- Hardcover: 672 pages
- Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton Ltd; First Edition / First Impression edition (3 Jan 2005)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0340734183
- ISBN-13: 978-0340734186
- Product Dimensions: 23.6 x 15.4 x 6.6 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 589,640 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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More About the Author
Product Description
Bill Clinton, New York Times
'You should read it.'
Review
'Arthur Herman manages to tell the extraordinary story of the Royal Navy and its impact on modern history in a single compelling volume. Herman has written a marvellous book.' -- Saul David, Daily Telegraph 'TO RULE THE WAVES is a long and generous book. It is readable, vigorous and well-informed.' -- Spectator 'He's certainly written a rattling good book. He is one of those historians who know how to pile on the information and keep their readers turning the page.' -- Sunday Herald 'TO RULE THE WAVES is a riveting story told by a masterful historian.' -- Los Angeles Times
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Herman's central hypothesis is audacious but is one that he successfully argues in an erudite and entertaining book. Its scope - from low piracy to high politics - is broad and majestic covering the 500 or so years from the 16th century to almost the present day and in its pages encompasses some of the most important issues that have happened in that period, from Armada to exploration to pivotal battles that shaped our world. The book is not without its flaws (the Argentinians used Skyhawks in the Falkland's War, not Seahawks) and his exposition of his central thesis falters slightly mid-way through (but picks up afterwards). But notwithstanding these trifles the book is an enormous achievement: academic yet readable and both thought-provoking and entertaining. The saddest part is the comparison of today's Royal Navy with its forebears but even here Herman does so favourably and with sympathy and grace. Highly readable and worthwhile and highly recommened.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
I am hoping to buy a hardcover version of this book shortly. This will be my third such. The fact that an American has shown us just what a contribution we British and the Royal Navy in particular has made to the world intrigues me, makes me feel very proud and yet saddens me as I suspect few will know the detail between its pages. This should be essential reading for anyone who calls himself/herself a British Citizen. This is why I am on my third copy as I have passed the first two onto others ! Read it and be very, very proud.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I picked up this book whilst on holiday (ironically whilst visiting the USS Constitution in Boston) and found it to be a riveting read - pretty much unputdownable in fact. It reads as a thorough history of the British Navy from its roots up until recent times, but is so much more than that.
The book puts the importance of the British Navy in a global historical context in terms of the rise and fall of the British Empire and doesn't pull its punches over the part piracy and slave trading played in its long and sometimes murky history. However, this is not written as a smear campaign and tells the story frankly, truthfully and with a great deal of respect, not least for the many people who served in its ranks over the centuries.
It is those human stories that bring the book to life for me, and I think that the book is worth buying just for its re-telling of the story of the battle against the Spanish Armada. Once you've read this version, you'll never think of that conflict in quite the same way again, I imagine.
The sad decline of the Navy's value in recent times makes for a difficult ending, after reading so much of its previous grandeur, but that shouldn't deter you, and the sheer amount of hard work and dedication that has gone into this work is very impressive.
Overall a really good insight into the background of an important (and sometimes neglected) aspect of British history.
The book puts the importance of the British Navy in a global historical context in terms of the rise and fall of the British Empire and doesn't pull its punches over the part piracy and slave trading played in its long and sometimes murky history. However, this is not written as a smear campaign and tells the story frankly, truthfully and with a great deal of respect, not least for the many people who served in its ranks over the centuries.
It is those human stories that bring the book to life for me, and I think that the book is worth buying just for its re-telling of the story of the battle against the Spanish Armada. Once you've read this version, you'll never think of that conflict in quite the same way again, I imagine.
The sad decline of the Navy's value in recent times makes for a difficult ending, after reading so much of its previous grandeur, but that shouldn't deter you, and the sheer amount of hard work and dedication that has gone into this work is very impressive.
Overall a really good insight into the background of an important (and sometimes neglected) aspect of British history.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Rule Britania!
I can't remember why I bought this book - Not my normal read at all. But what a read!
Certainly, this seems to be written with rose-coloured (or Union-Jack coloured)... Read more
Certainly, this seems to be written with rose-coloured (or Union-Jack coloured)... Read more
Published 1 month ago by P. C. Hackett
to rule the waves
THE UNION FLAG ON THE COVER IS
U P S I D E DOWN,
SHOULD BE WITHDRAWN AND BURNT, FOR GOD SAKE, AT LEAST GET OUR FLAG RIGHWAY UP.......
U P S I D E DOWN,
SHOULD BE WITHDRAWN AND BURNT, FOR GOD SAKE, AT LEAST GET OUR FLAG RIGHWAY UP.......
Published 17 months ago by Mr. Colin T. Goff
Superb
I agree with the other reviewer who says this book falters a little around the middle, but all in all it's a fantastically readable history of the Royal Navy and its effect on... Read more
Published on 29 Aug 2007 by Damien Burke
Why the Distress Signal?
This is a very fine work, well researched and containing a modicum of typos. A little upsetting is the dust jacket which depicts the Union Jack flown upside down, which is the... Read more
Published on 4 Jan 2006 by Peter Deacon
You cannot miss this one.
Having read a number of books on the British Empire that read just like factual history books, this book was a break from the norm, at times it read almost like a novel. Read more
Published on 1 Feb 2005 by "ap_elki"
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