Monitors of the Royal Navy

Monitors of the Royal Navy

Author: Jim Crossley

Publisher: Casemate Publishers

Published: 2013-02-19

Total Pages: 257

ISBN-13: 1783830042

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A history of the origins, design and effectiveness of the British Royal Navy’s monitor warships during world wars I and II. Monitor warships mounted the biggest guns ever deployed by the Royal Navy, and played an undeniably important part in Allied efforts during World War One and Two. They were built as cheap "disposable" ships made out of redundant bits and pieces which the Admiralty happened to have available and could bring heavy artillery to bear on enemy coasts with pin point accuracy. Being classed as disposable they were often exposed to risks far more recklessly than more expensive battle ships or heavy cruisers. So impressive was their performance in WWI that two were retained in service into WWII and two new ones were built, astonishing allies and enemies alike with the devastating effect of their accurate fire reaching targets 10 miles or more inland. Monitors of the Royal Navy deals with the origins of Monitors and how they evolved from the bomb ketches of the 18th century. The book looks at how the various classes of monitor were designed and built and explores their careers in both World Wars, including the particular impact they had on the various campaigns in which they fought and their effectiveness as compared to other classes of ship. Monitors of the Royal Navy is sure to appeal to military history enthusiasts and world war history buffs.


Book Synopsis Monitors of the Royal Navy by : Jim Crossley

Download or read book Monitors of the Royal Navy written by Jim Crossley and published by Casemate Publishers. This book was released on 2013-02-19 with total page 257 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A history of the origins, design and effectiveness of the British Royal Navy’s monitor warships during world wars I and II. Monitor warships mounted the biggest guns ever deployed by the Royal Navy, and played an undeniably important part in Allied efforts during World War One and Two. They were built as cheap "disposable" ships made out of redundant bits and pieces which the Admiralty happened to have available and could bring heavy artillery to bear on enemy coasts with pin point accuracy. Being classed as disposable they were often exposed to risks far more recklessly than more expensive battle ships or heavy cruisers. So impressive was their performance in WWI that two were retained in service into WWII and two new ones were built, astonishing allies and enemies alike with the devastating effect of their accurate fire reaching targets 10 miles or more inland. Monitors of the Royal Navy deals with the origins of Monitors and how they evolved from the bomb ketches of the 18th century. The book looks at how the various classes of monitor were designed and built and explores their careers in both World Wars, including the particular impact they had on the various campaigns in which they fought and their effectiveness as compared to other classes of ship. Monitors of the Royal Navy is sure to appeal to military history enthusiasts and world war history buffs.

Big Gun Monitors

Big Gun Monitors

Author: Ian Buxton

Publisher: Seaforth Publishing

Published: 2008-03-30

Total Pages: 256

ISBN-13: 1844157199

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In the history of naval warfare probably no type of ship has provided more firepower per ton than the monitor – indeed they were little more than a huge gun mounting fitted on a simple, self-propelled raft. Designed and built rapidly to fulfil an urgent need for heavy shore-bombardment during World War I, they were top secret in conception, and largely forgotten when the short-lived requirement was over. Nevertheless, they were important ships, which played a significant role in many Great War campaigns and drove many of the advances in long-range gunnery later applied to the battle fleet. Indeed, their value was rediscovered during the Second World War when a final class was built. Monitors were largely ignored by naval historians until Ian Buxton produced the first edition of this book in 1978. Although published privately, this became an established classic and copies of the first edition are now almost unobtainable, so this new edition will be welcomed by many. It has been completely revised, extended and redesigned to a generous large format which allows material deleted from the original edition for lack of space to be restored.


Book Synopsis Big Gun Monitors by : Ian Buxton

Download or read book Big Gun Monitors written by Ian Buxton and published by Seaforth Publishing. This book was released on 2008-03-30 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the history of naval warfare probably no type of ship has provided more firepower per ton than the monitor – indeed they were little more than a huge gun mounting fitted on a simple, self-propelled raft. Designed and built rapidly to fulfil an urgent need for heavy shore-bombardment during World War I, they were top secret in conception, and largely forgotten when the short-lived requirement was over. Nevertheless, they were important ships, which played a significant role in many Great War campaigns and drove many of the advances in long-range gunnery later applied to the battle fleet. Indeed, their value was rediscovered during the Second World War when a final class was built. Monitors were largely ignored by naval historians until Ian Buxton produced the first edition of this book in 1978. Although published privately, this became an established classic and copies of the first edition are now almost unobtainable, so this new edition will be welcomed by many. It has been completely revised, extended and redesigned to a generous large format which allows material deleted from the original edition for lack of space to be restored.

