Naval History
Sea-Power in the Seventeenth Century II
But the local balance of maritime trade had changed long before the mid-seventeenth century. In the long period of official truce between Spain and the Turks after 1580, Dutch and English ships entered the Mediterranean in increasing numbers. They not only dominated the trade between the Mediterranean and north-west Europe, but also captured an ever-increasing share of trade within the…
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SHIPS OF IRON AND WILLS OF STEEL Part I
Monitor vs Merrimac. Merrimac had more guns, but monitor had heavier guns, and a turret that allowed it to always fire on the Merrimac. Merrimac was also underpowered, and very difficult to steer. Though both ships suffered some damage, the Merrimac retired first. The Merrimac never fought another battle. It…
SHIPS OF IRON AND WILLS OF STEEL Part II
Ironclads and Gunboats Mallory’s role took on increased urgency when Davis approved a bill on May 3 that proclaimed a formal state of war existing between the Confederacy and the United States. Forced to act by this declaration, European nations officially recognized the Confederacy as a belligerent, though not as…
SHIPS OF IRON AND WILLS OF STEEL Part III
An untested weapon often produces surprising results. Sixteen-year old Ensign Mercutio Albert Palmer, having never dropped the torpedo while underway and distracted to the edge of paralysis by shot whizzing over and into his vessel, closed his eyes and misjudged the release. Rather than striking Monitor at its waterline, as…
Royal Navy Readiness for a War with Japan in Mid-1941: Intelligence and Capability I
The defence of the Indian Ocean became an increasingly important factor in British strategic calculations during the first half of 1941. They also showed how American determination to prioritise the Atlantic over the Pacific obliged the Royal Navy to resurrect the concept of an eastern fleet to ensure adequate security…
What If: Halsey and Kurita at Leyte Gulf? I
By the autumn of 1944 even the most dedicated Japanese naval officer could recognize that things were not going well in his country’s war with the United States and its allies. Beginning with their seizure of the Marshall Islands in February, the third year of the war had been marked…
What If: Halsey and Kurita at Leyte Gulf? II
Sailing towards Leyte Gulf from left to right CA Chikuma, BB Nagato, BC Haruna, BC Kongo and CA Tone. Remember Pearl Harbor But Nishimura had been spotted, and although no further attacks were launched against him for the remainder of the day, the Americans were not idle. Given ample warning…