Ships and boats: general interest Books

Book SynopsisNew paperback edition - The first ever history of Isambard Kingdom Brunelâs forgotten first ship, the SS Great Western, the fastest and largest Atlantic Steamship of its day.Trade Review‘Restores the first of Brunel’s ships to a central role in the history of commercial shipping, business, technology and engineering. A fitting tribute to a pioneer of modernity.’ -- Professor Andrew Lambert‘Helen Doe gives long-overdue recognition to Brunel’s first steamship... bringing to life some of the key personalities who made the ambitious project a reality.’ -- Nautilus Telegraph

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Book SynopsisWorld War I was Britain's last moment as the world's naval superpower, and its Grand Fleet was then the most powerful ever seen. Fully illustrated, this explores its fighting power. At the start of World War I, the Royal Navy's forces were amalgamated into a single entity, the Grand Fleet, and stationed in Scapa Flow, Orkney. The Grand Fleet was the largest amalgamation of modern naval power the world had seen, with over 30 dreadnought battleships or battlecruisers, and a plethora of cruisers and destroyers. In 1917 it was reinforced further by a powerful American squadron. In this book, based on extensive primary source research, naval expert Angus Konstam assesses the Grand Fleet's ships, technology, organization, command and intelligence, and how it fought. While ship-for-ship its German counterparts were better designed, as a combined fleet Admiral Jellicoe's armada was unstoppable. It took part in several clashes with its German foe during the war, but it was only at the Bat

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Book SynopsisThe only comprehensive listing of French sailing warships in EnglishTrade ReviewFrench Warships in the Age of Sail 1626-1786: Design, Construction, Careers and Fates by naval historian Rif Winfield with the assistance of Stephen S. Roberts is the first comprehensive listing of these ships in English, and follows the pattern set by its companion volume, British Warships in the Age of Sail, 1793-1817: Design, Construction, Careers and Fates in providing an impressive depth of information. Profusely illustrated with b/w illustrations and ship construction images, French Warships in the Age of Sail 1626-1786 is impressively informative and comprehensive, making it an ideal and unreservedly recommended for personal, community, college, and university library Naval History collections and supplemental studies reading lists." --Midwest Book Review "This is very useful to those of us who need a handy and quick reference to a variety of vessels. The citations plentiful…. [I]f you need a … top notch reference book to explore the careers of warships in the age of sail, there's really no better source." --British Tars, 1740-1790

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Book SynopsisWhen Marcia and David Pirie abandoned their careers and sailed off in their home-built ketch Moongazer, They embarked on a journey that took them around the world, and became a way of life for nine years. Travellers on a Trade Wind covers the highlights of the journey.

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Book SynopsisWhat is the best shape for a sailboat? How does turbulence affect a sailboat's movement through the water? Why do some keels have wings? Is it true that some sailboats can sail faster upwind than downwind? Authoritative yet accessible, The Physics of Sailing Explained is the perfect book for all those sailors who want to enhance their understanding and enjoyment of life at sea. It will enable cruisers and racers alike to better grasp how sails, keels, and hulls work together to keep boats afloat, and will sharpen their skills with a more subtle and thorough appreciation of why various boat design features are present and why certain tactics work in certain situations. Anderson outlines the science behind sailing in a way that anyone can understand and benefit from without having to trudge through a physics text or became a naval architect. Concepts are conveyed simply, concisely, and with many examples and illustrations. With the help of this invaluable book, sailors will be better prepared to handle any situations that might arise on the water.Trade ReviewBrian Anderson is well qualified to write on how sail boats sail, being a lecturer in physics as well as a keen cruiser and racer. If you have ever wondered why you were being overtaken by a similar boat to yours which seems to be doing everything you are doing but still managing that extra speed, this book will explain the reason and next time out he may not get in front. A wealth of subjects such as vortex formation, surface resistance, induced drag and even parasitic resistance (not an antibiotics!) are all discussed and explained. The black and white photographs and illustrations complement the text as the reader goes from basics such as a boat s maximum speed is fundamentally determined by its length, to a description of Bernoulli s Principle and the effect of the Coriolis force. Clearly and logically written this is an invaluable book for anyone who wants to do a little more than just messing about in boats. * Cruising *Anderson offers a clear and thorough discussion of sailing, pointed toward people who race their boats but of interest to anyone who sails. Starting with the design of hulls and keels, he analyzes the various ways in which water retards the motion of a boat and shows how they are minimized. He then discusses the physics of sails and the complicated motion of the air that flows around them, and finally the physics of weather and ocean currents. The author shows the general pattern of winds at high and low altitudes and how it is altered by the great land masses, and then follows on how the winds in turn guide the currents below them. There is mathematics, high school style, particularly to explain some surprising aspects of hull shape, but this is neatly segregated into boxes to oblige readers who like to sail in a light breeze. This book will surprise many who think there is not much about boat design that is not obvious. * CHOICE *Books on the how and what of sailing abound, but few go into great depth to answer the why questions why sailboats behave as they do and the physical properties involved. The Physics of Sailing Explained by Bryon Anderson attempts to answer some of these questions. A thin little book at fewer than 150 pages, The Physics of Sailing Explained is not intended for physicists or for yacht and sail designers. It is, however, intended as a basic primer for those interested in gaining a better understanding of the fundamental principles of sailing, and therefore a better appreciation of the sport as a whole. Anderson explores, in layman terms, the mechanics of such phenomena as lift, resistance, turbulence and weather. Our familiar friends Bernoulli and Coriolis are given due treatment, as are such lesser-known names as Reynolds and Van der Waals. A professor of physics at Kent State University, Anderson backs up some of the more important theories with hard equations for the mathematically inclined. Fortunately, knowing these derivations are not necessary to understanding the text. Illustrations, while rather simple from a graphic-design standard, help further explain the principle. * Sailing *Table of ContentsIntroduction I. Hulls 1. Hull Speed 2. Surface Resistance 3. Shape Resistance 4. Parasitic Resistance II. Keels 5. Bernoulli's Principal and Lift 6. Vortex Formation 7. Righting Moment 8. Total Resistance III. Sails 9. Basic Sail Theory 10. Induced Drag 11. Turbulence 12. Sail Interaction 13. Sail Shapes for Different Points of Sail 14. Sail Trim IV. The Physics of Weather for Sailors 15. Local Weather 16. Global Weather Patterns 17. Tides Further Reading Sailing Terms Index

