The Liberty Ships were the most numerous type of merchant ship built during the Second World War. An astonishing 2710 vessels were launched in less than four years, of which over 200 would be lost to enemy action. Designed to be built quickly and easily, the ability of American shipyards to turn out these vessels faster than the U-boats could sink them kept the vital transatlantic supply routes open, securing Allied victory in the Battle of the Atlantic and in the war as a whole. This book tells the complete story of this legendary ship type, from the inception of the design, through the massive production effort, unparalleled in shipbuilding history, to the wartime careers of these ships in all theatres of the war and on into peacetime. Told largely in the words of the men and women who built them and sailed in them, this book has the ring of authentic experience alongside the wider story of the ship’s development. As well as accounts of the heroism and endurance of the crews of these ubiquitious ships, it also features a full and accurate account of the potentially fatal problems of structural failure suffered by the Liberties, which for a time seemed to put the whole programme in doubt. Culminating with the efforts to preserve the last surviving examples of these great ships, this is a fascinating account of one of the greatest achievements in maritime history and a fitting tribute to all those who made and sailed on the ships that won the war.
