Craig Symonds

During the 19th century, the United States’ expeditionary campaigns reflected the country’s evolving concept of itself and its place in the world.

Born out of necessity, the USS Monitor barely survived her maiden voyage, fought the epic Civil War duel against the CSS Virginia, and sank off North Carolina’s Outer Banks less ...

Blockades and blockade-runners, combined ops and commerce raiders—here is the naval story of the Civil War.

How The Good Shepherd, C. S. Forester’s classic novel of World War II, evolved into Greyhound, starring (and scripted by) Tom Hanks.

Omaha Beach, 6 June 1944: As U.S. soldiers faced a wall of German gunfire, tin-can sailors came to the rescue and tipped the scale toward victory.

In World War II’s epic amphibious undertaking, the great invasion’s success hinged on the ungainly looking but essential LSTs.

Marine Charley Morrison’s letters home provide a front-row seat to Civil War history during the capture of the Confederacy’s most important port.

For newly elected President Abraham Lincoln, Fort Sumter was more than just a military problem—it was a political tightrope-walk.

The coastal and riverine challenges of the Civil War spawned technological innovation and a futuristic-looking U.S. Fleet.

Brusque, widely disliked, oddly bewigged, Secretary of the Navy Gideon Welles was nonetheless the right man for a tough job.

A selection of essentials for the Civil War navalist’s library.

Opposing commanders David Farragut and Franklin Buchanan shared more than 100 years Navy service, but their career paths had seldom crossed.