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Profusely illustrated text discusses the English navy in the late eighteenth century and describes its ships, men, and battles with France and Spain.Tags
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Member Reviews
Fighting Sail is mainly about Horatio Nelson and the Battles of the Nile and Trafalgar, but the first chapters deal with the broad structure of the British Royal Navy, it’s ship classifications, and the evolution of its fighting style.
Most of the book deals with Nelson and the ongoing war with France during the late 1700’s, until Nelson’s death at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805. The book goes into detail about the Battles of the Nile and Trafalgar, as well as his battles with the Danes in the Baltic. The book also goes into Nelson’s life, and there were a few aspects of his private life was a surprise to me.
The book also shows how much Nelson cared about his men on his ships and how he went out of his way to make sure they had show more fresh food and drink, unusual for that time.
Besides Nelson, the book does go into how slowly the Royal Navy changed doctrine to keep up with changing tactics of France and Spain at the war progressed. The British Admiralty seemed to have the “This is the way we have always done it” thinking that was losing them ships and battles before the change. The book also goes into the evolution of communication between ships, particularly in battle.
Overall a good read, with the most exciting sections being about the two major battles, the Battle of the Nile and Trafalgar. show less
Most of the book deals with Nelson and the ongoing war with France during the late 1700’s, until Nelson’s death at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805. The book goes into detail about the Battles of the Nile and Trafalgar, as well as his battles with the Danes in the Baltic. The book also goes into Nelson’s life, and there were a few aspects of his private life was a surprise to me.
The book also shows how much Nelson cared about his men on his ships and how he went out of his way to make sure they had show more fresh food and drink, unusual for that time.
Besides Nelson, the book does go into how slowly the Royal Navy changed doctrine to keep up with changing tactics of France and Spain at the war progressed. The British Admiralty seemed to have the “This is the way we have always done it” thinking that was losing them ships and battles before the change. The book also goes into the evolution of communication between ships, particularly in battle.
Overall a good read, with the most exciting sections being about the two major battles, the Battle of the Nile and Trafalgar. show less
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Author Information
24 Works 2,045 Members
Series
Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- Fighting Sail
- Important events
- Age of Sail
Classifications
- Genres
- History, Nonfiction, General Nonfiction
- DDC/MDS
- 359.00941 — Society, government, & culture Public administration & military science Naval forces and warfare Biography; History By Place Europe British Isles -- Ireland & Scotland
- LCC
- DA87.1 .N4 .W55 — History of Europe, Asia, Africa and Oceania Great Britain History of Great Britain England History Political, military, naval, and Air Force history.
Statistics
- Members
- 288
- Popularity
- 112,070
- Reviews
- 1
- Rating
- (3.59)
- Languages
- Dutch, English, French, German
- Media
- Paper
- ISBNs
- 8
- ASINs
- 7
