- Hardcover: 224 pages
- Publisher: Constable (Aug 5 1996)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0094762201
- ISBN-13: 978-0094762206
- Product Dimensions: 21.1 x 14.5 x 2.5 cm
- Shipping Weight: 386 g
- Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
- See Complete Table of Contents
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Product Details |
Product Description
From Publishers Weekly
Though officially ignored by the Admiralty, women on the vessels of the British Royal Navy, according to this myth-puncturing study, exerted a surprisingly strong presence in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, during both peace and war. Stark, an editor at American Neptune magazine, distinguishes three primary sorts of women aboard ship: prostitutes; the wives of warrant officers; and women in male disguise serving as members of the crew. When ships were in port, women in skirts contributed to the atmosphere of pandemonium aboard ship, where the decks were filled with people "drinking, dancing and fornicating." At sea, women endured considerable hardship. Pregnancy was common, with childbirth often taking place in the heat of battle, just as surgical crews were preoccupied with tending the wounded. The "women seamen" who impersonated their male counterparts, meanwhile, lived in constant fear of being discovered, although unmasking rarely resulted in anything worse than being booted off the crew. Stark explores women's reasons for going to sea, and provides evidence that women have served ably in warfare?but that mingling of the sexes on board ship can bring chaos. This admirable study will garner attention both for its groundbreaking social history and for its contributions to both sides of the women-in-combat debate. Illustrations.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Book Description
Studies the roles of women who lived and worked on British warships in the 18th and early 19th centuries. Stark investigates the Royal Navy's custom of letting prostitutes live with crews in port, as well as the wives who chose to live and fight beside their men, sometimes in male disguise.
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Customer Reviews
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Most helpful customer reviews
3.0 out of 5 stars
Quite a nice little book, but you are left wanting for more,
By Patricia (Colorado) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Female Tars: Women Aboard Ship in the Age of Sail (Hardcover)
This book is quite a fascinating look at the roles women have played in the British Navy before this century. However, there does seem to be a lack of in-depth study of the women profiled. I found myself wanting to know much more than the author was willing to offer me. I felt too much time was taken re-iterating the social and economic standpoint of prostitutes in this era rather than focusing on the women's contributions to the Royal British Navy. I was mildly insulted when Ms. Stark suggested the reason these women were willing to be "transvestites," or dress as men to serve onboard naval vessels, was basically Freud's "penis envy" theory. This book did sharpen my appetite to find more books on the subject of Women in the Maritime Military.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta) Amazon.com:
3.3 out of 5 stars (3 customer reviews) 5 of 6 people found the following review helpful
3.0 out of 5 stars
Quite a nice little book, but you are left wanting for more,
By Patricia - Published on Amazon.com
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Female Tars: Women Aboard Ship in the Age of Sail (Hardcover)
This book is quite a fascinating look at the roles women have played in the British Navy before this century. However, there does seem to be a lack of in-depth study of the women profiled. I found myself wanting to know much more than the author was willing to offer me. I felt too much time was taken re-iterating the social and economic standpoint of prostitutes in this era rather than focusing on the women's contributions to the Royal British Navy. I was mildly insulted when Ms. Stark suggested the reason these women were willing to be "transvestites," or dress as men to serve onboard naval vessels, was basically Freud's "penis envy" theory. This book did sharpen my appetite to find more books on the subject of Women in the Maritime Military.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
3.0 out of 5 stars
Interesting Light on Women's History,
By Lisa J. Steele - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Female Tars: Women Aboard Ship in the Age of Sail (Hardcover)
This book would be well read in combination with Joan Druett's Hen Frigates: Wives of Merchant Captains Under Sail. Stark's book focuses on the lives of prostitutes in English port towns, on sailor's wives and widows ashore, and those who sailed with their husbands, and briefly on the experiences of women who sailed disguised as men.The author does a good job of portraying the limited options available to English women during the Napoleonic era, and explains why women might find it necessary to engage in prostitution, follow their husbands to sea, or serve disguised as men. The author takes pain to debunk the then-popular myth of disguised women sailors searching for lost husbands or brothers. The book was, in some respects, too brief a discussion of the topic. A more in-depth analysis would be welcome. 1 of 2 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
Female Tars: Women Aboard Ship in the Age of Sail,
By Brian F. Hair - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Female Tars: Women Aboard Ship in the Age of Sail (Hardcover)
Opens your eyes to the status of women prior to the mid 20th century.
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