Book Reviews

Nick Ball and Simon Stephens. Navy tional Maritime Museum, the work pro- Board Ship Models, Barnsley, S. Yorks: vides a ready reference to Navy Board Seaforth Publishing and Royal Muse- ship models in a full-colour volume that ums Greenwich, www.seaforthpublish- illustrates the museum’s collection with ing.com, 2018. 192 pp., illustrations, numerous photographs of the models table, glossary, notes, bibliography, from various angles, highlighting spe- index. US $64.95, UK £40.00, cloth; cific decorations and construction de- ISBN 978-1-5267-0111-4. tails. Co-author Nick Ball has maritime It might surprise many people to know museum experience at both the Na- that ship models were not initially tional Museum of the Royal Navy and items for hobbyists. They had specific Royal Museum Greenwich’s National technical, economic, commercial, and Maritime Museum (NMM) in London, military functions. Further, the craft of where Simon Stephens curates. Addi- ship modeling is centuries old. Ship tionally, Stephens wrote another defin- models have served many purposes, itive work on models (with co-author among them technical, design, exhibi- Brian Lavery), Ship Models: Their Pur- tion, and pleasure. Located within the pose and Development from 1650 to British Admiralty, the Navy board was the Present (1995). Ball and Stephens’ responsible for the day-to-day civil ad- extensive working knowledge of the ministration of the Royal Navy from the collection launches readers right into sixteenth to the early-nineteenth centu- an immersive tour of the NMM’s de- ry. Navy Board models—a subcategory finitive collections. As summarized by of exhibition models—were made for museum director, Kevin Fewster: both display and technical purposes. In “The ship model collection at Roy- this detailed and visually-rich volume, al Museums Greenwich is the largest Navy Board Ship Models, authors Nick publicly owned one in the world, to- Ball and Simon Stevens significantly taling over 4,500 models. Foremost contribute to ship model literature. Fo- amongst them is the highly-prized col- cusing on the collection of Britain’s Na- lection of fifty-four Navy Board models The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord, XXIX, No. 2 (Summer 2019), 159-208 160 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord dating from the 1650s through 1775... (138).” the Museum’s ship models provide un- The authors succeed in providing a rivalled insight into many aspects of definitive Navy Board model reference the seventeenth-and-eighteenth-century for modelers, collectors, historians, and British Navy (6).” anyone interested in ship models and The authors divide the work into construction. The book is especially three sections: Historical Background, valuable for the general study of exhi- Construction and Materials, and Cata- bition models and for tracing the history logue of the National Maritime Muse- of specific collections, as it includes a um’s Navy Board Ship Model Collec- directory of “Navy Board Models Held tion. The first section gives the reader Elsewhere.” Usefully, the directory ma- an introductory background of the his- trix identifies Navy Board models and tory of Navy Board models, placing models that are similar in style, includ- them in a social and cultural context. ing the name of each identified model The second chapter outlines basic ma- and its location at the time of writing. terials, tools, and construction, and the Additionally, the table includes the year final section illustrates each of the 54 the model was built, number of guns, models in the collection, complete with rate, and scale. The appendix contains drawings, photographs, and detailed a comprehensive glossary and index, descriptions. Coverage of each model and notes provided from the co-authors’ includes introductory information for a curatorial perspective are beneficial. general audience, as well as details that The volume enhances standard would interest model makers and cura- works on ship models, including vol- tors, as evidenced from the pages illus- umes such as Brian Lavery’s The Ship trating the 70-gun ship, Bedford: of the Line: A History of Ship Mod- “Apart from the newly introduced els (2014); Navy Board Ship Models: 80-gun ships of the 1690s, the 70-gun 1650-1750 by John Franklin (1989); Third Rates remained the most prolif- and Philip Reed’s Building a Miniature ic during the first half of the eighteenth Ship Board Model (2009). This volume century, up until 1756 with the intro- rightly takes its place among books that duction of the new 74-gun ship. Under interested readers, historians, modelers, the 1695 building programme, Parlia- and collectors will want to own. ment granted funds for three...named after senior officers of the Admiralty. Gina Granados Palmer The Bedford was named after Admiral Newport, Rhode Island Edward Russell, who was First Lord of the Admiralty and later created Duke of G.H. Bennett. The Royal Navy in the Bedford in 1694...” (136-139) Age of Austerity 1919-22: Naval and This model has now been positive- Foreign Policy under Lloyd George. ly identified as the Bedford, launched in London and New York: Bloomsbury 1698, by comparing known dimensions, Academic, www.bloomsbury.com, together with contemporary drawings 2018, xvii+273pp., tables, index. US by Willem van de Velde. This is backed $39.95, paper; ISBN 978-1-3500-6711- up further with the carved dolphin cra- 0 (E-book available.) dle supports bearing the initials ‘FH’ and the date 1698. “This refers to Fish- After the First World War, the Royal er Harding, Master Shipwright at Wool- Navy entered a period of challenges for wich and designer of the Bedford... the British state and the application of Book Reviews 161 naval power in relation to diplomacy United States Navy, in part to cultivate and the national economy. Although a special relationship with a close ally. on the winning side in the fight against Diplomatic conferences in Washington Imperial Germany, Great Britain suf- and London restricted the size, compo- fered from a tightening financial situa- sition, and number of warships on be- tion, certain core industries ill-suited to half of signatory parties and gave cer- peacetime adjustment, calls for limita- tain security guarantees, at a time when tions in arms, imperial over-reach, and money was in short supply. The Royal shifting strategic alliances. Canadians Navy, like most arms of government, like John Ferris, Keith Neilson, Greg was expected to live within its means Kennedy, and Christopher Bell have as savings forced by the Treasury took been among the historians who have effect. Building of new warships was reassessed and revised understanding deferred and in many cases curtailed, of the Royal Navy during the interwar the Admiralty forced to argue and lobby years, a field previously dominated by for new classes of ships that would ben- the work of Stephen Roskill in his ca- efit from the lessons of the last war and pacity as official and semi-official histo- meet new operational demands from rian of the Admiralty and naval service. aerial and sub-surface threats. Harry Bennett, a reader at the Univer- The impact on the domestic ship- sity of Plymouth, synthesizes much of building industry was dearly felt in the existing scholarship and argues for regions of the country, where unem- a political economy approach that puts ployment amongst workers and closing naval policy in the broader context of down of shipyards were the direct re- governmental, economic, diplomatic, sult. The Royal Navy’s efforts to get and imperial imperatives, most partic- the warships that it wanted dovetailed ularly during the stewardship of Prime with concerns over social unrest, exo- Minister David Lloyd George. He finds dus to labour and socialist parties, and interconnectedness as the central tenet the government’s rising bills for finan- that draws together several important cial assistance at local levels. Naval themes that anchor the Royal Navy in shipbuilding became little more than its time and various communities of in- a form of state-inspired welfare, even terest. as the Lloyd George government con- The span and breadth of Bennett’s tinued to wring out as much financial survey acknowledges that it was a mere room as possible for the national bene- four years, the same length of time as fit. Bennett spends some time showing the war itself. Great Britain and the the connections between power brokers Royal Navy emerged changed from that in parliament and the house of lords, conflict, and the post-war period was the bureaucracy, the press, and higher equally important from beginning to leadership in the Admiralty, civilian and end when naval policy had to keep pace naval. The successes gained included with an evolving world and national a pair of new-build battleships and de- circumstances. The first inconvenience ferral of a naval arms race, which Great was the alliance with Japan that had Britain could ill-afford. Still, Bennett served Great Britain well since 1902 sees failure in the inadequately de- and became increasingly untenable as fended Singapore naval base—starved Japanese strength and power grew in of the necessary funds to complete its the Pacific. The Royal Navy conced- works—intended to hold on until a fleet ed any numerical competition with the arrived and weak position overall in re- 162 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord gard to a resurging Japan in the years there was no general maritime history leading to the Second World War. De- of the English Civil War period. Over- cisions made in the early 1920s came whelmingly, accounts of the civil war back to haunt the Royal Navy. address political matters and military This book is a cheaper paperback operations. The fact that the King’s release of the hardback previous- navy aligned with Parliament and that ly published in 2016. The structure, there were no ‘general fleet actions’ pagination, and content are essentially ensured that the maritime aspect of the the same. A number of tables grace conflict was glossed over and assigned the chapters, particularly in reference a subsidiary and nearly invisible role. to shipbuilding. The cover reproduc- Certainly, histories of the rise of Great es a commissioned colour painting of Britain as an imperial power, or more British admirals from the period by general histories of the Royal Navy, the portrait artist Sir Arthur Stockdale noted developments during the civil Cope, which is explained fully in the war period (defined in this account as afterward. First Sea Lord David Be- starting with Charles I’s failed invasion atty is at the centre facing a portrait of of Scotland in 1638 and ending with the Admiral Nelson, while others of certain Commonwealth’s defeat of Holland at fame and notoriety are placed in various the conclusion of the first Anglo-Dutch poses in relation to each other. The art- War in 1653), but these tend to be short work captures both the confidence and and perfunctory. In contrast, the An- internal divisions and personal animos- glo-Dutch wars, of which there were ities amongst the Royal Navy’s senior three from the 1650s to 1670s, have a ranks. Bennett’s book is a contribution much richer historiography as well as to a few naval books on the list in the such seminal and noteworthy charac- Bloomsbury Studies in Military His- ters as Samuel Pepys, Admirals Rob- tory series, edited by Jeremy Black. ert Blake, George Monck and William The Royal Navy in the Age of Austerity Monson. 1919-22 provides a good primer on na- The authors provide an introduc- val developments in the early interwar tion to what war at sea involved in the period and will appeal to a specialist beginning of the period, particularly by audience and general readers interested touching on the law of the sea (priva- in naval history. teering, piracy, sovereignty at sea) as well as evolving warship technology, Chris Madsen tactics and the growth of state navies. Toronto, Ontario Prior to the seventeenth century, navies were, for the most part, a combination of ‘royal’ ships and contracted merchant Richard Blakemore and Elaine Murphy. vessels converted into warships for a The British Civil Wars at Sea, 1638- specified period. The growth in num- 1653. Rochester, NY: Boydell Press, bers of the former represented a real www.boydellandbrewer.com, 2018. change in approach, as well as with the xiv+225 pp., illustrations, maps, table, administrative, financial and industri- appendices, notes, bibliography, index, al elements that underpinned maritime ship index, US $115.00, cloth; ISBN power. This introduction is followed by 978-1-78327-229-7. two separate chapters that cover the civ- il war period by first exploring the con- This fine book’s genesis came from flicts early years and then moving to the Blakemore and Murphy’s sense that Book Reviews 163 English Civil War proper involving the both near and far from the British Isles. military campaigns of 1642-46. Two Indeed, it may be remarked that the role subsequent chapters cover the Parlia- of maritime forces in Parliament’s vic- mentary navy, its functions, its organ- tory over the monarchy was similar to isation, its personnel and then one on that of the Royal Navy over Napoleon its opponents—the Royalist, Irish and some 160 years later. The set piece Scottish maritime forces. The final two engagements such as Trafalgar were chapters complete the narrative on the important milestones in that triumph, civil war period, culminating with the but the decisive factor was the appli- execution of Charles I in 1649, and the cation of sea power in the subsequent years of conflict thereafter to subdue the decade and a very effective blockade. remaining Royalist interests in Scot- Similar factors were involved here as land, Ireland and overseas in the Brit- the authors quite rightly describe. The ish colonies. The navy was critical in authors emphasize that while this peri- all these campaigns. The ending of the od involved a significant growth in the book simply notes the British success strength and effectiveness of the British over the Dutch in the First Anglo-Dutch navy, it should not be viewed as setting War, which was comparatively brief the stage for a subsequent unalloyed de- and was triggered by the 1651 Naviga- velopment into a peerless world pow- tion Act. er. The 1650s represent a high point, The book’s conclusion notes the no question, but setbacks and missteps considerable evolution and growth of soon followed. Great Britain’s evolu- the British navy throughout the 14- tion into a position of naval dominance year period in question. Beginning as had many waystations prior to its nine- an ineffective force that was unable to teenth-century apogee. prevent the Dutch ambushing a Span- The book is comparatively short ish fleet under the nominal protection and includes two useful appendices, a of Charles I on the Downs in 1638, the timeline and a tabular analysis of the navy rose to pre-eminence in the mid- Parliamentary navy. The bibliogra- 1650’s when it was well able to hold its phy demonstrates the sound research own against all comers—be they domes- on which the book is based, notably tic foes or the Spanish, French or Dutch the impressive use of primary sources navies. As for the Civil War itself, the throughout, both published and in var- maritime aspect has been considerably ious archives. The list of secondary underplayed in the historiography, with sources is comprehensive and is a use- the authors clearly identifying the scale ful starting point for anyone interested of the effort in mobilising naval forces, in further explorations of the period. of authorising privateers, and in mus- There are a few black and white illus- tering the men, the ships and the cam- trations that accompany the text. paigns in which they were deployed. The only negative is that of price. The war’s final outcome was clearly At $115.00 US, the cost is beyond the decisively concluded on land—at the purse of most and is hence largely for li- Battle of Naseby—but Parliament’s braries. With that caveat, I have no hes- triumph was more than merely one of itation in recommending this volume to armies. The maritime contribution was any who are interested in this period. of great importance and had a signifi- cant influence on preventing a Royalist Ian Yeates, revival, notwithstanding years of effort Regina, Saskatchewan 164 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord Sheila Bransfield. The Man Who Dis- ing it, and perhaps missing the larger covered Antarctica. Edward Bransfield context or the real, relevant questions to Explained—The First Man to Find and be posed by a historian interested in this Chart the Antarctic Mainland. Barns- part of Antarctic history. ley, S. Yorks: Frontline Books, www. Even when reading the introduction, pen-and-sword.co.uk, 2019. xviii+318 sometimes bordering on namedropping pp., illustrations, notes, bibliography, of assorted international academic as- index. UK £25.00, US $49.95, cloth; sociations and institutions, the reader ISBN 978-1-52675-263-5. (E-book and gets the feeling that the main goal of the Kindle available.) book was not only humble historical re- search designed to fill out the existing Most visitors to Antarctica, whether sci- body of knowledge, but also to ensure entists, professional mariners or tourists Edward Bransfield’s place in the “Hall on an expedition cruise ship, will have of Fame” of Antarctic exploration. One their first encounter with the seventh might question whether the plethora of continent in the area of the Bransfield details provided really presents a better Strait, but only very few will have heard and more analytical understanding of about the man behind the name of the Bransfield’s contribution to Antarctic strait that separates the South Shetland history. For example, learning about Islands and the Antarctic Peninsula. impressment, which Bransfield suf- Regardless of whether Edward Brans- fered at the beginning of his naval ca- field was really the first man to sight the reer, does not really help to understand Antarctic continent, or if Fabian Gottli- his Antarctic achievements, and only eb von Bellingshausen sighted the con- readers with some previous maritime tinent in the region of East Antarctica knowledge will know the details of this two or three days earlier, Bransfield inhumane practice. The same criticism was one of the most important early ex- applies to many other instances where plorers of the frozen continent. The big the author provides so many details names from the heroic age of Antarcti- about various topics that they easily ca like Scott, Amundsen or Shackleton distract from the main story. have definitely overshadowed those of In the end, the identity of the in- Bransfield or v. Bellingshausen, but tended readership might be the most without knowing the early history of critical question for the whole book. If Antarctic exploration, the story of the the book is aimed at professional histo- continent would remain incomplete, rians, are all the details on side-aspects lacking an important early element. only loosely related to Bransfield’s Sheila Bransfield aims to overcome Antarctic achievements are really nec- this knowledge gap in Antarctic explo- essary? If intended for casual readers ration with her book about her distant generally interested in Antarctic and relative, Edward Bransfield, while at maritime history, so much detail com- the same time putting him on the pro- bined with a somewhat dry and schol- verbial pedestal. Tracing his life from arly writing style distract from an in- his very early beginnings as a mariner, teresting biography which deserves to she provides a meticulously researched be told as a story of exploration. The account of Bransfield’s achievements. author seems unable to really decide While there is no doubt that she has between these two extremes and fails to made excellent use of her sources, it deliver a convincing mixture of the two might be asked if she were not overdo- approaches. Book Reviews 165 The main issue I had with the book doubt, a relevant and important second- is simply an issue of bias or the author ary source. being too personally engaged with the Ingo Heidbrink subject. For example, the title of the Norfolk, Virginia book indicates the author’s ambition to recognize Bransfield as the man who discovered Antarctica. While she cer- Kevin Brown. Fittest of the Fit. Health tainly delivers on this goal, it should and Morale in the Royal Navy, 1939– be stated that Edward Bransfield’s con- 1945. Barnsley, S. Yorks: Seaforth Pub- tribution to the history of Antarctica lishing, www.pen-and-sword.co.uk, as told by Sheila Bransfield is a little 2019. xi+276 pp., illustrations, appen- larger than it actually might have been. dices, notes, bibliography, index. UK More importantly, her choice of the so- £25.00, US $49.95, cloth; ISBN 978-1- called ‘great men’ approach seems a 5267-3427-3. somewhat outdated analytical concept for historical research. This is particu- Royal Navy sailors have long occupied larly true whenever a ship is involved a special place in the British public in an historical event, since the entire imagination. Whether dressed in the crew, rather than just the navigator or ‘slops’ of the eighteenth-century or the commanding officer, deserves credit for distinctive square-rigging of the world the achievement. wars, ‘Jack’ has been an icon of British Despite these critical observations, imperial power for over two hundred I can at least recommend the book to years. As the columnist Ian Jack wrote historians interested in the early history in 2016, “it was capstans, sailors and of Antarctic exploration. These readers sailing ships that decorated cigarette will know how to read the book and brands rather than rifles and hussars.” to make use of the author’s extremely In Fittest of the Fit, Kevin Brown detailed research, even if not agreeing argues that the reputation of the British with the approach. Fortunately, the pub- naval sailor was at its peak in the 1930s. lisher has kept the price reasonably low Naval recruitment posters showed at £ 20.00 for the hardback and £ 3.99 “handsome, healthy, sun-tanned men” for the electronic