Salvo!
Classic Naval Gun Actions
Description:... Writing with years of experience of sea life, Bernard Edwards vividly recounts a varied selection of truly classic warships gun actions, emphasising the often sudden change from routine sailing to devastating and potentially lethal combat with an almost unseen enemy. Specific actions include one of the earliest naval gun battles between ironclads at the Yalu River in 1894, celebrated battle honour epics such as the Falkland Islands in 1914 and Cape Matapan in 1941, night encounters in the Pacific or the busy English Channel, confused and fickle battles such as Dogger Bank and Heligoland Bight in 1914, and lone duels to the death on the high seas such as Carmania and Cap Trafalgar in 1914 and Stephen Hopkins and Stier in 1942. Bernard Edwards skilfully sets the scene for each action, explaining the background to the naval war at the time as well as that of the individual ships involved before retelling the stirring and dramatic story of each actual clash. Throughout all accounts too there is the recognition that the warship against warship gun battle, while now part of naval history, was a unique experience that often epitomised the most splendid traditions of navies and courage in the face of the enemy.
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