The British navy was confronted with major problems of organization and administration in the eighteenth century. This study tells how the navy built, equipped, and repaired its ships; got seamen to serve in them; fed these men and tried to keep them in health; established dockyards and bases at home and abroad; and organized a competent corps of officers. Through the framework of a detailed study of the war of 1739-1748, the most significant administrative problems are presented.Beyond this historical analysis, Professor Baugh has a wider purpose: to cast light on the character, limitations, and potentialities of eighteenth-century British public administration, which has never been studied in such detail. Until now it has seemed enough to condemn this period of British history for its inefficiency and corruption. As always, war was the most challenging task of government and the quality of British naval administration was revealed in this eighteenth-century war. Professor Baugh has been able to discern the limits of corruption and the elements promoting and obscuring reform. Through skillful exploration of previously unused manuscript sources, the author shows the degree of peacetime preparedness, the role of law and tradition in frustrating the mobilization of resources, and the ways in which government financial strength was translated into sea power.