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Book SynopsisIn November 2011, Geoff Dyer fulfilled a childhood dream of spending time on an aircraft carrier. Dyer's stay on the USS George Bush, on active service in the Arabian Gulf, proved even more intense, memorable, and frequently hilarious, than he could ever have hoped. In Dyer's hands, the warship becomes a microcosm for a stocktaking of modern Western life: religion, drugs, chauvinism, farting, gyms, steaks, prayer, parental death, relationships and how to have a beach party with 5000 people on a giant floating hunk of steel. Piercingly perceptive and gloriously funny, this is a unique book about work, war and entering other worlds.Trade ReviewReading Dyer is akin to the sudden elation and optimism you feel when you make a new friend, someone as silly as you but cleverer too, in whose company you know you will travel through life more vagrantly, intensely, joyfully * * Daily Telegraph * *Stuffed with wonderful anecdotes * * Independent * *One advantage of Dyer's attention to the minutiae of this strange world is the continual surprise of his descriptive powers; he approaches on-board rituals with an art critic's eye that sometimes renders Steele-Perkins's powerfully constructed photographs redundant * * Observer * *A hilarious account of life on board an aircraft carrier is filled with delights...If this is the new reality, I hunger for more * * Telegraph * *Quite possibly the best living writer in Britain * * Daily Telegraph * *I hope one day to meet the demented genius who decided to put Geoff Dyer aboard an American aircraft carrier. The result sounds in places as if Sterne en route to his sentimental journey had paused for a week's stint on HMS Victory . . . In the end one is forced to call it "a Dyer book," which luckily for him and us is a high compliment -- John Jeremiah Sullivan, author of PULPHEADA great day is any day you get to read Geoff Dyer, and this book is no exception. Witty, empathetic, and insatiably curious, Dyer is the perfect guide to the floating world of an American aircraft carrier. With Another Great Day at Sea he makes a perfect night landing on the "postage stamp, with élan to spare" -- Sam LipsyteAnother Great Day at Sea, Geoff Dyer's chronicle of his two weeks in residence aboard the USS George H. W. Bush, is a tale of routine, lyricism and terror, of long hours and hard work, and of camaraderie and conviction, which are a form of faith. Original, humane, and very funny, Another Great Day is another great book by an incomparable writer -- Brenda WineappleDyer stows himself away on an American aircraft carrier, fortunately, with all his hilarious tics in place. A rare kind of non-fiction, with sentences that keep on giving long after your eye has sailed on -- Steve MartinGeoff Dyer has managed to do again what he does best: insert himself into an exotic and demanding environment (sometimes, his own flat, but here, the violent wonders of an aircraft carrier) and file a report that mixes empathetic appreciation with dips into brilliant comic deflation. Welcome aboard the edifying and sometimes hilarious ship Dyer -- Billy CollinsThere is no contemporary writer I admire more than Dyer, and in no book of his does he address his animating idea - The Only Way Not to Waste Time Is to Waste It - more overtly, urgently, emphatically and eloquently -- David Shields, author of REALITY HUNGEROne of my favourite of all contemporary writers -- Alain de BottonI have read Geoff Dyer on World War I, jazz, photography, the Bienalle, and D. H. Lawrence, among many other subjects. It's as though his mind is slave to some unpredictable Internet browser inaccessible to the rest of us. His new book - an inimitably close study of life on an American aircraft carrier -is one of his best, funniest, and most humane yet. Geoff Dyer remains an unconventionally great writer - perhaps the most bafflingly great writer at work in the English language today -- Tom Bissell

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Book SynopsisTake a voyage through the rich history of passenger ships. From mass migration through to luxury holidays, passenger shipping has played a central role in the collective human story. They have been at the forefront of innovative technology, leading to vessels capable of greater speed and safety, new luxuries, and increased scale and size.From the earliest days of using ships to transport people, through the development of the giant passenger transportation industry, to the huge cruise ships we see today, this book provides a fascinating glimpse into some of the most important evolutions that had a significant impact on passenger shipping.Accompanied by captivating photographs, The Evolution of the Passenger Ship explores the way ships were shaped over time and how they in turn helped to shape the world around them.

