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Feb 02, 2018dnk rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
I'm usually a quick reader, but this nearly 600 page book (if you don't count the notes and bibliography) is densely packed with information. Reading two chapters in one day was an accomplishment. This is in no way a criticism of Paine's writing style: he balances "the long view" with a detailed understanding of every period he writes about, and he's not without humor. It's just that this is a big subject, and it's difficult to race through it. I picked this up because I wanted to understand naval history, but "maritime history of the world" is the perfect description. Yes, there's extensive information about naval strategy and tactics, as well as important battles and wars, during different periods of history, but there's even more on trade relationships and the politics that informed them, as well as pages of descriptions about various ship design philosophies and manufacturing techniques. And while most of this volume does center on Asia, Europe, and Africa, Paine also writes about Oceania and the sea faring people who lived there. I'm in awe of the etak navigation system used by the Polynesians, and even more so because that system was passed down for generations without writing. "Trade" includes slavery early on, and Paine uses each opportunity to lay out the graphic horrors endured by all people sold as property. African slaves suffered horrible treatment over longer distances than other groups, but descriptions of slaves shipped from the Byzantine empire centuries before would have been preferable only because of the shorter trip. Until the early 20th century, many people willingly emigrating by ship also found the ship conditions to be, at best, unsanitary and crowded and, at worst, deadly. While modern navies boast sophisticated weapons and power systems that couldn't have been conceived a century before, the real maritime story of the 21st century thus far is that of trade. The container shipping paradigm has allowed global trade to grow exponentially, but this isn't something that sticks in the popular consciousness because the design of the ships and the shipping facilities demands an isolation unheard of in famous port towns like New York, Boston, Philadelphia, to name only a few. Not surprisingly, this has had an effect on employment and working conditions, as has the practice of sailing under "ships of convenience". I am only scratching the surface of what you will find in this book. I recommend it to everyone who is interested in history, especially world history.