Warfare in News
Posted on Tuesday 13th December
The flag is an excellent example of the 'skull and crossbones' flag of the pirate ship, which would have been used to frighten passing ships into surrendering without a fight. This symbol, appropriated from the symbol used in ships' logs to represent death on board, was first used as a pirate flag around 1700 and became very popular with pirates.
Recent conservation work on the flag suggest that the black stains and small holes in the flag are gunpowder burns.
Organized piracy ended in the 19th century but has not disappeared completely: the Royal Navy and Royal Fleet Auxiliary continue to be at the forefront in the fight against piracy that threatens international shipping lanes.
The NMRN are keen to tell stories such as these relating to the on-going work of the Royal Navy in their new 20th/21st Century galleries set to open in 2014.
Pirate Hunter(Hardback - 224 pages)
by Graham A Thomas
On 2 August 1708 Captain Woodes Rogers set sail from Bristol with two ships, the Duke and Dutchess, on an epic voyage of circumnavigation that was to make himfamous. His mission was to attack, plunder and pillage Spanish ships wherever he could. And, as Graham Thomas shows in this tense and exciting narrative, after a series of pursuits and sea battles he returned laden with booty and with a reputation as one of the most… Read more...
Of further interest...
Operation Source - 70 Years OnThu 19th September
Seventy years on from Operation Source, Paul Watkins, author of Midget Submarine Commander - the Life of Godfrey Place VC, describes the events of September 1943. Read article...
Warspite at JutlandWed 3rd February
With its 15-inch guns, HMS Warspite caused a mixture of fear and professional fascination among the Kaiser’s officers. They would soon find out what it was like to be on the receiving end of Churchill’s and Admiral Fisher’s Queen Elizabeth Class monsters. Read article...
Author talk: Richard Van EmdenWed 6th April
As his latest work, The Somme, is released, we chatted to best-selling Great War author Richard Van Emden about his career, Harry Patch and the Somme centenary Read article...