In the fifty years that seperated Warrior from Dreadnought there occured a revolution in warship design quite unparalleled in naval history; a period that began with the fully-rigged broadside ironclads ended with the emergence of the great battleships and battlecruisers that were to fight in the First World War. The author explains how nineteenth-century designers responded to developements in engine technology,armour protection and armament in their attempts to develop the best possible fighting ships. he details the development of more efficient engines that brought about the demise of the sailing warship, and the competion between armour and armament, with every increase in the power of the guns stimulating the development of ever more sophisticated methods of protection.Importantly, he explains that the Victorian Royal Navy, far from being the reactionary body it is so often depicted as, was, in fact, at the forefront of technical change, for example in the employment of torpedoes and the development of countermeasures to them.Full accounts are given of the significant naval events and battles of the period, such as the loss of the turret ship Captain, the bombardment of Alexandria in 1882, the Spanish-American War of 1898, the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-5. Containing many rare photographs, this is an indespensable guide to one of the most exciting periods of warship development. 224 pages. pb
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