickings of her vast empire. The book is not, however, about naval battles and tactics. It is a study of the political, social, economic and technological conditions that influenced the character and performance of the Spanish navy. Based on hitherto untapped material in national and local Spanish archives, the book's findings throw new light on the conservation of Spain's timber resources, naval funding, recruitment and the status of the Spanish seaman.

In 1941, the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) went to war with a marginal anti-submarine warfare (ASW) capability. This was a lamentable state of affairs for a nation dependent upon imports to sustain its war economy. There were only a few purpose-built ASW escorts available at the start of the war and these were augmented by a handful of second-class destroyers and a dozen torpedo boats. Once the magnitude of the threat to Japan's shipping became fully apparent in 1943, the IJN made plans for mass production of ASW escorts. These arrived in 1944, but could not stop the massacre of Japanese shipping by increasingly bold and effective American submarines. This volume will detail the history, weapons and tactics of the IJN's ASW escorts. These include the Momi class of second-rate destroyers, the Tomodzuru and Ootori classes of torpedo boars, and the several types of ASW escorts built from 1937 up to the end of the war.

One of the finest war memoirs ever written. During World War II, Canada trained tens of thousands of airmen under the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan. Those selected for Bomber Command operations went on to rain devastation upon the Third Reich in the great air battles over Europe, but their losses were high. German fighters and anti-aircraft guns took a terrifying toll. The chances of surviving a tour of duty as a bomber crew were almost nil. Murray Peden’s story of his training in Canada and England, and his crew’s operations on Stirlings and Flying Fortresses with 214 Squadron, has been hailed as a classic of war literature. It is a fine blend of the excitement, humour, and tragedy of that eventful era.

Although historians of the French Revolution have paid it little attention, the French navy provides a striking illustration of the impact of the new ideology of Popular Sovereignty. This book examines the navy's involvement in political conflict from 1789 to 1794 and charts the evolution of a struggle between opposing definitions of authority in France. The fleet depended on the support of executive power. In 1789 royal government collapsed in the face of defiance from the National Assembly, but Popular Sovereignty was not confined to the legislature. The struggle between competing claims to represent the National Will lay behind the fleet's surrender at Toulon in 1793 and the mutiny at Quiberon Bay. Sent to Brest to save the Republic's navy, Jeanbon Saint-Andre sought to restrict Popular Sovereignty in the context of the Terror. Thus this 1995 study presents a revisionist interpretation of the nature of revolutionary politics.

"Huchthausen knows the hidden history of the Cuban missile crisis . . . October Fury contains startling revelations."
–– TOM CLANCY

Drama on the high seas as the world holds its breath

It was the most spectacular display of brinkmanship in the Cold War era. In October 1962, President Kennedy risked inciting a nuclear war to prevent the Soviet Union from establishing missile bases in Cuba. The risk, however, was far greater than Kennedy realized.

October Fury uncovers startling new information about the Cuban missile crisis and the potentially calamitous confrontation between U.S. Navy destroyers and Soviet submarines in the Atlantic. Peter Huchthausen, who served as a junior ensign aboard one of the destroyers, reveals that a single shot fired by any U.S. warship could have led to an immediate nuclear response from the Soviet submarines.

This riveting account re-creates those desperate days of confrontation from both the American and Russian points of view and discloses detailed information about Soviet operational plans and the secret orders given to submarine commanders. It provides an engrossing, behind-the-scenes look at the technical and tactical functions of two great navies along with stunning portraits of the officers and sailors on both sides who were determined to do their duty even in the most extreme circumstances.

As absorbing and detailed as a Tom Clancy novel, this real-life suspense thriller is destined to become a classic of naval literature.

Praise for The Rescue

"Steven Trent Smith grapples boldly with several big subjects: the Japanese occupation of the Philippines; the capture of Japan’s ‘Z Plan’ (the decisive-battle strategy for destroying the U.S. Pacific Fleet); the rescue by submarine of forty Americans stranded in the Philippines; the climactic Battle of the Philippine Sea. Meticulously researched and well written, The Rescue ties these elements together into an epic that is emotionally engaging from start to rousing finish."
–Martin Russ, author of Breakout and The Last Parallel

"Smith’s thoroughly researched, detailed account of the brave American and Filipino guerrillas on Negros Island in the Philippines will do much to introduce readers to this little known aspect of World War II in the Pacific. . . . This is a fascinating story well told."
–Elizabeth Norman, author of the award-winning We Band of Angels: The Untold Story of American Nurses Trapped on Bataan by the Japanese

