Navi da guerra - Gran Bretagna: libri di storia illustrati

Spanish Galleon vs English Galleon : 1550-1605 (Osprey)

Tra il 1550 e il 1600, l'Europa assistette a una rapida evoluzione nell'arte della progettazione navale, che permise viaggi transatlantici più sicuri ed efficienti. Questo fu l'apice dell'Età delle Scoperte e delle Esplorazioni per le potenze europee, in cui il galeone giocò un ruolo cruciale. I galeoni furono sia le principali imbarcazioni del commercio marittimo sia le principali navi da guerra utilizzate dalle flotte avversarie durante l'Età delle Esplorazioni.

Questo periodo fu anche caratterizzato da un gran numero di scontri navali, molti dei quali tra singole navi appartenenti alle potenze rivali di Inghilterra e Spagna, impegnate a controllare e sfruttare le ricche risorse minerarie, materiali, agricole e umane del Nuovo Mondo. Il conflitto tra i "cani di mare" inglesi e gli "avventurieri" spagnoli è stato fonte di fascino per oltre quattro secoli.

Questo volume della serie Duel esplora la costruzione e l'armamento dei galeoni utilizzati da Spagna e Inghilterra, esaminando l'efficacia dei cannoni da essi impiegati.
Il libro confronta anche le modalità di navigazione e manovra delle navi, evidenziando i punti di forza e di debolezza di ciascun progetto e spiegando come questi si siano manifestati in alcune delle loro battaglie più importanti, tra cui la battaglia di San Juan de Ulua, lo scontro tra la Golden Hind e la Nuestra Señora de la Concepción, un'azione dell'Invincibile Armata spagnola e l'ultima battaglia della Revenge.

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Tudor Warship Mary Rose (Anatomy of the Ship)

The great warship the Mary Rose was built between 1509 and 1511 and served 34 years in Henry VIII's navy before catastrophically sinking in the Battle of the Solent on 19 July 1545. A fighting platform and sailing ship, she was the pride of the Tudor fleet. Yet her memory passed into undeserved oblivion - until the remains of this magnificent flagship were dramatically raised to the surface in 1982 after 437 years at the bottom of the Solent.

Part of the bestselling Conway Anatomy of The Ship series, Tudor Warship Mary Rose provides the finest possible graphical representation of the Mary Rose. Illustrated with a complete set of scale drawings, this book contains technical plans as well as explanatory views, all with fully descriptive keys.
Douglas McElvogue uses archaeological techniques to trace the development and eventful career of Henry VIII's gunship, while placing it in the context of longer-term advances in ship construction.

This volume features:
- The first full archaeological reconstruction of the Mary Rose, as she would have appeared when built and when she sank.
- The concepts behind the building of the ship, along with consideration of the materials used and her fitting-out and manning.
- The ship's ordnance, including muzzle loaders, breech loaders, firearms, bows,staff weapons, bladed weapons and fire pots.
- Analysis of the contemporary descriptions of the Mary Rose's sailing characteristics and ship handling, whether general sailing, heavy weather sailing, anchoring, mooring, stemming the tide or riding out storms.
- A service history of the Mary Rose examining the campaigns of the vessel: the battles she was involved in, when she held station in the Channel and the periods in which she was laid up.

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Sailors on the Rocks : Famous Royal Navy Shipwrecks

For 300 years or more the Royal Navy really did "Rule the Waves", in the sense that during the numerous wars with our overseas enemies, British fleets and individual ships more often than not emerged victorious from combat. One French Admiral was to generously acknowledge that the Royal Navy possessed, "a tradition of victory."
And yet, in every other way, the waves were never ruled by any maritime power. Great fleets might wax and wane, ships grow ever more complex and powerful, but the sea, the eternally cruel sea, was always to have the final say.

