Great Britain - Royal Navy & Marines, British Armed Forces - General & Miscellaneous, Ships - General, Naval Operations - World War II, 20th Century British History - World War II, Ships - Military Vessels, General & Miscellaneous Naval History, Great Bri

Coastal Forces at War 2nd

Name: Coastal Forces at War 2nd
Author: David Jefferson
ISBN: 9781844255627

by David Jefferson

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Overview

During the Second World War, Royal Navy motor torpedo boats, motor gunboats and motor launches performed a multitude of dangerous tasks in the English Channel and North Sea. Ferocious close-quarter combat with their German E- and R-boat counterparts could result in glory – or sudden death. This fascinating history tells the story of not just the many and varied operations in which the little ships of Britain and her allies were involved, in what became known as ‘the war in the narrow seas’, but also of the vessels and the men who crewed them.

Synopsis

The Royal Navy’s Coastal Forces engaged in some of the closest-fought sea battles of the Second World War. Silent and unseen, hunting by night in the oily black wastes of the ocean, their fast ‘little ships’ struck quickly and mercilessly at their Nazi prey, then escaped back into the cloak of the night. Their crews needed nerves of steel for the high-speed chases and lightning quick fire fights that followed - an action that might last mere seconds and the fate of a vessel and its crew could be decided in the blink of an eye. Their war was one of exhiliration, vulnerability and often terror.

About the Author, David Jefferson

David Jefferson was one of the last to serve in the peacetime Royal Navy Coastal Forces and now writes regularly for the yachting press. He is the author of a number of books on sailing and cruising for Adlard Coles, Stanford Maritime and Sheridan House. He lives in Sussex, England.