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Chris Sams

@jerijerod14.bsky.social
3.6K followers 420 following 1.1K posts

World War 1 & 2 Naval historian, also likes RAF bombers & the Luftwaffe between 1935-45. Working on Bristol Beauforts & WW1 U-boats. linktr.ee/jerijerod14

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Reposted by Chris Sams
Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
In 1853 the Russian navy defeated the Ottoman fleet anchored at Sinop. They managed to avoid the shore defences and used shells to decimate wooden ships for the first time. This week’s free to read; jerijerod14.substack.com/p/russia-vic... #history #navalhistory
jerijerod14.substack.com
Russia victorious
The Russian fleet’s sweeping victory at Sinop in 1853
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Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
To be honest I still enjoy the writing and research process. I’ve also got not much else going on so it keeps me out of trouble and off the Xbox!
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Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
My average week as a history content creator on Substack 🤣
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Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
In 1853 the Russian navy defeated the Ottoman fleet anchored at Sinop. They managed to avoid the shore defences and used shells to decimate wooden ships for the first time. This week’s free to read; jerijerod14.substack.com/p/russia-vic... #history #navalhistory
jerijerod14.substack.com
Russia victorious
The Russian fleet’s sweeping victory at Sinop in 1853
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Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
I kept procrastinating on getting one and eventually my Mum just bought it for me last winter. It is amazing, absolute God send - my flat doesn’t have decent heating (can’t afford it either) so the throw has been great!
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Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
Absolutely! I grew up with not much money so got used to the cold and if I do feel it I immediately reach for the sofa blanket, jumpers, thick socks and worse case scenario - hot water bottle 🤣
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Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
To be fair it is a tad chilly today…
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Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
This week’s podcast is out - three ships you’ve probably never heard of doing things you probably have. podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/m... #history #navalhistory
podcasts.apple.com
Ratler, Racehorse and Chatham
Podcast Episode · Maritime History with Chris Sams (live and unplugged) · 7 October · 23min
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Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
I have a lot of opinions and things to say about IWM and its journey, especially in the 13 years I was there - I won’t though because I like a quiet timeline 😉
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Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
This week’s free to read is out: The Second Boer War in some pictures jerijerod14.substack.com/p/picture-ar... #history
jerijerod14.substack.com
Picture article: The Second Boer War
I’m going to be honest - time is short this week so I’m throwing something short together but hopefully interesting.
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Reposted by Chris Sams
Steve Mortimer @plymouthsea.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
And the Theseus log says that a torpedo was also fired at her. It was only when she tried to warn Hawke that a U-boat was in the area, and got no reply, that they feared she'd been lost.
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Reposted by Chris Sams
Steve Mortimer @plymouthsea.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
After Hawke was sunk, Weddigen was awarded The Blue Max.
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Steve Mortimer @plymouthsea.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
A few interesting points to make: because she was a training ship before the outbreak of war, she still had many boys onboard. 55 of the crew who dies were under the age of 18. The youngest was just 14.
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Steve Mortimer @plymouthsea.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
An interesting package. Working under the direction of Lost In Waters Deep, my Dive Team The Gasperados found the wreck of HMS Hawke in 2024. Have a look at lostinwatersdeep.co.uk/hms-hawke.html for lots of info on the men who were lost.
lostinwatersdeep.co.uk
HMS HAWKE
Sponsors (click on logo) We would like to thank all our sponsors for helping to keep our website live  ​
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Reposted by Chris Sams
The Great War Group @thegreatwargroup.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Admiral Reinhard Scheer born this day. Admiral of the Imperial German Navy and later Chief of Naval Staff. He led the German Navy at the Battle of Jutland. After the war accepted an invitation from Jellicoe to meet and discuss Jutland. He died before the trip. #WW1 #FWW #GreatWar #Germany #Jutland
Black and white photo of Admiral Scheer in his uniform. Turned slightly to his right. Chest filled with decorations. Dark uniform with stark white collar. Closely cropped mustache.
