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Argues that patronage served a very useful function and should not be seen as a form of corruption.This book, based on extensive original research, examines the rich and varied nature of patronage in the British navy at the end of the long eighteenth century. Patronage underpinned naval advancement, determined where officers, seamen and dockyard workers were stationed, and fashioned their reputations. It was also a system of trust whereby an individual's connections acted as guarantors of their ability, character and suitability for a position. This book moves beyond considering patronage as being primarily about promotion to uncover its deeper social and cultural implications. Considering not just the officer class, but also warrant officers, ordinary seamen and dockyard tradesmen and workers, it reveals the fuller extent of naval patronage as it operated between both elite and non-elite men and women, within all forms of friendship, not just professional or political alliances, and beneath veneers of fashionable sensibility, duty and honour. Historians of the navy in this period are well aware of the importance of patronage, but the subject has never previously been studied in such detail. The book will be very welcome for uncovering the full nature of patronage, both for naval historians and also for cultural and social historians interested in the period more generally. Catherine Beck completed her doctorate at University College London in collaboration with the National Maritime Museum.

The Trafalgar Chronicle is the publication of choice for new research on the Georgian era navy, sometimes called ‘Nelson's Navy'. Its scope extends to the maritime world of 1714 to 1837. In this volume, authors from five countries provide tales of adventure, battles, conquests and intrigue that span the world's oceans, taking readers to the UK, the US, South America, Venice, France, the Caribbean, South Africa and the Ionian Islands.The theme for this New Series 9 is naval intelligence in the Georgian era. The contributions include two articles on the methods of gathering naval intelligence – one by author Steve Maffeo who has written the definitive book on the subject. Two articles explore how Nelson and Rodney respectively applied naval intelligence in their missions. Three articles about intelligence agents follow, including a featured monograph on Baron d'Imbert, a royalist spy during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars.Biographical portraits include a discussion of Duckworth's dilemma of choosing between his mission in the Caribbean and safeguarding the health of his men from the threat of yellow fever. The tale of Joshua Penny tells of a Royal Navy sailor who deserted and found refuge in a cave in South Africa. A third article documents the last survivors of the Battle of Trafalgar as they reached their final years.Five more articles of general interest cover a range of topics, to include the parliamentary debates concerning the War of 1812, the cruise of the US Frigate Essex, copper bottoms on Royal Navy ships, political wranglings in South America, and the origin of the name of Villeneuve's flagship, Bucentaure. This richly illustrated, peer reviewed, scholarly journal of naval history is a ‘must-read'for all enthusiasts and historians of the Age of Sail.••‘Well written, well researched, well-illustrated, this is a publication that will both delight and inform. A most enjoyable read.'D J Paul in Naval Review••••‘The Chronicle is a wonderful collection of articles, and a delight to dip into.'••••Warship World••