Overview

In 1941, as the Battle of the Atlantic raged and ship losses mounted, the British Admiralty desperately tried to find ways to defeat the U-Boat threat to Britain’s maritime lifeline. Facing a shortage of traditional aircraft carriers and shore-based aircraft, the Royal Navy, as a stopgap measure, converted merchant ships into small ‘escort carriers’. These were later joined by a growing number of American-built escort carriers, sent as part of the Lend-Lease agreement. The typical Escort Carrier was small, slow and vulnerable, but it could carry about 18 aircraft, which gave the convoys a real chance to detect and sink dangerous U-Boats. Collectively, their contribution to an Allied victory was immense, particularly in the long and gruelling campaigns fought in the Atlantic and Arctic. Illustrated throughout with detailed full-colour artwork and contemporary photographs, this fascinating study explores in detail how these adaptable ships had such an enormous impact on the outcome of World War II’s European Theatre.

Full Product Details

9781472836250

Table of Contents

Reviews

""Konstam has done his research and the colour illustrations provided by Wright add a significant improvement to standard black-and-white ship line drawings. Ship model makers will find the combination quite appealing and inspirational. For such a small book, the index is remarkably utilitarian and improves upon Poolman's book which did not come with one."" --The Northern Mariner

Konstam has done his research and the colour illustrations provided by Wright add a significant improvement to standard black-and-white ship line drawings. Ship model makers will find the combination quite appealing and inspirational. For such a small book, the index is remarkably utilitarian and improves upon Poolman's book which did not come with one. - The Northern Mariner

Konstam has done his research and the colour illustrations provided by Wright add a significant improvement to standard black-and-white ship line drawings. Ship model makers will find the combination quite appealing and inspirational. For such a small book, the index is remarkably utilitarian and improves upon Poolman's book which did not come with one. - The Northern Mariner

Author Information

Angus Konstam is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society and has written widely on naval history, with well over a hundred books in print. He is a former Royal Navy officer, maritime archaeologist and museum curator, who has worked in the Royal Armouries, Tower of London, and Mel Fisher Maritime Museum. Now a full-time author and historian, he lives in Orkney. Paul Wright has painted ships of all kinds for most of his career, specializing in steel and steam warships from the late 19th century to the present day. Paul’s art has illustrated the works of Patrick O’Brian, Dudley Pope and C.S. Forester amongst others, and hangs in many corporate and private collections all over the world. A Member of the Royal Society of Marine Artists, Paul lives and works in Surrey.

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