Cindy Vallar's Blog - Posts Tagged "british-navy"

Midshipman Graham and the Battle of Abukir by James Boschert

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


With morale at an all-time low and in disarray following the defeat of Acre, the French army returns to Egypt. The Bedouins torment them from the desert, while the British navy harries them from the sea. The naval force is under the command of Commodore Sir Sidney Smith, who is determined to undermine Napoleon whenever possible. The alliance with the Ottoman Empire necessitates that Smith aid the forces under Mustafa Pasha, but first, he must put down a mutiny that threatens Nicosia. That is accomplished with great efficiency and one of the midshipmen, Duncan Graham, accompanies him ashore.

Duncan is a promising young officer, with a particular knack for leadership and navigation, but he is not the most senior midshipman. That honor goes to Tewksby, and the rivalry between these two escalates as the story progresses, particularly after Tewksby bullies the youngest, Minnow Standforth, whom Duncan has taken a liking to and protects when possible.

After the British rendezvous with Mustafa’s forces at Abukir, the Turks attack the fort. The resulting slaughter and mutilation of the French soldiers horrifies and stuns the British from the Commodore to the lowliest sailor. Smith is also certain that it’s only a matter of time before the French appear to exact their revenge. There is little Smith is able to do because the waters around the area aren’t deep enough to bring the warships close in and support the Turks. Nor are the Turks keen on heeding any advice – a fatal mistake in the battle to come.

Smith, who is in need of information, sends Captain John Williams – who speaks Arabic and easily moves through the streets of Cairo disguised as an Arab – ashore with men tasked to bring back fresh water. Among those in the boats are Duncan and Tewksby, who have agreed to settle their differences away from prying eyes. But noise from their personal battle alerts the French to their presence and Duncan finds himself alone and on the run without any idea of where to go. Williams also hears the commotion and returns to save Duncan. Together they make their way to Cairo, where they hope to reconnect with their ship.

This historical novel is a brutal depiction of war, one which is vividly portrayed and poignantly recounted in a letter written by a French officer. The Battle of Abukir is basically one segment of a story that also encompasses mutiny, fireships, white slavery, and a harem in a brothel. The last lends itself to a brief romance and some humorous escapades, although Duncan finds them more embarrassing and distasteful than funny. Some readers may find the title somewhat misleading, since Duncan is not the main protagonist and he is present in only about one third of the scenes. While we never fully connect with him, which is disappointing, Boschert is adept at interweaving different cultures, bringing the past to life in realistic ways, and presenting the events from various perspectives, thus giving us a well-rounded view of the conflagration.




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Sovereign of the Seas 1637: A Reconstruction of the Most Powerful Warship of Its Day by John McKay

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Charles I ascended the English throne in 1625 to discover a navy in desperate need of revitalization. For an island nation, dependent on the protection afforded by armed ships capable of navigating the surrounding oceans, he needed to build England into a maritime power. This meant building new, more powerful ships that demonstrated not only his nation’s dominance of the sea, but also its prestige to other countries. One outcome of this goal was the construction of the Sovereign of the Seas, the largest warship of her time and the first to be armed with 100 guns.

She was a “ship of many superlatives,” and John McKay set out to show why she deserved this description. (9) An architectural draftsman and an expert on the design and building of historical ships, McKay consulted contemporary resources to craft the many different facets that make up a warship. Where primary materials didn’t exist, he consulted others and relied on knowledge of what is known about wooden ships of the period and somewhat later. There are aspects of the vessel that remain unknown, so his drawings include conjecture, but his plans are based on his expertise and experience to recreate the Sovereign in as much detail and as closely as possible to the actual seventeenth-century ship.

The historical summary covers how she came to be built, how people – especially the ship masters of Trinity House, who safeguarded sailors and shipping – reacted to the idea of such a large vessel, the effect her building had on subsequent events in English history, and what happened to her during and after the Civil War and Restoration. Costs are also shared, from the initial estimate of £13,860 to her actual price tag of £65,586 16s 9½d (or in more digestible terms, the aggregate cost of ten average newly-built ships of war).

The coffee-table-sized book is divided into fifteen chapters, the first three serving as an introduction to and a historical summary of the ship and those who had a hand in her design and construction, as well as a recap of the sources McKay consulted. The remaining twelve chapters pertain to specific aspects of the ship: hull design and construction, pumps, steering, ground tackle, deck arrangements and accommodation, decoration, masts and yards, sails, rigging, ordnance, and boats. There are a host of illustrations, including a color section detailing the ship’s decoration, period portraits and paintings, and an extensive array of plates rendering all aspects of the vessel detailed above. Two appendices discuss Trinity House’s Protest and Sovereign’s Sail Carrying Capacity. Tables highlight specific details throughout the text. Unfamiliar nautical terms are discussed. A bibliography and index are included, while the endpapers portray overhead and side views of Sovereign without her masts and her outboard profile. The author also provides information on how to obtain large scale copies of the renderings.

From her launch in 1637 to her demise sixty years later, Sovereign of the Seas was a ship worthy of this unique study. The book’s beautiful design and McKay’s artful renderings provide a fitting tribute to this amazing vessel and those who participated in her planning and construction.




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