Three Splendid Little Wars: The Diary of Joseph K. Taussig 1898-1901
Evelyn Cherpak, Ed. Newport, RI: Naval War College Press, (2009).
Reviewed by Kenneth J. Blume, Ph.D.
This fascinating volume offers an inside look at a young naval officer's encounters with several of the signature moments of American military and diplomatic history between 1898 and 1901. Joseph K. Taussig (1877-1947) was at Annapolis when the Spanish-American war broke out in 1898. Serving aboard the flagship New York, Taussig witnessed the Battle of Santiago Bay in July 1898. He returned to Annapolis to complete that phase of his naval education, and then shipped out for two years as a naval cadet. Aboard the cruiser Newark, he made a classic voyage through the Caribbean, down South American coast, through the Straits of Magellan, and then northward to San Francisco. From there, the Newark took him to Hawaii, Guam, the Philippines, China, and Japan. Throughout his cruises, he maintained the journal now being reviewed.
Evelyn Cherpak, the volume's editor, leaves Taussig's prose as he wrote it and provides footnotes that identify virtually every person and vessel mentioned in the journal. The book also includes dozens of Taussig's maps and diagrams, and contemporary photographs of some of the warships. All in all, the Naval War College Press has produced a handsome volume.
More important, the volume provides insights into the highs and lows, the excitement and the boredom, that characterized shipboard life. Taussig's descriptions illustrate the mundane activities of planning and waiting and doing nothing, and how even being in charge of the ship's launch could break the monotony. Yet there are also eerie moments. Taussig describes the Spanish wrecks in Santiago Bay, and particularly the damage caused by fire aboard the the Almirante Oquendo: paint falling off the ship, burned bodies, and a tin box with fused money. In the course of shoreside explorations, Taussig comes upon "half starved Cubans"-the civilian side of the story. There are also upbeat scenes, where the New York's band plays "The Girl I left behind me," "patriotic airs," and "A Hot Time in the Old Town Tonight."
Part II provides Taussig's journal during the Philippine Insurrection following the Spanish-American War, and the Boxer Rebellion in China. As John Hattendorf indicates in his foreword, the entries in this section are more sophisticated and extensive, perhaps a reflection of Taussig's growth as an officer, and perhaps a reflection of the official purpose of the journal, a prerequisite for future promotion.
A number of scenes are particularly worth mentioning. En Route to Rio, the Newark crosses the Equator, and we are treated with a delightful account of The Court of Neptune. Later, we encounter a dramatic illustration of the challenges facing a navy without dependable sources of coal. After passing through the Straits of Magellan, Newark faced a shortage of coal, and the crew spent a week ashore chopping wood. When the freshly-cut wood would not burn, Captain Caspar Goodrich sent cutters to Ancud, Chile, to wire for coal. This episode and many others demonstrate the continuing challenge of coaling modern warships. From San Francisco, the Newark headed to Hawaii, and then Guam. At Guam, Newark's crew put on a minstrel show, a vivid reminder of race relations in the America at a time when the Naval Academy itself was segregated.
It was on this cruise that Taussig experienced two of the significant military/diplomatic events of the 20th century's first years. First was the insurrection in the Philippines, an American territory as a result of the Spanish-American War. The uprising began in June 1899, and Taussig and the Newark arrived in Manila Bay in November. But Taussig's journal provides few hints of the intense rebellion developing around him. Taussig notes in December 1899 that "the people learned that the Americanos were not so bad, as they supposed, so the natives . . . become real friendly. . . . On the whole I think we made a good impression." (p. 110) As the Newark prepared to depart Pamplona on December 28, "the Filipinos . . . gave us three cheers, which were answered by our men." (p. 112) Yet there were hints of the trouble ahead. Taussig reports on January 29, 1900, that the telegraph line to Manila had been cut, and on March 9 that "the Army had a slight skirmish." (p. 120) In all, Taussig's involvement with one of the more controversial insurgencies of American history was, at most, slight.
What Taussig found in China was quite different. In response to European encroachments on Chinese sovereignty, an anti-foreign movement, the Boxers, formed in 1898 and, with the support of the Empress Dowager, attacked foreigners in Beijing beginning in June 1900. An eight-nation alliance-Japan, Russia, Britain, France, Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy, and the U.S.-responded, officially to defend their legations. The U.S. participated with two warships, 295 marines, and 3,124 army troops. Taussig and the Newark arrived just as events were intensifying. His journal reports various encounters with the Boxers and the experience of "joint operations" (although the term wasn't used) with the forces of other nations. His narrative about the skirmishes with the Boxers in June 1900 tend to be lengthier than other sections of his journal. Some of his references to burning villages that harbored Boxers, and to participation by Chinese government forces, eerily presage the American experience in Vietnam two-thirds of a century later.
