The Illustrated Companion to Nelson's Navy (Hardcover)

~ (Author), Richard Lawrence (Author) "The Government's decisions on naval strategy and policy were made by the Cabinet and carried out by the Admiralty..." (more)
Key Phrases: navalis mercatoria, wing transom, fouled anchor, Royal Navy, Liber Nauticus, Navy Board (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

50 color photos 450 b/w illustrations 7 x 10
* Perfect complement to the fiction of historical novelists such as Patrick O'Brian
* An essential addition to every Nelson enthusiast's library

The fictional exploits of sailors in the Royal Navy have thrilled readers around the world. But to many, the "real world" of Nelson's Navy has remained a mystery until now. Whether looking for a recipe for "spotted dog" or the method for reefing the main topgallant, Nelson enthusiasts will find it in this extraordinary compendium. Every aspect of the Royal Navy is covered-the workings of the admiralty, the designs and building of ships, life on board, food and drink, discipline, seamanship, merchant fleets, and opposing navies-all are explained in succinct texts and illustrated with specially commissioned sketches, maps, and diagrams.

Nicholas Blake is currently an editor at Macmillan (London) where his authors include David Donachie. Richard Lawrence, who illustrated the book, is an accomplished graphic artist and designer who recently co-authored The Period House.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 208 pages
• Publisher: Stackpole Books (January 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0811708640
• ISBN-13: 978-0811708647
• Product Dimensions: 10.6 x 8.2 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #766,720 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Companion Book for Nautical Fiction, February 2, 2000

By	Bruce Trinque (Amston, CT United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

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"The Illustrated Companion to Nelson's Navy" is a wonderful repository of information about ships, life at sea, and naval warfare during the era of Jack Aubrey, Richard Bolitho, and Horation Hornblower (frequent mention of these and other fictional Royal Navy officers is made in the book, placing them in the real life context). The range of material covered is very broad, and it is attractively and concisely presented, often in a graphical or tabular form. The book is illustrated with hundreds of drawings, paintings and diagrams, many of them from contemporary sources. If you want information about ship types, naval weapons, life on board, battles, ship handling, sails and rigging, watches and bells, rates of pay, distribution of prize money, and seemingly almost anything else you can think of, this is a very handy place to find it. I strongly recommend this book for anyone interested in learning about the background to the novels of Patrick O'Brian, Alexander Kent, Dudley Pope, and C.S. Forester.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good general introduction, May 19, 2001

By	Terence Chua (Athens, GA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

When I was much younger and first started reading the Horatio Hornblower books by C.S. Forester, I was blown away by the authenticity, yet puzzled by the jargon - what's a halliard, for example, or a topsail? What does it mean to shorten sail, and what is the lee side of a ship? This book would have helped immensely. It's not overly technical, nor does it swamp you with minutiae, but it gives you a good general overview of the British ships of the Napoleonic era, what the nautical terms are, what life was like on board and a couple of summaries of battles for good measure.

This is an appetizer, but what an appetizer it is. If you're looking for more technical specs of ships of the line look elsewhere, but if you're a newbie to the entire historical nautical fiction scene, I can think of few better places to start.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Finally, a clear explanation for the fiction series, September 26, 2000

By	"eaf8974" (Wilmette, IL) - See all my reviews

This book is full of clear illustrations and explanations of the main aspects of naval life and operations. I'm working my way through the O'Brian series and this book is quite helpful when I can't remember a brig from a sloop or whether the topsails are above or below the topgallants. My brother is reading the Hornblower series and he'll get a birthday present of this book. I especially like the references to the multiple fictional series that appear throughout the sidebars and main text.

Don't look for long, drawn-out technical specifications in this book. It covers a wide variety of topics at just enough detail to appreciate the historical accuracy and color of the fiction.`