Naval Books

These are a selection of books available from the Royal Naval Museum Shop,.
If a book you require is not on our website please contact us, lots of other titles are available.!!

Hardback By John M Bingeman
200 Pages
Thia book includes an accompanying CD-Rom with extra illustrations and a spreadsheet of artifacts.
In 1980, following the discovery of a wreck off the south coast by a local fisherman, John Bingeman applied for a Government Protection Order and subsequently identified the ship as the Royal Navy's first Invincible (1747-58).

Invincible was a 74-gun warship that came to grief on Sunday the 19th February 1758 off Portsmouth. She was sailing as part of the expedition to besiege the French Fortress of Louisbourg, Nova Scotia. This was the beginning of a progressive series of military operations leading to the eventual colonisation of Canada. The Ship, brought into British service when only three years old, was the first newly designed 74-gun warship to be captured from the French. It represented a significant step forward in ship construction and was to become the prototype for a new generation of British men-of-war. In 1758 when Invincible foundered, she was a British ship-of-the-line fully equipped for an expedition abroad. Although her guns and much of her equipment were salvaged at the time, she was subsequently abandoned with a considerable amount of equipment still onboard.

This volume includes a description of Invincible's building as a French warship; her capture in 1747 by the Royal Navy, her foundering in the Solent, and the 1979-1990 excavations of the wreck site. Particular attention is paid to the artefacts recovered, which have provided naval archaeologists and historians with a time capsule of equipment aboard a warship in the mid-18th century. In addition, because Invincible was carrying troops to Canada, the wreck site contained regimental equipment, including army buttons that pre-dated previously accepted dates and are therefore of great significance to army historians.

Hardback By Paul Brown
208 Pages
This book explores over 50 of our most celebrated and accessible historic ships (including replicas) to illustrate our rich maritime heritage. Divided into the chapters, The Sailing Navy, Merchant Sail, Coastal Sail, Transition from Sail to Steam, Early 20th-Century Navy, Passenger Ships and Coasters, Second World War Navy, Post-War Navy, and Harbour Craft, each section offers a comprehensive history of a vessel's design, construction, active service, restoration and preservation. In addition to the featured entries, an appendix presents all of the necessary contact details and opening times of the core and designated lists of the National Historic Ships Register as applicable.Principal vessels include: Mary Rose, HMS Victory, HMS Trincomalee, SS Great Britain, Cutty Sark, RRS Discovery, HMS Warrior, HMS Belfast, HMY Britannia, HMS Alliance, HMS Cavalier, HMS Plymouth, Oberon class submarines - Ocelot, Onyx and Otus, and Thames barges.This book presents a complete record of over 50 ships, including construction, service history and restoration. It is fully illustrated in colour; specially commissioned photos, plans, drawings. It is ideal for naval and merchant shipping enthusiasts and heritage tourists. The book also includes all vessels listed on the the National Historic Ships Register.

Hardback By Ian Sturton
192 Pages
For two generations, battleships represented the military might and pride of their respective countries. They threatened, they impressed, they surprised in a way that no other symbol could, and their presence influenced events for hundreds of miles around. Since today's capital ships are solely platforms for missiles or aircraft, battleships will never be built again. This volume preserves the technical data, design background, and career histories of all the world's battleships and battle cruisers. Organized by nation, type, and class, each battleship is described in detail and illustrated with plans and historic photographs.

Hardback By Nicholas Dingle
Illustrated with 200 official admiralty photographs, many of them previously unpublished, this book traces the development of Royal Navy ship design in a period of immense change.

Hardback By Brian Lavery and Geoff Hunt
144 Pages
There is no more famous a vessel in naval fiction than HMS Surprise, the principal ship in Patrick O'Brian's much-celebrated "Aubrey-Maturin" series of sea stories. Yet, the frigate also had a true historical career serving in both the French and British navies before being captured by Inconstant in the Mediterranean in 1796 and delivered into the fictional captaincy of Jack Aubrey.This sumptuous new volume, written by acclaimed naval historian Brian Lavery, not only reveals the complete career history and commentary of HMS Surprise in both its guises, but also presents an all-embracing construction history of the Fifth Rate including some 50 line drawings as well as historical artworks and detailed photographs together with stills and model shots from the ship used in the film "Master & Commander: the Far Side of the World". The book is presented in full colour throughout and additionally includes a series of specially-commissioned sketches and paintings by co-author Geoff Hunt RSMA, the acclaimed artist of the Patrick O'Brian cover artworks and related prints. Geoff Hunt also contributes a most illuminating chapter on his experiences in, and challenges faced, when illustrating this ship. Detailed line and isometric plans are being drawn by prolific marine draughtsman Karl Heinz Marquardt.HMS Surprise sails again and this time it's for real - a must for all Patrick O'Brian readers. It is a stunning collaboration between two of the most respected naval authorities. Much of Surprise's actual history is as exciting as her fictional career. It is a meticulously researched first-rate book for all naval devotees.

