This html article is produced from an uncorrected text file through optical character recognition. Prior to 1940 articles all text has been corrected, but from 1940 to the present most still remain uncorrected. Artifacts of the scans are misspellings, out-of-context footnotes and sidebars, and other inconsistencies. Adjacent to each text file is a PDF of the article, which accurately and fully conveys the content as it appeared in the issue. The uncorrected text files have been included to enhance the searchability of our content, on our site and in search engines, for our membership, the research community and media organizations. We are working now to provide clean text files for the entire collection.
The year 1980 witnessed a resurgence of interest in an aspect of naval history often ignored by scholars and students alike—the area of naval policy planning and administration. For nearly half a century, naval scholars have depended on two venerable classics in this subject area: Harold and Margaret Sprout’s Rise of American Naval Rower (1939) and the series of Proceedings articles by Charles O. Paul- lin published between 1906 and 1914 that are collectively known as Paullin’s History of Naval Administration, published in book form in 1968. It is a pleasure to report that the former of these two classics has been reprinted and that there are three new and important books on this general subject.
In Rise of American Naval Power, the Sprouts, husband and wife scholars at Princeton, depended heavily on government records to illustrate the continuing struggle to define an American naval policy and to build a fleet capable of supporting that policy. It is a book heavily steeped in the Maha- nian tradition, and indeed, the final chapter is little short of a call to arms to enable America to deal with the storm clouds that were then gathering over Europe. It is still an important book, and naval scholars should be grateful for this reprint, but it is also a book which has some serious shortcomings.
Most obvious is its strong Mahanian outlook. The authors begin with the assumption that all pro-navy policies are necessarily progressive and all opponents to such policies obstructionists. While this was almost literally true in 1939 when the book was first published, it is not universally applicable to other periods of history when the policy issue was not so much whether to build a navy at all as it was what kind of a navy to build. [EDITOR'S NOTE: Professor Symonds’ new hook. Navalists and Antinavalists, the Naval Policy Debate in the United States, 1785-1827, published this year by the University of Delaware Press, takes issue with the Sprouts on this and other topics. ]
How policy decisions are made both inside and outside the halls of Congress is the subject of Robert G. Albion’s Afakers of Naval Policy, 17981947. Originally written while Albion was Director of Administrative History from 1948 to 1950, the manuscript was considered too controversial and its publication was cancelled. Fortunately, the manuscript did not languish unread in the three decades after 1950; Albion placed a copy in the Harvard library and photocopies were subsequently purchased by the libraries at Princeton and the Naval War College where scholars found the manuscript full of insight and valuable information about decision-making and policy formulation. Ably edited by Rowena Reed (Combined Operations in the Civil War, Naval Institute Press, 1978), that manuscript has now been rescued from its long academic imprisonment.
Albion proceeds on his project both topically and chronologically. The first eight chapters concern bureaucratic procedure and the strategy and tactics of naval legislation. The next 19 are chronological and deal with policymaking in various historical eras with emphasis on the 20th century. Though the volume ends with defense unification in 1947, it is strongest precisely where the Sprouts’ book comes to an end, from 1918 to 1947- Throughout the book, Albion makes11 careful distinction between interna* and external policies. Internal policies, he tells us, are those which concern the size and makeup of the navy, and external policies are those which concern the use of the navy in peace and war. Thus, internal policy decreed what the navy should be, while external policy determined what the navy should do. While this distinction may be useful in such an analyst these two aspects of naval policy are interdependent: decisions regarding what you want your navy to do generally determine the number and type ships you build. Somewhat unfortunately, Albion eschews objectivity W categorizing policymakers in terms d their contribution to the U. S. Navi (“Jefferson was the worst . . . Wils°n was the best.’’). Nevertheless, Albion’s book makes a substantial contribution to our understanding of ho'4' naval policy is formulated.
