The Epic History of the Founding of the U.S. Navy

An excellent book reminding us of the struggles of our young republic and determination to survive against a powerful adversary. It also demonstrates how little has changed in the politics in Washington in 200 years. The two big parties are still at each other's throat and cannot reach agreements.

Fantastic Book !!
I could not put this book down. I really like the way Ian Toll wrote this book. Easy reading and extremely informative.
Excellent book !!
I would recommend this book to everyone. Details and the history about the first six frigates to start the US Navy are entertaining.
Buy This Book !! You will not be disappointed.
Tom McKinley

Six Frigates was a fascinating book that filled in a lot of details about the beginnings of the U.S. Navy and the War of 1812. It was interesting to see that politics hasn't changed much since the beginning of the United States began. Our founding fathers were very much into "win at any cost" politics.

My only issue is with how many digressions and, to me, off track accounts it had. I got tired of hearing about Teddy Roosevelt.

Outstanding review of the infancy of the USN.
What these ships are best known for, and what is most familiar with the laymen are the battles. Toll describes every major ship-to-ship engagement fought by the original six with a vividness rarely seen in naval histories, rich enough to hear the thunder of the guns and smell the cordite from the gunpowder. The major actions described are: Constellation v. L'Insurgente, Constellation v. La Vengeance, United States v. Macedonian, Constitution v. Guerriere, Constitution v. Java, Shannon v. Chesapeake, and President v. Endymion. Also well addressed are the actions against the Barbary states, including a well-written chapter on the loss of the subscription frigate Philadelphia, and the daring exploits of Stephen Decatur to destroy the captured frigate.

Given the present day return and restoration of the USS Constitution, this book made her return to sea so much more important to anyone that takes the time to read it. What an OUTSTANDING way to learn her history!

And that is coming from someone who is totally ignorant of nautical terms. Like O'Brian's books where understanding the plot sometimes hinges on knowing a clew from a cleat, this author also takes it for granted you know your naval terminology (there are no explanations). UNLIKE O'Brian, he writes in such a way that not knowing does not impede your understanding or enjoyment of the great narrative he lays down.

Extremely well written, no dry history tome. It gives you a closeup on the men who made our country, the kind of men they were, where they came from, what they were thinking, what motivated them. It provides an extraordinary view of political thinking and international politics at that time. It deepened my amazement that we survived at all as a nation. I can not help but wonder how so many powerful individuals with such fantastic intellects and talents could be gathered in one generation and all in one place at the same time.

After reading this book I did some research on Old Iron sides and found out that the Navy was running a raffle on rides aboard the USS Constitution so I entered and won!
Road On Old Irons Sides and did the Freedom trail around Boston Both Great Experiences. Must Thank the Author for sparing my interest in this time period of our Nations History. Can't say much more about this book and I plan I getting the Next one he has written.

This is a very well write work I couldn't put it down.
How the Aurthur tied the history of early America and Europe together is fantastic.
I haven't done much reading lately but the title caught my attention so purchased the kindle addition for PC as i wanted to try reading from a screen verses paper.
I can't say enough about the Aurthur mastery of the subject and his composition to not only give a great history lesson of he time but making it very entertaining to read.
The graphical nature of some of the battle description my turn some off me to an extent but I wouldn't want him to cut it out either it part of war. Am glad their were and are people willing to fight in what they believed in.
Would Highly recommend this book.

Ian Toll provides the reader with not only a detailed history of the first frigates built by the United States, but also deep insights into the political events surrounding the construction of the frigates and the political events the brought the frigates into use. The story is a stirring tale of heroism and national pride. I heartily recommend this book to anyone interested in naval warfare in the early 1800's and the course that started the United States on it's way to becoming a country with the most powerful navy in the World.

The book describes the early years of the US Navy, with the Frigates as a main theme.
The author does a great job in collecting & presenting historical facts, waving them into a compelling story. It was especially interesting to see the parallels between the dilemmas faced by the early legislators & government officials, and modern day debates (should defense spending be increased? what value would it serve? would defense spending prompt wasteful military adventures? on the other hand, can a country do without military power, in a Real Politic world?)

