Home Of The Fleet

This book marks the first comprehensive history of Britain's naval bulwark, the Home Fleet. It illuminates the vital role that fleet played in preserving Britain as a base of operations against Hitler. We see portrayed the hard days of blockade, patrol, and battle that encompassed the Home Fleet's war. And we see how that war was made harder by weaknesses at the Admiralty and by the damaging interference of the Minister of Defence - Winston Churchill.

During the past century, the Royal Navy and its support services at Portsmouth dockyard have experienced a pace of change not seen since the fifteenth century. This book examines the impact of that change on the ships, buildings and personnel of the naval base. The dockyard has evolved continually as a support service, reinventing itself in response to changing social, economic and political circumstances. The authors look at the dockyard's role in times of conflict, from the First World War to the 1991 Gulf War, and consider the effects of privatisation and cutbacks. Portsmouth is now ready to meet the challenges of the twenty-first century when it will be the Royal Navy's premier base. Richly illustrated with photographs from the Royal Naval Museum and Historic Dockyard collections and exclusive, newly-commissioned photographs, Home of the Fleet will appeal to anyone who is interested in Britain's naval heritage.

A compelling and hypnotic domestic noir novel in which a house swap becomes the eerie backdrop to a crumbling marriage and tantalizing affair, and the fatal consequences that unfold. Be careful who you let in . . . When Caroline and Francis receive an offer to house swap--from their city flat to a townhouse in a leafy, upscale London suburb--they jump at the chance for a week away from home, their daughter and the tensions that have pushed their marriage to the brink. The house is stark, pared back and almost sinister in its emptiness: a blank canvas upon which they can try to start again, and rebuild what has been lost between them. But slowly, Caroline begins to uncover some signs--signs that connect to her life. The flowers in the bathroom and the music in the CD player might seem innocent to anyone else--but to her they are clues. It seems the person they have swapped homes with is someone who knows her, who knows the secrets she'd hoped to forget . . .

Packed with illustrations, this is a new history and analysis of how the Royal Navy's most important fleet operated and fought the German Navy in the crucial first years of World War II. Throughout its history, the Royal Navy's most powerful fleet has been the one guarding home waters. In this book, naval historian Angus Konstam explores the fighting power, the roles, and the battles of the Home Fleet, in the crucial first years of World War II when it was Britain's most powerful fighting force, anchored in the northern bastion of Scapa Flow. He explains the complex responsibilities of the fleet, charged simultaneously with preventing the powerful German Navy from breaking out into the Atlantic; preparing to challenge any cross-Channel invasion force; and attacking German naval operations in the North Sea. Home Fleet actions included the loss of HMS Hood, the sinking of the Bismarck and countering the invasion of Norway, Germany's biggest amphibious operation of the war. Packed with striking new artwork and 3D diagrams and maps, this book offers a detailed portrait of the Home Fleet during these most crucial years of the war, from the capabilities of the warships to logistics and intelligence-gathering, to how the fleet was organized and commanded, and how and why it fought as it did.

This is the first of three volumes detailing the history of the Fleet Air Arm, the Royal Navy's aircraft carriers and naval air squadrons, during the Second World War. It deals with the formative period between 1939 and 1941 when the Fleet Air Arm tried to recover from the impact of dual control and economic stringencies during the inter-war period while conducting a wide range of operations. There is in depth coverage of significant operations including the Norwegian campaign, Mediterrranean actions such as the attack on the Italian Fleet at Taranto and the Battle of Cape Matapan, and the torpedo attacks on the German battleship Bismarck. Incidents involving the loss of and damage to aircraft carriers, including the sinking of Ark Royal, one of the most famous ships in the early years of World War Two, are also reported. Of major importance are key planning and policy issues. These include the requirements for aircraft carriers, the evolving debate regarding the necessary types of aircraft and attempts to provide sufficient facilities ashore for naval air squadrons. A wide range of official documents are used to enable the reader to appreciate the complexity of the operations and other issues which faced the Fleet Air Arm. This volume will appeal to everyone interested in how the Royal Navy adapted to the use of air power in the Second World War. Its reports bring actions vividly to life. Its correspondence demonstrates the fundamental foundation of planning, policy and logistics. In common with succeeding volumes on the Fleet Air Arm, this volume provides a new and vital perspective on how Britain fought the Second World War.

Scapa Flow was one of the world's great naval bases and the scene of many of the major events of twentieth-century naval history. During both World Wars, the Royal Navy made Scapa the home for its capital ships, and thousands of servicemen and women were posted to Orkney. From here the Grand Fleet sailed for Jutland in 1916, from here the escorts for the Russian convoys set off, and it was in this beautiful, bleak anchorage that the German High Seas fleet committed the greatest act of suicide ever seen at sea – 'The Grand Scuttle' – before being later raised and scrapped in the most astonishing feat of maritime salvage in history. It was also in Scapa that the last photographs of Kitchener were taken as he boarded HMS Hampshire, shortly before she was sunk by mine off Marwick Head. Scapa is also the grave of many who fought for their country in both World Wars. In its silent waters lie the wrecks of the battleship Vanguard, blown apart by an explosion in 1917, and the Royal Oak, sunk by U-47 in a spectacular raid at the beginning of World War II . Here the first Luftwaffe raids on Britain occured, here too Italian prisoners-of-war built both the spectacular Churchill causeways and the exquisite chapel on the island of Lamb Holm. In this book, illustrated with over 130 archive photographs, James Miller traces the story of this remarkable place, weaving together history, eyewitness accounts and personal experience to capture the life and spirit of Scapa Flow when it was home to thousands of service personnel and the most powerful fleet in the world.

Nathaniel Drinkwater's life at sea begins with the HMS Cyclops' capture of the Santa Teresa during Admiral Rodney's dramatic Moonlight Battle of 1780. Subsequently, Drinkwater's courage and initiative are put to the test as the Cyclops pursues American privateers threatening British trade and is later dispatched to the swamps of South Carolina, where many lives are lost both at sea and ashore. Gradually, Drinkwater matures into a capable and self-assured sailor. As he contends with enemy forces, the tyranny of the Cyclops' midshipmen, and the stark contrast between the comfort of home life and the brutality of naval service, he finds strength and sustenance in the love of his beloved Elizabeth.

The Mediterranean Fleet entered the 1930s looking back to the lessons of Jutland and the First World War but also seeking to incorporate new technologies, notably air power. Unfortunately in the depression years of the early 1930s there was a lack of funds to remedy deficiencies. The problem became critical during the Abyssinian crisis of 1935. The crisis wound down by mid-1936 but the respite did not last long. In June 1936 the Spanish Civil War broke out and the Mediterranean Fleet was soon involved in evacuations of British and other endangered foreigners from Spanish ports as well as the protection of British flagged merchant ships in the war zone. In addition to the Spanish Civil War there was an increase of tension with Germany in 1938 that culminated with the Czechoslovak crisis in September. The situation of the Mediterranean Fleet and its possible actions had the Munich agreement not been reached are described. The Spanish Civil War ended in 1939 with the victory of the Nationalists and the Mediterranean Fleet was again involved in evacuations. By now the prospect of war with Germany and possibly Italy was quite clear and serious preparations for war continued. The plans for war in the Mediterranean are reproduced in detail.