The Rise And Fall of British Naval Mastery

The Rise And Fall of British Naval Mastery

Author: Paul Kennedy

Publisher: Penguin UK

Published: 2017-01-26

Total Pages: 464

ISBN-13: 0141983833

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Paul Kennedy's classic naval history, now updated with a new introduction by the author This acclaimed book traces Britain's rise and fall as a sea power from the Tudors to the present day. Challenging the traditional view that the British are natural 'sons of the waves', he suggests instead that the country's fortunes as a significant maritime force have always been bound up with its economic growth. In doing so, he contributes significantly to the centuries-long debate between 'continental' and 'maritime' schools of strategy over Britain's policy in times of war. Setting British naval history within a framework of national, international, economic, political and strategic considerations, he offers a fresh approach to one of the central questions in British history. A new introduction extends his analysis into the twenty-first century and reflects on current American and Chinese ambitions for naval mastery. 'Excellent and stimulating' Correlli Barnett 'The first scholar to have set the sweep of British Naval history against the background of economic history' Michael Howard, Sunday Times 'By far the best study that has ever been done on the subject ... a sparkling and apt quotation on practically every page' Daniel A. Baugh, International History Review 'The best single-volume study of Britain and her naval past now available to us' Jon Sumida, Journal of Modern History


Book Synopsis The Rise And Fall of British Naval Mastery by : Paul Kennedy

Download or read book The Rise And Fall of British Naval Mastery written by Paul Kennedy and published by Penguin UK. This book was released on 2017-01-26 with total page 464 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Paul Kennedy's classic naval history, now updated with a new introduction by the author This acclaimed book traces Britain's rise and fall as a sea power from the Tudors to the present day. Challenging the traditional view that the British are natural 'sons of the waves', he suggests instead that the country's fortunes as a significant maritime force have always been bound up with its economic growth. In doing so, he contributes significantly to the centuries-long debate between 'continental' and 'maritime' schools of strategy over Britain's policy in times of war. Setting British naval history within a framework of national, international, economic, political and strategic considerations, he offers a fresh approach to one of the central questions in British history. A new introduction extends his analysis into the twenty-first century and reflects on current American and Chinese ambitions for naval mastery. 'Excellent and stimulating' Correlli Barnett 'The first scholar to have set the sweep of British Naval history against the background of economic history' Michael Howard, Sunday Times 'By far the best study that has ever been done on the subject ... a sparkling and apt quotation on practically every page' Daniel A. Baugh, International History Review 'The best single-volume study of Britain and her naval past now available to us' Jon Sumida, Journal of Modern History

US Navy Battleships 1886–98

US Navy Battleships 1886–98

Author: Brian Lane Herder

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2019-06-27

Total Pages: 49

ISBN-13: 1472835042

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After the American Civil War, the US Navy had been allowed to decay into complete insignificance, yet the commissioning of the modern Brazilian battleship Riachuelo and poor performance against the contemporary Spanish fleet, forced the US out of its isolationist posture towards battleships. The first true US battleships began with the experimental Maine and Texas, followed by the three-ship Indiana class, and the Iowa class, which incorporated lessons from the previous ships. These initial ships set the enduring US battleship standard of being heavily armed and armoured at the expense of speed. This fully illustrated study examines these first six US battleships, a story of political compromises, clean sheet designs, operational experience, and experimental improvements. These ships directly inspired the creation of an embryonic American military-industrial complex, enabled a permanent outward-looking shift in American foreign policy and laid the foundations of the modern US Navy.


