Search results for ""author bernard ireland""

The authoritative naval historian Bernard Ireland takes a fresh and fascinating look at the long and bitter struggle waged by the Allies against the Nazi U-boat threat. After sifting through the evidence, old and new, he questions the popular theory that it was a 'damn close-run thing'. He cites the massive resources that the United States brought to bear both at sea and in their shipyards, together with advances in technology and the breaking of German codes by Enigma. Far from 'revisionist' history, this is a closely argued work that demands reading. AUTHOR: Born in London in 1934 and educated at the Royal Dockyard School, Portsmouth, Bernard Ireland's whole life has been involved with ships and naval matters. His career was that of hydrodynamic research and ship design for the Admiralty. He is the author of 25 previously published books and is a regular contributor to journals and periodicals. He lives at Fareham, Hampshire. 32 b/w illustrations

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This title charts the history of amphibious warfare in conflicts around the globe, from World War I to the present day. It features conventional personnel and cargo carriers, welldeck "dock ships", modern multi-function ships, ramped beaching craft and high-speed air-cushion craft. It explores the fascinating history of the five recognized categories of amphibious operation: assault, raids, demonstrations, feints and withdrawal. It includes detailed analyses of key naval operations in Gallipoli, Dieppe, the Pacific, Normandy, Leyte Gulf, Iwo Jima, Vietnam, the Falklands and the Middle East. It includes over 220 archive photographs and a glossary explaining naval acronyms, abbreviations and terminology. Wars are decided definitively through the occupation of an enemy's territory - a task for military forces, which may have to be transported by sea. This authoritative volume covers the complete history of amphibious warfare vessels: the ships that travel from shore to shore, and the craft that move from ship to shore. Through the use of historical examples, it highlights the many activities necessary for a successful operation, from surveying and minesweeping to fire support, fighter direction and tri-service control. With over 220 photographs from museums and historical sources, the book provides enthusiasts with a lively guide to this fascinating subject.

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This is a country-by-country guide to 130 landing ships and landing craft, with over 210 wartime and modern photographs. It features a complete guide to landing ships, detailing conventional personnel and cargo carriers, welldeck dock ships and modern multi-function ships accommodating helicopters, landing craft, military personnel, their vehicles and equipment. It also features a country-by-country directory of landing craft, from ramped beaching craft to present-day high-speed air-cushion craft, including amphibious tracked landing vehicles and peripheral activities such as minesweeping and obstacle clearance. Specification boxes provide at-a-glance information about each vessel's country of origin, displacement, dimensions, armament, machinery, power and endurance. It includes a technical glossary explaining naval acronyms, abbreviations and key terminology. Amphibious warfare vessels are ships that travel from shore to shore, and craft moving from ship to shore. This authoritative book consists of two illustrated directories, the first covering landing ships - the ocean-going vessels that transport personnel, cargo or vehicles - and then landing craft, the majority of which are transported aboard specialist ships. From float-on, float-off welldeck ships to high-speed air-cushion landing craft, 130 types from around the world are included. With over 210 photographs from museums, libraries and other historical sources, this instructive volume provides enthusiasts with a lively and engaging guide to a fascinating subject.

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This is a complete guide to aircraft carriers, from zeppelin and seaplane carriers to V/STOL and nuclear-powered carriers. It examines the evolution of the aircraft carrier, from the first flights from ships in World War I, developments during the inter-war years and World War II battles such as Pearl Harbor, through to modern carriers used in the Falklands. It is a comprehensive country-by-country directory of all the major aircraft carriers, with expert text describing each vessel's construction, appearance, function and history. It features over 500 photographs illustrating each type. Specification boxes provide information about country of origin, the company that built the carrier, construction and completion dates, displacement, dimensions, types of aircraft carried, armament, power and performance. This impressive encyclopedia is both a fascinating history of the aircraft carrier's development and a comprehensive visual directory of more than 170 of the world's aviation ships over nearly a century. Each entry is accompanied by a specification panel, and all the carriers are accompanied by identification photographs, many of which have never previously been published together in one volume. With magnificent illustrations and up-to-date information, this book provides both enthusiasts and historians with key information about the world's aircraft carriers, and is an essential reference for everyone interested in naval aviation.

