PAGE
[Introduction]XV
CHAPTER
[1.]From Ancient Egypt to the Introduction of
Artillery		1
[2.] War Craft of the Far West, Central Africa,
the Far South, the Pacific and the Far
East		21
[3.] The Introduction of Artillery and the Development
of Warships to the Application of
Steam for Navigation		39
[4.]Steam and Warships78
[5.]Iron Ships of War. From the Introduction of
Iron Armour to Broadside and Turret
Ships		105
[6.]Iron Ships of War (continued)144
[7.]Armoured Ships in Action197
[8.]Battleships and Cruisers241
[9.]Guns, Projectiles, and Armour265
[10.]Warships of the Twentieth Century285
[Index]333

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

A Coming Type of Battleship (Colour)[Frontispiece]
Greek BiremeFacingpage[6]
Greek War Galleys””[6]
An Ancient Bireme from Basius””[10]
One of the Ancient Liburni or Galleys””[10]
Roman Galley””[10]
Viking Ship found at Gokstad””[14]
Fleet Attacking a Fortified Town””[18]
Galley of the Knights of Malta””[20]
Mediterranean Galley””[20]
War Canoes of Indians of the North-West””[22]
A “Dug-Out” Canoe of New Guinea””[24]
New Guinea Canoes””[24]
Stern-posts of Maori War Canoe””[26]
A Maori War Canoe””[26]
A Lakatoi nearly completed””[28]
A Lakatoi under Sail””[28]
Canoe from Shortland Island””[30]
Diagram of Shortland Island Canoe””[30]
War Canoe (Teste Island, New Guinea)””[30]
Head-Hunting Canoe from Ysabel””[32]
Head-Hunting Canoe from Ysabel: Detail of Bow””[32]
The Famous old Chinese Junk Whang Ho””[34]
Malay Pirate Proa””[34]
Pictures of War Galleys and a Protected Galley,
Kikkosen		””[36]
The Ataka Maru””[36]
Sixteenth Century French Ships””[40]
A Mediterranean War Galley””[42]
Ship of War, 1486-1520””[42]
Embarkation of Henry VIII on the Great Harry””[46]
Breech-loading Gun recovered from the wreck of
the Mary Rose		””[50]
The Ark Royal””[52]
The Sovereign of the Seas””[54]
The Prince Royal””[54]
Line of Battleship, 1650””[58]
The Dreadnought, 1748””[60]
The Juno, 1757””[60]
The Cornwallis, 1812””[64]
Guns of the Fifteenth and Sixteenth Centuries””[72]
Ancient Double Gun””[72]
Carronade of Six Diameters””[74]
Carronade””[74]
Carronade and its Carriage””[74]
The Rising Star””[86]
The Trial of Screw v. Paddle—H.M. Sloops Rattler
and Alert towing Stern to Stern		””[98]
Sectional Model of Russian Man-of-War, 1854””[106]
H.M.S. Centaur, Bulldog and Imperieuse engaged
with six Russian Gunboats off Cronstadt, 1855		””[106]
H.M.S. Warrior””[110]
The Terror””[110]
H.M.S. Black Prince””[122]
The Bangor””[122]
The Merrimac before Conversion””[126]
The Merrimac as Converted into an Ironclad””[126]
The Monitor-Merrimac duel””[130]
The Monitor and Albemarle””[134]
Federal Gunboat St. Louis””[134]
Capture of New Orleans: Attack on Fort Phillip””[142]
The Prince Albert as Converted to a Turret Ship””[146]
H.M.S. Minotaur””[146]
The Foundering of the Affondatore in the Harbour
of Ancona		””[152]
The Wreck of the Captain””[152]
H.M.S. Devastation””[162]
The Old Dreadnought ””[170]
The Big Guns of the Old Dreadnought””[170]
H.M.S. Inflexible””[176]
Russian Circular Monitor Novgorod””[186]
The French Iron-plated Ship Magenta””[186]
Duel between the Vesta and the Assar-I-Tewfik””[214]
Russian Torpedo Boats on the Danube in the
Russo-Turkish War		””[214]
U.S. Ram Katahdin””[222]
The U.S. Dynamite-Gun Boat Vesuvius””[224]
The Maine entering Havana Harbour””[224]
The Spanish Battleship Pelayo””[230]
U.S. Battleship Texas””[232]
U.S. Battleship Iowa””[232]
The Russian Battleship Tsarevitch after the Fight
off Port Arthur		””[236]
Effects of Japanese Shells on the Gromoboi””[236]
The Japanese Battleship Asahi””[240]
The Russian Battleship Navarin””[240]
H.M.S. Victoria, Firing 110-ton Gun””[244]
H.M.S. Victoria, Showing 110-ton Guns””[244]
H.M.S. Majestic””[248]
H.M.S. King Edward VII””[250]
H.M.S. Lord Nelson””[250]
The German Dreadnought Cruiser Von der Tann””[254]
Russian Cruiser Rurik””[258]
Russian Cruiser Rossia””[258]
H.M. Cruiser Indomitable””[260]
H.M.S. Liverpool””[260]
French Cruiser Ernest Renan””[262]
French Cruiser Danton””[262]
4-inch Breech-loading 40-Calibre Gun and
Mounting for Torpedo Boat Destroyers		””[266]
12½-pounder Quick-firing 50-Calibre Gun and
Mounting		””[266]
Heavy Gun unmounted””[270]
6-inch Breech-loading 50-Calibre Gun completed
and with Mounting		””[270]
Projectiles and Charges used in the British Navy””[274]
12-inch Breech Mechanism (Closed and Open)””[278]
Interior of a Barbette showing 12-inch Gun, H.M.S.
Cæsar		””[278]
The 12-inch Guns of H.M.S Neptune””[282]
A Torpedo, discharged from a Destroyer, travelling
by its own Engines towards an Armoured Battleship		””[286]
The Holland Submarine””[290]
The Goubet Submarine””[290]
British Submarine A.13””[296]
The British Submarine C.22””[296]
Submarine D.1 with Wireless Telegraph Mast””[298]
Launch of U.S. Submarine Narwhal””[298]
French Submarine “X”””[298]
The Transporter””[300]
U.S. Gunboat Paducah””[300]
First Torpedo Boat Built for the Norwegian
Government		””[302]
H.M. Torpedo Boat Lightning””[302]
H.M. Torpedo Boat No. 79, Built in 1886””[302]
H.M.S. Vulcan””[302]
High Speed Sea-going Torpedo Boat Propelled by
Internal Combustion Engines		””[304]
U.S. Destroyer Lawrence ””[304]
Stern View of H.M.S. Sylvia””[306]
H.M.S. Torpedo Boat Destroyer Swift””[308]
H.M.S. Wear””[308]
H.M.S. Torpedo Boat Destroyer Tartar””[310]
H.M. Torpedo Boat Destroyer Maori””[310]
U.S. Scout Salem””[312]
U.S.S. Maine””[312]
H.M.S. Dreadnought””[314]
H.M.S. Neptune””[318]
H.M. Super-Dreadnought Colossus””[318]
The Brazilian Battleship Minas Geraes””[322]
U.S.S. North Dakota””[324]

