Lambert, Andrew D. 1956–

(Andrew David Lambert)

PERSONAL: Born December 31, 1956, in Norfolk, England; son of David George and Nola (Burton) Lambert; married Zohra Bouznat, November 27, 1987; children: Tama-Sophie (daughter). Education: City of London Polytechnic, B.A., King's College, London, M.A., Ph.D. Hobbies and other interests: Vintage motorcycles, running.

ADDRESSES: Office—Department of War Studies, King's College London, Strand, London WC2R 2LS England; fax: +44 (0) 207 848-2026. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER: Bristol Polytechnic (now University of West of England), Bristol, England, lecturer in modern international history, 1983–87; Royal Naval College, Greenwich, England, consultant to department of history and international affairs, 1987–89, Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst, England, senior lecturer in war studies, 1989–91; King's College, London, England, lecturer, 1991–96, senior lecturer in war studies, 1996–, professor of naval history, 1999–2001, Laughton Professor of Naval History, 2001–. Council member, SS Great Britain Project, 1989–, honorary secretary of Navy Records Society, 1996–2005. Writer and presenter for BBC2 television program Television War at Sea, 2004.

MEMBER: Royal Historical Society (fellow), Navy Records Society (honorary secretary).

WRITINGS:

NONFICTION

Battleships in Transition: The Creation of the Steam Battlefleet, 1815–1860, Naval Institute Press (Annapolis, MD), 1984.

Warrior: The World's First Ironclad, Then and Now, Naval Institute Press (Annapolis, MD), 1987.

The Crimean War: British Grand Strategy, 1853–1856, Manchester University Press (New York, NY), 1990.

The Last Sailing Battlefleet: Maintaining Naval Mastery, 1815–1850, Conway Maritime Press (London, England), 1991.

(With Stephen Badsey) The Crimean War, Alan Sutton (Dover, NH), 1994.

The Foundations of Naval History: Sir John Laughton, the Royal Navy and the Historical Profession, Chatham (London, England), 1998.

(With Denis Griffiths and Fred Walker) Brunei's Ships, Chatham (London, England), 1999.

War at Sea in the Age of the Sail: 1650–1850, Cassell (London, England), 2000.

(Editor) Letters and Papers of Professor Sir John Knox Laughton, 1830–1915, Ashgate for the Navy Records Society (Burlington, VT), 2002.

Trincomalee: The Last of Nelson's Frigates, Naval Institute Press (Annapolis, MD), 2002.

Nelson: Britannia's God of War, Faber & Faber (London, England), 2005.

SIDELIGHTS: Andrew D. Lambert is a military historian with a particular expertise in naval history. In his book The Crimean War: British Grand Strategy, 1853–1856, he offers a reinterpretation of the British military action in the mid-nineteenth century. It is Lambert's belief, stated in his introduction, that while the war was fought mainly in Crimea, it is wrong to name the conflict itself after that place, because it was fought over issues much larger than Crimea itself. In his book, Lambert gives particular attention to the naval aspects of the Crimean conflict, as well as the overarching strategy of the British. Commenting on the book in the English Historical Review, J.B. Conacher found that it contained some flaws, but he also believed that "despite its limitations … this book contains much interesting information and some challenging ideas and interpretations." Lambert also demonstrated his expertise in War at Sea in the Age of the Sail: 1650–1850, which was praised by Gilbert Taylor in Booklist as a solid "basic source on sailing ship warfare."

Lambert offered the life story of one of England's most revered heroes, Lord Admiral Nelson, in Nelson: Britannia's God of War. It details his life from infancy to death, focusing especially on Nelson's greatest naval battles. Assessing the biography in the Contemporary Review, Nicholas Bonsor noted that Nelson's story has been told many times, but he praised Lambert for bringing out "the strengths and weaknesses of Nelson's character" and for introducing "new and fascinating detail" to the familiar story.

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, October 1, 2000, Gilbert Taylor, review of War at Sea in the Age of the Sail: 1650–1850, p. 295.

Bookseller, July 2, 2004, review of "Why Nobody Was a Patch on Nelson," p. 30.

Contemporary Review, May, 2005, Nicholas Bonsor, review of Nelson: Britannia's God of War, p. 306.

English Historical Review, July, 1993, J.B. Conacher, review of The Crimean War: British Grand Strategy, 1853–1856, p. 737.

ONLINE

Kings College London Department of War Studies Web site, http://www.kcl.ac.uk/schools/sspp/ws/ (March 7, 2006), biographical information about Andrew D. Lambert.