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(New edition) This comprehensive encyclopedia focuses exclusively on destroyers and frigates. The opening section both explains the rationale behind the technological development of destroyers and frigates and illustrates the varied manner of their use. Three major country-by-country sections then deal with, firstly, the destroyer in its formative years up until the end of World War I, and secondly, its classic phase and transformation into a specialist anti-aircraft escort. The third section covers the development of the frigate since its inception in 1940. Technical description is blended with informed comment on the performance and effectiveness of each of over 250 types and classes, making this an essential reference, and also an enjoyable read for anyone interested in naval history. The book examines destroyer and frigate evolution, including special topics such as the origins of the torpedo boat, frigates versus high-speed submarines, and frigates in the missile age. Specification boxes provide each vessel’s country of origin, the company that built the ship, construction and completion dates, displacement, dimensions, armament, machinery, power and performance. A collection of over 500 colour and black-and-white photographs illustrating each type of warship, and there are fascinating quotes from military leaders, plus a glossary of key terms and abbreviations.

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This fully illustrated reference book charts the complete history of frigates, from their post-World War I function as escort vessels, their role as sloops and corvettes, and their subsequent transformation into post-World War II anti-submarine vessels. A country-by-country directory of over 70 classes describes the main characteristics of each vessel. Each entry, with its expert commentary and high-quality photography, is accompanied by a specification box detailing country of origin, displacement, dimensions, armament, machinery, power, performance and protection. A useful glossary containing definitions of key naval terms is included at the back of the book. With its lively narrative and over 235 photographs, this authoritative volume provides historians and enthusiasts with key information about these important naval vessels.

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The cruiser evolved from a whole range of powered sailing warships, emerging in response to the sheer size and cost of larger vessels. The impact of rapid technological advance during the Victorian era saw the cruiser quickly assume the familiar forms in which it fought with distinction through two World Wars. This encyclopedia is unique in charting the forces that brought about the cruiser’s evolution, as well as providing a country-by-country visual directory of more than 260 of the most significant examples, spanning a period of nearly 150 years. From the Alabama of the American Civil War to the Royal Navy’s last conventional cruisers, the Tigers, all the major ships are included. The book opens with a history section illustrating the technological development of the cruiser from 1865 to the present day, together with accounts of some of the many uses to which the ships were dedicated. The main part of the book consists of three country-by-country directories, focusing on pre-World War I, World War I, then World War II and beyond. Within these directories the author defines each ship’s significance and its relative success or failure under service conditions. It traces the development from ships with muzzle-loading broadside armament, through casemates and turrets, to the age of guided missiles. There are fascinating quotes from military leaders, plus a detailed glossary explaining key military terms and abbreviations. Specification boxes provide at-a-glance information about each cruiser’s most important features: the builders, date of commissioning, displacement, length, beam, draught, armament, machinery, power, endurance, protection and crew numbers. With its huge volume of information and its unique collection of more than 500 archive photographs, this book provides both enthusiasts and historians with everything they need to know about the cruiser through its history. As well as being an essential reference work, it is also an exciting read for anyone interested in these great vessels. An illustrated history of cruisers, including Naniwa, Pennsylvania, Blücher, Vindictive, Belfast, California and many more.

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For 1,000 days the Allied and Axis armies fought for the domination of the North African shores knowing that defeat would bring disastrous consequences. Much has been written about the conduct of the land battles and the commanders who faced each other yet, as the main protagonists realised at the time, success or failure rested on the effectiveness of their seaborne supply chain. Control of the Mediterranean was therefore absolutely crucial. In the final analysis it was the Allies' ability to dominate the Mediterranean that bought them victory but there is no denying that it was a 'damned close run thing'. In this authoritative study, Bernard Ireland brings a fresh clarity to the complexities and factors at play during this critical period.

