The naval historian presents the thrilling true story of a Royal Navy officer’s frigate command in the tumultuous late 18th and early 19th centuries. Based on the private journals of Admiral Sir Graham Moore, Frigate Commander recounts his experiences as a Lieutenant and then Captain during the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. Moore's journal gives a detailed account of life as a serving naval officer, revealing the unique problems of managing a frigate crew, maintaining discipline and turning his ship into an efficient man of war. Moore was one of the Royal Navy's star captains, serving continuously as a frigate commander between 1793 and 1804. His early career took him to Newfoundland before serving with Sir William Sidney Smith's squadron on the north coast of France. Moore was present during the Naval Mutiny at Spithead in 1797, and helped to destroy the French fleet off Ireland in 1798. His most famous action occurred in September 1804, when his squadron captured a Spanish frigate squadron carrying a fortune in treasure. The following year his frigate, HMS Indefatigable, was involved in the opening of the Trafalgar Campaign.

Edward Pellew, captain of the legendary Indefatigable, was quite simply the greatest frigate captain in the age of sail. An incomparable seaman, ferociously combative yet chivalrous, a master of the quarterdeck and an athlete of the tops, he was as quick to welcome a gallant foe into his cabin as to dive to the rescue of a man overboard. He is the likely model for the heroic but all-too-human Jack Aubrey in Patrick O'Brian's novels. Pellew was orphaned at eight, but fought his way from the very bottom of the Navy to fleet command and a viscountcy. Victories and eye-catching feats won him a public following. Yet as an outsider with a gift for antagonizing his better-born peers, he made powerful enemies. Redemption came with his last command, when he set off to do battle with the Barbary States and free thousands of European slaves. Contemporary opinion held this to be an impossible mission, and Pellew himself, in leading from the front in the style of his direct contemporary Nelson, did not expect to survive. Pellew's humanity as much as his gallantry, fondness for subordinates and blind love for his family, and the warmth and intimacy of his letters, make him a hugely engaging and sympathetic figure. In Stephen Taylor's magnificent new life he at last has the biography he deserves.

DIVDIVTwelve tales of the United States’ early days, capturing moments in the lives of great leaders and farmers alike, all dreaming of the nation to come/div DIVWritten mostly while the United States was engaged in World War II, these patriotic stories imagine the best of the American spirit during its formative years. From “The Day of Victory,” about a victorious George Washington meeting with his generals one last time to swap stories before they all return to civilian life, to “The Bookman,” about a tragic day during the Revolutionary War as experienced by a young boy, each story depicts common citizens standing against tyranny, and settlers searching for a better life./divDIV /divDIVPassionate and beautifully written, Patrick Henry and the Frigate’s Keel is one of Howard Fast’s best story collections, and a moving tribute to the aspirations of a new nation./divDIV /divDIVThis ebook features an illustrated biography of Howard Fast including rare photos from the author’s estate./div/div