RSS Feed

The Dear Surprise Archive

The Two Greatest Uses of Trash Talk in the History of (Naval) Warfare

As I’ve mentioned a few times (here, here, here and here), I’m a huge fan of Cracked.com. I love them because they’re hilarious, but also because they seem to have three or four people on staff dedicated solely to writing historically themed articles, and those three or four people always manage to inform me about things I didn’t [...]
Read More
Eyewitness Account of the Siege of Gibralter (Never Before Published)

The following is a newly translated and never before published (in English and/or in the last century, anyway) set of letters describing the Siege of Gibralter from the Devon Records Office. Very exciting Ref No: 346M/F/160 – 1782 – ‘Noticias de Europa y America’, manuscript book in Spanish describing the siege of Gibraltar Letter written in [...]
Read More
The 7 Most Terrifying Pirates From History

As I’ve mentioned a few times (here, here and here), I’m a huge fan of Cracked.com. I love them because they’re hilarious, but also because they seem to have three or four people on staff dedicated solely to writing historically themed articles, and those three or four people always manage to inform me about things [...]
Read More
Submit Your Questions About Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World!

Since starting this site I’ve had the privilege and very great honor to meet a few people associated with the filming of Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World, and without exception all of them have been so nice and so willing to connect with fans. Recently I was contacted by Captain Andrew Reay-Ellers, [...]
Read More
Patrick O’Brian Cruise

I came across this information recently and thought I would share it, just on the off-chance any of you happen to be obscenely wealthy (in which case I congratulate you). The Annemarie Victory Organization specializes in luxury cruises and tours, often organized around a specific theme. One of their upcoming cruises takes place on a [...]
Read More
British Naval Supremacy: Some Factors Newly Considered

“As for a man-of-war, it is either an autocracy or it is nothing, nothing at all – mere nonsense. You saw what happened to the poor French navy at the beginning of the Revolutionary War…” – Jack Aubrey to Stephen Maturin, The Yellow Admiral British Naval Supremacy: Some Factors Newly Considered By Mitch Williamson Strategic [...]
Read More
Three Insanely Advanced (Naval) Weapons History Somehow Forgot About

As I’ve mentioned a few times (here and here), I’m a huge fan of Cracked.com. I love them because they’re hilarious, but also because they seem to have three or four people on staff dedicated solely to writing historically themed articles, and those three or four people always manage to inform me about things I [...]
Read More
Horatio Hornblower Miniseries Pt. 2: The Examination For Lieutenant

Still serving aboard the HMS Indefatigable, Horatio Hornblower has been promoted to acting Lieutenant. Neutral Spain has concluded a peace treaty with France and the British now have another enemy to face. They soon come across a sunken British supply ship and rescue its Captain, ‘Dreadnought’ Foster, a man with a reputation for bravery that [...]
Read More
A Mince Pie Recipe For Christmas At Sea

This recipe was taken from the amazing book Lobscouse and Spotted Dog, and will lead to an historically accurate (more or less) reproduction of a traditional Christmas mince pie such as Jack Aubrey might have eaten on his travels to remind himself of home during the holiday season… Or such as he might have wished to [...]
Read More
A Master and Commander Sequel, For All Love!

If you’re anything like me, you’d KILL for a “Master and Commander” sequel. Russell Crowe recently said (via Twitter) that if we want this sequel, the best thing to do is Email Tom Rothman at 20th Century Fox. Well, his Email address is rothmana@fox.com. Alternatively, you can tweet your request to @20thCenturyFox, if Twitter is [...]
Read More

All To Seek: Cross-Reference

Subjects Commonly Addressed