The Battle of the River Plate Movie Poster

On Our Scope

By Richard G. Latture, Editor-in-Chief
August 2019
As Alan Zimm points out in his cover story, the British Admiralty desperately needed a victory in the early days of World War II.
The "Achilles" opening the attack on the "Graf Spee" by Edward S. Annison

A Battle Badly Fought

By Alan D. Zimm
August 2019
The defeat of the Graf Spee in 1939 gave the British Admiralty a much-needed propaganda boost—but the heroic David-and-Goliath narrative so long accepted by history is fundamentally false.
"Pensacola Torpedoed" by Clarence J. Tibado

The ‘Grey’ Ghost’s Artist

By Frank A. Blazich Jr.
August 2019
From Midway to Okinawa, Radarman Clarence Tibado served on board the cruiser Pensacola in one Pacific battle after another, capturing the action in a series of vividly rendered paintings.
Stock photo of two cannon balls laying near a cask

Did Whiskey Bombs Fall on Texas?

By Norman C. Delaney
August 2019
1862: Sailors emptied gunpowder from shells and hid stolen whiskey therein, only to see their hooch stash used in the bombardment of the Confederate stronghold at Corpus Christi. We investigate.
Carrier Air Group (CVG) 11 planes are arrayed on the flight deck of the USS Hornet (CV-12)

The Tale of Eleven

By Barrett Tillman
August 2019
They flew into legend in combat over the Pacific, eventually becoming the heroes of the Hornet; here is the story of Carrier Air Group 11.
Argentine soldiers reading newspapers in Port Stanley in April 1982

Argentina’s Gray Zone Gambit

By Captain Dustin Nicholson, U.S. Marine Corps
August 2019
Britain was faced with a tough brinksmanship challenge when Argentina invaded the Falklands in 1982. The war holds uncanny relevance for today’s U.S. naval forces.
Smedley Butler with War is a Racket

Smedley Butler, USMC

By Kevin Knodell and Kelly Swann
August 2019
A graphic-arts recounting of the career of a Marine Corps legend: the highly decorated—and highly controversial—“Old Gimlet Eye.”
Admiral John McCain and the Triumph of Naval Air Power Cover

Book Reviews

August 2019
Reviews of Admiral John S. McCain and the Triumph of Naval Air Power, Seapower States, and The War with Hitler’s Navy.