Brian Lavery

Julian Fellowes

Walter Lord

'There is no danger that Titanic will sink. The boat is unsinkable and nothing but inconvenience will be suffered by the passengers.' - Phillip Franklin, White Star Line Vice-PresidentOn April 15th, 1912, Titanic, the world's largest passenger ship, sank after colliding with an iceberg, claiming more than 1,500 lives. Walter Lord's classic bestselling history of the voyage, the wreck and the aftermath is a tour de force of detailed investigation and the upstairs/downstairs divide. A Night to Remember provides a vivid, gripping and deeply personal account of the 'unsinkable' Titanic's descent.WITH A NEW FOREWORD BY JULIAN FELLOWES

A Night to Remember

This new book, a tie-in to a major BBC TV series presented by Dan Snow, is written by one of the nation's foremost naval historians, and tells the story of how the Royal Navy shaped the politics, culture and economy of Britain, leaving its imprint on everything from our landscape, to our democracy and even our very identity. At its peak, it became the driving force behind the spread of a system of values which would change the world forever. And then it lost it all. In "Empire of the Seas", Brian Lavery re-injects the romance into Britain's seafaring past. He discusses the hidden human stories behind the celebrated sea-battles and also provides a warts-and-all expose of the darker chapters in the Navy's past, including its role in slavery and the spread of disease. The book is illustrated with a superlative collection of artworks and photographs from the National Maritime Museum, the Royal Naval Museum and private collections.

Masters of the Seas

Patrick O'Brian

The Ships, Men and Organisation, 1793-1815

Nelson's Navy

Winston's Wartime Journeys

Churchill Goes to War

A captivating read spanning 5,000 years of the oceans history Conquest of the Ocean tells the 5,000 year history of the remarkable individuals who sailed seas, for trade, to conquer new lands, to explore the unknown. From the early Polynesians to the first circumnavigations by the Portuguese and the British, these are awe-inspiring tales of epic sea voyages involving great feats of seamanship, navigation, endurance, and ingenuity. Explore the lives and maritime adventures, many with first person narratives, of land seekers and globe charters such as Christopher Columbus, Captain James Cook and Vitus Bering. Brian Lavery is a well-known British naval historian, whose prestigious credits include historical consultant on the blockbuster, Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World. This narrative history is filled with paintings, logbooks, maps, sketches and diagrams that bring these events and locations to life. Conquest of the Ocean beautifully intertwines informative images with fascinating stories of expedition and exploration in a way that has never been done before. Brian Lavery will have you engrossed in this extraordinary historic naval read.

The Conquest of the Ocean

DK Publishing

Ship

Smithsonian Institution

National Maritime Museum (Great Britain)

The Epic Story of Maritime Adventure

'There is no danger that Titanic will sink. The boat is unsinkable and nothing but inconvenience will be suffered by the passengers.' - Phillip Franklin, White Star Line Vice-President On April 15th, 1912, Titanic, the world's largest passenger ship, sank after colliding with an iceberg, claiming more than 1,500 lives. Walter Lord's classic bestselling history of the voyage, the wreck and the aftermath is a tour de force of detailed investigation and the upstairs/downstairs divide. A Night to Remember provides a vivid, gripping and deeply personal account of the 'unsinkable' Titanic's descent. WITH A NEW FOREWORD BY JULIAN FELLOWES

The Classic Bestselling Account of the Sinking of the Titanic

In this remarkable book, now reissued in paperback, Brian Lavery examines every aspect of the Royal Navy, both ashore and at sea, during the Second World War, and casts a lucid eye over the strengths and weaknesses of an organisation that was put under acute strain during the period, yet rose to the challenge with initiative and determination. Divided into twelve sections, the book delves into the structure of naval power from the Board of Admiralty and shore commands to officers and crews, their recruitment and training, daily life and discipline. The roles of the Reserves, Merchant Navy, Royal Marines and Wrens within this structure are also explained. Developments in ship design and technology, as well as advances in intelligence, sensors and armament are all discussed and set in context. The different divisions are dealt with one by one, including the Submarine Service, Fleet Air Arm, Coastal Forces, and Combined Operations. The text is complemented by over 300 illustrations and the personal accounts of those who served.