This book highlights a sample array of disasters, occurring when men-of-war faced the ultimate test of the elements and lost. Among such tragedies are the wrecking of the Coronation in 1691, the destruction of the Winchester in 1695 and the great storm of 1703, along with a host of shipwrecks on far-flung shores from New Zealand to Nova Scotia, and from Florida to South Africa.

Some of the featured stories are already famous, like that of the Birkenhead. Others are lesser-known, like the sister cruisers Raleigh and Effingham, separated by many years. More recently, steam power replaced the uncertainties of sail, but even so losses continued, from little destroyers in both world wars (Narborough, Opal and Sturdy among them) through great battleships like Montagu.

Even modern warships equipped with every modern navigational device come to grief; witness the strange affair of the frigate Nottingham, or the humiliating grounding of the nuclear 'wonder' submarine Astute on Skye in 2010.
This unique book presents a fascinating insight into the malevolent power of the sea and storms over man's creation and dominion, chronicling some of the most dramatic shipwrecks ever to have occurred in our seas.

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HMS Bellerophon

The story of HMS Bellerophon is a record of the many and varied duties which the Royal Navy had to carry out in the period 1793-1815. It was involved in the first great fleet action of the War and was involved in the last moments of the struggle with the surrender of Napoleon.

The 74-gun ship was the standard unit in the line of battle, Bellerophon was one of the most distinguished with a fine fighting record. Having fought at 'The Glorious First of June'; the battle of the Nile and at Trafalgar the ship saw more than her share of fierce ship-to-ship encounters.
In between there were the varying duties of blockade and escort carried out with service in the Channel, the Mediterranean, the North Sea, the Baltic and the West Indies. The ship saw every type of service which fell to the Navy in that period.

All the many and various aspects of the ship's life are covered from construction through maintenance and refits to final disposal. Sadly the ship could not be been saved like Victory and the ship and her fine record were confined to the history books.

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Heritage of the Sea - Famous Preserved Ships Around the UK

During the period from Sir Francis Drake to the 21st century the naval power of Great Britain rose from that of an obscure island to that of a world-wide empire. British shipping and seamen dominated the globe for four centuries and the ships that explored the world and those which guarded them represent a unique treasure-house of maritime history, unrivalled anywhere in the world.

This book lists all the major vessels, from the Museum ships to the exhibitions and replicas all of them evoke pride and diversity and invite study from all age-groups. All are fully illustrated with colour photographs. The ships and their proud histories are described in detail, along with details of how they may be visited and enjoyed.

Among the many vessels analysed and illustrated are HMS Victory, HMS Warrior, HMS Cavalier, HMS Belfast, HMS Caroline, HMS Wellington, HMS Aliance, HMS Trincomalee; the Chrysanthemum & President; the Royal Yacht Britannia; the Cutty Sark; the Discovery; Gypsy Moth II; Great Britain; the Medway Queen; the Gannet; the Unicorn; the Cambria and many more.

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HMS Victory - First-Rate 1765

HMS Victory is one of the best-known historic ship in the world. A symbol of the Royal Navy's achievements during the great age of sail, she is based in Portsmouth and seen by tens of thousands of visitors each year.

Written by experts and containing more than 200 specially commissioned photographs, this title takes the reader on a superbly illustrated tour of the ship, from bow to stern and deck by deck. Significant parts of the vessel - for example, the capstan, steering gear, armament, brody stove, cockpit, stern cabins - are given detailed coverage both in words and pictures, so that the reader has at hand the most complete visual record and explanation of the ship that exists.
In addition, the importance of the ship, both in her own time and now as a museum vessel, is explained, while her design and build, her fighting career and her life prior to restoration and exhibition are all described.

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Warships of the Anglo-Dutch Wars 1652-74 (Osprey)

Three times during the 17th century, England and Holland went to war as part of an ongoing struggle for economic and naval supremacy. Primarily fought in the cold waters of the North Sea and the English Channel, the wars proved revolutionary in their impact upon warship design, armament, and naval tactics. During this time, the warship evolved into the true ship-of-the-line that would dominate naval warfare until the advent of steam power.

