Plymouth owes its importance to a freak on geography - it commands the mouth of the English Channel and boasts two splendid, ready-made harbours. Its potential as a naval base was recognised by King Edward I in the 13th century, when he assembled a great fleet of 325 ships, the country's first national navy, in Plymouth Sound to embark the army which was to deliver a crushing blow to France at Poitiers.
Plymouth's history, indeed, has been greatly influenced by the sea and those who sail upon it. From old Jack Hawkins, who invented the 'triangular trade' to Africa and the Caribbean, and that other local lad Sir Francis Drake who set off from Plymouth to circumnavigate the world, and, later, finished his game of bowls on the How before dealing with the Spanish Armada, to Captain Cook, who sailed out of Plymouth on all his great voyages; as did William Bligh in 1787 in the 'Bounty' - not to mention the Pilgrim Fathers in the 'Mayflower', over a century before.
Plymouth, of course, has been much more than a mecca for mariners; and the author traces the city's many other claims to a rich and eventful history in his very readable narrative, illuminated by a superb collection of carefully captioned old photographs. So much of the old city centre was destroyed in the Blitz of 1941 that many of these picture are powerfully evocative of an old Plymouth that is now a fading memory for the elderly. The bustling shopping centres of both Plymouth and Devonport, the old trams that served them and the fashions of the shoppers ... theatres, cinemas and other once well-known buildings, all long gone, together with a vanished way of life vividly recalled in this book. There are over forty 'Plymouths' around the world and this book is a pictorial tribute to the 'home' city which inspired them all.
Contents:
List of Illustrations
Introduction
The Pre-War City Centre
Devonport and Stonehouse
Suburbs
Schools, Hospitals and Hotels
Churches
Old Houses
People
Entertainment
Plymouth Postcards
The Port-War City Centre
Events
