Sea Devils: Pioneer Submarines

A detailed history of the submarine, from the first man-powered submersibles to the deep sea exploration and military crafts of today

Pioneer submariners built astonishing contraptions which made perilous voyages or sank like stones. Some were driven by muscle-power or steam engines with chimneys. Others had wheels with which to trundle along the seabed. This book traces the history of early submarines and the colorful array of those who built and sailed them. From a plethora of mad-cap inventors emerged a bizarre machine that navies of the world begrudgingly accepted but viewed with distaste. The submarine matured into a weapon to usurp the mighty battleship. Subject to military and political skirmishing, it would win eventual acceptance amid the chaos and carnage of the Great War. Sea Devils brims with daring, larger-than-life personalities and their determination to make underwater voyages.

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Sea Devils: Pioneer Submarines

A detailed history of the submarine, from the first man-powered submersibles to the deep sea exploration and military crafts of today

Pioneer submariners built astonishing contraptions which made perilous voyages or sank like stones. Some were driven by muscle-power or steam engines with chimneys. Others had wheels with which to trundle along the seabed. This book traces the history of early submarines and the colorful array of those who built and sailed them. From a plethora of mad-cap inventors emerged a bizarre machine that navies of the world begrudgingly accepted but viewed with distaste. The submarine matured into a weapon to usurp the mighty battleship. Subject to military and political skirmishing, it would win eventual acceptance amid the chaos and carnage of the Great War. Sea Devils brims with daring, larger-than-life personalities and their determination to make underwater voyages.

29.95 In Stock
Sea Devils: Pioneer Submarines

Sea Devils: Pioneer Submarines

by John Swinfield
Sea Devils: Pioneer Submarines

Sea Devils: Pioneer Submarines

by John Swinfield

Hardcover

$29.95 
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Overview

A detailed history of the submarine, from the first man-powered submersibles to the deep sea exploration and military crafts of today

Pioneer submariners built astonishing contraptions which made perilous voyages or sank like stones. Some were driven by muscle-power or steam engines with chimneys. Others had wheels with which to trundle along the seabed. This book traces the history of early submarines and the colorful array of those who built and sailed them. From a plethora of mad-cap inventors emerged a bizarre machine that navies of the world begrudgingly accepted but viewed with distaste. The submarine matured into a weapon to usurp the mighty battleship. Subject to military and political skirmishing, it would win eventual acceptance amid the chaos and carnage of the Great War. Sea Devils brims with daring, larger-than-life personalities and their determination to make underwater voyages.


Product Details

ISBN-13: 9780750953566
Publisher: History Press Limited, The
Publication date: 05/01/2014
Pages: 256
Product dimensions: 6.30(w) x 9.30(h) x 1.30(d)

About the Author

John Swinfield is a former reporter and television producer, a former editor of the magazine Artists & Illustrators, and the author of Airship: Design, Development and Disaster.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements 7

Author's Note: Quixotic Machines 9

Prologue 11

Dramatis Personae 13

1 To Take the Plunge 21

2 Ducks and Devotions 63

3 The United States, Holland Submarines and Torpedoes 77

4 Great Britain Finds Her Stride 87

5 Disaster 119

6 Before the Tumult 131

7 Pioneers at War 155

8 The Ill-fated K-class 193

Epilogue 203

Appendices

A Airships and Submarines 205

B Charles Dennistoun Burney 207

C Flying Warships 208

D John Arbuthnot Fisher 209

E Louis Mountbatten 211

F The Torpedo: A Musical Interlude 213

G Bacon, Fisher and the Beresford Affair 215

H Roger Keyes 219

J Submarines as Aircraft Carriers 221

K M-class, Surcouf; Specifications 225

L The Dardanelles Campaign 237

M Fessenden, Rutherford: Communications 239

N The Mine and Depth Charge 241

O Godfrey Herbert and Q-boats 243

Bibliography 247

Index 253

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