Eighteenth-Century Naval Officers: A Transnational Perspective (War, Culture and Society, 1750 –1850) 1st ed. 2019 Edition
Evan Wilson (Editor), AnnaSara Hammar (Editor), Jakob Seerup (Editor)
Series: War, Culture and Society, 1750 -1850
Hardcover: 235 pages
Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan; 1st ed. 2019 edition (December 11, 2019)
ISBN-13: 9783030256999

This book surveys the lives and careers of naval officers across Europe at the height of the age of sail. It traces the professionalization of naval officers by exploring their preparation for life at sea and the challenges they faced while in command. It also demonstrates the uniqueness of the maritime experience, as long voyages and isolation at sea cemented their bond with naval officers across Europe while separating them from landlubbers. It depicts, in a way no previous study has, the parameters of their shared experiences―both the similarities that crossed national boundaries and connected officers, and the differences that can only be seen from an international perspective.

Review

“It ought to be rare if not impossible to write naval history bounded by a single country or a single language. Unfortunately it is rather the rule than the exception. In assembling comparative studies of the officer corps of the major navies of the 18th century, the contributors to this volume have done something so obvious and so important that it is astonishing that no-one has ever attempted it before. If there was ever an excuse for this shameful neglect, it exists no longer.” (N.A.M. Rodger, Emeritus Fellow, All Souls College, University of Oxford, UK)