No Uncertain Sound
The Life and Times of Admiral Sir Jock Slater
Format:Hardback
Publisher:Porto Press Ltd
Published:2nd Dec '25
Should be back in stock very soon
No Uncertain Sound by Capt. Peter Hore is a deeply researched and authoritative biography of Admiral Sir Jock Slater, one of the most influential figures in modern Royal Navy history. Drawing on extensive archival material, personal diaries, and more than 100 interviews, the book provides a compelling insight into the leadership, strategy, and defence reforms that shaped the British armed forces during the final decades of the Cold War.
Tracing Slater’s distinguished naval career through to his appointment as First Sea Lord from 1995 to 1998, the book explores pivotal moments in the evolution of British naval and air power. It reveals previously untold stories surrounding nuclear defence policy, UK–Russia relations, the development of British Maritime Doctrine, the integration of women at sea, and the ending of the ban on gay personnel in the armed forces.
Rich in historical detail and personal testimony, No Uncertain Sound offers a fascinating portrait of military leadership at the highest level, while also examining Admiral Slater’s relationships with political leaders, senior defence figures, and the Royal Family.
Ideal for readers interested in Royal Navy history, Cold War military strategy, British defence policy and naval leadership. This definitive biography is an essential contribution to modern maritime history and late twentieth-century British military affairs.
"Peter Hore’s biography of Jock Slater throws a bright light on critical developments of British naval and naval air power in the late 20th century." Professor Nicholas Rodger
"Jock was an outstanding First Sea Lord, by far the best holder of the post in the past 25 years, and should have been Chief of Defence Staff." Sir Max Hastings
"...This is a masterly slice of contemporary naval history." Professor Richard Harding
"... Using a range of personal, unofficial, and private sources, Peter Hore has written a vivid account of Admiral Sir Jock Slater's life that blossoms further into a synthesis of British naval and defence policy at the end of the Cold War." John B. Hattendorf, Editor-in-Chief, Oxford Encyclopaedia of Maritime History.
...Regardless of ones’ views on all of that, with Hore we have the ideal author: able to explain clearly but briefly while also possessing a good eye for the telling detail which puts the whole into perspective. He has fairly represented his individual while also giving an unprecedented insight into the Navy of the period. Rarely can I recommend a book so wholeheartedly.
-- Dr James Bosbotinis, Naval ReISBN: 9781849956130
Dimensions: unknown
Weight: 678g
326 pages