Hardback By Brian Lavery
272 Pages
For four centuries, the Navy made Britain the most powerful nation on earth - the true ruler of the waves. But its impact goes way beyond battles on the high seas. This new book, a tie-in to a major BBC TV series presented by Dan Snow, is written by one of the nation's foremost naval historians, and tells the story of how the Royal Navy shaped the politics, culture and economy of Britain, leaving its imprint on everything from our landscape, to our democracy and even our very identity. At its peak, it became the driving force behind the spread of a system of values which would change the world forever. And then it lost it all. In "Empire of the Seas", Brian Lavery re-injects the romance into Britain's seafaring past. He discusses the hidden human stories behind the celebrated sea-battles and also provides a warts-and-all expose of the darker chapters in the Navy's past, including its role in slavery and the spread of disease. The book is illustrated with a superlative collection of artworks and photographs from the National Maritime Museum, the Royal Naval Museum and private collections.

Hardback By David Wragg
310 Pages
In 1914 the Royal Navy was the largest in the world, as the 'two power standard' meant that it had to be equal to the combined strength of any two other fleets. It had benefitted from the attentions of a dynamic First Sea Lord, Admiral of the Fleet Lord 'Jacky' Fisher. Fisher had thrown out many ships that 'could neither fight nor run away', been responsible for the creation of the 'Dreadnought' class, the world's most modern battleship, and had recognised the importance of submarines and aviation. Yet, the Royal Navy had also suffered from almost a century without war, and the initiative allowed to warship commanders had been lost in a service more concerned with fleet manoeuvres and evolutions. "Royal Navy Handbook 1914-1918" tells the story of how the 'Senior Service' adapted to the demands of war. As well as the climactic Battle of Jutland, the Royal Navy fought many engagements across the globe, was given responsibility for the air defence of the United Kingdom and sought to protect merchant shipping from U-boat attack.

Paperback By Steve Bush
112 Pages
The complete guide to the ships & aircraft of the fleet. Over 80 photos. Pennant numbers and silhouettes. Keep in touch with your Navy. Now in full colour.

Hardback By Norman Friedman
320 Pages
In the late nineteenth century the advent of the modern torpedo woke the Royal Navy to a potent threat to its domination, not seriously challenged since Trafalgar. For the first time a relatively cheap weapon had the potential to sink the largest, and costliest exponents of sea power. Not surprisingly, Britain s traditional rivals invested heavily in the new technology that promised to overthrow the naval status quo. The Royal Navy was also quick to adopt the new weapon, but the British concentrated on developing counters to the essentially offensive tactics associated with torpedo-carrying small craft. From these efforts came torpedo catchers , torpedo-gunboats and eventually the torpedo-boat destroyer, a type so successful that it eclipsed and the usurped the torpedo-boat itself. With its title shortened to destroyer , the type evolved rapidly and was soon in service in many navies, but in none was the evolution as rapid or as radical as in the Royal Navy This book is the first detailed study of their early days, combining technical history with an appreciation of the changing role of destroyers and the tactics of their deployment. Like all of Friedman's books, it reveals the rationale and not just the process of important technological developments.

Hardback By Roger Paine
150 Pages
During his twenty-nine years on the high seas former Royal Navy officer Roger Paine served all over the globe and in almost every kind of ship - from submarine to frigate, and from destroyers and aircraft carriers to ice patrol ship. In this delightful miscellany of light-hearted 'yarns' he charts the ups and downs of life both afloat and ashore. The hazards - including a seasick parrot, a gun-toting generalissimo, and the ever-present danger of diplomatic faux pas - and the pleasures - sun-drenched ports and glamorous cocktail parties aplenty. En route, we also get to know about the venerable history of rum, the sailor's favourite tipple; the importance of ships' pets in promoting the welfare of seafarers; and the traditional RN toasts for each and every day of the week! Charming, irreverent and occasionally indiscreet, here are 'salty' tales to be savoured and treasured.
FOR A LIMITED TIME THIS BOOK IS SIGNED BY THE AUTHOR!!

Hardback By E.C Coleman
96 Pages
For over a century and a half, since the Uniform Regulations of 1856 were introduced, identification of rank amongst officers in the Royal Navy, its branches and its reserves has not been restricted to a single, or even small number, of insignia. Rank may be seen on jacket cuffs, on shoulder badges, on shoulder boards and on epaulettes. It may be seen on swords and buttons, and in the manner in which buttons are worn. Cap peaks indicate rank, as do collars, cocked hat ornaments and cuff slashes.

