{"product_id":"the-floating-ambush-the-q-ships-of-the-first-world-war-q-ships-and-their-story-with-a-short-history-of-startins-pets-9781782828433","title":"The Floating Ambush: the Q ships of the First World War-Q-Ships and Their Story with a Short History of Startin's Pets","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe secret U-Boat killers and their Royal Navy crews during the Great War at sea\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe idea of the Q ship as a decoy vessel is not new for they were employed by the Royal Navy in the 17th century to lure Mediterranean pirates to destruction. However, by 1915 during the First World War the war at sea was becoming desperate for the allies. To ensure ultimate victory British and French armies needed materiel from America which was, of course, carried to Europe in merchant vessels. Germany knew that its surface fleet of warships would be unable to neutralise the Royal Navy and so created the U-Boat submarine fleet to significantly disrupt the security of the Atlantic crossing for merchant vessels. One of the more imaginative allied responses to deal with this threat was the creation of Q ships (a code name taken from the vessels home port of Queenstown in Ireland) which would appear to be vulnerable merchant men but which would carry hidden armaments that would be quickly brought in action by special crews whenever a U-Boat made a surface attack. Panels would drop on the side of the Q ships, the White Ensign would be run up the mast and the U-Boat was usually doomed, though this was a perilous pursuit and of the 366 Q ships employed during the course of the war, 66 were lost in action. The vulnerability of the Atlantic crossing was ultimately resolved when the United States joined the war and an effective destroyer escort force based on both sides of the ocean could guard the merchant fleets throughout their voyage. Nevertheless this story of the Q ships, which had their moment in the history of naval warfare, is fascinating and is recommended.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eLeonaur editions are newly typeset and are not facsimiles; each title is available in softcover and hardback with dustjacket\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/sureshotbooks-com.myshopify.com\/search?type=product%2Carticle%2Cpage\u0026amp;q=AUTH-7151545\"\u003eE. Keble Chatterton\u003c\/a\u003e, \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/sureshotbooks-com.myshopify.com\/search?type=product%2Carticle%2Cpage\u0026amp;q=AUTH-9778787\"\u003eW. L. Wyllie\u003c\/a\u003e, \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/sureshotbooks-com.myshopify.com\/search?type=product%2Carticle%2Cpage\u0026amp;q=AUTH-1427437\"\u003eC. Owen\u003c\/a\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Leonaur Ltd\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 08\/22\/2019\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 240\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.68lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.50h x 5.51w x 0.55d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781782828433\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN10:\u003c\/b\u003e 1782828435\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBISAC Categories:\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e- \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/sureshotbooks-com.myshopify.com\/search?type=product%2Carticle%2Cpage\u0026amp;q=CAT-HIS\"\u003eHistory\u003c\/a\u003e | \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/sureshotbooks-com.myshopify.com\/search?type=product%2Carticle%2Cpage\u0026amp;q=BISAC-HIS027150\"\u003eMilitary | Naval\u003c\/a\u003e\u003cbr\u003e- \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/sureshotbooks-com.myshopify.com\/search?type=product%2Carticle%2Cpage\u0026amp;q=CAT-HIS\"\u003eHistory\u003c\/a\u003e | \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/sureshotbooks-com.myshopify.com\/search?type=product%2Carticle%2Cpage\u0026amp;q=BISAC-HIS027090\"\u003eMilitary | World War I\u003c\/a\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eThis title is not returnable\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Leonaur Ltd","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44697412600045,"sku":"9781782828433","price":24.77,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0550\/8097\/6621\/products\/img_ba7254f4-a3e5-44fb-9645-a2c5ea694f0d.jpg?v=1703817745","url":"https:\/\/sureshotbooks.com\/products\/the-floating-ambush-the-q-ships-of-the-first-world-war-q-ships-and-their-story-with-a-short-history-of-startins-pets-9781782828433","provider":"SureShot Books Publishing LLC","version":"1.0","type":"link"}