‘The Sea-Raiders’ is a short story from 1897 by the "father of science fiction", H.G. Wells. Set in the seaside town of Sidmouth, retired tea-trader, Fison makes a disturbing discovery on the shore, giant, squid-like creatures eating a human body. These terrifying sea beasts are attacking the seaside resort but where did they come from? Are they a result of an evil experiment? Will the mysterious creatures kill Fison, or will he manage to escape? Menacing tentacles will pull in readers who enjoy Herman Melville’s 'Moby Dick', Jules Verne’s 'Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea', and Steven Spielberg’s cult classic 'Jaws'. H.G. Wells (1866 – 1946) was a prolific writer and the author of more than 50 novels. In addition, we wrote more than 60 short stories, alongside various scientific papers. Many of his most famous works have been adapted for film and television, including ‘The Time Machine,’ starring Guy Pearce, ‘War of the Worlds,’ starring Tom Cruise, and ‘The Invisible Man,’ starring Elizabeth Moss. Because of his various works exploring futuristic themes, Wells is regarded as one of the ‘Fathers of Science Fiction.’
In one harrowing day, Viking raiders capture Bree and her brother Devin and take them from their home in Ireland. After the young Viking prince Mikkel sets Devin free on the Irish coast far from home, Bree and Devin embark on separate journeys to courage. Readers will be captivated by the unfolding drama as Bree sails to Norway on the Viking ship and Devin travels the dangerous road home. They both must trust their all-powerful God in the midst of difficult situations.
The Special Boat Service (SBS) was a small force during World War II, never more than about 300 men. But that did not stop it from inflicting great damage on the enemy. In the Mediterranean arena and in the Aegean, which the Germans controlled after the fall of Greece and Crete, this small commando force kept up a constant campaign of harassment, thus pinning down enemy forces and preventing their joining other fronts. John Lodwick took part in the SBS Mediterranean campaign and writes from personal experience with the panache and verve of the squadron itself.
This seminal work documents the clandestine sea borne operations undertaken by South Africa’s 4 Reconnaissance Commando Regiment. It breathtakingly reveals the versatility and effectiveness of this elite unit which worked with a range of other South African and Rhodesian forces, including the Rhodesian SAS, to engage in a range of raiding and war fighting activities. These operations saw the clandestine reconnaissance of harbors, the sinking of enemy shipping and the destruction of shore installations in Angola and Mozambique. Just some of the tasks undertaken by this extraordinary maritime capability which totaled no more than 45 operators, both black and white! With unparalleled access to previously secret material, the authors, both of whom worked to develop 4 Recce’s operating capabilities, trace the origins of the Regiment back to the 1970’s when the South African’s determined the need for a maritime force projection capability. They relate how maritime doctrine was developed within South Africa’s wider Special Forces capability and how joint operational approaches were configured with the South African Navy. This saw the development of a range of swimmer, reconnaissance, diving and boat operator training courses, along with the design of specialist raiding craft and amphibious assault platforms, which were originated to operate from the Navy’s existing shipping and submarines. All of which demonstrated the immense potential of this newly emergent force and the resourcefulness of its individual operators. Required to successfully complete a grueling selection process, the operators of 4 Recce were relentlessly tested to prove their physical and mental mettle, not to mention their leadership skills and initiative. Steyn and Söderlund’s chronological analysis of the operations undertaken by 4 Recce and the South African Navy is stunning to behold. They impartially detail the secret and specialized actions which saw both success and failure. From Cabinda on the West Coast to Tanzania on the East, 4 Recce, and whose existence and capability was largely kept secret even within the South African Defence Force, conducted numerous clandestine raids. They attacked shipping and strategic targets such as oil facilities, transport infrastructure and even ANC offices. And sometimes the raids did go wrong, spectacularly so in one instance when two operators were killed and Captain Wynand Du Toit was captured. He was later paraded in front of the world’s media, much to the embarrassment of the South African government. This is a fascinating work and one that will enthrall anyone with an interest in Special Forces operations. Profusely illustrated with many previously unpublished photographs, it stands as a testament to the author’s endeavors as, respectively, the former Operations Commander of 4 Recce and the former Commander Task Group of the SA Navy - as well as the incredible operators of 4 Recce. Explosive and compulsive, Iron Fist from the Sea takes you right to the raging surf; to the adrenaline and fear that is sea borne raiding...
