HMS LONDON : warships of the royal navy;warships of the royal navy

There is no current warship in the Royal Navy called HMS London, but vessels carrying the name have featured for better or worse in some of the most controversial episodes of British naval history. For example, the wooden wall battleship HMS London of the late 18th Century could be called 'the ship that lost America' while the heavy cruiser of WW2 was command vessel for the escort force that failed to safeguard the controversial convoy PQ17. In 'HMS London' the true stories behind those headlines are told, not least providing a grim insider perspective on the Arctic convoys, which literally broke the heavy cruiser in addition to demoralizing the sailors and marines who sailed in her. It is, however, a tale of triumphing over the dark satanic seas of the Arctic, of learning from the mistakes of PQ17 and ultimately enduring in the face of the enemy, the elements and an ungrateful Stalin. Examining the stories of HMS Londons all the way from the English Civil War, through the Battle of Copenhagen in 1801 - where Nelson famously ignored signals to break off the action displayed by HMS London - we also learn of the pre-dreadnought London's participation in the ill-fated Dardanelles campaign of WW1. Iain Ballantyne's fascinating and lively account of the lives of British warships named London primarily looks at history from the perspective of the men who were there, including her post-WW2 mission under a storm of fire from Chinese communist forces to rescue the frigate Amethyst. In addition to research in various archives, among the people Iain interviewed for the book were veterans of the Arctic convoys of WW2, the Yangtse Incident and warriors of the Cold War and 1991 Gulf War. It all adds up to a thoroughly researched and exciting narrative of naval history. Adding to the authenticity of the tale, Iain even sailed to Russia in the last HMS London, a Type 22 guided-missile frigate, in August 1991. During a WW2 convoy re-enactment the ship was almost hit by a practice torpedo launched from a Soviet submarine and had to take evasive action There is no current warship in the Royal Navy called HMS London, but vessels carrying the name have featured for better or worse in some of the most controversial episodes of British naval history.For example, the wooden wall battleship HMS London of the late 18th Century could be called the ship that lost America while the heavy cruiser of WW2 was command vessel for the escort force that failed to safeguard the controversial convoy PQ17.In HMS London the true stories behind those headlines are told, not least providing a grim insider perspective on the Arctic convoys, which literally broke the heavy cruiser in addition to demoralizing the sailors and marines who sailed in her.It is, however, a tale of triumphing over the dark satanic seas of the Arctic, of learning from the mistakes of PQ17 and ultimately enduring in the face of the enemy, the elements and an ungrateful Stalin.Examining the stories of HMS Londons all the way from the English Civil War, through the Battle of Copenhagen in 1801 - where Nelson famously ignored signals to break off the action displayed by HMS London - we also learn of the pre-dreadnought Londons participation in the ill-fated Dardanelles campaign of WW1.Iain Ballantynes fascinating and lively account of the lives of British warships named London primarily looks at history from the perspective of the men who were there, including her post-WW2 mission under a storm of fire from Chinese communist forces to rescue the frigate Amethyst. In addition to research in various archives, among the people Iain interviewed for the book were veterans of the Arctic convoys of WW2, the Yangtse Incident and warriors of the Cold War and 1991 Gulf War. It all adds up to a thoroughly researched and exciting narrative of naval history.Adding to the authenticity of the tale, Iain even sailed to Russia in the last HMS London, a Type 22 guided-missile frigate, in August 1991. During a WW2 convoy re-enactment the ship was almost hit by a practice torpedo launched from a Soviet submarine and had to take evasive action. [Elib] A fascinating and lively account of the lives of British warships named London , looking at history from the perspective of the men who were there. There is no current warship in the Royal Navy called HMS London , but vessels carrying the name have featured in some of the most controversial episodes of British naval history. For example, the wooden wall battleship HMS London of the late 18th century could be called "the ship that lost America" while the heavy cruiser of WW2 was command vessel for the escort force that failed to safeguard the controversial convoy PQ17. Examining the stories of HMS Londons all the way from the English Civil War, through the Battle of Copenhagen in 1801—where Nelson famously ignored signals to break off the action displayed by HMS London —we also learn of the pre-dreadnought London 's participation in the ill-fated Dardanelles campaign of WW1. Among the people Iain Ballantyne interviewed for this book were veterans of the Arctic convoys of WW2, the Yangtse Incident and warriors of the Cold War and 1991 Gulf War. It all adds up to a thoroughly researched and exciting narrative of naval history. Adding to the authenticity of the tale, Iain even sailed to Russia in the last HMS London , a Type 22 guided-missile frigate, in August 1991. During a WW2 convoy re-enactment the ship was almost hit by a practice torpedo launched from a Soviet submarine and had to take evasive action. "Warships named HMS London have been associated with some of the most triumphant and controversial episodes in British naval history. In this second volume of the Warships of the Royal Navy Series, Iain Ballantyne tells their thrilling story including the bungled sea battle that lost King George III his American colonies, the shambles of Gallipoli in The Great War and the notorious decision by the Admiralty to abandon convoy PQ17 in 1942." "The Second World War cruiser HMS London was also tasked with hunting down the German battleship Bismarck's supply ships, using information provided by Bletchley Park after it cracked the Enigma Code. Later she made a brave attempt to rescue HMS Amethyst during the famous Yangtze Incident which gripped the world's attention. The last HMS London, a Type 22 frigate, was flagship of the British Task Group in the Gulf War of 1991." Iain Ballantyne's fascinating account of the lives of all the British warships honoured to carry the Capital's name is illustrated with copious photographs, many of them never published before. Warships named HMS London have been associated with some of the most controversial episodes in British naval history, from the bungled sea battle that lost King George III his American colonies, to the shambles of Gallipoli in World War I, and the notorious decision of the Admiralty to abandon convoy PQ17 in World War II. Author Iain Ballantyne's second entry in the Warships of the Royal Navy series is a fascinating and lively account of these British warships named London. It is told from the perspective of the men who were onboard, including interviews with veterans of the grim Arctic convoys, the Yangtze Incident, and warriors of the Cold War and Gulf War. The result is a thoroughly researched and exciting narrative that is illustrated throughout with photographs, many presented for the first time. 224 pages. Photographs. Hardcover. 6 x 9 inches.