Naval warfare in the age of sail / Bernard Ireland.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Ireland, Bernard.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Great Britain. Royal Navy--History--18th century.

Great Britain.

Great Britain. Royal Navy--History--19th century.

Great Britain. Royal Navy.

History.

Great Britain--History, Naval--18th century.

Naval history.

Great Britain--History, Naval--19th century.

Physical Description:

240 pages : illustrations (some color), color map ; 29 cm

Edition:

First American edition.

Place of Publication:

New York : Norton, 2000.

Summary:

During the reign of King George III, from 1760 to 1820, Britain was almost continuously at war. It was in this period that the Royal Navy -- its ranks composed mainly of undereducated, malnourished, impoverished seamen, often impressed into service against their will -- achieved the highest reputation in its history.

Covering the classic era of sailing ship warfare from the mid-eighteenth century to the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, this gorgeously illustrated book examines how Nelson's navy came to dominate the high seas and how warships were constructed, sailed, and fought in a time made popular today by the novels of Patrick O'Brian and C. S. Forester. Bernard Ireland discusses single-ship actions, fleet operations, famous commanders, and the day-to-day routines of the men who worked the ships; acclaimed naval artist Tony Gibbons illustrates every type of sailing warship, from ships of the line, frigates, and sloops to privateers' schooners, bomb ketches, and xebecs.

This is a marvelously colorful history of the men, ships, and tactics that brought Nelson's navy to prominence as the most feared fighting force on earth, the source and safeguard of Britain's long maritime supremacy.

Contents:

The Royal Navy

The Seven Years' War (1756-63)

King George's Navy

Exploring the world

The American War of Independence

Interbellum: The Royal Navy (1783-93)

The Revolutionary War (1783-1801)

The War against Napoleon

The War of 1812

The post-war Royal Navy.

Notes:

Includes index.

ISBN:

0393049833

OCLC:

43798484