Paperback By Michael Wilson
141 Pages
The Royal Navy In Russia 1918 - 1920
As the guns fell silent of the Western Front on 11 November 1918, and thousands of men were looking forward to their demobilisation, civil war still raged in Russia. For the Allied forces in Russia, the war was not over and they faced an implacable foe, as Leon Trotsky energetically reorganised the rabble of revolutionaries into an effective fighting force - the Red Army. The White Russian Army, in support of the Tsar, was still fighting the Bolsheviks, especially in the north of Russia, and the Royal Navy sent a squadron of ships in support with British troops fighting against the Bolsheviks on land. The Russian towns of Murmansk and Archangel became British enclaves as our soldiers and sailors fought a valiant but doomed war against the Bolsheviks for, despite the intervention of the many Allied forces in various parts of Russia and regardless of the efforts of the various White armies, the Bolsheviks were victorious on all fronts when the civil war was over in 1922.
In this captivating history, Michael Wilson tells the story of the Royal Navy's part in this little-known war.

Hardback By Conrad Waters
189 Pages
The World Naval Review is designed to fill the need for an authoritative but affordable summary of all that has happened in the naval world in the previous twelve months. It combines the standing features of regional surveys with one-off major articles on noteworthy new ships and other important developments. Besides the latest warship projects, it also looks at wider issues of importance to navies, such as aviation and electronics, and calls on expertise from around the globe to give a balanced picture of what is going on and to interpret its significance. Intended to make interesting reading as well as providing authoritative reference, there is a strong visual emphasis, including specially commissioned drawings and the most recently released photographs and artists impressions. For anyone with an interest in contemporary naval affairs, whether an enthusiast or a defence professional, this annual is set to become required reading

Hardback By Geoff Puddlefoot
243 Pages
This book gives thr reader a combination of technical ship data, official correspondence and personal recollections, it is predominantly about the men and women of the RFA and their stories – an insight into the underreported history of a service whose initials unofficially translate as Ready For Anything.

Was £50.00
Large coffee table hardback book by Sam Willis
224 Pages
This stunning collection of over 170 large-format colour illustrations includes paintings of ships at sea, in action, in convoy, and in siege; architectural drawings; battle diagrams; sea charts and signals; portraits of leading figures in naval history; and details of guns, sails, and life below deck. Taken from contemporary sources, they range from the Seven Years' War to the American Civil War. The book focuses on the navies of all the major Atlantic sea powers of the time, including Britain, America, France, Holland, Sweden and Russia. Arranged in chronological order, each illustration is accompanied by an extended caption that adds to this visual feast a compelling history of naval warfare in the last great age of sail. This volume is divided into eight chapters: The Seven Years' War 1755-62; The Napoleonic Wars 1803-15; The War of American Independence 1775-1783; The War of 1812; The Years of Exploration c.1770-1794; The Last Days of Sail; The French Revolutionary Wars 1792-1802; and Steam and Iron.

Was £50.00
Large hardback coffee table book By Sam Willis
224 Pages
"Fighting Ships 1850-1950" presents a stunning collection of 150 large-scale paintings, drawings, photographs and ship plans that tell the story of naval warfare from the first iron and steam warships to the deadly U-boats and aircraft carriers of the Second World War. Over these 100 years, the most significant naval engagements are dramatically depicted in striking detail - the bombardment of Sveaborg during the Crimean war, the battles of Tsushima and Jutland, the attack on Pearl Harbour, the Battle of Midway, the evacuation of Dunkirk and the D-Day landings, as well as the Japanese surrender - revealing the glory and exhilaration of the last great age of marine warfare.Arranged chronologically, the ships illustrated include HMS Warrior, the first iron-hulled, heavily armoured warship; the mighty HMS Dreadnought; the battleship Aurora which ignited the Russian revolution; the Graf Spee, under attack on the River Plate; the formidable German battle cruiser Bismarck; the British aircraft carriers HMS Argus and Illustrious, and the Japanese Akagi, amongst many others. This remarkable collection not only showcases some of the greatest naval artists of the period, including John Wilson Carmichael, Gustave Bourgain, McClelland Barclay, Kobayashi Kiyochika, William Lionel Wyllie, and the official British war artist Richard Eurich, but also features powerful photographs, often taken by the sailors themselves. Each image is accompanied by Sam Willis' expert commentary, shedding light on the key naval conflicts of the era, the breathtaking complexity of the modern warship - as well as life and death on board ship for the ordinary sailor.

Hardback By Brian Patterson.
This volume contains over 150 pages, each with full page photographs, some never before published, supported by extended captions.

Paperback By Brian Patterson and Stephen Courtney
170 Pages
A century of Portsmouth Royal Dockyard in photographs.

Hardback By Arthur Nelson
240 Pages
A detailed synthesis of information relating to the English navy during the Tudor period, an era that actually began in 1483 and continued through to the start of the 17th century. This study examines not only the technical aspects of naval history but also the manner in which the navy worked.

This 48 page magazine packed with stunning naval photos from yesteryear right up to the present.
This Magazine is avaliable in issues: 1,2,4,8,9,10.

Out every two months Warship World is packed with articles and photographs and gives a good balance between the old and the new navy.
Issues avaliables are:
July/August
September/October
November/December

Paperback By Ted Macey and Merry Swan
218 Pages
Jack the Lad RN is a matelot's wit set in verse, odes and prose, with over 140 cartoons. This is an open illustration of the true spirit in the Royal Navy and beyond, never waning through ranks or years.
For every one of these books sold a donation will be given to help for heroes.

