Edited by Craig C. Felker and Marcus O. Jones, Naval War College Historical Monograph Series No. 20. Newport, RI: Naval War College Press (2012).

Reviewed by Charles C. Kolb

Published since 1975, the Naval War College Historical Monographs Series includes book-length studies of the history of naval warfare, biographies of significant naval officers, conference proceedings, historical documents, and collections of essays. The most recent volume in the series includes selected contributions from the 2009 U.S. Naval Academy's Naval History Symposium, held regularly in Annapolis, Maryland, since 1971. The papers were presented at the Academy on 10-11 September 2009 and were edited by the symposium organizers, USNA history professors Captain Craig C. Felker, USN, and Marcus O. Jones, also a consultant for the Institute for Defense Analyses. This collection was recently published by the Naval War College Press in Newport, Rhode Island; it is available from the NWC Press website and is for sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, and from commercial booksellers.

Earlier volumes in the New Interpretations in Naval History series were published in cloth editions by the U.S. Naval Institute Press in Annapolis, so that the 16^th -- New Interpretations in Naval History: Selected Papers from the Sixteenth Naval History Symposium Held at the United States Naval Academy 10-11 September 2009 - is the first to come from the Naval War College Press and is available only in paperback. Each of the previous volumes in the series contains a selection from the numerous papers presented in each symposium and has ranged widely across all periods of naval history as well as the histories of many navies. Authors of the contributions include members of the military and civilians, U.S. and international.  

The current volume is no exception to the chronological wide range of topics except that, unlike some of the previous 15 volumes that had thematic orientations, the Sixteenth Symposium volume has no central focus. Collectively, 84 presenters gave 70 papers spanning the Colonial era to contemporary maritime issues. The oral presentations included symposia ranging from U.S. Navy air power; the U.S. Marine Corps; the search for Bonhomme Richard; sailing ships and naval construction in Spain and Latin America; and the U.S. Navy in Vietnam to biographies of naval officers; President Abraham Lincoln and the U.S. Navy; Royal Navy history, the British Eastern Fleet in World War II; naval education; issues of naval command and control; and JFK, Vietnam, and counterinsurgency. Editors Felker and Jones note that "the publishing process can be daunting, even with essays of such superb caliber" had a difficult choice in selecting 12 papers for publication in the Sixteenth Symposium volume. There is a "Program of Events of the 2009 Naval History Symposium" listing the authors and the 70 oral presentations. Indeed, very difficult decisions on what to include. As a side note, papers not published in the New Interpretations in Naval History series have often been published elsewhere, notably the Naval Institute Proceedings, and some of the 2009 essays were recommended to editors of The International Journal of Maritime History and The Northern Mariner.

The selections from 2009 have a chronological "balance" of subjects ranging from British naval press-gangs and the forceful colonial resistance from 1768 through the end of the American Revolution, economic and industrial issues in the evolution of Spanish ironclad frigates, the early years of U.S. maritime aviation beginning in 1912, the European Danube River theater of war in November 1916, and Marine Corps recruiting just before and during the First World War. Other contributions review British naval communications with a focus on HMS Hood and the concept of a "warship community," General Billy Mitchell and the sinking of the German dreadnought battleship Ostfriesland in Chesapeake Bay by Army Air Corps bombers, British naval activities in Africa during the Second World War, Canadian and U.S. naval escort oils during the Battle of the Atlantic, the development and use of acoustic torpedoes in the Battle of the Atlantic, Cold War era EMCON exercises HAYSTACK and UPTIDE, and terrorism in Saigon during the mid-1960s.

Each essay has copious scholarly endnotes but, alas, there are no illustrations except for the book's cover: a painting of "The Four Day's Battle of 1666" by Richard Endsor and an inset image of five midshipmen of the U.S. Naval Academy's class of 1865. This new look at a dozen different maritime subjects including provides the reader with well-documented histories and interpretations. The authors and titles of the 12 contributions are:

"Colonial American Resistance to British Naval Impressment in the Revolutionary Era" by Christopher P. Magra.

"Medium Powers and Ironclad Construction: The Spanish Case, 1861-1868" by Carlos Alfaro Zaforteza.

"Water Wings: The Early Years of Navy and Marine Corps Aviation" by Laurence Mitchell Burke II.

Riverine Operations of the Danube Flotilla in the Austro-German Romanian Campaign of 1916" by Michael B. Barrett.

"'There's Nothing a Marine Can't Do': Publicity and the Marine Corps, 1911-1917" by Heather Pace Marshall.

"Arms and the Man: Some Approaches to the Study of British Naval Communications Afloat, 1900-1950" by Bruce Taylor.

"Ostfriesland, the General Board of the Navy, and the Washington Navy Treaty: A Relook at a Historic Sinking" by John T. Kuehn.

