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UBI SUMUS ?
The State of Naval and Maritime History
edited by
John B. Hattendorf
UBI SUMUS?
Naval War College
Historical Monograph Series
No. 11
The Historical Monograph series are book-length studies of the history of
naval warfare, edited historical documents, conference proceedings, and bibli-
ographies. They are the products of the Naval War College's historical studies
and are based, wholly or in part, on source materials in the College's Naval
Historical Collection. Financial support for research projects, conference support
and printing is provided by the Naval War College Foundation.
Other volumes in the series are:
No. 1. The Writings of Stephen B. Luce, edited by John D. Hayes and John B.
Hattendorf(1975).
No. 2. Charleston Blockade: The Journals of John B. Marchand, U.S. Navy,
1861-1862, edited by Craig L. Symonds (1976).
No. 3. Professors of War: The Naval War College and the Development of the Naval
Profession, by Ronald Spector (1977).
No. 4. The Blue Sword: The Naval War College and the American Mission,
1919-1941, by Michael Vlahos (1980).
No. 5. On His Majesty's Service: Observations of the British Home Fleet from the
Diary, Reports, and Letters of Joseph H. Wellings, Assistant Naval Attache, London,
1940-41, edited by John B. Hattendorf (1983).
No. 6. Angel on the Yardarm: The Beginnings of Fleet Radar Defense and the Kamikaze
Threat, by John Monsarrat (1985).
No. 7. A Bibliography of the Works of Alfred Thayer Mahan, compiled by John B.
Hattendorf and Lynn C. Hattendorf (1986).
No. 8. The Fraternity of the Blue Uniform: Admiral Richard G. Colbert, U.S. Navy,
and Allied Naval Cooperation, by Joel J. Sokolsky (1991).
No. 9. The Influence of History on Mahan: The Proceedings of a Conference Marking
the Centenary of Alfred Thayer Mahan' s "The Influence of Sea Power Upon
History, 1660-1783," edited by John B. Hattendorf (1991).
No. 10. Mahan Is Not Enough: The Proceedings of a Conference on the Works of Sir
Julian Corbett and Admiral Sir Herbert Richmond, edited by James Goldrick and
JohnB. Hattendorf (1993).
UBISUMUS?
The State of Naval and Maritime History
Edited by
John B. Ha t ten dor f
Ernest J. King Professor of Maritime History
Naval War College
NAVAL WAR COLLEGE PRESS
Newport. Rhode Island
1994
The cover illustrations are from the
collections of the Henry Eccles Library,
Naval War College, Newport, Rhode Island
Front: Paul Hoste, L'art des Armees Navales
ou Traite des Evolutions Navales (Lyon, 1727).
Back: L'art de Naviguer de M. Pierre de Medine
Espagnol (Rouen, 1607).
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Ubi sumus?: the state of naval and maritime history/edited by John
B. Hattendorf.
p. cm. — (Naval War College hisotrical monograph series; no. 11)
Includes bibliographical references
ISBN 1-884733-04-2
1. Naval art and science — History. 2. Naval history.
3. Navigation — History. I. Hattendorf, John B. II. Series: U.S.
Naval War College historical monograph series; no. 11.
V27.U23 1994 94-34667
359'.009— dc20 CIP
Contents
Acknowledgements rx
Introduction
Ubi Sumus? What Is the State of Naval and Maritime
History Today? 1
John B. Hattendorf
Naval War College
1. The Ancient World 9
Lionel Casson
New York University
2. Argentina 15
Captain Guillermo J. Montenegro
Argentine Navy, Retired
3. Australia 23
Commander James Goldrick
Sub-Lieutenant Alison Vincent
Royal Australian Navy
4. Belgium 33
Christian Koninckx
President, Royal Belgian Marine Academy
Brussels
5. Britain 41
N.A.M. Rodger
National Maritime Museum, Greenwich
6. Maritime History in Canada: The Social and
Economic Dimensions 59
Lewis R. Fischer
Gerald E. Panting
Memorial University of Newfoundland
7. The Historiography of the Canadian Navy: The State
of the Art 79
Marc Milner
University of New Brunswick
8. Chile 93
Captain Carlos Tromben, Chilean Navy
Oficina de Historia Naval, Valparaiso
vi Contents
9. Denmark 103
Hans Christian Bjerg
Military Archives
Rigsarkivet, Copenhagen
10. Dominican Republic Ill
Rear Admiral Cesar A. De Windt Lavandier
Dominican Republic Navy Retired
Escuela Naval, Punta Torrecilla
11. France 115
Herve Coutau-Begarie
Paris
12. Germany 137
Kapitan zur See Dr. Werner Rahn, German Navy
Militargeschichtliches Forschungsamt, Potsdam
13. India 159
Captain C. Uday Bhaskar, Indian Navy
The Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses
New Dehli
14. Ireland 163
John E. de Courcy Ireland
Dalkey, Co. Dublin
15. Israel 169
Meir Sas
Israeli Nautical College, Acre
Nadav Kashtan
National Maritime Museum, Haifa
Sarah Arenson
The Man and Sea Society
16. Twentieth Century Italy 175
Brian R. Sullivan
National Defense University, Washington, D.C.
