HMS Ambuscade

 My new book, HMS Ambuscade: From 1746 to the Present Day, is launched today. It is unusual for me not to have any Balkan links in a book; believe me, I looked hard!

The last Ambuscade (a Type 21 frigate) was sold to Pakistan in 1993 and renamed PNS Tariq. I got involved when, in 2023, the Pakistan Navy kindly agreed to donate the ship to the charity Clyde Naval Heritage, and I joined the Advisory Board. The charity aims to bring her back to the Clyde, where she was built, within a museum focusing on the Falklands War. That project inspires this book, and all the profits will be donated to Clyde Naval Heritage.

The project faces a couple of challenges at present. The ship is berthed at the Karachi naval base, and we have a ship-lifting firm prepared to bring her home. However, the only viable route is through the Suez Canal, which is effectively blocked by the current conflict. We must also raise significant funds to pay for the journey once the route opens. You can read more about the project on the charity's website.

The book traces the history of all Royal Navy ships bearing that name since the first frigate was captured from the French in 1746. While not a Royal Navy ship, there was an earlier British fighting ship named Ambuscade. She was a privateer authorised by the British government to attack enemy ships during the War of the Spanish Succession (1701-1714). 

There were five substantive Ambuscades, although matters were more complex during the Napoleonic Wars when one Dutch and two French warships were renamed Ambuscade after being captured by the Royal Navy. The Royal Navy’s first steam-powered frigate was laid down in 1830 and was initially named Ambuscade. However, it was renamed HMS Amphion when launched in 1846.

HMS Ambuscade is probably not one of the most famous or recognisable names in the long history of the Royal Navy. As the ships bearing that name were primarily frigates, they were the fleet's workhorses rather than the ships of the line or battleships that tend to dominate naval history. From the age of sail to the Second World War, Ambuscades protected the convoys that provided the sinews of war. Had these essential supply chains been broken, military reverses would have followed. Ambuscades also took economic warfare to the enemy, capturing merchant ships and blockading their ports. The strategic importance of ships like the Ambuscades in protecting Britain's maritime trade cannot be overstated.

I have included the technical data you would expect in naval history, although lightly, as this book is aimed at the general reader. However, the focus is the story of the ships and the men who crewed HMS Ambuscade over nearly three centuries. While we know more about the captains than the crew, they are interesting, and I enjoyed the research.

If you are interested in this book, there is a dedicated web page that includes a presentation by me on it. You can get it through your local bookshop, but if you buy online, please do so on the web page, as that generates more revenue for the charity.