Arthur J. Marder

The five volumes that constitute Arthur Marder's From the Dreadnought to Scapa Flow represented arguably the finest contribution to the literature of naval history since Alfred Mahan. A J P Taylor wrote that "his naval history has a unique fascination. To unrivalled mastery of sources he adds a gift of simple narrative... He is beyond praise, as he is beyond cavil." The five volumes were subtitled The Royal Navy in the Fisher Era, 1904-1919 and they are still, despite recent major contributions from Robert Massie and Andrew Gordan, regarded by many as the definitive history of naval events leading up to and including the Great War. This last volume describes the Royal Navy's final triumph. The convoy system brought rewards and the U. S. Navy arrived in European waters. The striking 1918 raid on Zeebrugge was a big morale booster, and in November 1918 Beatty received the surrender of the German High Seas Fleet. In June the following year the Germans scuttled their fleet at Scapa Flow and so came to an end a major era in naval history. A new introduction by Barry Gough, the distinguished Canadian maritime and naval historian, assesses the importance of Marder's work and anchors it firmly amongst the great naval narrative histories of this era. This new paperback edition will bring a truly great work to a new generation of historians and general readers.

Portrait of an Admiral: The Life and Papers of Herbert Richmond is a biography and collection of papers of the British naval officer, Herbert Richmond. Written by Arthur J. Marder, this book provides a comprehensive look at the life and career of Richmond, who served in the Royal Navy during both World War I and World War II. The book includes a detailed account of Richmond's rise through the ranks of the navy, his experiences during the two world wars, and his contributions to naval strategy and tactics. In addition, the book includes a collection of Richmond's personal papers, including letters, reports, and other documents that shed light on his life and work. Overall, Portrait of an Admiral is an insightful and informative book that offers a fascinating glimpse into the life of one of Britain's most distinguished naval officers. This scarce antiquarian book is a facsimile reprint of the old original and may contain some imperfections such as library marks and notations. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment for protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature in affordable, high quality, modern editions, that are true to their original work.

This first scholarly account of the Royal Navy in the Pacific War is a companion volume to Arthur Marder's Old Friends, New Enemies: Strategic Illusions, 1936-1941 (0-19-822604-7, OP). Picking up the story at the nadir of British naval fortunes - `everywhere weak and naked', in Churchill's phrase - it examines the Royal Navy's role in events from 1942 to the Japanese surrender in August 1945. Drawing on both British and Japanese sources and personal accounts by participants, the authors vividly retell the story of the collapse of Allied defences in the Dutch East Indies, culminating in the Battle of the Java Sea. They recount the attempts of the `fighting admiral', Sir James Somerville, to train his motley fleet of cast-offs into an efficient fighting force in spite of the reluctance of Churchill, who resisted the formation of a full-scale British Pacific Fleet until the 1945 assault on the Ryukyu Islands immediately south of Japan. Meticulously researched and fully referenced, this unique and absorbing account provides a controversial analysis of the key personalities who shaped events in these momentous years, and makes fascinating reading for anyone interested in the Pacific War. This book also appears in the Oxford General Books catalogue for Autumn 1990.

Strategic Illusions, 1936-1941. Using Japanese as well as British official, private, and published sources, Professor Marder is the first scholar to have studied this subject from both sides and to give a rounded account of an extraordinary story.