The Clyde at War

The major air base at Prestwick, the centre for commando training at Inveraray, the terminal point for Atlantic convoys at the Tail of the Bank and of course the Gare Loch, the major British military port of the Second World War, were all of vital significance to the Allied cause. On both banks of the river the ships that fed and protected Britain were launched – from the mighty Hood, most famous of all Britain’s warships, to the humble escort and convoy vessels which ferried supplies and men back and forth across the Atlantic. It was also the scene of human tragedy in the form of the Clydebank and Greenock blitzes. Told primarily through numerous period photographs – including those taken by Luftwaffe reconnaissance missions – and with reference to a wide variety of sources written sources, this book is a magnificent picture of a nation at war and the mighty river which was its lifeline.