A book launch and lecture of ‘Crusoe’s Island: A Rich and Curious History of Pirates, Castaways and Madness’ (Faber & Faber, September 2016)

Author/Speaker: Professor Andrew Lambert

From an acclaimed naval historian, Crusoe’s Island charts the curious relationship between the British and an island on the other side of the world: Robinson Crusoe, in the South Pacific. The tiny island assumed a remarkable position in British culture, most famously in Daniel Defoe’s novel. Andrew Lambert reveals the truth behind the legend of this place, bringing to life the voices of the visiting sailors, scientists and artists, as well as the wonders, tragedy and violence that they encountered.

Andrew Lambert is Laughton Professor of Naval History in the War Studies Department, a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society and also Director of theLaughton Naval History Unit housed in the Department. His work focuses on the naval and strategic history of the British Empire between the Napoleonic Wars and the First World War, and the early development of naval historical writing. He received the 2014 Anderson Medal for The Challenge: Britain against America in the Naval War of 1812.