Examines warfare on, above, and under the sea, featuring photographs and illustrations, 3D digital artwork following stages of key battles, and analyses of weaponry and strategic developments in naval warfare.

Includes index.

The age of galleys, 1200 BCE-1550 CE -- Overview -- Early naval battles and the rise of the Greeks -- The Persian Wars -- The Peloponnesian War -- Roman navel warfare -- The first Punic War -- Rome achieves mastery of the Mediterranean -- Naval warfare in Asia -- China, Japan, and Korea -- Battles for the Mediterranean -- Byzantine-Arab Wars -- The rise of the Italian Maritime Republics -- The war for Sicily -- The rise of sail -- The Vikings -- Sea battles in Northern Europe -- The Ottomans -- Christian navies against the Turks -- Gan, sail, and empire, 1550-1830 -- Overview -- Japan and Korea -- Japanese invasion of Korea -- Oceanic empires -- Spanish Wars -- After the Armada -- The rise of Dutch sea power -- Rivalry across the North Sea -- First Anglo-Dutch War -- Second Anglo-Dutch War -- Third Anglo-Dutch War -- The Sun King's Navy -- The French Wars -- Baltic conflicts -- Sweden fights for domination -- The Great Northern War -- The Russo-Swedish War -- Maintaining British Naval power -- Royal Navy battles -- Seven years war -- The American Revolutionary War -- The age of Nelson -- French Revolutionary Wars -- Napoleonic Wars -- Early 19th century battles -- The United States at War -- Wars of independence -- Later Ottoman battles -- Steam and steel, 1830-1918 -- Overview -- New Navies of Europe -- European Wars: from sail to steam -- Gunboat imperialism -- The Americas at war -- The American Civil War - Spanish and Latin-American conflicts -- Rise of the Imperial Japanese Navy -- Japanese naval might -- The Russo-Japanese War -- World War I -- Warship battles, 1914-18 -- The U-Boat War, 1914-18 -- Carriers, submarines and missiles, 1918-present -- Overview -- Europe between the wars -- World War II: The West -- Warship battles 1939-45 -- The U-boat war 1939-45 -- Evacuations and landings -- War in the Mediterranean -- World War II: The Pacific -- The Japanese offensive -- The battle for Guadalcanal -- Drive to victory -- Postwar conflicts -- Cold war conflicts -- The Vietnam War -- The Falklands War -- Regional conflicts -- Middle East and Terrorism.