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Article: How the British navy became the world's best.(BOOKS)
- Article from:
- The Washington Times (Washington, DC)
- Article date:
- January 2, 2005
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2005 The Washington Times LLC. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Byline: John M. Taylor, SPECIAL TO THE WASHINGTON TIMES
"The English are the greatest murderers and proudest people in all Europe," an Irish writer complained in 1578, "and I am surprised that God tolerates them so long in power." The English may or may not have been as proud as here described, but much of the legendary British hubris derived from the might of their navy. The story of that navy is now recounted in a masterly manner by historian Arthur Herman, heretofore best known for his best-selling "How the Scots Invented the Modern World."
Mr. Herman starts with swashbuckling sailors like John Hawkins and Francis Drake, whose ships flew the British ...