Powderhorn Posted May 9, 2016 Posted May 9, 2016 Hey all, a friend of mine is graduating college this weekend and is off to grad school. As a present, I bought him a pen made from the wood of the USS Constitution, as he and I know each other from the navy. He enjoys history, but is not perhaps as well versed in it as others are. I was wondering if anyone knew of an easily approachable book on the subject. I have both Six Frigates and A Most Fortunate Ship under consideration, but it has been years since I've read either, and I'm open to other ideas as well. 1
Malachi Posted May 9, 2016 Posted May 9, 2016 Definitely 'Six Frigates' 'Ships of Oak, Guns of Iron' ain´t bad, either.
maturin Posted May 9, 2016 Posted May 9, 2016 Six Frigates is a good book, of course, but you did specify 'readable.' Not that the language is dense, but IIRC it very much focuses on the institutional background of the early navy, rather than the more exciting aspects of the ships' service. It is long and slightly academic in focus.
Haratik Posted May 9, 2016 Posted May 9, 2016 Can't have the juicy tidbits without the extensive history behind it all. (Something certainly lacking in public school education).
Paraclete Posted May 9, 2016 Posted May 9, 2016 Six Frigates focus is more on the politics of why or not they were deemed necessary and getting them under construction rather than the juicy fun of building and fighting them. I usually recommend the bio, Cochrane whose exploits would be unbelievable and fantastic if it were not all true and Republic of Pirates for rollicking good sea stories while being good history. Then when they are interested I would steer them into tomes such as SF. Once you have your fish hooked Academia.net has many masters thesis on subjects as arcane as American Merchant Shipbuilding in the 18th Century and A Survey of 18th Century Ship Interiors. Some make surprisingly good reads. Cheers mate.
Powderhorn Posted May 10, 2016 Author Posted May 10, 2016 He's off to graduate school, and not for history. I don't think this is the appropriate time for intoducing a whole new field of study I do wonder if there is perhaps a novelization of the Constitution that would merit looking at.
pugwash and seaman Posted May 10, 2016 Posted May 10, 2016 I am sure that the book.the naval war of 1812.deals with the constitution and her fire fights.
HardyKnox Posted May 10, 2016 Posted May 10, 2016 A battle in which the Constitution fought is in the Aubrey/Maturin series by Patrick O'Brian. The Fortune of War, #6 in the series. The whole series is historically representative but focuses on ship handling and battle craft in the days of "Wooden SHips and Iron Men". Many regard the series as one of if not the best about 19th century war sailing. 1
DeRuyter Posted May 13, 2016 Posted May 13, 2016 Hey all, a friend of mine is graduating college this weekend and is off to grad school. As a present, I bought him a pen made from the wood of the USS Constitution, as he and I know each other from the navy. He enjoys history, but is not perhaps as well versed in it as others are. I was wondering if anyone knew of an easily approachable book on the subject. I have both Six Frigates and A Most Fortunate Ship under consideration, but it has been years since I've read either, and I'm open to other ideas as well. I bought that pen last time I visited the ship in 2014. Several of the books I have on the Constitution are good but perhaps too detailed for your friend. One that I got at the museum is "Men of Iron" which is about the crew. Another is "Old Ironsides" by Thomas Gillmer which is 50% history and 50% about the bicentennial reconstruction. I got that one before going to see her sail in 1997. For a more general history Roosevelt's Naval War of 1812 is good. For fiction I might recommend Hornblower over Aubrey/Maturin as it is better for someone new to age of sail reading. Although now there is a slew of age of sail novels and series on kindle. Any interest in Lake Erie and Niagara? "A Signal Victory" is a good read.
HardyKnox Posted May 13, 2016 Posted May 13, 2016 Hey all, a friend of mine is graduating college this weekend and is off to grad school. As a present, I bought him a pen made from the wood of the USS Constitution, as he and I know each other from the navy. He enjoys history, but is not perhaps as well versed in it as others are. I was wondering if anyone knew of an easily approachable book on the subject. I have both Six Frigates and A Most Fortunate Ship under consideration, but it has been years since I've read either, and I'm open to other ideas as well. In addition to all the excellent suggestions of reading, your friend would also benefit from the informative video about the most famous of the original "Six Frigates" USS Constitution -- the Oldest Commissioned Warship in the World...Still Sailing!at "Old Ironsides" is moored in Boston and is open to the public when it is not at sea. She is still a commissioned warship of the U.S. Navy and is taken out and turned around and brought back every year.
DeRuyter Posted May 17, 2016 Posted May 17, 2016 In addition to all the excellent suggestions of reading, your friend would also benefit from the informative video about the most famous of the original "Six Frigates" USS Constitution -- the Oldest Commissioned Warship in the World...Still Sailing!at "Old Ironsides" is moored in Boston and is open to the public when it is not at sea. She is still a commissioned warship of the U.S. Navy and is taken out and turned around and brought back every year. Currently in dry dock undergoing major refitting and restoration work. https://ussconstitutionmuseum.org/restoration/
Recommended Posts