version. This makes it far removed from the overcast slums of easier to justify adding it to any library industrial Britain, and numerous films (private or institutional) with a section depicted Jack as “wholesome and re- on Antarctic history. sourceful” (1). Despite the positive Bransfield’s book on Bransfield image, however, in 1939, the Royal Na- might not be the ultimate book on the vy’s medical services—reduced by aus- early years of Antarctic exploration, terity cutbacks—were hardly ready to but the author should be congratulated maintain the health of the Navy’s men for shedding light on a period of Ant- or confront the realities of combat. The arctic exploration that is way too often challenges faced by the Royal Navy and overshadowed by the later heroic age its medical officers during the Second of Antarctic exploration. Meanwhile, World War, and how the Navy respond- the early exploration of Antarctica still ed to them, is the subject of Brown’s awaits a comprehensive analytical his- book. tory—one that puts Edward Bransfield Royal Navy medical officers of the in his proper spot and for which Sheila Second World War experienced similar Bransfield’s book will be, without any challenges and hardships as faced by 166 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord their First World War predecessors: long was his treatment, or rather suppression, periods of idleness; uncertainty about of mental health issues. As Christopher their non-medical responsibilities; the McKee wrote in Sober Men and True, shock of combat. But there were many there were “powerful expectations on differences as well. The unique physi- the part of the sailor’s peers, his offi- cal and psychological stresses associat- cers, and the Royal Navy that he would ed with aircraft carriers and naval avia- deny any fear as he worked in that dan- tion, for example, were just becoming gerous everyday world” (118). While apparent at the end of the 1914-18 war. McKee was discussing the First World Increases in the fighting power and War, Brown demonstrates that attitudes strength of Second World War ships, had changed little by 1939, and it was and the development of radar, Asdic only after 1943 that the Navy “recog- and high-frequency-direction-finding nized that sailors might be suffering equipment “all required more space at from ‘fatigue’…” (137). Treatment for the expense of personal space for the trauma prioritized denial, suppression seaman… (71). The overcrowded and and rapid reintegration, and medical of- cramped conditions also made it more ficers were “themselves under pressure difficult to maintain a healthy and san- to keep ships’ companies at their duties itary environment, the most important and were at times discouraged from re- duty for the medical officer. porting psychiatric cases. They are told The maintenance of health was that ‘back to duty as soon as he can do also compromised by lower-deck liv- a reasonable day’s work must be your ing arrangements that “would have constant aim.” (147) been all too familiar to the Jack Tar of At times, Brown also draws atten- Nelson’s navy” (81-2). Rats were still tion to the health of merchant seamen. a feature of shipboard life in the Roy- His insights here are particularly in- al Navy during the Second World War, teresting, and while outside the scope as were hammocks, which were some- of his research Fittest of the Fit would times shared by two men on opposite have benefited from further consid- watches. The practice of ‘broadside eration of this ‘sister service.’ Unlike messing’ also remained the norm, under the uniformed members of the armed which each mess member took his turn forces, Brown points out, merchant as cook, server and dish washer. While sailors were largely left without state the system “may have sustained the sol- support, even when the loss of their idarity of the mess and continued a long ship left them destitute and homeless. tradition,” Brown notes that it also re- The crews of torpedoed merchant ships, sulted “in a poorly-cooked, unbalanced Brown writes, “often had to depend on meal.” The medical reports studied by missions to seamen, charitable clothing Brown yield a variety of details about depots, charities for the Merchant Navy, lower-deck life such as these, and his such as the Shipwrecked Mariner’s So- use of them to reconstruct the social ciety, and the generosity of individuals world of the ordinary rating is one the for accommodation and clothing…” book’s greatest strengths. (180-81). In the midst of a world war, The responsibilities of the medical the British state still depended on Vic- officer are discussed in a variety of con- torian working-class institutions to pro- texts—preventative medicine, battle, vide aid to its merchant sailors. naval aviation and submarines—but one A more serious omission is the of the most interesting (and disturbing) health of the Women’s Royal Naval Book Reviews 167 Service (WRNS). While Brown alludes forthpublishing.com, 2019. 144 pp., to the creation of a medical service for illustrations, tables, bibliography. UK the WRNS he does not explore it any £30.00, cloth; ISBN 978-1-52671-873- further, and ‘wrens’ are sometimes por- 0. (E-book available.) trayed in a way that is unfair and even condescending. Women were apparent- First of all, Seaforth should be com- ly “keen to join the wrens” so that they mended for publishing works on these could “don the stylish uniforms” and two ships, as neither of them can be escape more difficult work in the fac- considered “historically” or “techno- tories or the Land Army (16). Brown logically” significant when compared to believes that this “misguided patrio- HMS Dreadnaught, SMS Goeben, USS tism” (16) led women to withhold per- Missouri, Bismarck or Yamato, to name sonal details that may have disqualified a few. Yet together, these books cover them from service, without acknowl- the story of two battleships that mark edging that the practice was common the beginning and the culmination of for male recruits as well, or considering the history of the type, from 1906 -1918 the unequal power relationship between and 1944-1960. Since both volumes a male physician and a female volun- were released at almost the same time teer. Medical screening must have been and cover the same type of ship, it seems an uncomfortable, intimidating and in- fitting to combine them in a joint com- deed, violating experience for a wren, parative review rather than individually. and it is not surprising that some infor- Although designed in different eras, in mation was withheld. their time each ship represented its re- As Brown points out in the preface, spective navy’s needs, design capability the study of health and medicine in the and perceptions of the ideal character- Royal Navy of the Second World War istics of battleships. One of the ironies has advanced relatively little since Jack is that both battleships, admittedly due Coulter’s two -volume history of the to different reasons, were devoid of air- subject, published in 1954 and 1956. craft facilities. Of the two authors, R. In this sense, Fittest of the Fit is a wel- A. Burt is perhaps the best known as a come addition, but hopefully it is just professional naval historian and we can the start. see this volume as the cumulative vol- ume in his series of works on the battle- John R.H. Matchim ships of the Royal Navy (RN). While Fredericton, New Brunswick not as well known, Aidan Dodson has made a reputation for himself as a na- R.A. Burt. The Last British Battleship. val historian, although he is actually an HMS Vanguard 1946-1960. Barn- Egyptologist and a former employee of sley, S. Yorks: Seaforth Publish- the (UK) Ministry of Defence. Neither ing, www.seaforthpublishing.com, of these books is indexed, and their bib- liographies are very limited. Although 2019. 128 pp., illustrations, tables, Burt’s does have two appendixes, they appendices, bibliography. UK are not really significant. Both books £35.00; ISBN 978-1-5267-5226-0. feature some very large foldout draw- Aidan Dodson. German Battle- ings which are very well done. ship Helgoland. Detailed in the orig- Visually, the most striking aspect inal builders’ plans. Barnsley, S. of these volumes is that their attractive Yorks: Seaforth Publishing and the dust-jackets that dispense with the tra- National Maritime Museum, www.sea- 168 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord ditional glossy photo-type paper that is noughts, the Nassau class, on the design traditionally used by this publisher. In- of the Helgoland. stead, they are printed on a more matt Somewhat surprisingly, it seems type of paper stock. Both are relatively that the choice of armament for both slim, folio-sized publications feature Helgoland and HMS Vanguard arose drawing and illustrations of their sub- from design restraints and availability. ject‘s structures and components. Un- In the case of the Helgoland, the Im- fortunately, some of the larger drawings perial Germany Navy realized it had to are slightly distorted or lost when they move from the 280 mm (11”) guns of encounter the folds of their spines. In the Nassau class because it recognized general, there seems to have been a bet- the fact that all the major foreign navies ter effort to limit this perhaps unavoid- had begun to standardize on a 305mm able failing in Dodson’s volume—but (12”) gun. In accepting this increase nonetheless the details of some of his in armament, however, the government drawings are also lost as they overlap was reluctant to further increase their the spine. cost by changing the turret arrange- The major differences of these vol- ment. Consequently, Helgoland and her umes are to be found in their structure sisters retained the Nassau’s relatively and focus. On the one hand, Burt’s vol- inefficient hexagonal layout for their ume is a traditional work, encompassing main armament. A German shipyard a detailed text that is ably complement- contracted to build one of the Helgo- ed by photos and detailed illustrations. lands decided that it would try to short- Indeed, only Burt makes extensive en the construction period for its as- use of photographs, tracing the histo- signed ship by pre-ordering some of its ry of HMS Vanguard in an essentially equipment ahead of time. The British chronological order from the first de- popular press quickly seized upon this sign proposal to her ultimate scrapping. as an indication that Imperial Germany His text is clear, and although he occa- had no intention of respecting its own sionally covers more complex subject naval building laws. This misinterpreta- matters, it is easy to understand. Over- tion helped to trigger the “Naval Panic all, it is a very “busy” work with text, of 1909”. photos and illustrations occasionally As for the Vanguard, its genesis oc- sharing the same page. curred in 1939. At that time, the RN On the other hand, given its differ- was coming to grips with the fact that ent focus and genesis, Dodson’s work the ships of their next class of battle- can be best described as a collection of ships, the Lion class, would probably very detailed drawings of each section not be completed in time for the next of the SMS Helgoland that are ably major war. Then, in March, of that supported by a good, but very brief, year, someone remembered that the history of her class and a selection of a RN had four twin 380 mm (15”) tur- few relatively generic drawings and an rets and matching guns held in storage. extensive collection of reproductions They had been removed from the large of “designer drawings”. Although his First World War cruisers HMS Glorious text is much more succinct than Burt’s, and HMS Courageous when they were it does cover the Imperial Germany Na- converted to aircraft carriers. These vy’s various design choices and the in- mountings could be used to expedite fluence of both the HMS Dreadnought the construction of a much-needed new itself and that of Germany’s first dread- battleship that could be available before Book Reviews 169 any of the Lions. By 1941, the Admi- ments. Dodson also notes that, in many ralty had no choice but to cancel work cases, the structural strength of most of on the Lions, but it officially sanctioned the major Imperial German warships a design for a new battleship that would was severely compromised by their use these mountings. In general, the submerged torpedo facilities. Probably Vanguard can be described as an im- wisely, the author also avoids discuss- proved King George V battleship whose ing what modifications Germany could design was influenced by that of the have made to the Helgoland and her Lions. By 1944, construction slowed other remaining early dreadnoughts— when it was realized that she would no had she been allowed to retain them longer be needed to counter any of the after the First World War. Naturally, remaining Axis battleships. this would have been contingent on the In general, both books cover the High Sea’s Fleet not scuttling itself at history of their subject vessels ade- Scapa Flow in 1919 and the Allies actu- quately, but Burt’s coverage is much ally permitting Germany to retain them, more detailed. He provides a summary which is still very doubtful. of all of the Vanguard’s deployments, Both books feature detailed draw- armament, equipment updates and par- ings of their subjects but, there is no ticipation in fleet-day events. He also doubt that drawings are the raison briefly compares her to her immediate d’être for Dodson’s book. It is essen- contemporaries, the last battleships tially a collection of large-scale design- built by France (Jean Bart) and the er drawings of Helgoland and occasion- United States (USS Missouri). He also ally, her sister ships, reproduced from compares and contrasts her design to stern to stem by section numbers. Each that of the King George V class and the drawing is accompanied by a key, and Lions. While the general arrangement, one would be hard-pressed to find any illustrations, and detailed drawings of missing detail. One striking feature of the Vanguard’s turrets and radar and Dodson’s work is the printing of page other structures and equipment are ex- numbers in red, a wise choice that en- cellent, they clearly pale in comparison ables readers to distinguish pages from to those found in Dodson’s work. the numbered keys to the drawings. In Although Dodson’s coverage is general, Dodson’s book and the oth- less-detailed, he does provide a decent ers of this series can be seen as an im- summary of the design, construction proved version of the famous “Anato- and use of the Helgoland and her three my of the Ship” series, with a greater sisters during the First World War and focus on detailed drawings, but without their subsequent fate. This includes photographs. coverage of the sinking of the SMS Os- Overall, the text of both volumes is tfriesland by US Air Force Commander adequate and very readable, although General Billy Mitchell, noting that she Burt’s is more informative, but this not was leaking prior to the tests, and that surprising given the different design some of her waterproof doors had been context of these volumes. The real removed prior to the bombing tests. strength of Burt’s volume lies in its col- Ostfriesland was sunk during the sec- lection of photographs, while Dodson’s ond day of tests, when Mitchell ignored is essentially the drawings. The latter orders to observe a lull between tests volume does suffer from its complete to allow United States naval officials lack of photographs, and most general to make interim bomb damage assess- readers would probably have a wanted 170 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord to see at least one full-colour profile versions of these papers were collected illustration of the Helgoland. In gen- and edited to create this volume, a use- eral, Burt’s volume should be far more ful and wide-ranging survey of the lit- appealing to both general and specialist erature and needs of modern American readers, while Dodson’s will probably naval history. find its following in a much more spe- The volume covers eight topics: cialized niche of warship aficionados. forward deployment, operations, per- Given that it is the fourth volume of this sonnel, acquisition, science, social his- type to be released by Seaforth publish- tory, strategy, and technology. These ing, they clearly feel that they have a topics were chosen because of their val- winning format here. Despite their dif- ue to current Navy leaders, and there- ferences, both of these volumes should fore, their potential to inform Navy find their way into the libraries of bat- decision-making and thinking. This tleship buffs and perhaps modelers as framework reflects the Command’s vi- well. sion: “to serve our nation, by using the power of history and heritage to en- Peter K. H. Mispelkamp hance the warfighting capability of the Pointe Claire, Quebec U.S. Navy.” Historians tend to view the Command as an archive and source of Michael Crawford (ed.) Needs and Op- historical information. This is only part portunities in the Modern History of of the Command’s mission which is the U.S. Navy. Washington, DC: Naval also to provide practical historical sup- History and Heritage Command, www. port to the Navy today and to manage history.navy.mil, 2018. vii+419pp., il- the Navy’s museums and the Navy’s lustrations, tables, appendices, notes, collection of historical artifacts. bibliography, index. US $82.00, cloth; All of the chapters summarize the ISBN 978-1-943604-11-1. existing literature on their topic before identifying gaps which could be fruit- American naval history is weighted to- fully filled by historians. A common wards the twentieth century. The titles theme that runs throughout the chapters of papers presented at the largest bian- is the problem posed by classification. nual gathering of American naval histo- Many, though not all, of the Navy’s rians, the McMullen Symposium in An- late Cold War records remained clas- napolis, Maryland, demonstrates this sified and must go through a lengthy, fact. The majority of the papers focus declassification process before being on either the era of the two world wars opened to the public. The situation is or the Cold War, while a few examine even more challenging for post-Cold the nineteenth century. Needs and Op- War topics which have not yet reached portunities In the Modern History of the earliest mandatory declassification the U.S. Navy calls upon scholars to de- point, 25 years. vote attention to the post-Second World Thomas Mahnken surveys the lit- War navy, especially the post-Cold erature on forward presence, the prac- War navy. In 2016 and 2017 Michael tice of deploying and maintaining naval Crawford, then Senior Historian at the forces at a distance from the United Naval History and Heritage Command, States. He also offers alternatives to organized a series of talks on the his- the Navy’s current deployment model toriography of various aspects of mod- while highlighting the costs and chal- ern American naval history. Expanded lenges of maintaining large numbers of Book Reviews 171 expensive, highly capable ships on sta- ry of the Navy. The chapter outlines the tion overseas. current literature and emphasizes the Donald Chisolm describes how the opportunities for research on two spe- Navy has ceded a level of control over cific topics: women and Africa-Ameri- its personnel policy to the Department cans in the Navy. of Defense in response to increasing de- Sebastian Bruns’ chapter on nation- mands for jointness. At the same time, al strategy emphasizes the foundational the Navy’s traditional ambivalence to- work done by Peter Swartz and John ward professional military education Hattendorf who have published docu- and emphasis on the divide between ments and surveys on the Navy’s strat- officers and enlisted personnel has en- egy in the late-Cold War and post-Cold dured. War years. The chapter notes that stud- Thomas Hone’s chapter on acquisi- ies of the Navy’s approach to strategy tion provides a wide-ranging survey of are particularly challenging due to the the literature on military acquisition in Navy’s orientation: “the Navy is fun- modern America. He notes that polit- damentally about operations” (282) as ical scientists, journalists, and former opposed to strategy. officials have produced more work Mark Mandeles begins with a sur- on this topic than historians. Recent vey of the literature on the Navy and works in the Defense Acquisition His- technology before identifying a number tory project, however, have shown what of sources of such studies including the historical studies of acquisition can and Defense Science Board. He emphasizes should accomplish. (In the interest of the need to examine the organizations full disclosure, the reviewer was previ- and institutions that perform research ously involved in this project). on technology and integrate technology Gary Weir’s chapter on science ar- into the Navy. He concludes by high- gues that the scientific community is lighting the value of interdisciplinary the Navy’s “most significant partner” groups, such as those at the RAND Cor- and emphasizes the need for historians poration in the early Cold War, to study to examine the professional cultures topics of interest to the Navy, such as of naval officers and scientists. Such technological development. examination would allow historians This volume is available on the to better study the interaction between Command website and would be most these two groups. The chapter notes useful to scholars interested in doing that some scholars criticize naval fund- naval history. In particular, graduate ing of science for its distorting influ- students looking for masters or doctoral ence on scientific inquiry. Gary Weir topics should find considerable value in notes that these critiques have merit in this volume. some instances but less in others. He highlights several works on science and Corbin Williamson the Navy that have relied almost entire- Prattville, Alabama ly on scientific, not naval, sources to their detriment. Norman Friedman. British Submarines Edward Marolda understands the in Two World Wars. Barnsley, S. Yorks: US Navy’s social history as the pursuit Seaforth Publishing, www.seaforthpub- of equality within the Navy by minori- lishing.com, 2019. 