Above all, the author succeeds in presenting history at "eye-level" - be it that of the President, or a lowly midshipman on the Constitution's deck.

Toll belongs to the small group of historians who write for a popular audience without dumbing down the quality of their analysis. Much to be learned here about the founding fathers, as well as the US's close call in losing its independence in the War of 1812. And, of course, about the rise of a navy that might be termed the mouse that roared.

I have read many books about naval history and this book is top notch as it describes our naval birth and quite often our naval fight for existence. Tolls subject matter expertise is masterful as he documents,educates and entertains the reader. 3 Cheers to you ,my good sir!

A very well written history, not just of the Navy, but the US as well. The book was so interesting and detailed that it read like a novel and I had to read complete sections to discover the outcome of the described event. It also provided insights into the politics in the post-revolutionary period of the US and Europe. I would recommend this book to anyone with the least bit of interest in US history.

While I was expecting an account of the early naval history, what I didn't expect was the political background that these ships fit into.
Nothing takes place in a vacuum and this account helps inform the reader as to why decisions were made and at what cost.
A must read for those interested in early US Naval history.

A super description not only of how our Navy started, but a fascinating history of politics in the early Republic. While the initial Congress and Presidents had severe disagreements, the key figures were all dedicated to building the United States, once reality appeared at our shores and on the seas, they made the hard decisions. Excellent read.

The War of 1812 is little understood and less cared about by Americans today. Ian Toll succeeds in showing us just how important it was. The lesson here is clear: without a Navy at the critical time, the United States would have taken much longer that it did to become a world power, it it became one at all.

Although not advertised as such, Six Frigates is nothing less than the story of the birth of the US Navy. Mr. Toll wonderfully weaves the story including much of the intrigue and back-biting we love to read about, but this is history. If one is looking for a good story that includes our nations founders as well as what they faced during the founding and early days of our great country, you couldn't find a better read than Six Frigates. Also, from a technology perspective, those same frigate we're amazing for their day. Due to a top secret design feature in their day, they we're more powerful than British ships of the same class. But read the book and hear the story as told by Mr. Toll. It was definitely a pleasure to read.

Almost done with it. Excellent book with tons of details that you would not generally learn in a general history text. Well researched and written, there are two write-ups of battles that are riveting page turners. There are some dry and slow spots, but they are not the norma at all. The text is absorbing and though provoking at times. I am glad I purchased this book. Please note: I bought this in trade paperback form and it is huge. I did not enjoy holding it up or manipulating it. To get it comfortable I had to sort of manhandle it. I liked it enough that I did not want to damage it too much, so I came back and purchased it from iBooks. I have read about half of it in that format. The very nice trade paperback that I bought here was only like $14 and had Prime shipping, so that would be an EXCELLENT choice for a gift. The price as a Kindle file was a bit more than that on iBooks, and since I had already bought the more expensive "real" book I did not want to spend any more than I had to. However, if I had known the weight of this book I would have purchased the Kindle format initially as I like Kindle better than iBooks. Either way, this is a great book to read, and it is available in various e-book formats that you can choose from if the bulk of the test might be a problem for you. Note that my iBooks test contains typos that are not in the real book. I do not know how Kindle texts are prepared, but most of mine have misprints, too, so there is some human part to the process, regardless of the seller. This is frustrating, but it is getting much better. E-books seem to finally be getting edited at a level close to printed books. If you have a keen interest in the early US Navy and you buy this book you will be pleased, regardless of format. Enjoy!

It appears that some of the reviewers are well versed in the subject, but for someone who has decent knowledge of early American history but zero education on the military, like me, this book delivers a readable, rich characterization of the time. My father in law is a retired US Navy officer, so I felt like I owe him the courtesy of reading this book.I can barely sail a milk carton, but was still fascinated by the detailed, jargon-filled battle scenes. This book is approachable, well researched, and an excellent example of historical writing.