This book traces the development of these warships in the context of the three Anglo-Dutch wars.

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Tudor Warships (1) - Henry VIII's Navy (Osprey)

In this book, maritime expert Angus Konstam explores the fledging Tudor Navy, tracing its history from its origins as a merchant fleet under Henry VII through to its emergence as a powerful force under Henry VIII.
Examining the operational use of Henry VIII's warships the author analyses the battle of the Solent in 1545, in which Henry's fleet took on a French fleet of 200 ships - much larger than the Spanish Armada decades later. Despite the well-documented loss of his flagship, the Mary Rose, Henry's smaller force succeeded in preventing a French victory.
Although many people will have heard of the mighty Mary Rose, this book will tell the story of more than just the tragic sinking of Henry's flagship, describing how one of history's most dynamic kings grew the navy from the five warships that were his father's legacy to 53 deadly gunships at the forefront of his empire-building strategy.

Through contemporary illustrations and intricate artwork, the author traces the changing face of warship design during the Renaissance as Henry paved the way for English dominance of the sea.

Contents: Introduction - Ship Design - Operational History - Armament and Gunnery - The Tudor Fleet in Action - Further Reading - - Index.

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Tudor Warships (2) - Elizabeth I's Navy (Osprey)

In his second volume on the Tudor navy, naval expert Angus Konstam covers the extraordinary transformation of the Tudor fleet during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. This period witnessed the birth of a whole new breed of warships designed to dominate the seas and expand the corners of the empire.
Detailing warfare during the age of Sea Dogs such as Sir Francis Drake and Walter Raleigh, and the landmark event of the Spanish Armada, he explains the technological innovations that allowed this small but efficient navy to defeat the larger Spanish fleet.

Packed with new research, in-depth analysis, photographs, full-colour reconstructions and detailed cutaway artwork, this book is a must for any lover of maritime history, and for anyone who wants to understand how Britain came to rule the waves, creating and retaining her supremacy across the seas throughout the age of fighting sail.

Contents: Introduction - Design & Development - Operational History - Armament - The Tudor Fleet in Action - Bibliography - Colour Plate Commentary - Index.

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Victory vs Redoutable - Ships of the line at Trafalgar 1805 (Osprey)

Late in the morning on 21 October 1805, warships from the British and combined French and Spanish fleets clashed off Cape Trafalgar on the Spanish coast. After a six month game of cat and mouse across the Atlantic, 27 British ships of the line engaged the Allied force of 33 ships of the line. This was a duel of skill, tenacity and bravery as captains and crews battled for mastery of the seas.

This book is an opportunity to relive the action at Trafalgar - read the accounts of sailors who were there, and who experienced the sound of scraping cutlasses and bombarding cannons at one of the most important naval engagements of history.
Understand how the guns were operated, learn about the training of crews and study the design and development of the incredible ships which dominated naval warfare of the period, as Gregory Fremont-Barnes reveals the revolutionary tactics used by Nelson to secure a victory that saved Britain from the threat of invasion and ensured British naval dominance for over a century.

Contents: Introduction - Chronology - Design and Development - Technical Specifications - Strategic Situation - The Combatants - Combat - Statistical Analysis - Aftermath - Bibliography - Index.

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British Napoleonic Ship-of-the-line (Osprey)

The French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars encompassed a period when rival European fleets vied for naval supremacy, and naval tactics were evolving. The British Royal Navy emerged triumphant as the leading world sea power, and the epitome of Britannic naval strength was the Ship-of-the-Line. These 'wooden walls' were more than merely floating gun batteries: they contained a crew of up to 800 men, and often had to remain at sea for extended periods.

This book offers detailed coverage of the complex vessels that were the largest man-made structures produced in the pre-Industrial era.

Contents: Introduction - Design - Operation - The Fleet 1792-1815 - Bibliography - Glossary - Colour Plate Commentary - Index.

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