452 pp., illustra- ties. He argues that progress has been tions, notes, bibliography, appendices, slow and calls for a general social histo- submarine data, submarine list, index. 172 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord UK £40.00, US $88.00, cloth. ISBN further added to the submarine’s effec- 978-1-5267-4767-9. (E-book available) tiveness. Working with Vickers which, as Electric Boat’s licensee in Europe, “A damned un-English weapon” is what could use Holland’s patents in their de- Sir Arthur Wilson, the Third Sea Lord, signs, the Royal Navy soon ordered sev- reportedly proclaimed when he acceded eral different classes of submarines for to George Goschen‘s desire to order the their fleet. Much of Friedman’s story Royal Navy’s first submarines. Yet the in these chapters is of experimentation five Holland boats purchased from the in search of a satisfactory combination Electric Boat Company in December of attributes, an effort that was compli- 1900 became the foundation of a force cated by the navy’s inability to settle on that by 1914 was the world’s largest, a mission for these new craft. Would going on to serve with distinction in two submarines be employed primarily world wars. While numerous books for harbour defense? Short-range pa- have been written about the daring ex- trol? Fleet operations? As the rapidly ploits of these vessels and their crews, advancing technology expanded the the boats themselves have not received possibilities of what submarines could the same degree of attention lavished on accomplish, the Admiralty explored the the design histories of the battleships, full range of alternatives, all of which aircraft carriers and other ships of the required designs with significantly dif- Royal Navy. This deficit has now been ferent specifications. Because of this, rectified by Norman Friedman, who by the start of the First World War the turns his formidable scholarly attention British possessed an eclectic force of to chronicling the evolution of British submarines designed for everything submarines from their first small craft from harbour operations to ocean trav- to the sophisticated boats developed el, reflecting differing theories awaiting based on the lessons of two wars fought resolution by the test of experience. across the oceans of the world. Friedman extends the story of ex- While Friedman’s book surveys perimentation into his chapters on nearly a half-century of submarine de- British submarines during the conflict, sign, he devotes the first third of the describing how, through practice, the text to the development of British sub- British gradually settled on how best marines in just the fifteen years lead- to employ their new weapons of war. ing up to the First World War. This As the submarine settled into its pri- involves a careful detailing of not only mary role as ocean-going ship-killers, the evolution of submarine design and the British focused on designing larg- construction, but the sometimes pro- er submarines with the endurance and tracted haggling over patents and rights habitability necessary for extended pa- to the newly-developed craft. The trols. This culminated in the “L” class, submarine’s emergence during this pe- an elongated version of the prewar “E” riod reflected a series of simultaneous class that was the mainstay of the sub- technological triumphs, as the recent- marine force during the war, yet the de- ly-invented internal combustion engine feat of Germany soon forced designers along with John L. Holland’s resolution back to the drawing board. Germany’s of the persistent buoyancy issue togeth- loss meant the most likely threat to Brit- er made underwater vessels practical ish naval supremacy would come from for the first time. Subsequent innova- Japan, and engage the Royal Navy in tions, such as the addition of periscopes, conditions very different from those in Book Reviews 173 which submarines previously operated. ond volume to come that will cover the Therefore, a new class of submarine history of British submarine design in was developed—the “O” class—that the post-war era, one that will become was better suited for distant patrolling part of a comprehensive overview that and tropical conditions than previous no scholar in the field can afford to ig- designs. nore. Any new boats had to be built, Mark Klobas however, within the constraints of post- Phoenix, Arizona war circumstances. With Britain’s fi- nances depleted by the war, a succes- sion of governments turned to arms William H. Garzke Jr., Robert O. Dulin control as a means of reducing defence Jr., and William J. Jurens, with James expenditures without jeopardizing na- Cameron. Battleship Bismarck: A De- tional security. These efforts extended sign and Operational History. Annap- to submarines, with even King George olis: Naval Institute Press, www.usni. V calling for their total abolition after org, 2019. x+610 pp., illustrations, Britain’s narrow escape from Germa- photographs, maps, tables, appendices, ny’s U-boat blockade. While abolition notes, bibliography, index. US $95.00, was rejected, the prospect in the 1920s cloth; ISBN 978-1-5911-4569-1. of tonnage limits stimulated the devel- opment of new submarines, most nota- Battleship Bismarck is a big book that bly the “S” class. As the prospects for delves into the fateful life of the famous war grew in both Europe and the Far German battleship from its inception to East in the 1930s, the Admiralty or- demise at the hands of the Royal Navy. dered new classes of submarines, the Named after Otto von Bismarck, nine- “T” class attack boats and the smaller teenth-century Germany’s first Chan- “U” class boats for training and short cellor and master political strategist, the patrols. As a result, the Royal Navy warship was a potent symbol of naval entered the Second World War with a power under the Nazi regime of Adolf large and diverse fleet of submarines, Hitler during the Second World War. which they further built up both with re- Almost too precious ever to be used, peat orders of existing classes and new Bismarck reflected the lingering ambi- designs such as the “A” class, which tions of the German naval staff to have would continue to serve in the fleet well a fleet of large surface units to match into the post-war era. Germany’s opponents and the reluc- Friedman details the evolution of tance of the land-centric polity to un- British submarine design in a text sup- derstand and employ the navy properly plemented with numerous photographs in a combined fashion with the air force and diagrams of the boats described in and army. The warship and its crew it. The amount of scholarship on dis- sallied out on a mission of no return. play is impressive, reflecting a consid- Sister ships Scharnhorst and Tirpitz, erable amount of archival research as the British Prince of Wales, as well as well as Friedman’s own extensive fa- the Japanese super battleship Yamamoto miliarity with his subject. Thanks to his succumbed to equally spectacular and labours, this book can stand alongside tragic sinkings. The search for and dis- Friedman’s other histories of British covery of Bismarck’s final resting place warship design as the definitive history at the bottom of the ocean in 1989 by of its subject—and with a promised sec- Robert Ballard, discoverer of the Titan- 174 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord ic wreck, and subsequent deep-sea film- as Rheinübung to have a combination ing by Canadian movie director James of major surface ships supported by Cameron gave the Nazi battleship a submarines range into the North Atlan- certain notoriety in documentaries and tic to attack shipping. Most convoys on specialty channels. William Garzke were escorted by a single battleship or and Robert Dulin, a pair of naval archi- battlecruiser, and having a battleship tects, and William Jurens, a university like Bismarck included in the package graphics engineering instructor, shared put the odds in Germany’s favour. The a lifelong fascination with Bismarck Kriegsmarine, however, lacked sup- and worked as consultants with Cam- porting air power because inter-service eron. They founded and belong to the rivalries delayed completion of the air- marine forensics committee affiliated craft carrier Graf Zeppelin and intend- with the Society of Naval Architects ed operating areas were beyond the and Marine Engineers (SNAME). Re- range of land-based maritime bombers search and compilation for the book, stationed in Norway and France. Ae- which pre-dates by several decades the rial reconnaissance and signals intelli- committee and ocean dives, comes to- gence allowed the British to track the gether to provide an almost definitive movements of Bismarck and its con- examination of the German warship sorts to Norway and then toward the from beginning to end. Denmark Strait, sufficient for British What sets Battleship Bismarck warships to be mustered and searching. apart from most books dealing with Middle chapters recount the encoun- major capital ships is the depth of tech- ter between opposing naval forces and nical knowledge and analysis applied the gun battle that set off an explosion to the topic and details that place the aboard HMS Hood and its quick sink- warship in its era and particular oper- ing. The authors assess that loss of the ational context. Chapters in the first older British battlecruiser represented hundred pages describe the effect of more than just a lucky shot, hits in- interwar naval arms limitations on bat- flicted on the newest battleship Prince tleship design and construction, build- of Wales were significant, and damage ing, launch, and commissioning of Bis- to Bismarck was manageable, though marck at the Blohm and Voss shipyard it affected the critical factors of speed in August 1940, work-up and sea trials and endurance. Hitler, now aware and before becoming fully operational, and not particularly happy about the naval the Kriegsmarine’s actions during the operation, ordered the warship home. first years of the war in cruiser- war Due to British ship dispositions, return fare and support to seaborne invasion to Norway, the shortest route, was too in Scandinavia and plans against Great risky and the admiral aboard Bismarck Britain contingent upon success of the decided to head for France. The next Luftwaffe. The large German warship chapters describe the pursuit by the incorporated a number of innovative Royal Navy that featured air strikes that and interesting features, particularly crippled and slowed down Bismarck in regarding armaments, habitability, fuel order to allow superior surface forces to arrangements, and propulsion, to allow catch-up and deliver a knock-out blow. operations in the Atlantic Ocean for up Four chapters cover the final battle from to three months at a time. Without in- almost every angle and phase that saw forming Hitler first, the German naval Bismarck pummeled and hit by shell staff planned a major operation known fire and torpedoes. The authors note Book Reviews 175 that the design stability inherent in the as prisoners of war in Great Britain and German warship delayed sinking and Canada. Josef Statz and Burkard Baron caused greater loss of life from direct von Müllenheim-Rechberg, the highest and indirect British fire as the crew ranking officer to live, each wrote their tried to leave the ship. The Royal Na- own personal tales of Bismarck and vy’s major warships were short on fuel interacted with the authors over many from the chase and immediately depart- years. The enduring question whether ed after the battle, leaving cruisers and the crew scuttled or the British sank the destroyers to pick up survivors from the German warship really does not matter oily waters. A patrolling U-boat found one way or another. three men in a life raft afterwards, who The format and production qual- returned to Germany and received a ity of the book are very high. The personal debriefing with Hitler. glossy pages provide for very clear The final chapters, perhaps the most photographs in colour and black and interesting in the book, detail what hap- white, which are distributed generously pened after Bismarck slipped beneath throughout the book. Chapter numbers the waves. With the aid of original ship and headings have stylized ship silou- models and coloured photographs taken ettes. Many tables, maps, and course underwater from Cameron, the authors plots accompany the text. The compre- painstakingly assess the battle damage hensive 20-page index is impressive in on the wrecked warship peeling back, detail and scope, and very well-laid out like an onion, the various layers of oper- for reference purposes. Battleship Bis- ational encounters and the final plunge marck is a heavy book both by weight through the water column to the seabed. and serious content. Bismarck capsized and sank bow first as the stern detached and several turrets Chris Madsen dropped, hitting the side of a seamount Toronto, Ontario right-way up and then sliding down a slope across its own debris field before Frederick H. Hanselmann. Captain coming to rest. Rusticles, icicle-like Kidd’s Lost Ship. The Wreck of the microorganism phenomena identified Quedagh Merchant. Gainesville, FL: by Ballard, are slowly eating away at the University Press of Florida, www.up- damaged sections of the warship where ress.ufl.edu, 2019. xxii+198 pp., illus- steel was exposed. Pairs of boots and trations, maps, tables, chronology, bib- leather clothing littering the seafloor liography, index. US $85.00, hardback; testify to long dead crew members that ISBN 978-0-830-5622-7. went down with the warship. Accounts of survivors, used by the authors to ver- Archaeology, or a derivative of the ify certain facts and technical aspects, word, is used in six of the seven sen- supplement the analysis. The British tences of the introductory paragraph of destroyer Cossack plucked a soaked and Captain Kidd’s Lost Ship: The Wreck of bedraggled black and white cat from the Quedagh Merchant. Yes, Frederick floating debris who was renamed Herr Hanselmann leads the reader on a deep Oscar and promptly joined the ship’s dive into the theoretical and practical company. Most of those who survived application of archaeology as prac- the battle and frigid waters to be res- ticed on an ever-diminishing resource, cued by the Royal Navy were destined a shipwreck. This monograph explores to spend the rest of the war in captivity the complexities of the myth and reali- 176 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord ty of the privateer/pirate Captain Kidd preserving a rare archaeological site by through the examination of contempo- exposing it to the vagaries of market rary textural materials and the evalua- forces, tourism. A well thought-out and tion of artifactual evidence from a Ca- integrated program involving local, re- ribbean shipwreck site. That research gional, national and international input is combined with modern scientific has been created to develop a unique analysis which aids determining truth economic and educational opportuni- from fable. And while many archaeol- ty for the local community as well as ogy studies result in a report after the the multitudes of foreign tourists who complete excavation of a site, Hansel- visit the Dominican Republic. Captain mann’s study is concluded with a well Kidd’s Lost Ship demonstrates how a reasoned argument for preservation of well researched, planned and executed such a unique resource by leaving the archaeological project can contribute to remaining archaeological material in the continued interface via preservation situ to develop a publicly-accessible, in situ of a site with the community in protected marine area. which the archaeologists were privi- The book’s initial chapter is theory leged to work. Is that not what one of heavy, letting the reader know that the the ideals of archaeology is, to expose following is going to be an academical- the broadest constituency to the knowl- ly-based study, not a romantic rehash- edge gained from research? ing of a story that has built up a my- Some readers may find the volume thology of its own. The following two a bit pedantic, archaeological theory chapters are a dive into the actual histo- is presented, discussed and deliber- ry of Kidd and his times, deconstructing ated. But that is because this study is global, national, regional and individual not just the examination of physical re- systems to gain a better perspective on mains of a shipwreck, but the process the significance of the remains of the used to scrutinize and determine what Quedagh Merchant. Hanselmann ex- the proper course of action to take re- poses the reader to multiple networks in garding them. Illustrations and map- the Americas, Britain, Madagascar, and ping are two components that assist in south Asia. These factors contribute to constructing a strong archaeological the story of a vessel that was constructed document. The initial figure, identify- in India and was part of trading system ing the project area, is of poor utility for that intertwined Armenian merchants, easy site location. All the images in the the English East India Company and text are in black and white, which for the Mughal Empire of India, and which the untrained eye may appear similar was ultimately scuttled in the Caribbe- to Rorschach tests, especially for the an Sea after a cruise through the Indian mosaic, 3-D photogrammetric models Ocean. The fourth chapter is the stuff and site images. Better mapping, the of a more typical archaeological inves- use of colour, or other modifications to tigation and identification. Utilizing the images to help differentiate cultural the historic record in conjunction with from natural features could add infor- the remaining archaeological material, mational value. These issues are minor, Hanselmann makes a credible argument considering the intent of the text is to that the shipwreck examined is, indeed, demonstrate the historical archaeolog- that of the Quedagh Merchant. The ical processes that were conducted in final chapter presents a pragmatic and order to make decisions regarding the inventive way of both protecting and treatment of the in situ remains of a sin- Book Reviews 177 gular wreck site. Maine and Texas, the Oregon class With this monograph, Dr. Hansel- first-class battleships and the Iowa. The mann demonstrates that he is a deft illustrations include many contempo- practitioner of both the theoretical as- rary photographs, excellent profiles in pects as well the practical application colour of all classes and reproductions of methods and techniques in the field of paintings, including action scenes. of maritime archaeology. This study Tables provide details of the ships’ is not for the casual reader, shipwreck technical specifications while brief dis- hunter, or pirate enthusiast. It is a sol- cussions of their design, their positive id and well researched archaeological qualities and their drawbacks, provide a study with firm foundations for its con- wealth of information in compact form. clusions and suggested post-excavation After describing the ships, the au- activities for a unique site. Practitioners thor recounts the events of the war. of maritime/nautical archaeology will The destruction of the Maine in Hava- find this volume useful for theoretical na harbour, believed at the time to be perspectives and post-field site activi- caused by a Spanish mine, was used as ties. Captain Kidd’s Lost Ship, should the proximate cause of the war. (Sub- also make valuable contribution to the sequent analysis has determined that it reading list of any serious student of was probably accidental). There was maritime archaeology. no space in this slim volume for de- tailed discussion of fleet deployments Michael C. Tuttle. but there were bombardments of ports Clarksville, Tennessee in Cuba and Puerto Rico when the mon- itors, which had been built for coast- Brian Lane Herder. US Navy Battleships al defence, assumed the role that type 1886-1898. The pre-dreadnoughts and of warship would play in both World monitors that fought the Spanish-Amer- Wars. Finally, we have the Battle of ican War. Oxford, UK: Osprey Publish- Santiago and the destruction of Admi- ing, www.ospreypublishing.com, 2019. ral Cervera’s squadron (Almirante Pas- 48 pp., illustrations, tables, bibliog- cual Cervera y Topete). This review- raphy, index. UK £11.99, US $19.00, er cannot resist mentioning that one CDN $25.00, paper; ISBN978-1-4726- of his great-uncles was serving in the 3502-4. USS Texas on that occasion. It should be noted that neither of the American This colourful, compact, yet compre- flag officers, Rear-Admiral William T. hensive book describes the six moni- Sampson and Commodore Winfield tors, two second-class battleships and Scott Schley, used any of the ships de- four first-class battleships that took part scribed in the book as their flagship, in the 1898 Spanish-American war and preferring instead the armoured cruisers also four more monitors that were or- USS New York and Brooklyn, probably dered as a result of public concern over because of their speed. what was seen as lack of defence for The book ignores Commodore East Coast ports. The background to Dewey’s victory at Manilla because the development of the “New Navy” is none of the ships described were pres- first discussed along with a description ent, but two monitors crossed the Pacif- of the naval weapons of the time. The ic to reinforce him. They were too late following chapters describe in turn the to fight the Spanish but were employed monitors, the second-class battleships against the Philippine forces fighting 178 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord for independence, as was the USS Ore- two in Canadian ports. Upon identifi- gon. That battleship was famous for its cation, U-boats were escorted to Eriboll epic voyage from California to Florida by Royal Canadian Navy Escort Group at the start of the war. Its hull survived 9 and Royal Navy Escort Group 21. until the Second World War as an am- In accord with the terms of surren- munition barge and in 1944 was fired at der U-boats were ordered to: 1) surface by Japanese forces at Guam. immediately and remain surfaced; 2) This slim book deals with a defin- report their position immediately to the able and limited subject in a commend- nearest Allied station; 3) fly a large back able fashion and is one of a series de- or blue flag by day; 4) burn navigation scribing mostly USN ships of various lights by night; 5) jettison all ammuni- classes and periods. It contains a lot of tion, remove breach blocks from guns information and does not take up much and render torpedoes and mines safe; 6) room on your bookcase. Recommend- make all signals in plain language; 7) ed. follow instructions to proceed to Allied ports; 8) refrain from scuttling or dam- C. Douglas Maginley aging the boat. Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia Even the act of surrender was fraught with danger. Aboard U-1109 David M. Hird. The Grey Wolves of officers conferred over whether the Eriboll. Dunbeath, UK: Whittles Pub- messages were legitimate or from the lishing, www.whittlespublishing.com, British Secret service. As U-992 ap- 2018. Revised edition. xvii+270 pp., proached the pier at Harstadt, some- illustrations, maps, appendices, bibli- one ashore called “The war is over” ography. UK £18.99, US $23.95, paper; to which a crew member asked “Who ISBN 978-1-84995-165-4. won?” Justice can triumph even in the injustice of war. Rumour aboard U-992 Some of Mars’ memories are anticli- was that the captain had been reported mactic in retrospect but tense and un- by the onboard Gestapo agent and was certain in real time. The Grey Wolves to be tried for treason upon return to of Eriboll collects memories of the Germany. After surrender the captain surrender of the German U-boat fleet asked for permission to submerge to in May 1945. Loch Eriboll is an iso- correct a problem. The Gestapo agent lated, deep water harbour in northern was ordered forward to check that a gun Scotland. Though utilized as a British was secured. While he was doing so on anchorage between the wars, it was the top deck, the boat submerged. Not little used during the Second World all followed their orders. Some scuttled War. Largely unknown, it was isolat- their boats while others considered flee- ed, away from shipping lanes and, with ing to Argentina. A few expected their no permanent naval base, provided no captivity to be brief as the announce- targets against which a rouge U-boat ment of surrender would be shown to commander could make a final show of be merely a ruse to permit Germans defiance. In August 1944 it was desig- and Allies to unite to fight the Russians, nated as the principal reception location while others made clear that they were for operating U-boats at the end of the not glad the war was over—“not under war. Thirty-three boats would be pro- these circumstances.” cessed at Eriboll. Others were captured This book consists of accounts in German and Norwegian ports while drawn from writings by both Allied at least two surrendered at Gibraltar and and German sailors, contemporary Book Reviews 179 newspaper accounts, photographs and Kerry Jang. Large Scale Ship Models. numerous maps and tables. Lists of From Kits to Scratch Building. Barn- the U-boats escorted to Loch Eriboll sley, S. Yorks: Seaforth Publishing, include the chronology of each one’s www.seaforthpublishing.com, 2019. keel laying, launching, commission- 110 pp., illustrations, index of plans. ing, circumstances of capture and the UK £25.00, cloth; ISBN 978-5267- disposition of the boat and crew along 3096-1. (E-book available.) with a drawing of the boat’s emblem, if any. I found the emblems and their The title of this book was an instant explanations to be among the most in- magnet, beckoning with the immediate teresting facts presented. Brief biogra- question of what (and why) is ‘Large phies of the captains of the surrendered Scale’. Large, after all, is relative, and boats, both of their wartime and post- any model is by definition smaller than war experiences, place the war in a hu- the prototype. So, to what end ‘Large’; man context. Narrations of life aboard and where lies the demarcation be- a U-boat and comparison of U-boats to tween large and something lesser? The Royal Navy submarines acquaint the answer lies in that natural fascination reader with how onerous U-boat service with ships as dynamic objects, casting was. The distinction between smaller a curling bow-wave and that distinctive submersibles and larger submarines Kelvin wave train that is the signature clarified their definitions in my mind. of all objects, from swans to ships, Explanations of the legend of the King moving on the water surface. Early-on of Norway’s and Hitler’s yacht were in- Jang reveals his interest in producing teresting additions to the main story. a working, floating, and self-propelled The agreements reached at Pots- model as an expression of this interest, dam provided that 30 U-boats would be and this then is the primary driver of retained and divided between the Unit- ‘large’. But he admits another impulse ed States, the United Kingdom and the also, the desire to model ship features Soviet Union. Others were sunk in the and fittings with sufficient detail that open sea, often in ways that provided the overall impression is that of a real practice in gunnery techniques. The ship rather than a general facsimile. table of surviving boats and their loca- The other theme that runs through tions may be helpful for war tourists. the book is the author’s philosophy of I learned some things of interest modelling. He describes his evolution but I recommend this tome primari- from a kit modeller to a scratch build- ly for serious students of the German er and describes the growing sense of U-boat service or topics focusing on the satisfaction and freedom with the latter subjects it addresses. While a general approach, allowing for improvisation reader of Second World War II history and an “it’s-the-journey-not-the-desti- may find some matters that educate, nation” state of modelling ‘zen’. Jang few need to know about the histories of describes the revelation of this other di- individual boats or their captains, how- mension of modelling, the joy and cap- ever heroic or unique their sagas may tivation of time spent inventing or dis- be. I think it goes into too much detail covering ways of fabricating items, or for most readers. modifying them to look more realistic, rather than just a head-long rush in the James M. Gallen assembly of pre-made parts. St. Louis, Missouri This is a slim volume and so, can 180 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord hardly be a comprehensive manual of age of the various adhesives and putties. modelling technique. Rather it is an The author does a particularly good job exemplar of what is possible, and a discussing the objectives, techniques quick Cook’s tour of some of the key and approach to painting in order to aspects. For those interested in starting achieve a realistic, worn look. Given with large scale models or transitioning the driving interest in a ‘working’ mod- from an all-kitted model to a bare-hull el, there are separate chapters devot- starting point, the chapter on sources of ed to the installation and alignment of supply is particularly useful. This out- ‘running gear’ (shafts, propellers, struts, lines the variety of kits, semi-kits, hulls, and rudders) and to the installation and equipment, and fittings available, and commissioning of radio control. Again, the typical scales involved. The scales there are other books that cover this lat- generally range (according to the size ter in more detail, but the coverage here of prototype) from 1:96 through 1:72 is appropriate and adequate in the bal- to 1:48 (this latter, the traditional scale ance of this slim volume. of Admiralty drawings, and a favour- There is a brief mention and list of ite with builders of working submarine resources, publications, and references, models). The largest model hull avail- but I found the book lacking in its dis- able seems to be that of HMS Hermes cussion of the sources and availability at 1:72 (which would make for a model of plans. There were two passing men- some 10.3 ft in length overall! (21) Of tions of the plans of Norman Ough (35, interest to Canadian readers, Jang also 106) in connection with the HMS Dar- notes the availability of hulls of HMCS ing (H16) model, but the assumption Halifax FFH330 class (at both 1:96 seems to be that drawings will be ac- and 1:72 scales) and HMCS Iroquois quired with the hull or model kit. This DDH280 class (at 1:72 scale). lack of discussion is all the more curi- The author goes beyond the lim- ous in light of a number of comments its of fully-kitted models in discussing about elements of kits not conforming the custom casting of items, the pro- to drawings. duction of repetitive parts, and various A key feature of this book is the tricks to impart realism, such as use of collection of full colour photographs, resin rivet decals, or the use of putty to 212 in all, illustrating the text and in- model tarps. In tune with the discov- cluding a final 13-page gallery of the ery of self-sufficiency in modelling not- author’s own completed models: HMS ed above, the author observes that the Charybdis, a modified Leander-Class ability to depart from dependence on frigate (1:72 = 62 in length overall stock parts can be very rewarding. This (LOA)); HMS Tyne, a River-Class OPV particularly resonates when he notes is- (1:96 = 32.5 in. LOA); HMS Daring, sues of accuracy regarding the CNC-cut a Type-45 destroyer (1:72 = 83.5 in. superstructure sets: “On the set I had, LOA); and HMS Daring (H16), a ‘D’- the CNC cutting was incorrect and the Class destroyer (1:96 = 40.2 in. LOA). superstructure was too short when com- These show the impressive end result of pared to the plans. In frustration the su- some of the techniques covered in the perstructure set was stomped on and a preceding chapters. new one built from styrene in half the The book also records another of time with half the effort.” (66) the author’s singular accomplishments; The discussion of tools is cursory that is, convincing his significant other but adequate, while there is good cover- to accept a seven-foot long, cased, Type- Book Reviews 181 45 model on display in their home! The in the cold, dark waters of Scapa Flow fact that the author is a professor of psy- off the coast of Scotland in 1919. This chiatry at UBC may suggest that he has historic event brought to a close the era some special skills of persuasion that of the “New Navalism” and the An- were brought to bear, though he does glo-German Naval Race, which had be- mention sweet talking and gifts as part gun during the years leading up to 1914. of the negotiation strategy. The naval conflict in the First World Overall, this is a worthwhile vol- War did not end in a twentieth centu- ume that rekindles a latent interest and ry “Trafalgar,” the decisive victory for tempts one to reopen the dusty box of which the British had hoped. Instead, modelling tools. For those who might the German Navy remained intact, be interested in reading a parallel take but having lost the war, was forced to but from a different historical era, I surrender its ships. The British Royal can also recommend William Mowll’s Navy, though badly bloodied at Jutland, Building a Working Model Warship maintained its global naval dominance, (Chatham Publishing, 1997, 200 pp.) and the Grand Fleet remained unchal- which documents the building of a lenged. working model of HMS Warrior (1:48 Just days before the Armistice was = LOA > 8 ft) complete with sails, a signed in France in November 1918, working steam plant, and authentic ending fighting on the Western Front hawser, cable and shroud-laid rope. and the First World War, crews in the This book is complementary to Jang’s German Imperial Navy mutinied. Jelli- work in providing many more details of coe provides a detailed account of the technique, including the custom mould- Kiel mutiny, which had lasting conse- ing of the hull. quences for Germany and Europe, in- cluding the end of the German Empire Richard W. Greenwood and the establishment of the Weimar Victoria, British Columbia Republic. Shipboard living conditions had become intolerable as socialist and Nicholas Jellicoe. The Last Days of the communist factions grew. German sail- High Seas Fleet: From Mutiny to Sca- ors were aware of the 1917 revolution pa Flow. Barnsley, S. Yorks: Seaforth in Russia and the collapse of the impe- Publishing, www.pen-and-sword.co.uk, rial system. Word of a possible last sui- 2019. 351 pp., illustrations, tables, cidal sailing against the British Grand photographs, bibliography, index. UK Fleet triggered the mutiny. Shootings £25.00; US $39.95, hardcover; ISBN broke out as sailors turned against their 978-1-5267-5458-5. officers and formed revolutionary ship- board governing committees. “This Historian Nicholas Jellicoe, author of Navy!” Jellicoe quotes a German dip- Jutland: The Unfinished Battle, has lomat exclaiming, “It was spawned by now completed his story of the igno- world power arrogance, ruined our for- minious end of the German Imperial eign policy for twenty years, failed to Navy. The Last Days of the High Seas keep its promises during the war, and Fleet explains how the annihilation of has now kindled revolution.” the German navy did not come with the As the victorious Allies met at the blazing guns that fired during the Bat- Palace of Versailles in June 1919 to tle of Jutland in 1916 off the coast of conclude a peace treaty with Germany, Denmark, but with its suicidal scuttling the German Navy was ordered to intern- 182 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord ment, first to Rosyth in Scotland and acy and numerical superiority, espe- then to Scapa Flow, farther north in the cially over the French and Americans. Orkney Islands. Jellicoe paints a vivid Japan’s rising navalist ambitions were picture of the German naval internment also of concern. and surrender at Rosyth, where the Brit- Another option for settling the Al- ish spared no effort to inflict humilia- lies’ dispute over the German ships was tion on the defeated German Navy. Ad- to dispose of them literally—by sinking miral David Beatty staged the surrender them. Churchill opposed this option. ceremony with a large portrait of Ad- “What spectacle could be more foolish miral Horatio Nelson staring down on than for Britain and America to begin the German naval officers in his cabin by sinking all of those fine German aboard the flagship, HMS Queen Eliz- ships? And then starting to waste ma- abeth. terial and money on building new ones? Once the German ships moved to It is fit for a madhouse,” Churchill said. Scapa Flow, their lightly-manned crews Knowing that the Americans were fell under the watchful eye of the Brit- determined to reach parity with the Roy- ish Royal Navy, but the ships legally al Navy, Churchill wrote Prime Minister remained German property. Winston Lloyd George suggesting he agree to the Churchill, as First Lord of the Admiral- Americans’ request. Churchill reasoned ty before 1914, had been concerned that that if the Americans were denied, they Scapa Flow be defended adequately. would build new superior ships, which “Nothing should stand in the way of the the British would then have to match. equipment of this anchorage with every Instead, Lloyd George decided to sup- possible means of security,” he said. port Britain’s alliance with Japan over The internment at Scapa Flow was its relationship with the United States, difficult for the captives, according to frustrating Churchill. “There could no Jellicoe, as the British had little concern more fatal policy than that of basing for German comfort. They supplied our naval policy on a possible combi- water and coal but then invoiced Ger- nation with Japan against the U.S.,” he many for them. Poor-quality food for observed. the ships’ crews was transported from Ultimately, tension over divvying an impoverished Germany, and the in- up the German ships vaporized spec- terned crews fortified their diets by tacularly. As peace treaty negotiations capturing and cooking the occasional were drawing to a close, Germany be- seagull. Not surprisingly, disease broke came concerned about the fate of their out—including scurvy—onboard the interned ships. The Germans knew that rat-infested ships. Medical assistance surrendering their ships to the Allies was very limited, and no dentists were would not only be a national disgrace, made available to the Germans. but it could bolster the British fleet and For the victorious Allies, the more perhaps one day, be used against them. than 70 German naval vessels in Scapa Germany had always considered scut- Flow presented a massive disposal is- tling their ships to prevent that fate and sue. Jellicoe lays out the argument each had made careful plans for the possi- naval power made regarding its claim to bility. When the British squadron left these navigable spoils of war. France Scapa Flow for brief naval exercises, demanded the lion’s share, an unpalat- the Germans seized the opportunity. able position to the British, who were What has been called “the greatest anxious to maintain their naval suprem- act of naval self-immolation,” began Book Reviews 183 on June 21, 1919. Jellicoe describes Mark Jessop. The Royal Navy 1793- the scuttling in great detail for every 1800: Birth of a Superpower. Barnsley, major ship in the fleet. After the com- S. Yorks: Pen and Sword History, www. mand to scuttle the ships had been sig- pen-and-sword.co.uk, 2018. x+190pp, naled, German crews began flooding notes, bibliography, index. UK £19.99, their ships. About two hours later, the US $34.95, cloth; ISBN 978-1-52672- ships—each with the German Imperial 033-7. flag raised on its mast—started to sink. Early witnesses included a large group It is difficult to categorize Mark Jes- of schoolchildren, who had come to see sop’s book. He has taken as his subject the German fleet at anchor and could not the first eight years of the French Revo- believe their eyes. Their descriptions lutionary and Napoleonic Wars that ap- are among the most interesting part of parently witnessed the transformation the book. Jellicoe notes that several of of Great Britain from an ill-equipped the children later made audiotapes of and ill-prepared nation into a maritime what they had seen that day. global superpower. Jessop did serve as Mayhem broke out as the British a communicator in the Royal Navy and, ships returned from exercises. They according to the bibliographical note on were able to save very few of the the dust jacket, taught ‘philosophy, the- ships—52 of the original 74 had been ology and enterprise.’ His aim with this sunk—and a few German sailors were book is to demonstrate the transforma- shot and killed in the disorder. tion of the ‘old Kingdom of Great Brit- Scapa Flow is now a quiet, deserted ain’ into the ‘United Kingdom of Great place, with only century-old memories Britain and Ireland’ in 1800 occasioned of vanished British and German sea by the crucible of war and the success- power rivalry. Nicholas Jellicoe’s The ful resistance of the threat from France. Last Days of the High Seas Fleet brings His technique involves introducing back to life the events that took place each chapter with a fictional sketch de- there. His book should stand as the signed to engender mood and a flavour definitive study of this event. Backed of the times as experienced by various by impressive research, the author pro- characters, some invented, some his- vides readers with vast amounts of in- torical, who participated in the actions formation, if not always written in the described. Footnotes are largely nine- most engaging style. A minor com- teenth century, either contemporaneous plaint is that the smooth flow of the sources, or published accounts. These book is interrupted by German phrases, are intended to emphasize the verisimil- which, though translated, are distract- itude of the fictional element as well as ing. His selection of the photoplates is provide definitions of nautical terms or excellent, and the book includes an up- asides to present detail not incorporated to-date bibliography. Jellicoe’s book in the story. The methodology of these makes a unique contribution to the his- notes is highly idiosyncratic and does toric record of what was the final act of not reliably follow standard academic Imperial German sea power. practice. The bibliography on which the notes rely is restricted to material W. Mark Hamilton published before 1900. There is not a Alexandria, Virginia single reference to recent scholarship at all. The book is divided into eight 184 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord chapters, all with titles redolent of nine- companies the text, which also includes teenth-century jingoism. Each fictional some maps that lay out the geography introduction segues into a discussion of relevance to the account. The index of some aspect of naval warfare. One is comprehensive, making it relatively typical chapter, “Heart of Oak are our easy to explore specific issues of inter- Ships”, includes a fictionalised account est. The bibliography is a useful sum- of the 1793 action of HMS Nymphe and mation of contemporary and near-con- the Cleopatre—one of Captain Edward temporary accounts and provides a Pellew’s legendary fights—and then starting point for research, albeit ne- shifts into a narrative on warships. He glecting anything after 1900. then describes the basic system of ship ‘rates’, as well as some details into Ian Yeates dockyard work, expenses, manning and Regina, Saskatchewan anecdotes. This structure is repeated throughout the book. It is a most ex- Philip Kaplan. Hitler’s D-Day Defenc- traordinary compilation. es. Barnsley, S. Yorks: Pen & Sword This book is not an academic en- Books Ltd., www.pen-and-sword. terprise. It may be of interest to a lay co.uk, 2017. 