Hardback By Brian Lavery
120 pages
A reproduction of seven pamphlets dealing with virtually every aspect of naval life in the Second World War for the young officer. Subjects include seamanship, naval law, leadership and etiquette.

Hardback By Geoffrey Carter
96 Pages
A collection of photographs covering one hundred years of naval activity in and around Portland.

Hardback By Martin Robson
144 Pages
Naval slang and its everyday usage.
As the crow flies', 'chunder', 'cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey', 'three sheets to the wind' - many terms like these are used in everyday English language conversation and writing. But where did they originate?
This book gives the answers to these and many more terms.

Paperback By David Pulvertaft
120 Pages
Figureheads were carved for the bows of British fighting ships from the early sixteenth century until the start of the twentieth, formalizing the ancient tradition of sea-farers in earlier times. Warship names were selected within the Admiralty and it was then the task of the figurehead carver to submit a design that represented the name to the satisfaction of the Navy Board. The National Museum of the Royal Navy in Portsmouth has the biggest collection of British warship figureheads on display in the world. Close by are two still attached to the bows of their ships, the wooden HMS Victory (1765) and ironclad HMS Warrior (1860). David Pulvertaft's book reveals the history of warship figureheads, those in the Portsmouth collection being lavishly illustrated with watercolour paintings by Kevin Dean. The informative narrative provides not only a description of the collection but also examines the context of each figurehead against the life of its ship and the background of the carver who created it.

Paperback - A complete guide to the warships, tall ships and merchantmen of the 2005 Solent Fleet Review

Was £35.00
Hardback By R. Gardner
192 Pages


Forms part of the Caxton Pictorial Histories range.

Paperback By Captain John Wells RN
264 Pages
This illustrated history details how HMS Warrior came to be built, records her officers and crew, including a youthful ‘Jacky’ Fisher as Gunnery Officer, and considers her armament and machinery, her strength, and her weaknesses. Twelve detailed appendices help to make this one of the most detailed accounts of an historic ship ever written.

Hardback By Iain Dickie, Martin J Dougherty and J Phyllis
256 Pages
Fighting Techniques of Naval Warfare 1190BC-Present analyses the tactics, techniques and weaponry of naval warfare from the ancient period to the modern day.

Hardback By William Mowll
200 Pages
The working model of HMS Warrior 1860, featured in this book, was built in the traditional shipbuilder’s scale of 1:48, and represents working scale modelling at its very best.
The author explains in detail the techniques needed for miniature replication – from GRP moulding to rope and sail making. All model makers – to whatever level of expertise they aspire – will find in this book a mine of information to enhance their skills.

Hardback By Captain Peter Hore
352 Pages
From the Middle Ages through the glorious defeat of the Armada, the triumphs of Nelson and the battles of the First and Second World Wars, this entertaining history describes how the Royal Navy turned this country into the world's foremost sea power. Based on never-before-published material from the archives of the National Maritime Museum, including letters, journals and despatches, we see life in the navy as it was experienced by commanders and ordinary seamen alike. More than just a story of battles, this book shows how changes in technology were key to the development of the navy's power, from broadside gunnery to copper-sheathed hulls, from paddle-steamers and iron Dreadnoughts to the invention of submarines and aircraft carriers. We see how the navy played a key role in exploration, from Drake's circumnavigation of the globe and Cook's voyages of discovery to Fraser's search for the North-west Passage. Filled with colourful characters - the infamous Captain Kidd, Captain Bligh, Samuel Pepys and Jackie Fisher, Blake, Beatty and Jellicoe - this is an exciting account of heroes and villains, innovators and adventurers, battles lost and won that vividly illustrates one of the most fascinating stories in British military history

Paperback By Andrew Norman
160 Pages
When the battle cruiser HMS Hood was sunk by the Bismark and her consort Prinz Eugen in May 1941, the shock to the Royal Navy, to Britain and the world was immense. Hood had seemed invincible and the epitome of naval power, with her eight 15-inch and eight 4-inch guns. She would prove be anything but, and would become the tomb of 1,418 men. Basing his narrative on primary sources at the Royal Naval Museum and in Germany, plus a unique interview with one of only three survivors of the disaster, Andrew Norman offers his own theory for the ship's fantastically rapid loss. Doubts were immediately raised over the official verdict. Just how could an inboard fire break a ship this large in two?

Paperback By Malcolm Angel
176 Pages
This book is Corporal George Thomson's highly charged action filled account of warfare against all odds. It is the true story of the brave 22 marines left for dead on the shores of South Georgia. NP 8901 Royal Marine George Thomsen is enjoying a drink at a farewell party after spending a 12 month tour of duty on the Falklands. But celebrations on 'going home' are cut short as he is hauled from the party to learn that his duties in the South Atlantic are very far from over. He is ordered to pick 8 men and to embark on the HMS Endurance the next morning, for the most dangerous mission of his career. 800 miles to the south East, scrap merchant Davidoff accompanied by argentine troops masquerading as his employees, have raised the Argentine flag over the distant frozen island of South Georgia - British territory and the base of The British Antarctic Survey Team. Davidoff has held up one finger at The Empire and set the match to the touch paper that will escalate into all out war. Lightly armed and stranded by a departing HMS Endurance, the tiny besieged and outnumbered force make ready for a classic battle to protect the island and its scientists, against massive odds, from the air, land and sea.

