The first comprehensive study of naval operations involving North
American squadrons in Nova Scotia waters, Frigates and Foremasts offers
a masterful analysis of the motives behind the deployment of Royal Navy
vessels between 1745 and 1815, and the navy’s role on the Western
Atlantic.
Interweaving historical analysis with vivid descriptions of pivotal
events from the first siege of Louisbourg in 1745 to the end of the
wars with the United States and France in 1815, Julian Gwyn illuminates
the complex story of competing interests among the Admiralty, Navy
Board, sea officers, and government officials on both sides of the
Atlantic. In a gripping narrative encompassing sea battles,
impressments, and privateering, Gwyn brings to life key events and
central figures. He examines the role of leadership and the lack of it,
not only of seagoing heroes from Peter Warren to Philip Broke, but also
of land-based officials, such as the various Halifax naval yard
commissioners, whose important contributions are brought to light.
Gwyn’s brilliant evocation of people and events, and the
scholarship he brings to bear on the subject makes Frigates and
Foremasts a uniquely authoritative history. Wonderfully readable, it
will attract both the serious naval historian and the general reader
interested in the ‘why’ and ‘what’ of naval
history on North America's eastern seaboard.
