In 1905 Japan and Russia were at war. With the Russian Far East Fleet destroyed, the Czar decided to send his Baltic Fleet half way around the world to exact revenge. This mammoth journey took many months and was, in itself, an amazing feat of seamanship. But, at the end of this epic adventure, the Russians were totally overwhelmed and the vast majority of the fleet went to the bottom. There was no alternative for the Czar but to sue for an ignominious peace. The story of the journey and the final battle remain fascinating, the people involved acting and deporting themselves like characters from a novel. Russian Admiral Rozhestvensky was a gunnery expert but someone who had never held active command in a major sea battle. Japanese Admiral Togo had trained in Britain, enlisting as a cadet on the Training Ship Worcester, even though he was far too old and was forced to lie about his age. Inept generalship on the part of the Russians, combined with brilliant seamanship from the Japanese Admiral Togo, saw the complete destruction of the Russian fleet. The naval battle of Tsushima is one of the forgotten actions of the twentieth century, but it has a significance that is immense in world history. AUTHOR: Phil Carradice is a well-known writer and historian with over 60 books to his credit. A poet, story teller and broadcaster, his most recent books are The Cuban Missile Crisis (for Pen and Sword), The Call Up (Fonthill) and the novel Stargazers for Accent Press. He is a regular broadcaster on BBC Radio and TV, presents the BBC Wales History programme The Past Master and is widely regarded as one of the finest creative writing tutors in Wales.
30 b/w illustrations