His work The Influence of Sea Power upon History, published in 1890, established the modern US Navy doctrine of maritime predominance: the higher the naval power of a country, the greater its global impact. Mahan never let inconvenient truths get in the way of his political goals: in this case, the revitalization of U.S. Sea Power as a means of controlling a future Panama Canal and defending U.S. coastlines. [52] Revista de Marina, No. The United States must protect its domestic shipping infrastructure to access maritime trade, and the Coast Guard is the agency bearing the responsibility. Stipulating his consistent skepticism of commerce raiding as a viable policy, Mahans text actually has relatively little to say about tactics (though he sometimes digresses) or even strategy qua naval strategy. Influenced by Jomini 's principles of strategy, he argued that in the coming wars, control of the sea would grant the power to control the trade and resources needed to wage war. [79] Hughes argued that as technology changes it alters not only tactics, but also the naval-strategic principles Mahan took as constants. Democracies are good at war for many of the same reasons they are good at capitalism and at the enhancement of the human spirit. We must assume any Soviet fleet would be without sea-based air cover, because the Soviets lack carriers of sufficient size to handle such aircraft. [6] Oscar Wilde, The Canterville Ghost, The Court and Society Review (1887). In todays highly technical navies, the quality and adaptability of personnel are matters of paramount importance once the government has decided to commit itself to a course of naval development. The book was an immediate hitat least overseas. It also means that the government must allow the growth of an elite officer corps, because the naval profession demands carefully nutured expertise, not easily learned or replaced by a zealous Soviet Central Committee. Cart All. Far more enduring than his admittedly dated prescriptions on the conduct of naval war is Mahans broader theory of sea powercommerce, shipping, overseas possessions, and the means to protect themas the basis of national prosperity and influence. This page was last edited on 28 September 2021, at 05:34. Rather, it is designed point-by-point to illustrate didactically the importance of Sea Power to policymakers in the United States. that westward migration across the North American continent and the countrys a fascinating sequel to Mahan 's writings could be entitled the "influence of Mahan upon sea power." At this point we should briefly ex amine the high points in Mahan's life and career. Jahrhundert inspiriert, forderte Mahan in seinem einflussreichen Werk dazu auf, die Ozeane nicht mehr als Hindernisse, sondern als groe Verkehrsstraen zu betrachten, die es zu nutzen galt. 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). The two thinkers are often read in contrast, but in fact they are basically complimentary. He will bring great strength, endurance, and patience to his work and, on occasion, will be capable of short bursts of feverish activity. [4] All the while, the U.S. Empire, 17931812. On a daily basis, todays Coast Guard screens hundreds of foreign vessels, performs maintenance on dozens of aids to navigation, completes hundreds of commercial vessel inspections, and investigates marine casualties and accidents. [1] A.T. Mahan, The Influence of Sea Power Upon History 1660-1783 [hereafter Influence] (Boston: Little Brown and Company, 1898). Navy. Istilah Sea Power pertama kali muncul di akhir abad 19 oleh Rear Admiral Alfred Thayer Mahan dalam bukunya The Influence of Sea Power Upon History, hal.1660-1783. By Lieutenant Commander Ryan Clark, U.S. Coast Guard, CNO Naval History - Midshipmen and Cadets, CNO Naval History - Professional Historian, www.history.uscg.mil/Complete-Time-Line/Time-Line-1700-1800/, www.imo.org/en/OurWork/IIIS/Pages/Port%20State%20Control.aspx, Lieutenant Commander Ryan Clark, U.S. Coast Guard. He wrote his treatise in 1911 specifically toward that end, balancing (like Clausewitz) the ways, means, and ends of naval war. For example, the introduction of steamships in the 19th century made previously irrelevant insular possessions essential as coaling stations; saber rattling and land grabs followed. Patriotism is another Russian strongpoint. . Though steamships, like galleys, could travel against the wind, oared galleys in early-modern Europe lacked cruising range and guns, making them poor comparative examples. [46] Mahan, From Sail to Steam, 276. Seward also attempted to purchase suitable Caribbean naval bases. Click here to subscribe for full access. His biography covers an interesting span of history in the 74 years between 1840 and 1914. Sea power asaconcept means more than military power at sea. [51] William Sater, Andean Tragedy: Fighting the War of the Pacific, 1879-1884 (Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 2007). [81], For those interested in a more granular assessment of tactics and operations, Mahan pairs well with his British contemporary Julian Corbett. A further complication in the Soviet development problem is a small number of stable overseas bases- Currently, the Soviet Mediterranean force (part of tbe Black Sea Fleet) must spend a good deal of time at anchor. The timing was serendipitous: his move came just as the first of the new steel navys appropriations came into effect. It was Alfred Thayer Mahan who first coined the term "sea power.". He stated, "In general . [3] Demobilization post-1865 had left the USN with a wooden-hulled Old Steam Navy that by the 1880s was literally rotting away. Mahan conducted his basic research for Influence in the library of the English Club of Lima, Peru while he was stationed (sullenly) patrolling the Pacific coast of South America. An eye-witness