About the Author

Martin Hazell first became interested in sailing barges during his last term at school when he went with a school party to Maldon for a sailing week and discovered these vessels. Later, he was for a period on the committee of the Thames Barge Sailing Club and is a member of the Society for Spiritsail Barge Research. He is now a teacher and is particularly interested in the staging of historical pageants and collaborated with the English Folk dance and Song Society in presenting a song, music and dance drama representation of the English Civil War at the Albert hall. He has collected material on the Lee and Stort Navigations in Hertfordshire and has contributed articles to specialist and local journals.