The Oxford Encyclopedia of Maritime History

Book excerpt: From the dawn of seafaring history to the present day, from the first crude canoes and rafts to today's nuclear submarines and supertankers, the Encyclopedia of Maritime History will systematically survey the separate but related interests of general historians and maritime specialists. Comprising more than one million words in four volumes, the work's nine hundred entries will provide a detailed and synthetic overview of the scope and sweep of maritime history, and will bring together in a readily accessible form a range of historical and professional information that can otherwise be found only with the help of an extensive library.