Taussig's intense involvement with the Boxers lasted but a month. He was shot through the thigh and was transferred to a Yokohama hospital for several months of recuperation. By November 1900 he was well enough to be attending balls and garden parties in Japan. In December 1900 he was detached from the hospital and ordered, first, to USS Nashville, and then, in February 1901, to USS Culgoa, a "refrigerating vessel" carrying "frozen beef and mutton and ice" (p. 158). The journal ends with a note by Taussig that it "was submitted for review to the commanding officer of USS Culgoa," who comments, "An Excellent Journal" (p. 165).
Taussig was to have a distinguished and at times controversial career, rising to the rank of flag officer (1932) and eventually to vice admiral on the retired list (1941). Taussig was also a "prolific writer" (p. xx), contributing 54 articles for the Proceedings of the U.S. Naval Institute, and publishing Our Navy: A Fighting Team (1943). In addition, his journal is of interest because of his family's background. Taussig himself was born in Dresden of American parents who were German-Jewish in ancestry, and his father was Rear Admiral Edward D. Taussig. All in all, Three Splendid Little Wars is a rich addition to our understanding of the U.S. Navy at the turn of the 20th century.
Dr. Kenneth J. Blume is Professor of History in the Dept. of Humanities at the Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences in Albany, New York.
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Perilous Fight, America's Intrepid War with Britain on the High Seas, 1812-1815
By Stephan Budiansky, Alfred A. Knopf, New York; (2011)
Reviewed by Vice Adm. Robert F. Dunn, USN (Ret.)
The bicentennial of the War of 1812 will soon be upon us. Celebrations, observances and re-creations of all sorts will take place from Boston to New Orleans and from the Chesapeake Bay to Washington and Baltimore and on to Lake Champlain and the Great Lakes. Perilous Fight is an outstanding introduction to these celebrations of a war where, as one scholar has noted, "Everyone thinks they won." The Americans scored tremendous frigate vs. frigate victories which cheered even Americans who were against the war and established standards and traditions for the United States Navy which have lasted to this day. The British burned the American capital and after the first year, bottled up those bothersome American frigates and choked down on American commerce with a close blockade of Atlantic ports. The British Canadians repelled several American invasion attempts by land and preserved their territory pretty much as we know it today. All three sides were indeed successful, in their own way.
Stephan Budiansky doesn't cover the whole war. As his subtitle declares, he concentrates on events on the high seas, but he also includes the Chesapeake Campaign waged by Rear Admiral Cockburn of the Royal Navy, a campaign that terrorized settlements from below Tangier Island to Havre de Grace and led to the burning of Washington and the bombardment of Baltimore. As the story unfolds the reader is almost mesmerized by the awesome detail and clear prose. This book is a joy to read for the interested reader of history, the amateur historian and at the same time a worthy reference for scholars.
The beginnings of the War of 1812 lie in the early 19th Century when Britain, in a world war with Napoleon's France, began running short of sailors to man her ships and resorted to impressment: the virtual kidnapping of foreign sailors, particularly Americans, from their ships and then made to serve in the Royal Navy. Many Republicans (soon to morph into the Democrats we know today) were ready to go to war to force the Brits to stop the practice. Western Republicans also saw an opportunity to march on Canada and make it part of the United States and, at the same time, take on the British-inspired Indians who were harassing the westernmost settlements. Meanwhile, the Federalists, largely concentrated in the Northeast, the very citizens who owned the ships from which sailors were being impressed, opposed the war. Even while that debate was ongoing an event most egregious took place near the Virginia Capes. USS Chesapeake, one of the nation's frigates, had just gotten underway form Norfolk when HMS Leopard intercepted her and demanded the right to search for suspected deserters. When Chesapeake refused Leopard delivered a broadside at close range and Chesapeake was forced to strike her colors. After intense diplomatic negotiations further conflict was averted but ever-increasing hostility continued until war was declared in June 1812.