Comments on Brian Sullivan's "Twentieth Century Italy" .... 191
James J. Sadkovich
University of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg
Contents vii
17. Japan 213
Mark R. Peattie
Hoover Institution on War, Revolution and Peace
Stanford University
David C. Evans
University of Richmond
18. Republic of Korea 223
Kim 111 Sang
Naval War College
Chung Mu Dong, Jinhae
19. The Netherlands 227
Jaap R. Bruijn
Rijks Universiteit Leiden
20. New Zealand 245
Ian McGibbon
Gavin McLean
Historical Branch
Department of Internal Affairs, Wellington
21. Norway 253
Captain Tore Prytz Dahl, Royal Norwegian Navy
Sjokrigskolen, Ytre Laksevag
22. Pakistan 263
Commodore S. Z. Shamsie
Pakistan Navy, Retired
23. Peru 269
Commander Jorge Ortiz, Peruvian Navy
Institutio de Estudios Historico
Maritimos del Peru
24. Poland 275
Jerzy Litwin
Centralne Muzeum Morskie, Gdask
Commander Dr. Wincenty Karawajczyk, Polish Navy
Instytut Nauk Humanistycznych
Akademia Marnarki Wojennej, Gdynia
25. Portugal 295
Commander J. A. Rodrigues Pereira, Portuguese Navy
Academia de Marinha, Lisbon
vlii Contents
26. Singapore 301
Malcolm H. Murfett
National University of Singapore
27. South Africa 313
C.I. Hamilton
University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg
28. Spain 325
Carla Rahn Phillips
University of Minnesota
29. Sweden 345
Jan Glete
Stockholms Universitet
30. Chinese Maritime History in Taiwan 353
Vice Admiral Liu Ta-tsai, Republic of China Navy, Retired
Society for Strategic Studies
Republic of China
Wang Chia-chien
National Taiwan Normal University
31. The State of American Maritime History in the 1990s 363
Benjamin W. Labaree
Munson Institute of American Maritime History
Mystic Seaport, Connecticut
32. Mahan Plus One Hundred: The Current State
of American Naval History 379
Kenneth J. Hagan
U.S. Naval Academy Museum
Annapolis
Mark R. Shulman
National Strategy Information Center
Washington, D.C.
33. Beyond Toddlerhood: Thoughts on the Future
of U.S.Naval History 417
David Alan Rosenberg
Temple University
Acknowledgements
I would like to thank the International Security Studies program at Yale
University and the Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation for hosting the first
Yale-Naval War College conference on naval and maritime history in June 1993.
I am especially appreciative of the work and enthusiastic interest of Professor
Paul M. Kennedy, Mark R. Shulman, and Anne Bitetti, who planted the seed
for this volume.
At the Naval War College, Commander John W. Kennedy, Barbara Prisk
and Jim Collins played key roles in making preparations for the conference. For
their assistance during the final editing of the papers, I am particularly grateful
to Lieutenant-Commander J. T. Dunigan, Barbara Prisk and Commander Roger
Lerseth in the Advanced Research Department, Pat Goodrich at the Naval War
College Press, Ian Oliver, Carole Boiani, Jerry Lamothe and typesetters Vicky
Florendo and Allison Sylvia in the Visual Information and Publishing Branch.
The generous support of a donor to the Naval War College Foundation
provided for publication of this book.
J.B.H.
InirodLTiiclt
ion
Ubi Sumus?
What Is the State of Naval and Maritime
History Today?
John B. Hattendorf
Navigators need to ask "Where are we?" before they can ask "Where are
we going?" Thus, the purpose of this volume is, to let naval and maritime
historians ask "Ubi sumus?" rather than "Quo vadimus?"
