Okręty wojenne: książki (starożytność i średniowiecze)

Warships of the Ancient World 3000-500 BC (Osprey)

The world's first war machines were ships built two millennia before the dawn of the Classical world. Their influence on the course of history cannot be overstated. A wide variety of galleys and other types of warships were built by successive civilisations, each with their own distinctive appearance, capability and utility.
The earliest of these were the Punt ships and the war galleys of Egypt which defeated the Sea People in the first known naval battle. Following the fall of these civilisations, the Phoenicians built biremes and other vessels, while in Greece the ships described in detail in the 'Trojan' epics established a tradition of warship building culminating in the pentekonters and triaconters.

The warships of the period are abundantly illustrated on pottery and carved seals, and depicted in inscriptions and on bas-reliefs. The subject has been intensively studied for two and a half millennia, culminating in the contemporary works of authoritative scholars such as Morrison, Wallinga, Rodgers and Casson.
This book covers the subject in an accessible way.

Contents: Introduction - Egypt - Minoan Crete - Bronze Age Syria - Phoenicia: The Legacy of Ugarit - Greece - Bibliography.

Ancient Greek Warship 500-322 B.C. (Osprey)

Formidable and sophisticated, triremes were the deadliest battleships of the ancient world and at the height of their success the Athenians were the dominant exponents of their devastating power. Primarily galleys designed to fight under oar power, their main weapon was a bronze-plated ram situated at the prow.

This book offers a complete analysis of the most potent battleship of its time; the weapon by which Athens achieved, maintained and ultimately lost its power and prosperity.

Contents: Introduction - Origins - Design - Construction - Crew - In Action - Ruling the Waves - The Athenian Navy - Olympias - Bibliography - Colour Plate Commentary - Index.

Republican Roman Warships 509-27 BC (Osprey)

The birth of the mighty Roman Navy was anchored in the Romans' extraordinary ability to absorb and perfect the technology of other states and empires.
This is the story of the design, development and operation of the Republican Roman warship in the age of the conquest of the Mediterranean, from the first Roman naval adventure of 394 BC and the Punic Wars, to Pompey's operations against the Cilician Pirates and Caesar's victorious naval campaigns in Armorica, concluding with the consolidation of the Mediterranean Sea as Mare Nostrum with the battle of Actium in 31 BC.

Archaeological photography, including those of exciting new finds, such as the Roman warship rosta (rams) found in the Aegates Islands, accompany lavish artistic reconstructions in illustrating the ships of the first Roman navy.

Contents: Introduction - Chronology - Historical background - The origin of the Roman navy - The evolution of the Roman fleet - The ships (The Aphraktai; The Biremes; The Triremes; The Quadriremes; The Quinquiremes; The Sambuca; The Hemiola; The Liburna; The Oneraria; Structure and construction; Armament and decoration) - Fighting on the sea (Roman naval tactics; Employment in siege war) - Campaigns (The first Punic wars; Pompey and the Cilician Pirates; Caesar in Gaul; The naval wars of Octavianus and Agrippa) - Bibliography - Index.

Imperial Roman Warships 27 BC-193 AD (Osprey)

The Roman Empire was not only built by the strength of the legions but also by a navy that was the most powerful maritime force ever to have existed. It was the presence of this fleet that secured the trade routes and maintained the communications within the huge Empire.

The superior design of their warships, coupled with skilled naval commanders such as Agrippa, Sextus Pompeius and Pontus Euxinus, gave the Roman Empire a formidable navy that could defend the coasts of the three continents under the rule of the Caesars.

Featuring archaeological photography and lavish artistic reconstructions, this book reveals the design and development history of Rome's naval force at the height of its Imperial power. As well as examining its warships, it reveals the navy's structure and the tactics that were developed to make the most of Rome's naval design superiority.

Contents: Introduction - Chronology - Historical background - The organization of the Roman Imperial navy - The ships: Biremes, Triremes, Quadriremes, Liburna, Esareme, Deceris, Actuaria, and Oneraria - Fighting on the sea: Roman naval tactics during the Early Empire - Employment in conquest wars - Campaigns - Glossary - Bibliography - Index.

Imperial Roman Warships 193-565 AD (Osprey)

The period of relative peace enjoyed by the Roman Empire in its first two centuries ended with the Marcomannic Wars. The following centuries saw near-constant warfare, which brought new challenges for the Roman Navy.
It was now not just patrolling the Mediterranean but also fighting against invaders with real naval skill such as Genseric and his Vandals.