Superbly researched and filled with riveting sea battles! One of the best books I have read about the beginnings of our navy! Historic connections abound and add considerable interest. The only device that I did not care for was the author's tendency to repeat the telling of incidents as a way to remind the reader of connections between previous descriptions and the current story moment. Highly recommended!

If you have seen the "Constitution" Frigate in the Boston Harbor then this is a great read about how and when it was built, along with the other 5 Frigates. But It is a a wonderful informative read not only about the 6 Frigates, but about our own National History, and the huge difficulty our First few Presidents had to deal with. OMG it sounds like the Presidential/Congressional battles and tirades of today. It's a read that might lead one to have faith that we can also survive the election tirades of today.

Even outside the specific history of the construction and command of the frigates, this book covers history about the presidents, the Barbary pirates, and the War of 1812 that is not usually written about in history books about this time period. The author does a wonderful job describing the battle scenes, which makes me wish Hollywood would pull some of the heroic stories of our early naval commanders and put them on the silver screen. I'm definitely going to be reading this book again and I recommend it to anyone with an interest in early American history or military history.

Objective, authoritative, and thorough. Much of the book involves the domestic and international political landscape of the United States from the 1790s until 1815. As the United States struggled to define itself as a nation and establish itself in the international community, she faced questions of security, trade, war, and individual rights. Since the young country was then only a string of 13 states along the east coast, the Atlantic and other navigable waterways played a key role. And the presence of a navy become paramount, even to early Republicans like Jefferson who wanted to reduce or eliminate the armed forces after the Revolutionary War. Ian Toll has written and truly insightful work about the United States just after the Revolutionary War, and about some epic sea battles. A great read.

Even outside the specific history of the construction and command of the frigates, this book covers history about the presidents, the Barbary pirates, and the War of 1812 that is not usually written about in history books about this time period. The author does a wonderful job describing the battle scenes, which makes me wish Hollywood would pull some of the heroic stories of our early naval commanders and put them on the silver screen. I'm definitely going to be reading this book again and I recommend it to anyone with an interest in early American history or military history.

Objective, authoritative, and thorough. Much of the book involves the domestic and international political landscape of the United States from the 1790s until 1815. As the United States struggled to define itself as a nation and establish itself in the international community, she faced questions of security, trade, war, and individual rights. Since the young country was then only a string of 13 states along the east coast, the Atlantic and other navigable waterways played a key role. And the presence of a navy become paramount, even to early Republicans like Jefferson who wanted to reduce or eliminate the armed forces after the Revolutionary War. Ian Toll has written and truly insightful work about the United States just after the Revolutionary War, and about some epic sea battles. A great read.

A riveting history that rivals the works of Harry Thompson (The Edge of the World) and Patrick J. O'Brian (Master and Commander) for capturing and holding the attention and concentration of the reader much better than any novel could. The reader is transported in mind and spirit to the times and situatipns of the text in such a way that invokes sensing the actual din of battle and smell of gunpowder. Extremely hard to put down once started. Recommended reading for the youth of today!

Well researched, written in an interesting, narrative format and includes so much of the political maneuvering needed to start the U.S. Navy. I had no idea of how difficult such an endeavor was, nor how much courage it took to participate in those battles in the Age of Fighting Sail.

This book is far better than I could have expected. An impartial overview of the building of the U.S. navy that includes so much more. The politics involved, the politicians involved, this is as much an excellent early history of the country as it is about the Six Frigates. Again, outstanding!

A well written and entertaining story of early America through the founding of the US navy. There are many interesting antidotes and a great look at how much different things were then. It is also a good look at our founding principles. I did not realize how the frigates were so much different than the frigates of the European powers and the stories of their use are well detailed and very interesting

'Six Frigates' is one of my best history book purchases on the store. Not only is the history of the Navy told in a rich, detailed-but-never-boring style, Ian Toll puts it all in the right context of the struggle the early republic was going through at the time. I can't recommend it enough. Only 25% into it at this writing, I know it's a classic already.

Six Frigates covers in detail the development of the United States Navy from its official conception during the Adams administration until the end of the Madison administration. An epilogue and timeline at the end of the book provides a loose overview of the development of the Navy through 2005.