The ships, people and organisation, 1939-1945

Churchill's Navy

May 2015 sees the 250th anniversary of the launch of HMS Victory, the ship that is so closely associated with Nelson and his great victory at Trafalgar and which, still extant, has today become the embodiment of the great Age of Sail. ?Many books have been written about Victory but none like this, which tells the full story of the ship since she first took to the waters in May 1765. It contains many surprises _ that she was almost wrecked on her launch; that diplomacy conducted onboard her played a crucial role in provoking Napoleon's invasion of Russia in 1812; and that in 1914 Kaiser Wilhelm set the First World War in motion at a desk made from her timbers. The book also tells the story of Horatio Nelson, who was born a few weeks before his most famous ship was ordered, and whose career paralleled hers in many ways. It does not ignore the battle of Trafalgar, and indeed it offers new insights into the campaign which led up to it. But it says much more about the other lives of the ship, which at different times was a flagship, a fighting ship, a prison hospital ship, a training ship for officers and boys, a floating courtroom, a signal school in the early days of radio, tourist attraction and national icon. It looks at her through many eyes, including Queen Victoria, admirals, midshipmen and ordinary seamen, and Beatrix Potter who visited as a girl. It is simply a 'must-have' work for historians and enthusiasts, and a compelling new narrative for the general reader.

250 Years of War and Peace

Nelson's Victory

This book is your guideon making a print book or ebook.It explains how to format yourbook manuscript,and how to design suitable covers,so that all is print-ready.It's hard-core Do-It-Yourself.All is done using free software,available for all versions of PC.You are the BookMaker.

Your DIY Book Guide

BookMaker

5,000 years of maritime adventure in a new compact format. From the earliest dugout canoes and the boats of the Ancient Egyptians to the most technologically advanced battleships and cruise-liners, this is the ultimate guide to every aspect of the ship, and those who have sailed them. Find out all about the endeavours of the great explorers as they mapped the globe and discovered new worlds, you'll learn the impact ships have had on trade and industry and find out all the key historical conflicts in which ships played a vital role. Plus, take a look at seafaring for pleasure and trace fishing through the ages. Every conceivable type of sea-going vessel is featured, from caravels and galleons, warships and yachts to clippers and cruise-liners. Produced in association with the National Maritime Museum.

5,000 Years of Maritime Adventure

From the time of the Restoration of Charles II, when he returned to England from Breda and was presented with the yacht Mary by the burgomaster of Amsterdam, Royal yachts began to be defined as such in England and built with that special purpose in mind. They were built luxuriously and used for royal visits to the fleet, for diplomacy and for racing and cruising for pleasure. Charles II took more of an interest in the sea than any other English monarch. He built a fleet of royal yachts, fine examples of ship design and decorative art, and he can be said to have been the father of yachting and of royal yachts. His successors were less keen on the sea but traveled to Europe on missions of peace and war; and royal yachts took part in regime change several times. In 1689 Queen Mary was bought over to join her husband William of Orange and complete the ‘Glorious Revolution’. In 1714 George I arrived from Hanover to establish a new dynasty. And in 1814, in a reverse process, King Louis XVIII was taken back to France to restore the monarchy after the defeat of Napoleon. This important new book is the first to describe the building and decoration of the yachts in such detail, using many newly discovered sources; and it is the first to describe their uses and exploits, often taking their royal passengers into controversy or danger. Besides the yachts themselves, it reveals much about the character of the kings, queens and princes involved – the impetuousness of the future William IV for example, or his brother George IV’s surprising love of sailing. It describes the design, accommodation, and sailing of the yachts, as well as their captains and crews. Sailing yachts came to an end when Queen Victoria discovered that steam power was more efficient as well as more comfortable, but they revived in the form of her son Edward’s cutter Britannia, and the Duke of Edinburgh’s Bloodhound and Coweslip. Their legacy can be seen in the widespread sport of yachting today, and in the lavish superyachts of billionaires. This beautifully illustrated book, full of anecdote and containing detailed descriptions of dozens of royal yachts, will fascinate naval historians, ship modelers and, indeed, anyone who sets foot aboard the deck of a modern yacht.

Royal Yachts Under Sail

The Royal Navy has always been seen as an English institution, despite a large Scottish contribution, from Admiral Duncan at Camperdown in 1797 to Andrew Cunningham in the Second World War. The Royal Navy's most dramatic effect on Scotland, aside from its role in the British Empire and European wars, was in suppressing the Jacobite campaigns from 1708 to 1746. This book breaks new ground in telling the stories of almost forgotten campaigns, such as the submarine war in the Firth of Forth in 1914-18. In two world wars, and since the 1960s, a large proportion of the Navy's power has been based in Scotland, from the Grand Fleet at Scapa Flow to Trident submarines at Faslane. Most British sailors of the Second World War had part of their training in Scotland, and the famous base at Tobermory was only one of many. Yet, the Navy never felt at home in Scotland. As one Scottish admiral put it, 'In both wars the Royal Navy flooded into Scotland to make use of our deep water ports and sea lochs for large-scale and safer anchorages. After each war the Navy unimaginatively retreated en masse to the Channel.' The book ends with a unique account of the setting up of the controversial missile bases in the Holy Loch and Gareloch. Brian Lavery then looks at the future in order to determine the effect devolution and possible independence might have on Scotland and the Royal Navy.

