Synopses & Reviews
This book explores the ways in which seafaring has been an essential feature of some of the greatest achievements of human societies. The sea has long offered a daunting, yet enticing challenge. The capacity of seafaring to expand the horizons of knowledge and resources, through the discovery and exploitation of new territories, new peoples and new ideas, has spurred technological developments, from log-boats to supertankers. The possibilities of seaborne trade have led to the evolution of a global economy. Seafaring has also played a major role in the spread of the world's religions.
But one civilization has sometimes grown at the expense of another. Over time, most societies which declined to face the challenge of the sea have perished, in many cases at the hands of seafarers. Just as expansion in trading was the key to the creation of a global economy, so world wars were made possible by the increased use of the sea for military purposes. In the long term, too, the development of all human societies has taken a heavy toll on the marine environment. Seafaring has been crucial to both the worst and the best aspects of civilization.
Review
"Pithy and to the point and should easily take it's place as the standard work of reference in English and the launching pad for all further investigations."
James Davidson, Times Literary Supplement
About the Author
Philip de Souza was born in Usk, South Wales, in 1964. He studied history and classics at Royal Holloway College, University of London. He is a senior lecturer in the Department of Historical, Social and Cultural Studies at St Mary's College, Strawberry Hill. He is a member of the Nautical Archaeology Society and a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society. His recent publications include Piracy in the Greco-Roman World. He lives in Surrey with his wife, Debra, who is also a historian.