On Our Scope

By Fred L. Schultz, Editor-in-Chief
February 2005
It is hard to believe ten years have passed since the February 1995 Naval History , when we commemorated the 50th anniversary of what Retired Marine Corps Colonel Joe Alexander ...

Growing in Command in the South China Sea

By Captain Carl A. Nelson, U.S. Navy (Retired)
February 2005
A young tug captain’s seasoned crew—here, departing Pearl Harbor in the USS Cocopa (ATF-101)—carries out unusual duties during the Vietnam War, despite threatened hostility, dangerously rough weather, and missed chances ...

The Mysterious ‘Diekplous’

By Thomas G. Papps
February 2005
The writings of many historians, especially Herodotus and Plutarch, have been consulted in an attempt to explain why the Greeks prevailed so decisively at Salamis. Although these early historians go ...

The Agony of War under Oars

By Barry Strauss
February 2005
During the heyday of ancient Greece, the trireme was queen of the seas— this modern reconstruction, the Olympias, faithfully shows the vessel type’s fine lines and graceful appearance. For the ...

A Floating Prison Break

By Jack Sweetman
February 2005
The Peninsular War—France’s six- year nightmare occupation of Spain from 1808 to 1814—is best remembered for helping bring Napoleon to his knees. An incident at the port city of Cadiz ...

In Contact

February 2005
“Historic Fleets: USS Kearsarge (BB-5)” ( See A. D. Baker, pp. 12, 15, August 2004; L. Chirillo, pp. 10, 16, H. Raper, p. 16, December 2004 Naval History ) Captain ...

Historic Fleets

By A. D. Baker III
February 2005
The Essex (CV-9)-class aircraft carrier Antietam (CV-36) was still en route to the Western Pacific when World War II combat ended on 15 August 1945 and saw her only combat ...

The Deadly Avenger

By Norman Polmar, Author, Ships and Aircraft of the U.S. Fleet
February 2005
One of the most significant carrier aircraft of World War II was the Avenger torpedo bomber. The Grumman TBF-1 reached the fleet in mid-1942, just as the torpedo bomber was ...

Naval History News

February 2005
Constellation Visits Annapolis On 26 October 2004, the former U.S. Navy 22-gun sloop-of-war Constellation arrived at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, for a seven-day visit. Launched in 1854 ...

Book Reviews

Reviewed by Thomas Wildenberg, Captain Alex Larzelere, U.S. Coast Guard (Retired) & Rear Admiral W. W. Copeland Jr., U.S. Navy (Retired)
February 2005
A Question of Loyalty: Gen. Billy Mitchell and the Court-Martial that Gripped the Nation Douglas Waller. New York: HarperCollins, 2004- 448 pp. Photos. Notes. Bib. Index. $26.95. Reviewed by Thomas ...