A Most Fortunate Ship: A Narrative History of Old Ironsides [Hardcover]

Tyrone G. Martin (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1997

After seventeen years of additional research and study, Tyrone G. Martin - captain of the USS Constitution during the nation's bicentennial celebrations - offers this revised and expanded edition of his famous ship's story, called "definitive" when the book first appeared in 1980. This new update commemorates the ship's own bicentennial: Constitution was launched in 1797 in Boston Harbor, where she is now preserved as a museum. In this edition the author confirms for the first time that the innovative diagonal riders that ensured the frigate's long life were present at the ship's launching. And he provides details about the ship's participation in battles that have long been ignored or glossed over in official reports. Pictorial battle diagrams based on new research have also been added. The book not only tells Constitution's complete story, but also presents a picture of life in the U.S. Navy during the nineteenth century - its proud moments and those that caused concern. The author includes some fascinating details on the organization, care, feeding, and disciplining of a crew, as well as about events serious, humorous, and tragic that involved such famous names in American naval history as Edward Preble and Stephen Decatur. Just as the original edition was a sought-after source of pleasure and information, this updated study will appeal to everyone who enjoys a good sea story along with historians, students, sailing ship enthusiasts, and ship modelers.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Considered a definitive account when first published in 1980, A Most Fortunate Ship is now available in a revised edition to commemorate the bicentennial anniversary of the USS Constitution, America's most famous naval vessel. The warship earned the nickname "Old Ironsides" because of its apparent invincibility fighting enemy ships such as the HMS Guerriere, the HMS Java, and ships sailed by the Barbary pirates. The prose is good, but the graphics are even better: beautiful illustrations dot these pages, as do rare photographs and helpful battle diagrams. Tyrone Martin's depiction of everyday life in the early 19th-century American navy is especially interesting.

About the Author

Tyrone G. Martin, Commander, USN (Ret.) was the first Constitution skipper since 1815 to be decorated for his command tour. He is the author of two other books, Undefeated and Creating a Legend, and numerous articles for such magazines as the U.S. Naval Institute's Proceedings and Naval History, and for American Neptune. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 400 pages
• Publisher: Naval Institute Press; Rev Sub edition (May 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1557505888
• ISBN-13: 978-1557505880
• Product Dimensions: 10.3 x 7.4 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,395,989 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Old Ironsides... With Just A Little Rust., August 24, 2003

By 

David M. Garrett (San Antonio, Texas USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: A Most Fortunate Ship: A Narrative History of Old Ironsides (Hardcover)

Tyrone Martin writes an excellent account of arguably America's most revered warship, USS Constitution. A former commander of "Old Ironsides" (still a commissioned vessel in the U.S. Navy), Martin is personally well versed in the ship's history, writing a very readable, well documented history. Not only does the narrative cover the ship itself -- from design, construction and launching in the mid-1790s to its most recent preservation in the 1990s -- but the people, both officers and enlisted who served her. The personality and idiosyncracies of such officers as Talbot, Hull, Bainbridge, Elliot is especially insightful. Martin also does an excellent job of suggesting both the fragile nature yet durability of large sailing vessels. Constitution weathered numerous stroms, groundings and even a hurricane, not to mention enemy fire. But thanks to a skillful, resourceful crew, and good fortune, was able to jury-rig, repair, and replace key components at sea thereby continuing military and diplomatic service well into the late 19th Century.

Only three concerns prevent me from rendering this book Five Stars. First, early in the book Martin let's the ship's log dominate his prose, resulting in a Point A - to Point B - to Point C monotony. The author shakes this pattern later in the book, letting his own personal style and experience lend a smoother flow and insight to his writing. This is especially apparent in the final few chapters discussing the "battle" to preserve "the big frigate" for posterity. Second, Martin is intimately familiar with nautical terminology, using the nomenclature throughout the book. Fortunately, the book includes a glossary of terms BUT fails, in many instances, to define what Martin fails to adequately describe in the text. This leaves the less nautically informed to wonder, "Where exactly on the ship is that?" Similarly, Martin would have done well to provide a diagram of the frigate labling key equipment, rigging, jibs, yards, etc. for quick reference and orientation (esp. for we flatlanders). Finally, there is the matter of the maps. Diagrams of the Constitution's major engagements (e.g., Guerriere, Java, Cyane, Levant), when combined with the text, are very instructive in visualizing the action. However, the author would have done well to plot Constitution's voyages in more detail as an aid to the less geographically literate. He does, however, an excellent job in the text of providing present-day place names to 19th Century references. Still, keeping track of the ship's progress is somewhat tedius.

In all, I recommend "A Most Fortunate Ship" to those interested in 19th Century sailing ships and the USS Constitution in particular -- its history and preservation. Martin's narrative makes clear why "Old Ironsides" is a national treasure.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Most Enjoyable Read, September 7, 2000

By 

LeRoy Brady (Cupertino, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Most Fortunate Ship: A Narrative History of Old Ironsides (Hardcover)

To be honest I expected this book to be a rather slow and plodding presentation of America's most loved warship. Despite my fears I bought it anyway since I had just taken the guided tour of USS Constitution and was therefore acutely aware of how little I knew of her history. When I began reading I was quite literally shocked that I could not but it down! Tyrone Martin has spiced this account expertly with timely and relevant anecdotal nuggets from her captains and crew that really frame the mood and mindset of those early patriots that served aboard her. Even the title is especially fitting in describing the career of this Famous Frigate, and you find your self understanding the history and politics of the period of each chapter and campaign. Find out the innovative design first used in the construction of her and her sister's President, and United States, as well as the secret weapon of Live Oak that made her so hard to defeat and last so long. My favorite chapter is the one were he explains the seemingly unbearable living conditions aboard this Man-o-war and the adventure in cuisine the grew endured. Weavel filled hard tack biscuits, worm infested cheese, and over salted meat. Then the punishment section and the "cat on nine tails" will help you understand why so many deserted. Plus all her battles are explained in very good detail. The only thing that could have made this book better is if I had got it through Amazon.com, would have saved nearly $20.00 but then again even my price was worth it.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Simply the best History of Old Ironsides available, December 13, 2004

By 

J. Head "jeff_head" (Idaho, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Most Fortunate Ship: A Narrative History of Old Ironsides, Revised Edition (Paperback)

Captain Martin has left no stone unturned in his research and he has presented the story of the history of the U.S.S. Constitution, the oldest continuously commissioned ship in the U.S. Navy or any other, in a manner that is riveting, informative and captivating. This is not a dry historical moniton narrative.

Anyone interested in naval history should read this book, particularly those who would like to learn of how the United States navy got its start and how the Constitution figured into it.