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Book SynopsisFor more than 400 years, the big-gun warship stood as the supreme naval war machine. It was not only a major instrument of warfare, but a visible emblem of a nation’s power, wealth and pride. Battleships features 52 of the greatest warships to have sailed in the last 500 years. Beginning with English king Henry VIII’s flagship, Henry Grace à Dieu, the book covers all the main periods of battleship development, including the great sail ships, such as Sovereign of the Seas, Santissima Trinidad and Victory. The advent of steam-driven warships provides the core of the book, beginning with the introduction of Gloire in 1859, and continuing through all the major pre-Dreadnoughts, such as Inflexible, Maine and Tsessarevitch. There is detailed coverage of the great battleships of the two world wars, including Derfflinger, Yamato and Iowa, while the book closes with the last new battleship to be commissioned, Vanguard, in 1946. Each entry includes a brief description of the battleship’s development and history, a colour profile artwork, key features and specifications. Packed with more than 200 artworks and photographs, Battleships is a colourful guide for the military historian and naval warfare enthusiast.Trade ReviewThis is a magnificent book for anyone interested in the history of these great ships. -- Jerry Lenaburg * New York Journal of Books *Table of ContentsIntroduction Henry Grace a Dieu 1514 San Martin 1579 Vasa 1627 Sovereign of the Seas 1637 Le Soleil Royal 1669 Victory 1765 Santissima Trinidad 1769 Santa Ana 1784 Bucentaure 1803 Gloire 1859 Victoria 1859 Warrior 1860 Konig Wilhelm 1869 Devastation 1873 Italia 1880 Inflexible 1881 Collingwood 1887 Royal Sovereign 1892 Maine 1895 Indiana 1895 Jaureguiberry 1896 Kearsarge 1900 Mikasa 1902 Tsessarevitch 1903 Dreadnought 1906 Nassau 1909 South Carolina 1910 Lion 1912 Wyoming 1912 Derfflinger 1913 Royal Oak (or Revenge) 1914 Texas 1914 Queen Elizabeth 1915 Fuso 1915 Nevada 1916 Bayern 1916 Courageous 1917 Hood 1920 Nagato 1920 Rodney 1927 Deutschland/Graf Spee 1933 Scharnhorst 1936 Gneisenau 1938 Bismarck 1940 Prince of Wales 1940 Richelieu 1940 Yamato 1940 Vittorio Veneto 1940 Tirpitz 1941 Indiana 1942 Iowa/Missouri 1943 Vanguard 1946

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Book Synopsis*A Newstatesman Book of the Year*‘Nimble, vital, unexpectedly affecting’ ObserverBestselling travel writer Horatio Clare joins an icebreaker for a voyage through the ice-packs of the far north.'We are celebrating a hundred years since independence this year: how would you like to travel on a government icebreaker?' A message from the Finnish embassy launches Horatio Clare on a voyage around an extraordinary country and an unearthly place, the frozen Bay of Bothnia, just short of the Arctic circle. Travelling with the crew of Icebreaker Otso, Horatio, whose last adventure saw him embedded on Maersk container vessels for the bestseller Down to the Sea in Ships, discovers stories of Finland, of her mariners and of ice.Aboard Otso Horatio gets to know the men who make up her crew, and explores Finland’s history and character. Surrounded by the extraordinary colours and conditions of a frozen sea, he also comes to understand something of the complexity and fragile beauty of ice, a near-miraculous substance which cools the planet, gives the stars their twinkle and which may hold all our futures in its crystals.Trade ReviewIcebreaker sails with a phlegmatic Finnish crew into threatening and threatened polar waters... Clare’s witty prose, filled with vivid descriptions, bears witness to the melting skin of our fragile planet and all that its loss might mean for our souls * New Statesman Books of the Year *Clare has a gift for pinning to the page all that comes his way. His is a joy in framing with such precision and flair that it is the opposite of indulgent, allowing the reader to share in his own marvellous encounters... nimble, vital, unexpectedly affecting -- Stephanie Cross * Observer *Icebreaker has many of the pleasures of classic travel writing: a pure sense of visiting another world in the company of an eloquent guide. But this is not a backward-looking book, and its warning for the future is clear… The Met Office estimates the Arctic could be seasonally ice-free by the 2040s. It may not be many decades, then, until Clare’s travelogue is a record of a vanished world -- Erica Wagner * Financial Times *Light fills his writing... Mr Clare is a great enjoyer -- of people, landscape, and above all of language * Economist *Salted with excellent topographical language... Clare has an ear and an eye for words... one can't have enough of the big white * Spectator *

