War At Sea In The Ironclad Age (Cassell'S History Of Warfare)

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Format: Hardcover
Pages: 224
Edition: First Edition
Publisher: W&N
Published: 12 Jul 2000
ISBN 10: 030435273X
ISBN 13: 9780304352739
Book Overview: The most dramatic artefact of the military-industrial revolution was the steam-powered warship. At the height of the Victorian era, it was the ironclad warship which made it possible for colonial powers to acquire and control their overseas empires. It was the armoured ship that ensured British invincibility at sea, and secured for them the most extensive empire the world has ever seen. However, it was not only the British who had this technology. The significance of these heavyweight warships was first demonstrated during the Crimean War, but it was confirmed in the American Civil War. And it was only in the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-5 that the ships truly became an instrument of strategic victory. In this volume of the Cassell History of Warfare series, Richard Hill describes the changes in technology which led to these supreme instruments of sea warfare. He shows how weapons and tactics evolved, and how the strategies of the likes of Mahan and Corbett transformed conflict at sea forever. With 150 illustrations and colour maps, this is the story of a class of ships that brought about some of the greatest naval battles ever fought.