Maritime history Books

Book SynopsisIn the words of those who survived the sinking, this is the story of the Titanic's final hours, taken from the transcripts of the US and British inquiries, and specially rearranged into chronological order to present the disaster as a real-time narrative.

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Book SynopsisAs America's oldest merchant ship still afloat and the only wooden survivor of the once-vital whaling industry, the Charles W. Morgan has a complex story to tell.Elaborating on Mystic Seaport Museum's earlier volumes on the Charles W. Morgan''s history, this new book offers an expanded account, chronicling the ship''sconstruction and launch in 1841 through its 38th Voyage in 2014the first time the Morgan had been sailed in more than ninety yearsand its continuing role today as an historic icon and the museum's flagship vessel. Chapters paint a picture of how whaling developed in Europe and the ways New England colonists adopted it as a profitable venture, and then, through the ship's own story, proceed to sketch the evolution of America's relationship with natureand the whale, specificallyand with the many peoples of the world who were encountered by, or served aboard, a whaleship.This is the story of a National Historic Landmarkone that reflects our changing relations

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Book SynopsisFor fans of The Lost Kingdom, Black Sails and Crossbones comes a new rip-roaring history of the Golden Age of Piracy. . .In the early eighteenth century a number of the great pirate captains, including Edward 'Blackbeard' Teach and 'Black Sam' Bellamy, joined forces. This infamous 'Flying Gang' was more than simply a thieving band of brothers. Many of its members had come to piracy as a revolt against conditions in the merchant fleet and in the cities and plantations in the Old and New Worlds. Inspired by notions of self-government, they established a crude but distinctive form of democracy in the Bahamas, carving out their own zone of freedom in which indentured servants were released and leaders chosen or deposed by a vote. They were ultimately overcome by their archnemesis, Captain Woodes Rogers - a merchant fleet owner and former privateer - and the brief but glorious Republic of Pirates came to an end.Meticulously researched and full of incident and adventure, The Republic of Pirates brings to life an extraordinary forgotten chapter of history.'Fascinating... beyond rip-roaring adventure stories from the distant past, [the book offers] an opportunity to understand pirates as they truly were--and to be grateful that the worst of them, at least, are gone' New York Times Book ReviewTrade ReviewFascinating... beyond rip-roaring adventure stories from the distant past, [the book offers] an opportunity to understand pirates as they truly were--and to be grateful that the worst of them, at least, are gone. * New York Times Book Review *This breezy, fast-moving book is filled with exciting action and colorful characters. It will provide general readers and those with a special interest in the period much enjoyment. * Booklist *Disregard Robert Louis Stevenson's rowdy buccaneers, the Disney factory's lively rascals and those musical lads from Penzance: Here are the real pirates of the Caribbean, and the facts are as colorful and exciting as fiction. * Kirkus Reviews *It's a rollicking tale, filled with rich details of the lives of men who, for their own personal gain, challenged the spread of empires. * Times-Picayune *The first incisive look at the world of Blackbeard, Stede Bonnet, Anne Bonny, and their compatriots, and it illuminates as never before one of the most storied yet misunderstood episodes in our past. -- Willliam C. Davis, author of The Pirates LaffiteA rollicking, gangplank-swaying read of a book . . . This scrupulously researched book strikes a balance of human interest, romance, drama, war, and historical fact – all key ingredients for an excellent read. * Caribbean Beat *

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Book SynopsisIn September 1980, the British ship Derbyshire sailed into the eye of Typhoon Orchid and on into oblivion, taking all on board with her. The destructive power of a typhoon is awesome, but the Derbyshire was no small and ageing tramp, running red rust with a crew of deadbeats culled from the backwaters of the world. She was just four years old, manned entirely by competent British seamen and maintained to the highest standards. She matched the best afloat in her day. How then could this great ship have disappeared so quickly and completely, with not even a faint cry for help, and leaving only a thin film of oil on the sea to mark her passing? The only good thing to come out of whatever appalling calamity over-whelmed the Derbyshire was that it turned the spotlight on a hitherto unrecognised phenomenon -- the disappearing bulk carriers. In this powerful book, Bernard Edwards, master mariner turned writer, reports on his investigations into the loss of a number of these giant bulk carriers and offers a new and controversial solution to the Derbyshire mystery, at the same time taking the lid off the on-going scandal of the disappearing bulk carriers.

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Book SynopsisThe Herbert Fuller, a three-masted sailing ship loaded with New England lumber, left Boston bound for Buenos Aires on July 8, 1896 with twelve people on board: captain-owner Charles Nash, his wife and Maine childhood-sweetheart Laura, two mates, the ''mulatto'' steward, six crewmen, and one passenger. Just before 2 A.M. on the sixth day at sea, the captain, his wife, and the second mate were slaughtered in their individual bunkrooms with the ship''s axe, seven or eight blows apiece. Laura Nash was found with her thin nightgown pushed above her hips, her head and upper body smashed and deformed. Incredibly, no one saw or heard the killings... except the killer. After a harrowing voyage back to port for the survivors, the killer among them, it didn''t take long for prosecutors to charge, and a Boston jury to convict, the first mate, a naturalized American of mixed blood from St. Kitts. But another man on board, the passenger, a twenty-year-old Harvard quitter from a proper Boston family,

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Book SynopsisLusitania was an engineering marvel, at one time the largest, fastest and most opulent vessel in the world. The iconic passenger liner immediately became a weapon in the Allied propaganda war, helping to shift American public opinion against Germany and influencing the USA's eventual entry into the First World War.

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