By Dr. David Winkler In the pecking order of naval vessels, replenishment ships ranked far below battleships, cruisers, and other combatants. However, it can be argued that few pairs of American warships authorized by Congress achieved as much historical notoriety as these two hulls authorized in 1908. As part of Special Order 92, signed out
Reviewed by RADM Edward Masso, USN (Ret.) Ambassador J William Middendorf II has written a clarion call to attention for all policy makers in his recently published book, “The Great Nightfall” How We Win the New Cold War. Drawing from his substantial career in public service where he served as a Naval Officer in World
Reviewed by LCDR David K. Sturges, USNR (Ret.) “Experience keeps a dear school.” Retired RADM Tom Jurkowsky’s new book gives fresh and useful meaning to that old saying of Benjamin Franklin. His “Secret Sauce for Organizational Success.” recounts his 45 years of exceptional communication and public affairs leadership within a rare, three-way panoply of military,
Reviewed by Charles C. Kolb, Ph.D. The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor is one of the most written about military events in the history of the United States. For example, WorldCat lists 11,700 items in various formats, among these, as of February 2021, are 8,821 books and e-books, 2,604,articles and book chapters, and 1,759 videos
Reviewed by LCDR Brian Hayes, USNR In 2017, New York Times sports reporter Victor Mather wrote an article entitled “The Best College Football Team You’ve Probably Never Heard Of.” He was referring to Iowa Pre-Flight, one of dozens of armed forces football programs that competed against collegiate teams (and each other) during the world wars and
Reviewed by Charles H. Bogart Anyone who has studied the United States’ Antebellum period has, during the course of one’s reading, encountered snippets or lengthy excerpts from the Diary of Anton Reiff. Until now, if you wanted to read Reiff’s complete diary, you had to travel to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and make arrangements to visit
Reviewed by Jeff Schultz Abraham Rabinovich’s The Boats of Cherbourg: The Navy That Stole Its Own Boats and Revolutionized Naval Warfare takes the reader on a rollicking ride through an early Cold War techno-thriller which does not disappoint. A mixture of diplomacy, desperation, rank skullduggery, and above all clever statecraft; this timely nonfiction account sheds
Four years ago this week, USS Enterprise (CVN-65) was decommissioned at Newport News Shipbuilding’s Virginia shipyard. Her unprecedented (for an aircraft carrier) 51 years of active operations included defending America’s interests around the globe during a total of 25 deployments. That shipyard decommissioning ceremony in February 2017 was a celebratory but somber occasion, with just
Recorded on January 16, 2021, this installment of the Naval Historical Foundation’s ‘Second Saturday Webinar Series’ covers the role of the United States Navy in Operation Desert Storm. Featuring remarks from RADM Sam J. Cox, CAPT Daniel D. Thompson, and CAPT Peter D. Haynes, enjoy this fascinating conversation on the Navy in recent historical events.
Published in 1890, Alfred Thayer Mahan’s ‘The Influence of Sea Power Upon History’ catalyzed a wave of strategic realignment around the world and the naval arms race of World War one. Mahan’s book is still required reading in military history courses today and has been studied by historians, scholars, and sailors for over a century.
For this installment of the Naval Historical Foundation’s Second Saturday Webinar Series, we examine Captain Edward L. “Ned” Beach and the impact of his legendary book, Run Silent Run Deep. Our program will open with presentations by Ned’s bride of many decades, Ingrid Beach, Captain James Bryant, and Dr. David Alan Rosenberg who will offer
While the Naval Historical Foundation (NHF) has long facilitated an opportunity for the U.S. Naval Academy to bestow an honor for one of our future naval officers, it has not done so for NROTC units, which collectively constitute the largest commissioning source for naval officers. The Vice Admiral Robert F. Dunn Prizes are intended to