176 pp., illustrations, bibli- audience that wishes to get a taste of ography, index. UK £25.00, US $39.95, what naval life may have been like at cloth; ISBN 978-1-52670-540-2 the ‘ordinary person’ level. There is nothing wrong in such an endeavour, One immortal scene in the 1962 mov- but the structure and organization lead ie The Longest Day shows a German to a hit-or-miss approach to the subject officer on the morning of 6 June 1944, and a loss of coherence. As well, the peering through a view slit in a fortifi- premise of the book that implies that cation on the Normandy coast and see- Great Britain, from a shaky start, had ing the Allied invasion fleet gradually evolved into a ‘superpower’ in only appear. When asked where the inva- eight years failed to convince this read- sion fleet was headed, his reaction was, er. The term ‘superpower’ is anachro- “Straight for me!” Kaplan’s Hitler’s nistic, of course, as it was first applied D-Day Defences shows many surviving to the post-Second World War reality of fortifications and provides a narrative the US-USSR Cold War confrontation of the Allied landing that, together with in which there was no other peer. Great the Soviet drive through Eastern Eu- Britain certainly had a powerful navy rope, resulted in the surrender of Nazi in the period covered by Jessop’s book, Germany less than a year later. but peers abounded and global domi- After the Nazi victory over France nance was anything but assured in 1800 and the Low Countries in May-June (any more than it was in 1900). 1940, German forces occupied the These caveats noted, the book is French Atlantic coast. Over time, the replete with interesting snippets of na- German Army began to fortify the coast val lore culled from period sources. against the inevitable British-American It would be a useful reference for any invasion of northern Europe. Although Hornblower (C.S. Forrester) or Au- American military commanders pushed brey-Maturin (Patrick O’Brian) enthu- for a cross-Channel invasion as early siasts as the oblique references in those as 1942, the British High Command novels can be easily looked up here. A knew that the American forces were not selection of appropriate illustrations ac- yet ready to face the German Army in Book Reviews 185 France head-on. Thus, American-Brit- general reader, but in truth, the narra- ish military efforts were directed to in- tive is not of the same quality as the vasions of North Africa, Sicily, and It- accompanying graphics. Kaplan writes aly. Nevertheless, Hitler directed that well and his work is easy to read, but work on the French coast fortifications it does not give an overall account of continue—which became known as D-Day. The narrative encompasses ten “The Atlantic Wall.” In early 1944, chapters covering the background to German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel D-Day, the construction of The Atlan- took command of German forces in tic Wall, the air campaign prior to and “The Atlantic Wall” and sped up con- accompanying D-Day, and accounts struction of the fortifications. The Al- of the battles at Sword Beach, a U.S. lies, when they finally invaded France, Army Ranger attack on Pointe Du Hoc, faced well-constructed bunkers, artil- and the near-failure at Omaha Beach. lery batteries, and machine gun nests. Little analysis appears regarding Gold The invasion came on the morn- and Utah beaches, while the Canadi- ing of D-Day, 6 June 1944; the Amer- an beach, Juno, is scarcely mentioned. ican Army attacked two beaches, code- This is a critical omission, for the Cana- named Omaha and Utah; the British dian Army on D-Day faced the second Army attacked two beaches, Sword and toughest set of German fortifications Gold, and the Canadian Army attacked and advanced farther than the American Juno Beach. Omaha Beach saw the or British forces did by the end of the heaviest fighting with Juno Beach being first day. Indeed, the Canadians came a close second. The British had their closer to meeting their objectives than struggles on Sword and Gold beaches, either the American or British forces. while the other American beach, Utah, The reader seeking a fuller account of saw the least amount of combat (though D-Day is well-advised to refer to some it was still a challenge.) As history has of the many books published regarding shown, D-Day was successful and is re- D-Day, including those listed in the bib- membered as the most successful am- liography. phibious assault in history. It is the photographs that make this Kaplan’s book is a mixed effort; book worth reading; on page 74, one the photographs of the surviving Ger- poignant photograph brings home both man fortifications, the beaches today, the struggle on June 6 and the waste of contemporary photographs, especial- war. It is of a German helmet found on ly of the commanders involved on Omaha Beach. Although time and the both sides, and other relevant graphics elements have taken their toll on the are valuable. It is incredible just how helmet’s finish, the bullet hole in the strongly built the Atlantic Wall was and front of the helmet—a most-likely fatal how heavily armed the Germans were. shot to the wearer’s forehead—does not Many of the surviving bunkers still have fail to sadden. After all, a human being their artillery (deactivated) inside and once wore that helmet. visitors will appreciate the engineering and construction effort involved. Pho- Robert L. Shoop tographs illustrate the strength of the Colorado Springs, Colorado defences and what fortitude it took for the Allied troops to overcome them. N. Jack “Dusty” Kleiss with Timothy The author accompanies his photo- and Laura Orr. Never Call Me A Hero: graphic record with a narrative for the A Legendary American Dive-Bomber 186 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord Pilot Remembers The Battle of Midway. with Jean. New York, NY: HarperCollins Pub- Jack’s rendezvous with destiny lishers, www.harpercollins.com, 2017. began on 28 November 1941 when 312 pp, illustrations, maps, glossary, Enterprise’s Task Group, of which he index. US $49.00, cloth; ISBN 978-0- was a part, sailed from Pearl Harbor for 06-269205-4. (E-book and audio book Wake Island to deliver two squadrons available.) of Marines. It was placed on “Battle Condition Three” with orders to bomb Some books tell of the crucial impor- any Japanese submarines it encoun- tance of the Battle of Midway with inter- tered. At 8:10 a.m. a strange transmis- pretations of how victory was achieved. sion came over the radio: “Please don’t Never Call Me A Hero is the memoir of shoot! This is Six-Backer-Three, an N. Jack “Dusty” Kleiss, one of the most American plane!” Follow-up messages successful pilots of that battle. More established that Enterprise aircraft had than a battle tale, it is biography, love engaged a Japanese airstrike bound for story and naval history twined into a Pearl Harbor. When the state of war very readable and captivating work. was confirmed, Jack lead a patrol to During his boyhood in Coffeyville, protect Enterprise and its escorts. His Kansas, Jack developed a love for fly- return to Pearl Harbor was surreal as he ing. After joining the Kansas Nation- saw the USS Oklahoma capsized, the al Guard he chose a nomination to the Arizona resting on the bottom, a tomb United States Naval Academy over for 1,177 sailors along with the wreck- admission to the University of Kansas. age of battleships and smaller vessels. The studies, football, summer cruises Resupplied with fuel and supplies En- and commencement address by Presi- terprise set out to strengthen American dent Franklin Roosevelt were enjoyable and weaken Japanese installations near and preparatory to his naval career. Hawaii. After dropping off Marines Following commissioning as an en- at Samoa, they attacked Japanese-held sign in 1938, he was assigned a turret islands. In February 1942 Enterprise officer on the cruiser USS Vincennes struck back with a series of raids against that was based in Long Beach, Cal- the Marshall Islands. ifornia. While there, he met Eunice Kleiss tells us what it was like to fly Muchon. Although his Protestantism dive bombers. and her Catholicism would delay their “My plane screamed out of the at- marriage, determined courtship while mosphere like a banshee, descending on leave and by correspondence would from 14,000 feet to 2,000 feet in about pay off when, under the nickname of thirty seconds. As the cool air roared Jean that he bestowed on her, they mar- around open cockpit, I peered through ried for life. the Mark-3 bomb scope and surveyed Jack’s dream of becoming an avia- the runway. Fires already speckled the tor advanced in August 1940 when he field. I sighted a parked plane. With reported to Ground School at Pensacola my other eye I glanced at my altimeter, Naval Air Station. During training he watching it spin wildly and counting made friends, earned his wings and, at down the seconds to release altitude. its conclusion, was assigned to Scout- All the while, Japanese antiaircraft gun- ing Squadron Six at San Diego. Upon ners plied their work of death, filling arrival on 6 May 1941 he commenced the sky with puffs of shrapnel. At 2,000 his aviation career and was reunited feet I gripped the bomb release on the Book Reviews 187 left side of the cockpit and wrenched ion that conveys excitement, the tugs on the lever, releasing my two 100 pound lovers’ heartstrings and presents the de- wing bombs. When I was certain these tails in a very enjoyable book. While bombs had dropped clear I executed telling the tale of a hero who never a snap pullout, and for a brief instant, wanted to be called one, it never spirals the pressure of 8 or 9 g’s squeezed my into the author’s narrow world to the body. With long, heavy breaths, I kept exclusion of the war in which he fought. the world in front of me as it tunneled because of all the blood rushing out of James M. Gallen my head and rolled out of my dive with St. Louis, Missouri another ninety-degree turn. Below and behind me the parked enemy plane dis- John Lambert and Al Ross. Allied appeared in a ball of flame. (137-138) Coastal Forces of World War II. Vol- Wake and Marcus islands in Feb- ume II: Vosper MTBs and US Elcos. ruary-March 1942 were mere warms Barnsley: Seaforth Publishing, www. ups for the big show at Midway in June pen-and-sword.co.uk, 2019. (Originally with Kleiss in the heart of it on 4 June. published 1993.) 256 pp., illustrations, Deducing the Japanese carriers’ loca- line drawings, lists, bibliography. UK tion from the trajectory of a destroyer £40.00, cloth; ISBN 978-1-5267-4755- catching up with the formation, Jack’s 6. (E-book available.) Squadron Six focused on the carrier Kaga and reduced it to a burning hulk as This large-format book is the sequel they left on a dogleg course so as to not to another covered by a previous book betray their home carriers’ locations. review in this journal dealing with Refueled and rearmed, their afternoon British Fairmile wooden boats and target was the carrier Hiryu whose de- American submarine chasers, now be- mise was swift and violent. Kleiss ex- ing republished by a military publisher plains how he watched the targeting of with a maritime imprint. The focus of the preceding dive bombers to finesse this volume is on British motor torpe- his approach to deliver his bombs on do boats of Vosper design and Ameri- target. On 6 June they returned to finish can constructed Elco fast patrol boats, off the destroyers and cruisers that had used extensively by Allied coastal forc- guarded the carriers. es during the Second World War. The In the wake of Midway, Jack was British John Lambert and American decorated, returned to the States as a Al Ross previously collaborated on flight instructor and married Jean. He the volumes, advertised as classics, by would remain in the Navy until retire- drawing on a vast range of research, ment in in 1962. At the time of writing, interviews with veterans, drawings and he was the oldest living dive bomber blueprints from builders, as well as ex- and possibly, the oldest pilot involved amining examples of such craft restored in the Battle of Midway. His one hun- and preserved in museums. John Lam- dredth birthday featured a call from an- bert, who has since died, was a naval other former carrier pilot, George H. W. draughtsman by trade and his reworked Bush. Kleiss died in 2016. and original detailed drawings are very Though the story belongs to Kleiss, well-regarded. co-authors Timothy and Laura Orr must The book adopts a reference style be credited with coaxing Jack’s story with lots of captioned photographs, out of him and helping write it in a fash- profiles, drawings, tables, and lists. In- 188 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord formative text introduces each section the British and Americans found out, without citations or footnotes. The the operational life of motor torpedo book is essentially divided into three boats was relatively short because they parts. Lambert provides an administra- wore out quickly, while living arrange- tive, engineering, and building history ments were minimal, necessitating bas- of Vosper Limited, as a company called es and support ships. The last part of upon to produce numbers of fast boats the book provides sections on common of its own design before and during the camouflage schemes, characteristics of war. He documents the design and supercharged Packard marine engines, technical aspects of several build pro- defensive guns and mounts, offensive grams and iterations. His drawings, torpedo and rocket systems, and bridge either two- or three-dimensional, are arrangements. Introduction and devel- superb and detailed, many with explan- opment of the Oerlikon 20 mm anti-air- atory numbered arrangements. The tor- craft gun in the Royal Navy, used exten- pedo-carrying Vosper of various lengths sively among coastal forces, recounts a and armament evolved to meet opera- story of international intrigue from the tional requirements in European and Swiss manufacturer and eventual pro- Asian waters. The next sections done by duction through the advocacy of Louis Ross have simpler drawings and longer Mountbatten in Great Britain for war lists that focus on the boats furnished needs. The Oerlikon, which featured by Elco. The US Navy’s call for com- a novel design and ironically was also petitive designs along with early British used by the Germans, was relatively ex- influences of licensed production in the pensive compared to similar gun types United States and Canada provided a and lacked the necessary range as the basis for experimentation and variety. war went on. It was replaced by the Much less background is provided on heavier striking Bofors 40 mm, anoth- Elco as a business and boat-building er foreign-inspired design. Lambert’s entity and more focus given to the boats profile and dimensional drawings of (PT) themselves and their arrange- the gun in manual- and powered-mount ments. Trials nicknamed the “Plywood configurations are detailed and truly Derbies” decided on the best character- first-class. Sections describing the US istics and highlighted the need for lon- 37 mm and 40 mm guns are by contrast ger and sturdier designs. PT boats of smaller with fewer drawings. The book 77 and 80 feet in length became ubiq- ends with transfer of Vosper motor tor- uitous in the Pacific war, carried from pedo boats to the Free French and, due the United States on the decks of tank- to interest from readers of the first vol- ers. General Douglas MacArthur and ume, some details on surviving Vosper his family escaped from the Japanese and Elco craft up to the mid-1990s. invasion of the Philippines in PT boats. The book provides largely tech- Both PT designs incorporated four tor- nical, construction, and engineering pedo tubes and short-range anti-aircraft overviews of these particular types of armament. In order to be effective, motor torpedo boats, with a little com- motor torpedo boats had to engage the parison between the two. Those seek- enemy closely to get near enough to ing operational histories and how the attack larger warships and therefore, craft were actually tactically employed were vulnerable to gunfire and aircraft. will have to go elsewhere, beyond the Their speed and light wooden construc- small details provided in the lists and tion were considered advantages. As tables. British coastal forces played a Book Reviews 189 cat-and-mouse game with the German and US Navy devoted considerable schnellboote or E-boat in the English attention to different colours and pat- Channel, North Sea, and Mediterra- terns during the war, though whether nean. In many respects, the diesel en- the schemes actually worked under real gine and longer E-boats were superior world conditions was seldom proven. to the gasoline-powered Vosper in both Mountbatten pink was wildly popular reliability and range. Much depended amongst some ship crews in the Royal on the aggressiveness and proficiency Navy, whereas standard white or grey of the officers and crews. The smaller met the needs of most weather and sea motor torpedo boats attracted a different states to cut down visibility. Volume 2 breed of personnel distinct from those of Allied Coastal Forces in World War in the fleet and larger warships, when a II will appeal to readers interested in destroyer, sloop, or minesweeper were motor torpedo boats used by the British considered big ships by comparison. and Americans in coastal warfare at sea The naval reserve and temporary hostil- and those building smaller scale ver- ities-only sailors of amphibious landing sions of these interesting craft. Many forces probably had more in common of these miniatures are ideal for playing with them. Further scholarship is need- naval war games. ed on understanding the war experienc- es of these men within the navies, much Chris Madsen harder now that most veterans from Toronto, Ontario that era have passed. They very much fought their own war against a simi- Roy R. Manstan. The Listeners: U-Boat lar enemy in the so-called narrow seas Hunters During the Great War. Middle- right up to the surrender in 1945. The town, CT: Wesleyan University Press, Japanese captured a number of motor www.wesleyan.edu, 2018. xii+353 pp., torpedo boats in 1941, mostly relegated illustrations, notes, bibliography, index. to patrol and resupply duties, since the US $34.95, cloth; ISBN 978-8195- focus as the war progressed was on sui- 7835-8. (E-book available.) cide boats and submarines. The format and pagination rep- At the start of the First World War, licate the original volume, with the submarines were a novel vessel. The same forwards and acknowledgements British considered them a defensive by Lambert and Ross. Contacting the weapon to protect their harbours and now deceased Lambert, as suggested, coastline. The Germans perceived sub- however, is out of the question. The marines differently. As an island nation, bibliography has not been updated to Britain envisioned these stealthy war- reflect additional research and scholar- ships as aggressors that could disrupt ship since the original publication, and sea routes and shipping , denying vital no index is provided. The republished supplies like food, and thus raising the volume does have an eight-page co- threat of starvation. A serious cat-and- lour insert intended for ship modellers, mouse game resulted. Scientists were with paint schemes for Vosper and Elco recruited to invent a way to locate the boats showing side and top profiles. illusive undersea nemeses before they This interest in camouflage has become could sink a critical number of surface somewhat of a cottage industry, with ships and bring the British Empire to its many on-line sources and publications knees. devoted to the topic. The Royal Navy The secret to finding submarines 190 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord was by locating their sound trail as they es. Two other devices used with even traveled in the ocean’s depths. Once greater accuracy were trailing wires they had been detected and fixed, allied and electromagnetic coils that took warships could use depth charges or advantage of the piezo-electric effect other explosive devices to dispatch the by detecting the iron hulls of U-boats invaders. This required research and an that became magnetized as they moved understanding of fluid dynamics or hy- through salt water. These techniques drology. were very effective in channels pur- Operating submarines usually pro- posely narrowed by the strategic place- duce sounds by two methods: first, ment of barrage nets and deep-water Unterseeboote or U-boats have com- minefields. Manstan includes details plex machinery that emits all sorts of about their function, evolution and the sounds; second, bubbles, a by-product scientists involved. of propeller rotation in water, make a Several types of surface vessels sound. These bubbles. called cavita- were deployed to combat the U-boat tion, are the result of pockets of vapour threat. The first were the detectors, the under pressure formed within the liquid wooden-hulled 110-foot subchasers medium. When the molecules change equipped with an assortment of listen- from a liquid to a gaseous state, it can be ing devices. Next were the destroyers, subtly noisy. Thus, mechanical propul- with their “Y-guns” or depth-charge sion made the U-boats potentially vul- launchers. Other anti-submarine ves- nerable. Based on this knowledge, the sels were Q-ships named for Queen- Americans and British set out to build stown, Ireland, where they were invent- audio detectors that could distinguish ed. These were clever, heavily-armed sounds coming from a submarine as op- decoy vessels that looking like mer- posed to other surface vessels or marine chantmen but with concealed weapon- mammals, such as whales. Once they ry. Like “defenseless sitting ducks”, succeeded, they next had to find a way Q-ships appeared to be easy targets for to triangulate the submarine’s location the U-boat’s deck gun. They would lure in order to destroy the subsea predators. the U- boat to the surface to attempt to The solution was to invent under- sink them with low-cost cannon fire. water listening devices called hydro- When the U-boat tried to engage the phones. As they evolved, they acquired decoy, the Q-ship’s panels would drop, exotic names such as ‘Nash fish’, ‘por- revealing several deck guns. The crew poises’, and ‘eels’. The sound traveling would immediately raise the White from a single source can produce a ste- Ensign (Royal Navy flag) to identify reo effect if receivers are separated. This their nationality and immediately open property could be used to determine the fire. Unfortunately, Q-ships were not sub’s location—a vital but challeng- very successful in sinking their quarry. ing task. Among the more imaginative Other airborne detectors, such as sea- methods was utilizing a trombone ef- planes, dirigibles, large balloons, and fect, putting the separate hydrophones kites worked hand-in-hand with surface on long sliding trombone-like tubes to ships to help lessen the effectiveness gain distance between the hydrophone of the U-boats. They sent messages by mikes. The minute lag in sound travel wireless or undetectable infrared signal time enabled the receivers to get a fix lights using Morse Code to accompany- on their prey. This principle was later ing vessels. adapted to more advanced apparatus- By the beginning of the war, Ger- Book Reviews 191 many had built 28 U-boats, which, ac- was employed at New London’s Naval cording to the author, mushroomed into Underwater Experimental Station and 346 vessels as the war progressed. Ger- has used his considerable scholarship man U-boats were divided into three to admirably succeeding getting the types. The U prefix generally indicated U-boat hunters’ story told. that they were ocean-going attack tor- pedo boats. The UB designation was Louis Arthur Norton used for coastal attack U-boats, while West Simsbury, Connecticut the UC label was reserved for coast- al minelaying submarines. These ves- Evan Mawdsley. The War for the Seas: sels were a major arms investment, so A Maritime History of World War II. the Germans cleverly countered the de- New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, tectors when they were aware that they [email protected], 2019. 