Almost immediately began a series of frigate actions which brought glory to the American Navy and embarrassment to the Royal Navy: Constitution vs. Guerriere, United States vs. Macedonian and Constitution vs. Jav; sea battles that live on in American naval history.. The British had been hoping for a negotiated peace but the frigate actions along with undiminished American merchant shipping convinced them that wouldn't happen. As a result, with their superior numbers, beginning in 1813 they blockaded American ports from Maine to New Orleans and the frigates and merchants alike were bottled up.
At least one had gotten away, however; that was David Porter in USS Essex. Rounding Cape Horn he wreaked havoc among the British whalers in the Pacific until trapped in Valparaiso by an overwhelming force. The story of the Essex is the thing of novels and movies. Reading the sections about her voyage is worth the price of the book itself.
Perilous Fight is not all about war at sea, however; one John Wilson Croker, Secretary to the Admiralty Board ran the war from London, ordering admirals around, apparently on his own authority. On the other side of the Atlantic, the American Secretary of the Navy, William Jones, set the tone for the U.S Navy. Of particular note, he tried his best to manage the jealousies rife among his captains, tamp down their zeal to fight for "Honor" when it didn't serve the larger cause and, in the end, did as much as anyone to bring about the peace by establishing a campaign against British merchant shipping throughout the Atlantic, right up to the British isles. Much of this time he also served as Secretary of the Treasury, a historical character little known but Budiansky sheds some needed light.
With excellent narrative, battle diagrams and photos this book is a keeper. It's timely, well-written, interesting and is a recommended read.
Vice Admiral Dunn is president of the Naval Historical Foundation and published this review earlier with The Washington Times which has given permission for this reprint.
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CSS Alabama vs USS Kearsarge: Cherbourg 1864
By Mark Lardas, Osprey Publishing, (2011)
Reviewed by Thomas P. Ostrom
The author, Mark Lardas, brings a degree in naval architecture and marine engineering to his analysis of this epic American Civil War naval battle; as well as experience in writing as a military historian, and ship modeler. The book is enhanced with magnificent illustrations by ship modeler and war gamer Peter Dennis.
Seamanship on the high seas; American Civil War (1861-1865) diplomacy; seaman, warrant and commissioned officer rates, ranks and duties; training; provisions; ship building, construction, and purchasing techniques; ordnance and armament; and the biographies of captains John Winslow (USS Kearsarge) and Raphael Semmes (CSS Alabama) are superbly and eloquently traced to provide the reader with riveting context, background, and analysis.
Lardas ably traces the evolution of warships from the War of 1812-1814 wooden hull sail ships, to the heterogeneous composites of wood, copper and iron hulled coal fired steam and screw (propeller) powered leviathans of 200-feet or more; armed with smooth bore and rifled (grooved) muzzle and breech loaded cannons. Some cannons were wheeled and at port and starboard hull gun port stations, others were more permanent pivot cannons at the ship midline; and stern and bow guns were positioned. The most formidable gun on Union warships was the Dahlgren cannon of various muzzle sizes, often 11 inches.
The age of steam required ships of deeper draft and wider breadth to accommodate engine rooms, coal storage, and more powerful guns. Auxiliary vessels (steam for maneuverability, sail for fuel economy) possessed two and four blade screws, and some maintained target-vulnerable side and rear paddle wheels more suitable for river and coastal than transoceanic voyages.
Enriched by his nautical engineering and history background, Mark Lardas chronicled the 18th and 19th century evolution of wooden ship tactics, logistics, wooden hull construction (functional for absorbing cannon balls and explosive fuse shells), and the addition of iron frames and copper bottoming to protect subsurface hulls from physical impact and marine floral and faunal accumulation. Wooden ship hulls, Lardas wrote, changed from basic parallel wood frames to additional transverse, diagonal, and vertical support systems for added strength and protection against hull movement and warping.
The imminent dangers of injury and death to nautical warriors were sinking vessels, burns and explosions from guns and steam machinery, and the flying splinters and daggers emanating from shattered wooden hulls under cannon and shellfire impact. Seamen and line officers had to learn gunnery. On some Union vessels, members of the United States Marine Corps, the maritime soldiers and police with U.S. Army ranks and rates, supplemented naval gun crews.
Especially interesting were the author's biographical summaries of the nautical protagonists, Winslow and Semmes. The two naval officers served together in the United States-Mexico War (1846-1848). Lardas seemed to suggest that their reciprocal service and familiarity might have influenced Winslow's actions or lack thereof in the final battle and response to the sinking of the Alabama and the fate of Semmes and his crew adrift at sea.
