Books for general information

[Cabbie]

Good Evening to all.

I am looking for suggestions of what books I should buy for general info on English/European, boats/ships 16th to 19th Centuries.

Probably more towards Men of War ships, but not necessarily fighting ships. 

I just received Mr May's The Boats of Men of War today and would like to build on that.

Cheers Chris

[Shotlocker]

Cabbie, I highly recommend Historic Ship Models by Wolfram zu Mondfeld, published 1989 by Sterling Publishing Co. The book contains detailed information on building the ships of the era you're interested in from keel to running rigging with many excellent drawings and photos of finished models. A true wealth of information. Cheers!

[trippwj]

1 hour ago, Cabbie said:

Good Evening to all.

I am looking for suggestions of what books I should buy for general info on English/European, boats/ships 16th to 19th Centuries.

Probably more towards Men of War ships, but not necessarily fighting ships. 

I just received Mr May's The Boats of Men of War today and would like to build on that.

Cheers Chris

 

Your question -and the time period of interest - are broad, to say the least! Are you interested in the design, building methods, performance, manning, equipping, feeding, handling, careers &c?

Zu Mondfeld is a handy reference though not universally applicable for your time period.  Also, the difference between English and French or Dutch or Iberian could be (and was) significant.

 

Let me see what I might offer after I get my first cup of coffee.

 

[Cabbie]

Sorry to make you work so hard Wayne!, have 2 coffees.

Lets just stick to English, just general info for an Aussie bloke that knows next to nothing about sailing ships.

Broad information, not really how to model, but thanks shotlocker i will still look up that book.

Eg: what do ship ratings refer to, size of ships, masting/sail setups, probably more of an educational view.

The things you suggested sound good but not too much depth need at this stage, get me

started so that I can expand it out myself.

Just realized myself, Basic knowledge that most people would pick up early on.

Thanks Chris

[allanyed]

Cabbie,

 

Wow, this is a really subjective topic as we have all had different choices and experiences.   Here is my take if I could only get three books with which to start.    If you zoom in on something more specific regarding type of ship and shorter time span, there are many more books that can be suggested. 

The Construction and Fitting of the English Man of War 1650-1850  by Peter Goodwin

Masting and Rigging of English Ships of War 1625-1860 by James Lees

Arming and Fitting English Ships of War 1600-1815 by Brian Lavery

 I can go on, but these are good starts without breaking the bank. 

 

Regarding such things as rates,  https://www.rmg.co.uk/discover/explore/rated-navy-ships-17th-19th-centuries gives a pretty good description.

Allan

[trippwj]

1 hour ago, Cabbie said:

Sorry to make you work so hard Wayne!, have 2 coffees.

Lets just stick to English, just general info for an Aussie bloke that knows next to nothing about sailing ships.

Broad information, not really how to model, but thanks shotlocker i will still look up that book.

Eg: what do ship ratings refer to, size of ships, masting/sail setups, probably more of an educational view.

The things you suggested sound good but not too much depth need at this stage, get me

started so that I can expand it out myself.

Just realized myself, Basic knowledge that most people would pick up early on.

Thanks Chris

 

 

 

Not work at all! The compilation and assessment of resource information is a hobby for me which grew out of my enjoymment of making small pieces of wood from larger pieces to then assemble into larger pieces. Here are a couple to get you started.

Rasor, Eugene L. 2004. English/British Naval History to 1815: A Guide to the Literature. Greenwood Publishing Group.

Rasor offers an extremely comprehensive assemblage of materials which may prove useful. Arranged topically, the 4,124 entries each include a brief commentary as well as extensive topical narratives for each section. From this you should be able to find items of interest. One downside is the lack of contemporary treatises (that is, written during the time period of interest).

 

Goodwin, Peter. 1987. The Construction and Fitting of the English Man of War, 1650-1850. Annapolis, Md: Naval Institute Press.

This book offers a deep dig into the construction and fitting out of a British warship - exceptionally detailed drawings and thoroughly researched.

 

For more general info, there are many e-documents available as well.

Brassey, Thomas. 1882. The British Navy: It’s Strength, Resources and Administration.  Volume III - Opinions on the Shipbuilding Policy of the Navy. Vol. 3. 3 vols. London: Longmans, Green and Company. http://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.284950.

Clowes, William Laird, and Clements R. (Clements Robert) Markham. 1897. The Royal Navy, a History from the Earliest Times to the Present Volume 1. Vol. I. London : S. Low, Marston. http://archive.org/details/royalnavyhistory01clowuoft.