With research from newly discovered shipwrecks and archaeological finds as well as the rich contemporary source material, this study examines the equipment and tactics used by the navy and the battles they fought in this tumultuous period, which includes the fall of Rome and the resurgence of the Eastern Empire under Justinian the Great.
Using spectacular illustrations, carefully researched ship profiles, and maps, this third volume in Osprey's Roman Warships miniseries charts the ultimate evolution of the Roman fleet in one of the most fascinating periods of its history.

Fighting Ships of the Far East (1) - China and Southeast Asia 202 BC-AD 1419 (Osprey)

Using detailed descriptions, accurate cutaway plates and reliable historical examples, this book covers the history of Chinese ship design and naval warfare from the beginning of the Han dynasty to the first few years of the Ming dynasty. The epic battle of Lake Poyang in in 1363, won by the man who was to become the first Ming Emperor, is also detailed.

Contents: Introduction - Fighting Ships and Naval Warfare in the Ancient and Medieval Far East- Techniques and Types of Chinese Ships and Shipbuilding - The Chinese Fighting Ship - The Chinese Fighting Ship in Action - A case study of Chinese Fighting Ships - Southeast Asian Warships - Suggestions for Further Reading- Colour plate commentary - Index.

Fighting Ships of the Far East (2) - Japan and Korea AD 612-1639 (Osprey)

Over the centuries, naval relations between Japan and Korea appear to have alternated between peaceful trade and outright hostility. However, this impression can be misleading, as much of what passed for mercantile activity was in fact conducted by Japanese pirate fleets, who pillaged the coasts of Korea and China in a long-lasting tradition that culminated in the greatest pirate raid of all: Hideyoshi's invasion of Korea in 1592.
This was the conflict that involved Ming China and almost dragged in Siam. It also led to Korea developing East Asia's most famous warship: the legendary turtle ship, which is described for the first time in full technical detail in this book.

Contents: Introduction - Fighting Ships and Naval Warfare in Japan and Korea - Techniques and Types of Korean Ships and Shipbuilding - Korean Shipboard Armaments - Korean Fighting Ships in Action - Techniques and Types of Japanese Ships and Shipbuilding - Japanese Shipboard Armaments - Japanese Fighting Ships in Action - Suggestions for Further Reading - Colour plate Commentary - Index.

Byzantine Warship vs Arab Warship : 7th - 11th Centuries (Osprey)

For 400 years the Byzantine Empire's naval forces vied with the warships of the Islamic world for mastery of the Mediterranean. At the heart of this confrontation were the fighting vessels of the two powers, the Byzantine dromon and the Arabic shalandi, both oared warships.
In those four centuries of warfare between two major maritime powers, both the Byzantines and the Arabs left us records of their doctrine and tactics, as well as of how their ships were built.

Featuring full-colour artwork and rigorous analysis from an authority on naval warfare, this enthralling book offers a glimpse of the long-lost world of war at sea in the age of Byzantium.

Contents: Introduction - Chronology - The Strategic Situation - Design and Development - Technical Specifications - The Combatants - Combat - Analysis - Aftermath - Further Reading - Index.

Viking Longship (Osprey)

Viking longships evolved from one-man canoes of the Scandinavian Stone Age, through wood-built-ships of c. 200 BC into the recognisable longboats of the 4th century AD. From this point, the Viking Longship developed into the pre-eminent raider and trader in the North Sea and Baltic, venturing as far afield as the Mediterranean, North Atlantic and modern-day Russia.
Keith Durham uses reconstructions, original sources, translations and archaeological evidence to render a vivid picture of the vessels that dominated the seaways of Scandinavia, founded colonies on Iceland, Greenland and the New World and terrorised the coastlines of northern Europe. Also covered are Norman vessels, including the invasion fleet of William the Conqueror.

Contents: Introduction - The evolution of the Viking ship - Early skin and log boats - The Viking Age - Shipwrights and shipbuilding - Karvi - Shipbuilding in the 11th century - Conclusion - Glossary - Colour plate commentary - Index.

Renaissance War Galley 1470–1590 (Osprey)

For most of the Renaissance period, naval warfare in the Mediterranean was dominated by the war galley, a unique naval vessel for a momentous age. During the struggle for supremacy between Christian and Muslim powers, war galleys formed the backbone of the rival battlefleets. Different regions of the Mediterranean produced their own versions of the war galley, thereby producing a number of variants on the basic design tailored to the needs and resources of particular nations.

This book examines the development of the war galley from its classically inspired resurrection in the 15th century until its demise in the early 17th century, providing the first ever in-depth study of this remarkable war machine.

Contents: Introduction - The Development of the Mediterreanean War Galley - Ordnance - Galley Types - Galley Construction- Logistics and Organisation - Tactics - Bibliography - Colour Plate Commentary - Index.