The reader will be mesmerized by the highlights of the June 1864 battle between Kearsarge and the Confederate commerce raider Alabama, six miles off the French port of Cherbourg in international waters.
Equally intriguing, the post-war careers of Winslow and Semmes, and the fate of USS Kearsarge.
Lardas writes like a novelist, and the maritime history and technology expert that he is. The book is a compelling and informative read.
Thomas Ostrom is retired college history instructor, former member of the USCGR, and author of 4 books on U.S. Coast Guard history, the most recent:
1) The United States Coast Guard in World War II (McFarland Publ. Co., 2009)
2) The United States Coast Guard in National Defense (McFarland, 2012)
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My Heroes
By Jack Ferrell, edited by Megan Burns, Waldenhouse Publishers, Athens, TN, (2010).
Reviewed by Charles Bogart
This is a nicely written account of one man's life: service in the Navy as a regular and reserve officer, a pilot for United Airlines, and the golden years of retirement. Within the book, the author also takes time to discuss various family members and fellow aviators whom he considers heroes, thus the title of the book.
The author starts the book with his account of how he came to join the Navy at the start of the Korean War and the path he took to earn his Navy wings. He completed all his training just in time to deploy for the final months of combat in Korea. In April 1953, he sailed with VF-194, equipped with AD-4NA Skyraiders, for Korea on board USS Boxer (CV 21). His tales of three months of combat over Korea, as experienced by him and his squadron mates, are interesting and informative. He notes in closing that VF-194, during three months of combat, they lost sixteen of the twenty Skyraiders that were brought on board Boxer at the start of the cruise.
The author then relates his 1955 decision to get married and leave the Navy. At the end of his period of obligated service, he works for Douglas Aircraft as an engineer within an office building. He soon finds that he misses flying and thus applies to rejoin the Navy. Early in 1956 he returns to duty with the Navy and spends the next eight years flying various aircraft: A-4, A-1H, SNB, T-33, T-28, F9F-8T, and T-34. Due to receiving in 1963 a poor review from his commanding officer concerning his carrying out assigned duties, the author decides to leave the Navy for a job in the commercial airline industry.
His discussion of trying to obtain a flying job in commercial aviation is of interest. He finds that the transfer from flying a naval aircraft to flying a commercial aircraft was not as easy as just changing one's uniform. He eventually is hired by United Airlines and then spends the next 25 years flying their aircraft. His account of his actions during the strike by the cockpit crews against United is interesting but far too brief. After twenty-five years of working for United, the author was forced to retire at the mandatory retirement age of sixty. During the period the author flew for United, he served first in the Air National Guard and then the Naval Reserves. In both services he flew various aircraft. He eventually retired from the Naval Reserves after being promoted to Commander, for at this rank, there were no pilot positions open for him and he was uninterested in a staff job.
His tale of his golden years of retirement center around flying his own private aircraft, finding the occasional paying job as pilot, family life, palling around with his buddies, and involvement with his community. Of interest within this section is his story of the efforts undertaken by Admiral Holloway and others to gain official recognition of then Lt.(jg) Howard Thayer's actions on March 22, 1952, that led to the saving of the life of Ensign Ken Schechter's life. In 2009, Lt. Cdr. Thayer finally received the Distinguished Flying Cross for his actions 57 years earlier.
The book is a straight forward account of the author's life, with little attempt to place it within the larger frame of the institutional history happening around him. This book is a nice addition to personal accounts of naval flyers who served during the 1950s.
Charles H. Bogart is a frequent contributor to Naval History Book Reviews
Purchase from Waldenhouse
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The Imperialist: A Novel of the Hawaiian Revolution (Historical Fiction)
By Kurt Hanson, CreateSpace. (Seattle, WA), 2011
Reviewed by Walter Price
The primary setting of The Imperialist, post-monarchy Hawaii, had a special appeal to me. My family has a faded color photograph of my brother and myself holding up the front page of the "Honolulu Advertiser" with a single word, 10 inch-high headline- STATEHOOD. The year was 1959. We lived in Navy quarters on Red Hill overlooking Pearl Harbor.
Many of us rely on historical fiction to do more than merely entertain, but to reengage us in a historic time, place, and/or person. History served on the plate of fiction can seem more palatable than a text. Naturally the historical novelist must take some liberties with historical accuracy. Who knows exactly what was said in 1893 during the pivotal events covered by Mr. Hanson's novel. Incumbent on the author is to be thorough in his research into events as well as personages but when the record becomes thin on facts adhere closely to what is plausible. Kurt Hanson's prose suggests the investment of time and wisdom into his research and where necessary his invention.
