Naval History

The invention of the steam engines was definitely one of the events deservedly considered most significant and important to the whole development of the modern human civilization; its impact on the course of North American history alone was as direct and powerful as its own mechanical action. This creation is one of the simplest and, at the same time, most beautiful power mechanisms that man has ever devised; to me all other machines pale by comparison.

This is an engine with a number of cylinders with a piston travels straight back and forth inside each of the cylinders, i.e. "reciprocating". Steam, being admitted and exhausted alternately at both ends of the piston stroke, pushes the piston forward and back, making each stroke a power stroke—a unique feature of the reciprocating engine. It means that the force is transmitted directly from the piston to either a wheel or a crankshaft by a system of rods and cranks, creating a sublime precision of movement.

The fact that there are no gears or transmission makes this the only engine with equal power both in forward and in reverse, and enables it to move anything provided there is enough steam for pushing the piston. A nice and interesting publication to be there on the bookshelf of any lover of history.

The publication offers its readers a thoroughly researched and rendered account of the very first incarnation of the US Navy fleet. In telling us this sprawling and really fascinating story, the author of the volume, Tim McGrath, does not lose a due sight of the human dimension of the subject. The author has also mined the archival sources mainly neglected in most of the previously told stories.

And, his application of such approach has eventually resulted in a very interesting and readable history of the integral aspect of the subject campaign for the US independence. The content of the book has one far beyond the usual "spotlight" treatment of major historical events and offers the readers a series of mini-stories illuminating all important aspects of the colonial America's desperate and difficult struggle at sea.

The interested readers all around the planet have already found this book as a very well-written and nicely illustrated; the publication also contains the extensive footnotes and an index, together with the bibliography proposed for the further reading. The informative and even entertaining volume telling us a story about the dedicated historical heroes who did risk their lives trying to overcome all the obstacles that were posed by the ruthlessly efficient British Navy fleet as well as American politicians. All people interested in naval history will enjoy this title.

This nice historical book has been prepared by the recognized and professional naval historian Antonia MacArthur, who is mainly specializing in the restoration and replication of the most famous vessels of the past. The publication tells the readers the captivating real story of this vessels and ninety-four people who made that remarkable voyage.

The author has researched the story of the HM Endeavour in detail and illustrated the texts with numerous contemporary paintings, adding the nautical charts and relevant drawings and sketches; moreover, mote that there are many photos of the replica ship. As we said, this book describes not only the famous bark but also pays much attention to the people who sailed. The author has did her best trying to highlight the whole excitement of discovery to new geographical areas and new people, new animals and plants. Many interesting extracts taken from the original shipboard logs and records have also been included in the book.

That is why we are pretty sure that this publication will present interest not only to the professional maritime historians but in fact to anyone with the interest in the naval history, famous marine ships of the past times, sea voyages made centuries ago, sea adventures, geographic discoveries and everything else related to the sea and the ship.

In 1372 a tribunal of arbitration sitting in Geneva found against Great Britain in a claim for damages brought by the United States. That claim stemmed from the destruction of commercial shipping during the American Civil War by Confederate raiders whose origins could be traced back to Britain. The most famous of these cruisers was the CSS Alabama, built on Merseyside. which captured sixty-four Yankee ships and destroyed most of them by burning.

So celebrated was her name and so great her share of the depredations committed that the Geneva Tribunal hearings were known as the Alabama Claims. The Alabama's escape from the Mersey in 1862, just hours ahead of a detention order issued by the British government, gave rise to suspicions and recriminations. At the American legation in London a tenacious secretary acquired a copy of a note allegedly written by one Victor Buckley a Foreign Office clerk, warning the Confederates of the ship's imminent seizure, and in later years the man responsible for building the Alabama referred in his memoirs to a "private and most reliable source" from whom he had received that vital information.

In the postmortem of events after the Civil War. an American newspaper published for the first time the implication that Buckleys position was worthy of scrutiny. The allegation that he had written a warning note was later repeated by a son of the wartime American foreign minister. Charles Francis Adams. For almost 150 years historians have debated the circumstances surrounding the Alabama's, remarkable and timely departure to wreak havoc on the high seas. Was there a Foreign Office leak, and if so, was it sanctioned by the British Government?

