But was 1914 the inevitable result of the armaments race?
Historians have long argued the point, and now Peter Padfield - with the aid of documents from both British and German archives - argues forcibly that the major causes of the First World War were not the armaments themselves, but rather the personalities involved, especially Kaiser Wilhelm II, with his obsessive dreams of imperial destiny.
The Great Naval Race is a clear and compelling narrative of those fateful years and vividly portrays the leading protagonists in the drama. On the German side, Kaiser Wilhelm and Admiral Tirpitz, who launched the challenge to British naval supremacy; and on the British side, the statesmen who responded to that challenge - Admiral Fisher, who dragged the British Navy into the twentieth century, Edward Grey and Winston Churchill.
Praise for The Great Naval Race:
'A favourite on this topic, it is concise but brilliantly written, capturing the passion and urgency of these events with a Kiplingesque energy' - Goodreads review
Peter Padfield lives in Woodbridge, Suffolk. He worked with P&O and sailed with Alan Villiers in Mayflower II in commemoration of the journey of the Pilgrim Fathers. The Titanic and The Californian won him international recognition as a writer. He is also the author of classic biographies of Hess, Donitz and Himmler and has written widely on the sea, including a work on naval gunnery.