557pp., il- were being stalked. They descended lustrations, maps, tables, bibliography, into the ocean’s depths, stopped their index. US $32.50, cloth; ISBN 978-0- movement and remained absolutely si- 300-19019-9. lent as long as their oxygen and battery power permitted. If depth- charged, We are approaching 75 years since they would release oil and debris to give Samuel Eliot Morison published the the impression they had been damaged first of his 15-volumeHistory of United or sunk. A second ploy to confound lis- States Naval Operations in World War teners onboard subchasers was running II, unleashing a flood of studies, mem- two electric motors onboard the U-boat oirs, analyses and narratives of the war at different speeds. Their propeller at sea between 1939 and 1945. Now, shafts revolved in a way to neutralize two notable historians, Craig Symonds vibration and its tell-tale bubbles, large- in the United States (World War II at ly rendering the vessel inaudible — a Sea: a Global History (Oxford, 2018) submerged ghost. and Evan Mawdsley in Britain (The Manstan describes many experi- War for the Seas: A Maritime History of ments that led to breakthrough technol- World War II, Yale, 2019) have brought ogy. In doing so, he skillfully blends the forth massive single-volume histories. development of combat operations with Symonds’ effort is beyond the clever innovations, while interconnect- scope of this review, except to note that ing them with the political and strategic both Oxford and Yale claim that their background at play as Americans and product is unprecedented. Mawdsley, British scientists raced to counteract who has written widely on the Soviet the threat of the elusive U-boats. The Revolution and State in war and peace, Listeners is illustrated with an abun- together with an equally massive his- dance of photographs and informative tory of the entire Second World War, drawings that make their quest quite has penned a sweeping and competent vivid. The author closes the book with academic study that obviously took several stories about successes and fail- time and care to complete. It has sig- ures in First World War U-boat hunting nificant strengths. Mawdsley’s steady and then brings the quest for submarine concentration on the limits of shipping detection up-to-date. This is a detailed in the making of Allied strategy, while study of a topic that is often only a para- not unique, is nonetheless an important graph or two in a maritime history of reminder of the constraints on Allied the so-called Great War. Roy Manstan movements until the final months of the 192 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord Pacific War. His ability to relate distant simple carelessness (“The two battles and seemingly unrelated events is strik- fought in mid-November and part of the ing and thought-provoking. Though naval Battle of Guadalcanal in mid-No- all tales about the Second World War vember. . .”) (233-34) and inattention to at sea have been told again and again, fact (“In the final months of the [sic!] his accounts of the Bismarck episode, 1944 bases were captured in the west- the Norwegian campaign and the Allied ern Pacific and northern Australia. . . assault against Dakar are consistently (360-61) Italics mine]) At one point, interesting and compelling. His dis- the author writes of the “New Brook- cussion of the Mediterranean campaign lyn class light cruisers” (248) when he between 1940 and 1942 is outstanding, clearly means Cleveland class, since the as is the story of the catastrophic fate Brooklyns were not new in 1943 but of the Tallinn evacuation convoy of Au- the Clevelands were. He misstates the gust 1941 in which upwards of 25,000 commissioning date of the submarine perished miserably. Trigger as January 1941 rather than a Yet, as the author hurries on his year later. (351) This is important be- discussion through innumerable battles cause the first of the 226 boat Gato and skirmishes at sea, their cumulative class (of which Trigger was a part) drama and horror is often buried be- that formed the backbone of America’s neath a mass of statistics, ships’ spec- “fleet” submarines during the Second ifications, and administrative details World War were not commissioned un- (particularly true of his account of the til just before Pearl Harbor. Imperial Japanese Navy). There is There are more serious problems. little evocation of the ghastly fate of Professor Mawdsley’s implication sailors on all sides who perished in the (273) that Britain invented modern am- freezing waters of the North Atlantic, phibious warfare (“Combined Opera- or in hangar decks and engine rooms of tions”) out of the pinprick raids against exploding aircraft carriers, or the poor the enemy-held Western European devils who died with their cruisers and coast between 1940 and 1942 simply destroyers in the mournful night bat- ignores Japan’s impressive activities on tles off Guadalcanal, up the Solomons the China coast and later, the Western “slot,” and at Surigao Strait. The sheer Pacific islands between 1940 and- ear terror of those caught on the beaches ly 1942. His contention (474-75) that at Tarawa, Normandy, and Iwo Jima is the U.S. Navy’s sea/air blockade of the never mentioned. A judicious quote or Home Islands in the summer of 1945 two from time and place would have was so thorough as to preclude enemy been of immense value, for as the war re-enforcements from China is not true. recedes and the last of those who fought Over a decade ago, newly-released mil- or observed it leave us, it is all the more itary intelligence documents indicated imperative to understand the conflict in that, in fact, Tokyo continued to suc- all its dreadful dimensions. cessfully transfer elements of Japan’s Unfortunately, there are other flaws, battle-hardened Kwantung Army from among which is sloppy editing; for ex- the Asian mainland to the anticipated ample, an irritating tendency to substi- invasion beaches of Kyushu to such an tute “were” for “where” and “repeated” extent as to make an Allied invasion for “repeatedly” throughout the text there increasingly problematic. This (see for example, top p. 336). These consideration weighed decisively in the editorial felonies are compounded by decision to use the atomic bombs against Book Reviews 193

Hiroshima and Nagasaki. [Rose, Power will find within this marvellous book. at Sea, (Missouri, 2006), II, 414-15]. Indeed, the expected detailed maritime Also erroneous is the author’s conten- history is missing. What lies in its place tion that after the Marianas campaign in is a masterful telling of the interface the summer of 1944, the Japanese “did between European settlers and the in- not even attempt to stop the Americans digenous people inhabiting the spaces coming ashore.” (474) The Marines those settlers wished to claim, the var- struggling and dying up the steep, dark, ious structures of governance over the sandy beach at Iwo Jima would have colonies, and the complex relationship been stunned to learn of this contention. between colony and founding metropo- The War for the Seas has to be read lis. Five European countries (Portugal, with care. But this does not mean it Spain, Holland, France and England) should not be read at all. While the au- serve as the metropolitan areas studied, thor presents no startling new insights, that reached out across the vast oceans his accounts of the evolving strategies to the rest of the world. of the four major maritime players will As Paquette notes in the first chap- be of interest to academic specialists, ter, it is not a tale of noble adventur- while the general reader, after plough- ers seeking to bring good to the ‘new’ ing through nearly 500 densely packed worlds they ‘discovered’. Nor, he ar- pages (plus the additional footnotes) gues, was it a totally shameful, crushing will come away with a powerful sense domination, resource-robbing, popula- of a mighty event, or series of events, tion-killing colonialization that some that continues to shape naval and po- historians might have their readers be- litical thought and practice down to the lieve, though that does seem to apply in present day. many locations. Paquette holds that the story is much more nuanced and com- Lisle A. Rose plicated, with great differences across Edmonds, Washington the enormous territories contested for by ‘indigenous inhabitant’ and ‘settler’. Paquette painstakingly describes Gabriel Paquette. The European Sea- the various forms of governance, from borne Empires: From the Thirty Years’ crown government control, to individu- War to the Age of Revolutions. New Ha- al rule based on grants, through rule by ven, CT: Yale University Press, www. chartered company or “privileged trad- yalebooks.yale.edu, 2019. viii+298 ing company”. Different forms exist- pp., illustrations, maps, notes, bibliog- ed side-by-side, often within different raphy, index. US $35.00, cloth; ISBN areas of the same colony, at the same 978-0-300-20515-2. time. In some cases (as after England’s Glorious Revolution), crown-like abso- The title of this book suggests the read- lutism persisted in some English colo- er will engage in the examination of nies, though the metropolitan had cho- the maritime explorations and naval sen a more representative system. engagements to expand and defend em- As to the interface of settler and pires during the era of Europe’s expan- indigenous inhabitant, in some areas sion into the western and eastern reach- Europeans attempted to work with the es of the globe. One anticipates reading indigenous people, at times from the ne- about the struggle to build, enlarge, and cessity of sheer survival, at others in an defend empires, as viewed from the effort to gain trust and insert their par- quarter deck. But this is not what one 194 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord ticular European culture into the lives erpool, thanks to its involvement in the of the Indigenous groups, or simply to slave trade. The objective of expanding facilitate peaceful coexistence. Exam- wealth motivated the five nations stud- ples include the incorporation of “pre- ied to raid and seize each other’s settle- existing institutions” into European sys- ments throughout the era. tems. Combining approaches to justice The sites of settlement, along coast created unique legal pluralisms (113). lines, often developed into ports and ur- The Spanish, for example, formed spe- ban centres through which trade flowed. cial courts to decide conflicts between This, in turn, led to more settlement and Spanish settlers and indigenous people, an expansion outward into new areas of based more on indigenous ‘legal’ prac- settlement and economic development. tice than European. In India, the En- This did not occur easily in all areas, as glish kept both Hindu and Muslim legal the author noted in the cases of China codes, though they put British judges and Brazil, where European incursion in the courts and followed English tri- into the interior was severely restricted al procedure. European and traditional until much later in the colonizing pro- legal and authority systems co-existed cess. To monopolize their colonial trade in many colonial sites. The most basic nations attempted to restrict, or forbid, level of melding cultures was intermar- outsiders from trading with their colo- riage between settler and indigenous nies, protecting the source of wealth for member, creating both points of alli- their own metropolitan’s benefit. ance, and tension. Employing James Scott’s idea At other times, it was a case of mil- of everyday resistance, Paquette also itary conquest, to crush resistance and makes it clear that settlement was not use the local people for material and simply accepted, even after military economic ends. The Spanish conquest subjugation. Resistance varied from of the Incas (even though it was not area to area, but was generally engaged complete) is perhaps the single most in by the indigenous populations. Some obvious example. Captured Amerin- resistance took the form of rebellion, as dians were forced to work the South in Oaxaca in the 1660s, or riot, as across American silver and gold mines. the Andes between 1750 and 1780 (180) The colonies provided great sourc- Settlers attempting to eke out a new life es of wealth for their metropolitan cen- also resisted their own colonial admin- tres. Portugal and Spain profited from istrators and efforts by the metropolitan silver and gold mines of South and government to control them from afar. Central America, the English from the Perhaps the best example during the pe- sugar fields of the West Indies, the to- riod covered by the book was the Amer- bacco from the American colonies, and ican Revolution, where English settlers Asia’s tea and cotton. Paquette quotes (and other nationalities, including some First Viscount Melville, Henry Dundas, indigenous groups) threw off the reins Secretary of State for War in 1799 who of the English Parliament to create their commented on Great Britain’s reliance own government (though not all who on expanding its colonial resources, at supported the revolution fought for it, the cost of its enemies, as “ the sole ba- or left in the country after it, were free). sis of maritime strength” (96). Some African slaves also rebelled and resisted European cities grew rich and devel- their masters. The most significant case oped significantly as a result of the being Haiti, where the enslaved even- colonial trade, an example being Liv- tually obtained freedom and established Book Reviews 195 a government, sending shockwaves slaves from the Algonquins, who en- around Europe (and its slave-holding slaved their enemies, trading them as a colonies). But not everyone resisted. means to “cement their alliance” with Some indigenous people collaborated the French (147). with the Europeans to advance their Paquette is successful in convinc- own leadership, power and /or wealth, ing the reader that the empires were such as the Africans who supplied the anything but a one-sided European ex- slave trade with people. ertion of power, or a simple conquering The seaborne element in the story of indigenous people, followed by the includes the simple fact that ships of erection of societies which completely exploration, settlement, mercantilism, mimicked European models of gover- and war were necessary to create these nance and culture. The history is much world-wide ‘empires’. The five coun- more complex. The maritime piece tries examined were the explorers and was essential for it to have unfolded at naval powers (at different times) that all, but the counter point is also true: reached across the oceans and set peo- the path of the maritime element was ple on new shores. Their navies (espe- shaped by the ways in which Europe- cially true for the English by the end an settlement transpired and developed of the era) allowed them to maintain, within the areas labelled as European defend and expand their territories. As empires. Therefore, this book becomes noted above, the details of exactly how an important addition in the study of this took place are not widely discussed maritime commerce and naval power within the book. during the age of empire. Paquette spends some time on the maritime link when discussing slav- Thomas Malcomson ery within the topic of various labour Toronto, Ontario forces sent to the colonies. The largest source of imported workers was over- Norman Polmar, Rear Admiral Thom- whelmingly brought in by the lucrative, as A. Brooks, US Navy (Retired), and and brutal, slave trade. All five coun- George E. Fedoroff. Gorshkov: The tries discussed were involved in the ne- Man Who Challenged the U.S. Navy. farious trade, supplying their own and Annapolis, MD: US Naval Institute other colonies with an enchained work- Press, www.usni.org, 2019. xx+264 force. The slave vessels left Europe pp., illustrations, maps, endnotes, in- with goods to trade with the Africans, dices, bibliography. US $39.95, cloth; who ran the local slave trade. Alcohol, ISBN 1-978-16824-7330-6. tools, utensils, tobacco and a large num- ber of arms were shipped to Africa to Sergey Georgiyevich Gorshkov was foster the collection of people bound for without question one of the outstand- slavery. The ships then transported the ing military leaders of the Cold War. slaves from Africa to the ‘New World’, As Commander-in-Chief of the Sovi- finally carrying raw material or manu- et Navy for almost 30 years (1956 to factured goods back to Europe for trade. 1985), he oversaw its steady growth The details of the middle passage are into a powerful modern force with cut- briefly addressed within this text. But ting-edge technology. Gorshkov was even within the subject of slavery, we obviously highly competent and as Ad- see twists. Paquette states that in North miral Gorshkov: The Man Who Chal- America, the French traded goods for lenged the U.S. Navy shows, his rise to 196 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord the top of his profession was marked by and technology issues. He published being the right man in the right place at an authoritative guide to the Soviet the right time. Like Chester Nimitz of Navy in the 80s and co-authored sev- the US Navy, whose career survived af- eral books about Russian and Soviet ter the destroyer he commanded at age submarines. The authors acknowledge 23 grounded, Gorshkov’ s career sur- also drawing on the expertise of a for- vived being in charge when, at age 28, midable “who’s who” list of western a new destroyer he was towing broke intelligence experts. They note that loose and was lost. He was both young while Sergey Gorshkov’s name became and serving far from Moscow in the So- well known in the West, little has been viet Far East when the purges decimated available about the admiral’s life and senior naval ranks in the late 1930s (one character. Three books published in admiral formerly in charge in the Pacific Russia since the collapse of the USSR was shot; his successor died in prison). are cited that do provide the sort of in- After the purges ended, Gorshkov was sights about SG Gorshkov that were promoted to command a cruiser brigade absent in Soviet literature. The authors (squadron) in the Black Sea in 1940 and have drawn on these sources and lifted was, thus, in theatre when the Germans the curtain somewhat, but once they de- attacked in June 1941. Promoted to scribe the crucible of Gorshkov’s war Rear Admiral at the age of 31, he was in experiences the book is largely a survey the thick of fierce amphibious and river- of how the Soviet Navy evolved from ine fighting during the war. He was in- then on. Overall, Admiral Gorshkov’s jured when his American-built jeep ran 217 pages of text is an overview of the over a land mine in 1943 and was trou- developments that saw the Soviet Navy bled by spinal damage for the rest of his develop capabilities, many innovative, life. Gorshkov demonstrated flexibili- in response those of western navies and ty in several tough situations and even come to be used by the USSR to expend commanded an army on the Black Sea its reach in the developing world. It coast for a month in 1942. He survived covers doctrines, surface ships and sub- during dire times and made the acquain- marine building programs, and as well tance of future political leaders Nikita touching on the careers of senior offi- Khrushev and Leonid Brezhnev and cers who were Gorshkov’s contempo- General Andrei Grechko, who would raries. The narrative clarifies the role of become Minister of Defence between the Communist Party in the Soviet state 1967 and 1976, and a staunch supporter. and how Gorshkov, like other military The authors are a seasoned troi- professionals, advanced up the party ka who have long studied the Sovi- hierarchy. Apparently, his bureaucrat- et navy during the Cold War. Retired ic skills and ability to cultivate senior Rear Admiral Thomas Brooks was an figures enabled him to advance profes- intelligence specialist who has told an sionally and to push through programs. interviewer that Admiral Gorshkov’ There are many general summa- s 30-year tenure virtually overlapped ries following descriptive sections but his entire career. George Fedoroff is little analysis. For example, the Soviet a Russian linguist who apparently has Navy is described as devouring “vast been analysing Russia for US Navy quantities of resources, facilities and intelligence since 1971. Norman Pol- manpower.” (174) A valid