Paperback By Geoff Lunn
In 1843 Brunel's ironship Great Britain was launched, becoming the forerunner of the great steel-hulled ships of today. Yet she was tiny compared with the transatlantic liners of the early 1900s as ship-owners vied for the top spot in terms of speed, elegance and size. Liners such as Mauritania and Titanic were later followed by two giant Queens and France's liner Normandie. If the innovative engineers of the Victorian age guided the shipping industry from sail to steam, wood to iron and later to steel, then the twentieth-century invention of the computer took ship construction to entirely new concepts. Massive passenger vessels, equipped with remarkable facilities, efficient machinery and capable of meeting the highest standard of safety, can now be built from keel to funnel in no more than two years. Construction techniques have changed beyond recognition, as have methods of ship design and, indeed, the very roles that these floating resorts are asked to play. Today Royal Caribbean's sister ships Oasis of the Seas and Allure of the Seas are the first passenger ships in history to exceed 200,000 gros tons and are promoted as offering a third more space than any other cruise vessel afloat and measuring seventy times the size of the first Victorian passenger-carrying ironship. For the foreseeable future, at least, these two giant floating cities will hold the accolade of being the biggest passenger ships of all time.

Paperback By Timothy Wilson
120 pages
This is a history of the flags flown at sea by the principal naval powers - Great Britain, France, the Netherlands, Spain and the USA - during the Age of Sail. The subject is one that has been obscured by curious myths and misunderstandings about where, when and why certain flags - like the piratical 'Jolly Roger' - were flown, and this book's narrative aims to unravel these issues. It also tackles such apparently complicated issues as signalling in peace and war. The book also contains a profusion of illustrations, covering the many variants of well-known flags, in both contemporary flag-charts and modern drawings done specially for this work. It therefore provides the degree of detail demanded by modelmakers, artists and historians.

Paperback - 64 Pages
This books contents include:organisation and command structure in 1939 · Recruitment and training - personnel categories · Service afloat - organisation of the ship's company · Uniforms - officers, ratings, shore parties, Naval Commandos, Fleet Air Arm · Insignia - ratings' badges · WRNS & QARNNS · Commonwealth and Allied personnel · Miscellaneous organisations.

Hardback By Nick Childs
208 Pages
The story of HMS Invincible, a ship whose eventful life story, it is argued, embodies that of the Royal Navy itself during the second half of the 20th century and into the 21st. From her conception and design, through her various deployments (including the Falklands) and her evolving role and technical adaptation to meet changing strategic requirements, her fluctuating fortunes have been intertwined with those of the Royal Navy as a whole. Now, as a new breed of carriers is being commissioned to replace her, this thoroughly researched analysis of her career is the perfect platform from which to ask the important questions regarding the future role of the Royal Navy and Britain's place in the world.

Hardback - 280 pages
1937 - 1985 Memories of ex-apprentices and staff of Caledonia.

Hardback By Andrew Whitmarsh
120 Pages
This visual history collates images relating to all aspects of D-Day and the Normandy landings. Beginning with the lead up to D-Day, it encompasses the equipment, planning, troops and training. It also examines the impact on civilians and the work underway in factories. As the momentum gathered, the book focuses on the final preparations in the last month before D-Day, and follows events through the Channel and naval operations, the air forces and airborne landings, landings on British beaches, landings on US beaches, before considering the aftermath and the Battle of Normandy through to the end of the war. Using the extensive archives of the Portsmouth D-Day Museum, including many of their largely unpublished collections of memories and photographs, this is a moving and unique record of a momentous time.

Hardback By Captain Andrew Welch
336 Pages
All three Cod Wars are covered in this detailed and authoritative history. This book gives a detailed account looking mainly at operations at sea and events ashore. This massive book includes many unpublished photographs taken from British warships, aircraft and Icelandic Coastguard vessels.

Paperback By John Parker
106 pages
An illustrated history of submarines from 1900-1950.

Hardback by Malcolm Maclean
450 Pages
Peacetime accidents over the past sixty years have resulted in hundreds of naval vessels being lost or stricken from active service. This book aims to explain why and how these accidents have occurred, being categorised by their primary cause, and covers some of the lessons that have been learnt.

Was £20.00
Hardback By Christopher Terrill
288 Pages
This is the tie in book to a documentary that was shown on BBC, about real life on board a modern warship.

