The Neptune Factor: Alfred Thayer Mahan and the Concept of Sea Power

by Nicholas A. Lambert

The Neptune Factor is the biography of an idea—the concept of “Sea Power,” a term first coined by Capt. A.T. Mahan and the core thread of his life’s work.  His central argument was that the outcome of rivalries on the seas have decisively shaped the course of modern history.  Although Mahan’s scholarship has long been seen as foundational to all systematic study of naval power, Neptune Factor is the first attempt to explain how Mahan’s definition of sea power shifted over time.    Far from presenting sea power in terms of combat, as often thought, Mahan conceptualized it in terms of economics.  Proceeding from the conviction that international trade carried across the world’s oceans was the single greatest driver of national wealth (and thus power) in history, Mahan explained sea power in terms of regulating access to ‘the common’ and influencing the flows of trans-oceanic trade.  A nation possessing sea power could not only safeguard its own trade and that of its allies but might also endeavor to deny access to the common to its enemies and competitors.    A pioneering student of what is now referred to as the first era of globalization, lasting from the late nineteenth century until the First World War, Mahan also identified the growing dependence of national economies upon uninterrupted access to an interconnected global trading system.  Put simply, access to ‘the common’ was essential to the economic and political stability of advanced societies.  This growing dependence, Mahan thought, increased rather than decreased the potency of sea power.     Understanding the critical relationship between navies and international economics is not the only reason why Mahan’s ideas remain—or rather have once again become—so important.  He wrote in, and of, a multi-polar world, when the reigning hegemon faced new challenges, and confusion and uncertainty reigned as the result of rapid technological change and profound social upheaval.  Mahan believed that the U.S. Navy owed the American people a compelling explanation of why it deserved their support—and their money.  His extensive, deeply informed, and highly sophisticated body of work on sea power constituted his attempt to supply such an explanation.   Mahan remains as relevant—and needed—today as he was more than a century ago. 

Genres: War, History, Nonfiction, Military Fiction, Economics, International Relations, Naval History

424 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 15, 2024

Reviews

[Casey · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great book, providing a revised assessment of Alfred Thayer Mahan’s theories on globalization and sea power, along with their continued relevance today. The author, noted historian Nicholas Lambert, delivers a powerful analysis of Mahan’s theories. This book points away from the focus on decisive battle to a more nuanced, economically centered vision of maritime power. Much as he did with his previous work on Britain’s WWI strategic efforts, Lambert assesses the broad topic, to include the full spectrum of Mahan’s published work and the contemporary political and financial realities around which he wrote. Lambert introduces Mahan as an economic historian focusing on the topic of maritime conflict, with a keen understanding of the political battles leading to the U.S. Navy’s growth. He argues relentlessly that Mahan was not just a doctrinaire historian of big battle fleets and decisive sea battles. Instead, Lambert shows that Mahan understood the importance of sea control in the globalized world economy of the pre-WWI era. Using maritime power (in any form) to block an adversary’s participation in this world economy was Mahan’s primary focus. A great book for understanding an alternate view of Mahan’s sea power theories. Required reading for anyone interested in the role of Navies in a globalized and fragmented world system.

[Jake Kritzer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This felt at times like a three-star read, but I’m giving it four. My criticisms are both subjective and objective, some a bit of both.

The book felt too long. 250 pages, rather than 350, seems about what I needed. There is a fair bit of repetition, and several extended and weedy multi-page sections that could have been a paragraph or two to get the main points across without unnecessary detail.

Or, within a 350-page cap, I would have liked more of the brief discussion in the epilogue about the world today and contemporary relevance of Mahan’s ideas.

However, I feel compelled to defer a fair bit the Lambert’s decisions. After all, he is the expert here, not me, and the book I wanted isn’t necessarily the book he wanted to write.

More importantly, I learned A LOT in this book. It moves among a biographical sketch of Mahan, exposition of the historical context, and a scholarly treatise of Mahan’s ideas in the context of his life and times. That weaving is uneven at times, but effective overall nonetheless. Learning about Mahan’s ideas was novel for me, and doing so in the context of his financial situation, personal relationships, national politics, and geopolitical events was even more interesting.

Ultimately, I’d recommend this book to anyone interested history, politics, and economics, especially as related to naval and maritime issues. It can feel like a slog at time, but it ain’t trying to be Harry Potter, so buck up and settle in.

[Paul · Rating 5 out of 5]

B: The Neptune Factor: Alfred Thayer Mahan and the Concept of $ea Power—From Ronald Reagan’s Notes: Chinese Proverb “The beginning of wisdom is calling things by their right name.” Mahan’s understanding or development his concept of sea power was not fully formed with his publication of “The Influence of Sea Power on History.” It matured in his later publications and interaction with the thought leaders of his day. This book should be essential reading for our national leadership because naval strategy is inseparable from political and economic strategy. Lambert’s analysis of Mahan’s understanding of his times have parallels to our current geopolitical situation. Is the economy of China vulnerable to disruption should its exports be curtailed? Is the world’s globalized economy more dependent on those exports and if so what would the economic and political ramifications be should it be disrupted by war (either over Taiwan or resources in the South China Sea)? Was Russia’s agreement to allow Ukrainian grain exports setting a precedent we may later regret? A serious read for students of strategy.

[Jeffrey Wells · Rating 5 out of 5]

https://thescif.org/book-review-the-n...

[Bob]

Should be read and re-read by every national security decision-maker. Far better reading that Mahan himself!

[Matthew N · Rating 5 out of 5]

David Lambert provides a detailed, exhaustive and inclusive analysis of Mahan and his doctrine of Sea Power. Lambert’s refreshing review of Mahan (with emphasis on Mahan’s consistent attention to economics) aptly counters long-standing unsubstantiated or inaccurate perspectives of Mahan’s doctrine, while projecting the reader to consider the new relevance his teachings have considering the current global environment. Lambert successfully deconstructs Mahan’s (somewhat confusing, seldom contradictory) literature to articulate the development and true nature of Mahan’s position on Sea Power.