Two other books in this category which deserve high praise are collec' tions of biographies edited by Naval Academy history professors. Pad0 Coletta—with K. Jack Bauer and Albion—has edited a long-awaited collection of biographies of the Ameri' can Secretaries of the Navy. It is a massive work, two volumes and 1,02$ pages long, and no doubt will be used as a reference work by historians rather than as general reading. Twenty-one different contributors have authored essays on the 60 secretaries from Benjamin Stoddert to John Chafee. As one might expect, the more recent secretaries, particularly those with wartime responsibilities or controversial policies, have much more space allotted
The Chiefs of
naval operations
llnsfcTorSpii I’tmtT
A Bhijtjupljyif Hat Admiral B last I. Kim
BlackBatdefleet
Admiral GA Balard
Offices of Stale
yThom
THE
RELUCTAHT
ADMIRAL
Yamamoto and the Imperial Navy HIROYUKIAGAWA
BATTLESHIP 1 BISMARCK
Ulinl by
SftVHlN IUKIKA, |K
A Survivor'* Story
u
N. A. M. RODGER
IxeNvod by Mmmj d ilw Flea the Earl Mourtxmon of Birnxi
i,
t
al
s,
■n
,d
:d
ie
in
s,
re
'i
!■
of
V
>y
of
<1
in
k
r
ry
°. tllerr> than the early secretaries , ose Jot’s were much simpler and th °Se Sta^s couId often be counted on e fingers of a single hand. Each tafiter begins with very brief bio- firaphical data and then concentrates oavily on the individual’ s tenure as JgCretary cfie Navy. Among those 'serving special praise are the chap- ^fS <>n Benjamin Stoddert (by John J. ^arr*gg), Gideon Welles (by John Ni- ^etlb Josephus Daniels (by Paolo Col ,ttab and James V. Forrestal Joseph Zikmund).
to K SOme ways a companion volume 1 e collection on American Secretaries ^ ^avy *s the volume on American Ief of Naval Operations edited by k° trt William Love, Jr. There have c^6n °nly 19 CNOs, and thus, each apter is somewhat more detailed a^‘ln che essays in the work described th°Ve’ eVen though Love’s book is less an half the length. Covering every 2 ° from William S. Benson to Elmo
(by
-Urnvvalt, the authors have brought eir Subjects to life. Love’s own essay
th,
al
lo
td
d
i
S'
’8
:d
e<
ye
J
r
ie
e-
ye
al
d
(jn ^fimiral King and the long chapter J1 Admiral Burke by David Rosen- ^rg deserve special mention because |. ^ are based on previously unpub- to data and break new ground, oe interest in administrative naval lst°ry also received a healthy boost tCross the Atlantic with the publica- '>n °f N. A. M. Rodger’s history of AJn'.n*strat*on 'n the Royal Navy, The . n,Iralty. Rodger is a young scholar ‘fir a flair for the well-turned phrase, 0 he manages to bring humor and e t0 a topic that is difficult to morize. But his was a gargantuan as ’• the British office of the Ad- lralty had its roots in the Middle 8es> and Rodger pursues an epic
story from the age of Henry VIII through five centuries in a mere 158 pages. As a result, the pace is somewhat frantic and much detail is omitted, but this brevity has its advantages too—the sweep through time allows the reader to comprehend the development of the Admiralty system better than would be possible in a longer work.
Another area that remained extremely popular in 1980 was that of naval operations in World War II. In 1978, in this column, Professor Jack Sweetman bemoaned the dearth of new naval biographies. Two of this year’s Notable Naval Books will provide at least a partial answer to his plea. Curiously, the two biographies are both about commanders in chief of naval forces in World War II. Thomas Buell follows up the success of The Quiet Warrior (Spruance [Naval Institute Press/Little, Brown, 1974]) with a new biography of Ernest J. King, the crusty, often profane, and always tough wartime CNO of the U. S. Navy. Buell’s account, entitled Master of Sea Power, is not unsympathetic to King, but no accurate history of King’s life could fail to include mention of his irascibility and curtness. It was Samuel Eliot Morison who first wrote that King was reputed to have shaved with a blowtorch, and Buell brings definition to that image in this fine book.
