Maritime English

Battle of the Arctic is a wonderfully evocative history and largely unknown saga of World War II. As the Soviet Union played its role in the conflict, Ally convoys from Britain, the United States, and Iceland fought to deliver essential supplies to Russia. In a clash of extreme elements—as well as fierce Axis opposition—the effort demonstrated an unparalleled commitment from Allied nations to supporting the Soviet Union.

2015 saw the worst American maritime disaster in decades. The captain of the SS El Faro commanded his crew to sail straight into a hurricane. The ship sank and all 33 crew members died. The sinking raised troubling questions: Why did the captain choose to sail into the hurricane? Why did no one on board or on shore stop him? And why was such an old and heavily loaded ship even allowed on the water? The crew of the SS El Faro is gone, but their haunting final hours were preserved by the ship’s black box.

In the great wars of modern history, maritime powers have always prevailed over land-based empires, whether Habsburg, Napoleonic, Nazi, or Soviet. In contrast to the rigid hierarchies and centralization of land-based empires, those nations attaining mastery at sea have been distinguished by liberty, flexibility, and enterprise. The 17th-century Dutch were the first to achieve naval and trading dominance.

Set sail on an enthralling voyage with "Moby Dick: Adapted for Modern Readers," where Herman Melville's timeless tale is refreshed for today's audience. This edition features clarified language and contemporary typography, ensuring a seamless reading experience while retaining the original's intensity and depth. Dive into the adventurous hunt for the elusive white whale with ease, as this adaptation enhances readability without compromising the epic's richness. Experience the 19th-century whaling era, a period of peril and discovery, through the lens of friendship, obsession, and revenge. ...

A compelling account of history's most famous pirate. The Pirate King is the compelling true story of a Welshman who became one of the most ruthless and brutal buccaneers of the golden age of piracy. The inspiration for dozens of fictionalized pirates in film, television, and literature - as well the namesake of one of the world's most popular rum brands - Captain Sir Henry Morgan was matchless among pirates and privateers.

In The Gales of November, award-winning journalist John U. Bacon presents the definitive account of the disaster, drawing on more than 100 interviews with the families, friends, and former crewmates of those lost. Bacon explores the vital role Great Lakes shipping played in America’s economic boom, the uncommon lives the sailors led, the sinking’s most likely causes, and the heartbreaking aftermath for those left behind—“the wives, the sons, and the daughters,” as Gordon Lightfoot sang in his unforgettable ballad.

A fresh account of some of history's greatest warriors. The Vikings had an extraordinary and far-reaching historical impact. From the eighth to the 11th centuries, they ranged across Europe - raiding, exploring, and colonizing - and their presence was felt as far away as Russia and Byzantium. They are most famous as warriors, yet perhaps their talent for warfare is too little understood.

They are all gone now―the Titanic survivors. No human being who stood on her decks that fateful night was alive to commemorate the event on its 100th anniversary. Their stories are with us, however, and the lessons remain. From the moment the world learned the Titanic had sunk, we wanted to know, who had survived? Those answers didn’t come until the evening of Thursday, April 18, 1912―when the Cunard liner Carpathia finally reached New York with the 706 survivors who had been recovered from Titanic’s lifeboats. Harold Bride, “Titanic’s surviving wireless operator,” relayed the...

A monumental retelling of world history through the lens of maritime enterprise, revealing in breathtaking depth how people first came into contact with one another by ocean and river, lake and stream, and how goods, languages, religions, and entire cultures spread across and along the world's waterways, bringing together civilizations and defining what makes us most human.

Following the fall of Rome, the sea is increasingly the stage upon which the human struggle of western civilization is played out. In a world of few roads and great disorder, the sea is the medium on which power is projected and wealth sought. Yet this confused period in the history of maritime warfare has rarely been studied; it is little known and even less understood. Charles Stanton uses an innovative and involving approach to describe this fascinating but neglected facet of European medieval history.

The Gulf of Mexico presents a compelling, salt-streaked narrative of the Earth's 10th-largest body of water. In this beautifully written volume, John S. Sledge explores the people, ships, and cities that have made the Gulf's human history and culture so rich. Many famous figures who sailed the Gulf's viridian waters are highlighted, including Ponce de Leon, Robert Cavelier de La Salle, Francis Drake, Elizabeth Agassiz, Ernest Hemingway, and Charles Dwight Sigsbee. Sledge also introduces a fascinating array of people connected to maritime life in the Gulf.

