Mahan provided a powerful argument for achieving and preserving sea power. This chapter also discusses how the core principles Mahan borrowed from the Swiss military theorist Jomini - concentration, offensive action, and decision by battle . [1] Indeed, it is likely true that no other piece of applied history has been as successful (for better or for worse) in the making and shaping of U.S. national security policy; George F. Kennans 1947 X Article comes to mind as a comparable example. Alfred Mahan Author of the influential book, The Influence of Sea Power upon History" and the father of American Imperialism Yellow Journalism Exaggerated and sensationalized reporting for the purpose of boosting sales and circulation Spanish-American War [1] A.T. Mahan, The Influence of Sea Power Upon History 1660-1783 [hereafter Influence] (Boston: Little Brown and Company, 1898). In 1890, Captain Alfred Thayer Mahan, a lecturer in naval history and the president of the United States Naval War College, published The Influence of Sea Power upon History, 16601783, a revolutionary analysis of the importance of naval power as a factor in the rise of the British Empire. While serving as a professor at the newly founded (1884) U.S. Harrison Administration (1889-1893) Secretary of the Navy Benjamin Franklin Tracy read it approvingly, seeing the book as evidence in favor of naval investment. For suspicion of Commerce Raiding, see: Mahan, Influence, 288. He identified several narrow passages or strategic chokepoints, the control of which contributed to Great Britains command of the seas. The U.S. Navy has chosen its next frigate; what will Chinas look like? The city-state's economic mandarins are signaling a return to normalcy after the waning of the COVID-19 pandemic. [39] What distinguishes Influence as grand strategy, strategy, and polemicand why it is worth reading todayis the neat thread throughout weaving evidence around Mahans central thesis: that Britain rose to preeminence in the European system as a result of Sea Power. Us, Write Armstrong, 21st Century Mahan: Sound Military Conclusions for the Modern Era (Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 2013). In a narrow sense, Influence is a specific argumenta polemicaimed at fin de sicle navalists about the necessity of expanding the United States Navy (USN). Finally, he attempted to ratify a treaty with the Colombian Government that Cart All. [16] As what Margaret Sprout called an Evangelist of Sea Power, he was remarkably successful: The Mahanian phrase has been appropriated by all the other branches of the armed services with varying degrees of fidelity (land power, air power, and surely space power is not too far off in the future). See also: David Healy, US Expansionism: The Imperialist Urge in the 1890s (Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1970), 67. N.A.M. We are working now to provide clean text files for the entire collection. Naturally, states with numerous and deep harbors enjoy advantages over those without them. As the Peoples Liberation Army Navyto name one obvious examplebuilds an increasingly capable force, the tension between Chinas identity as a continental and maritime power is an issue of global importance. The first is the confluence of (1) Production; (2) Shipping; (3) Colonies and Markets,in a word, sea power.[22] A strong national economy is the foundation of Sea Power, and that foundation grows (Mahan believes) in large part through the movement of trade over the sea. The book, largely based on Mahans lectures at the Naval War College, became the bible for many navies around the world. It relates in detail how the Navy formed and reformed its doctrine of naval force and operations around a concept articulated by Captain Alfred Thayer Mahan - a concept of offensive sea control. @media only screen and (min-device-width : 320px) and (max-device-width : 480px) { Wedded together, these elements greatly advantaged British political aims and regional influence. Rodger, Command of the Ocean: A Naval History of Britain, 1659-1815 (New York: Norton, 2005). joint resolution of Congress. [66] Charles Beard, The Navy: Defense or Portent? Kaiser Wilhelm II reportedly ordered a copy of the book placed aboard every German warship. Mahan's book became an instant success in military circles in the United . While Turner did not explicitly Mahan tells us of Sir Edward Pellew and how he put to sea in 1793 with a ship crewed by Cornish miners. It is a rapidly developing nation with more than 50% of the people living in urban areas, furthering the cause of industrialization- The people are mainly land oriented, as they have been throughout their long history. It was his second book, The Influence of Sea Power Upon History 1660-1783 (1890), however, that brought him national and international fame. Mahans most effective inquisitor in this regard has been American naval officer and educator Wayne P. 149/3/1,441. What is the value of commerce destruction, and should this be a primary or secondary goal of naval action? [79] Wayne P. Hughes, Fleet Tactics and Coastal Combat (Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 1986/2000/2018). [82] Julian Corbett, Some Principles of Maritime Strategy, (London: Longmans, Green and Co., 1918). [11] Hugues Canuel, From a Prestige Fleet to the Jeune Ecole, (2018) Naval War College Review: Vol. Real Mahanian Sea Power (capital S; capital P), is not exclusively or even primarily a function of military force. Some have argued that twentieth-century inventions like the submarine and the aircraft carrier make Mahan and his overwhelming emphasis on surface-capital ships irrelevant, but this is far too narrow a reading of the text. In subsequent articles and books, Mahan accurately envisioned the geopolitical struggles of the 20th and 21st centuries. Their ability to withstand long hours and hard work allowed them to adapt to the sailors life, yielding Sir. New Delhi has distanced itself from a controversial and unequal deal between Adani Power and the Bangladesh Power Development Board. Beyond this tripartite definition, Mahan also sketches out a related, but more systematic means of predicting Sea Power