The basics of military sailing ships with lots of diagrams. As historical summary to help contextualize the battles. ( )

Interesting account of naval warfare from the beginning of the Seven Years' War to after the 1812 War. Really well illustrated with some incredible pictures ( )

There's many books out there on the history of the Napoleonic Era and the sea battles fought between the British Royal Navy and its opponents. These were the days of wooden ships and iron men. Anyone familiar with the Patrick O'Brian Aubrey/Maturin series (AKA Master and Commander) will feel right at home with Bernard Ireland's "Naval Warfare in the Age of Sail".

The book is largely focused on the development of the British Royal Navy from the mid-1700s to the early-1800s. Each chapter deals with a significant event, such as the Seven Years War, or the Napoleonic Wars. The thing is that each chapter flows as one continuous narrative and Ireland will drone on and on about the tactical maneuvers of a certain naval action, but make only passing comment as to the name of this famous battle. There are no distinct headings to let the reader know that a significant battle is being discussed and it's almost as if the reader needs to mentally piece together the maneuvers in their head and already be familiar with the action to know that this battle was (The Glorious First of June, Camperdown, Copenhagen, Trafalgar, etc.).

Essentially, this book is better suited for people who already possess a decent understanding of the time period, the naval tactics, and the battles under discussion. As for me, this era of naval history isn't really within my wheelhouse and I'm only vaguely familiar with some of the battles and the historical figures. Subsequently, I was lost for large portions of the narrative.

While the book is richly illustrated with drawings of ships and historical paintings, there is a complete absence of maps! There are no maps depicting where in the world these battles occurred and there are no charts depicting the maneuvers of the fleets or squadrons of ships as they duked it out on the high seas. The reader is left to reference an atlas and diagrams of the individual battles. If the reader has a poor understanding of how naval ships maneuvered in this era, then they'll likely be adrift in a sea of tactical naval jargon.

Ultimately, the book is information-heavy and requires the reader to have a good foundation in the history of naval warfare during the times. ( )