This was an excellent account of naval history of the Clipper Age! I received an ARC copy of this from NetGalley. I read quite a bit of history and this filled in knowledge gaps for me. The writing was absolutely terrific. This is, I believe, the author's first work but you would definitely not know that by reading this. Fans of history of the seas will no doubt enjoy this read. Definitely recommend.

Steven Ujifusa, a talented writer of nautical literature, has penned a classic history of nineteenth century sea trade. “Barons of the Sea” is about the battle between American trade merchants and their attempts to dominate the Chinese tea and opium market. It’s the story of shipbuilders, sea captains, and aggressive merchants who were determined to capture the immense profits to be gained from the exchange with China.

Ujifusa chronicles it from February 1784, when the “Empress of China” sailed from New York to Canton and returned, 14 months later, filled with cargo that sold for gigantic profits. This started a rush by young American entrepreneurs to develop partners, routes, and ships that would eventually create great wealth and power. American shipyards began building vessels designed to be faster and capable of carrying more cargo than their predecessors to take advantage of early season marketing that produced the biggest profits. Bigger and faster became the obsession.

It was these “clipper” ships that became the secret to gaining advantage over others engaged in the same enterprise. The aggressive and bold merchants and ship owners, mostly New Englanders, and related to each other in some manner, risked huge sums of money in trying to outdo each other at dominating the trade. Ship builders, at great expense, were contracted with to build the fastest and most reliable vessels possible. Ship captains, selected for their efficiency, if not their humanity, were employed and charged with making sure shipments were delivered as needed.

Ujifusa uses remarkable research abilities and crisp, clear narrative to take the reader inside the mysteries of dealing with crafty Chinese merchants, shipbuilding skills that create every curve of a ship’s skeleton to produce superior performance capabilities, and a shrewd knowledge of delivering goods that entice huge profits from a slavering public. It’s a vivid account of intriguing characters, aggressive marketing, and innovative technology from a bygone era.

Ujifusa strikes a chord in those of us who are armchair voyagers or lovers of history that resonates with adventure and danger. There’s something for everyone in his book. Brutal ship masters, hardscrabble living conditions, fragile ships that challenge the power of the sea, fortunes made or lost in the blink of an eye, genteel living in gorgeous Hudson River mansions, family intrigue, loyalty, and dissension; the author delivers it all in riveting prose. Don’t miss a word of it.

Today people are fascinated by the "Tall Ships" when they come into a port- people come from miles around to walk their decks and imagine what it might have been like to sail the open waters in these small (to us) wooden ships with their giant sails. But it wasn't all that long ago that these ships ruled the waves. Barons of the Sea tells the uniquely American story of the race to build bigger and faster clipper ships in search of money and fame.

The first part of Barons sets the stage for the building race by giving the reader an intimate look at early 1800s shipping in China. Confined to one port, allowed to deal only with a few specific Chinese individuals, British and American trading was a young bachelor's game- building connections, working hard, playing hard. Americans followed the British lead of smuggling opium into China, then using the money from those sales to buy large shipments of goods like tea to bring back to New York or Boston and sell for often huge profits. I had never read anything specific on the trade, the attempts of the Chinese to stop the opium shipments, or the Opium Wars that followed and was fascinated by the story. Just as interesting was following the few young men Barons focuses on, men who became some of the first millionaires in America. With names like Low, Aspinwall, Forbes, and Delano, men whose children and grandchildren would build universities, rule society, and become politicians (you may have heard of at least one, Franklin Delano Roosevelt), those stories all begin with the opium trade.

The close knit band of friends and rivals from China came back to America to build their families and send others back to China to increase the company fortunes. But they recognized that the faster a shipment could reach America, the more money they would make. So began the golden age of clipper ship building, as each tried to break the speed records of the other, adjusting ship designs to get as much speed as possible while still fitting large consignments of goods in the hulls. When the gold rush sent thousands rushing to California, these same men knew that whoever could get to San Fransisco fastest would earn the most money, as basic goods in California were selling for five to ten times the price they were on the East Coast.

Barons fo the Sea is an interesting exploration of the 19th century trading and economic battles through the focus on a handful of leading men and their daring captains who attempted the dangerous voyages. Those interested in maritime history, 19th century America, and early trading in China will especially appreciate the careful research and writing of this fascinating look into American history.

Barons of the Sea is a bit of an odd mix. Its focus shifts from the history of the China tea-and-opium trade; to the commercial history of the American companies involved in such; to the biographies and personalities of the American individuals so involved; to the design, building, and histories of the "China clippers; and to the personalities, biographies, and commercial histories of the designers and builders of the clippers. It's a bit too much and too disjointed. I was expecting a history more focused on the ships themselves, and found the personal biographies of the businessmen tiresome after awhile.

I'm always a bit cautious when a little-known author is compared to a well-known one. Just because a publisher says that Steven Ujifusa writes like David McCullough or Ron Chernow (two of my favorite authors) doesn't make it so! In this case, however, the comparison is not a stretch. Ujifusa is an excellent writer, and he picked a fascinating subject. His story covers not just the design, building, and races of the clipper ships, but their purpose. Much of the book is devoted to a historical examination of the China trade in the mid-1800's, along with the colorful characters who made and lost fortunes in that trade. You may not be particularly interested in ships or sailing (I'm not), but if you like well-written history, the odds are good that you'll enjoy <i>Barons of the Sea</i>.

I received a digital copy of this book for free from the publisher and was not required to write a positive review.

Very interesting history of the clipper ship era, and the competition between merchants to have the fastest vessels to deliver goods first. It's an area that I knew very little about.

I think I was expecting more about building new types of clippers than about the history of the people who engaged in the China trade. I lost interest about halfway through.

What an amazing read! It gives such a great picture of the shipping barons and the lengths they would go to in order to be the fastest delivery agents in order to make their fortune. These were all self-made men who's families would turn into dynasties.