There is little documented mapping of conflict prior to the Renaissance period, but, from the 17th century onwards, military commanders and strategists began to document the wars in which they were involved and later, to use mapping to actually plan the progress of a conflict. Using contemporary maps, this sumptuous new volume covers the history of the mapping of war on land and shows the way in which maps ...

The British Isles have a long, rich and celebrated seafaring history stretching from the earliest times through the victories of Drake and Nelson, the voyages of discovery of Cabot and Cook and the defence of the realm by vessels of all types in the present century. Much of this history is recorded in literature and in museums but reaches its most tangible form in the large number of historical ships that h...

During much of his early career, from 1944 through to the early 1960s, Richard Hardy took hundreds of pictures of life on the railways and the men he knew and worked with on a daily basis, using his trusty Brownie 620 box camera. These unique behind the scenes images form a fascinating and hugely evocative portrayal of Britain at the height of the era of steam, during the time of the 'Big Four', and after 1...

This new addition to the best-selling Conway pocket-book range features Admiral Nelson's fully preserved flagship HMS Victory, the most tangible symbol of the Royal Navy's greatest battle off Cape Trafalgar on October 21st 1805. In the HMS Victory Pocket Manual, Peter Goodwin adopts a fresh approach to explain the workings of the only surviving 'line of battle' ship of the Napoleonic Wars. And, as Victory ...

To sail the oceans needed skill as well as courage and experience, and the sea chart with, where appropriate, the coastal view, was the tool by which ships of trade, transport or conquest navigated their course. This book looks at the history and development of the chart and the related nautical map, in both scientific and aesthetic terms, as a means of safe and accurate seaborne navigation. The Italian mer...

In The Routemaster Pocket-Book Matthew Jones offers the readers a compilation of instructions and articles, facts and figures, press releases, etc, about London’s double-decker Routemaster buses which for nearly half a century were as much a symbol of the city as its red telephone boxes or the black cabs.

This guide is a timely addition to Conway's best-selling pocket book series that examines this famous ship from a refreshingly different angle. Launched in May 1911, the triple-screw steamer Titanic was the pride of the White Star Line and at that time the largest passenger ship in the world. Built to carry passengers in comfort and luxury on the lucrative transatlantic route, her design, fittings and on bo...

The year 1588 marked a turning point in our national story. Victory over the Spanish Armada transformed us into a seafaring nation and it sparked a myth that one day would become a reality - that the nation's new destiny, the source of her future wealth and power lay out on the oceans. This book tells the story of how the navy expanded from a tiny force to become the most complex industrial enterprise on ea...

This fascinating pocket book draws on numerous primary sources from the early days of the rail network through to the Big Four, British Railways and beyond to present a unique guide to the knowledge and skills required for locomotive drivers, engineers and firemen. Beginning with an introduction to steam from about 1890, the book outlines the rules of the rail network, locomotive management from driving to ...

At the height of the Second World War this small pocket-book was issued to all ratings on board ships of the Royal Navy. In straight period prose it outlines all the basic expressions and tasks a seaman needed to know to perform his duties efficiently. Chapters are broken down into: Sea Terms; Navigation; Steering the Ship; Rigging; Anchors and Cables; Boatwork; Miscellaneous (which includes details on unif...

The seaways were the first global network and they were irrevocably linked the destinies of geographically and culturally distant people. “The History of Seafaring” is the definitive volume on navigation and exploration and recounts the motives that drove Europeans to seek routes to the far corners of the globe and in particular the seamanship that made their voyages possible.

The Special Air Service was the brainchild of Scots Guards' officer Lieutenant David Stirling, serving with No 8 Commando. He advocated a specially organised, specially equipped and specially trained unit dedicated to the 'unrelenting pursuit of excellence' that could act covertly and operate behind enemy lines to gain intelligence, destroy enemy aircraft and attack their supply and reinforcement routes. Th...

The Beagle has become synonymous with Charles Darwin and his groundbreaking title On the Origin of Species. But how did Darwin come to be on board? Now reissued in paperback, in a single volume all the various strands of the Beagle story have been woven together to reveal the circumstances that set the expedition in motion and the characters who circumnavigated the world together. Enriched with first-hand c...

First published in 1867, the Sailor's Word-Book is an incomparable alphabetical digest of nautical terms - some 14,000 in all. It defines a huge range of common and rare words, some of which, though now antiquated or obsolete, nevertheless appear regularly in contemporary works, because it remains one of the principal sources for many of the foremost writers of maritime non-fiction and fiction of our times....

Bruce Parry's Arctic accompanies the BBC2 television show of the same name, with over 150 specially commissioned photographs, and is written by the bestselling author with a thirst for extreme experiences and dangerous rituals.

Charts of War: the Map and Charts That Have Informed and Illustrated War at Sea written by John Blake and published by Conway presents a fascinating selection of maps, charts and maritime plans taken from a wide range of international archives.

This collection of 17 remarkable maritime stories stretches from 1752 to 2005 across several countries, including warships and merchantmen, steam and sail, the humble and the prestigious. Encompassing the major causes of maritime disaster - war, weather, navigation, human failings and technology - it highlights the themes and qualities that make the maritime drama so compelling: and it dares to challenge th...

This lavish new volume explores Britain's extensive railway heritage, offering a comprehensive history of their construction, use and subsequent preservation. The book outlines the development of Britain's railways from the coming of steam through to the first age of the train, the 'big four', wartime service, the nationalisation of the network and the advent of diesels and electrification. It incorporates ...

In 'Vers Une Architecture', published in the mid 1920s, Le Corbusier wrote about the inspiring qualities of the external design forms of Cunard's Aquitania. Since then nautical design inspired a great deal of innovative architecture on terra firma. Simultaneously, the 1925 Exposition des Arts Decoratifs made a broad range of eclectic modern styles fashionable - particularly in the commerical world, whereas ...

As an instrument of science and navigation the telescope was at the forefront of discovery. Even today it is vital to modern understanding of space and the origins of matter. The story of its development is a fascinating narrative of scientific endeavour, exploration and ingenuity, encompassing the lives of scientists and astronomers such as Galileo, Newton, William Herschel and Edmund Halley as well a...