This period includes the Quasi War, the Tripolitan War (or First Barbary War), the War of 1812, and the Algerian War (or Second Barbary War). Toll covers the Tripolitan War and the War of 1812 in great depth. To be honest, I swelled with pride while reading about the tenacity and determination of the young United States. Even with one of the world's smallest navies, the Americans decided not to be bullied by Barbary pirates who had Europe in the palm of their hands, nor by the British, who utterly and completely ruled the oceans.

Toll does a great job describing battle scenes. This is where he really shines as a writer. I felt as though I were there.

Sometimes the reading does get a bit heavy and technical. I would recommend this book to someone interested in United States or Naval history.

Despite knowing nothing about boats or ships of any kind, or the navy, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It was nice reading about familiar historical events and people from a different perspective. I highly recommend this book for those interested in American history, and those interested in the political and economic influences in the development of our young country and its navy. I also enjoyed reading about the background of the six frigates, the stories of their design and construction, their commanders, and their various adventures and battles.

The very best major overview of the historical events during the Post-Revolutionary period. This book is, without a doubt, the best analysis of how the U.S. Navy became a world presence and power, the impact of the Babary Pirates, and the defeat of the Royal Navy at the height of its world prominence.
A MUST READ

This was an interesting book covering the early history between the Revolutionary war and through the end of the war of 1812. It covers the congressional and presidential bickering between the founders as to the need for a standing navy and whether or not the expense of same was necessary. The construction of heavy frigates was very effective in that the US was never going to be able to match the huge navies (especially England) of competing powers -- these were ships that could fight when it was to their advantage (which was always the case when facing an opponent frigate) and run away when it was not. Their value in occupying forces many times their size was amazing.
This is also a period of history that is often glossed-over as if nothing important happened between the Revolution and the War between the States. In that respect, this book fills a gap.
My one criticism would be in the lack of explanation of nautical terms. To be fair, Mr. Toll says in the introduction that he intends to do so. I consider myself reasonably knowledgeable in sailing and nautical terms. I know the difference between a sloop, a brig, and a ship. I know what it is to back or reef a sail. I know much of the main rigging nomenclature for square sails, and know things like what it is to beat to weather or to have the weather gauge. I know the nautical battle tactics employed by the English, Dutch, and French in the Napoleonic period. But I still have to admit sometimes being ignorant of the actions and sail trims being described. An amusing counter to his stated intent to be austere in descriptions was a point where he parenthetically instructs that the English name "Cockburn" is pronounced "Coburn" -- a matter of no importance whatsoever to the history. In summary to this criticism, the book could have been vastly improved with an appendix where the types of ships, parts of rigging, points of sail, nautical battle tactics, gunnery, etc. were defined would have made the book more instructional to someone like me, and I can only guess made it readable without an unabridged dictionary to a person less knowledgeable of nautical terminology.
To such a person, I say do not let this criticism keep you from reading this book. One doesn't really have to know which exact piece of rigging was shot away to know it was deadly when it fell to the deck and that the loss of any given spar or mast was going to detrimentally affect the mobility of the ship. The rest of the history -- arguments among founding fathers, relative strengths of national navies, and economic factors affecting trade make the book well worth reading.
One of the most ironic factors in history (later than the period of this book) was that some 50 or so years later, a lumbering upside-down mound (CSS Virginia) and a "cheesebox on a raft" (USS Monitor) would meet at Hampton roads and prove in a single day that all wooden fighting ships (however powered) were instantaneously rendered useless and defenseless.

A superb book! Any person interested in american history would find this book extremely fascinating and readable. The author deals with the subject in an all encompassing manner giving the reader a glimpse of the politics of the time and the difficulties young america faced internally and internationally. I would read any other book that Mr. Toll had written as he has a marvelous style.

This book surprised me because I wasn't expecting it to be this good. This book is very well written and is full of information. I highly recommend this book. You get a lot more information about Early American history than just a story about the six frigates. A very good read!