Research Associations and Naval History Research Publishers:
More Information
The Society for Nautical Research (South) meets each month from October to May (normally on the second Saturday of the month, at 14:00) to hear speakers on maritime-historical subjects. Embers-among whom are former seafarers, academics, and amateur researchers-have a wide range of interest connected with the sea; and topics covered recently have included Nautical Archaeology, Naval Duelling, The Restoration and Conservation of HMS Alliance and The Early History of Naval Aviation. At least one meeting each year is devoted to the presentation of member’s research, and in addition researchers working locally are encouraged to address the Society. Our Society also maintains close contacts with kindred bodies in the Portsmouth/Southampton area and periodically arranges visits to maritime-related museums, exhibitions etc.
Our Society meets by courtesy of The Royal Naval Club and Royal Albert Yacht Club at its premises at 17 Pembroke Park, Old Portsmouth; members are permitted to lunch in the Club before the meetings.
Website (English)
More Information
The objectives of the Society are:
1) To promote nautical research in Canada
2) To disseminate the results of such research
3) And to encourage an awareness of Canada’s maritime heritageTo those ends, the Society publishes a quarterly journal – The Northern Mariner/Le marin du nord – and a quarterly newsletter – Argonauta – holds an annual conference, and makes several awards. The Society is also the Canadian national sub-commission of the International Commission for Maritime History (ICMH).
More Information
The Naval Dockyards Society is an international organisation which is concerned with and publishes material on naval dockyards and associated activities, including victualling, medicine, ordnance, shipbuilding, shipbreaking, coastguard stations, provisions and supplies; all aspects of their construction, history, archaeology, conservation, workforce, surrounding communities and family history; and all aspects of their buildings, structures and monuments relating to naval history. The Society is therefore involved closely in the terrestrial and underwater heritage of all these sites.
Aims
1. Compile and distribute a list of members and their interests.
2. Produce two newsletters a year which will publish information, members’ reports of activities and issues and book reviews.
3. Organise meetings and tours of UK and overseas dockyards and related sites.
4. Increase public awareness of historic dockyards and related sites.
5. Increase access to historic dockyards and related sites.
6. Create links with related organisations in Britain and abroad.
7. Coordinate and promote new research.
8. Create a database of the present status of historic dockyards and related sites worldwide.
9. Offer assistance to those establishing dockyard heritage sites.
10. Encourage the storage and collection of oral history interviews related to dockyard history.
11. Coordinate the historical, architectural and technical expertise available within the society as appropriate.
12. Compile a dockyards bibliography.The Naval Dockyards Society was officially constituted on 1 March 1997 at the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich. It is an active society which runs annual themed conferences on topics such as Georgian Dockyards 1714-1837; British & French Dockyards, 1650-1800; Naval Dockyards: changes in materials & technology; Preservation and Conservation & Re-Use of Dockyard Sites and Buildings; publishes conference papers in annual Transactions; conducts tours to the UK and overseas sites, such as Bursledon, Chatham, Deptford, Sheerness, Malta, Bermuda, L’Orient and Rochefort; carries out campaigns to preserve dockyard sites at Sheerness, Deptford, Gibraltar and Bermuda.
You can read about the Society in:
Davies, J. D. (2012). “The Naval Dockyards Society: the first fifteen years.” Eds. C. Clark and C. A. Brebbia. Defence Sites: Heritage and Future. Transactions on the Built Environment. WIT, volume 123, pp. 3-14. www.witpress.com ISSN 1743-3509 (online)
Hon. Chair Dr Ann Coats Hon. Secretary Peter Goodwin Hon. Membership Secretary Mrs Judith Webberley
Email: ann.coats@port.ac.uk Email: seaphoenix@talktalk.net Email: judith.nds@webberley2.plus.comAnnual membership fee: individual £25, joint: two people living at one address £30, or institutional £40.