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Book SynopsisThrough the French Canals has probably tempted more people to explore the beautiful waterways of France than any other book. First published in 1970, it''s been the key authoritative title on cruising the French canals ever since. The revised new edition is the essential comprehensive planning guide for anyone wanting to cruise through the French waterways or take their boat from the English Channel through to the Mediterranean via the inland route. It includes: over 50 routes fully described and illustrated, with positions of locks, towns and villages through routes from the English Channel and Atlantic to the Mediterranean, plus distances, and assessment of suitable boats for the canals. It also provides dimensions of locks and operating times, details of bridge heights, canal depths, fuelling points, waterway signals, a guide to the cost of living, shopping and stores, sources of weather information, haltes for overnight stops, and ports de plaisance.As welTrade ReviewA must for yachtsmen wishing to use the French inland waterway system...a fascinating read. * Yachting Monthly *highly professional, beautifully-presented * Waterways World *The bible for those wishing to head for the Med * Gaffer’s Log *this book covers virtually all you need to know’ * Towpath Talk *This is the 14th edition of a book subtitled 'The complete planning guide for cruising the French waterways' and that's very much what it is: a planning guide. It gives the readers everything they need for the basic planning at a waterway level - locks and their opening times, craft dimensions, VHF channels, boatyards and facilities - plus enough of a description to give a feel for each waterway. And for those new to French waterways there's a lengthy general section covering signage, operation of locks, useful contact details and basic French vocabularies covering what you might need in dealing with boatyards, waterways terminology, food shopping or discussing the weather. * Canal Boat *This book lives up to its subtitle, providing excellent information, and route-planning data, making it the right choice for those setting out to plan a first foray into French inland waters. * Cruising *An excellent overall introduction to these popular and varied waterways, particularly suitable for the first-time visitor or those who have some experience but are looking for new areas to cruise...Where this book really excels is for long distance route planning, with more than 50 routes described and illustrated...This guide, already a bestseller, is surely the first port of call for anyone considering navigating these popular French waterways. * Towpath Talk *Table of ContentsIntroduction to the 14th edition Part 1 1 Summary of route details, with map 2 Through routes to the Mediterranean 3 Cruising the inland waterways 4 Choosing the right boat 5 Equipment 6 Planning the cruise 7 In the waterways of France 8 Locks 9 Cost of living, shopping and stores 10 Useful information Part 2: the routes Section One: The Lower Seine (la Seine aval) Section Two: Bassin de la Seine Section Three: Bassin du Centre-Est Section Four: Rhône - Saône Basin Section Five: The Northern Region Section Six: Bassin du Nord-Est Section Seven: Le Bassin du Rhin Section Eight: Brittany and Pays-de-la-Loire Section Nine: Entre Deux Mers - the Atlantic - the Mediterranean and the Rivers Baïse, Lot and Charente Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisAnyone going to sea needs an understanding of maritime flags, and this handy book is the perfect pocket-sized reference.Concise but comprehensive, it includes:- National maritime flags- Special ensigns, jacks, burgees, official and defence flags, and code flags- Yacht club burgees- Signal flags (including naval codes, distress signals and racing codes)- Flag etiquette and usage (from positions to salutes to timing and more)Expanded and updated for its third edition, the book now includes masthead burgees, as well as new advice on changing rules in European waters and beyond, and more information on the use of and etiquette surrounding local, regional and other unofficial flags.If you have ever put to sea wondering about the different types of flag, how they are made up, and the dos and don''ts as well as traditions and myths of flying flags then this will be both a fascinating read and a useful on-board guide.Trade ReviewA great little guide... Reeds Maritime Flag Handbook makes for fascinating reading and would serve as a handy reference on the bridge of any vessel. * Nautilus Telegraph *A cheerful and colourful little book intended to provide crews of yachts, motorboats and other small craft, with a ready reference. * Nautical Magazine *A concise useful reference tool to have to hand when cruising. * Gaffers Log *There is a difference, for instance, between the use of flags on land, and on sea. Curious? Well, read the book! ... It is a comprehensive little reference book; very useful to have aboard. * Sailing Magazine *Table of Contents1. What is a flag? (How it is made, shapes, parts, proportions, sizes, securing) 2. Types of flag (ensigns, jacks, burgees, other flags, defence and official flags, code flags) 3. International code of signals (naval codes, distress signals, racing code flags) 4. Flag etiquette (the law, hoisting times, lowering, approaching a foreign harbour, positions, salutes and more) 5. International yacht club burgees 6. National maritime flags Glossary Appendix 1: Yacht clubs using a special ensign Appendix 2: Selected two-code signals Appendix 3: Useful flag websites Appendix 4: Overseas territories, departments, crown dependencies or special administrative regions Index

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Book SynopsisAlfred Wallis (1855-1942) is one of the most original and inspiring British artists of the 20th Century. Promoted by the artist Ben Nicholson amongst others, Wallis’s paintings influenced the development of British art between the wars. The directness of Wallis’ vision reflected a lifetime of living by and from the sea. His paintings are of what he knew, remembered and imagined. Yet they are also timeless stories about survival and the nature of our relationship with the world. As Jim Ede commented “Wallis is never local.” With over 70 illustrations, excerpts from letters and texts by Michael Bird, Ben Nicholson and Jim Ede, this book takes a fresh look at this extraordinary artist and his relationship to Kettle's Yard. It includes some of Wallis's best works from the Kettle’s Yard collection including many that are not normally on display, from ambitious paintings such as Saltash to what Wallis knew and loved best: ships and boats. Kettle's Yard, the University of Cambridge's modern and contemporary art gallery, holds the largest public collection of works by Alfred Wallis. Wallis was born in Devon. He was a fisherman and later a scrap-metal merchant in St. Ives. He took up painting in his later years, following the death of his wife in 1922. He was admired by Ben Nicholson and Christopher Wood, who came across his work when visiting St. Ives in 1928 and included it in the Seven & Five Society’s exhibition of 1929. He died in Madron Poorhouse.

