Overview

From the bestselling author of Under the Black Flag comes the definitive biography of Thomas Cochrane, the swashbuckling nineteenth-century maritime hero who packed [in] enough drama and history to shame both Horatio Nelson and Sir Francis Drake (Ken Rignle, Washington Post) In this fascinating account of Thomas Cochrane's extraordinary life, David Cordingly (Under the Black Flag and The Billy Ruffian) unearths startling new details about the real-life Master and Commander--from his heroic battles against the French navy to his role in the liberation of Chile, Peru, and Brazil, and the stock exchange scandal that forced him out of England and almost ended his naval career. Drawing on previously unpublished papers, his own travels, wide reading, and original research, Cordingly tells the rip-roaring story of the archetypal Romantic hero who conquered the seas and, in the process, defined his era.

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9781596915879

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Most intriguing and satisfying...Within his nearly 85 years, Cochrane packed enough drama and history to shame both Horatio Nelson and Sir Francis Drake...O'Brian fans will find great satisfaction in smoking out similarities and differences between Cochrane and Aubrey. -Ken Ringle, Washington Post [Cordingly] used previously unpublished papers, extensive original research and his own travels to tell Cochrane's story which is as good as any fiction. -BoatU.S. Magazine Cordingly, an established historian of Nelson's navy, tells Cochrane's story with flair and sympathy -Publisher's Weekly Avast, Horatio Hornblower! Shove off, Jack Aubrey! Give way to a real life knee-breeched naval hero. Maritime historian Cordingly...presents the life of Thomas Cochrane, tenth Earl of Dundonald (1775-1860), a lanky Scot who was the very model, we are told, for the stalwart characters of C.S. Forster and Patrick O'Brian...Readers can practically smell the salt air as Cordingly recreates the age of sail, of press gangs, of round shot, grape, canister and loud nine pounders, of wellarmed ships of the line, jolly boats, bum boats and fire ships. To document the career of his hero, the author draws on memoirs, logbooks, archives, correspondence and ephemera. He chronicles in copious detail Cochrane's considerable bravery on deck and personal failings ashore. Landlubbers may find this a lengthy voyage, but devotees of yarns about brave British tars will be delighted to be aboard. -Kirkus Reviews Avast, Horatio Hornblower! Shove off, Jack Aubrey! Give way to a real life knee-breeched naval hero. Maritime historian Cordingly...presents the life of Thomas Cochrane, tenth Earl of Dundonald (1775-1860), a lanky Scot who was the very model, we are told, for the stalwart characters of C.S. Forster and Patrick O'Brian...Readers can practically smell the salt air as Cordingly recreates the age of sail, of press gangs, of round shot, grape, canister and loud nine pounders, of wellarmed ships of the line, jolly boats, bum boats and fire ships. To document the career of his hero, the author draws on memoirs, logbooks, archives, correspondence and ephemera. He chronicles in copious detail Cochrane's considerable bravery on deck and personal failings ashore. Landlubbers may find this a lengthy voyage, but devotees of yarns about brave British tars will be delighted to be aboard. --Kirkus Reviews Praise for The Billy Ruffian : A thrilling narrative...so alive that you smell the cordite or the guns and hear the splintering of the mighty masts and spars. -- Independent A masterly account and, like all good biographies, says as much, if not more, about the historical context as about the subject itself. -- Sunday Times Praise for Under the Black Flag : Even if you don't know a corsair from a buccaneer, this book will delight and inform. -- Publishers Weekly [Cordingly] teases out fact from fiction even as he acknowledges the power of the myth. --New York Times Avast, Horatio Hornblower! Shove off, Jack Aubrey! Give way to a real life knee-breeched naval hero. Maritime historian Cordingly...presents the life of Thomas Cochrane, tenth Earl of Dundonald (1775-1860), a lanky Scot who was the very model, we are told, for the stalwart characters of C.S. Forster and Patrick O'Brian...Readers can practically smell the salt air as Cordingly recreates the age of sail, of press gangs, of round shot, grape, canister and loud nine pounders, of wellarmed ships of the line, jolly boats, bum boats and fire ships. To document the career of his hero, the author draws on memoirs, logbooks, archives, correspondence and ephemera. He chronicles in copious detail Cochrane's considerable bravery on deck and personal failings ashore. Landlubbers may find this a lengthy voyage, but devotees of yarns about brave British tars will be delighted to be aboard. --Kirkus Reviews Praise for The Billy Ruffian A thrilling narrative...so alive that you smell the cordite or the guns and hear the splintering of the mighty masts and spars. -- Independent A masterly account and, like all good biographies, says as much, if not more, about the historical context as about the subject itself. -- SundayTimes Praise for Under the Black Flag Even if you don't know a corsair from a buccaneer, this book will delight and inform. -- Publishers Weekly [Cordingly] teases out fact from fiction even as he acknowledges the power of the myth. --New York Times Avast, Horatio Hornblower! Shove off, Jack Aubrey! Give way to a real life knee-breeched naval hero. Maritime historian Cordingly...presents the life of Thomas Cochrane, tenth Earl of Dundonald (1775- 1860), a lanky Scot who was the very model, we are told, for the stalwart characters of C.S. Forster and Patrick O' Brian...Readers can practically smell the salt air as Cordingly recreates the age of sail, of press gangs, of round shot, grape, canister and loud nine pounders, of wellarmed ships of the line, jolly boats, bum boats and fire ships. To document the career of his hero, the author draws on memoirs, logbooks, archives, correspondence and ephemera. He chronicles in copious detail Cochrane' s considerable bravery on deck and personal failings ashore. Landlubbers may find this a lengthy voyage, but devotees of yarns about brave British tars will be delighted to be aboard. -- Kirkus Reviews Praise for The Billy Ruffian : A thrilling narrative...so alive that you smell the cordite or the guns and hear the splintering of the mighty masts and spars. -- Independent A masterly account and, like all good biographies, says as much, if not more, about the historical context as about the subject itself. -- Sunday Times Praise for Under the Black Flag : Even if you don't know a corsair from a buccaneer, this book will delight and inform. -- Publishers Weekly [Cordingly] teases out fact from fiction even as he acknowledges the power of the myth. -- New York Times Praise for The Billy Ruffian : A thrilling narrative...so alive that you smell the cordite or the guns and hear the splintering of the mighty masts and spars. -- Independent A masterly account and, like all good biographies, says as much, if not more, about the historical context as about the subject itself. -- Sunday Times Praise for Under the Black Flag : Even if you don't know a corsair from a buccaneer, this book will delight and inform. -- Publishers Weekly [Cordingly] teases out fact from fiction even as he acknowledges the power of the myth. -- New York Times