•The second biography is also of a wartime commander in chief, King’s Japanese counterpart. Admiral Yamamoto Isoroku. The Reluctant Ad- tniral by Hiroyuki Agawa, published in Japan in 1969, was translated into English by John Bester for this American edition. At first glance,
Ernest J. King and Yamamoto Isoroku may appear to have had very little in common save for their enmity during World War II. Yet, both men recognized early the importance of naval aviation and fought against the “gun clubs” in their respective services for the recognition of naval air power. Both were enthusiastic womanizers and fond of card games. Both inspired respect and occasionally fear in their subordinates.
There is, however, an important difference. Those readers of Agawa’s biography of Yamamoto who are unfamiliar with Japanese culture will not be sure how much of what they read about Yamamoto is the reflection of a unique personality and how much is the product of the culture in which he lived. His professional environment was vastly different from that of American naval officers. King, hot tempered as he was, never had to worry seriously about being poisoned or shot by army officers and never had to issue orders for a ready landing force to thwart an army-sponsored coup d'etat.
Another notable contribution to the understanding of the naval leaders of World War II and of the postwar era is Admiral Arthur W. Radford’s autobiography, From Pearl Harbor to Vietnam. Radford compiled a massive manuscript (some 2,000 typed pages), and it was edited and brought to press by Stephen Jurika, Jr. Unfortunately, Radford has not been well served by his editor. Jurika fails to correct several small errors in spelling and fact. (For example, the famous padding after Nimitz' message to Halsey during the Battle of Leyte Gulf is rendered as “All the World Wants to
COMBAT FLEETS OF THE WORLD 1980 81:
Their Ships, Aircraft, and Armament
American
Battleships
1886-1923---- ;
Edited by Jean Labayle O'
Know” rather than “The World Wonders.”) Even so, this is a splendid memoir, and the reader finds himself carried along with Radford through the China Sea in World War II, the unification struggle in 1947, the B-36 controversy, Korea, and Radford’s tenure as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in the 1950s.
Finally, still in the realm of autobiographical histories of World War II, there is Baron Burkard von Miillenheim-Rechberg’s account of the German Battleship Bismarck, appropriately subtitled A Survivor’s Story. Miillenheim-Rechberg was the after gunnery officer on the Bismarck during her famous and ill-fated sortie into the North Atlantic in 1941. Translated into English by Jack Sweetman, it is an exciting and engrossing tale and helps complete the story of this famous World War II battleship. The account begins with the Bismarck still on the building ways at Hamburg and follows the ship, her captain, and her crew on the fateful voyage to her final resting place. The book is replete with photographs and charts, including dramatic action photos of the sinking of the Hood and the final British torpedo attack that doomed the Bismarck.
Another area of continuing interest which is well represented in this year’s Notable Naval Books is that of naval technology: the specifics of what Albion would call “internal policy,” the design and configuration of warships. First there is The Black Battlefleet by Admiral G. A. Ballard, Royal Navy, who in the 1920s and 1930s was a prolific contributor to the Mariner's Mirror, the British journal of maritime history. His observations on the mid-Victorian navy were full of insight and detail, and N. A. M. Rodger (author of The Admiralty, discussed earlier) and G. A. Osborn have collected the best of these essays into this superb pictorial and analytical history of the Royal Navy in the Victorian Age with special emphasis on the construction characteristics of the ships themselves.
For an analysis of the U. S. Navy during this same time period, there is American Battleships. 1886-1923. John Reilly and Robert Scheina worked many years to produce this volume which describes the vessels of a shortlived transitional ship type—the pre-dreadnought battleship. American Battleships is a handsome, information-packed, and well-illustrated volume which follows the technological developments in American battleships from the first Maine in 1886 to the Mississippi-class battleships of the 1920s. The background of each authorization is covered in an introductory section, and the authors then recount the history of each ship’s production. Each vessel is marvelously illustrated with photos and line drawings covering the various stages of her development from the preliminary sketch to the finished product.