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Book SynopsisThe Big Book of Boat Canvas is a thorough revision and updating of Karen Lipe's two popular earlier books, Boat Canvas Cover to Cover and More Boat Canvas, combined with a whole new section on below-decks sewing projects. In this latest volume Lipe ranges well beyond the boundaries of traditional canvas work to create a comprehensive guide to fabric work on board. You'll find dozens of traditional canvas projects--sail covers, awnings, duffel bags, dodgers, and Biminis, wind chutes, winter covers--all with clear, step-by-step instructions, generously illustrated. You'll also find dozens of not-so-traditional fabric projects to add comfort and a touch of elegance to your below-decks spaces: custom interior cushions, fitted sheets and daycovers, privacy curtains, lee cloths, even a tablecloth to fit your varnished table. Lipe offers a veritable minicourse in interior yacht decoration, dozens of useful sewing tips, a careful detailing of materials nad tools needed forTrade Review"It passed what is for me the acid test of a how-to book: The Big Book made me want to get at some long-neglected projects and even to trys ome that I never thought I could manage." Sail "You'll find this book of the utmost practical help." The EnsignTable of ContentsAcknowledgmentsIntroductionPart One: A Few Fundamentals1. The Sewing Machine2. Tools and Hardware for Canvas Work3. Sewing Terminology and TechniquesPart Two: Topside Projects4. Color Considerations5. Fabric for Exterior Projects6. Canvas Bucket, Ditty Bag, or Rigger's Bag7. A Simple Duffel Bag8. Ready Bags and Sea Sausages9. Spar Bag10. Life Jacket Bag11. Sheet Bags, Tool Bags, and Lazarette Shelves12. Sailboard Bag13. Bicycle Bag14. Building an Awning15. A Dodger, A Bimini, or Both?16. Riggin a Rain Catcher17. Secure Your Ship with Weather Cloths18. Hatch Dodgers19. A Simple Wind Chute20. Deck Cushions21. Sail Covers22. A Cover for the Yacht Tender23. Building a Winter Cover24. Windshield Cover25. Hatch Covers26. Custom Covers for On-Deck EquipmentPart Three: Interior Fabric Work27. Design and Color Considerations in Interior Fabric Work28. Fabrics for Interior Projects29. Interior Cushions30. Sheets and Quilts versus Expensive Upholstery31. Curtains32. Locker-Mounted Laundry Bag33. Galley and Navigator's Strap34. Lee Cloths35. Creating Storage out of Open Shelving36. Protective Carpet Runners37. Fitted Toilet Seat Cover38. Tablecloth, Napkins, and Placemats to Fit Your Table39. Canvas Insert for Pipe Berths40. ScreensAppendix 1. Care and Cleaning of Clear Vinyl and Acrylic CanvasAppendix 2. Glossary of Interior Fabric TermsAppendix 3. SourcesIndex

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Book SynopsisA Sunday Times Book of the Year ''Three and a half millennia of British Maritime history, from the Middle Bronze Age to the early 20th century ... This book is written with passion and sympathy. It will live with me for a very long time'' Francis Pryor, author of The FensIf Britain''s maritime history were embodied in a single ship, she would have a prehistoric prow, a mast plucked from a Victorian steamship, the hull of a modest fishing vessel, the propeller of an ocean liner and an anchor made of stone. We might call her Asunder, and, fantastical though she is, we could in fact find her today, scattered in fragments across the country''s creeks and coastlines. In his moving and original new history, Tom Nancollas goes in search of eleven relics that together tell the story of Britain at sea. From the swallowtail prow of a Bronze Age vessel to a stone ship moored at a Baroque quayside, each one illuminates a distinct phase of our adventures upon the waves; each brings us close to the people, places and vessels that made a maritime nation. Weaving together stories of great naval architects and unsung shipwrights, fishermen and merchants, shipwrecks and superstition, pilgrimage, trade and war, The Ship Asunder celebrates the richness of Britain''s seafaring tradition in all its glory and tragedy, triumph and disaster, and asks how we might best memorialize it as it vanishes from our shores.Trade ReviewElegantly combining a tour of Britain's ports, coasts and islands with a tour of an imaginary ship that contains fragments acquired across the centuries, Tom Nancollas has written an enchanting and thoughtful account of Britain's rich maritime heritage. -- David Abulafia, author of The Great Sea and The Boundless SeaTom Nancollas takes us aboard eleven historic vessels, covering three and a half millennia of British Maritime history, from the Middle Bronze Age to the early 20th century. Each ship has its own story to tell, which Tom brings to life with astonishing clarity. This book is written with passion and sympathy. It will live with me for a very long time. -- Francis Pryor, author of The FensA fascinating voyage of discovery * Spectator *Vivid... Poignant... Nancollas tells fine tales, rich with that sherrycask fragrance of a world so immediate, yet so very long ago * Tablet *The Ship Asunder is a first-class book. It is superbly readable and entirely serious, questioning not just how Britain thinks of its maritime past, and indeed itself, but how history is written, understood and enacted. It is a work of experiential historiography, if you like - and a delight * Times Literary Supplement *Fizzing with enthusiasm, Nancollas travels the country, exploring the stories of prows, masts, figureheads and propellers and visiting the sites of dockyards and ropehouses ... Sailors and landlubbers alike should love it * The Sunday Times Books of the Year *A gem of a book * The Times *

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Book SynopsisVolume Two covers the interior design and fitting out of the ship and presents detailed deck-by-deck information, from the palatial rooms of First Class to areas of the ship seen only by the crew.