Book Synopsis US Navy Battleships 1886–98 by : Brian Lane Herder

Download or read book US Navy Battleships 1886–98 written by Brian Lane Herder and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2019-06-27 with total page 49 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: After the American Civil War, the US Navy had been allowed to decay into complete insignificance, yet the commissioning of the modern Brazilian battleship Riachuelo and poor performance against the contemporary Spanish fleet, forced the US out of its isolationist posture towards battleships. The first true US battleships began with the experimental Maine and Texas, followed by the three-ship Indiana class, and the Iowa class, which incorporated lessons from the previous ships. These initial ships set the enduring US battleship standard of being heavily armed and armoured at the expense of speed. This fully illustrated study examines these first six US battleships, a story of political compromises, clean sheet designs, operational experience, and experimental improvements. These ships directly inspired the creation of an embryonic American military-industrial complex, enabled a permanent outward-looking shift in American foreign policy and laid the foundations of the modern US Navy.

HMS Saracen

HMS Saracen

Author: Douglas Reeman

Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield

Published: 2015-04-01

Total Pages: 346

ISBN-13: 1590136888

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Malta 1941. To most people HMS Saracen is just an ugly, obsolete ship with an equally ugly recent history: her last commander is due for court-martial after shelling the troops he was sent to protect. But to Captain Richard Chesnaye she brings back memories—memories of the First World War when he and the old monitor went through the Gallipoli campaign together. It seems that captain and ship are both past their best. But as the war enters a new phase, Chesnaye senses the possibility of a fresh, significant role—for him and the Saracen.


Book Synopsis HMS Saracen by : Douglas Reeman

Download or read book HMS Saracen written by Douglas Reeman and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2015-04-01 with total page 346 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Malta 1941. To most people HMS Saracen is just an ugly, obsolete ship with an equally ugly recent history: her last commander is due for court-martial after shelling the troops he was sent to protect. But to Captain Richard Chesnaye she brings back memories—memories of the First World War when he and the old monitor went through the Gallipoli campaign together. It seems that captain and ship are both past their best. But as the war enters a new phase, Chesnaye senses the possibility of a fresh, significant role—for him and the Saracen.

Empire of the Seas

Empire of the Seas

Author: Brian Lavery

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2018-11-01

Total Pages: 427

ISBN-13: 147283559X

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The BBC TV Tie-in to Dan Snow's Timewatch series exploring the navy's rise over four centuries. The year 1588 marked a turning point in our national story. Victory over the Spanish Armada transformed us into a seafaring nation and it sparked a myth that one day would become a reality – that the nation's new destiny, the source of her future wealth and power lay out on the oceans. This book tells the story of how the navy expanded from a tiny force to become the most complex industrial enterprise on earth; how the need to organise it laid the foundations of our civil service and our economy; and how it transformed our culture, our sense of national identity and our democracy. Brian Lavery's narrative explores the navy's rise over four centuries; a key factor in propelling Britain to its status as the most powerful nation on earth, and assesses the turning point of Jutland and the First World War. He creates a compelling read that is every bit as engaging as the TV series itself.


Book Synopsis Empire of the Seas by : Brian Lavery

Download or read book Empire of the Seas written by Brian Lavery and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2018-11-01 with total page 427 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The BBC TV Tie-in to Dan Snow's Timewatch series exploring the navy's rise over four centuries. The year 1588 marked a turning point in our national story. Victory over the Spanish Armada transformed us into a seafaring nation and it sparked a myth that one day would become a reality – that the nation's new destiny, the source of her future wealth and power lay out on the oceans. This book tells the story of how the navy expanded from a tiny force to become the most complex industrial enterprise on earth; how the need to organise it laid the foundations of our civil service and our economy; and how it transformed our culture, our sense of national identity and our democracy. Brian Lavery's narrative explores the navy's rise over four centuries; a key factor in propelling Britain to its status as the most powerful nation on earth, and assesses the turning point of Jutland and the First World War. He creates a compelling read that is every bit as engaging as the TV series itself.

The British Navy Book

The British Navy Book

Author: Cyril Field

Publisher: DigiCat

Published: 2022-08-01

Total Pages: 376

ISBN-13:

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DigiCat Publishing presents to you this special edition of "The British Navy Book" by Cyril Field. DigiCat Publishing considers every written word to be a legacy of humankind. Every DigiCat book has been carefully reproduced for republishing in a new modern format. The books are available in print, as well as ebooks. DigiCat hopes you will treat this work with the acknowledgment and passion it deserves as a classic of world literature.


