Daniel.Allen Butler author page

Daniel Allen Butler biography

Daniel Allen Butler is an American maritime and military historian and author whose books cover ocean liners, naval history and major conflicts. He was educated at Hope College, Grand Valley State University and the University of Erlangen. His work on maritime history has included studies of the Titanic, Lusitania, Cunard Line and the ocean liners Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth.

Butler is particularly associated with Unsinkable: The Full Story of the RMS Titanic, first published by Stackpole Books in 1998. Drawing on extensive research, the book follows Titanic from her conception and construction through the maiden voyage, sinking and subsequent investigations, as well as later attempts to explore and salvage the wreck. A revised edition was published in 2012.

He returned to the disaster in The Other Side of the Night: The Carpathia, the Californian and the Night the Titanic Was Lost, published by Casemate in 2009. The book concentrates on the two ships closest to the unfolding disaster and examines the actions of Carpathia captain Arthur Rostron and Californian captain Stanley Lord, together with evidence considered during the American and British inquiries.

Butler’s other maritime books include The Lusitania: The Life, Loss, and Legacy of an Ocean Legend, Warrior Queens: The Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth in World War II and The Age of Cunard. His military histories include Distant Victory: The Battle of Jutland and the Allied Triumph in the First World War, The First Jihad and The Burden of Guilt. In 2015, Casemate published his biography Field Marshal: The Life and Death of Erwin Rommel.