"This Temporary Strategic Withdrawal': The Eastern Fleet's Wartime African Sojourn" by Andrew Stewart.

"Escort Oilers: The Untold Story of the Battle of the Atlantic" by Kenneth P. Hansen.

"See Fido Run: A Tale of the First Anti-U-boat Acoustic torpedo" by Kathleen Broome Williams.

"Hiding in Plain Sight: The U.S. Navy and Dispersed Operations under EMCON, 1956-1972" by Robert G. Angevine.

"Turbulence and Terrorism: The Story of Headquarters Support Activity Saigon, 1964-1966" by John Darrell Sherwood.

Charles C. Kolb from the National Endowment for the Humanities is a frequent contributor to Naval History Book Reviews.  

Purchase from GPO 

By Andrew Lambert, Conway Maritime Press: London, England (2011.)

Reviewed by Joseph-James Ahern

HMS Warrior 1860: Victoria's Ironclad Deterrent by noted naval historian Andrew Lambert is one of those unique works where the realms of academic and public history come together nicely to tell the story of the world's first ocean-going, iron-hulled armoured warship, and her unlikely survival into the Twenty-First Century. As Lambert notes, "The most remarkable aspect of Warrior's career has been her survival into an age when her true significance allowed her to be preserved" (53). In telling Warrior's story, he doesn't just describe the nuts and bolts of her architecture, but places her construction into the context of mid-nineteenth century rivalry between England and France.

Two years before ironclads became synonymous with the American Civil War, England and France began a new naval arms race for dominance in Europe. Both nations had pushed wooden steam battleship construction to its limits, and England was still able to maintain its naval supremacy over its continental rival. For French Emperor Louis Napoleon III it was important for his regime to maintain its rivalry with the Royal Navy, as such France turned towards technology and constructed the ironclad steam battleship Gloire to challenge the British. Napoleon's hope was to impress Great Britain who would want to retain the friendship that had existed during the Crimean War. Instead, it had the opposite result - increasing fears of invasion from the long time rival. As such, Warrior was a direct response to Gloire, but unlike Gloire which was an armoured wooden warship Warrior utilized an iron hull. The building policy of the Admiralty led by Sir Baldwin Walker sought the best designs to meet the Royal Navy's needs. While open to technological advances, these were not men prone to blind acceptance of new technology. The decision to build Warrior was based on the realized limits of wooden armoured ships, lessons from iron built merchant ships (namely Great Eastern and Great Western), and constructing an answer to Gloire that relied on proven naval architecture, and could fill a need in the fleet. As such, Warrior was built as a steam frigate - close to HMS Mersey and USS Merrimack, and not as a battleship. Also, by bringing warship design into the industrial age, France played into Great Britain's strengths, losing the race before it even began.

While Warrior had a long career it was not one of sea battles and long cruises. With the exception of taking part in towing the Bermuda floating dry dock in 1869, Warrior was never far from England where facilities were available to service her long hull. The bulk of her service was with the Channel Fleet, and later with the reserve fleet. In the early part of the twentieth century she was turned over for harbor service, serving as a floating workshop for the Vernon Torpedo School between 1900 and 1923. Oddly enough, it would be her final roll as an oil fuel hulk for over fifty years which keep her from the scrap yard. Though not as intriguing as sea battles and around the world cruises, Lambert's narration of Warrior's service history provides the reader with an appreciation for the changes she witnessed within the Royal Navy. Yet where the truly interesting narrative of Warrior's history comes in is the story of her reconstruction. Starting in 1979 with the announcement that the ship would be turned over to the Maritime Trust, an eight year effort began to transform Warrior to her original appearance and glory. This was no small feat. Her new owners needed to find a location where work could be conducted, and a workforce with the proper shipbuilding skills could be found to undertake the project. Lambert describes how the Trust came to settle on the town of Hartlepool, and many of the necessary decisions that were made early on that helped ensure the projects successful completion.

From describing Warrior's reconstruction, Lambert examines in detail specific aspects of the ship - namely her hull and armour, guns, machinery, rig, and numerous aesthetic details. In presenting these chapters, he juxtaposes the historical background of the decisions made during Warrior's career (e.g. why specific guns were chosen by the Admiralty for her armament, or the reasons for her three mast rigging) with the efforts during the reconstruction to return Warrior to her 1860 appearance. Probably the two most interesting of these was the work to replicate her armament and steam engine. Yet overall, one is amazed by the smallest details which went into restoring the ship. In many cases, it was the small everyday items which the crew used but was never documented which required the most research.