The radical MP John Bright suspected the worst and said so. The prime minister at the time, Lord Pahnerston, and his foreign secretary. Lord John Russell, denied it. With the passage of time, insufficient evidence, and events clouded by an extraordinary catalogue of errors and mishaps, the accusations seemed to die a natural death.

Another book by Angus Konstam, the author of the nice publications dedicated to the Pirate Ships ans Tudor Warships. All readers who have a look in this remarkably detailed and interesting title, will definitely find all beginnings of the naval attacks of the Spanish Main, commerce voyages of Hawkings, Drakes fascinating career, as well as attacks that have been directly sanctioned by Queen Elizabeth on Spanish areas and fleets, and many other relevant aspects.

The author of the book has provided a very comprehensive description of the different types of vessels, addressing their strengths and weaknesses. Among the other interesting points we would mention the relevant tactical doctrines that have seriously influenced both Spanish and English naval warfare, with the English warfare investing mainly in speed and firepower and the Spanish warfare investing in short-ranged firepower and boarding actions.

Numerous illustrative plates prepared by Angus McBride are really excellent. In short, the readers all around the planet have treated this volume as a worthy and truly impartial introduction to the subject, providing all required information about the topics covered. Definitely a nice book to have a look in.

The book by Clark Reynolds, is seeking to discover the constants and strategic alternatives that commonly govern the empires and their navies throughout a whole human history by means of raising the hypotheses for their testing by the historical examinations and future actions.

The author has therefore conducted the examination of the natural factors, for example topography and geography, together with the different important economic and political aspects of building the empires, touching the intellectual and even cultural manifestations, technologies and the matters of tactical evolution.

Combined together, all above mentioned elements are defining the concept of the sea power in the XIII century A.D. and in the XX century B.C. The present publication consists of seven major parts covering the command of the sea and different alternatives, oceanic age and early Thalassocracies, total wars era, and other aspects.

In addition to the text, this document includes a set of maps of the Mediterranean region, American Sea Lanes, the Ancient World in general, Asian periphery etc. The bibliography section lists the general sources of information used when preparing this book. A definitely recommended book to have a serious look.

The publication by Donald Lisio present a thorough study of British insistence on preservation of the naval supremacy during the time period covered, i.e. 1920s, together with the resulting resurgence of the naval and diplomatic antagonisms. The author is telling us an interesting story of the continuation of Anglo-American clash.

For some brief time during the First World War the Great Britain, Japan and USA closely co-operated forming a part of the Allied Coalition created to fight against the Central Powers. That was actually did much more than bring them all together on the battlefields. The present document is covering the most important aspects of this subject.

It covers the information related to the Geneva Naval Conference held in 1927 as well as the associated naval events that led up to it with the ultimate intention to add to the people's understanding of the international relationship as well as the arms-control diplomacy in that period of history by means of revealing that the political and economic, as well as the diplomatic control rationales were much less apparent struggles preserving the strategic naval supremacies.

Among the topics addressed in this title there were also combat equivalency and conference shocks, cabinet crisis and failures of the Anglo-Japanese accord, new strategies and political issues, as well as other information.

As the name of this historical publication implies, is has been mainly dedicated to one of the most famous naval warships in the history of naval shipping. It depicts the last days of service of this ship. The content of this work will definitely be very useful and interesting to people interested in the naval history, taking into account that it includes so much of information, providing readers with the one relating to the mission of this battleship in the context of the Germany's strategy of commerce reading, and providing a professional look at many tactical and strategic problems which the commanders of both sides faced at that time.

The narrative part of the document is remarkably highly detailed; however, note that the book does not descend too deep into technical descriptions. For all enthusiasts of the naval history, it will be extremely difficult to put this book down; we recommend this title to all people who like the studies of the naval battles of the past.

They will find an absolutely fresh look and the career of maybe the most famous ships of the German Navy in the Second World War, and also get a good fundamental background and several historical insights in the book, making many of the elements of the Bismarck's story much more understandable and clearer, through a very thorough treatment which includes the materials obtained from the interviews with the participants of that war.