The Frigates

A naval history of the ships and personalities of the Nelson period.

Light, swift, and daring, frigates were the cruisers of Nelson's navy, commanded by bold, brave officers, ranging the oceans of the world alone or in packs, seeking the enemy—and usually finding him. Although much of the swashbuckling spirit of these courageous sea adventures has been captured in fiction, the story of the frigates of 1793-1815, has rarely been told as a historical narrative.

James Henderson has also brought to life the contemporary social, political, and naval scene providing the background without which it would be impossible to fully understand these exciting naval engagements. His writing is vivid—he has the reader walking the quarterdeck with the first lieutenant or muzzle-loading in the smoky gundeck of a forty-four—and his descriptions of frigate and naval technicalities are so lucid they make it easy for the reader to assess such famous actions as the encounter between HMS Shannon and USS Chesapeake, which was captured by boarding after fifteen furious minutes.

The Frigates is illustrated with sixteen paintings from the Maritime Museum at Greenwich as well as with battle diagrams showing the strategy and critical maneuvers of each action. The sources used include accounts of the Napoleonic Wars, ships' logs, Admiralty documents, private and official reports, letters and contemporary descriptions.