Book Synopsis The British Navy Book by : Cyril Field

Download or read book The British Navy Book written by Cyril Field and published by DigiCat. This book was released on 2022-08-01 with total page 376 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: DigiCat Publishing presents to you this special edition of "The British Navy Book" by Cyril Field. DigiCat Publishing considers every written word to be a legacy of humankind. Every DigiCat book has been carefully reproduced for republishing in a new modern format. The books are available in print, as well as ebooks. DigiCat hopes you will treat this work with the acknowledgment and passion it deserves as a classic of world literature.

The Late Victorian Navy

The Late Victorian Navy

Author: Roger Parkinson

Publisher: Boydell Press

Published: 2008

Total Pages: 348

ISBN-13: 9781843833727

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A reappraisal of the late Victorian Navy, the so-called `Dark Ages', showing how the period was crucial to the emergence of new technology defined by steel and electricity. In purely naval terms, the period from 1889 to 1906 is often referred to (and indeed passed over) as the `pre-Dreadnought era', merely a prelude to the lead-up to the First World War, and thus of relatively little importance; it has therefore received little consideration from historians, a gap which this book remedies by reviewing the late Victorian Navy from a radically new perspective. It starts with the Great Near East crisis of 1878 and shows how itsaftermath in the Carnarvon Commission and its evidence produced a profound shift in strategic thinking, culminating in the Naval Defence Act of 1889; this evidence, from the ship owners, provides the definitive explanation of whythe Victorian Navy gave up on convoy as the primary means of trade protection in wartime, a fundamental question at the time. The book also overturns many assumptions about the era, especially the perception that the navy was weak, and clearly shows that the 1870s and early 1880s brought in crucial technological developments that made the Dreadnought possible.


Book Synopsis The Late Victorian Navy by : Roger Parkinson

Download or read book The Late Victorian Navy written by Roger Parkinson and published by Boydell Press. This book was released on 2008 with total page 348 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A reappraisal of the late Victorian Navy, the so-called `Dark Ages', showing how the period was crucial to the emergence of new technology defined by steel and electricity. In purely naval terms, the period from 1889 to 1906 is often referred to (and indeed passed over) as the `pre-Dreadnought era', merely a prelude to the lead-up to the First World War, and thus of relatively little importance; it has therefore received little consideration from historians, a gap which this book remedies by reviewing the late Victorian Navy from a radically new perspective. It starts with the Great Near East crisis of 1878 and shows how itsaftermath in the Carnarvon Commission and its evidence produced a profound shift in strategic thinking, culminating in the Naval Defence Act of 1889; this evidence, from the ship owners, provides the definitive explanation of whythe Victorian Navy gave up on convoy as the primary means of trade protection in wartime, a fundamental question at the time. The book also overturns many assumptions about the era, especially the perception that the navy was weak, and clearly shows that the 1870s and early 1880s brought in crucial technological developments that made the Dreadnought possible.

Clad in Iron

Clad in Iron

Author: Howard J. Fuller

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA

Published: 2007-12-30

Total Pages: 449

ISBN-13: 0313345910

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This work addresses many persistent misconceptions of what the monitors were for, and why they failed in other roles associated with naval operations of the Civil War (such as the repulse at Charleston, April 7, 1863). Monitors were 'ironclads'- not fort-killers. Their ultimate success is to be measured not in terms of spearheading attacks on fortified Southern ports but in the quieter, much more profound, strategic deterrence of Lord Palmerston's ministry in London, and the British Royal Navy's potential intervention. The relatively unknown 'Cold War' of the American Civil War was a nevertheless crucial aspect of the survival, or not, of the United States in the mid 19th-century. Foreign intervention—explicitly in the form of British naval power—represented a far more serious threat to the success of the Union blockade, the safety of Yankee merchant shipping worldwide, and Union combined operations against the South than the Confederate States Navy. Whether or not the North or South would be 'clad in iron' thus depended on the ability of superior Union ironclads to deter the majority of mid-Victorian British leaders, otherwise tempted by their desire to see the American 'experiment' in democratic class-structures and popular government finally fail. Discussions of open European involvement in the Civil War were pointless as long as the coastline of the United States was virtually impregnable. Combining extensive archival research on both sides of the Atlantic, this work offers an in-depth look at how the Union Navy achieved its greatest grand-strategic victory in the American Civil War. Through a combination of high-tech 'machines' armed with 'monster' guns, intensive coastal fortifications and a new fleet of high-speed Union commerce raiders, the North was able to turn the humiliation of the Trent Affair of late 1861 into a sobering challenge to British naval power and imperial defense worldwide.


