Alfred Thayer Mahan Dbq

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For in war . . . the common sense of some and the genius of others sees and properly applies means to ends; and naval strategy, like naval tactics, when boiled down, is simply the proper use of means to attain ends. But in peace, as in idleness, such matters drop out of mind, unless systematic provision is made for keeping them in view.

ALFRED THAYER MAHAN

1. Alfred Thayer Mahan (1840–1914) was an American naval officer, considered one of the most important naval strategists of the nineteenth century. In 1885 he was appointed Lecturer in Naval History and Tactics at the US Naval War College, and was appointed President of the institution between 1886–1889. During this period he published the highly influential volume, The Influence …show more content…

Between 1689 and 1815 the British (or initially the English allied with the Scots) fought seven wars against France. Their navies played an important, sometimes critical, role. The statesmen of the eighteenth century generally saw war not primarily as a contest of societies but more as a contest of economies, in which victory went to the strongest, not to the “best,” and in which the chief virtue was endurance. In all the Franco-British wars of the period, including the one Britain lost, the War of American Independence, the side that could put the most “ships of the line” to sea was …show more content…

As the battles between Britain and France was analysed by AT Mahan, he concluded that a decisive victory over an opponent, rare as it was, did effect the future. Amongst the battles fought by the British and France, the Battle of Nile and Trafalgar were the most decisive in their outcome. Up until the Battle of Nile, both Britain and France did face off against each other on numerous occasions. However, rather than being a one on one Fleet to Fleet battle, it was more of a battle between coalitions and no side gained a decisive victory. The battle of Nile was considered the first decisive victory that British navy achieved against the French navy. The victory gained by Lord Nelson at Aboukir Bay resulted in the collapse of Napoleon’s invasion of Egypt and the lifting of any threat to Britain’s hold on India. Further the battle of Trafalgar did prove that a decisive victory had strategic importance in that it crippled the enemy thereby allowing Britain to act with impunity. The victory at Trafalgar won Britain an unchallenged command of the sea, in quantity and quality, materially and psychologically, over all her actual and potential enemies, which lasted long after the age of Napoleon. The victory allowed 19th-century Britain to reduce the Navy well below its present size without running any serious risks. Beyond the fall of Napoleon, the achievement of Trafalgar was to settle Britain's security for a

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