Jane's Fighting Ships 1939
London: Sampson Low, Marston & Co., Ltd., 1939. Presumed First Edition, First printing. Hardcover. ISSUED November, 1939! Oblong format. 53 pages of advertisements, xx, 543, [1] pages. Illustrations. Tables. General Index. Addenda. Special Late Addenda. Cover has some wear and soiling. Edges and parts of pages soiled and moisture stained. Jane's Fighting Ships by Janes Information Services is an annual reference book of information on all the world's warships arranged by nation, including information on ships' names, dimensions, armaments, silhouettes and photographs, etc. Each edition describes and illustrates warships of different national naval and paramilitary forces, providing data on their characteristics. The first issue was illustrated with Jane's own ink sketches--photos began to appear with the third volume in 1900. The present title was adopted in 1905. It was originally published by Fred T. Jane in London in 1898 as Jane's All the World's Fighting Ships, in order to assist naval officers and the general public in playing naval wargames. Its success eventually launched a number of military publications carrying the name "Jane's". It is a unit of Jane's Information Group, which is now owned by IHS. Ten early editions of Jane's (those of 1898, 1905-06, 1906-07, 1914, 1919, 1924, 1931, 1939, 1944-45, and 1950-51) were reissued in facsimile reprints by Arco Publishing starting in 1969. All of these appeared in the oblong or "landscape" format that characterized the series until the 1956/57 edition, while from 1957/58 the present "portrait" layout was adopted, thus matching the sister Jane's publication on aircraft. During the 1920's and early 30's warship construction by the five signatories of the Washington Naval Treaty was limited in individual and aggregate tonnage, armament and the actual number of capital ships. The provisions were complex, for the objective was to secure parity in sea power among disparate nations. The efforts were confined to modifications of existing ships. Still, by 1939, a number of interesting new types had appeared and significant improvements had taken place. Condition: Good.
Keywords: Naval, WWII, Battleships, Destroyers, Cruisers, Japan, Great Britain, Submarines, Germany, Warships, Reference Works
[Book #85520]
Price: $350.00