HMS London

History of the Ship told through the accounts of those who served on her.

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When the British Prime Minister announced a new warship was to be christened HMS
London in 2018 it revived a name that is covered not only in glory but also tinged with
controversy.
In this vividly told narrative we voyage in the company of those whose fates have been
intertwined with Londons in peace, war and even during mutiny. For the ship's companies
of fighting vessels named HMS London have witnessed the highs and lows of British naval
history spanning centuries.
The epic story includes: an ill-fated encounter between wooden wall battleships off
Chesapeake in 1781 - whose result arguably lost Britain its American colonies; the hell of
the Gallipoli landings in the First World War; the disastrous PQ17 convoy of the Second
World War; a valiant foray into the teeth of communist Chinese fire during the 1940s
Yangtze Incident; leading the British naval task group in Operation Desert Storm; sailing
into the Arctic on a mission to end the Cold War at sea as the 1991 hard-liners' coup in
Moscow collapsed.
This new edition offers enhanced and new imagery in addition to other fresh material,
including a young officer's part in the climactic events of the Second World War in East
Asia. We also learn how the London of Oliver Cromwell and King Charles II is offering up
treasures from the murky waters of the Thames.
A new final chapter looks at the next HMS London, which will be a futuristic City Class
(Type 26) submarine hunter. It also considers the missions the new London will face amid
great power rivalry on the oceans that sees an increasingly volatile face-off between the
West and Russia with China.