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Book SynopsisIt would make the stones cry to hear those on board shrieking' - Daniel Buckley, third-class passenger For the first time, in this moving new book, Titanic's passengers and crewmen are permitted to tell the story of that lamentable disaster entirely in their own words. Included are letters, postcards, diary entries and memoirs that were written before, during and immediately after the maiden voyage itself. Many of the pre-sailing documents were composed by people who later lost their lives in the sinking and represent the last communications that these people ever had with their friends and loved ones at home. The subsequent letters and postcards give an unparalleled description of the events that occurred during the five days that Titanic was at sea, and the correspondence by survivors after the tragedy describes the horror of the disaster itself and the heartbreak they experienced at the loss of those they loved. This poignant compilation, by Titanic expert G

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Book SynopsisAn annotated anthology of the 150-year legacy of fact, fiction and ‘fake news’ surrounding the mysterious abandonment of the brigantine Mary Celeste

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Book SynopsisA history of the Olympic class ships

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Book SynopsisA pictorial history of Glasgow Harbour â the greatest port in Scotland and one of the largest in Britain â from its beginnings to the present day.

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Book SynopsisThames in Transition -the changing nature of the Docks and the ships that served them in the 1970s-1980sHow and why the Docks adapted to changed cargo handling methodsHistorical scenes of the River from the 1940s-1960sMost photographs previously unpublished and can never be re-captured

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Book SynopsisThe first full history of the Royal Navy's longest-running commitment. Will be of particular interest to former personnel, as well as to naval historians.

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Book SynopsisThis is the story of how the luxurious steam yachts of the Victorian and Edwardian eras were transformed into weapons of war. These beautiful vessels were the ultimate status symbols of British and European royalty, American magnates, the landed aristocracy and the nouveau riche, but when wars came, in 1898 and 1914, they were quickly transformed into warships, and many of their crews became warriors rather than servants. The US Navy was the first to recognise the potential of these elegant vessels. In the Spanish-American war of 1898, the USN short of ships to operate a blockade of Spanish-owned Cuba purchased twenty-eight of them and turned them into patrol craft and bombardment ships. In Britain in 1914 steam yachts became a stop gap navy, filling in for neglected investment in small craft. The USN followed suit in 1917. Their wonderful interiors were ripped out, antiquated guns and sometimes depth charges fitted, and their crews signed into the naval reserves. Around the coasts

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Book SynopsisHeavy gun mountings dominated the design of larger warships, on account of their size, weight, protection and cost. In the 1890s, British gun mountings developed rapidly with new gun technologies (wire winding, cordite) and the rise of the two major ordnance companies, Armstrongs and Vickers, producing large numbers of weapons for the Royal Navy and for worldwide export. But by 1960, aircraft and guided missiles had made the big gun redundant, so the period from 1890s to 1950s covering the two world wars is the most historically significant. The focus of this book is on the larger mountings and those fitted in the larger ships the massively engineered non transferable' mountings, whose complexities and associated magazines took up a huge volume of the ship, unlike the smaller calibre transferable' mountings mostly bolted to the deck. Such mountings could weigh over 1000 tons, take two years to build and make up a quarter of the cost of a battleship. Although they existed in many v

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Book SynopsisNorman Ough is considered by many as simply the greatest ship modeller of the twentieth century and his exquisite drawings and meticulous models have come to be regarded as masterpieces of draughtsmanship, workmanship and realism; more than technically accomplished ship models, they are truly works of art.This new book is both a tribute to his lonely genius and a practical treatise for model shipwrights. Ough lived most of his adult life far from the sea in a flat high above the Charing Cross Road in London, where his frugal existence and total absorption in his work led to hospitalisation on at least two occasions; he was an eccentric in the truest sense but he also became one of the most sought-after masters of his craft. Earl Mountbatten had him model the ships he had served on; his model of HMS Queen Elizabeth was presented to Earl Beatty; film production companies commissioned models for effects in several films. Incorporating many of his original articles from Model Maker Magazin

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Book SynopsisAuthoritative, comprehensive and highly original. Full technical details, with much new information and insight; many plans and photographs. A partner to Friedmans hugely successful books on British destroyers.

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Book SynopsisAt the height of the Second World War this small pocket-book was issued to all ratings on board ships of the Royal Navy. In straight period prose it outlines all the basic expressions and tasks a seaman needed to know to perform his duties efficiently. Chapters are broken down into: Sea Terms; Navigation; Steering the Ship; Rigging; Anchors and Cables; Boatwork; Miscellaneous (which includes details on uniform and folding a hammock, etc); and Ship Safety. Functional black line illustrations are used throughout, as well as a few pages of colour (used sparingly) for flag recognition. Faithfully reproduced, with a short introduction by Brian Lavery, which explains the importance of a book like this to a navy that had to take on vast numbers of civilians or Hostilities Only men to meet the manning needs of the war, this volume provides a real mixture of wartime nostalgia and historical authenticity. It makes a world now lost to us accessible again, explaining as it does the terms,

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Book SynopsisFrom Henri Fabre's first successful take off from water and landing near Marseilles, to the introduction of a hull rather than floats by American Glenn Curtiss, to the world-wide development of huge, ocean-crossing flying boats on both sides of the Atlantic - the passenger flying boat era continues to fascinate aviation enthusiasts and historians alike. Wartime necessity for paved runways to support long-range, high flying land-planes and the faster movement of airmail, overcame in peacetime the unique ability enjoyed by such craft to economically utilise the natural waterways of the world, thus depriving passengers of the ability to enjoy the panorama unfolding below in luxurious accommodation and ease. A sadly missed epoch of flight: though related in clear and vivid detail by Leslie Dawson in his account of a pre-war Imperial Airways flight from Southampton to South Africa. This extended pictorial edition of the author's previous book Fabulous Flying Boats, A History Of The World's Passenger Flying Boats provides a fast-moving journey from the first pioneers to the very last use of such craft in regions still reliant on waterborne communication with the outside world. From the Americas and the United Kingdom, to France, Germany and Italy, and on to Australia and New Zealand. Supported by world-wide private, public and corporate images, the work boasts a comprehensive and well-researched Appendix.

