The History of North East Shipbuilding

Few British industries have a history as dramatic as that of British shipbuilding. From a position of inferiority at the beginning of the nineteenth century, Britain rose rapidly to become the greatest shipbuilding power in the world. Year after year Britain built four out of every five ships launched throughout the world—a remarkable achievement for heavy industry.

The era of greatness, however, gave place to difficult times. First, there was the depression of the 1920s and 1930, when ship building suffered more than any other industry. Then, since the 1950s, there was greatly intensified foreign competition. The result being that British shipbuilders accounted for only one in ten of the world’s ships. Among the ships which were the pride of the Northeast, and which added excitement to its history, are the famous Turbinia and Mauretania, and also great passenger liners like the Monarch of Bermuda, and the Northern Star. In war time, the Northeast produced great warships like the Ark Royal, and H.M.S. Agincourt. The pioneering work continued with the building of the Clerk Maxwell and the British Argosy.

What would happen in the future? In the mid-1960s, the industry was undergoing a radical evolution to meet the new challenges ahead. Would it be enough? It was difficult to tell at that stage, but in this detailed analysis of the greatest shipbuilding area in the country—the Northeast—The History of North East Shipbuilding (first published in 1968) shows the pattern of history and the possible direction of the future.