The French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars encompassed a period when rival European fleets vied for naval supremacy, and naval tactics were evolving. The British Royal Navy emerged triumphant as the leading world sea power, and the epitome of Britannic naval strength was the Ship-of-the-Line. These 'wooden walls' were more than merely floating gun batteries: they contained a crew of up to 800 men, and often had to remain at sea for extended periods. This book offers detailed coverage of the complex vessels that were the largest man-made structures produced in the pre-Industrial era.

For nearly two hundred years huge wooden warships called ships of the line dominated war at sea and were thus instrumental in the European struggle for power and the spread of imperialism. Foremost among the great naval powers were Great Britain and France, whose advanced economies could support large numbers of these expensive ships. This book, the first joint history of these great navies, offers a uniquely impartial and comprehensive picture of the two forces their shipbuilding programs, naval campaigns, and battles, and their wartime strategies and diplomacy. Jonathan R. Dull is the author of two award-winning histories of the French navy. Bringing to bear years of study of war and diplomacy, his book conveys the fine details and the high drama of the age of grand and decisive naval conflict. Dull delves into the seven wars that Great Britain and France, often in alliance with lesser naval powers such as Spain and the Netherlands, fought between 1688 and 1815. Viewing war as most statesmen of the time saw it as a contest of endurance he also treats the tragic side of the Franco-British wars, which shattered the greater security and prosperity the two powers enjoyed during their brief period as allies.

In the Age of Fighting Sail (1650–1820), ambitious officers of the navies of many nations sought command of a frigate. Speedy, nimble and formidably armed, frigates often operated independently, unlike the larger ships of the line. Legendary sailors such as Edward Pellew and Charles-Alexandre Léon Durand, Comte de Linoise, found that commanding such a ship offered numerous opportunities for wealth. In this book, four representative frigate duels are examined: first, a battle fought between two closely matched ships (HMS Nymphe (36) vs La Cléopâtre (32); second, a victory won by an inferior British frigate over a superior French frigate (HMS Pallas (32) vs Minerve (40); third, a victory – the only one – by an inferior French frigate over a superior British frigate (HMS Ambuscade (32) vs Baïonnaise (24), and fourth, victory of a superior British frigate over an inferior French frigate (HMS Indefatigable (44) of Hornblower fame vs La Virginie (40). Featuring specially commissioned artwork and offering expert analysis, this study provides a vivid account of the bloody combats fought by the most romantic warship of the Revolutionary and Napoleonic era – the frigate.

Late in the morning on October 21, 1805, warships from the British and combined French and Spanish fleets clashed off Cape Trafalgar on the Spanish coast. After a six month game of cat and mouse across the Atlantic, 27 British ships of the line engaged the Allied force of 33 ships of the line. This was a duel of skill, tenacity and bravery as captains and crews battled for mastery of the seas. This book is an opportunity to relive the action at Trafalgar - read the accounts of sailors who were there, and who experienced the sound of scraping cutlasses and bombarding cannons at one of the most important naval engagements of history. Understand how the guns were operated, learn about the training of crews and study the design and development of the incredible ships which dominated naval warfare of the period, as Gregory Fremont-Barnes reveals the revolutionary tactics used by Nelson to secure a victory that saved Britain from the threat of invasion and ensured British naval dominance for over a century.

Although purpose built fighting ships had existed earlier, the principal characteristics of the classic sailing warship were defined in the mid-seventeenth century, and the line of battle ship became ever more distinct. Alongside came the greater specialisation of the fleets and the evolution of the frigate and the adaptation of myriad types of craft for naval use. The story of these developments is clearly elucidated in this paperback volume.

In the series of wars that raged between France and Britain from the seventeenth to the nineteenth centuries,seapower was of absolute vital importance. Not only was each nation's navy a key to victory, but was a prerequisite for imperial dominance. These ongoing struggles for overseas colonies and commercial dominance required efficient navies which in turn insured the economic strength for the existence of these fleets as instruments of state power. This new book, by the distinguished historian Jonathan Dull, looks inside the workings of both the Royal and the French navies of this tumultuous era, and compares the key elements of the rival fleets. Through this balanced comparison, Dull argues that Great Britain's final triumph in a series of wars with France was primarily the result of superior financial and economic power. This accessible and highly readable account navigates the intricacies of the British and French wars in a way which will both enlighten the scholar and fascinate the general reader. Naval warfare is brought to life but also explained within the framework of diplomatic and international history. An important new work.

Between 1793 and 1815 two decades of unrelenting naval warfare raised the sailing man of war to the zenith of its effectiveness as a weapon of war. Every significant sea power was involved in this conflict, and at some point virtually all of them were arrayed against Great Britain. A large number of enemy warships were captured in battle and the Admiralty ordered accurate drafts to be made of many of these prizes. Consequently, ships from the navies of France, Spain, the United States, the Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden, as well as from Britain, were illustrated by an unprecedented variety of paintings, drawings, models or plans.