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Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
I forgot to say - this week’s podcast is available where ever you get them or here… open.spotify.com/episode/3PuK... It follows the sinking of HMS Hawke in October 1914.
open.spotify.com
“The control of the sea in this area of the North Sea had passed to the submarine”
Maritime History with Chris Sams (live and unplugged) · Episode
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Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Right… manuscript for book 3 is done and sent to the publishers… Next up is editing and indexing. So what have I missed in the last nine months?
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Reposted by Chris Sams
RN ship losses @rnshiplosses.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
24 Sept 1782 // 74-gun 3rd-rate HMS Centaur sank off Newfoundland in the storm known as the Central Atlantic Hurricane. Over 400 men died. Centaur's captain and 11 men survived after an epic voyage of 400 miles to the Azores in an open boat. (Image: Wikimedia Commons) #RoyalNavy #NavalHistory
'A View of the Sea on the Morning after the Storm, with the distressed situation of the Centaur, Ville de Paris and the Glorieux as seen from the Lady Juliana, the Ville de Paris passing to Windward under close reef'd Topsails': print, 1783. Royal Museums Greenwich, public domain image courtesy Wikimedia Commons.
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Nick Le Huray @nickleh.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
If you want to learn more about my book, “Tides of Defiance” which deals with escapes from the Channel Islands, check out this interview. Also details of how to get a copy. nicklehuray.com/book/
nicklehuray.com
Book
My first book “Tides of Defiance” was published in May 2026. The book tells the story of those that attempted to escape from the German Occupied Channel Islands. If you want to find out…
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Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
This week’s podcast is out - why did Canada buy two submarines on the eve of #ww1? open.spotify.com/episode/652f... #history #navalhistory
open.spotify.com
Why Canada bought two Submarines in 1914
Maritime History with Chris Sams (live and unplugged) · Episode
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Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
The crew of SM U-9 following the sinking of Hogue, Aboukir and Cressey. They were one of two crews to serve on an Iron Cross awarded vessel (the other was Emden). 2. KptLt Otto Weddigen 3. The First watch officer Johannes Spieß #ord #ww1 #navalhistory #history
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Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Though three of the six ships of the class were sunk there were still three more in service. If you ever wondered what happened to them… jerijerod14.substack.com/p/the-other-... #navalhistory #ww1 #history
jerijerod14.substack.com
The other Cresseys
A while back I wrote an overview of the Gazelle and Bremen class cruisers of the German Navy and I thought, for balance, I should do one for the Royal Navy and settled on the Cressey class Armoured cr...
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Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
#otd 1914 the armoured cruisers Hogue, Aboukir and Cressey are sunk on SM U-9 in forty minutes killing over 1400 men and demonstrating how effective submarines could be. #history #ww1 #NavalHistory
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Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Just found out I got a really good review of German raiders on the Naval Review website. www.naval-review.com/book-reviews...
naval-review.com
German Raiders of the First World War: Kaiserliche Marine Cruisers and the Epic Chases - The Naval Review
208 pages
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Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Yeah they are going to see some conservation at Chatham Dockyard before going on display outside until a permanent home can be found.
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Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
The outside
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Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
The outside
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Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
It might have been the base of the mast and they’ve cut just above it
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Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Yeah they will be put on display between the Gannet and Ocelot - I’ve submitted a few pictures if they wanted them for the display. As soon as they come up I’ll see what I can do 😉
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Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
That is reportedly the inside - when they appear at Chatham I’ll see if I can get to see them asap and take photos 😉
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Legend @fubarrockchick.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
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Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
Again pictures lifted from Facebook but… the first mast of the Richard Montgomery has been removed and the second shot shows the inside of the mast. “No boom today… boom tomorrow, there’s always boom tomorrow”
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Kent @kentuk.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
The forgotten sea tragedy which killed hundreds #Kent #BBCNews
bbc.co.uk
The Victorian ship sinking which killed hundreds off Kent coast
In 1873, passengers of the Northfleet died after it was hit by a steamer off the coast of Dungeness.
