The Narrow Sea tells the story of the English Channel and its impact on the history of the countries on either side of it. A lot of the book focuses on English history, not surprising when the author is English.
English Channel is usually regarded as the sea between England and France. For the purposes of The Narrow Sea, Peter Unwin extends it as far as the Netherlands. He even brings Germany and Scandinavia in to the story, although he admits that they are on the North Sea, nowhere near the English Channel.
I have read a lot of history over the years and there was a lot in this book that wasn’t new to me. However, there was some history I didn’t know about. The battles between the English and Dutch navies in the 17th century were new to me, for example. The impact of the Channel on the two World Wars was something I hadn’t considered, beyond Dunkirk and the D-Day landings. I also didn’t know that a Channel Tunnel had been started in the 1880s, only to be stopped by British fears of an invasion.
The Narrow Sea is an interesting book that considers the effect the Channel has had on history, politics, commerce and private lives. Well worth reading.