Battleships are also the concern of William H. Garzke, Jr., and Robert O. Dulan, Jr., who are the authors of Battleships: Allied Battleships in World War II. As in the preceeding volume, Battleships: United States Battleships in World War II (Naval Institute Press, 1976), this new book is organized to highlight each class of vessel from the French Dunquerke class of the 1920s to the Russian Sovetskii Soyuz-class battleships that were bombed by the Germans when they were still on the
building ways in 1941 and 1942.
For those more interested in contemporary naval technology, there are several excellent naval reference works which provide up-to-date data on the world s navies. The largest and the most famous is the new edition of Jane’s Fighting Ships. 1980-81. Its disadvantages, of course, are that it is physically very large and almost prohibitively expensive for the individual collector. Most interested readers will no doubt turn to their libraries to consult this classic. It is the most prolifi" cally illustrated volume of its type and is particularly good in its coverage of small vessels and auxiliaries and of the navies of smaller nations.
Equally reliable and far less expensive is Jean Labayle Couhat’s Combat Fleets of the World. 1980/81 (Flotte de Combat), ably translated into English by A. D. Baker. Its coverage of Soviet vessels and on-board weapon systems is particularly strong. There are fewer illustrations than in Jane’s, but this makes the volume more affordable to individuals. Moreover, Combat Fleets includes sections on countries which have naval air arms, an aspect which Jane's assigns to another volume.
The smallest in size of the three is the German offering, Weyer’s Warships of the World. 1979/81 (Flottentaschen- buch). a soft-bound bilingual (German and English) volume that, like Combat Fleets, is printed every other year. For the individual collector this volume may be the best choice because it is small and affordable, though for complete coverage one must rely on either Jane's or Combat Fleets.
A continuing concern of naval professionals in the decade of the 1980s is the rise of Soviet naval power. There
A
are many "bean-counting” books, j’J'me of which try to prove that the • S.R. has surpassed the United ,tatcs *n naval power, some of which ave other arguments to make. But nc new book in particular concen- ratcs on the more significant and far ^°re difficult task of understanding at ^ese Soviet naval developments mean t0 pj g security. Robert
Bath
urst is a retired Navy captain who ofS y°r^e<^ f°r many years on the staff th C 6 ^ava^ War College studying 6 ^ov>ets, their history, and their ij. V.^' Blis new book, Understanding the Wet Navy, a Handbook, is a superb Pr'f6 ^°f k0t^ cBe beginner and the e^° ess'°nal. It puts Soviet naval strat- ^ and policy in an historical and in-
div'T*011^ PersPect‘ve- The book is jV! *nto three parts. Bathurst wRS ^rSt W't^1 t^le ProBlem of signals: b u d° t^le Soviets mean when they s * ' a new class of ship or deploy a r^*Ja ron? Bathurst argues that one t look upon the Soviet fleet as a UniT s‘^na^s>” but the difficulty is pj erstanding what the signals mean. im"rt t^e ^*SSest problem is "mirror par^'n8- In the second and third ^ S’ Bathurst follows the Russian the^ t^lrouSb 'ts Czarist days and into roje Present to help place its current j lri Perspective. It is a useful and Portant guide and deserves wide stnbution.
In many respects, the most impor-
tiit^ t^le Nobble Naval Books of ^ Past 12 months is James Ennes’ ault on the Liberty. This book be- frov LOe sub)ect of an immediate con- th prsy- much of it in the pages of
issu r°Cee^*n£s Isee Pages 76-77 of this C(;U^ancI the June, August, and Deer 1980 issues). That controversy fa ..erns Ennes’ assertion that the Is- pj 1 attack on the intelligence ship lib (AGTR-5) in 1967 w'as de-
^ erate and intended to prevent the r,]rntr'Cans from learning of the a| nned Israeli invasion of Syria. He
gove^^865 that the U' S’ 3nd Israel‘ ^ mments, for reasons of their own,
aff a^ed a right cover-up of the entire
,j 'r and sold it to the American pub-
as a regrettable accident. His ar-
ap5jrnents are compelling—but unprov-
th .C ,N^° dcmbt his book will sustain
e controversy rather than end it.
