Naval Expertise

This site brings together historians interested in maritime communities and trade; the history of science, medicine and technology in naval environments; expeditions, exploration and colonization; the development of dockyards; military perspectives; and other diverse approaches. Come and join the network to ask questions, discuss approaches, and share events and resources.

A two-day international and interdisciplinary conference examining the generation of expertise in maritime and naval contexts and tracing how such developments helped shape the modern world.  Registration is now open and the full conference programme is available:  see the conference page for more details.

We are a group of researchers interested in naval and maritime history, and particularly in the ways in which naval and maritime networks facilitated the transfer of expertise in the early modern and modern periods. We consider expertise not only as technical knowledge, but also methods and practice central to the development of modern modes of governance, commerce, and managment of resources.