From Ironclads to Dreadnoughts: The Development of the German Battleship, 1864-1918

"...provides the background and a remarkable collection of images, facts and figures." — Roads to the Great War

In 1864, the Prussian Navy, the core element of what would become the Imperial German Navy, acquired its first ironclad vessels from Great Britain and France. Until then, it had existed as a relatively insignificant force, mainly consisting of a handful of gunboats, corvettes, and other small craft. However, over the subsequent 50 years, the fleet would rise from these small beginn...