Book Synopsis Clad in Iron by : Howard J. Fuller

Download or read book Clad in Iron written by Howard J. Fuller and published by Bloomsbury Publishing USA. This book was released on 2007-12-30 with total page 449 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This work addresses many persistent misconceptions of what the monitors were for, and why they failed in other roles associated with naval operations of the Civil War (such as the repulse at Charleston, April 7, 1863). Monitors were 'ironclads'- not fort-killers. Their ultimate success is to be measured not in terms of spearheading attacks on fortified Southern ports but in the quieter, much more profound, strategic deterrence of Lord Palmerston's ministry in London, and the British Royal Navy's potential intervention. The relatively unknown 'Cold War' of the American Civil War was a nevertheless crucial aspect of the survival, or not, of the United States in the mid 19th-century. Foreign intervention—explicitly in the form of British naval power—represented a far more serious threat to the success of the Union blockade, the safety of Yankee merchant shipping worldwide, and Union combined operations against the South than the Confederate States Navy. Whether or not the North or South would be 'clad in iron' thus depended on the ability of superior Union ironclads to deter the majority of mid-Victorian British leaders, otherwise tempted by their desire to see the American 'experiment' in democratic class-structures and popular government finally fail. Discussions of open European involvement in the Civil War were pointless as long as the coastline of the United States was virtually impregnable. Combining extensive archival research on both sides of the Atlantic, this work offers an in-depth look at how the Union Navy achieved its greatest grand-strategic victory in the American Civil War. Through a combination of high-tech 'machines' armed with 'monster' guns, intensive coastal fortifications and a new fleet of high-speed Union commerce raiders, the North was able to turn the humiliation of the Trent Affair of late 1861 into a sobering challenge to British naval power and imperial defense worldwide.

Birth of the Battleship

Birth of the Battleship

Author: John Francis Beeler

Publisher: Bloomsbury Academic

Published: 2001

Total Pages: 232

ISBN-13:

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Many books have covered the technological revolution that saw wooden hulls replaced by iron and steel, sail superseded by steam, and smooth-bore muzzle-loading gun giving way to rifled breech-loaders and entirely new weapons like torpedoes. But previous works have tended to concentrate on the technology itself, largely to the exclusion of external but crucial factors, like politics, finance, administrative problems, foreign threats and strategic situations. The years 1870-1885 have also been neglected because they were seen as the 'dark ages of the Admiralty', but this book argues strongly that, although the problems faced were greater than in previous decades, it is actually a pivotal period in the emergence of the modern warship. In so doing, it counters the general perception that that those responsible for British design policy at the time were retrogressive, incompetent, or both. What emerges is a more complete picture of the problems - often insoluble - faced by the Admiralty during the era, and the sensible steps it took to meet them.


Book Synopsis Birth of the Battleship by : John Francis Beeler

Download or read book Birth of the Battleship written by John Francis Beeler and published by Bloomsbury Academic. This book was released on 2001 with total page 232 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Many books have covered the technological revolution that saw wooden hulls replaced by iron and steel, sail superseded by steam, and smooth-bore muzzle-loading gun giving way to rifled breech-loaders and entirely new weapons like torpedoes. But previous works have tended to concentrate on the technology itself, largely to the exclusion of external but crucial factors, like politics, finance, administrative problems, foreign threats and strategic situations. The years 1870-1885 have also been neglected because they were seen as the 'dark ages of the Admiralty', but this book argues strongly that, although the problems faced were greater than in previous decades, it is actually a pivotal period in the emergence of the modern warship. In so doing, it counters the general perception that that those responsible for British design policy at the time were retrogressive, incompetent, or both. What emerges is a more complete picture of the problems - often insoluble - faced by the Admiralty during the era, and the sensible steps it took to meet them.