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Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
This week’s free to read article follows the career of the Polish destroyer Burza during #ww2 jerijerod14.substack.com/p/the-lost-m... #history #navalhistory
jerijerod14.substack.com
The lost Museum ship
The life and death of ORP Burza
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Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
I’m on a hill and on the first floor so my kitchen window is open 😉
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Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
They are taking the masts off because they are worried they might collapse on to the ship and blow up… ignoring the fact that machinery might cause the ship to… blow up
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Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
No but the tidal wave that hits Gillingham may be a bit of an imbuggeration - especially if I’m at work at the dockyard 🤣
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Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
Well they’ve started on the Richard Montgomery… (Photo’s are not mine but taken from a FB group) Might be a very wet weekend if something goes wrong 😉
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Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Mine would ask why I wasn’t in Canada, why is there not more Star Wars and then ask if I finally got a girlfriend. “Son… have I got a story to tell you” 🤣
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Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
It is a pretty unglamorous job toiling away in the dark and red hot heat with no idea what is happening up top and with low survivability if worse comes to worse. I must admit it took a lot longer than it should have to get the Dracula thing 🤣
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Chris Kempshall @chriskempshall.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Star Wars: Star Pilots releases in exactly two weeks here in the UK! Still time for you to pre-order and have Wedge Antilles land on your doorstep for day one: geni.us/StarWarsStar...
geni.us
Star Wars Star Pilots by Chris Kempshall: 9798217305841 | PenguinRandomHouse.com: Books
Wedge Antilles – hero, warrior, star pilot. The only rebel to face two Death Stars and live to tell the tale. Wedge confronted death countless times, in battles large and small, where split-second...
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Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
This week’s free to read is the story on the life of an average woman living her life in #Medway at the turn of the 20th century. Putting a life into focus from the words on a grave stone. #history jerijerod14.substack.com/p/a-life-beh...
jerijerod14.substack.com
A life behind the gravestone
The hard life of Mary Ann Williams
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Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
This week’s #podcast looks at whether the Battle of the #Falklands was that important. #history #ww1 #navalhistory jerijerod14.substack.com/p/was-the-fa... Or wherever you get your podcasts
jerijerod14.substack.com
Was the Falklands that important?
The defeat of von Spee and the bigger picture
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Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
I was asked by the publishers to write a short blog about the book I’m writing (nearly finished). You can find it here 😊 www.pen-and-sword.co.uk/blog/beyond-... #ww2 #history
pen-and-sword.co.uk
Beyond the Spitfire: The Forgotten Story of the Beauforts of Coastal Command - Pen & Sword Blog
Author guest post from Chris Sams. The Second World War is probably the most written about subject in history with new books coming out year
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Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
She seems to have spent most of her time in Scapa as part of the Grand Fleet but missed Jutland and Dogger Bank but conducted a few sweeps or responded to German bombardments of the coast.
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Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
Hey sorry for the delay! Unfortunately the only book I have on the experiences of a stoker in war time is about the light cruiser Dresden. Have you had a look on the IWM Sound archive? I can have a trawl through when I get home from work this evening if it helps.
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Chris Sams @jerijerod14.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
It was always going to be an inevitable evolution of weapons but part of me finds it disconcerting- maybe I have watched too many movies!
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The TrumpRussiaGuide 🇺🇸🇺🇦 @trumprussiaties.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
'First-ever battle' — Ukrainian naval drone destroys Russian unmanned boat in Black Sea, Navy says kyivindependent.com/first-ever-b...
kyivindependent.com
'First-ever battle' — Ukrainian naval drone destroys Russian unmanned boat in Black Sea, Navy says
The Russian drone was destroyed by a Ukrainian Sargan 3000 unmanned boat, equipped with a 12.7-mm Protector remote weapons station, according to the Navy, marking a historic first battle between marin...
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Roger Litwiller -Canadian Naval Author/Historian @rogerlitwiller.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
#OTD 13/9/1942 #RememberRCN -While escorting Convoy ON-127, HMCS ST CROIX attacks U-411, after U-boat fired a torpedo and missed one of the other escorts. Depth Charges damage U-411, forcing U-boat to break off attack on convoy and return to port for repair.
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Dan P @danieljphelan.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
“He died that others might live.” Very heavy words, carved into the headstone of a soldier who was only 16 years old. A simple epitaph, but an extraordinarily powerful reminder of the sacrifice made by so many young men during the First World War. 📍Peronne Road Cemetery 🇫🇷
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