Search
Remove Ads
Advertisement
Search Results
Image
HMS Leopard Fires on USS Chesapeake
In the Chesapeake-Leopard affair, HMS Leopard fires broadsides into the USS Chesapeake, forcing its surrender on 22 June 1807. Illustration by Fred S. Cozzens, 1897.
Image
HMS Gaspee
HMS Gaspee, a Royal Navy schooner that was seized and burned by American colonists on 10 June 1772, in the leadup to the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783), a 19th-century sketch by S. G. Studley, 1892.
Definition
Chesapeake-Leopard Affair
The Chesapeake-Leopard affair was an incident that took place off the coast of Norfolk, Virginia, on 22 June 1807 when the British warship HMS Leopard fired on and boarded an American frigate USS Chesapeake while searching...
Definition
Henry Every
Henry Every (b. 1653), also known as Henry Avery, Benjamin Bridgeman, ‘Long Ben’ and (incorrectly) John Avery, was one of the most savage and successful pirates in the Golden Age of Piracy. Capturing a treasure ship of the Mughal...
Definition
John Paul Jones
John Paul Jones (1747-1792) was a Scottish-born sailor who served in the Continental Navy during the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783). His raid on the English port town of Whitehaven in 1778 and his victory over the HMS...
Article
Harrison's Marine Chronometer - Measuring Longitude at Sea
John Harrison (1693-1776) invented an accurate marine chronometer after several decades of research and development. While the pendulum clock had already been invented in the 17th century, a clock...
Article
Battle of Jutland - The Greatest Naval Battle of World War I
The Battle of Jutland (31 May to 1 June 1916) was by far the largest naval battle of the First World War (1914-18). The only time the bulk of the British and German fleets faced each other, the...
Article
Battle of Flamborough Head
The Battle of Flamborough Head (23 September 1779) was one of the most famous naval engagements of the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783). Fought off the coast of Yorkshire, England, it pitted the USS Bonhomme Richard...
Definition
Caravel
The caravel (caravela in Spanish and Portuguese), was a type of medium-sized ship which, with its low draught and lateen or triangular sails, made it ideal for exploration from the 15th century onwards. Fast, manoeuvrable, and only needing...
Article
The Anglo-German Arms Race - Riding the Waves to WWI
The pre-First World War arms race between Britain and Germany was fuelled by Britain's desire to protect its empire, Germany's desire to build an empire, and a general atmosphere of suspicion amongst...