A number of specialists in the United States have been deeply concerned that
the serious historical study of man's relationships to and activities at sea has not
had the firm institutional support that we believe it should have. In 1985, a group
of American scholars involved in maritime studies saw that the field was close
to extinction in this country and they suggested a national effort to revitalize and
to coordinate work in the field. In response to this initiative, the Council of
American Maritime Museums established a committee on higher education to
examine the issue. In 1989, the committee reported that public education in the
field was disadvantaged and that there was a general lack of awareness of the field
within the academic community. For maritime museums, the lack of academic
training in the subject was a serious, and even a critical, issue. Many shared the
committee's views and impressions of the situation in the United States and have
tried to take steps toward a remedy. In the course of this, we have had little exact
knowledge about the situation in other countries; our careful attention to them
had been deflected by the hurdles of language and national boundaries. At best,
we have known only what we have gained through fragmentary personal
knowledge and our own experience in the course of individual research and
reading. This volume is an attempt to take a step toward a broader and more
basic analysis of the field, but in moving in this direction we are faced with a
dilemma. It is the dilemma that nationality forces upon us. On the one hand,
we are organized as scholars in terms of national structures, language, and
institutions. On the other hand, our topic ranges across national borders as well
as across standard academic boundaries.
Council of American Maritime Museums, Report of the Higher Education Committee: Survey Results,
Stuart M. Frank, Chairman (Sharon, Mass.: The Kendall Whaling Museum, April 1989).
2 Introduction
More usually than not, it is national governments, national coordinating
groups, state-funded museums, universities and libraries, foundations and navies,
operating within the context of one country, that provide our wherewithal. Our
first order of business, therefore, is to analyze the strengths and weaknesses of
maritime and naval history in terms of scholarship, scope of teaching, supporting
organizations, publishing houses, journals, and any other way in which our
subject organizes itself. Thus, it is appropriate to ask our initial questions in
national terms. We have asked the contributors to this volume to answer the
following broad questions insofar as they apply to each individual country:
Who is teaching naval and maritime history, where is it being taught, and
what facets of it are being taught?
Is this being done only in naval and merchant marine academies, govern-
ment offices, and museums, or is it being done also in universities?
What organizations bring these studies together, or fail to: museums,
universities, institutes, historical societies, journals?
What are the major intellectual trends in the literature on each country's
maritime and naval history?
What period of history or aspects are covered best, and which are in need
of more emphasis?
Is there a gulf between the study of military affairs on the seas and of
non-military maritime history?
How do ideology and politics shape the debates about maritime and naval
history?
The answers to these questions provide us with a basis for our enquiry to
proceed. Yet, in some cases, these answers are themselves not always easy to
find. As one naval officer in an Asian country wrote, "I seem to be like Don
Quixote since such a task does not seem to have been even attempted ever
before."
With a collection of responses on this series of questions, we can begin to
compare and contrast the situation in various countries, and in that process, move
above and beyond national boundaries, as appropriate to our subject. In doing
this, we must see the subject of maritime and naval history more clearly. While
we can not forget its national dimensions, we must be aware that sea history,
maritime trade and naval rivalry touch on several nations simultaneously. At the
same time, it is a theme that brings together a wide variety of different vantage
points and disciplines. Within it, we find a dynamic interaction at a variety of
levels. We can see relationships and trends between technological development
and industry, the formation and growth of sciences, changing economic trends
Hattendorf 3
and financial instruments, politics, international relations, law, theories of
economics and warfare, sociological and anthropological issues, along with
reflections of cultural, intellectual, and religious impulses with additional
perspectives to be found through art and literature. All of these are broad subjects
in themselves, worthy of study in their own right, but defining them through
their relationship to men and ships at sea provides us with a distinct series of
related themes that we can follow over long periods of history. To my mind,
this broad perspective justifies the academic pursuit of maritime and naval affairs
as a subject. Lest I be misunderstood, I hasten to emphasize that the subject, as
I see it, is not a closed category of human activity. Its academic legitimacy is to
be found not in isolation from other types of history but in the breadth and range
of historical interconnections which one can intelligibly make in following, over
time, the varied developments surrounding ships, sailors, and their related
enterprises.
At universities and in research institutions, it is appropriate to stress the
academic value of our field and to discuss its state in terms of the highest historical
scholarship. At the same time, however, there is a different level of attention to
the subject that should not be ignored. Here, I want to draw attention to the
importance which seamen themselves place on naval and maritime history. Their
focus is designed to serve the maritime and naval profession. In this sense, it
differs somewhat in emphasis and in objectives from that of the academic, while
at the same time it shares much. In one respect, it is a means of maintaining an
institutional memory for the organizations involved. On a larger scale, however,
the history of a profession — for a professional within it — is clearly part of the
specialized body of knowledge relating to its professional skills and practice as
well as a tool for promoting the profession's special interests.
