H.M.S. London: Warships of the Royal Navy

by Ballantyne, Iain

• ISBN13: 9780850528435
• ISBN10: 0850528437
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2003-04-01
• Publisher: Naval Inst Pr

Summary

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. The first volume in the Warships of the Royal Navy series is Warspite (see page 31.)

Table of Contents

HMS London Battle Honours 1652-1991	vii
Acknowledgements	viii
Introduction	xi
Privateers, Royalists and Roundheads	1	(9)
The Ship That Lost America	10	(5)
Mutiny at Spithead	15	(5)
Nelson Turns a Blind Eye	20	(6)
Bombarding Sevastopol	26	(6)
At War With the Kaiser	32	(9)
Running the Dardanelles	41	(16)
Policemen of the Empire	57	(12)
The Bismarck Hunt	69	(12)
The Kremlin Delegation	81	(9)
The Tirpitz Chase	90	(9)
The Shame of Convoy PQ17	99	(14)
An Undeserving Scapegoat	113	(10)
Surrender at Sabang	123	(10)
The Final Days of Empire	133	(7)
Storming up The Yangtze	140	(14)
The Long Retreat	154	(14)
In Dangerous Waters	168	(12)
Saddam's Apocalypse	180	(17)
The Fall of the Soviet Union	197	(10)
Keeping Watch on the Balkans	207	(11)
Bibliography	218	(7)
Index	225