"The Rescue is a delightful journey with the gallant few who resisted the Japanese occupation of the Philippines and who shaped the larger events wh ich led to victory in the Pacific. Smith’s brilliant research and unique storytelling make this account a must for all who enjoy history and a grand adventure."
–Peter Huchthausen, author of October Fury

"With a photojournalist’s eye for action and detail, Steven Trent Smith’s The Rescue is a remarkable achievement. The incredible mission to save forty Americans stranded in the Philippines reads more like a work of fiction. . . . A must-read for all those interested in one of the great secret submarine operations of World War II and all action adventure fans alike!"
–Richard P. Henrick, author of Crimson Tide and Nightwatch

Praise for BROADSIDES
""Pace the pitching black deck with a sleepless Admiral Nelson the night before battle bestows eternal rest and peerless immortality upon him; envision with Mahan the storm-tossed and ever-watchful ships-of-the-line that kept England secure from invasion; wonder in awe at Collingwood's dedication in working himself to death after Trafalgar elevated him to primary responsibility for England's imperial safety in the Mediterranean. All of this and more awaits the reader who will sail through these pages, every one of which is etched with the indelible expertise and boundless enthusiasm of Nathan Miller, master of naval history.""--Kenneth J. Hagan, Professor of History and Museum Director Emeritus, U.S. Naval Academy, Professor of Strategy, U.S. Naval War College
""This is not just inspired naval history--the personal lives of the seafarers themselves, from cabin boy to admiral, are given generous treatment.""--The Times (London)
""A wealth of detail...Descriptions of dreadful living conditions aboard cramped wooden vessels give way to bloody decks after close combat....A solid introduction to a turbulent era at sea.""--Publishers Weekly
"" As] a companion to the popular nautical novels of C. S. Forester and Patrick O'Brian--it succeeds brilliantly.""--Daily Telegraph (London)
""The descriptions of the great sea commanders and their battles display all the craft of the gifted writer....Read Broadsides for enjoyment as a well-informed, action-packed naval narrative.""--The Christ Church Press

This study of the Kriegsmarine's Sicherungsstreitkr fte, their security forces, fills a glaring gap in the study of the German navy in World War Two. This wide array of vessels included patrol boats, minesweepers, submarine hunters, barrage breakers, landing craft, minelayers and even the riverine flotilla that patrolled the Danube as it snaked towards the Black Sea. These vessels may not have provided the glamour associated with capital ships and U-boats, but they were crucial to the survival of the Kriegsmarine at every stage of hostilities. As naval construction was unable to keep pace with the likely demand for security vessels, Grossadmiral Erich Raeder turned to the conversion of merchant vessels. For example, trawlers were requisitioned as patrol boats (Vorpostenboote) and minesweepers (Minensucher), while freighters, designated Sperrbrecher, were filled with buoyant materials and sent to clear minefields. Submarine hunters (U-Boot J ger) were requisitioned fishing vessels.More than 120 flotillas operated in wildly different conditions, from the Arctic to the Mediterranean, and 81 men were to be awarded the Knights Cross; some were still operating after the cessation of hostilities clearing German minefields. The author deals with whole subject at every level, documenting organisational changes, describing the vessels, and recounting individual actions of ships at sea, while extensive appendices round off this major new work.

World War II naval battles between the United States and Japan have been the subject of many books, popular movies, and documentaries, but the very important story of the fighting between United States and Japanese aircraft carriers is often lost in broader discussions of the Pacific naval war. This work concentrates exclusively on the fighting between the American and Japanese aircraft carriers, examining how strategies were planned and carried out on both sides. Presented are the stories of the USS Hornet, which launched the B-25s of James Doolittle's daring raid of Tokyo in 1942; the USS Yorktown, which suffered fierce attacks during the Battle of Midway; the USS Lexington, which refueled and rearmed Hellcats during the Great Marianas Turkey Shoot; the USS Enterprise, the leader of a motley assortment of cruisers and destroyers left to hold a very precarious line in the campaign for Guadalcanal; and the Japanese battleship Yamoto, sacrificed for a suicide mission against 900 aircraft bombers.

