A compelling history of the greatest ships ever launched.The importance of the fighting ship is as considerable today as ever before. Battleships are built, counted, assessed and exercised with the same determination now as at the beginning of the twentieth century, and during the Napoleonic Wars.In this riveting book, leading historian Richard Hough examines fifteen of history's most significant and interesting battleships, from Lord Howard Effingham's Ark Royal, which held the Spanish Armada at bay, to the American New Jersey, which took part in three wars, and whose guns still remain ready for action. From the mighty German Bismarck of 1941, destroyed on its first operation voyage, Battleship ranges to Admiral Nelson's legendary HMS Victory, still a flagship after more than 200 yearsHough weaves these examples into a pattern of progress ranging from the galleon to the immense super-dreadnought. In addition, he focuses in depth upon armaments, structural developments, and the tactics of war all these play a crucial part in the epic history of the battleship. But above all Richard Hough's story is a human one, a record of men and ships, of courage and endurance a true taste of the sea.