Customer Reviews

The Ottoman Steam Navy, 1828-1923

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I have pruchased this book in 1996 and have enjoyed every single page. If you are a seaman and are fond of old steam ships, which are becoming rare museum pieces, this is the perfect book to have alook at them. Especially the Imperial Yachts of the Sultans, their graceful lines and splendor are noteworthy. I have met the authors and thanked them personally for their outstanding work and I would like to repeat my thanks to them here once again.

This book is an absolute delight, opening up a vista into a long-gone world when Turkey hovered on the brink of embracing modernity but, in those pre-Ataturk days, never gathered the courage for the final plunge. The numerous high-quality photographs are as valuable for the picture they give of a vanished society as for the technical content. Grave moustachioed and befezzed officers and smart-looking seamen look at the camera across immaculately holystoned decks, obviously proud of their custodianship of the products of British, German and French shipyards and armaments workshops - images which are in many cases at sharp variance with the actuality of venality, corruption and inefficiency that governed their daily lives (The story in the text of Ottoman seamen stranded at a German shipyard, and practically destitute, as the funds do not become available to pay for the refurbishment of their ship, is especially pathetic). Those who love Turkey and the Turks will enjoy these photographs even if they have little interest in naval history - the views of ports, shipyards and the Golden Horn are quite splendid. The book is in fact in three main sections - an introductory text, a superb collection of photographs and a technical appendix that provides not just specifications and brief histories of every ship to serve in the Ottoman navy in the period covered, but also excellent general arrangement drawings and hull lines for many of them. This book is one that is to be treasured by anybody with an interest in naval matters of the ironclad and pre-World War 1 age. I have enjoyed it since I have purchased it and will regard it as a source of valuable reference and entertainment for years to come. Buy it!

Although not enough commentary on the pictures abundant in this book, the rare collections themselves are stunning and spoke directly to you of a once mighty Utsmani Devlet. You have to focus hard and connect the scattered pieces of facts in order to make some arguments from this remarkable work.

To get the best out of this book you'll need to read a few introductory works on the Utsmani period of modern navy, plus some history on the Persian Gulf, the Red Sea, Western Mediterranean, and the Indian Ocean. Yes, surprisingly, they actually controlled much of those waters then.

The photographic record in this book is just stunning, and I am greatful to have SOMETHING about the Ottoman Navy. Unfortunately, except for the photos, there is little that is not available in something like Conway's - I wish there had been more on design histories - WHY did the Ottomans order these ships, and what was the thinking behind their designs? I hope that the authors are planning a follow-up volume.