More than another Mahan, America today needs Julian Corbett, a British naval strategist from the same era who understood command of the sea involved more than just winning the decisive battle. Essential in America’s rise as a world power, he could boast of no less a disciple than Theodore Roosevelt, President, war hero, and naval advocate who could clearly see his country taking its rightful place as a great influence on maritime affairs.

Often the most quoted, his views of command of the sea as first espoused in The Influence of Sea Power on History are certainly the most emulated, not only in his home country but around the world. The Navy we have today currently espouses the tenets of Admiral Alfred Thayer Mahan, probably the most famous naval strategist in history. At the very least we could use a General Petraeus, whose winning strategy in Iraq appears to be working and whose tenets are transforming the US Army as we know it, making it more useful in a conflict consisting of light but lethal threats. Today America could use an Admiral Jackie Fisher, that eccentric but brilliant naval reformer who brought the British Royal Navy into the 20th century, finally bringing some sanity to the crisis in shipbuilding brought on by the industrial revolution giving us armored ships, steam propulsion, quick firing guns with explosive shells, and torpedoes.

World of warships mahan review