In-person registration is closed, but you can still join the event virtually via live stream on the Institute's YouTube channel and Drachinifel’s YouTube Channel.
Join the U.S. Naval Institute on 11 September 2024 at 1100 EST at the Jack C. Taylor Conference Center, in Annapolis, MD. The topic of the discussion will be Leyte Gulf at 80.
Often appropriately described as the “greatest naval battle in history,” the battle of Leyte Gulf (23–26 October 1944) was actually a series of battles in which both sides exhibited courage and resourcefulness yet suffered from confusion born of poorly conceived command relationships and ineffective communications. Marked by awe-inspiring heroism, failed intelligence, brilliant deception, flawed strategy, effective tactical planning, great controversies, and a host of lessons learned, this gargantuan battle involved hundreds of ships, included nearly 200,000 participants, spanned more than 100,000 square miles, and resulted in the deaths of thousands of sailors from both sides. Every facet of naval warfare at the time was involved, it is clearly one of the great naval battles in history and has been the subject of countless books and articles in the 80 years since those massive fleets clashed in the Western Pacific.
We welcome our audience in-person and via live-stream on the U.S. Naval Institute’s YouTube Channel and Drachinifel’s YouTube Channel.
Moderator:
Alex Pocklington began his career as an engineer but in the mid 2010's decided to take up his primary passion, naval history, on a more substantial basis. Since then he has started and continues to run the naval history YouTube channel 'Drachinifel', worked with a large number of museums and museum ships and is also currently working on several books and furthering the science of ship preservation.
Panelists:
Thomas J. Cutler has been serving the U.S. Navy in various capacities for more than fifty years, including an in-country combat tour in Viet Nam and sea duty in cruisers, destroyers, aircraft carriers, and patrol craft. A former faculty member in both the Seamanship & Navigation and History Departments at the U.S. Naval Academy, he currently holds the U.S. Naval Institute’s Gordon England Chair of Professional Naval Literature and is a Fleet Professor of Strategy and Policy with the Naval War College (since 1992). He is the author of many articles and books, including A Sailor’s History of the U.S. Navy; The Battle of Leyte Gulf; Brown Water, Black Berets: Coastal and Riverine Warfare in Vietnam; and The Battle of Leyte Gulf at 75: A Retrospective
Trent Hone is an authority on the U.S. Navy of the early twentieth century and a leader in the application of complexity science to organizational design. He studied religion and archaeology at Carleton College in Northfield, MN and works as a consultant helping organizations learn and innovate more rapidly. Mr. Hone regularly writes and speaks about leadership, organizational learning, and naval history. His most recent book is Mastering the Art of Command: Admiral Chester W. Nimitz and Victory in the Pacific (Naval Institute, 2022).
Paul Stillwell is an independent historian and retired naval officer. He worked for thirty years at the U.S. Naval Institute as an oral historian and editor of Naval History magazine. He is the author or editor of thirteen books, including four on battleships and an award-winning volume on the Navy's first African American officers, The Golden Thirteen. His most recent book is Battleship Commander: The Life of Vice Admiral Willis A. Lee Jr., and has received the Rear Admiral Samuel Eliot Morison Award and the John Lyman Book Award.
Alex Pocklington |
Thomas J. Cutler |
Trent Hone |
Paul Stillwell |
This event will take place at the U.S. Naval Institute's Jack C. Taylor Conference Center, which is located on the grounds of the U.S. Naval Academy. All guests must register in advance and must have a valid government-issued ID. Directions and parking information will be shared with you closer to the event date.
AGENDA
11:00 am - 12:15 pm (EST)
Panel Discussion + Audience Q&A
12:15 pm – 12:45 pm
Panelists and moderator will be available to sign books upon the conclusion of this discussion.
This event is made possible through general support to the U.S. Naval Institute.