report by two investigative journalists on the ground in Prato, Italy. Mahan believed that the U.S. economy would soon be unable Stephen Roberts (Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 1987). Influence in this respect is as much a warning to the United States of what happens when continental states neglect to build Sea Power. Naturally, states with numerous and deep harbors enjoy advantages over those without them. He has written articles and reviews on historical and foreign policy topics for Strategic Review, American Diplomacy, Joint Force Quarterly, the University Bookman, the Washington Times, the Claremont Review of Books, and other publications. [54] Methodological critiques aside (taken rather too exclusively from French sources *sniff*), the text earned him honorary degrees from Cambridge and Oxford, among other laurels. The terms Maritime strategy and Naval strategy have been variably defined throughout modern history. Mahan[5] defined seapower as the product of international trade and commerce, overseas bases, and merchant and naval shipping. RADM Stephen B. Luce established the Naval War College in 1884. [4] Rowan to Secretary of Navy, February 14, 1869, National Archives and Records Administration, RG-45, M-89, Roll 254. Character of the Government: Mahan shows us time and again that the path a nation takes in its climb to or fall from greatness results from the character of the government. On the other hand, the Navy finds that he needs constant motivation, direction, and supervision to overcome his tendency to idleness, his apathy, his plodding approach to work, his reluctance to exercise initiative, and his unwillingness to discipline himself. As Captain William H. J. Manthorpe wrote on page 133 of the May 1978 Proceedings: In the Soviet Navy, the authorities can depend on a young mans patriotism, his idealism, his suspicion of foreigners, and his fear of attack to make him ready to accept military service. Traditionally, the Russian Navy had been a source of political recalcitrance. Technological assimilation will come in time, as the Soviet Union continues to modernize its life-style and educate its people. 2. This tie instilled a sacred love of Mother Russia and retarded naval development. 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. China is drawing lessons from Russias invasion of Ukraine. In doing so it encourages readers to consider the text through three lenses: polemic, naval strategy, and grand strategy. [48] Mahan was struck by the effects of (supposed) Roman naval superiority on the course of the Punic Wars. In The Influence of Sea Power Upon History, Mahan reviewed the role of sea power in the emergence and growth of the British Empire. Kevin D. McCranie, Mahan, Corbett, and the Foundations of Naval Strategic Thought.Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 2021. [27] This refers not only to a states landmass (and principally whether it is insular or continental), but also to the distance between that home base, potential adversaries, or trade routes. [59] Richard W. Turk, The Ambiguous Relationship: Theodore Roosevelt and Alfred Thayer Mahan, 1987; Forging the Trident: Theodore Roosevelt and the United states Navy, ed. Fragmented groups of ships dispersed across the sea were vulnerable to attack and destruction by a larger, unified fleet. Alfred Thayer Mahan stands out as one of the foremost thinkers on naval warfare and maritime strategy. Journal Article OPEN ACCESS Naval War College Review, Vol. Consider the March 2021 grounding of the M/V Ever Given in the Suez Canal. As Mahan concludes: The overwhelming sea power of England was the determining factor in European history during the period mentioned.[14] When reading Influence today it is useful, even imperative, to differentiate sea power as a narrow military strategy from this latter, more capacious, and (I argue) Mahanianunderstanding of the term as a form of grand strategy for the organization of national resources and objectives. Wedded together, these elements greatly advantaged British political aims and regional influence. The books structure still bears some of this pedagogical DNA: readers will note a repetitive formula in the chapters as he delivered his thesis from lecture to lecture. 2.6 The key elements of a maritime strategy include sea denial, sea control and power projection: Sea Denial has the 'aim of prevention of the use of the sea' by another force against us. decline in the naval strength of its major European rivals, paved the way for Great Britains emergence as the worlds dominant military, political, and Jeremy Greenwood and Emily Miletello, To Expand the Navy Isnt Enough. [26] Note that element one of Mahans schemein pride of placeis the geographical position of the home base, that is, the territorial nation-state. The Influence of Sea Power Upon History: 1660-1783 is a history of naval warfare published in 1890 by Alfred Thayer Mahan. Relations, World Wide Diplomatic Archives 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, 1660-1783, a revolutionary analysis of the importance of naval power as a factor in the rise of the British Empire. The Netherlands, for example, created a globe-girdling merchant fleet which channeled the wealth of the world into its ports. As a matter of naval strategy, Mahans argument is relatively straightforward. Lambert resurrects the concept of seapower (one word), defining it as a form of cultural identity mixed with geopolitical ambitions that allows marginal sea states to leverage asymmetric-maritime advantages against great power hegemons. The term "dollar diplomacy" primarily referred to. Asaconcept means more than military Power at sea of the Punic Wars invasion. Review, Vol the Punic Wars Coast Guard is the agency bearing the.! 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