The Ship Model Forum

Hey guys, i just finished Massie's Castles of Steel and found it an extremely well-written and lively book (and made me vow only to build WWI ships (for a short while)).
What did you all think of it?
Considering that I haven't read any other detailed accounts of the actions, where do you think Massie hits and/or misses the points?

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If all else fails, a complete pig-headed refusal to see facts in the face will see us through. - General Melchett

Certainly covers the "personalities" of the Great War (at least from a British standpoint).

As for the battle data, it seems very digested and ready for the uninitiated. There are better sources if you want to read what happened at Jutland or wherever.

W

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If an unfriendly power had attempted to impose on America the mediocre educational performance that exists today, we might well have viewed it as an act of war.

-- "A Nation at Risk" (1983)

I'm reading it now and it's pretty entertaining. There are a few technical errors here and there (Kongo didn't have 10 main guns, for example) but other then that it's a good read. You might also want to pick up it's predecessor, "Dreadnought" (I think), in which Massey charts the battleship race in the years leading up to World War I.

Should I read "Dreadnought" first? A friend gave me "Castles" as a gift a few months back, but I don't know if I'd be missing anything by starting with it. I know zip about WWI, only that I want a 1/350th scale model of the Furious in her sorta-aircraft carrier fit someday.

-Devin

There's an awful lot of material in common. Dreadnought came first, so that probably makes sense to read first.

An alternate to reading both would be Barbara Tuchman's Proud Tower.

W

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If an unfriendly power had attempted to impose on America the mediocre educational performance that exists today, we might well have viewed it as an act of war.

-- "A Nation at Risk" (1983)

Dreadnought is also quite good at covering pre-WW1 diplomacy. Gives you an overall sound, if somewhat conservative idea of what happened in the last decade of the so-called long century.

Jorit

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I read Castles of Steel last year. As someone who was reasonably ignorant of the details behind Jutland, etc., I found it fascinating, illuminating and quite informative. While there may be better books, it painted the clearest picture in my mind of how these actions developed. It gave me a new found interest in WWI naval actions, personalities and the ships themselves

Massie lists Florida and Wyoming with 12 main guns. Should be Wyoming and Arkansas (in Castles of Steel). Am rereading the chapters on Jacky Fisher in Dreadnought now. The suggestion of Barbara Tuchman's book seems a good one, and I'd add her Guns of August as well. WW I was the bee's knees, and things have been going downhill ever since. If you become a real enthusiast of this era, suggest you borrow Oscar Parkes British Battleships. It is my favorite reference, and if the was an equivalent for each of the other major (and there may be) why I'd start to think I actually knew something about modern naval design. Used Parkes books command a high price but the text is so rich you might decide to break the piggy bank.

This is a really, really old thread you unearthed! 2005? Man, that's ancient history! Didn't even knew they were still around.

But yes, I did get Oscar Parkes' book!

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If all else fails, a complete pig-headed refusal to see facts in the face will see us through. - General Melchett

I was going to start a post about Oscar Parkes' British Battleship book, but as its mentioned here, I just thought I'd add to it. How does it compare to the volumes by Ray Burt? I realise it covers a greater period of time. There was one on ebay recently which only went for £29 which seems a real bargain!

Unfortunatly I do not have Burt's tomes, so I can't compare. The drawings in Parkes are sometimes considered to crude, only slightly above contemporary Jane's.

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If all else fails, a complete pig-headed refusal to see facts in the face will see us through. - General Melchett

Parkes' book is more akin to the Jane's volumes (i.e., not overly useful). You'll get far more information from Burt's trilogy (reprint of the last volume announced).