Most intriguing and satisfying...Within his nearly 85 years, Cochrane packed enough drama and history to shame both Horatio Nelson and Sir Francis Drake...O'Brian fans will find great satisfaction in smoking out similarities and differences between Cochrane and Aubrey. -Ken Ringle, Washington Post <p><br> [Cordingly] used previously unpublished papers, extensive original research and his own travels to tell Cochrane's story which is as good as any fiction. -BoatU.S. Magazine <br> Cordingly, an established historian of Nelson's navy, tells Cochrane's story with flair and sympathy -Publisher's Weekly Avast, Horatio Hornblower! Shove off, Jack Aubrey! Give way to a real life knee-breeched naval hero. Maritime historian Cordingly...presents the life of Thomas Cochrane, tenth Earl of Dundonald (1775-1860), a lanky Scot who was the very model, we are told, for the stalwart characters of C.S. Forster and Patrick O'Brian...Readers can practically smell the salt air as Cordingly recreates the age of sail, of press gangs, of round shot, grape, canister and loud nine pounders, of wellarmed ships of the line, jolly boats, bum boats and fire ships. To document the career of his hero, the author draws on memoirs, logbooks, archives, correspondence and ephemera. He chronicles in copious detail Cochrane's considerable bravery on deck and personal failings ashore. Landlubbers may find this a lengthy voyage, but devotees of yarns about brave British tars will be delighted to be aboard. -Kirkus Reviews

Author Information

David Cordingly was Keeper of Pictures and Head of Exhibitions at the National Maritime Museum for twelve years, where he organized such exhibitions as Captain James Cook, Navigator, The Mutiny on the Bounty, and Pirates: Fact and Fiction. His other books include Life Among the Pirates, Seafaring Women, the highly praised The Billy Ruffian, and the bestselling Under the Black Flag. He lives by the sea in Brighton, England.

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