In addition to being well written, the book is also well illustrated. Making use of historical images (both photographs and technical drawings) and contemporary images of the ship from her restoration through to today, the reader comes away with a fuller understanding of the design and beauty of Warrior. For anyone who has visited her at her Portsmouth berth, this book (in its second printing) makes a nice souvenir providing for a deeper appreciation of her historical significance. As for those who have not walked her deck, the book is sure to make HMS Warrior part of your must do list when visiting England.

Joseph-James Ahern is an archivist with University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA.

By Commander Youssef H. Aboul-Enein, U. S. Navy, Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, MD (2012).

Reviewed by Captain Roger F. Jones, U.S. Navy (Retired)

The Middle East has a long, complex history that is ignored by contemporary Western statesmen and military leaders only at the risk of seeing their plans and actions end differently than expected. From the beginning of the 19^th century to the early 20^th century, France and Great Britain became heavily involved in this region through the Napoleonic and later wars. Since the late 20^th century, the United States (with United Nations cooperation) has become the primary intervener in this area of the world. To better understand this multifaceted tableau in the context of U.S. efforts to help Iraq build a democratic nation of the 21^st century, the author has translated (from Arabic to English) and reviewed a unique seven-volume series of books by Dr. Ali al-Wardi, titled Social Glimpses of Iraqi Modern History. Dr. al-Wardi (1913-1995), an Iraqi national, was educated at the American University in Beirut and earned his master degree and doctorate at the University of Texas. CDR Aboul-Enein is the chair of Islamic studies at the Industrial College of the Armed Forces.

The book reviews and analyses the history of those areas of the Middle East presently known as Iraq and Saudi Arabia, from the 14th century, to modern times. The storied past of this general region is filled with countless wars, both indigenous and inflicted from the outside; the book begins with the invasion and occupation of the area at different times by the armies of the Turkish Ottoman and Persian Safavid empires. It is noteworthy that Saddam Hussein used memories of this history during the Gulf Wars, casting the U.S. and its allies as being yet another group of invaders seeking to grind Iraq beneath their heels.

The author describes how interaction between different denominations of Islam (e.g., Sunni, Shiite, and subdivision, such as Wahhabi) has vastly complicated the political aspects of Iraq, as well as Arabia, Syria, and Jordan. These countries border each other and conflict between various components of their populations has been ongoing for centuries. The modern states of this region were only established at the end of World War I. The central part, known today as Iraq, became an independent nation in 1920. While these areas were previously parts of the Persian and Ottoman empires, they have been largely governed along tribal lines for thousands of years. A further complication is that Islam is the dominant religion in the Middle East, and it favors theocratic rule. However, its Sunni and Shiite branches (with a number of subdivisions), have been in frequent, deadly conflict with one another over the centuries.  

This is a very scholarly work and should be of interest to anyone that enjoys history. Nevertheless, while it is short, more general readers are likely to find it a bit difficult to follow for several reasons. First, there are a great many unfamiliar names to track. Although this improves as one continues to read, a table showing the dates and rulers of what is now Iraq, one or more family trees, or even a listing of the more important historical figures, would have been helpful. Second, there are only five maps and these are very "busy." ranging from covering centuries of warfare, to those focused on much briefer time periods, with the latter being more useful. The reader should also be aware that the commentary on the history of Iraq and Saudi Arabia ends in the 1920s. In fact, seven of the eleven chapters cover the events in these two countries during 1918 through 1923. There is no mention of events preceding, during, or after World War II or even the Gulf Wars. Construing how the history of these countries has lead to their present-day condition is left to the modern reader to deduce.

Captain Jones shared the NHF 2011 Volunteer of the Year Award with Charles Bogart  

Malcolm Steinberg, Infinity Publishing, West Conshohocken, PA(2011).

Reviewed by John Grady

Malcolm Steinberg has written an extended and fine eulogy to Adm. "Mike" Boorda who died by his own hand May 16, 1996. This is not the definitive biography of the man who rose from sailor to Chief of Naval Operations. Nor is it the "life and times" of Boorda and the Navy of that era, downsizing and still deployed.

The main facts of Boorda's life are there and the pressures he was under in his personal and professional life as "personnelist" especially the John Lehman years of the "600-ship Navy" complete with battleships, and CNO. Steinberg offers insights to both.

As managing editor of Navy Times, I had the opportunity to meet regularly with Boorda when he was the Navy's personnel chief. I found him witty, often charming, and a man who knew how to make news. He always had something for us, a good solid news story. Even when the story wasn't going to be good, Boorda was approachable. I can't remember him brushing any questioner off with a "no comment." That was what was so surprising to me about the David Hackworth's magazine piece attacking him for improperly wearing medals for Vietnam service.

Steinberg's book is a door opener into learning who Boorda was, especially during those last years when he returned from Europe to Washington. More remains to be done to position Boorda in the Navy of his times.

John Grady is a volunteer with the Naval Historical Foundation.