How to Survive in the Georgian Navy

A Sailor's Guide
An exploration of a life at sea in the time of Captain Cook and Admiral Nelson, covering topics as wide-ranging as science, exploration, mutiny, and discipline.

Rigidly organised and harshly disciplined, the Georgian Royal Navy was an orderly and efficient fighting force which played a major role in Great Britain’s wars of the 18th and early 19th centuries.

This guide explores what it was like to be a sailor in the Georgian Navy. Focusing on the period from 1714 to 1820, this concise book examines the Navy within its wider historical, national, organisational and military context, and reveals exactly what it took to survive a life in its service.

It looks at how a seaman could join the Royal Navy, including the notorious 'press gangs'; what was meant by 'learning the ropes'; and the severe punishments that could be levied for even minor misdemeanours as a result of the Articles of War. Military tactics, including manning the guns and tactics for fending off pirates are also revealed, as is the problem of maintaining a healthy diet at sea – and the steps that sailors themselves could take to avoid the dreaded scurvy.

Covering other fascinating topics as wide-ranging as exploration, mutiny, storms, shipwrecks, and women on board ships, this ‘Sailor’s Guide’ explores the lives of the Navy’s officers and sailors, using extracts from contemporary documents and writings to reconstruct their experiences in vivid detail.

UK Delivery:

• Free delivery on all orders of £10 or more.
• £1.49 delivery fee on orders below £10.
• UK orders are shipped via Royal Mail 2nd Class.

International Delivery:

• Flat rate delivery charges vary by country.

Dispatch and Delivery Times:

• All orders are shipped from our warehouse in Northampton, UK within 48 hours of receipt during working hours.
• UK mainland orders typically arrive within 3-5 working days via Royal Mail 2nd Class.
• International estimated delivery times:
• Europe & Channel Islands: 7 to 10 working days
• USA: 7 to 15 working days
• Rest of the World: 9 to 21 working days

View our full delivery infomation here.