This month's book vote sees five Fleet titles battling for your support. Read the full descriptions and have your say by filling out the form below. Plus, check out the results of last month's Campaign vote.

Royal Navy of Elizabeth I: England’s buccaneering Tudor armada

Dutch Fleet of the Second Anglo-Dutch War: The fleet that burned Chatham

Free French Navy 1940–45: De Gaulle’s war at sea

US Navy Tenth Fleet 1943–45: America’s World War II antisubmarine command

Royal Navy Far East Fleet 1952–71: Britain’s last imperial fleet

Royal Navy of Elizabeth I: England’s buccaneering Tudor armada

While Henry VIII first established England as a significant naval power, it was under Elizabeth I that the Royal Navy would grow into a force of ocean-going strength, capable – with the aid of the privateering Sea Dogs – of challenging the maritime superpower of Spain. This book would assess the national and private warships of Elizabeth’s England, their role in the Tudor state, and their actions from Drake’s Cadiz raid to the battle against the Spanish Armada.

Dutch Fleet of the Second Anglo-Dutch War: The fleet that burned Chatham

Fought between the recently expanded fleet of the Dutch Republic and the Royal Navy of the restored Charles II, the Second Anglo-Dutch War was a conflict fought largely for trading advantage. The Anglo-Dutch Wars established the tactics that would dominate naval warfare over the following century and a half, with fleets of heavy cannon-armed ships forming tightly controlled lines-of-battle to concentrate their firepower. This book would examine the Dutch fleet that overcame its larger rival in a series of battles, famously including the decisive Raid on the Medway, one of the biggest disasters in Royal Navy history.

Free French Navy 1940–45: De Gaulle’s war at sea

Formed from a nucleus of ships that happened to be in British ports during the fall of France, or whose commanders defied Vichy to join the Allies, over the next five years the Free French Naval Forces would be a highly visible part of de Gaulle’s movement. It was subsequently bolstered by British-supplied warships, and would not only take part in Allied operations worldwide, but also attempt to assert control over occupied French colonial territory. During Operation Torch in 1942, Admiral Darlan belatedly defected, bringing the modern battleship Richelieu and other units to the fleet.

US Navy Tenth Fleet 1943–45: America’s World War II antisubmarine command

The United States had a disastrous start to the war in the Atlantic, nicknamed the ‘Second Happy Time’ by grateful U-boat crews. Tenth Fleet was the US Navy’s response, a unique formation with fewer than 50 hand-picked personnel, charged with directing all US anti-submarine warfare efforts and coordinating them with the Allies. Reporting direct to Admiral Ernest King, it united intelligence and tracking, training and technical development, and anti-submarine operations in one focused organization, and it was crucial to the Allied counter-offensive that ended the U-boat threat. 

Royal Navy Far East Fleet 1952–71: Britain’s last imperial fleet

From its redesignation in 1952, the Far East Fleet was still a major command as Britain gradually withdrew from its colonies, and as the Royal Navy was shrunk to a force focused on European waters and the North Atlantic. Based at Singapore, and generally including at least one aircraft carrier, as well as submarines and surface escorts, it was responsible for naval operations during the conflicts in Malaya and Indonesia, as well as fighting the last years of the Korean War. With the withdrawal of British forces from ‘east of Aden’ in 1971, the Far East Fleet was also disbanded, ending the Royal Navy’s permanent presence in Asian waters.

Last month, we asked what you would like to see published in our Campaign series. Thank you to everyone who voted and provided feedback. Here are the results: 

Madrid 1936: The Nationalist Siege of Spain’s Capital – 22%

Wuhan 1938: The Bloodiest Battle of the Second Sino-Japanese War – 23%

First Maroon War 1728–40: Bush Fighting in Jamaica’s Mountainous Interior – 10%

Ayacucho 1824: The Decline of Spanish Influence in South America – 24%

Vienna 1529: The Ottomans’ First Siege Attempt – 22%