FIGHTING SHIPS 1850-1950

"Fighting Ships 1850-1950" presents a stunning collection of 150large-scale paintings, drawings, photographs and ship plans that tell thestory of naval warfare from the first iron and steam warships to thedeadly U-boats and aircraft carriers of the Second World War. Over these100 years, the most significant naval engagements are dramaticallydepicted in striking detail - the bombardment of Sveaborg during theCrimean war, the battles of Tsushima and Jutland, the attack on PearlHarbour, the Battle of Midway, the evacuation of Dunkirk and the D-Daylandings, as well as the Japanese surrender - revealing the glory andexhilaration of the last great age of marine warfare.Arrangedchronologically, the ships illustrated include HMS Warrior, the firstiron-hulled, heavily armoured warship; the mighty HMS Dreadnought; thebattleship Aurora which ignited the Russian revolution; the Graf Spee,under attack on the River Plate; the formidable German battle cruiserBismarck; the British aircraft carriers HMS Argus and Illustrious, and theJapanese Akagi, amongst many others. This remarkable collection not onlyshowcases some of the greatest naval artists of the period, including JohnWilson Carmichael, Gustave Bourgain, McClelland Barclay, KobayashiKiyochika, William Lionel Wyllie, and the official British war artistRichard Eurich, but also features powerful photographs, often taken by thesailors themselves. Each image is accompanied by Sam Willis' expertcommentary, shedding light on the key naval conflicts of the era, thebreathtaking complexity of the modern warship - as well as life and deathon board ship for the ordinary sailor.