Paperback By John Wellham
288 Pages
An autobiography of a fleet air arm pilot in World War II

Was £19.99
Hardback By Chris Howard Bailey and Lesley Thomas
192 Pages
The Wrns In Camera: The Work Of The Womans Royal Naval Service In The Second World War

This fully illustrated book contains an historical review of this organisation from its formation to the present day.

Paperback By David Yates
224 Pages
Aboard HMS Antrim during the Falklands War.

Hardback By David Hart Dyke
256 Pages
The story of the loss of HMS Coventry during the Falklands War.

Large format paperback 112 pages.
This book is a record in words and pictures of the ships and men who took part in the campaign.

Large format paperback.
A record in words and pictures of the ships and men who took part in the campaign.

Hardback By Lt Cdr Ben Warlow RN
224 Pages
A selection of forty Royal Naval ships histories of the Second World War.
This 224 page book includes 150 black and white images.

Paperback of naval cartoons By Jim Swift
96 Pages

Paperback By Jim Swift
96 Pages
Second volume of Naval cartoons

Hardback By John Roberts
320 Pages
The Story Of The Modern Royal Navy.
This new book gives a detailed history of the Royal Navy, published to coincide with the golden jubilee of the White Ensign Association. It is full of campaigns, operations and deployments conducted around the World, from the Gulf War, Falklands and the Cold War.

Hardback By Gerald Toghill
227 Pages
A comprehensive and well researched work - the ultimate research tool for anyone interested in knowing anything about the many trawlers that served under the White Ensign.

Hardback By Gerald Toghill
584 Pages
A comprehensive reference book of all trawlers requisitioned by the Royal Navy.

Hardback By Patrick Boniface
264 pages
A history of Royal Navy Battle Class Destroyers.

Hardback By Neil McCart
During the 1950s and 1960s the handsome Daring-Class destroyers served both the Royal Navy and the Royal Australian Navy in every theatre of operations. This book charts the story of each of these ships from their beginnings in the late 1940s to their demise. Today there remains only the museum ship HMAS Vampire in Sydney Harbour.

Paperback By Graham Smith
96 pages
Story Of HMS Endurance the Royal Navys sole ice patrol vessel.

Hardback By Neil McCart
This book covers the service history of one of the most active Royal Navy aircraft carriers of the immediate post war period, from build through operations off Korea, to eventual scrapping. The comprehensive text is accompanied by over 120 photographs from the Fleet Air Arm Museum Archive.

Hardback By John Parker
384 pages
Untold stories of the heroes of the Royal Navy.

Hardback By David Cordingly
320 Pages
This is the story of the Bellerophon, a ship of the line known to her crew as the Billy Ruffian. Under fourteen captains, she played a conspicuous part in three of the most famous of all sea Battles: the battle of the Glorious First of June (1794), the opening action against Revolutionary France; the battle of the Nile (1798), which halted Napoleon's eastern expansion from Cairo; and the Battle of Trafalgar (1805), which established British Naval supremacy for 100 years and during which her captain was shot dead with a musket ball an hour before Nelson was mortally wounded. But her crowning glory came six weeks after the Battle of Waterloo, when the Napoleon, trapped in La Rochelle, surrendered to the Captain of the ship that had dogged his steps for more than twenty years.

Hardback By John Winton
224 Pages
A popular series of humourous naval books.

Hardback By John Winton
208 Pages


From a series of popular humourous naval books

Hardback Book By S. Francis Smitheman
144 pages
The distingushed artist S.Francis Smitheman has spent some 30 years passionately depicting the age of sail, This stunning beautifully illustrated book contains his paintings on every page with every work having a fascinating story behind it.

Paperback -168 Pages
A comprehensive guide to the ships, submarines and aircraft of the US Navy, Military Sealift Command and Ready Reserve Fleet. In full colour with over 100 photos.

Hardback By C. Morgan
71 pages
Desperate to avoid 'bubble-dancing', join the 'dromestoners' or eat a nice 'tiddly oggy'? Baffled? Well, pull yourself out of the 'asparagus bed' and dip into Service Slang to find out what these expressions and many more mean. First published in 1943, this is a facsimile reissue, complete with the original witty illustrations. You would be a 'sad apple' to call it a dictionary, it is more a light-hearted survey of expressions prevalent in the Army, Navy and R.A.F. during the Second World War. 'Chocks away' and 'draw your pint'.

Paperback By Rick Jolly
114 Pages
From the author of Jackspeak. A collection of humorous extracts, both intentional and unintentional, from official reports on officers and other ranks of all three services.