The Kriegsmarine's Schnellboote fast attack boats, or E-boats to the Allies, were the primary German naval attack units in coastal waters throughout the Second World War. Operating close to their various bases they became a devastatingly effective weapon in nearly all the Kriegsmarine's theatres of war, from the Baltic to the Mediterranean and the Black Sea. It was in the English Channel, however, that they scored their most notable successes, destroying some forty warships and more than one hundred merchant ships. In addition to interception and attack, they were also used for minelaying, landing sabotage troops and general escort duties. There had been, until this book was published, no comprehensive operational history of the S-boat service in all the theatres in which it saw service, but due to the relatively small number of units it is possible to recount the duties and fates of each individual craft and in this book the author examines the career of each in detail. In addition, operations alongside the commando units of the Kleinkampfverbande are covered. As the war progressed, S-boats suffered from the increased Allied mastery of the seas and skies but they were a formidable foe right to the end; this fine book was the first to do full justice to their record of success, and remains the foremost work on their operational history. **'The history of naval warfare in the Second World War is a well-worn path, and it is refreshing to encounter a work that is significant and adds to our understanding. This is quite simply an outstanding book.'** _The Mariner's Mirror_

Captain Bligh and the mutiny on the Bounty have become proverbial in their capacity to evoke the extravagant and violent abuse of power. But William Bligh was one of the least violent disciplinarians in the British navy. It is this paradox that inspired Greg Dening to ask why the mutiny took place. His book explores the theatrical nature of what was enacted in the power-play on deck, on the beaches of Tahiti and in the murderous settlement at Pitcairn, on the altar stones and temples of sacrifice, and on the catheads from which men were hanged. Part of the key lies in the curious puzzle of Mr Bligh's bad language.

U-505 was the first enemy warship the US Navy captured at sea since 1812. This is a new account of how Captain Gallery planned and executed the raid on his own initiative, and how his success almost endangered the war against the U-boats. On June 4, 1944 a US Navy antisubmarine task group in the Atlantic captured an enemy U-boat on the high seas. It was not the first time the Allies had taken a German U-boat as a prize, but the capture of U-505 was different. Captain Gallery and his Task Group 22.3 devised a risky plan to capture scuttled U-boats. This book analyses in detail Gallery's dangerous strategy, using contemporary sources to explore why he thought the reward was worth the risk: instead of attempting to sink the next U-boat that surfaced among them, a destroyer escort would send off its whaleboat. Everyone else was to smother the U-boat with light gunfire to encourage its crew to abandon quickly. Unaware that the Allies had already cracked the German's codes and the capture of a U-boat could endanger that secret, Gallery hoped to capture the vessel's codes and coding equipment to read U-boat message traffic. The plan culminated in the capture of U-505 in early June, which nearly caused the exposure of the Bletchley Park codebreaking secret. Featuring contemporary photographs, specially commissioned artwork and 3D maps, this book is a fascinating exploration of one of the most controversial and dangerous raids, which could have changed the outcome of World War II as we know it.

Praise for BROADSIDES
""Pace the pitching black deck with a sleepless Admiral Nelson the night before battle bestows eternal rest and peerless immortality upon him; envision with Mahan the storm-tossed and ever-watchful ships-of-the-line that kept England secure from invasion; wonder in awe at Collingwood's dedication in working himself to death after Trafalgar elevated him to primary responsibility for England's imperial safety in the Mediterranean. All of this and more awaits the reader who will sail through these pages, every one of which is etched with the indelible expertise and boundless enthusiasm of Nathan Miller, master of naval history.""--Kenneth J. Hagan, Professor of History and Museum Director Emeritus, U.S. Naval Academy, Professor of Strategy, U.S. Naval War College
""This is not just inspired naval history--the personal lives of the seafarers themselves, from cabin boy to admiral, are given generous treatment.""--The Times (London)
""A wealth of detail...Descriptions of dreadful living conditions aboard cramped wooden vessels give way to bloody decks after close combat....A solid introduction to a turbulent era at sea.""--Publishers Weekly
"" As] a companion to the popular nautical novels of C. S. Forester and Patrick O'Brian--it succeeds brilliantly.""--Daily Telegraph (London)
""The descriptions of the great sea commanders and their battles display all the craft of the gifted writer....Read Broadsides for enjoyment as a well-informed, action-packed naval narrative.""--The Christ Church Press

Unrestricted Warfare reveals the dramatic story of the harsh baptism by fire faced by U.S. submarine commanders in World War II. The first skippers went to battle hamstrung by conservative peacetime training and plagued by defective torpedoes. Drawing extensively from now declassified files, Japanese archives, and the testimony of surviving veterans, James DeRose has written a fascinating account of the men and vessels responsible for the only successful submarine campaign of the war. They clearly charted a new course to victory in the Pacific.