Website (English)
Facebook (English)
Twitter: @NavDockSoc
More Information
The GMI was established in 1998 and is a specialist maritime studies postgraduate teaching and research institute within the large multi-faculty University of Greenwich. It draws upon the university’s existing academic strengths and develops them into new directions. Greenwich has a long association with shipping, so the Institute maintains and builds upon an historic and educational tradition while working towards the future needs of the global maritime community. The maritime education offered includes postgraduate degrees in Maritime History, International Maritime Policy and Maritime Management and an Mphil/PhD in Maritime Studies.
Website
Twitter @gmc_greenwich
More Information
Here are the main features of the guide:
- Timeline for the environmental governance of the River Thames since the 1850s, including information on legislation and key events. There are links to online sources, such as these photographs of the 1953 storm surge flooding from the The Guardian newspaper.
- Current and historical maps for the river and Thames river basin, including images and links.
- Historical overview of the river’s functions – what has the river been used for and by whom?
- Governance snapshots showing which organisations have run the Thames at different times since the 1960s.
- Interest groups and stakeholder organisations – past and present – for the Thames river and communities across the river basin.
- Statutory organisations for the river and Thames region.
- Historical sources for the Thames, including links to historic films about the river available online and links to archive collections. You can see some of British Pathé’s amazing collection of online films on the Thames or search for catalogue information on old films about Thames’ water supply. In the 1949 film Mud Shifters (51 seconds), two brothers are regularly employed to sweep the Thames foreshore with ‘looters’ to maintain enough depth for barges.
- Information about relevant archives, with links.
- Bibliography (popular history and academic sources for the Thames).
- Information on the ESRC project, Running the River Thames Project: London, Stakeholders and the Environmental Governance of the River Thames, 1960-2010. This has examined the environmental governance of the river since 1960, and the changing forms of public participation and environmental citizenship that are part of this history.
Society for Nautical Research
Website (English)
Society for Nautical Research (South)
The Society for Nautical Research (South) was founded in 1962 to promote historical study of ships, seafaring, and other maritime-related subjects; with particular reference to the South of England. It was the first regional branch of the Society for Nautical Research (founded 1910).Navy Records Society
Website (English) Twitter @NavyRecords Navy Records Online Website (English)Canadian Nautical Research Society
The CNRS encourages an awareness of Canadian and world maritime heritage by promoting nautical research and presenting the results of such research by conferences, presentations and publications.Website (English) Facebook (English)
Naval Dockyards Society
The society seeks to stimulate the production and exchange of information and research into naval dockyards and associated organisations.Naval Review: www.naval-review.org The Samuel Pepys Club: www.pepys-club.org.uk The 1805 Club: www.1805club.org The Nelson Society: www.nelson-society.com The Hakluyt Society: www.hakluyt.com Ipswich Maritime Trust: www.ipswichmaritimetrust.org.uk Britannia Naval Research Association: www.britannia-naval-research-association.org
University Maritime/Naval History Research Centres
University of Exeter Centre for Maritime Historical StudiesMaritime@Greenwich
This organization has succeeded the former Greenwich Maritime Institution. is located in the historic setting of the Old Royal Naval College in the centre of Greenwich, a part of London with a rich maritime heritage.Researching the River Thames
This is a project based at the Greenwich Maritime Institute,and organized by Professor Sarah Palmer and Dr Vanessa Taylor that has recently culminated in the launch of a website and research guide.This guide is for anyone interested in finding out more about the environment of the river and its history. It provides information on historical sources and on where to find out more. It is designed for those wanting to research online as well as those who would like to get out into the archives. The website has been created by the team behind the 'Running the River Thames' project (2011-13). Some sections of the site reflect the project's focus on the past fifty years – several sections cover a longer period going back to the mid nineteenth century.King's College London: Laughton Naval History Unit
The Laughton Naval History Unit (LNHU) is the prime forum of intellectual exchange and debate within the War Studies Group for academics and students studying naval history as a branch of academic enquiry into the past, and as the basis for attempts to understand present and future trends.More Information
Naval History has flourished at Kings because it is located in the Department of War Studies, which provides the necessary academic background for a subject that operates at the juncture between the past and the present, and is consumed by serving officers as well as historians. Members of the group conduct research on a variety of areas that connect naval history with national histories, strategic thinking, defence policy, technology and regional issues. The subject is, by definition, global emphasising international and comparative approaches.
