The Eastern Fleet and the Indian Ocean, 1942 1944: The Fleet that Had to Hide

The British Eastern Fleet, which operated in the Indian Ocean against Japan, is given the recognition it deserves in Charles Stephenson's book. It focuses on the new fleet, commanded by Admiral Sir James Somerville, and its operations against the Japanese navy and aircraft, as well as Japanese and German submarines. Later in the war, it was strong enough to take more aggressive actions against the Japanese.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 336 pages
Publication date: 23 February 2022
Publisher: Pen & Sword Books Ltd

The tale of the British Eastern Fleet, which operated in the Indian Ocean against Japan, has seldom been told. Despite being the largest fleet deployed by the Royal Navy prior to 1945 and playing a critical part in the theatre it was sent to protect, it has no place in the popular consciousness of the naval history of the Second World War. Charles Stephenson's meticulously researched and engrossing narrative, therefore, gives this forgotten fleet the recognition it merits.

British pre-war naval planning for the Far East is part of the story, as is the disastrous loss of the battleship Prince of Wales and battlecruiser Repulse in 1941, but the bulk of the book focuses on the new fleet, commanded by Admiral Sir James Somerville, and its operations against the Japanese navy and aircraft, as well as Japanese and German submarines. Later in the war, once the fleet had been reinforced with an American aircraft carrier, it was strong enough to take more aggressive actions against the Japanese, and these are described in vivid detail.

Charles Stephenson's authoritative study will appeal to readers with a special interest in the war with Japan, in naval history more generally, and the Royal Navy in particular.

Weight: 566g
Dimension: 156 x 231 x 29 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781526797766