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Navy General Board

Home of Naval History and News

Welcome to the home page of the Navy General Board website! This is your portal to all things navy, whether it be current events or historical topics. You can find a wide range of news stories or historical articles on the website. You can also connect with fellow readers on the website forum.

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History Articles

Navy General Board was created to help share all aspects of naval history from throughout the ages. Here you will find our collection of history articles. It has come a long way and has something for everyone. Take your time and browse them all!

HMS Dreadnought – revolution or evolution?

In early 1907, the battleship HMS Dreadnought sailed on her shake-down cruise to the Caribbean under Captain Reginald Bacon. She was a remarkable vessel in many ways, one whose name became synonymous with all battleships during the First World War period, and whose...

Kongo Class : A Gallery

The Kongo class were one of Japan's primary capital ships during both World Wars. Initially laid down as the Kongo class battlecruisers, the ships were upgraded throughout their lives, eventually evolving into the Kongo class battleships and then further developed...

How the battlecruiser HMS New Zealand was paid for

One of the many mythologies surrounding the battlecruiser HMS New Zealand – the gift that the New Zealand government made to Britain in April 1909 – is that she was unaffordable. According to legend, New Zealand was too small to afford her, had no money and the ship...

The pursuit of the Goeben and the battle of the River Plate

The Battle of the River Plate is one of the best known encounters of the Second World War. It was the first major sea battle of that conflict, and it came on 13 December 1939, a time when the so-called ‘phony war’ was in full swing – the brief period when the Second...

SMS Lutzow and her Doomed Journey Home

The Battle of Jutland comes down to us through history bearing many tales of ‘daring-do’. Story’s of ships exploding, of sailors manning their posts when all is lost, of wrong decisions and Admirals blinkered to the moment. Of ships being battered and surviving to...

Were Britain’s battleships eggshells? Investigating the loss of HMS Victoria in 1893

The loss of the battleship HMS Victoria to a ramming accident in June 1893 sent shock waves across the British Empire. As we saw in the last article, she went down remarkably quickly after a collision with the battleship HMS Camperdown. There was very heavy loss of...

Warship Terminology: Naval Gunnery Dispersion for Dummies

I wanted to talk about a term that is often tossed around when talking about naval gunnery but is not completely understood. Since It had also been a while since we had a technical article, I think the time has come to discuss the topic of naval gunnery dispersion....

The Fastest Warships of World War 2

Do you have the need for speed? The warships in this article certainly do! We have previously done articles about the largest cruisers and the biggest battleships. For this article we are breaking the fastest warships of World War 2 based on class. We will examine the...

The Armoured Conning Tower on Battleships

Even the mightiest warship, with its intimidating guns and thick armor, would be severely handicapped without a conning tower. The conning tower served as the control center for a warship, allowing officers to observe everything around the ship and direct it. What Is...

The Q-ship hero – William Sanders, VC

The story of William Sanders (1883-1917) remains one of the most intriguing personal sea experiences of the First World War. His career, though brief, can best be described as outstanding: in quick succession he won first the Victoria Cross and then the Distinguished...

Oddities at Sea : A Foreword to the Suicide Club

We are honoured to present a piece by our contributor Andy South! Andy touches on a few of the naval oddities at sea, specifically the infamous K class submarines of the Royal Navy. Andy has been hard at work putting together a book on these submarines. This article...

5 Great Features of the Yamato Class Battleships

The Yamato class battleships hold a special place in naval history. Popularly known as the biggest battleship to ever go to sea and carrying the most powerful guns, it is little wonder why these dreadnoughts are so endearing. However, there was so much more to these...

Aircraft Launching Devices of the Imperial Japanese Navy: Vol 1B – Flying-Off Platforms on Wakamiya and Yamashiro

By Joseph Ed. Low, and Sander Kingsepp. This is the second of a series of articles that explores the history of aircraft launching devices used by the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) that will be featured on the NGB (Naval General Board) website. The series started with...

Was ‘cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey’ a naval phrase?

The unprecedented cold that swept parts of the United States in early 2019 could be called 'brass monkey weather', though with the temperatures reported, that might be an understatement. According to legend, the term - in full, 'cold enough to freeze the balls off a...

Edwin Moore : A Texas Pirate

Edwin Ward Moore was a great many things in life. An officer in the United States Navy, A commodore in the Republic of Texas Navy , and was even labeled a Texas pirate by Sam Houston himself. He was the only commander to ever lead wind driven wooden sailing ships in...

News and Current Events

A relatively new addition to the Navy General Board website. While we remain focused on sharing history, we also want to examine naval current events that are occuring across the world. This section is still new, but more articles are coming. 

Canada’s Next Generation Submarine

My own opinion and hypothesis on what class of submarine could become Canada’s next generation submarine

Why China’s Island Bases are Not a Big Deal

Over the past few years, the media has made a big deal of the artificial island bases that China has built in the South China Sea. Several of these islands are well fortified, featuring harbors, airstrips, and formidable land-based weaponry. Some in the media have...

The Navy’s FFG(X) Program : Foreign and Domestic Options

The Navy has all but admitted that the Littoral Combat Ships are a flop. Therefore, they have started looking at potential ships to fulfill requirements for a new frigate design known as the FFG(X) Program. Make makes things interesting is that this time the US Navy...

China’s Newest Warship : The Type 55 Destroyer

At a time when the United States Navy is struggling to determine the future of its Navy, China has been quietly building up its naval forces. The People’s Liberation Army Navy has risen to be the second largest navy in the world by tonnage. It’s not just quantity that...

Want to go a little bit further than simply reading an aritcle? Interesting in writing your own and sharing it with Navy General Board? Check out our about us page for information on becoming a guest writer for the Navy General Board website! We are looking for both historical pieces and current events happening with navies across the World. 

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