Although there have been military, social, and labor histories examining sailors, this book employs the methods of cultural history to systematically integrate Jack Tar, the common seaman, into larger narratives about British national identity. If, as it has been argued, “Britishness” was defined in terms of one’s contribution to military efforts, why did sailors experience so much difficulty winning acceptance as Britons? Why was that acceptance delayed until the mid-nineteenth century? In pursuit of this aim, Land develops a new approach to sailors that moves beyond earlier historical work on maritime culture.