point, but mar has a long track record as an an- comparisons of resources going to the alyst and author specialising in naval other Soviet military forces and the sig- Book Reviews 197 nificance of developing sophisticated ment. It war-gamed nuclear war at sea naval systems for Soviet technology extensively and practised it in exercis- would have been more telling. There es. The U.S. Navy seldom did either.” are several references to the dramatic The book includes a useful sum- Okean exercise staged in 1970, the cen- mary of Russian naval developments tenary of V.I. Lenin’s birth. The narra- up to 2015. It has excellent maps, top- tive is probably correct in describing ical photographs clearly presented on Okean as primarily intended to demon- glossy paper, a useful bibliography, strate the navy’s efficacy to the Soviet and two minimalist indices. It has been leadership. It certainly caught the at- produced to publisher’s usual high stan- tention of western media. It is termed dards of sturdy binding and handy size. as “the world’s largest peacetime na- The writing style is straightforward and val operations in terms of numbers of the text is refreshingly free of acronyms participating ships and aircraft and of and jargon. Based on post-Soviet Rus- geographic spread, across several seas sian sources as well as the formidable and oceans.” (189) The authors do not background knowledge of the authors, speculate on whether Okean, dramat- Admiral Gorshkov can be recommend- ic and centrally-controlled as it was, ed as a summary of S.G. Gorshkov’s demonstrated likely wartime scenarios career and a wide-ranging, if unanalyti- or was global flag waving. Some of cal, overview of the Soviet and Russian the well-known disasters (many with navies from the late 1920s to roughly tragic losses of life) which plagued the 2015. Soviet Navy are touched on. But there The authors chose not to include are no comments on the likely fighting the human-interest aspects of Admiral effectiveness of Soviet weapon sys- Gorshkov’s life revealed in the three tems, technology, ships, submarines, post-Soviet Russian books among their naval aircraft and command and control sources. Both the admiral’s own mem- systems. The conclusions the authors oirs and a detailed biography by Cap- must have made during their long years tain M.S. Monakov describe how he of observing Gorshkov’s navy are not was present when both Prime Minister shared. They do assert that while the Churchill and President Roosevelt ar- U.S. Navy encountered Soviet ships in rived for the Yalta Conference in Feb- forward areas “…there was confidence ruary 1945. Monakov’ s book includes that the Soviet Navy would provide a pictures of the admiral in the cockpit of relatively minor threat to the U.S. Navy, an RAF transport, and in a group wel- one that its superior aircraft carriers coming Churchill. It says that Gorsh- could easily defeat.” (205) This is fol- kov was impressed by the American lowed by a wry observation that “…. warships he observed. Their external Admiral Gorshkov’s surface ships and condition, internal organization, and submarines served well to justify na- discipline made him conclude that the val expenditures before congress.” A United States valued military profes- sweeping and surprising generalization sionalism. He found the informality of presented without any supporting mate- the Americans he encountered striking: rial appears on the next page: “For its “On the one hand they were sociable part, Admiral Gorshkov’s navy had in and amiable, but on the other exhibited particular a more fully developed strat- a superior attitude about other countries egy for nuclear war and an arsenal far based on narrow and even provincial better suited to fighting in that environ- outlooks. In addition, he nevertheless 198 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord admitted to be fair to them, that the the Allied intervention after 1918, and easy-going manner of the Americans, earned welcome extra money when her at times almost verging on a frank dis- husband was a junior officer through regard for traditional marks of respect, typing jobs and by taking in tailoring. was a specific reflection of their rela- Gorshkov writes about how he valued tively greater insulation from the abuse being able to come home to a warm and and unreasonable orders of ‘Authority’ well-regulated atmosphere. Zinadia and senior officers.” (M.S. Monakov and her children were held captive by a GLAVKOM: Zhizn i Rabota Admirala mixed group of German and Romanian Flota Sovetskogo Soyuza S.G. Gorsh- soldiers while being evacuated along kova. Moscow: Kuchkovo Polye, 2008, the Black Sea coast east of Crimea in p. 352.) 1942, but escaped. Gorshkov died at The idealized “Soviet man” had the age of 78 in 1988, only three years proletarian roots; citizens played after his retirement. down bourgeois backgrounds, yet both Jan Drent Sergey Gorshkov and his wife Zinadia Victoria, British Columbia came from bourgeois families. Gors- hkov’s father was a noted teacher who had completed university. Well-estab- Alan Raven. British Cruiser Warfare: lished in his profession when the Rev- The Lessons of the Early War. Barn- olution came, he continued to be an sley, S. Yorks: Seaforth Publishing, outstanding teacher for decades under www.seaforthpublishing.com, 2019. the new regime and would be awarded 320 pp., illustrations, appendices, bib- two Orders of Lenin for his excellence liography, index. UK £35, cloth; ISBN as a pedagogue. Monakov remarks that 9781526747631. the younger Gorshkov did not have a warm relationship with his strict father. There is, perhaps, no learning curve Elena Feodosiyevna, his mother, was more unforgiving than war. No mat- the daughter of a priest with an excel- ter how much preparation takes place lent command of French. Elena is de- before combat, it is in the moment of scribed by Monakov as “an outstanding first engagement when doctrines, tech- example of the intelligentsia “whose nologies, and training receive the test influence on young Sergey’s character that determines their degree of success development equaled that of his disci- or failure, as measured in the lives of plinarian father.” In his memoirs, Gors- the people involved. This curve is es- hkov disarmingly relates that he met his pecially sharp at the start of any war, future wife Zinadia in the Vladivostok when the new looms larger than the old GUM (department store) when both and theory exceeds experience. It is were with another partner. Zinadia was only with the hard trials of such clashes the daughter of a construction engineer that lessons are learned and adjustments and government administrator promi- made, which then define practice for the nent in Vladivostok before the Revolu- remainder of the conflict. tion. Educated in a Gymnasium, where Alan Raven’s book is about this she had studied English and knew Jap- learning curve as experienced by the anese, Zinadia emerges in Gorshkov’s British Admiralty with cruiser warfare memoirs and the Monakov biography as during the Second World War. As a na- an ideal navy wife, who learned dress- val historian and a co-author of a com- making from a French woman during prehensive study of British cruisers that Book Reviews 199 served in the war, Raven is well suit- at this point in the war, with examples ed for such a study, for which he un- of its impact on cruiser operations. dertook a considerable amount of fresh Nothing relevant escapes attention— research. In addition to the traditional casualties, repair facilities, and even the histories and specialized monographs, weather conditions and its effects on the Raven draws upon an impressive range ships. There are entries on Britain’s pri- of documentation from British archives, mary European adversaries that outline including the action reports, war dia- the German and Italian navies and com- ries, and recently declassified histories ment upon their respective performanc- of wartime signals intelligence. Nor es. Raven weaves into the pages of this does he stop there, as he exploits Ger- section a careful yet firm analysis that man and Italian materials to the extent never supplants his description of the his language skills make it possible to details but builds upon it to support his do so. It is a commendable amount of arguments. labour and it is reflected in the detail Though each summary can stand and comprehensiveness of his book, alone, when the sections are read to- which make it a valuable resource for gether, the Royal Navy’s learning curve students of his subject. comes into sharp focus. At the start of Raven divides his work into two the war, the navy relied upon pre-war parts. The first is a day-by-day chronol- technologies and instructions devel- ogy covering cruiser actions from the oped for an anticipated range of opera- start of the war in September 1939 to tions. Yet change was taking place even the end of 1941. These range from before the war began, as the navy start- single-sentence descriptions of attacks ed equipping cruisers with radar and (to inflicted on cruisers, to descriptions a lesser degree) ASDIC for their opera- of major operations and engagements tions. This effort was accelerated with (such as the Battle of the River Plate) the start of the war, with forty ships that take up several pages. Raven in- equipped by the end of 1939 alone. Ini- tersperses these with summaries of de- tially used to detect airplanes and sur- ployments and details of the damage face ships, radar was soon employed in suffered by the cruisers during their a variety of other ways, from directing service. The entries in this section are gunfire to giving cruisers a new role very factual, with no embellishment as fighter direction ships. This reflect- and little in the way of analysis of the ed an adaptability that the Royal Navy operations described. demonstrated in most aspects of cruis- Where the analysis comes in is in er operations, as they accommodated the second part of the book. Grouped everything from anti-aircraft tactics to together as “Summaries,” Raven exam- damage control operations in light of ines in detail every imaginable aspect the firsthand experiences of the crews of British cruiser operations during the in combat. By the end of the period, first years of the war, from the employ- Raven concludes, the navy had learned ment of gunnery for various types of most of the major lessons to be gained missions (such as surface combat and with regard to cruiser warfare, and had shore bombardment) to damage control adjusted procedures into the forms they and the use of intelligence. While fo- would maintain for the duration of the cused on the cruisers, much of this nat- war. urally becomes a more general summa- Raven’s thorough research and ry of aspects of Royal Navy operations comprehensive coverage combine to 200 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord make his book an impressive resource immediate and effective archaeological for British cruiser operations in the recovery and conservation of such rare Second World War. His judgments finds and professional documentation; are measured and fair, and while his but not for this cog. The discovery of criticisms are understated, he does not the damaged wreck close to the city hesitate to call out the navy for their centre was accidental. Only a part of missteps, such as their failure to change the vessel could be removed while the their codes at the start of the conflict. remainder of the cog lay beyond reach. His explanation of the role of signals It may still be lying in wait for future intelligence in cruiser operations is par- archaeologists to discover. ticularly welcome, as it helps fill in a Financial problems plagued the gap that has understandably (but frus- project prior to the removal of material. tratingly) existed for far too long in Then there were technical and opera- our understanding of the conduct of tional issues. The conservation, stor- the war. Taken together with his other age, and documentation of the archae- summaries and his detailed chronology, ological finds proved to be somewhat his book will serve as a valuable asset of a challenge. Basically, other finds at for decades to come for anyone interest- virtually the same location attracted far ed in naval warfare during the conflict. more attention. For example, how did uncovering a partial cog compare with Mark Klobas a complete barge from the eighth cen- Phoenix, Arizona tury? Or what about the discovery of what became known as “Beck’s ship”, Manfred Rech. Das Bremer Schlachte- a river barge from the fifteenth centu- Schiff. Eine Proto-Kogge mit Heckrud- ry? These too had to be dug up and er aus der Zeit um 1100. Bremerhaven, preserved. Choices, choices… These Germany: Deutsches Schiffahrtsmuse- archaeologists’ nightmares seriously re- um and Oceanum Verlag, www.dsm. duced the scientific significance of the museum, www.oceanum.de, 2016. 264 cog wreck. pp., illustrations, bibliography. Euro Based on the artifacts found with 34,90 €, cloth; ISBN 978-3-86927- the ship, archaeologists concluded that 076-0. the cog was used to transport cargo between Bremen, the Rhine estuary in Imagine a ship—a wreck—lying on a present-day Netherlands and Jutland in riverbank covered in mud. Time goes the north of Denmark. Ceramics found by, about nine centuries. Then, one day on site appeared to have come from in 1991, in the German city of Bremen, Normandy, while other pieces indicated riverside construction brings to light the designs originating in Flanders. Among remains of what once was a cog. This the finds was a stone-anchor, possible early cog was the first discovery of a a souvenir from the Holy Land. In- medieval stern-ruddered cargo ship, vestigators used the carbon-14 dating about 14 meters in length. The cog method (radiocarbon dating) to deter- was a trading vessel used in northern mine the age of the vessel, combining Europe, especially by members of the it with dendrochronological informa- Hanseatic League, a trade cooperation tion (tree ring dating) from the wooden between port cities in Western Europe parts. The “Schlachte ship” dates back and the Baltic Sea. In an ideal world, to around 1100 CE and is a transitional as a matter of course, one would expect hull form, basically an extended dugout Book Reviews 201 with a rudder. slaved peoples, gold, and sugar. These No matter how battered and dam- relationships were complicated by wars aged over the centuries, this cog still between European nations in Europe represents an era in which the founda- and within colonial properties and tion was laid of a prosperous society. grassroots revolutionary movements. This book is a valuable addition to our Balanced with the system-level archaeological knowledge of ships of analysis of the Luso-Atlantic diplo- the High Middle Ages. matic and economic diaspora is the ef- fective reaction to this system by indi- J.B. Hak vidual merchants and trading/shipping Leiden, The Netherlands communities. Merchants and traders were heavily invested in ensuring and Tyson Reeder. Smugglers, Pirates, and promoting open markets in the United Patriots: Free Trade in the Age of Rev- States, Portugal, and Brazil, as well as olution. Philadelphia, PA: University procuring ready investment and cash of Pennsylvania Press, www.upenn. inflow from British banks in order to edu, 2019. xi+335pp., illustrations, maintain the solvency of their business- map, tables, notes, bibliography, index. es. When the political and legal systems US $45.00, cloth; ISBN 978-0-81225- worked to their benefit, participants 5138-8. readily functioned within them. Con- versely, when tariffs and other imped- Smugglers, Pirates, and Patriots is an iments to free trade negatively impact- in-depth exploration of Luso-Atlantic ed merchants and traders, many sought trade relationships during primarily the to circumvent discriminatory laws and eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, be- customs through primarily smuggling, tween Portugal, England, Great Britain, but also privateering and piracy, the lat- Colonial America/The United States, ter to the benefit of revolutionary gov- Colonial Brazil/Independent Brazil, ernments. and the Banda Oriental. It follows two Reeder’s use of both English and competing philosophies of economic Portuguese primary sources allows for governance—centralized control and a multi-viewpoint approach to the web imperial negotiation versus republican- of constantly changing international ism and free trade. The impacts from relationships during these politically the push and pull between these two unstable years. What could have been worldviews as western-hemisphere na- a narrative of American and English-di- tions struggled for independence from aspora agency reacting to relatively European powers and negotiated their opaque Portuguese and Brazilian ac- new identities and relationships with tivities in the Atlantic system is instead Europe and each other are evident in a nuanced analysis of often fractious, their effects on merchant communities nebulous, and constantly changing mer- across commodities throughout the cantile relationships that existed both Luso-Atlantic. Between Portugal and within and without formal political sys- the United States, the primary com- tems. modities that cyclically benefitted and The book is not so much about the suffered from these impacts during this people who lived and functioned eco- period were wine, grain, and flour, and nomically within the Luso-Atlantic sys- between Portuguese colonies in Africa tem. Reeder uses traders, merchants, and Brazil and the United States, en- lawmakers, revolutionaries, smugglers, 202 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord etc. as examples to illustrate the evolu- it is impossible to understand the devel- tion of the system, as well as both the opment of the American and Brazilian direct and indirect effects national and economies, trade relationships with international mercantile and trade pol- each other and the European Imperial icies, and associated diplomacy had powers, and the evolution of diplomatic on empires, countries, colonies, com- relationships between Imperial Europe munities, and businesses. The book is and the Americas without fully integrat- thematically organized, situated within ing the Luso-Atlantic into an analysis of approximately half-century blocks of this international system. This book is time that shift forward and overlap as highly recommended. political and economic relationships Alicia Caporaso evolve within the Luso-Atlantic. While New Orleans, Louisiana I agree that this is structurally the best way to approach this type of system-fo- cused analysis, I found the density of John Roberts. Battlecruiser Repulse: the presented information and subse- Detailed in the Original Builders’ Plans. quent analysis hard to follow. Reeder’s Barnsley, S. Yorks: Pen and Sword coverage of such a broad period and Publishing, www.pen-and-sword. geographical extent, made it difficult to co.uk, and National Maritime Museum, parse what happened concurrently ver- Greenwich, 2019. 