INTRODUCTION

When or where the first warship was built is unknown, so also is the campaign in which it was employed. A war with naval usages of any sort cannot have been fought until the aggressor had some means of transporting the spoil across the water. From the raft to the fire-hollowed canoe was but a step, and having accomplished so much, the ingenuity of the naval architects of the period found scope in making improvements, gropingly, slowly, but none the less surely. The development of ships used for warlike purposes, as well as of ships designed as implements for fighting, forms a most attractive branch of study in its relation to the evolution of empires, no less than that of civilisation. Nor is the interest any the less if the attention be confined simply to the consideration of the development of the ships as ships of war.

In this book I am endeavouring to describe, clearly and briefly, the main features of the progress in warship building among the different peoples of the world, from the earliest recorded times onward. The greater attention is paid to modern warships, and the story of their development is narrated with an avoidance of abstruse technicalities, so that any reader of average intelligence and education may be able to obtain a clear understanding of the steps by which that wonderful creation, the modern navy, and especially the British Navy, has come into being.

Whether my readers belong to the bluest of the “blue water” school; whether they advocate two British keels to one possessed by any possible combination of foreign powers as the irreducible minimum below which the British fleet shall not go; whether they take a more moderate view, founded, as they believe, on the power of the nation to pay for its fleet, and the ability of other nations to pay for their fleets, in which case the ability of some other nations to borrow money to have their best vessels built in British yards must not be lost sight of; or whether my readers belong to the other extreme and believe that any and every British fleet is too powerful and that the time is coming when the Imperial cheek shall be turned to the envious smiter: whatever be their political and social faiths, the fact remains that the fleet in being is the sole guarantee of this nation’s safety, and that the payments for the several warships and the personnel of the Navy are but so many premiums for insuring the defence of the country and the maintenance of the inviolate integrity of these islands. Whether the money has always been spent to the best advantage is a point upon which experts differ, and is outside my intention to consider. But I hope to show something of the types of vessels provided, and, incidentally, to indicate how engineering skill and profound science have been devoted to the evolution of the modern ship of war.

******

The earliest known employment of a warship dates back, according to the present computations of Egyptologists, some six thousand years B.C.; but discoveries yet to be made may cause that estimate to be revised, for the more the scientific investigation of ancient Egypt is pursued, the greater is the tendency to date events more remotely still. All that is known of this ship is that it existed, and that it saw service as escort to a trading expedition on the Nile.

The first naval engagement of which we have any definite knowledge was fought near the mouth of the Nile about 1000 B.C. The ships held only a few men each and were propelled by rowers, and so little dependence was placed on their sails that the latter were furled to be out of the way during the actual fighting.