While the subject matter of this book was of great interest to me, I found it to be so poorly written that it was unreadable; the prose is dull and redundant, there are numerous grammatical errors, and the information provided is utterly superficial. The same material is covered in much greater detail in H. w. Wilson's "Ironclads in action" (1895), a book of which this seems to be but a poor repetition. Even the graphics in Conway's "All the worlds ships 1860-1905" are far superior. If you are a serious scholar of naval history - or even a casual wargamer - find another book.