Shipping disasters of the years 1793-1815 are the topic of this reference work. It covers 15,000 incidents involving both naval and merchant vessels. Each chronologically arranged entry is based on contemporary reports, and gives details of the shipwreck, its location and the number of people lost or saved. As well as major disasters such as the burning of the battleship Boyne at Spithead in 1794 and the loss of dozens of ships in a single storm, the day-to-day accidents of marine life, such as small harbour boats overturning, are included. In addition to details of the shipwrecks themselves, the work includes insights into the life of the seamen afloat and ashore and the perils of shipping in the age of the sail.