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Book SynopsisThe ShipCraft' series provides in-depth information about building and modifying model kits of famous warship types. Lavishly illustrated, each book takes the modeller through a brief history of the subject, highlighting differences between ships and changes in their appearance over their careers. This includes paint schemes and camouflage, featuring colour profiles and highly detailed line drawings and scale plans. The modelling section reviews the strengths and weaknesses of available kits, lists commercial accessory sets for super-detailing of the subjects, and provides hints on modifying and improving the basic kit. This is followed by an extensive photographic gallery of selected high-quality models in a variety of scales, and the book concludes with a section on research references - books, monographs, large-scale plans and relevant websites. This volume is something of a departure for the series in covering a wide variety of the types, at first improvised and then purpose-built for the Brown Water conflict. Besides the well-known American involvement, the book also covers some of the craft used by the French in their earlier struggle with Vietnamese guerrillas. With its unparalleled level of visual information - paint schemes, models, line drawings and photographs - this book is simply the best reference for any modelmaker setting out to build one of these unusual craft.

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Book Synopsis'Jasper Winn is the perfect guide' - Observer For a hundred and fifty years, between the plod of packhorse trains and the arrival of the railways, canals were the high-tech water machine driving the industrial revolution. Amazing feats of engineering, they carried the rural into the city and the urban into the countryside, and changed the lives of everyone. And then, just when their purpose was extinguished by modern transport, they were saved from extinction and repurposed as a 'slow highways' network, a peaceful and countrywide haven from our too-busy age. Today, there are more boats on the canals than in their Victorian heyday. Writer and slow adventurer Jasper Winn spent a year exploring Britain's waterways on foot and by bike, in a kayak and on narrowboats. Along a thousand miles of 'wet roads and water streets' he discovered a world of wildlife corridors, underground adventures, the hardware of heritage and history, new boating communities, endurance kayak races and remote towpaths. He shared journeys with some of the last working boat people and met the anglers, walkers, boaters, activists, volunteers and eccentrics who have made the waterways their home. In Britain most of us live within five miles of a canal, and reading this book we will see them in an entirely new light.Trade ReviewJasper Winn is the perfect guide to what these 'wet roads and water streets' signified in the past, and to their importance today. And not just to wildlife but the humans he meets, too: looking for an escape, a refuge or, indeed, a place to feel at home. -- Ben East * Observer *Engaging and informative * The Countryman *Winn cycles, walks, boats and paddleboats his way around the 2,000-mile network of canals ... More than a charming travel book, this is a roving miscellanea of engrossing canal facts and lore. -- Olivia Edward * Geographical magazine *Water Ways doesn't just recount Winn's adventures with good humour but gives a meticulously researched overview of the history, engineering, characters, customs and wildlife of our water ways, as well as the challenges they are facing in the 21st century ... it adroits webs nearly everything, and how it does that is entirely wonderful. -- Sarah Henshaw * Waterways World *

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Book SynopsisThe 'ShipCraft' series provides in-depth information about building and modifying model kits of famous warship types. Lavishly illustrated, each book takes the modeller through a brief history of the subject class, then moves to an extensive photographic survey of either a high-quality model or a surviving example of the ship. Hints on building the model, and on modifying and improving the basic kit, are followed by a section on paint schemes and camouflage, featuring numerous colour profiles and highly-detailed line drawings. The strengths and weaknesses of available kits of the ships are reviewed, and the book concludes with a section on research references - books, monographs, large-scale plans and relevant websites.The Yamato class battleships of the Imperial Japanese Navy were the largest warships of the Second World War and the largest battleships ever constructed, displacing 78,800 tonnes. They also carried the largest naval artillery ever fitted to a warship - 18in guns. Neither Yamato nor her sistership Musashi made much impact on the War. Musashi was sunk during the battle of Leyte Gulf while Yamato, deployed in a deliberate suicide attack on Allied forces at the battle of Okinawa, was finally sunk by US carrier-based aircraft; Not 300 of her 3,330 crew survived.

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Book SynopsisLeith-Built Ships is a testimony to the skill of the men who built the ships and to the many men and women who may have sailed or served on them. This history is brought together in vol. I of a three-volume series about the almost-forgotten part that Leith played in our great maritime heritage and is the culmination of the author's lifetime experience of shipbuilding. Most people may well be aware of the part played by the great shipbuilding centres in the UK's history but many may be unaware of the part played by the shipbuilders of Leith. This port was once Scotland's main port with many firsts to its name. Leith had begun building ships some 400 years before the great shipyards of the Clyde and these vessels reached all corners of the globe, touching many people's lives. Some had sad histories while others took part in some of the great conflicts of the times; many were just ordinary working vessels that carried their crew safely through long working lives. With a pedigree of shipbuilding second to none going back over 660 years of recorded history, the ships built at Leith deserve their place in history and this book begins the story.Trade Review'...Mr Neish's splendid and very thorough 144 page tome offers a complete history of the ships built at Leith from c. 1850 until the end of World War I...includes tales of famous ships, steam yachts, adventure and new trade routes as well as a helpful glossary'. Gloucestershire Transport History-------------------'...the ships built at Leith deserve their place in history and this book, the first of a triology begins the story'. The Bosun's Chronicle------------------'...an engrossing book that will have a lasting value...you'd expect this book to be superbly researched and knowledgeably written. It doesn't disappoint. It is also readily accessible to the non-expert.' Undiscovered Scotland-------------------...A valuable history is provided of the ships built at Leith from around 1850 until the end of the First World War detailing the yards and the famous ships they constructed, accompanied by tales of adventure, trades and inevitably fates'. Africa Ports and Ships-------------------'The narrative is filled with anecdotes and a warmth that can only come from someone with personal memories of the industry and it is a fitting homage to the shipbuilding heritage of Edinburgh, so often eclipsed by Glasgow'. Scotland

