Military Model Scene

Title: Ships of the Royal Navy
Author: J.J. Colledge, Ben Warlow, Steve Bush
Publisher: Seaforth Publishing
ISBN: 978-1-5267-9327-0

A new 5th edition of a book I had not seen before, recording the details of all the Fighting Ships of the Royal Navy from the 15th Century through to the present day. The basic details of over 15,000 ships, from Cutters to Carriers. A 493-page hardback.
It opens with an Introduction and a series of explanatory notes on all the entries. The bulk of the book though lists all the ships that have served in the Royal Navy over this long period of time, including notes on those that had their name changed when they were lost or captured, and gives the ships' names, how many guns, the weight given as Builders Measurement (bm), dimensions, class, where it was built, when it entered service and when it left and subsequent fate. Great for checking your knowledge for a quiz, such as just how many ships named Ark Royal have been in service with the Royal Navy? With over 200 new entries this brings up to date an ABC of RN ships started by J J Colledge, who has sadly passed away, but the listing is kept up to date by Ken Warlow and Steve Bush.
While this is perhaps not a book to simply read start to finish, but a basic reference work that forms a great basis to now where to start from when researching a particular ship. For anyone with an interest in the ships of the Royal Navy, I would certainly say that this new edition of such an invaluable reference should be on your bookshelf.
Thanks to Pen & Sword for our review copy.

Robin