The Mariner's Mirror Podcast

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During the Cold War years the Royal Navy faced some of its greatest challenges, both at sea confronting the increasingly capable and impressive Soviet Navy, and on shore when it faced policy crises that threatened the survival of much of the fleet. During this period the Navy had rarely been so focused on a single theatre of war - the Eastern Atlantic - but also rarely so politically vulnerable. To find out more Dr Sam Willis spoked with Ed Hampshire, author of the fabulous new book – The Royal Navy in the Cold War Years, 1966-1990: Retreat and Revival. They discuss operations and confrontations at sea with Soviet ships and submarines; the Navy's role in the enormous NATO and Warsaw Pact naval exercises that acted out potential war scenarios; the development of advanced naval technologies to counter Soviet capabilities; policy-making controversies as the three British armed services fought for resources, including the controversial 1981 Nott Defense Review; and what life was like in the Cold War navy for ratings and officers.

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The ability to navigate in icy seas is one of the most important themes in the historical and contemporary story of human interaction with the sea. Over centuries of development ships are now able to operate safely in and amongst giant ice-islands or semi-submerged floes as deadly as any reef. Specialist vessels have been designed with strengthened hulls, unique bow designs and innovative propellers and rudders.

To find our more Dr Sam Willis spoke with Zach Schieferstein from Lloyd's Register Foundation's Heritage and Education Centre. Lloyd's Register has been classifying ships by originating and regulating rules regarding their design and construction since 1768. They have classed all types of vessels, from the largest bulk carriers to yachts and more specialist vessels such as high-speed ferries and - of course - icebreakers. Their vast archive is a goldmine for studying this type of craft. Sam and Zach discuss the historical development of icebreaker design and propulsion, the significance of the arctic and antarctic in geopolitics and the crucial role of Lloyd's Register in the evolution of icebreaker design and construction.

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Today we discover the remarkable story of how a handful of intrepid scientific navigators underpinned British naval dominance in the conflict with Napoleon.

During the Napoleonic Wars, more than twice as many British warships were lost to shipwreck than in battle. The Royal Navy’s fleets had to operate in unfamiliar seas and dangerous coastal waters, where navigational ignorance was as great a threat as enemy guns. If Britain was to win the war, improved intelligence was vital.

To find out more Dr Sam Willis spoke with Michael Barritt about how they secured that intelligence. It is a story of how a cadre of specialist pathfinders led by Captain Thomas Hurd enabled Britain’s Hydrographic Office to meet this need. Sounding amongst hazards on the front line of conflict, alert for breaks in weather or onset of swell, these daring sailors gathered vital strategic data that would eventually secure the upper hand against Britain’s adversaries. And they did this around Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas, honing a skill that revolutionised the British way of war at sea, ultimately securing a lasting naval dominance.

Michael Barritt is the former Hydrographer of the Navy, head of the Royal Navy’s hydrographic profession, and a successor to Captain Thomas Hurd.

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Throughout the eighteenth century the Royal Navy was the largest employer of free black labour in a period when Britain was - at the same time - the largest trader in human lives across the Atlantic. To find out more Dr Sam Willis spoke with Steve Martin, expert on black British history and literature, and who works with museums, archives and the education sector to bring diverse histories to wider audiences. They discuss the origins of black mariners who ended up in the Royal Navy, their status, skillsets, and career trajectories, their settlement patterns and Black radical culture.

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We may think of globalism as a recent development but its origins date back to the fifteenth century and beyond, when seafarers pioneered routes across the oceans with the objectives of exploration, trade and proft. And what did they seek? Exotic spices: cloves, pepper, cinnamon, ginger. These spices brought together the European ports of Lisbon, London, Amsterdam and Venice, with Goa, Bombay, Malacca and Jakarta - and through those ports the Arab world and China.

To find out more Dr Sam Willis spoke with Nicholas Nugent. Nicholas spent his career as a journalist with the BBC World Service and his spare time collecting a valuable archive of original maps, developing a passion for how the growth of the spice ports helped spread the exchange of global culture between east and west. His magnificent book, The Spice Ports: Mapping the Origins of the Global Sea Trade published by the British Library is out now.

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This year we are launching a new strand of the podcast on eyewitness testimony, in which we bring you the most extraordinary primary sources – history as told and written by the people who were actually there.

Today we start with one of the most atmospheric of all maritime sources, one that transports you directly back to the creaky decks of the age of sail – you can smell the tar in the rigging – you can almost taste the rum.

This excerpt on Captain Avery comes from  A General History of the Robberies and Murders of the Most Notorious Pyrates, which was published in 1724, exactly 300 years ago. It was a fascinating time in the publishing industry: a market in criminal biography already existed and the author of this book, Charles Johnson, hopped on board to bring to the world for the first time the adventures and crimes of pirates.

Fascinatingly, we don't have any idea who Johnson actually was. Many thousands of words have been written and suggestions made including that he was actually Daniel Defoe. What is certain is that whoever wrote the book knew his – or her – stuff. The account is brimming with detail and accuracy. The author undoubtedly spoke with people who had sailed with these pirates and knew their world intimately. And the year 1724, when this was published was the very peak of what became known as the 'Golden Age of Piracy'.

The book became hugely famous and public interest in pirates can be traced in a direct line right up to the twentieth century classics we know so well, such as Treasure Island, Peter Pan and Pirates of the Caribbean.

This particular chapter introduces Captain Avery, one of the worst of the worst. Born in the summer of 1659 he mysteriously disappeared in 1696 after an extraordinary life for which he was known by his contemporaries as 'The King of the Pirates.'

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