Born in France, Sir Marc Brunel escaped the guillotine during the French revolution, fleeing to America in the process. He then settled in England and filed over 18 patents. He invented the machinery that saw the first ever mass production factory, used to make pulley-blocks by machine for the Royal Navy. It could be argued that it was the development of the machinery that led to Nelson winning Trafalgar. He spent three months in a debtor's prison, was responsible for designing many improvements to the navy dockyards at Chatham and Woolwich and built the very first tunnel under the Thames at Blackwall. It is still in use today. This fascinating volume charts his eclectic life and career.