Hervey, Frederic. 1779. The Naval History of Great Britain: From the Earliest Times to the Rising of the Parliament in 1779. Describing, Particularly, the Glorious Atchievements in the Last War. Also the Lives and Actions of Illustrious Commanders and Navigators. Vol. 2. 5 vols. W. Adlard.

James, William. 1886. The Naval History of Great Britain, from the Declaration of War by France in 1793, to the Accession of George IV : A New Ed., with Additions and Notes, Bringing the Work down to 1827. Vol. 1. Vol. 1. London : R. Bentley. http://archive.org/details/navalhistoryofg01jame.

Ralfe, James. 1820. The Naval Chronology of Great Britain; Or, An Historical Account of Naval and Maritime Events from the Commencement of the War in 1803 to the End of the Year 1816 ... Whitmore and Fenn.

 

Winfield, Rif. 2007. British Warships in the Age of Sail, 1714-1792: Design, Construction, Careers and Fates. St. Paul, Minn: Seaforth Publishing / MBI Publishing Co.

———. 2008. British Warships in the Age of Sail, 1793-1817: Design, Construction, Careers and Fates. 2nd rev. ed. Barnsley [England]: Seaforth Pub.

These two Winfield volumes offer some wonderful information about many of the classes (and individual members of each class) warships during the subject timeframe. He has more, I believe, extending the coverage.

 

Hopefully, that is enough to get you started!  Good luck and please feel free to let me know if there is something special you are seeking.

[Roger Pellett]

Old but still good and not “dumbed down” -  Sailing Ships of War 1400-1860 by Dr Frank Howard.  Look for it on used book sites.

 

Roger

[mtaylor]

I definitely suggest you get zu Mondfeld's book as a starting point.  As others have said it's not 100% complete nor is 100% accurate.  But it is a great starting point for research and terms.  In other words, the basics.  Then go on to bigger and better works once you sort out what time period(s) and nationalities you're interested in. 

 

If you're just interested in reading, then all the resources mentioned above are good.  Books are addictive.....  

[petervisser]

I'd like to plug Oxford Companion to the Seas. Lots of wonderfull info in alphabetical order no less! It covers a broad range of topics and should answer all your queries. The book is widely available on the internet at a very respectable price.

Cheers,

Peter

[yankee clipper]

Cabbie,

I am going to take a different tack in answering your quest. For one of the best reading on English sailing ships, for the points  you might find interesting of the period you mention, I would highly recommend reading Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey -Maturin  series of sea novels. I think there are about 26 to 28 in the series. The movie Master and Commander was based on the first book. I have not met any one interested in ships, the seas, or history that did not enjoyed them.

[Cabbie]

Thanks to all, they look like what I am looking for, sounds like they would all be worth buying.

Thanks y c i started reading the Maturin series but couldn't get into it, I will have another go.

Hooroo Chris

 

[Cabbie]

A quick productive trip to Bendigo this morning, I knew the book shop

had the Sailing Ships of War. But bought the other 2 as well.

Hooroo Chris

[allanyed]

I tried the Aubrey series a few times as well but had a hard to time gaining interest.   I preferred the Thomas Kydd series and Alan Lewrie series.   They are fun reads but not of much, if any, use for building a model.  

 

Allan

[Cabbie]

Yes Allan is a bit like that if i read a novel it has to grab me and keep going, and not fill it in with too

much ordinary stuff. I will check out the other 2, I don't mind a bit of reading to break up the modelling if my brain is

not up to concentrating. Though something else is arriving tomorrow, a new laptop computer that would be very nice

for 3d ship modelling, but is definitely for work that i need to get on with.

Regards Chris

[Bob Fraser]

Two others that come up are "The Anatomy of Nelsons Ships" by Longridge, and "18th Century Rigs and Rigging" by Mardquart although Lees covers this and a wider time period.

"Building Plank on Frame Ship Models" by McCarthy, books by Keith Julier and Scott Robertson have lots of general info and particular model info depending on the book - should be reasonably priced, and then if you have a particular ship in mind, the "Anatomy of the Ship" book for it will help with the details.

 

Forgot to add - "The Sloop of War 1650 - 1763" by Ian McLaughlan I found it a great reference for research on these smaller unrated ships.

[Cabbie]

Thank You Bob

There is a lot of modelling and general info in those books.

I will keep an eye out for them as well.

Cheers Chris