Over the years, thousands of tales both true and fantastic have been told about the dastardly thievery of pirates. Their rum-drunk exploits and high-seas violence never fail to delight. Now in a brand new series collection, The Best Pirate Stories Ever Told includes many of the very best pirate yarns ever created on history’s most debaucherous scalawags. Anyone who loves a good story full of excitement, adventure, thrills, and laughs will find this collection irresistible.

What happens when the ocean refuses to give up its dead? The sea is a vast, unforgiving wilderness, and for centuries it has been the setting for some of history’s most baffling and tragic mysteries. From the deck of the world's most infamous ghost ship to the crushing depths of the Atlantic, this book uncovers the chilling true stories of the vessels and souls that vanished without a trace. Step aboard the Mary Celeste, found drifting and eerily deserted. Investigate the colossal disappearance of the USS Cyclops in the heart of the Bermuda Triangle. Witness the final, harrowing hours of ...

What happens when Blackbeard meets Jesse James? The most infamous pirates of the Caribbean gather aboard the Queen Anne’s Revenge. But when a violent storm tears across Nassau Harbor, Blackbeard, Anne Bonny, and Calico Jack are hurled through a mysterious vortex — into San Francisco Bay, 1873. Stranded in the Wild West, the crew must trade cutlasses for six-shooters, outwit bounty hunters, and chase treasure across a lawless new frontier. From dusty saloons to raging train heists, survival means forging uneasy alliances in a world of gunfighters and steam engines. Pirates of the Wild ...

The acclaimed seven-book series chronicling the adventures of the generations of the Treegate family from the birth of the Revolutionary War through the War of 1812, ending at the Battle of New Orleans. Recommended by the Seton Home Study Guide for Grade 8 for American History. John Treegate's Musket (Book 1) An epic historical adventure that takes young readers from The Boston Massacre to the Battle of Bunker Hill. When young Peter Treegate is framed for murder while his father is away on business, Peter is forced to flee Boston on a smuggler's brig, sending him on a series of adventures ...

Beneath the waves lie stories the world was never meant to forget. From the doomed voyage of the Titanic to the eerie silence of the Mary Celeste, Drowned in Silence dives deep into fifteen of the most chilling, mysterious, and tragic sea disasters ever recorded. Author James Calloway brings each tale to life with immersive, emotional storytelling that will haunt readers long after the final page. Survival. Mystery. Loss. The sea remembers everything.

In June 2023, the world watched as the Titan submersible vanished during a dive to the wreck of the Titanic. Days later, search teams discovered the unthinkable—Titan had suffered a catastrophic implosion, ending the lives of all five aboard. The tragedy gripped global headlines, sparked intense debate, and left many questionings how such a disaster could have happened in an era of advanced engineering and safety standards. This eBook tells the full story of Titan: its bold but unconventional design, the risks that were overlooked, and the leadership decisions that shaped its fate. It ...

1784. The Royal Navy, reduced to a shadow of its wartime strength, struggles to police the Mediterranean with ships spread dangerously thin. For Captain Nicholas Cruwys, newly promoted and commanding the frigate Miranda, what begins as routine assignment to a peacetime squadron becomes a deadly game of empire and betrayal. When coordinated corsair attacks begin threatening merchant shipping with unprecedented skill and European-quality weapons, Cruwys is drawn into the labyrinthine politics of the Ottoman Empire, where French gold, Spanish powder, and Turkish ambition create a web of ...

Andrew Lambert, author of The Challenge - winner of the prestigious Anderson Medal - turns his attention to Athens, Carthage, Venice, the Dutch Republic, and Britain, examining how their identities as "seapowers" informed their actions and enabled them to achieve success disproportionate to their size. Lambert demonstrates how creating maritime identities made these states more dynamic, open, and inclusive than their lumbering continental rivals. Only when they forgot this aspect of their identity did these nations begin to decline.

Liberty’s Edge Book V of the Nicholas Cruwys Series 1785. The world has changed, but not the men who must steer it. In the wake of the honours and hazards of Crescent’s Edge—his presentation before the King, his hard-won command of Miranda, and the favour of Lord Howe—Captain Nicholas Cruwys finds that peace demands a subtler courage than war. The Admiralty sends Miranda westward into the uncertain calm that follows revolution. There, amid the new commerce between Britain, America, and the islands between, Cruwys encounters the unfinished business of victory: privateers turned ...