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This impressive, newly-updated encyclopedia is both a fascinating history of aircraft carrier development and a well-documented visual directory of more than 150 of the world’s aviation ships spanning a period of almost 120 years. The book’s coverage follows the definition of an aircraft carrier as “a ship whose primary function is to operate aircraft”, and includes, at one end of the chronological scale, kite balloon ships and airships and, at the other, the many types of modern warships that carry aircraft such as variable-geometry jets, V/STOL aircraft and helicopters. Each directory entry includes a specification panel detailing country of origin, date of commissioning, displacement, dimensions, types of aircraft carried, armament, machinery and performance. All the carriers are accompanied by identification photographs, many of which have never previously been published together in one volume. Illustrated throughout, this book provides both enthusiasts and historians with key information about the world’s aircraft carriers, and is an essential read for anyone interested in naval aviation. An illustrated history of over 150 vessels from Zeppelins and seaplane carriers to V/STOL and nuclear-powered warships, with more than 650 identification photographs. Examines the evolution of the aircraft carrier: the first flights from ships in World War I; developments during the inter-war years and World War II; and the carriers used in Suez, Vietnam, the Falklands, Syria and Iraq. Features the most important vessels in the world, from early ships such as the USS Langley, HMS Furious, the Japanese Navy Hosho and the Italian Navy Giuseppe Miraglia, to the modern carriers of today including USS Gerald R. Ford, HMS Prince of Wales, INS Vikrant, Spanish Navy Juan Carlos I and the PLA Navy Type 001 Liaoning. Specification boxes provide at-a-glance information about each carrier’s country of origin, date of commissioning, displacement, dimensions, types of aircraft carried, armament, machinery and performance. Includes a glossary explaining key military terms and abbreviations.

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Wars are decided definitively through the occupation of an enemy’s territory. This is a task for military forces, which may have to be transported by sea. This creates the conflicting requirement for ships sufficiently large to undertake lengthy voyages, together with craft small enough to put an army and its equipment on to a beach that may be defended by a determined enemy. In the sailing navy, ships landed military contingents in special “flatboats”, the direct descendants of which were the 1940 landing craft assault vessels (LCAs), carried by an infantry landing ship. In these were typified the two major categories of amphibious warfare vessel: the “ship”, travelling from shore to shore, and the “craft”, moving from ship to shore. This book, in an expanded and updated new edition, details the development of amphibious warfare and, using historical examples, illustrates ts great range of scale, from covert raiding operations to full-scale invasion. It highlights the many coordinated activities necessary for a successful operation, from surveying and minesweeping to fire support, fighter direction and tri-service control. An illustrated directory of landing ships covers the ocean-going vessels that transport personnel, cargo, or vehicles. A second directory then features landing craft, the majority of which, depending upon voyage length, will have been transported aboard specialist ships. World War II saw basic ramped craft joined by tracked amphibious vehicles. The imperatives of the nuclear age have seen the introduction of helicopters and high-speed air-cushion landing crafts. Illustrated throughout, this book is a lively and engaging guide to amphibious warfare and is a fascinating read for anyone interested in the subject. Charts the complete history of amphibious warfare, including operations in Gallipoli, Dieppe, the Pacific, Normandy, Leyte Gulf, Iwo Jima, Vietnam, the Falklands, and the Middle East. Features a directory of landing ships, describing conventional personnel and cargo carriers, well deck “dock ships”, and multi-function ships accommodating helicopters, landing craft, military personnel, their vehicles, and equipment. and amphibious tracked landing vehicles of World War II to present-day, high-speed air-cushion crafts. Also includes a directory of landing vessels, from the ramped beaching crafts and amphibious tracked landing vehicles of World War II to present-day, high-speed air-cushion crafts. Specification boxes accompany each entry detailing displacement, size, armament, machinery, power, fuel, endurance, protection and crew complement. Over 600 historical and modern photographs illustrate each type.

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