But no less important a lesson should be drawn from this book concerning American communications systems and combat readiness. Ennes explains in some detail, and with an appendix composed of the message traffic, how the orders to the Liberty were misdirected and even “lost" in the days and hours before the attack. The ship was actually ordered to move away from the coast: first to a distance of 100 miles, then 200 miles. The Liberty received neither message. Despite a requirement on the second message to acknowledge, the fact that the Liberty did not reply failed to set off an alarm in the U. S. Navy. Such faulty communications are not uncommon in the fleet even for "flash” messages and it should be a source of concern and, hopefully, a remedy. Moreover, not only in this case but in the case of the Pueblo (AGER-2) incident a year later, “ready” aircraft of the Navy and Air Force were unable to respond .to the cries for help from a stricken Navy ship.
Finally, the book should be read because it is well written and provocative. One can admire the professionalism of the officers and men who suffered from the attack even while recognizing the individual weaknesses of. the personalities involved. Assault on the Liberty deserves wide distribution and serious attention, and hopefully, the second edition, which carries an endorsement by Admiral Ar- leigh Burke, will attract readers from the general public as well as from the naval community.
The Admiralty
N. A. M. Rodger. Lavenham Suffolk, England: Terence Dalton, 1979. 179 pp. lllus. Bib. Ind. £7.95 (Approx. $19.47) ($17.53).
131 American Battleships, 1886-1923
John C. Reilly, Jr., and Robert L. Scheina. Annapolis, MD.: Naval Institute Press, 1980. 259 pp. Illus. Append. Bib. Ind. $29.95 ($23.96).
131 American Secretaries of the Navy
Our durable Library Case, custom- designed for the Proceedings, allows you to organize your valuable back issues chronologically while protecting them from dust and wear. While conserving shelf space, this is a handsome addition to the home or office library in blue simulated leather with a gold embossed spine. (Each case includes a gold transfer sheet so you can identify the volume and year.)
Proceedings Library Cases are available in two sizes, to accommodate both the current size and the pre-1970 small size of the journal. The larger size measures 11" X 8%" X 4" and the smaller 10" X 7" x 43/s", with each holding 12 issues. When ordering below, please specify size.
$4.95 each.
The Collector's Choice—
A handsome way to preserve (and protect) your Proceedings
To: Jesse Jones Box Corp., P.O. Box 5120, Dept. NI, Philadelphia, Pa. 19141
Please send me------------ U.S. Naval Institute
Proceedings Library Cases. Prices: $4.95 each; 3 for $14.00; 6 for $24.00. My check (or money order) for
$--------- is enclosed. Only U.S. orders accepted.
[ ] Large size. [ ] Small Size.
NAME_______________________________________________________________________
ADDRESS____________________________________________________________________
CITY________________________________________________________________________
STATE___________________________________________________________ 2IP________
Please allow three weeks for delivery.
Paolo E. Coletta, Editor, Annapolis, MD.: Naval Institute Press, 1980. 2 Vols. 1,028 pp. Illus. Ind. $59.95 ($47.95).
Assault on the Liberty: The True Story of the Israeli Attack on An American Intelligence Ship
James M. Ennes, Jr. New York: Random House, 1980. 229 pp. Illus. Map. Append. Ind. $12.95 ($10.35).
3 Battleship Bismarck,
A Survivor’s Story
Baron Burkard von Mullenheim-Rechberg. Translated by Jack Sweetman. Annapolis, MD. Naval Institute Press, 1980. 304 pp. Illus. Maps. Append. Bib. Ind. $15.95 ($12.76).