ADVANCE PRAISE FOR UNRESTRICTED WARFARE

"James DeRose has done an excellent job–– surprisingly so, in view of his lack of true WWII submarine experience. He obviously contacted everyone he could find who served on one of the three boats he concentrated on, and he read, as well, everything he could find that was written about them. . . . DeRose shines by his interpretation of events as the Japanese must have seen them. . . . His reconstruction of how Wahoo came to her end may well be pretty close to correct. . . . He does the same with Tang."–CAPTAIN EDWARD L. BEACH, USN author of Submarine! and Run Silent, Run Deep

"An outstanding addition to the literature of the Silent Service. . . . The depth of research is wonderful. . . . This is fine history . . . that rivals Blair’s Silent Victory."–PAUL CROZIER, sitemaster, "Legends of the Deep" (www.warfish.com) Web site on the USS Wahoo

"I knew all of the book’s main characters quite well. . . . I am also completely familiar with submarine operations in the Pacific. With that background I couldn’t fail to thoroughly enjoy DeRose’s book. It is well written and has the right feel."–CHESTER W. NIMITZ JR., rear admiral, USN (Ret.)

"Sail with American submariners into tightly guarded Japanese home waters; undergo the horror of a depth charge attack; experience the thrill of victory with some of the U.S. Navy’s ace submarine skippers. All this––and much more––is contained in James F. DeRose’s compelling Unrestricted Warfare. No one interested in the naval side of World War II should be without it."–NATHAN MILLER author of War at Sea: A Naval History of World War II

HMS Royal Oak was a Revenge-class battleship of the British Royal Navy, infamously torpedoed at anchor by the German submarine U-47 on 14 October 1939. Royal Oak was anchored at Scapa Flow in Orkney, Scotland when she became the first of the five Royal Navy battleships and battle cruisers sunk in the Second World War. The loss of life was heavy: of Royal Oak's complement of 1,234 men and boys, 833 were killed that night or died later of their wounds. The raid made an immediate celebrity and war hero out of the German U-boat commander, Gunther Prien, who became the first submarine officer to be awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. To the British, the raid demonstrated that the Germans were capable of bringing the naval war to their home waters, and the shock resulted in rapidly arranged changes to dockland security. Now lying upside-down in 30 m of water with her hull 5 m beneath the surface, Royal Oak is a designated war grave. Includes 103 Photographs

The British Merchant Navy dominated the world trade routes in the years leading up to the Second World War. The star players of the fleet were the cargo liners, faster and larger than the tramps and offering limited passenger accommodation. On the outbreak of war these cargo liners became crucial to the nation's survival using their speed and expertise to evade Nazi warships, raiders and U-boats. Initially operating alone, but increasingly relying on Royal Navy protected convoys, these key elements of the Merchant Navy plied the oceans and seas despite mounting losses, throughout the war years. This superbly researched book describes numerous dramatic incidents. Some ended in disaster such as the New Zealand Shipping Company's Turakina which was sunk after a running battle with the German raider Orion. Others were triumphs for example Operation Substance when six fast cargo liners succeeded against all the odds in reaching besieged Malta with vital supplies. The common denominations in all these historic voyages were the courage and skilled seamanship of the Merchant Navy crews. As Running The Gauntlet vividly illustrates, their contribution to victory, too long overlooked, cannot be overstated.

With the end of the Cold War, Russia's submarines were no longer needed to deter or fight Western navies and were very expensive to operate and maintain. Older submarines were taken out of service in large numbers, but without firm plans and infrastructure in place to remove and adequately care for their nuclear components, problems soon developed over the disposition of spent fuel assemblies. Problems arose also of course between Russia and the international community as to the best way to respond to the challenge. This book looks at those problems, first discussing Russia's economy, its environment, and the Russian Navy, and then covering in detail the spent fuel of Russian submarines and related nuclear problems. The engagement of the international community on the issue is then addressed. A theoretical analysis is offered on how Russia's fellow nations can help remedy a troubling environmental problem in a difficult country.