Ppaerback By Bryan Perrett
416 Pages
The Victoria Cross, a simple bronze cross inscribed For Valor on the front and engraved with the recipient's name, rank, number, unit and the date of the action on the reverse, was first awarded by Queen Victoria - in a ceremony in Hyde Park - in 1857, to heroes of the Crimea.
The VC is the most prized British and Commonwealth decoration for gallantry, and is earned too often at the cost of the ultimate sacrifice. Only 1,354 VCs have been awarded, and this book, in Bryan Perrett's inimitable style, tells the story behind some of the most remarkable, from the Crimea through to the Second World War. Likewise, the Congressional Medal of Honor, the US equivalent decoration, is celebrated here in equal measure in his gripping episodes of outstanding gallantry in battle. The VC and the Medal of Honor have on occasion even been awarded for acts on the same battlefield

Hardback By Chris Frame
120 Pages
By the 1970s it looked as if QE2 would be the last of the great transatlantic ocean liners. However, more than three decades later the world watched in awe as Queen Mary 2, the largest, longest, grandest, and most expensive ocean liner ever to be constructed, set sail on her maiden voyage in 2004. With 14 decks and beautiful lounges, dining rooms, and ballrooms, QM2 evokes the glamour of the golden age of ocean travel. QM2: A Photographic Journey allows the reader to experience this unique vessel from the comfort of their own home. With numerous never-before-published photographs of each of QM2’s public rooms as well as stunning exterior shots, this book is delightfully complemented by little-known facts and interesting information from Commodore R. W. Warwick, QM2’s first captain.

A colour portfolio
Hardback By David Williams & Richard De Kerbreech
80 pages
A nostalgic album of colour photographs looking back at a lost world where small coasters and freighters plied their trade between both major ports and the smaller harbours around of the British Isles.

Hardback By Peter Goodwin
125 Pages
The Granado was one of 12 bomb vessels built to supplement the British fleet at the outbreak of the War Of Jenkins' Ear in 1739. This volume is of special use to both the scratch-build modeller and the reader of C.S.Forester who wants to know more about bomb vessels.

Hardback By Karl Heinz Marquardt
120 Pages
The Constitution was one of the US Navy's first six original frigates, ordered as a counter to the Barbary corsairs in the Mediterranean. Fast and heavily built, she was nominally rated as a 44 but mounted thirty 24-pdr and twenty-two 12-pdr cannon. Her most famous encounter, after which she became nicknamed 'Old Ironsides' due to British shot being seen bouncing off her hull, involved HMS Guerriere, which she smashed; the same treatment was meted out to HMS Java four months later. Now the oldest commissioned warship afloat in thw world, she is berthed in Boston Harbor. The 'Anatomy of the Ship' series aims to provide the finest documentation of individual ships and ship types ever published. What makes the series unique is a complete set of superbly executed line drawings, both the conventional type of plan as well as explanatory views, with fully descriptive keys. These are supported by technical details and a record of the ship's service history.

Hardback By Xavier Pastor
120 Pages
The details of Columbus's ships - the Santa Maria, Nina and Pinta - remain lost to historians, for the ships were built before the first manuals of shipbuilding were written, and no documentation or illustration has survived. Nevertheless, extensive research has allowed the construction of a number of replicas over the years, and those built in Spain in 1892 and 1927 are regarded as among the most realistic. The new replicas built for the 1992 celebrations are without doubt the most accurate reconstructions yet. Many years of research by Jose Martinez-Hidalgo and his successors into the naos and caravels of the 15th and 16th centuries has allowed a whole new insight into the design and construction of the famous ships of Columbus.

Hardback By Karl Heinz Marquardt
136 pAGES
A full description of the ship, how she came to be purchased and the short history of her naval service. It also features a large scale plan of the ship.

Paperback By Keith Hall
128 Pages
The story of Gosports submarine base.

Paperback By Jak P Mallmann Showell
357 Pages
Fully illustrated with maps and rare photographs, this authoritative study of the formidable Kriegsmarine in the Second World War will appeal to anyone with an interest in the armed forces of the Third Reich

Paperback By Mike Critchley and Steve Bush
96 Pages
This collection of stunning photographs portrays warships battling with rough weather. From the battleships of WWII to modern day frigates.

Paperback By Ben Warlow
96 Pages
The author of this book has researched 94 photographs - from a wide range of sources - to illustrate the RN's frigate force from the mid 20th century.

Paperback
This book contains photographs of ships from WWII and each photograph is accompanied by an extended caption giving a description of each ship's career.

Paperback
A second volume of over 110 full page photographs, together with extended captions, portraying many classes of Royal Navy warships which saw service in the Second World War.

Paperback
This book is full of photogrpahs of ships from 1960-69, it has a good cross section of ship types from the large to the not so large and each photograph is accompanied by an extended caption giving a description of each ship's career.

Paperback
This book is full of photographs os ships from 1970-79 it has a good cross section of ship types from the large to the not so large and each photograph is accompanied by an extended caption giving a description of each ship's career. This book includes a colour section.

Paperback
This book is full of photographs of RN destroyers since 1945, each photograph has a brief history of the ship and its career.

Paperback
This book is full of images of minor war vessels each image has a breif history of the ship and its career.

Paperback
A collection of photographs, with extended captions, showing the Royal Navy's Reserve Fleets at home and abroad, mainly in the post WW2 period. There are also pictures from UK scrapyards depicting the sad end for many of the giants of WW2.

Paperback
A collection of photographs, with extended captions, showing the Royal Navy's Reserve Fleets at home and abroad, mainly in the post WW2 period.

