The War for All the Oceans: From Nelson at the Nile to Napoleon at Waterloo

by Roy Adkins, Lesley Adkins

Overview

A brutal, action-packed account of the sea battles of the Napoleonic War by the author of the bestselling Nelson’s Trafalgar and co-author of the forthcoming Gibraltar: The Greatest Siege in British History (March 2018)

As he did with his much lauded Nelson’s Trafalgar, Roy Adkins (now writing with wife Lesley) again thrusts readers into the perils and thrills of early-nineteenth-century warfare. From its very first page, this is an adventure story—a superb account of the naval war that lasted from Napoleon’s seizure of power in 1798 to the War of 1812 with the United States. Providing a ringside seat to the decisive battles, as well as detailed and vivid portraits of sailors and commanders, press-gangs, prostitutes, and spies, The War for All the Oceans is “a rollicking, patriotic account of the Napoleonic wars that will go down well with Master and Commander fans” (The Telegraph).

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780143113928
Publisher:	Penguin Publishing Group
Publication date:	07/29/2008
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	576
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.30(h) x 1.30(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Roy Adkins is a historian and archaeologist. He is also a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries in London. His previous books include The Keys of Egypt: The Obsession to Decipher Egyptian Hieroglyphs, Dictionary of Roman Religion, and Handbook to Life in Ancient Rome.

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

"Vivid.... [A] rollicking saga." —-Publishers Weekly

Editorial Reviews

Hazardous but often abortive operations, fireships and rocket batteries, primitive torpedoes . . . such daredevilry comes alive—a drama of blazing ships and broadsides and the awesome power of the elements, which even the finest of the many modern fiction interpreters of the era could hardly improve on.”
—The Sunday Times (London)
 
“One of the many strengths of this book is the way that it is not just the captains and commanders who speak to us through the numerous firsthand accounts that the authors weave into their narrative, but also the seamen and the prostitutes—thus conveying a sense of the Great War’s human dimensions, as well as the official history, the black humor as well as the bravery, the devilry as well as the sheer dogged determination to survive and win this hellish war.”
—Salon
 
“Engrossing . . . The Adkinses display such superb technological knowledge of their subject . . . A superior work of maritime history that both scholars and general readers should enjoy.”
—Booklist
 
“In this vivid history, the husband-and-wife historians . . . illuminate aspects of life at war and on the home fronts, quoting from diaries, letters, and journals. Sumptuous storytelling re-creates the first worldwide war. . . . This real-life action will delight fans of fictional hero's from the same wars—Horatio Hornblower (C.S. Forester) and Richard Sharpe (Bernard Cornwell).”
—Kirkus Reviews
 
“Meticulously researched—drawing on extensive and intimate eyewitness accounts from contemporary journals, letters and memoirs—this lively narrative will delight students and fans of nautical history.”
—Publishers Weekly
 
“A rollicking, patriotic account of the Napoleonic wars that will go down well with Master and Commander fans.”
—The Telegraph
 
“Lesley and Roy Adkins deserve our gratitude for allowing some of these ‘sturdy souls’ to speak again so vividly.”
—The Observer (London)
 
“Very readable and lively. There are tales of derring-do alongside portraits of characters such as the brilliant, eccentric naval commander Sir Sidney Smith.”
—Financial Times
 
“The stories in this book evoke the romance of seafaring in the age of wooden ships and muzzle-loading guns. All the original firsthand texts are well-selected and written with verve and clarity. This is fine entertainment.”
—Naval History
 
“A fascinating study . . . In this action-packed and highly readable book, the narrative rattles along like a C.S. Forester or Patrick O’Brian novel, with a wealth of detail about naval life . . . making this one of the most authoritative but accessible studies of Nelson’s navy available.”
—The Geographical Journal
 
“A first-class book, wide in scope and gripping in detail. From diseases to prostitutes to military action, Adkins brings knowledge and power to the subject. It would be difficult to find a more creative book on the British navy during its most tumultuous period.”
—Oxford Times
 
“Full of gripping eyewitness accounts of what happened . . .We won’t spoil the ending but Nelson plays a blinder.”
—Motor Boat & Yachting
 
“Roy and Lesley Adkins have written a marvelous narrative history. . . . There is no question that sea power contributed mightily to Napoleon’s defeat, and this fine book drives home that point colorfully.”
—History Book Club
 
“Another masterly work from the Adkinses . . . a breathtaking journey through one of the most glorious periods.”
—The Herald Express

