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This collection of high policy documents charts Britain's difficulties in defending the Empire in a time of'imperial overstretch'. The 20th century saw the rise of several great maritime and military powers and the relative decline of British strength, which created major defence problems for the British Empire. Various solutions were attempted, such as ententes with France and Russia, the settling of differences with the USA and an alliance with Japan. These sufficed until after World War I, when the Empire gained several new territorial responsibilities, all to be defended on a declining economic base. The dominions were encouraged to pay for their own navies, although the Admiralty wished to assume control of them. The increasing threat from Japan made Australia, New Zealand and other Asian colonies nervous and the promised'main fleet to Singapore'became less and less likely as the 1930s wore on.

Anthony Lockwoods story is at the heart of the Georgian Navy though the man himself has never taken centre stage in its history. His naval career described by himself as twenty five years incessant peregrination followed a somewhat erratic course but almost exactly spanned the period of the French wars and the War of 1812. Lockwood was commended for bravery in action against the French; was present at the Spithead Mutiny; shipwrecked and imprisoned in France; appointed master attendant of the naval yard at Bridgetown, Barbados, during the year the slave trade was abolished; and served as an hydrographer before beginning his three-year marine survey of Nova Scotia and the Bay of Fundy. Against the odds he managed to finesse a treasury appointment as Surveyor General of New Brunswick and became the right hand man of the Governor, General Smyth.Deeply ingrained in his character, however, was a democratic determination that was out of step with the authoritarian character of the Navy and the aristocratic one of New Brunswick. His expectation of social justice verged on madness, and when he finally succumbed to lunacy it was in the defence of democracy. The turbulence of the times inspired Lockwood to stage a one-man coup detat which ended with him being jailed and shipped back to London to live out his days as a pensioner and mental patient. Truly a dramatic rise and a tragic fall.

This authoritative history chronicles the Royal Navy's decisive yet little-known victory over the French during the Seven Years'War. In the mid-18th century, with virtually no regular troops at home, Britain was especially vulnerable to the immanent threat of French invasion. In a cunning naval offensive, the British fleet under Admiral Edward Hawke intercepted French ships on their way to rendezvous with invasion troopships gathered at the mouth of the Loire. Unfairly overlook in history books, the Battle of Quiberon Bay not only spoiled the planned French invasion, but also established British naval dominance. Once under attack, the French changed course for Quiberon Bay, assuming the British would not follow them among its treacherous shoals in stormy weather. Yet Hawke pursued them under full sail. The French ships were destroyed, captured, run aground or scattered—while the British only suffered two ships run aground. In this insightful narrative, Nicholas Tracy studies the battle, its strategic consequences, and its effect on the war for North America.

From his first dramatic initiatives at the Battle of St. Vincent in 1797 to his last battle at Trafalgar in 1805, Horatio Nelson was a force to be reckoned with and a hero to his countrymen. This illuminating study of the battles that played such an important role in Napoleon's defeat also takes a close look at the admiral's art of naval warfare. It shows that Nelson was quick to adapt new ideas and technical developments. This prowess, and a remarkable ability to lead and a genius for making decisive moves, made him the consummate master of naval warfare. This newly revised edition provides the most up-to-date analysis of Nelson's victories available.

Horatio Nelson was a hero from the time when his dramatic initiative won the battle of St Vincent in 1797, while his last battle, at Trafalgar, reduced the enemy naval forces so thoroughly that they were no longer able to have any bearing on the outcome of the war. As well as being a brilliant study of those naval battles which played such an important role in Napoleon's defeat, it also makes a close study of the admiral's art which, during the last years of the eighteenth century, developed faster than at any time since the previous century and led to Britain's mastery of the seas for more than 100 years. The Seven Years War and the War of the American Revolution stimulated the development of new ideas and the experience gained from them, as well as the developments in ship design and signalling, and the perfection of drill, transformed naval methods. Nelson became a master of them all. This technical prowess, combined with a remarkable ability to lead his men and his genius for making decisive moves,'the Nelson touch', made him the consummate master of naval warfare. Highly readable, concise and insightful, this new edition will prove a popular choice for those seeking an introduction to naval warfare in the age of sail