In the years after World War II, new guided missile technology offered surface ships the chance to destroy airborne threats from afar, thereby preserving their role in naval warfare. This book examines the technology and combat performance of Britain's guided missile destroyers over half a century.

Uniquely among modern destroyers, three of these classes have been tested in battle against the aircraft and missiles of another modern navy--in the Falklands War--and were also deployed during the Gulf War. Written by an expert on British naval technology, this book assess the changing technology of the Royal Navy's destroyers, including an examination of the Royal Navy's newest and most capable warship, the Type 45.

Edward Hampshire was educated at Magdalen College, Oxford, and King's College, London, where he gained a doctorate in war studies in 2008. He is currently a senior lecturer at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst and wrote his doctoral thesis on 1960s British naval technology. He is currently researching British defence policy of the late 1970s and 1980s, in particular the 1981 Defence Review. His publications include From East of Suez to the Eastern Atlantic: British Naval Policy 1964–70.

Paul Wright has painted ships of all kinds for most of his career, specializing in steel and steam warships from the late 19th century to the present day. Paul's art has illustrated the works of Patrick O'Brian, Dudley Pope, and C.S. Forester amongst others, and hangs in many corporate and private collections all over the world. A Member of the Royal Society of Marine Artists, Paul lives and works in Surrey.