Early in the book the lead character, Jonah Christian, a randy missionary, marries Lydia with less planning than is normally committed to a family picnic. Before consummating his marriage, he is shipped off to China via Hawaii. While awaiting his mainland bride in Hawaii, he finds a stunning native girl and loses his missionary qualifications, but gains an annulment, and a new vocation, lobbyist.
The author weaves his half dozen fictional characters deftly through the cloth of history. The historic cast of the Hawaiian revolution of 1893, Lorrin Thurston, George Castle, and Sanford Dole contest the islands from Queen Liliʻuokalani, with Marines from the USS Boston helping to tip the balance against the Queen. After brief mentions of Boston and her "soldiers", the author gives little ink to the sea services.
Nearing the book's midpoint, the setting shifts to Washington D.C. as Thurston, Castle, and Christian form the Hawaiian Annexation Commission. Jonah spends his days, or more correctly his nights in Capital Hill dives, plying journalists and congressional staffers for information on the political allies and enemies of annexation.
W hen President Cleveland and his Secretary of State, Gresham, decide to withdraw the annexation legislation, Thurston and Christian shift their operations to the Hawaiian exhibit at 1893 Chicago World's Fair where Jonah runs into a journalist who happens to be his ex-wife. Lydia provides, amongst other services, a tour of the fair grounds. Their wary relationship re-ignites. Collaborating with the commission once they return to Washington, Lydia orchestrates the chaste seduction of a government lawyer.
The relationship between Lydia and Jonah from the first to last chapters seems shallow and contrived. Lydia's motivations to get married, abandon her husband, and fall out of love, fall back into lust, etc. were never convincingly explained to the reader.I did not find either character appealing or authentic to the Gilded Age.
While the plot moved along briskly as well as true to the historical record, some nagging errors (Sousa conducted the Marine not Army band. There are no black sand beaches in Waikiki. In 1893 Mahan was President of the Naval War College not teaching in Annapolis.) were distracting and could unfairly cast doubt on the broader historical research.
Finally little effort seemed to have been invested in recreating the language of the 1890's.
The Imperialist serves as an engaging book for the beach. The sequel, foreshadowed in the epilogue, would benefit from an 1898 era (subject matter hint) dictionary, a naval person as fact checker, and a 3D Jonah.
Walter Price served on four surface combatants while on active duty. Captain Price then received his MBA from Harvard and worked at Bath Iron Works, concurrent with thirteen years in the reserves. He too is a struggling novelist.
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Books Available for Review
We have a number of books here in our offices that are available to be reviewed. If you are interested, please contact Dr. Dave Winkler at [email protected] . Admiral Nimitz: The Commander of the Pacific Ocean Theater. Brayton Harris, Palgrave MacMillan, 2011, 232 pages. American Women Artists in Wartime, 1776-2010. Paula E. Calvin and Deborah A. Deacon, McFarland and Company, Inc., Publishers, 2011, 214 pages. An American Adventure: From Early Aviation Through Three Wars to the White House. William Lloyd Stearman. Naval Institute Press, 2012, 264 pages. I Remember the Yorktown. E.H. Domienik. Self-published, 2006, 198 pages.
Letters Home: My Life Aboard the USS Biscayne during World War II. Stanley J. Morrison as told to Daniel Paul Morrison, King of Patagonia Press, 2011, 104 pages.
Saving Big Ben: The USS Franklin and Father Joseph T. O'Callahan. John R. Satterfield. Naval Institute Press, 2011, 175 pages. The Titanic for Dummies. Stephen Spignesi, John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 2012, 320 pages. The Untold Experiences of a Navy Corpsman: A US Navy Hospital Corpsman with a US Marine Corps Reconnaisance Patrol Team in the 1950's on Covert Korean Missions. C. Gilbert Lowery, Authorhouse, 2011, 167 pages. They Called Me Wee Vee. E.H. Domienik. Self-published, 2006, 184 pages. Warships of the Anglo-Dutch Wars 1652-75. Angus Konstam, Osprey Publishing, 2011, 48 pages. Historical Fiction John Paul Jones: Father of the United States Navy. Wallace Bruce, Writers Club Press, 2002, 287 pages. (historical fiction) No Ordinary Summer (German Espionage in America During World War II). David T. Lindgren, AuthorHouse, 2010, 275 pages.
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