For thousands of years pirates, privateers, and seafaring raiders have terrorized the ocean voyager and coastal inhabitant, plundering ship and shore with impunity. From the victim's point of view, these attackers were not the rebellious, romantic rulers of Neptune's realm, but savage beasts to be eradicated, and those who went to sea to stop them were heroes. Engaging and meticulously detailed, Pirate Hunting chronicles the fight against these plunderers from ancient times to the present and illustrates the array of tactics and strategies that individuals and governments have employed to secure the seas. Benerson Little lends further dimension to this unending battle by including the history of piracy and privateering, ranging from the Mycenaean rovers to the modern pirates of Somalia. He also introduces associated naval warfare; maritime commerce and transportation; the development of speed under oar, sail, and steam; and the evolution of weaponry. More than just a vivid account of the war that seafarers and pirates have waged, Pirate Hunting is invaluable reading in a world where acts of piracy are once more a significant threat to maritime commerce and voyagers. It will appeal to readers interested in the history of piracy, anti-piracy operations, and maritime, naval, and military history worldwide.
The title Tin-Pots and Pirate Ships reflects a common Canadian attitude during the First World War: Canada's "Tin-Pot Navy" was maligned while the "Kaiser's Pirates" were feared. Not since Gilbert Tucker's classic, The Naval Service of Canada, has there been so comprehensive a study of the origins of the Canadian Navy, and no previous study has examined those origins from the perspective of the Canadian Navy's response to the German threat.
First English edition of a classic Verne novel. Jules Verne, celebrated French author of Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea and Around the World in 80 Days, wrote over 60 novels collected in the popular series "Voyages Extraordinaires." A handful of these have never been translated into English, including Invasion of the Sea, written in 1904 when large-scale canal digging was very much a part of the political, economic, and military strategy of the world's imperial powers. Instead of linking two seas, as existing canals (the Suez and the Panama) did, Verne proposed a canal that would create a sea in the heart of the Sahara Desert. The story raises a host of concerns — environmental, cultural, and political. The proposed sea threatens the nomadic way of life of those Islamic tribes living on the site, and they declare war. The ensuing struggle is finally resolved only by a cataclysmic natural event. This Wesleyan edition features notes, appendices and an introduction by Verne scholar Arthur B. Evans, as well as reproductions of the illustrations from the original French edition.
The end of the Bronze Age in the Eastern Mediterranean was a time of social, political, and economic upheaval – conditions reflected, in many ways, in the world of Homer’s Odyssey. Jeffrey P. Emanuel examines the Odyssey’s Second Cretan Lie (xiv 191 – 359) in the context of this watershed transition, with particular emphasis on raiding, warfare, maritime technology and tactics, and the evidence for the so-called ‘Sea Peoples’ who have been connected to the events of this period. He focuses in particular on the hero’s description of his frequent raiding activities and on his subsequent sojourn in the land of the pharaohs, and connections between Odysseus’ false narrative and the historical experiences of one particular Sea Peoples group: the ‘Sherden of the Sea.’
Assembled from hundreds of original documents, including intimate shipboard journals kept by Shenandoah officers, Sea of Gray is a masterful narrative of men at sea The sleek, 222-foot, black auxiliary steamer Sea King left London on October 8, 1864, ostensibly bound for Bombay. The subterfuge was ended off the shores of Madeira, where the ship was outfitted for war. The newly christened CSS Shenandoah then commenced the last, most quixotic sea story of the Civil War: the 58,000-mile, around-the-world cruise of the Confederacy's second most successful commerce raider. Before its voyage was over, thirty-two Union merchant and whaling ships and their cargoes would be destroyed. But it was only after ship and crew embarked on the last leg of their journey that the excursion took its most fearful turn. Four months after the Civil War was over, the Shenandoah's Captain Waddell finally learned he was, and had been, fighting without cause or state. In the eyes of the world, he had gone from being an enemy combatant to being a pirate—a hangable offense. Now fearing capture and mutiny, with supplies quickly dwindling, Waddell elected to camouflage the ship, circumnavigate the globe, and attempt to surrender on English soil. "A superb account of how the Confederate raider Shenandoah brought the American Civil War to the farthest reaches of the world." -- Nathaniel Philbrick, author of Mayflower and Sea of Glory