in Influences first chapter, Six Elements of Sea Power. This list is unusually explicit and does not necessarily track across the texts empirical core. In this sense, Corbett is less a repudiation of Mahan than a refinement of Mahanian logics. Letters and Papers of Alfred Thayer Mahan, Vol I-III, ed. Tactics were conditioned by changing types of naval armaments. The uncorrected text files have been included to enhance the searchability of our content, on our site and in search engines, for our membership, the research community and media organizations. New and expanding corporations had built industrial productivity to rival that of the North Atlantic Great Powers. Commercial interests increasingly looked overseas, eyeing opportunities in Latin American and East Asia, as well as the territorial infrastructure (the Panama Canal and coaling stations) necessary to exploit them. NB originally published in 1911, pre-WWI. He identified several narrow passages or strategic "chokepoints," the control of which contributed to Great Britain's command of the seas. 5. Extrapolating from the history of Northern Europe in the 17th and 18th centuries, Mahan concluded that sea powernaval superiority rooted in commercial vitality, shipping, and foreign territorial acquisitionswas the key to national power and influence. They encourage innovation, self-reliance and . Mahan was one of the foremost proponents of the vigorous foreign policy [57] Sadao Asada, From Mahan to Peral Harbor: The Imperial Japanese Navy and the United States (Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 2006), 26-27. Two years later, he completed a supplementary volume, The Influence of Sea Power upon the French Revolution and Empire, 17931812. 1867, Spanish-American War in Largely in response to these circumstances, Mahan took matters into his own hands, making a historical argument (or polemic) for naval expansion. Mahans prescience did not end there, however. Journal Article OPEN ACCESS Naval War College Review, Vol. Mahan, a naval strategist and the author of The Influence of Sea Power Upon History, argued that national prosperity and power depended on control of the world's sea-lanes. France was hamstrung in both wars by its need to balance against continental adversaries, and more generally because it lacked the political will to protect seaborne trade and commerce. who believed in sea power endorsed Mahan's doctrine. history and the president of the United States Naval War College, published The Influence of Sea Power upon History, 16601783, a In light of still more recent technical developments such as nuclear weapons, autonomous vehicles, and information technologies, it is tempting to leave the densely written Influence on the shelf, preserving it as a Victorian artifact of antiquarian value but with little or no relevance to modern-day problems. Status of the, Quarterly [69] Daniel Immerwahr, How to Hide an Empire: A History of the Greater United States (New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2019). Indeed, many contemporary maritime strategists regard the Coast Guard as a white-hulled extension of the Navy rather than the linchpin in preserving U.S. maritime trade.9. Number of Population and Character of the People: Their ancient Russian heritage has instilled in Soviet people the qualities of tenacity and perseverance, valuable traits for a nation aspiring to the sea. It details the role of sea power throughout history and discusses the various factors needed to support a strong navy.Alfred Thayer Mahan (September 27, 1840 - December 1, 1914) was a United States naval officer and historian, whom John Keegan called "the . In this sense Kennedy largely reflected Mackinders argument: Railways and the consolidation of nation states like Germany, Russia, and the United States in the late-19th century once again made land-powers the dominant actors in the international system. Allan Westcott (Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1918). Thomas Tommy Jamison isa military historian and assistant professor of strategic studies in the Defense Analysis Department at the Naval Postgraduate School. [54] Obituary, Letters and Papers of Professor Sir John Knox Laughton, 1830-1915, ed. referred to by Turner. [22] Mahan, Influence, 71. with profound social and economic consequences. Chapter 4 - Alfred Mahan "Sea Power" - Foundations of Geopolitics Foundations of Geopolitics PART 1 - Founding fathers of geopolitics Chapter 1 - Friedrich Ratzel. The book brought Mahan fame in his lifetime and ever since. of State, World War I and the Mark Russell Shulman, Navalism and the Emergence of American Sea Power (Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 1995). Exacerbating matters, he originally wrote the text as a series of lectures at the War College. 1, Article 7; Arne Roksund, The Jeune Ecole: The Strategy of the Weak (Boston: Brill, 2007); Theodore Ropp, The Development of a Modern Navy: French Naval Policy 1871-1904, ed. Deployment of ships at sea means the Soviet government must relinquish some of its cherished authority into the hands of naval officers, even though these officers are considered thoroughly dependable. John Hattendorf (Newport, RI: Naval War College Press, 1991). Explaining the political geography at the center of a serious India-China standoff in the Himalayas. A skim through John Hattenforf's bibliography of Mahan's work demonstrates the daunting nature of how voluminous his historical and international affairs writing was. Chinese military sources can tell us exactly what the PLA is learning. Patriotism is another Russian strongpoint. See also: Dingman, Japan and Mahan in The Influence of History on Mahan: The Proceedings of a Conference Marking the Centenary of Alfred Thayer Mahans The Influence of Sea Power Upon History, 1660-1783, ed. 4 (1904): 421-437. States. He is an Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, an adjunct professor of political science at Wilkes University, and a contributing editor to American Diplomacy. An eye-witness report by two investigative journalists on the ground in Prato, Italy. Hughes. 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