Customer Reviews

Steam, Steel & Shellfire: The Steam Warship 1815-1905 (Conway's History of the Ship)

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
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1 star:		(0)

 

 

I discovered thsi book on Amazon.com as I am an avid arm chair historian. And a Model Ship builder. The historical period between coming solely away from Sail power to Sail and Staem power is covered fully in this text. The Illustrations are excellent and the author has done his homework. An easy read and easy to understand. This book covers a void in the periods between 1850's and the early 1900's. When Naval Ships were crossing over from sail power to a combination of both Staem and Sail. A good example of this is the French Navies Ship "The Napoleon" 1857. As well as the American ship U.S.S. Susquehanna, 1860 and the U.S.S. Kearsarge 1863. Not forgetting of course the C.S.S. Alabama 1863. Confederite Raider of the American Civil War. I call this book a Transistion Book and not many authiors seem to cover this period in Nautical History. For some reason this era is almost forgotten. But none the less. It needs to be studied and understood. So one can experience the full gammet of Naval Histories.
The book contains dates, and Illustrations of various ships from this time period. In detail and easy to follow text. The time frame of these ships and the reason this period has been overlooked is unknown to me.. But it was a critacl time for navies wishing to draw away from Full sail propulsion to a combination of Sail and Steam.

I've now accumulated several volumes of Conway's History of the Ship. These have become the first references I reach for.Besides the informative text there are numbers of wonderful old photos. I've become interested in modelling the ships of the transitionfrom sail to steam, and this book has been a wonderful resource.You get details of not just the technology, but the forces driving the change. The only reason I didn't give it five stars is because the focus is more on British ships than American.

I have found this to be one of more informative and better-written volumes in the History of the Ship series. The book is especially helpful because it focuses on a seldom-covered era. Like most sophistocated devices, armored-steam driven warships were developed over time by trial and error. Because there were few naval battles in the mid to late 19cent., many different designs and concepts arose. This book throws light on that process of "continuity and change".

Conway's History of the Ship is a very good series indeed, and this is, to my mind, one of the most valuable books in the series because it covers an era in naval history little discussed elsewhere, the years between the end of the Napoleonic Wars and the coming of the dreadnought battleship. Fortunately, this great team effort fills the gap. Among the contributors are Andrew Lambert and David K. Brown, both authors of notable works about this period that are not currently in print. The authors cover developments with a focus on the Royal Navy and French Navy, but do not ignore developments elsewhere, and the chapter on the American Civil War will prove a useful introduction to those who may not realize what a crucible of experimentation that conflict proved to be. Other chapters cover the development of paddle warships, the steam-auxiliary ships of the line, warships built of iron, the introduction of steel as the material of choice, and the final pre-Dreadnought era. Given chapters of their own are the development of the torpedo boat, early submarines, naval armament and armor, and a very useful chapter on the varying kinds of steam engines in use during the period. The book is well illustrated with period photographs and illustrations. It would be a useful addition to your naval history library at any price.