Convoy: Merchant Sailors at War, 1939-1945

The men of the American, British, and Canadian merchant marine are the forgotten heroes of the long and costly Battle of the Atlantic. From their first casualty in September 1939 to the last on VE Day in May 1945, nearly 50,000 men of the Allied merchant service lost their lives to Axis torpedoes, bombs, and guns. This stunning portrait, first published in 1998, pays tribute to their all-important role. In both words and pictures, the book calls attention to the men who won this victory. Rare photographs, paintings, and memorabilia convey an impression of the dangers faced by the seamen in the stormy North Atlantic, the ice-fields of North Cape and the Barents Sea, and the vast expanses of the Pacific. The text draws on unpublished memoirs of the men who sailed in the convoys, including those who survived days adrift in lifeboats and faced U-boat torpedoes and Luftwaffe bombs. Convoys were the lifeline of the Allied war effort, and this account is an evocative and moving reminder of just how much we owe the ordinary seaman. Read more