Shield of Empire

""The art of command is...to be the complete master, and yet the complete friend of every man on board; the temporal lord and yet the spiritual brother of every rating; to be detached and yet not dissociated.' A Seaman's Pocket-Book, 1943', has found huge appeal with the British public. Presented in the same format, the Officer's Handbook gathers together useful advice and instruction for those naval officers fighting the Second World War on all aspects of their job, expressed in the benevolent language of the day, when authority was respected. The Handbook has been compiled and edited by Brian Lavery, who provides commentary and an introduction. Sections include: the Officer's Aid Memoire containing notes of the training course at one of the officer training schools; Notes for medical officers and treatment of battle casualties afloat; Notes for captains on taking command of their first ship; Notes for commanding officers; Notes on the handling and safety of ships and notes on dealing with disobedience and mutiny. While suffused with nostalgia and charm, the various contents of this book are an authentic presentation of matters of training, authority and deportment in the wartime navy. The book is sure to appeal not only to those who served in the war or had a relative who was in the officer class, but also to anyone who wants to gain a greater understanding of the day-to-day administration of the wartime navy.

The Royal Navy Officer's Pocket-Book

“A beautiful book . . . a goldmine of information to anyone interested in the capital ships of the sailing navy of the 17th and 19th Centuries.”—Ships in Scale The National Maritime Museum in Greenwich houses the largest collection of scale ship models in the world, many of which are official, contemporary artifacts made by the craftsmen of the navy or the shipbuilders themselves, and ranging from the mid-seventeenth century to the present day. As such they represent a three-dimensional archive of unique importance and authority. Treated as historical evidence, they offer more detail than even the best plans, and demonstrate exactly what the ships looked like in a way that even the finest marine painter could not achieve. The Ship of the Line is the second of a new series that takes selections of the best models to tell the story of specific ship types—in this case, the evolution of the ship of the line, the capital ship of its day, and the epitome of British seapower during its heyday from 1650-1850. This period also coincided with the golden age of ship modelling. Each volume depicts a wide range of models, all shown in full color, including many close-up and detail views. These are captioned in depth, but many are also annotated to focus attention on interesting or unusual features, and the book weaves the pictures into an authoritative text, producing a unique form of technical history. The series is of particular interest to ship modellers, but all those with an enthusiasm for the ship design and development in the sailing era will attracted to the in-depth analysis of these beautifully presented books.

A History in Ship Models

The Ship of the Line

The National Maritime Museum in Greenwich houses the largest collection of scale ship models in the world, many of which are official, contemporary artefacts made by the craftsmen of the navy or the shipbuilders themselves, and ranging from the mid seventeenth century to the present day. As such they represent a three-dimensional archive of unique importance and authority. Treated as historical evidence, they offer more detail than even the best plans, and demonstrate exactly what the ships looked like in a way that even the finest marine painter could not achieve. ?The Ship of the Line is the second of a new series that takes selections of the best models to tell the story of specific ship types  in this case, the evolution of the ship of the line, the capital ship of its day, and the epitome of British seapower during its heyday from 16501850. This period too coincided with the golden age of ship modelling.?Each volume depicts a wide range of models, all shown in full colour, including many close-up and detail views. These are captioned in depth, but many are also annotated to focus attention on interesting or unusual features, and the book weaves the pictures into an authoritative text, producing a unique form of technical history.?The series is of particular interest to ship modellers, but all those with an enthusiasm for the ship design and development in the sailing era will attracted to the in-depth analysis of these beautifully presented books.

Robert Gardiner

Although purpose-built fighting ships had existed earlier, the principal characteristics of the classic sailing warship were only defined in the mid-seventeenth century, when the emergence of strong central governments, as in Cromwell's Commonwealth or the France of Louis XIV, combined with the novel line-ahead tactics to produce for the first time national fleets of reasonably similar line-of-battle ships. As the battleship became more distinct, the need for a specialized cruising ship became apparent - particularly as warfare became more global - and from this the frigate was born. Gradually during the period, myriad types of crafts were adapted for naval use and the central emphasis of this volume is on the increasing specialization of the fleet and the evolution of each ship type, down to the period when the installation of the steam engine sparked another revolution in tactics and technology.

The Sailing Warship 1650-1840

The Line of Battle

Gives precise details of the wooden warships built by the Royal Navy between 1600 and 1815, with exact information on sizes and scantlings.

Brian Lavery

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