War at Sea: A Naval Atlas 1939-1945 - Hardcover

Marcus Faulkner

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1848320477 ISBN 13: 9781848320475

Publisher: Seaforth, 2012

Synopsis

In the vast literature of the Second World War there has never been a naval atlas showing graphically the complexities of the war at sea, a war which spread across every ocean. This new book will fill the gap. With more than 225 beautifully-designed maps and charts, the atlas sets out to visualise the great campaigns and major battles as well as the smaller operations, amphibious landings, convoys, sieges, skirmishes and sinkings. While whole sections are given over to the Pacific war, the battle of the Atlantic and the campaigns in the Mediterranean, smaller but crucial events such as the landings at Dieppe receive in-depth treatment. The maps depict the dynamics of campaigns and battles but also include extensive information on the opposing forces, their ships and equipment and the strategic significance of events. General thematic maps, for instance, on ship losses, aerial strengths or convoy routes, give the reader an understanding of the many contributing factors that shaped the tactics and strategies of the Allied and Axis forces. No other work has attempted such an ambitious coverage of the war at sea in this period and it is destined to become a definitive reference work for naval enthusiasts and historians as well as general readers fascinated by the naval war that extended from the coldest arctic seas to the tropical islands of the Pacific.

About this title

About the Author

Marcus Faulkner is currently a visiting lecturer in the Department of War Studies, King's College London. His research interests are divided between 20th-century naval and intelligence history, with emphasis on the German navy of the inter-war years. He is the author of The Great War at Sea, published in 2012 to great acclaim.

Review

"In an age when people flock to the internet for information and visual stimulation, it is reassuring to know that books - the printed page sandwiched between cloth covers - still have the power to delight and inform. This is certainly the case with Marcus Faulkner's The War at Sea: A Naval Atlas, 1939-1945. It is not only an information tour de force but its bright and crisp colour maps make it very pleasing to the eye (and the brain). You won't need your battery charged to view it...Faulkner has produced a reflective piece of serious scholarship that is both extremely useful and a visual delight. It will be a welcome addition to the libraries of amateurs and scholars alike." -- International Journal of Maritime History

"War at Sea is a valuable and highly recommended reference source...a must acquisition for research libraries." -- Naval History Book Reviews

"Altogether this makes for fascinating reading. Not all at once--that's not the purpose. But as a reference book, to be opened and looked at, event by event, or as a reference tool--for those text volumes that have provided inadequate illustrative maps. The maps are easy to inter­pret, even for highly complicated actions such as Operation Vigorous of RAdm Vian's force against the Italian battleships in June 1942, or more general long term operations, such as a chart for "German E-Boat Attacks 1940-1945" (in the Channel, p.141), the latter including a box of "Approximate Strength of S-Boat Force" by half-yearly periods. Apart from the operational maps themselves, these small added details make the volume a most valuable addition to any bookshelf--or coffee table." -- Starshell

Edition details

• Publisher: Seaforth
• Publication date: 2012
• ISBN 10: 1848320477
• ISBN 13: 9781848320475
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 288