A Brief History of British Sea Power : How Britain Became Sovereign of the Seas Paperback / softback
by David Howarth
Part of the Brief Histories series
Paperback / softback
Description
The British did not take to water like ducks, for centuries doing little but cling to coastal waters.
The Romans and Vikings knocked spots of us as seamen, and the English upper classes saw seafaring as mercantile and beneath them.
Britain's success at sea began with Elizabeth I and the defeat of the Armada, thanks to superior gunnery and seamanship.
Elizabeth employed practical seamen like Hawkins and Drake - and they repaid her trust.
Howarth reconstructs the expansion of trade routes and the great 18th - century days of the line of battle ships.
With Napoleon's fall, the British were free to expand, and their prestige rose so high that sea warfare almost ceased as British ships patrolled the oceans.
In the 20th century, the British navy was twice as big as any other.
Full of anecdote, erudition and humour, this is a classic account.
Information
-
Only a few left - usually despatched within 24 hours
- Format:Paperback / softback
- Pages:480 pages
- Publisher:Little, Brown Book Group
- Publication Date:12/09/2003
- Category:
- ISBN:9781841197920
Information
-
Only a few left - usually despatched within 24 hours
- Format:Paperback / softback
- Pages:480 pages
- Publisher:Little, Brown Book Group
- Publication Date:12/09/2003
- Category:
- ISBN:9781841197920