King’s College has been the leading academic centre for the study of naval history in Britain since 1970, and it has acquired a world-wide reputation in this field, in both academic and defence contexts. Naval History first acquired academic methods and status at King’s in the 1880s, under the leadership of Professor Sir John Knox Laughton, (1840-1915) Professor of Modern History 1885-1915. The Laughton Unit was founded in 2001, with the support of the Tubney Charitable Trust, to ensure the delivery of high quality education in naval history, to work with the armed forces, and to enhance public awareness of the subject.
The Unit is led by Professor Andrew Lambert, Laughton Professor Naval History in the Department of War Studies.
CEMAS: Centre for Maritime Studies, University of Stockholm
The Centre for Maritime Studies (CEMAS) is a research organization engaged in the pursuit of all aspects of maritime studies: maritime history, maritime ethnology, and partly marine archeology.More Information
The Centre is a cooperative effort of Stockholm University (the department of history and the department of ethnology, history of religion and gender studies) and the National Maritime Museums. We currently employ six full-time researchers in history and ethnology: one professor, one reader, three PhD students and one postdocs.
Maritime history is a well-established field of research at the Department of History. Relationship between navies/naval warfare and the rise of fiscal military state has been studied as a part of Sweden’s early modern history and as a broadly based comparisons of naval developments in the world.
Our current research includes diverse fields of projects such as the Swedish foreign consuls, eighteenth-century trade and shipping, early modern neutrality, global history, the Swedish East India Company, the Swedish colony in S:t Barthélemy, the Naval City of Karlskrona, the lobster fishermen of Western Sweden, and contemporary sailor’s blogs.
In the future, we hope to further expand the international connections of the centre (such as joint workshops with other European research centres and universities), as well continuing our close cooperation with the museums and their activities.
University of Exeter Centre for Maritime Historical Studies
The CMHS was formed in 1991 as a result of the perceived need to promote a wider understanding of the significance of maritime history within the world of historical scholarship. Taking on the theme that the seas connect rather than divide mankind, the Centre and its members set out to explore the nature of these connections and how this impacted on all aspects of the economy and society, and, through the emergence of navies to contest and control these connections, had a major impact on the development and policies of governments. The Centre supports research and study activities within the University of Exeter, including maritime history courses and postgraduate supervision by the Centre's members, and in broader scholarly networks, with connections to many international institutions. The Centre organises a regular research seminar and a series of annual conferences. On the Centre's website are hosted a range of resources such as bibliographies and research guides, and new media including podcasts and videos. Website (English)The Southampton Marine and Maritime Postgraduate Group (SMMPG)
SMMPG was founded in 2013 to bring together postgraduate and early career researchers interested in different elements of the marine and maritime world from across all the faculties within the university. The group is affiliated with the Southampton Marine and Maritime Institute, a unique partnership between the University of Southampton and Lloyd’s Register which aims to forge one of the world’s leading centres of multidisciplinary marine and maritime innovation, education and expertise. The group hosts talks twice a month, outreach events, and multidisciplinary conferences. We attract international researchers with expertise ranging from maritime horror fiction to sustainable development in maritime law, and from 18th century maritime poetry to the statistical analysis of ship energy efficiency. While the SMMPG operates from Southampton it aims to engage with researchers and their interests nationally and internationally. Contact Email: smmpg@soton.ac.uk Twitter: @SMMPG Facebook: (English)Memorial University of Newfoundland Maritime History Archive (MHA)
