Shipwrecks have captured our imagination for centuries. Here acclaimed historian Sam Willis traces the astonishing tales of ships that have met with disastrous ends, along with the ensuing acts of courage, moments of sacrifice and episodes of villainy that inevitably occurred in the extreme conditions. Many were freak accidents, and their circumstances so extraordinary that they inspired literature: the ramming of the Essex by a sperm whale was immortalized in Herman Melville's

Admiral John Benbow was an English naval hero, a fighting sailor of ruthless methods but indomitable courage. Benbow was a man to be reckoned with.In 1702, however, when Benbow engaged a French squadron off the Spanish main, other ships in his squadron failed to support him. His leg shattered by a cannon-ball, Benbow fought on - but to no avail: the French escaped and the stricken Benbow succumbed to his wounds. When the story of his 'Last Fight' reached England, there was an outcr...

A fascinating naval perspective on one of the greatest of all historical conundrums: How did thirteen isolated colonies, which in 1775 began a war with Britain without a navy or an army, win their independence from the greatest naval and military power on earth?The American Revolution involved a naval war of immense scope and variety, including no fewer than twenty-two navies fighting on five oceans—to say nothing of rivers and lakes. In no other war were so many l...

France, early summer 1794. The French Revolution has been hijacked by the extreme Jacobins and is in the grip of The Terror. While the guillotine relentlessly takes the heads of innocents, two vast French and British fleets meet in mid-Atlantic after a week of skirmishing.The French, in ships painted blood-red and bearing banners proclaiming 'la République ou la mort!' are escorting an American grain convoy to Brest to feed a starving population. Their ships are manned by a mutinou...

Part of the ALL-NEW LADYBIRD EXPERT SERIES'Packs plenty of heft into its slender page count' HISTORY REVEALED- Why was the Battle of Trafalgar such an important British victory in the Napoleonic Wars?- How did the British fleet show their strength against the French and Spanish?- How did Nelson excel in his final battle?FOLLOW the daring strategy and brilliant leadership of Horatio Nelson in Britain's stunning triump...

Part of the ALL-NEW LADYBIRD EXPERT SERIES.____________Why did the Spanish launch their Armada on England?How did Francis Drake counter the Spanish threat?And why were so many ships lost at sea?In 1585 Spain was the most POWERFUL Empire in the known world.As tensions between PROTESTANT England and CATHOLIC Spain rose . . .SPAIN decided to INVADE ENGLAND.And launched the SPANISH ARMADAT...

Part of the ALL-NEW LADYBIRD EXPERT SERIES- Why was the Battle of the Nile so decisive in the French Revolutionary Wars?- Why did the French believe they were unassailable?- And why did Nelson and the British win?TRACK the revolutionary roots and dramatic turning points of the British Royal Navy's glorious victory over the French naval expedition to Egypt. From Napoleon's rise to prominence to Nelson's celebrated tactical leadership, discover ...

Did you know that the history of the beard is connected to the Crimean War; that the history of paperclips is all about the Stasi; and that the history of bubbles is all about the French Revolution? And who knew that Heinrich Himmler, Tutankhamun and the history of needlework are linked to napalm and Victorian orphans? In Histories of the Unexpected, Sam Willis and James Daybell lead us on a journey of discovery that tackles some of the greatest historical themes but via entirely unexpecte...

The American Revolution was a naval war of immense scope, embroiling twenty-two navies fighting on five oceans. Britain alone launched simultaneous campaigns in the English Channel, the North and Mid-Atlantic, the Mediterranean, the Indian Ocean, the Caribbean, the Pacific, the North Sea, and, of course, the Eastern Seaboard of America. Not until World War II would a single nation fight in so many different theaters. If the British had had the luxury of focusing on their American problem a...

"Nobody describes a naval battle better than Taylor…a flawless demonstration of the biographer’s craft." —Jan Morris, The GuardianEdward Pellew, captain of the legendary Indefatigable, was quite simply the greatest British frigate captain in the age of sail. Left fatherless at age eight, with a penniless mother and five siblings, Pellew fought his way from the very bottom of the navy to fleet command. Victories and eye-catching feats won him a pub...

The modern image of the pirate is derived from Captain Charles Johnson's accounts of the cut-throats who sailed under the Jolly Roger. It was he who gave mythical status to the likes of Blackbeard and Captain Kidd. Using contemporary sources, Nigel Cawthorne now turns the spotlight on the reality of pirate life, revealing the truth behind the legends. It gives us an insight into the men - and women - their weapons, their ships, their unhappy victims and their hide-outs, including the capit...

In this second exciting adventure of the British Navy in the American Revolution by Michael Aye, the Fighting Anthonys return to wage war against the colonials. This time Gabe is at the center of the action as he takes command for the first time. Not one to stand aside, he leads a daring cutting out expedition that ends disastrously. Separated from the crew, he is presumed dead. But his brother Gil knows better. Love, blood, and battle will unite the brothers once again—as long as the seas...