Blurb-back of jacket

Without the three-masted fully rigged ship the European discovery of the Americas, the Indies, and the Far East would have been impossible; without its broadside battery of cannon European domination of these areas would never have been achieved. Thus the sailing ship of war played a significant part in the shaping of the modern world.

Fighting ships were the principal instruments of national power and the largest and most complex machines of their day. This book is a comprehensive survey of their technical development from 1400 to 1860, from the advent of the three-masted ship to the eclipse of naval sail. Incorporating much new information the book deals in detail with the hull design and construction, fittings, armament, masting, rigging and appearance of wooden warships. Special attention has been paid to the numerous illustrations which include plans and diagrams, and photographs of the most accurate contemporary models, prints and paintings.

THE AUTHOR

Dr Frank Howard was both a nautical historian and a ship modeller. His writings included contributions to Model Shipwright and to The Mariner's Mirror, the journal of the Society for Nautical Research, of which he was a prominent member for many years. However, his enthusiasm for nautical research went hand-in-hand with his modelmaking, and in many ways Sailing Ships of War grew out of this partnership — modellers need to know the minutest details of the construction, fittings and appearance of their subjects and since historians usually ignore such questions Dr Howard found that he needed to answer these points himself. As an example of his dual talents Dr Howard's reputation as an historically- minded modelmaker led to his commission to reconstruct in model form the hull of a Carthaginian warship based on the Marsala wreck in Sicily.

He died in 1985, but not before he had the satisfaction of seeing this book's first edition well received by modelmakers and historians alike. It was also a commercial success in its English edition and was translated into German.

Cover Illustration
The Continental frigate Confederacy (32 guns) and HM Ships Orpheus (32) and Roebuck (44) off the Virginia Capes, 14 April 1781 by Geoff Hunt

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