The Maritime History Archive collects and preserves documents relating to the history of maritime activities in Newfoundland and Labrador and throughout the North Atlantic world. Over sixty businesses and private agencies involved in the Newfoundland fisheries are represented by the mercantile records collection. There are also extensive holdings in historical photographs, personal papers, and papers relating to many facets of merchant shipping. The Archive holds significant records relating to shipping and seafarers. Major record series include Crew Lists and Logbooks, Vessel Registers, and Shipping Lists. Other series include information on captains, voyages, and shipwrecks. Published lists of vessels include Lloyd's Register of Shipping, from 1763 to date; the Mercantile Navy List, [1857-1973]; Record of American and Foreign Shipping, [1871-1988]; Merchant Vessels of the United States, [1867-1978]; Bureau Veritas Register of Ships: Registre Veritas, [1829-1985]. Access to the information contained in the records varies with each series. Information on how the records can be searched is given under the description of the record series. The only records series which are in electronic format are the certificates of vessel registry and sample crew agreements for major Atlantic Canadian ports, which contain data compiled for the Atlantic Canada Shipping Project. This data is now available on a CD entitled Ships and Seafarers of Atlantic Canada. For other record series we have specified where name indexes are available. All records described on these web pages are held at the Maritime History Archive. Location We are located in the Henrietta Harvey (Mathematics) building on the campus of Memorial University of Newfoundland. Our address is 230 Elizabeth Avenue, St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador Contact Email: mha@mun.ca Twitter: @MHAatMUN Facebook: (English) Website: (English)Annual Naval History Event Organisers:
Alan Villiers Memorial Lectures: avmlpurser@ntlworld.com Naval Leadership research workshops and conferences series: information@globalmaritimehistory.com
Research Sources Libraries and Archives holding naval and maritime collections:
National Archives of England and Wales (formerly PRO, Kew): www.nationalarchives.gov.uk
A Guide to the Naval Records in the National Archives of the UK (via Exeter's CHMS) and the PDF
Caird Library, National Maritime Museum (Royal Museums Greenwich): www.rmg.co.uk/researchers/library
Admiralty Library:Naval Historical Branch, No. 24 Store, PP20 Main Road, HM Naval Base, Portsmouth PO1 3LU. Fax: 02392 724003 Now part of the Naval Historical Branch, the Admiralty Library holds the operational records of the Royal Navy; the NHB itself is a major archive. Subsidiary collections are held at the Royal Naval Museums and the Institute of Naval Medicine. Information on the Institute of Naval Medicine's archival collections is found here
Royal Naval Museum Library : library@royalnavalmuseum.org Royal Navy Submarine Museum : archives@rnsubmus.co.uk Royal Marines Museum : fax: 023 9283 8420 Fleet Air Arm Museum :enquiries@fleetairarm.com Imperial War Museum : http://www.iwm.org.uk/collections-research Collection covers 20th century naval history and warfare only.
WM Photograph Archive: photos@iwm.org.uk Includes the official photographic record of the Royal and merchant navies during the First and Second World Wars.
Bodleian Library, Oxford: www.bodleian.ox.ac.uk Pepys Library, Magdalene College Cambridge: www.magd.cam.ac.uk/pepys
Naval and Maritime History Museums:
National Museum of the Royal Navy (Portsmouth): www.royalnavalmuseum.org National Maritime Museum (Royal Museums Greenwich): www.rmg.co.uk Portsmouth Historic Dockyard: www.historicdockyard.co.uk Chatham Historic Dockyard: www.thedockyard.co.uk
Historic vessels:
HMS Victory: www.hms-victory.com The Mary Rose: www.maryrose.org HMS Trincomalee 1817: www.hms-trincomalee.co.uk @HMSTrincomalee HMCS Sackville http://canadasnavalmemorial.ca/ @HMCSSackville1 Royal Navy: www.royalnavy.mod.uk UK Ministry of Defence Art Collection: www.gov.uk/ministry-of-defence-art-collection
