David Lyon Knihy

" ... The Royal Navy ... comprehensive listing of its ships and their essential characteristics ... it not only includes basic specifications, building data and fates, but organises the material into types and classes with notes on design and designer. Typical entries include dimensions, tonnage, armament, builder, construction dates and detailed notes on the fates of individual vessels, with short narrative introductions outlining the principal influences on development. The book is broken down into distinct periods, further subdivided into the major ship types, w hich together amount to a skeletal history of Royal Navy warship developments. The coverage is remarkably complete, taking in not only purpose build warships, but also auxiliaries, purchased ships and prizes. It begins in 1688, partly reflecting the beginning of systematic records, and carries the story down to the end of the age of sail ..."--Back cover.

The Torpedo Boat Destroyers (TBDs) of the 1890s--the first destroyers--were among the most glamorous naval vessels ever built. With their remarkable speed, their connotations of David and Gliath, and their initial deployment against the Royal Navy’s traditional enemy, the French, they caught the public imagination, while the command of one was coveted by all young naval officers. Drawing on Admiralty documents and plans, the author has compiled a brilliant collection of data on the early development of these vessels up to the River class of 1900. He also looks at the German response and the development in the US, particularly the Bainbridge class with its distinct raised forecastle. With its superb plans and drawings and entirely original research, this book is an essential reference for all naval historians, enthusiast and modelmakers with an interest in the development of one of the twentieth century’s most exciting warships.

Discusses all of the navies that fought in the American Revolution.