Sovereigns of the Sea: The Quest to Build the Perfect Renaissance Battleship Book

Much has been written about the famous "Age of Fighting Sail" of the 18th and early 19th centuries. The era of Lord Nelson, Horatio Hornblower, and Jack Aubrey. The line of battle and the Ship-of-the-Line were considered state of the art until the advent of steam. But, as with most technology, the sailing warship did not spring up from nowhere. This book is an excellent history of what came before; the evolution of the sailing warship from a troop carrying transport/merchant to a purpose-built gun platform. It covers the designs, history and disasters from the 15th through the 17th centuries. The details are well researched with plenty of illustrations and a clean writing style.