This series contains complete listings of the world's combat ships from the first ironclad to the powerful battleships of World War II to the changes in the world's navies as a result of the collapse of the world's Warsaw Pact.

"Fully updated with an extended introduction by Ian Sturton and an outstanding selection of images, Conway's Battleships is a comprehensive study of the world's capital ships from the emergence of HMS Dreadnought in 1906. In their day, these mighty ships represented a country's military pride. They served with distinction in two World Wars and threatened and impressed in equal measure. Superseded by the aircraft carrier and finally rendered obsolete in the missile age, a few of these ships, nevertheless, continued in service to the end of the twentieth century, with two of the US Iowa class present at the Gulf War in 1990-91." "Organized by nation, type and class, each entry describes the sister-ships of the class in detail, with specification tables, diagrams of ships in profile and career histories. A wealth of visual information can be gained from browsing through the many photographs and artworks, showing hull and deck details, ships in port, underway and in action. Fully international in its scope and extensive in its coverage, this is an essential addition to the library of any naval historian or warship enthusiast."--BOOK JACKET.