This month's book vote sees five Duel (Military) titles battling for your support. Read the full descriptions and have your say by filling out the form on the Book Vote Page. Plus, check out the results of last month's Fleet Vote.

 

Roman Warship vs Carthaginian Warship: First Punic War 264–241 BC

Quinquereme vs Liburna: Roman Warships at Actium, 31 BC

Holy League Warship vs Ottoman Warship: Lepanto 1571

Russian Warship vs Swedish Warship: Great Northern War 1700–21

British Warship vs French Warship: French Revolutionary War 1793–1802

 

Roman Warship vs Carthaginian Warship: First Punic War 264–241 BC

The First Punic War pitted the newly expanded Roman navy against the formidable fleets of Carthage, as the two sides and their allies fought for dominance in the Mediterranean. The battles of Cape Ecnomus (256 BC), Drepana (249 BC) and the Aegates (241 BC) saw Roman and Carthaginian warships, notably the mighty quinqueremes, clash in a series of large-scale encounters at sea.

 

Quinquereme vs Liburna: Roman Warships at Actium, 31 BC

As Octavian and Antony sought victory in the Roman Republic’s last civil war, two mighty fleets of warships clashed at Actium off the coast of Greece. While Antony’s fleet, hampered by disease and desertion, manned large galleys known as quinqueremes and quadriremes, Octavian’s forces had superior numbers of liburnae, smaller, more manoeuvrable warships.

 

Holy League Warship vs Ottoman Warship: Lepanto 1571

In October 1571, two mighty galley fleets clashed at Lepanto in the Ionian Sea. While armed with gunpowder weapons, the ships on both sides were direct descendants of the warships crewed by the navies of the ancient world. The battle that ensued was the last major engagement fought almost entirely by rowing vessels before sailing ships supplanted them in naval warfare.

 

Russian Warship vs Swedish Warship: Great Northern War 1700–21

During the Great Northern War, the emergent Russian Navy, founded by Tsar Peter the Great, faced the Swedish fleet, one of the world’s oldest and most experienced navies at the time. The challenges of operating in the Baltic and along the coasts of Finland meant both sides deployed galleys as well as sailing ships, clashing in the battles of Hoglund (1713), Gangut (1714) and Grengam (1720).

 

British Warship vs French Warship: French Revolutionary War 1793–1802

During the French Revolutionary War, the cutting-edge warships of Britain’s Royal Navy faced the redoubtable French Navy in the Channel, the Mediterranean and across the world’s oceans. Battles such as the Glorious First of June (1794), Groix (1795) and Aboukir Bay (1798) had a profound influence of the captains and seamen who fought on both sides at Trafalgar.

 

Last month, we asked what you would like to see published in our new Fleet series. Thank you to everyone who voted and provided feedback. The results gave us a clear winner. Check out the full results below!

 

Royal Navy Mediterranean Fleet 1803–15 (24.2%)

US Navy Fifth Fleet 1995–2023 (14%)

German Coastal Forces, English Channel 1943–45 (28.1%)

US Navy Asiatic Squadron 1868–1902 (15.5%)

Soviet Black Sea Fleet 1941–44 (18.2%)