Naval Dockyards Society CALL FOR PAPERS:
‘We stand on guard for thee.’* Dockyards and Naval Bases in North America, the Atlantic and the Caribbean
Saturday 30 March 2019
National Maritime Museum, Greenwich
This one-day conference will examine the role of naval bases in North America, the Atlantic and the Caribbean. Some suggested themes follow but applications are invited on new research or a new interpretation of any related topic.
Were bases built to defend colonies, to control colonies, or to act as springboards for attacking the enemy? How useful were bases in the 17th–20th centuries? Some bases expanded in the world wars. How much was this for local defence and how much to defend convoys?
Naval bases developed over time: Havana Cuba, Port Royal Jamaica, Bermuda, English Harbour Antigua, Anguilla Leeward Islands, Fort St Louis Martinique, Guadeloupe, Caracas Venezuela, Curaçao Lesser Antilles, Louisbourg, Quebec, Esquimalt, Annapolis, Halifax, Brooklyn, Newport Rhode Island, Washington, Philadelphia.
How did national bases differ? How developed were they? How were they organised? What was the financial burden to the home country? How dependent upon their hinterland were they? To what extent did they develop their own operating practices? How have their heritage opportunities been developed?
If your proposal is accepted, the NDS will pay standard UK travel expenses (not international flights), your conference fee and lunch, publish it in our Transactions and give you a complimentary copy. Your talk will be 20-40 minutes. The published paper will be 6–10K words long, required three months after the Conference for editing. Please send your title and 300-word synopsis (and any queries) by 30 October 2018 to: Dr Ann Coats, avcoatsndschair@gmail.com
*Chorus of ‘O Canada’, Canadian national anthem, written 1880. Its sentiment could represent that of any naval base for its territory.
Website: https://navaldockyards.org/
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