Paperback
A collection of photographs of Royal Navy ships awaiting disposal, being broken-up or even blown-up. 100 photos each accompanied by an extended captions.

Paperback
This book has the same format as part 1 (Part 5 is of ships transferred to the Royal Australian Navy before their demise in Australia)

Paperback
An amazing photo record of warships at the end of their days. Laid up, then broken or even blown up. This part covers ex ships of the US Navy.

Paperback
The latest part of this series of photo records of warships at the end of their days.

Paperback By Michael Wilson
224 Pages
The story of the Battle of the Atlantic is well known, but the Indian Ocean submarine war is much less well-known despite the fact that men and submarines of every major combatant nation were engaged. Submarines of seven nations fought a war of attrition from 1939-45. The Indian Ocean had important trade routes from India to Africa, and the Mediterranean for the Allies and was part of the trade route between Japan and Germany. It was an important battlefield but little has been written about it. Michael Wilson helps redress that balance with "The Submariners' War: The Indian Ocean 1939-1945".

Paperback By Terry C Treadwell
191 Pages
An illusrated history of Aircraft carrying Submarines,from the early days of World War One to the present day.

Hardback By Lawrence Paterson
192 Pages
On the eve of Germany's surrender in May 1945, Grossadmiral Karl Dönitz commanded thousands of loyal and active men of the U-boat service. Still fully armed and unbroken in morale, enclaves of these men occupied bases stretching from Norway to France, where cadres of U-boat men fought on in ports that defied besieging Allied troops to the last. At sea U-boats still operated on a war footing around Britain, the coasts of the United States and as far as Malaya.
Following the agreement to surrender, these large formations needed to be disarmed - often by markedly inferior forces - and the boats at sea located and escorted into the harbours of their erstwhile enemies. Neither side knew entirely what to expect, and many of the encounters were tense; in some cases there were unsavoury incidents, and stories of worse. For many Allied personnel it was their first glimpse of the dreaded U-boat menace and both sides were forced to exercise considerable restraint to avoid compromising the terms of Germany's surrender.
One of the last but most dramatic acts of the naval war, the story of how the surrender was handled has never been treated at length before. This book uncovers much new material about the process itself and the ruthless aftermath for both the crews and their boats.

Hardback By Phil Shanahan
240 Pages
'Without these three men it might never have been possible to have D-Day in June 1944. It's hard to think of three individual servicemen who did more to hasten the Allied victory' - Robert Harris, author of "Enigma". 'They played a pivotal part in bringing the Battle of the Atlantic to an earlier close' - Prince Andrew. 'A contribution to the winning of the war that few could match' - Tony Blair. The capture of the Enigma codes helped shorten the Second World War by at least a year. Churchill took a special interest in the information that came out of Bletchley Park's Station X and he guarded his contact well so that the Germans would never find out the source.Without the quick actions of three men from HMS Petard, who clambered aboard a sinking German U-boat, the codes might never have been broken.

Paperback By Bernard Ireland
96 Pages
An Authoritative Guide to 100 Years of Aircraft Carrier Development, from the First Flights from Ships in the Early 1900s Through to the Present Day.

Hardback By JD Brown
The Royal Navy s Fleet Air Arm grew from a small force into a powerful strategic weapon during World War II, with British carrier-based aircraft fighting throughout the world. This complete history describes their activities in the Home, Mediterranean, Eastern, and British Pacific Fleets, together with forces created for specific operations, and lists aircraft and units embarked during the various phases. The author also covers carrier operations in the Pacific between 1941 and 1945, noting that both the U.S. Navy and Imperial Japanese Navy watched the Royal Navy s early carrier operations in the European Theatre and benefited from the lessons.

Paperback By Eric Jeffs
64 Pages
MEMORIES OF FIVE YEARS SERVICE ONBOARD HMS DIDO

Hardback By Fred L Borch and Charles P McDowell
288 Pages
As the first and only complete history of all personal awards and decorations of the United States' three sea services, this book serves as a valuable resource of Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard awards. It also provides little-known historical information on the background and development of each award and decoration, along with details of its design and award criteria. Some never-before-photographs of rare Navy Medals of Honor are featured.

Paperback By Gerry Murphy
192 Pages
Everyone has heard of, say, the Irish Fusliliers, the Glorious Glosters, or Royal Scots Greys. But where are these regiments today? What are they called? And what were they called a hundred years ago? The painful and much-resented rationalisation of the British regiments - which meant amalgamation or simply disbandment - has been going on since the first regiments were raised in the 17th century, according to the perceived needs of the nation in war or peacetime. But it accelerated in the mid-1950s and the task has now been completed on General Jackson's watch, in 2007. Anyone trying to follow the name changes of a particular regiment soon gets caught up in and confused by different histories in different books. By using clear family trees, Gerry Murphy sorts out all the confusion in one indispensable volume. The appendices alone are invaluable, showing the number of regimental antecedents, honours, colours and insignia.