From the Publisher

In the nineteenth century, the British created the greatest maritime-based empire in world history. That empire was made possible by the domination of the Royal Navy, which was forged in the late-eighteenth and early-nineteenth centuries in the fires of the Napoleonic Wars. The Adkins, who are both historians and archaeologists, have written a narrative history of British naval conflicts from 1798 to 1815. In that span, the Royal Navy engaged almost every major naval power, including France, Spain, Holland, and even the U.S. Naturally, the Adkins describe the exploits of naval icons, including Nelson and Hood, but their account is most engrossing when they utilize eyewitness accounts of ordinary seamen to capture the intensity of battle as well as the grind of day-to-day life aboard a warship. The Adkins display such superb technological knowledge of their subject that they can be excused for their occasional delving into "Britannica Rules the Waves" enthusiasm. A superior work of maritime history that both scholars and general readers should enjoy.

Booklist

A drama of blazing ships and broadsides and the awesome power of the elements

Sunday Times (London)

Husband and wife Roy Adkins (Nelson's Trafalgar) and Lesley Adkins (Empires of the Plain) team up for this vivid account of the naval campaigns of the Napoleonic Wars (1798-1815). Contending that the wars were won at sea, the authors trace the nautical action from the Battle of the Nile (1798), where a British fleet "destroyed the French fleet" and stranded Napoleon's army in Egypt, to the decisive Battle of Trafalgar (1805), where the British overwhelmed a combined French and Spanish fleet supporting an invasion of Britain. The narrative concludes with an account of the protracted "war of attrition" that followed Trafalgar and ended with Bonaparte's final defeat at Waterloo in 1815. This low-grade conflict-coastal blockades and shipping raids-caught neutral nations like the United States "in the middle" and ultimately led the Americans to declare war on England in 1812-a conflict that was "never more than a sideshow" for the British. This rollicking saga ranges from the Mediterranean to the Indies, East and West, and ends with Britain in control of "the world's sea lanes"-the foundation for her future empire. Meticulously researched-drawing on extensive and intimate eyewitness accounts from contemporary journals, letters and memoirs-this lively narrative will delight students and fans of nautical history. (Aug. 20)

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Publishers Weekly

Sumptuous storytelling recreates the first worldwide war. Known as "The Great War" until World War I, the Napoleonic Wars embroiled Britain and other nations in conflict with France for a decade (1804-15), as Napoleon Bonaparte sought to create an empire in Europe. In this vivid history, husband-and-wife historians Roy (Nelson's Trafalgar, 2005) and Lesley (Empires of the Plain, 2004) take us from the audacious, supposedly invincible Napoleon's disastrous effort to conquer Egypt to his complete military defeat at Waterloo and England's rise as supreme naval power. Besides recounting major sea battles (involving Spain, Denmark, Russia, Turkey and other nations), the authors illuminate aspects of life at war and on the home fronts, quoting from diaries, letters and journals. We see Britain wild over Horatio Nelson after his defeat of the French at Trafalgar ("Joy, joy, joy to you, brave, gallant, immortalized Nelson!" wrote Countess Spencer in London); sailors suffering from lack of food and water and the scourges of smallpox and yellow fever; the brutal recruiting (impressments) of seamen to build the British navy; and the imprisonment of more than 100,000 captured Frenchmen in cramped British hulks that became tourist attractions. In that low-tech era, information about the enemy was hard to come by, communication difficult (even within one's own fleet) and hysteria rampant: Many British wondered whether the relentless Napoleon (seen only in drawings) was a creature from hell. American inventor Robert Fulton figures in the story, working for the British under the code name "Mr. Francis" to devise torpedo bombs used against anchored French ships. While charting the bitter rivalry betweenBritain and France, the Adkins also show how British trade restrictions plunged the young United States into the War of 1812, which destroyed Washington, D.C., but ranked as a mere sideshow for England. This real-life action will delight fans of fictional heroes from the same war-Horatio Hornblower (C.S. Forester) and Richard Sharpe (Bernard Cornwell).

Kirkus Reviews

The title's "War" refers to Napoleon Bonaparte's attempt to conquer the world at the turn of the eighteenth century into the nineteenth. British control of the seas continually vexed the clever Corsican's strategy until he ceded victory in 1812. The authors take us to sea with the brave sailors on all sides, nearly overwhelming us with nonstop action and military maneuvers at every word. Narrator Patrick Lawlor shows all the excitement one could look for in naval warfare, telling of fire ships used as weapons, heads removed by cannon balls, and vessels grinding to bits on hidden rocks while under fire. Lawlor gives an accent to everyone who speaks, including a rustic Scots one for Admiral Thomas Cochrane, and gives Bonaparte the tone and timbre of a gruff old man. J.A.H.

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DECEMBER 2008 - AudioFile