BOOK ORDER SERVICE
Prices enclosed by parentheses are member prices. Members may order most books of other publishers through the Naval Institute at a 10% discount off list price. (Prices quoted in this column are subject to change and will be reflected in our billing.) Please allow for delays when ordering non-Naval Institute titles. The postage and handling fee for each such special order book of a U. S. publisher will be $1.75; the fee for a book from a foreign publisher will be $2.50. When air mail or other special handling is requested, actual postage and handling cost will be billed to the member. Books marked 3 are Naval Institute Press Books. Books marked Q are Naval Institute Book Selections. Use the order blank in this section.
[3] Battleships: Allied Battleships of World War II
William H. Garzke, Jr., and Robert O. Dulin, Jr. Annapolis, MD.: Naval Institute Press, 1980. 391 pp. Illus. Ind. $38.95 ($31.16).
[3] The Black Battlefleet
Adm. G. A. Ballard, RN. Annapolis, MD.: Naval Institute Press, 1980. 261 pp. Illus. Append. Ind. $38.95 ($31.16).
[3 Chiefs of Naval Operations
Robert William Love, Jr., Editor. Annapolis, MD.: Naval Institute Press, 1980. 379 pp. Illus. $28.95 ($23.16).
3 Combat Fleets of the World, 1980/81: Their Ships, Aircraft, and Armament
Jean Labayle Couhat, Editor. Translated by A. D. Baker, III. Annapolis, MD.: Naval Institute Press, 1980. 794 pp. Illus. Ind. $64.95 ($51.95).
From Pearl Harbor to Vietnam:
The Memoirs of Admiral Arthur W. Radford
Stephen Jurika, Jr., Editor. Stanford, CA.: Hoover Institution Press, 1980. 476 pp. Illus. Bib. Ind. $15.00 ($13.50).
Jane’s Fighting Ships 1980-81
Capt. John E. Moore, RN (Ret.), Editor. New York: Franklin Watts, 1980. 960 pp. Illus. $125.00 ($112.50).
3 Makers of Naval Policy, 1798-1947
Robert G. Albion. Annapolis, MD.: Naval Institute Press, 1980. 737 pp. Append. Bib. Ind. $22.95 ($18.36).
3 Master of Sea Power: A Biography of Fleet Admiral Ernest J. King
Thomas B. Buell. Annapolis/Boston: Naval Institute Press/Little, Brown, 1980. 512 pp. Illus. Append. Bib. Ind. $22.50 ($18.00).
3 The Reluctant Admiral: Yamamoto and the Imperial Navy
Hiroyuki Agawa. Translated by John Bester. Annapolis/Tokyo: Naval Institute Press/ Kodansha International, 1980. 432 pp. Illus. $14.95 ($11.96).
3 The Rise of American Naval Power
Harold and Margaret Sprout. Annapolis, MD.: Naval Institute Press, 1939, 1980. 386 pp. Ind. $14.95 ($11.96).
Understanding the Soviet Navy, A Handbook
Robert B. Bathurst. Newport, RI.: Naval War College Press, 1979. 173 pp. Append. Bib. $5.00 ($4.50) paper.
Weyer’s Warships of the World 1979/81
Gerhard Albrecht, Editor. Munich: Bernard & Graefe, 1979. 669 pp. Illus. Ind. $48.95 ($44.06).
-1
I
ORDER FORM U. S. Naval Institute, Annapolis, Maryland 21402 BOOK TITLES
Quantity
Y-81
Price
INSIGNIA ITEMS (Specify color/size if necessary)
Add postage and handling to each order for Naval Institute books, book selections, and insignia items according to the following schedule: $1.75 for orders up to $15.00; $2.50 for orders
from $15.01 to $30.00; $3.25 for any order in excess of $30.00......................................................
Add $1.75 per book for special orders from U. S. publishers other than the Naval Institute Press . . Add $2.50 for postage and handling to each special order for books from foreign publishers ....
For delivery in Maryland, add 5% tax ........................................................
Enclosed is my check or money order for the TOTAL......................
Membership No.
Name..................................................... . .......... '.. ! ....... .—_— -- —
Address^
Zip Code
City, State, FPO