News, Articles and Comment

Ed. In 1995 staff historian David Waters began publishing in the NR [83/4, p. 349] a series of commentaries on the Battle of the Atlantic, a subject he had mastered while working on The Defeat of the Enemy Attack upon Shipping (1957). He was inspired in this case by the renewed naval history discourse, evident in a review of S. Howarth and D. Law, eds., The Battle of the Atlantic 1939-1945 (1994), the International Naval Conference on the battle held in Liverpool in 1993, and related writings in the NR [83/1, p. 84 & 83/2, p. 159]. Republished here as part of the 80th Anniversary of the Battle of the Atlantic. A 15 minute read.

The latest book reviews are now available. One covers the Ross Expedition to Antarctica, 1839-1843, whilst the other focuses on […]

Ed. Originally presented at St. Nick’s Church, Liverpool, on International Women’s Day, 8 March 2023, as part of the 80th Anniversary of the Battle of the Atlantic NR Chairman Vice Admiral Sir Clive Johnstone examined the conflict in Ukraine today, and emphasized how the WRNS of the Second World War were vital to the defeat of the U-boat threat. A 10 minute read.

The latest book reviews are now available. The first is a history of shipwrecks, providing an introduction to the subject, […]

Ed. In 1952, during his work on The War At Sea, 1939-1945, official historian Stephen Roskill published in the NR [40/4, p. 432] this appraisal of the Royal Navy’s strategic role in the Second World War, with particular attention to the subject of convoy operations and trade protection. Reprinted here as part of the 80th anniversary of the Battle of the Atlantic. A 15 minute read

The latest book reviews are now available. One focuses on the Battle of Crete in 1941, the other looks at […]

The latest book reviews are now available. One concerns the submarine, HMS Urge, lost off Malta in the Second World War, […]

Ed. Former Naval Staff historian D. W. Waters originally presented this essay as the Presidential Address to the British Society for the History of Science in 1978. It was reprinted in the NR over two volumes in 1984 [72/3 & 72/4]. Waters’ conclusions, based on the rigorous data analysis conducted for the Defeat of the Enemy Attack upon Shipping (1957), demonstrated mathematically the superiority of escorted convoys over independent sailings during the U-boat conflicts of 1914-1918 and 1939-1945. Reproduced here as part of the 80th anniversary of the Battle of the Atlantic. A 40 minute read.

The latest book reviews are now. One is an examination of the submarine from diverse perspectives; one is an account […]