The Interest of America in Sea Power, Present and Future

by Alfred Thayer Mahan

Alfred Thayer Mahan (1840-1914) was a United States Navy officer, geostrategist, and educator. His ideas on the importance of sea power influenced navies around the world, and helped prompt naval buildups before World War I. Despite his success in the Navy, his skills in actual command of a ship were not exemplary, and a number of vessels under his command were involved in collisions. On the other hand, the books he wrote ashore made him arguably the most influential naval historian. In 1885, he was appointed lecturer in naval history and tactics and the Naval War College. Before entering on his duties, Mahan was pointed to write his future studies and lectures on the influence of sea power. He organized his lectures into his most influential books, The Influence of Sea Power upon History, 1660-1783 (1890). To a modern reader his emphasis on sea-borne commerce may seem commonplace, but the notion was much more radical in Mahan's time. His other works The Interest of America in Sea Power, Present and Future (1897) and Types of Naval Officers (1902).

Genres: History, Military Fiction, Military History

140 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1897

About the author

Alfred Thayer Mahan was a United States Navy flag officer, geostrategist, and historian, who has been called "the most important American strategist of the nineteenth century." His concept of "sea power" was based on the idea that countries with greater naval power will have greater worldwide impact; it was most famously presented in his 1890 book The Influence of Sea Power Upon History, 1660–1783. The concept had an enormous influence in shaping the strategic thought of navies across the world, especially in the United States, Germany, Japan and Britain, ultimately causing the World War I naval arms race. His ideas still permeate the U.S. Navy Doctrine.

Reviews

[Miles Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

A collection of essays by Mahan of rather uneven quality. I've given it three stars for the simply reason that the first three fifths of the includes essays are clear offerings of the progressive imperialist intellectual tradition and the United States Navy's place in the diplomatic and political conceptualizations in progressive intellectuals and policy-makers of the era. The last part of the book are wordy essays centered on geopolitical minutiae.