Useful Links

Independent Voices

Navy Matters
An independent web site considering the future Royal Navy and promoting naval affairs. Well written and researched articles about warship procurement histories and the future fleet.

United Kingdom National Defence Association
The grandly named UKNDA describes itself as "a campaign for sufficient, appropriate and fully funded Armed Forces that the United Kingdom needs to defend effectively this Country, its people, their vital interests and security at home and throughout the world". Established in 2007 and covering all the UK armed forces, not just the RN, it has a similar agenda to this web site. If you can forgive its rather pompous introduction animation and pay your membership fee, it has the potential to become an effective lobby group and and is worthy of your full support. Recently they have launched their Support Our Armed Forces website which aims to get the message across in more simple terms although the site design is pretty crude.

Keep Our Future Afloat
A professionally run web site, KOFAC is a consortium of trade union, local authority and local community interests looking to sustain the skills and facilities for naval shipbuilding in the North West of England.

Support our Navy.org.uk
Website (still in deveopment) run by the decendents of Admiral Nelson and Captian Hardy who are becoming increaslingly active in campaigining in support of the RN. They also have a substantial involvement in the running of museum ship HMS Victory.

Publications

Warship World
Don't be put off by their rather poor website, this is a dependable quarterly magazine covering naval issues both past and present. It is primarily focused on the RN but does feature some international coverage. Published by Maritime Books - a specialist publisher of mainly RN related books, it is written in an accessible style. It has a fine pedigree of being a lone 'voice in the wilderness' for many years warning of the dangers of the continual cutting of the RN and is well worth the subscription.

Warships International Fleet Review
Similar to Warship World and published monthly in the UK but with a wider, more international focus, it does however carry in-depth articles on RN issues, some of which are available on its web site. Great photography and a more technical & international emphasis than Warship World.

Navy News
Monthly glossy newspaper and winner of 'plain English' awards with good photography and (good news only) from around the fleet. Owned by the MoD, the shiny-happy Navy News only ever going to be a PR publication. For example disastrous cuts to the fleet are referred to as "defence shake-ups" and the tone is upbeat no matter what. In recent years the editorial style has become slightly dumbed-down and irritating, e.g. carriers are continually referred to a 'flat-tops' or HMS Cornwall as the 'ice cream frigate' (pennant no. F99 - geddit?). Their website has been recently updated and provides more current news and (tiny) photos but overall the site is still a bit lacklustre.

The Daily Telegraph and The Times Online
While most of the 'sea-blind' press is only really interested in the navy when sailors misbehave or there are onboard sex scandals, the Times and Telegraph broadsheets (and their online versions) are the only newspapers to consistently carry intelligent stories about the armed forces. There is a dire need for this type of decent coverage of the state of the RN. Good examples from the Telegraph are this or this, from the Times this or this.

The Naval Review
Independent journal published quarterly by naval officers "to "promote the advancement and spreading within the service of knowledge relevant to the higher aspects of the naval profession". The Journal requires paid subscription but copies of the review from 1913 - 1996 are available as free downloads from it's website.

Subscribe to Save the Royal Navy
The news blog carried on the homepage of the is website. Click here to subscribe to the frequently updated news RSS feed.

Subscribe to Save the Royal Navy Articles
Click here to subscribe to the RSS feed that will alert you to new articles as they are added to this site on a roughly monthly basis.

Official Sites

Royal Navy
The official MoD web site for the RN. Covers the RN, RFA and Royal Marines in exhaustive detail. With video and animation, the site is geared toward recruitment but is also fairly reliable for basic facts and figures. Recently the site has added 'Royal Navy Live' which provides RN news updated on a daily basis. You can also subscribe to receive email news bulletins which are of excellent quality but are of the 'good news only' variety.

Defence News Blog
As the number of stories in the media about the defence crisis is on the increase, this blog presents the official government view. Attempting to answer in detail the the mostly accurate and diverse stories that illustrate the neglect of our armed forces. Some poor minion in the MoD has to write this drivel, putting a positive spin and a happy face on events (while trying to avoid downright lies) in the face of a rising tide of bad news .

HMS Somerset C.O. Blog
A semi-official blog, written by a serving officer, this provides a fascinating insight into the life of a warship captain. Recording the highs and lows of bringing Type 23 frigate HMS Somerset out of refit, back into RN frontline service and deployment to the Mediterranean. Postings ended abruptly in April 2008 with no explaination.

Industry Sites

Jane's Information Group
Most well-known for the annual publication 'Jane's Fighting Ships' the Bible of world naval forces, Jane's provide extensive intelligence about naval developments both online and in print. Aimed at senior officers and industry professionals, their products are of the highest standard with prices to match.

NavalTechnology.com
Covering UK and worldwide naval construction, a good point of reference. Aimed at professionals within the naval technology industries carrying news releases and detailed information on industry projects.

Naval Forums

DefenceTalk.com (Naval Section)
DefenceTalk.com is an online Community of International Defence experts, professionals and enthusiasts dedicated to the exchange of ideas and information. With a professional edge, this is the leading international defence website. It covers RN issues but has a very wide scope. There is a naval forum here and RN photo section here.

Warships Discussion Boards (RN Section)
This is a discussion board which is part of the US-based site NavWeaps.com which is mainly focused on international naval history. This forum is inhabited by naval experts and some very knowledgeable enthusiasts discussing a wide range of mostly RN issues.

The Rum Ration
Very informal naval gossip and chat forum mainly inhabited by ex-RN and RN personnel commenting on a wide variety of topics.

Warships Photo sites

ShipNostalgia.com (RN Ships Section)
As the name suggests, this site is mainly for ship photos from the past, although many current photos are posted by mostly UK ship enthusiasts. Some real gems appear here although you will have to register to view the full size pictures. Also has an excellent RFA section.

ShipSpotting.com (Military Vessels Section)
An international site for ship photos. Many good quality photos are posted each day and the military vessels section covers the world's navies and includes plenty of RN vessels.

NavyPhotos.co.uk
Great library of current and historical RN photos from Plymouth-based photographers. Kindly provided by local enthusiast David Page. Some room for improvement in the presentation.