Thinking outside the gundeck: maritime history, the royal navy and the outbreak of British civil war, 1625–42

Blakemore, R. J. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0281-6826 (2014) Thinking outside the gundeck: maritime history, the royal navy and the outbreak of British civil war, 1625–42. Historical Research, 87 (236). pp. 251-274. ISSN 0950-3471 doi: 10.1111/1468-2281.12049

Abstract/Summary

Maritime history seems to be suffering an identity crisis, rising in popularity but unsure of its place within historical scholarship and divided in approach. Seafarers, as a consequence, have remained marginal within mainstream history. This article argues that only by integrating the study of maritime topics into wider historical debates can maritime history overcome these doubts, taking as a case study the role of seafarers and the navy in British politics during 1625−42. First examining previous interpretations offered by scholars, largely based on a conception of seafarers as politically and socially isolated from developments ashore, the article then reassesses the available evidence for popular political activity within the maritime community. It argues that seafarers were deeply involved in the political and religious divisions that drove Britain into civil war in 1642; and, more broadly, that scholars should recognize the importance of both local and global approaches to maritime history – that they should think outside the gundeck.

Item Type	Article
URI	https://reading-clone.eprints-hosting.org/id/eprint/71907
Identification Number/DOI	10.1111/1468-2281.12049
Refereed	Yes
Divisions	No Reading authors. Back catalogue items Arts, Humanities and Social Science > School of Humanities > History
Publisher	Wiley-Blackwell
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