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Book SynopsisNelson's history has been written from every possible angle, but this is not so with his ships. Such information as there is about the ships is buried in contemporary books on naval architecture; only the expert can sift it and present it in a usable form. In doing this, Dr. Longridge's 1955 work quickly became a veritable treasure trove for the naval historian and ship modeler. H.M.S. Victory is the supreme example of the ships of the period, and fortunately she is still in existence. The original draughts of 1765 have been preserved, as have also the drawings used in the restoration of the ship in 1922. The author was thus able to compile from authentic sources and his model of the Victory now occupies a prominent position in the Science Museum at South Kensington. The illustrations are a unique feature. They include a set of photographs showing the interior construction of H.M.S. Victory and H.M.S. Implacable, the latter being taken only a few days before she was scuttled. The book features over 180 line drawings, designed by E. Bowness, A.R.I.N.A., and executed by G.F. Campbell, Assoc. M.R.I.N.A., ranging from elaborate perspective drawings of the complex gear at the fore top and crosstrees to the simplest detail. The folding plates by G.F. Campbell (which measure 560 x 400 mm and 235 x 450 mm) include lines, inboard and outboard profile, deck plans of the hull, standing and running rigging plans, and a complete belaying pin plan. Such an analysis of the ship of this period had never before been attempted.Table of ContentsPreface. Part One - The Hull: Construction of Ships of the Period. Framing of the Model. Planking and Coppering. Decks and Other Details. Head and Stern. Upper Deck. Guns and Deck Details. Quarter Deck. Other Hull Details. Assembly. Part Two - The Rigging: Masts and Spars. Rigging. Standing Rigging. Running Rigging.

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Book SynopsisThe development of Birmingham into a major modern industrial city can be said to have begun in 1772 with the opening of its first canal. At that time Birmingham was a small and largely rural town with a growing manufacturing base. The growth of manufacturing within the town, however, was severely constrained by the lack of a cheap, reliable and efficient means of transport for the goods it produced. These difficulties were largely overcome by the building of the canal, in that it provided a cheap and efficient means of transport to convey the town's manufactured goods to markets beyond its boundaries. The why, when and how this first canal came to be built is explored in this detailed and highly referenced account. It tells the fascinating story of how a small group of innovative, determined and ambitious entrepreneurs joined together to plan and secure its construction, and thereby also secure the City's future progress and prosperity.

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a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.

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Book SynopsisThe best-selling guides to Britain's canals and rivers for more than 50 years.The map companion to the Collins Nicholson Waterways Guides, covering the entire network of canal and river navigations in England, Scotland and Wales, including newly restored/opened canals and rivers.The map identifies: narrow and broad canals navigable rivers tidal river navigations waterways under constructionAlso: contact telephone numbers and dimensions for each waterway internet linksClear insets of the Birmingham Canal Navigations, Scottish inland waterways, the Norfolk Broads and the London area.Trade Review"Taste in guide books can be a very personal thing, but few serious boaters will venture out without a Nicholson's Guide. There is a wealth of information that even the most experienced cannot hope to keep abreast of, and the guides are welcome valuable for cyclists and walkers too." The Inland Waterways Association.

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Book SynopsisThis fascinating selection of photographs traces some of the many ways in which Chatham Naval Dockyard & Barracks have changed and developed over the last century.

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Book SynopsisA fully revised and expanded edition of the only resource you''ll need for choosing, owning and maintaining a narrowboat. The UK has over 2000 miles of navigable canals and rivers which are home to an estimated 35,000 licensed boats. Although canal boats can look much the same to the novice, there are some very important differences to be aware of. If you''re new to boating you have some important choices to make.This comprehensive book examines the options available to different types of boaters. From those who choose to live aboard their boats and constant cruisers to fair-weather cruisers, hire boating and share boat syndicates each will need a different type of boat if they are to fully enjoy their time afloat. Packed with case studies and advice from real boaters with years of experience to share, this second edition has been thoroughly updated throughout and includes new information on liveaboard costs and considerations, eco-friendly boating options, sTrade ReviewThe Narrowboat Guide ... delivers a real depth of details – we learn which licence allows you to travel where on the network, what types of fuel suit your stove, the pros and cons of different stern glands and what you can reasonably expect to pay for and get on various types of mooring … What sets this book head and shoulders above other guides I’ve read is the attempt to give estimated costings, not just for the survey and the boat but for all aspects of life aboard and maintenance … If I were to single out one aspect of this book for specific praise it would be the use of text boxes offering diverse empirical accounts from boat owners, brokers and builders. -- Kathryn Smyth * Towpath Talk *Table of ContentsHow to buy a boat Trying it out: hire-boat holidays Boat features and fixtures Cost of owning a narrowboat Moorings The art of boating: out and about The art of boating: the great indoors Boat maintenance Liveaboard life Pets aboard Boat safety Resources

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