160 pp., illustrations, sus sequentially as I progressed through tables, bibliography. UK £30.00, cloth; the chapters. This was, however, mit- ISBN 978-1-5267-5728-9. igated by Reeder’s regular repetition of thematically important concepts and This work is the sixth installment in events throughout passages and in end- Pen and Sword’s Detailed in the Orig- of-chapter summaries. inal Builders’ Plans series, examining When most Americans think about the Royal Navy battlecruiser HMS American national history during the Repulse in both her original 1916, and revolutionary and early republic peri- modernized 1936 configurations, along ods, they remember what was learned with interim modifications. Due to the in school and what is most often depict- extensive nature of the 1936 modern- ed in popular media, books, television, izations, a second set of ship plans was film, etc. They remember American created. Author John Roberts exam- relationships with England, France, ines each within this text following the Spain, and maybe The Netherlands, now-standardized Detailed in the Orig- Sweden and Russia, all countries that inal Builders’ Plans format. Following held a colonial foothold in North Amer- his introductory explanation of the plan ica. The role of Portugual, Portuguese types and their creation, Roberts dives colonial expansion, and its influence on directly into the 1916 blueprints. The Atlantic diaspora trade, especially con- modernization plans receive their own cerning the movement of gold and the brief introductory paragraph, followed enslaved, is overlooked. Perhaps this by a short summary of the Repulse’s ca- is because the idealized goal of many reer. After the last two- page rendering free trade proponents, a hemispheri- of the 1936 Forward Hold Deck Plans, cally-connected conglomerate of open a single page of sources concludes the independent republics, did not develop. work. All blueprints are rendered in In Smugglers, Pirates, and Patri- full colour and are drawn from the Na- ots, Reeder successfully establishes that tional Maritime Museum’s collection in Book Reviews 203 Greenwich, England. attention one would expect, but innoc- The introduction covers the genesis uous components such as the amount of HMS Repulse, from the turn-of-the- of shells rendered by the draughtsman century concepts pushed by Admiral in ammunition storage bays and the Sir John Fisher into wartime design and movement of small refits to different construction. Separate sections are de- positions are just as well documented, noted to specifically focus on the ship’s impressing one with the level of study design, structure, armament, fire con- undertaken by Robert in crafting his trol, armour, and engines, with general analysis. ship information and an explanation Following the large central of the included plans concluding the 1916/1936 gatefold plans is an 8-page preliminary text. Interestingly, Robert section on the 1933-1936 moderniza- prefaces the examination of the plans tions, focusing largely on the ship’s with a warning that many details are, overall career and the specific modifi- in fact, wrong. He postulates that this cations related to the seaplane hangar may be due to the “pressures of wartime and equipment additions. This is fol- production and the need to complete the lowed by 70 pages examining the 1936 ship at an early date,” which resulted in As Fitted plans and enlargements in the inconsistent terminology, mislabeled same standardized format as their earli- compartments, and inaccurate depic- er 1916 counterparts. The involvement tions of such vital components as the of aircraft with the Repulse is its own ship’s propellers (16-17, 26). While interesting subset of the ship’s evolv- these are addressed via Roberts’ nota- ing design. The 1936 detail plans and tions, they raise questions which can be appearance on the As Fitted drawings hard to answer due to the ship’s sinking allow for one to see the shift from pure so early in the Second World War. battleship to turret launched biplanes Following the design history are 57 to multiple seaplanes with their unique pages detailing the pre-modernization hangars and launching apparatuses, architecture of the Repulse, with the foreshadowing the increased impor- majority based on the 1916 As Fitted tance of aircraft in naval warfare. The drawings. Given that these surviving 1936 plans are also in better overall blueprints are miraculously a set on condition than the 1916 set, providing which the 1918-1921 alterations were a greater degree of clarity. The en- denoted, the late and immediately post- larged 1936 As Fitted deck plans are war modifications visible are addressed also better represented than their 1916 alongside the earlier configurations counterparts, spanning four pages per (16). Ten pages are devoted solely to deck with the relevant cross-section examining the pre-1931 modifications portrayed above in the now-traditional to a variety of superstructure platforms, format of the Original Builders’ Plans all rendered as multi-coloured addi- series (136-159). In contrast, the 1916 tions to the older original lines. Some plans are half the size, spread across of the rendered pages show their age two pages and at a scale where discern- more than others, with their unrestored ing markings can be difficult to impos- discoloration and rough edges hinting sible (20-25). The work has no con- at the fragility of these massive, nine- cluding analysis by Roberts, instead foot-long blueprints. Unique details following up the final Forward Hold such as the triple mounts for the Re- schematic with a one-page bibliogra- pulse’s 4-inch guns receive the detailed phy and an archival guide to the plans 204 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord represented in the work. plans provides interesting insight into In terms of possible improvements a war-expedited design and construc- for future editions, several come to tion process, and offers one better un- mind. While the positioning of the Re- derstanding of certain design choices pulse’s career summary after the intro- made throughout the Repulse’s service duction to her 1933-1936 modernization life. For modelers and students of naval can be understood as a means to bulk up architecture, especially those outside interpretive text for the second half of the United Kingdom, these large-scale the work, it does not flow well, as it is a renderings offer a great primary source chronology from 1916 to her loss in the previously limited by the size and rela- South China Sea on 10 December 1941 tive inaccessibility of the originals. (83, 86). Splitting this section into pre- Charles Ross Patterson II and post-modernization histories would Yorktown, Virginia improve the narrative flow and be less jarring, especially given that the brief text is currently interrupted by two pag- Ken W. Sayers. US Navy Auxiliary es of schematics and technical summa- Vessels, A History and Directory from ries (84-85). A conclusion might also World War 1 to Today. Jefferson, NC: be useful, especially as a place to briefly McFarland, www.mcfarlandpub.com, note the unfortunate current state of the 2019, vii+353 pp., illustrations, glos- Repulse as a war grave, and the pilfer- sary, notes, bibliography, index. US ing of her remains in recent years by $45.00, paper; ISBN 978-1-4766-7256- unscrupulous scrap metal merchants 4. (E-book available). using jury-rigged explosives. Finally, the presence of photographs, either in- The author, former naval officer Ken W. terspersed or in an appendix would be Sayers, set himself the difficult job of a strong addition. Given the sometimes listing and describing all the auxiliary erroneous nature of the plans and the vessels of the United States Navy since radical visual changes wrought by the the First World War. It was indeed a vessel’s modernization, the inclusion of formidable task because of the number period photographs could help readers of ships, the great variety of ship types further examine the changes, especial- and the reclassifications and changes ly in regard to the seaplane hangars that have occurred over the last hundred and launchers amidships. Even sim- or more years. ple waterline profiles of the Repulse in After a preface, a glossary her various configurations and painting (much-needed) and an introduction, schemes might serve the same purpose. the book is divided into three chapters The lack of these components does not or parts. Chapter One describes the detract from Roberts’ work, of course, combat logistics and fleet support ships and is merely put forward as a sugges- that directly supply or support the fight- tion for possible future editions. ing units. Chapter Two covers support Battlecruiser Repulse is another ships that supply oversea bases or pro- fine addition to the Original Builders’ vide a range of services that are essen- Plans series, and a solid resource for tial, but are not considered to be “front those studying battlecruiser design, line”. Chapter Three lists a wide range the loss of the vessel, or her remain- of inactive (i.e. previous) types. ing wreckage. Roberts’ notations and Some of these ships are/were com- identification of errors present in the missioned vessels crewed by U.S. Book Reviews 205 Navy personnel and have the prefix sentative ships of significant types have USS (United States Ship) before their been selected for presentation of de- names. Others are operated by the Mili- tailed data and outlines of their service. tary Sealift Command (MSC), formerly Going through the book, the excellent the Military Sea Transportation Service illustrations catch the eye and invite (MSTS) which had been established in a closer look at that section. One is 1949. MSC ships are crewed by civil- struck by the variety of sizes as well as ians and bear the prefix USNS (United purpose among all these auxiliary ships. States Naval Ship). They are distin- There are large, fast combat support guished by a blue and gold stripe on ships (AOE) and small tugs (ATF), sub- their funnel. One might think the ships marine tenders (AS) and hospital ships in the first chapter would be commis- (AH). Within the last decade, new and sioned USN warships and those in the unusual ship types with strange profiles second, civilian crewed ships. This was have appeared: expeditionary fast trans- generally true during the Second World ports (EPF) developed from an Austra- War but not today—both chapters in- lian ferry design, and expeditionary sea clude ships crewed by either service. bases (ESB) that have no commercial Furthermore, some have mixed naval equivalent, although they are crewed and civilian complements: the civilians by MSC civilians, hence are designated operate the ship and the naval person- T-ESB. nel carry out whatever specialised task The author has included a very large it is designed to do. This system is also body of information in this volume, used by the British Royal Navy and its though he probably would have liked Royal Fleet Auxiliary and by the Royal extra space to include more accounts of Canadian Navy (RCN) in the replenish- service histories—but which to choose? ment ship MV Asterix. The third chap- As the title says, it is a Directory. Even ter also features both USS and USNS so (this may just be a personal pref- ships, as well as those operated prior to erence) navigating through the book 1949 by a variety of government agen- might have been easier if it had been cies, including the Army. divided into separate sections covering Within each chapter the ships are different time periods: say, First World listed in alphabetical order of the ac- War to Pearl Harbor, Second World ronym indicating their purpose. Most, War and Korea, the Cold War and Viet- but not all, begin with A for Auxiliary, nam and from the collapse of the So- so AKA means an attack cargo ship. If viet Union to today. Anyone who has civilian-manned, there is a prefix T, so books about USN warships past and T-AKA. There are 400 vessels in 13 present—aircraft carriers, battleships, different active hull classifications in cruisers, destroyers, submarines and so chapter one, 367 vessels in 14 classi- on, would find US Navy Auxiliary Ves- fications in chapter two. These list all sels a useful addition. ships of those types, including, if the type designation is still used, those that C. Douglas Maginley no longer exist. Chapter three has 103 Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia hull types that are no longer in service or the type has been renamed. Peter Schenk. Operation Sealion. The Obviously, it would be impossible Invasion of England 1940. Barnsley, S. to list the details of all these ships in a Yorks: W.W. Greenhill Books, www. volume of manageable size, so repre- pen-and-sword.co.uk, 2019. x+326 206 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord pp., illustrations, maps, glossary, bibli- man Western Offensive in May 1940 ography, index. UK £25.00, US $39.95, and the intentions of the various Ger- cloth; ISBN 978-1-78438-394-7. (First man military leaders from General Jodl published by Conway Maritime 1990.) and Field Marshal von Brauchitsh to Admiral Raeder and General Göring, It is somewhat surprising to consider Schenk enters into the details of the that the massive strategic and logis- various logistical requirements assem- tical preparation for Operation Nep- bled for the invasion. In the first ma- tune, the Allied amphibious landings jor sections of the book, the reader is at Normandy in 1944, was not the first taken through the impressive array of effort toward a cross-Channel invasion. large transports and landing craft the While the body of English-language Germans arranged in preparation for historic knowledge is not completely the Sealion landings in the summer of devoid of knowledge about Nazi Ger- 1940. The variety, in both size and ca- many’s planned invasion of England, pability, of the vessels is astounding to there are very few deep-dive research behold and speaks clearly to the fact works. Peter Schenk, in this newly that such a feat had never before been revised English edition of Operation attempted in the modern era. It is also Sealion: The Invasion of England 1940, apparent that the Germans were keen- provides an incredible wealth of de- ly aware that they were making it up as tail and technical understanding of the they went along. German amphibious assault that never Throughout the first major section, was. He analyzes the German strate- which deals with the composition of gic situation following Dunkerque, as the invasion fleet, Schenk presents each well as the evolution of German naval type of vessel and extraordinary details leaders’ opinions about crossing the about their capability, their intended role Channel; he contends that the German in the invasion, and their place in the or- Navy was neither trained, prepared, nor ganization of German forces. Addition- equipped to conduct a successful as- ally, this section contains some of the sault if they were ordered to. Drawing most fascinating details of the German on an impressive depth of research in preparations that distinctly highlights the often un-seen German military ar- how unique and novel an operation like chives, Schenk provides unparalleled Sealion was to a nation with no expe- detail about the ad-hoc approach taken rience in amphibious warfare. Schenk by the Wehrmacht, Kriegsmarine, and provides the reader with the technical Luftwaffe to gather or build the land- details and thought processes behind ing craft, personnel transports, assault the several methods of adding ramps to craft, amphibious tanks, and ferries, as landing craft, segmented landing bridg- well as actually planning the invasion es, submersible and amphibious tanks, in a three-month period. The book is and the Luftwaffe’s participation to at- arranged thematically with two major tach propellers to landing barges, creat- sections accounting for the bulk of the ing airboats as landing craft. work, which combined with Schenk’s The book’s second major section intricate level of detail, tends to wear applies the same penchant for detail on the reader; however, the sections are to the larger in scale, but narrower broken up by exceptional diagrams and in scope, topic of the actual invasion a remarkable collection of photographs. plan. Through extensive use of pri- After a short overview of the Ger- mary source material, Schenk presents Book Reviews 207 the unique difficulty Germany faced Greg H. Williams. The United States in preparing so immense an endeav- Merchant Marine in World War I: Ships, our, though that fact is often lost in Crews, Shipbuilders and Operators. the same thematic arrangement as the Jefferson, NC: McFarland Publishing, earlier section. Schenk addresses the www.mcfarlandpub.com, 2017. 472 naval matters of transport but also cov- pp., illustrations, bibliography, index. ers the Wehrmacht’s plans once ashore, US $55.00, paper; ISBN 978-1-4766- because an amphibious transport and 6703-4. (E-book available.) landing is for naught without a plan to successful invade England beyond the The literature of the First World War at beachheads. With over 20 separate sea is dominated by accounts of the na- operational planning maps and more val forces. A particular fascination with than 15 original planning diagrams, the Jutland competes with the response to complex nature of Sealion is presented submarine warfare. For those whose as far more than the “paper tiger” it is interests extend beyond the north At- often asserted to be. lantic, there are books about the various Schenk argues that despite German commerce raiders from Graf Spee to the military leadership’s impression that Seeadler. When the merchant marine Sealion would be a tragic misstep, the appears on the scene, it is largely in the planning and preparation efforts would context of victims of those submarines, have likely generated a successful land- although there are entries in the liter- ing, though perhaps not a successful ature about the loss of merchant ships invasion. This argument is clearly vali- and a brief revival of wooden shipbuild- dated in the German records of the plan- ing in response to the emergency. ning and logistics portions of Sealion in Greg Williams is an active chroni- the summer of 1940. The mind-bog- cler of the United State merchant ma- gling level of detail reveals the real rine in wartime. In a series of volumes complexity of planning a major am- from McFarland since 2002, he has phibious operation and Germany’s abil- authored Civil and merchant vessel en- ity to conduct one. This overarching counters with United States Navy ships, theme is often lost in the recesses of the 1800-2000 (2002), Civil War suits in sometimes microscopic detail Schenk the U. S. Court of Claims (2006), The provides. The novelty and difficulty of French assault on American shipping, the German attempt to invade England 1793-1813 (2009), World War II U. S. in the summer of 1940 is wonderfully Navy vessels in private hands (2013) summed up in the author’s epilogue and The last days of the United States and the final section of the book which Asiatic Fleet (2018). The brief biog- discusses the final fate of Sealion. This raphy on the back cover acknowledges book is a must for any student of op- Williams’ four years in the US Navy, in- erational planning, wartime logistics, cluding time served on a converted Lib- and amphibious operations; howev- erty ship, and his having sailed with the er, one should break a cardinal rule of volunteer crew on the 1994 voyage of book-reading, and reading the epilogue the Jeremiah O’Brien from San Fran- first to ingest the details with solid con- cisco to Europe. In this volume, Wil- text. liams set out “to produce a reasonably comprehensive account of the Ameri- Joe Eanett can merchant marine during the Great Annapolis, Maryland War. (1)” 208 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord Williams latest work largely fol- and then include a summary of facts lows a familiar formula. At its heart it is from a legal case. For example, the en- a book of lists: of steamship companies try for A. D. Carver of New York, own- and of shipyards and the vessels they er of a pair of schooners, runs two full operated or built. Around this core are a pages thanks to the minutiae of a case number of brief chapters which provide involving the Betsey Ross (118-20). It more historical context and more ship may be a limitation of Williams’ sourc- lists. The back cover claims that the es, but in some instances, there is more title draws on “contemporary newspa- to the story. The account of George pers, magazines and trade publications, Hall Coal and Transportation (163-64) and Shipping Board, Department of is inflated with a quote relative to the Commerce and Coast Guard records.” Seaman’s Act of 1915, but misses the The bibliography runs only two pag- fact that not one, but four, of the compa- es and cites only published volumes. ny’s fleet were acquired by the United There are no footnotes, although on oc- States Shipping Board and taken to sea. casion you will find inline citations like: Hall bought them back after the war for “One aspect of Wheeler’s time in Con- considerably less than the government gress was written about in the Buffalo paid for them. Courier on Saturday, July 18, 1891.” Another 135 pages deal with ship- (295) This introduces a half-page, re- yards. This section is longer because, duced font, three-paragraph quote. The in addition to the background on the volume is full of quotes, many of them yard, each entry attempts to supply in- at considerable length. It should be not- formation on the vessels constructed ed that the 16-page, 3-column index is in it. The ship details include name, particularly useful. tonnage, speed, fuel, type, year deliv- The list of shipping companies runs ered, official number, call sign, private for a full 100 pages. Each entry names owner or manager on behalf of the US the company, and gives an address. Be- Shipping Board. Williams notes that yond that, the amount of information many of these formed the backbone of varies considerably. The Western Mer- the U.S. merchant fleet at the begin- cantile Marine Corp. of San Francisco ning of the Second World War, which rated one line, noting the firm of which justifies notes about their losses in that it was a subsidiary and naming its pres- war (which may overlap with research ident (216). More common are entries for his 2018 title on the Asiatic fleet). like that of the Standard Oil Company Quite reasonably, Williams largely con- of New Jersey which rates three para- fines the list to vessels that were actual- graphs (200-10). These named the ly delivered by the end of 1918, which principal officers, and the tanker Calo- makes some of the entries surprising- ria, which had been requisitioned. He ly short. The American International refers to another 51 ships but names Shipbuilding Corporation at Hog Island only the nine 10,000 ton-tankers. At rates a page. The author notes that four the end of the entry comes the typical ships were delivered in 1918 with 118 summary: “The company managed one more before 1921, but lists only two, Shipping Board steamer and managed both of which were delivered after the and operated four ships.” Unfortunate- Armistice (301-2). On the other hand, ly, Williams does not explain the rela- the entry for Fore River Shipbuilding tionship of those “four ships” to the rest of Quincy, Massachusetts, (312-4) in- of the 51 vessels. Most of the longer cludes eight vessels built between 1914 entries embrace the same level of detail and 1916, but supplies information on Book Reviews 209 the war service of only one these. Another major section lists the ves- sels requisitioned for the Naval Over- seas Transportation Service (NOTS). Operated by the United States Navy and crewed by enlistees rather than merchant mariners, the NOTS could move troops, munitions and food to Eu- rope at a fraction of the cost. The use of American enlisted personnel was partly justified due to concern regarding the sympathies of the various nationalities of the sailors serving on American- flagged vessels in the period. Contem- porary newspaper reports of sinkings that listed crew members, often found only a handful of Americans on board, and some of those had only recently taken up citizenship. As with the other sections, this is largely a list of vessels, both great and small, but punctuated by two extended sections drawing on legal cases: the Royal Holland liner Zeelan- dia (365-6), and the salvaged German tanker Gut Heil / Sara Thompson (368- 71). Reinforcing these core sections are shorter chapters on elements of the merchant marine in the First World War. Much of the discussion of neutral trade in the first chapters is presented in brief introductions and stories of individual ship experiences and sinkings. Almost the final chapter is another extended list: American ship losses. This in- cludes accounts of various “raiders” including Triumph, Wolf and Seeadler. As a history of the American mer- chant marine in the First World War, this volume is episodic and poorly doc- umented. Nevertheless, it includes a lot of information that could be used to further the exploration of a critical di- mension of America’s responses to the demands of the First World War. Walter Lewis Grafton, Ontario