Since the nineteenth century, navies in particular have cultivated this ap-
proach. Naval historians such as Sir John Knox Laughton, Sir Julian Corbett,
Captain Mahan, and Admiral Sir Herbert Richmond were certainly among the
founding fathers of this method in the Anglo-American world. Illustrating the
professional mode, Sir Herbert Richmond identified "three classes of individuals
to whom an acquaintance of naval history is needful: the general public, the
statesman, and the sea officer."
The general public, he said, needs to understand the navy as an integral part
of national and general history. For this audience, he stressed the need to promote
an understanding of the Navy's role in maintaining a maritime country's security
at sea.
The statesman, Richmond said, needs to understand how naval power has
been employed, applied, and even misapplied. A statesman who understands
H.W. Richmond, "The Importance of the Study of Naval History," The Naval Review, 27 (May
1939), pp. 201-18; quote from p. 201. The article was reprinted in The Naval Review 68 (April 1980),
pp. 139-50.
4 Introduction
these issues in history, Richmond argued, "would be more capable of under-
taking the tremendous responsibilities attached to policy, preparation and
direction of war than one to whom naval history is a closed book."
The sea officer will gain several things from a study of naval history. First, he
will find an understanding of the elements of the use of sea power. From this he
can develop a foundation upon which to build up knowledge of naval war,
starting from a record of practical experience rather than futuristic speculation.
The officer will find naval history a groundwork of strategical study and a mental
stimulant that will serve as a guide to conduct. Moreover, Richmond suggested,
a study of tactics from the age of sail could have practical value for the modern
officer in the twentieth century, when naval weapons and equipment changed
beyond recognition. Even though the tactics of earlier times are themselves of
little practical use to the present, a study of them reveals "the principles of the
use of force and human nature, which expresses itself in its methods of
command." For the professional naval officer, the study of naval history brings
out the need for clear thinking on a wide range of professional issues, while at
the same time providing illustration, stimulation, and guidance to officers on the
nature and character of naval command.
In other words, from a professional point of view, the general public should
know enough about the history of naval and maritime affairs to appreciate and
to support public expenditure on current programs; the statesman, to maintain,
guide and use it appropriately; the sea officer, to understand the nature of the
issues he faces and to absorb the ideals of the profession. Many of these points
are ones which a professional academic would hesitate to endorse, seeking
instead a broader and more dispassionate understanding of the maritime dimen-
sion in human affairs.
This book of essays had its origin in a two and a half-day joint Yale-Naval
War College conference held in New Haven, Connecticut, at the invitation of
Professor Paul M. Kennedy. This conference was limited by time and resources
to focussing on the naval and maritime history of only eight countries: Canada,
France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the
United States. Our thought in organizing this meeting was to have time for an
exchange of ideas. Thus, it was convenient to limit both the size of our group
and the number of papers presented. To encourage our discussion, we invited
knowledgeable commentators to stir our thoughts on the issues, perhaps leading
us in directions we had not previously examined. The countries that we chose
for the conference are those where naval and maritime studies are highly active.
Yet, maritime and naval history is still so specialized a field that we found
difficulty in finding speakers and commentators for all the countries we wanted
3 Ibid., p. 203.
4 Ibid., p. 212.
Hattendorf 5
to include. At the same time, we found that the division between maritime and
naval studies in North America was so great that many specialists were unwilling
to cross their self-imposed boundaries. In order to get a full understanding of
the issues involved, we doubled the representation of papers from Canada and
the United States.
Nevertheless, despite the practical restraints on what we could achieve, even
in a very intense and busy conference, the papers were only the core of a larger
project. Eight North American and European countries do not represent the
world! To supplement our ideas, we solicited more essays, posing the same
questions, from as many different countries as we could locate maritime and
naval historians. Some did not respond; others, for one reason or another, were
unable to provide essays. Reluctantly, we have had to accept the fact that we
could not have complete representation and still publish a timely volume. Thus,
despite the omission of so many African and Middle Eastern countries as well as
Brazil, The People's Republic of China, Finland, Greece, Indonesia, Mexico,
the Philippines, Russia, and Turkey, all of which have key maritime interests,
this volume is large enough to suggest some of the main trends and issues in the
current state of maritime and naval history.
As we look across the scope of the present state of maritime and naval history,
we find a variety of situations, varying from country to country. In some, there
are only a handful of professional seamen who are doing the heroic work of
maintaining this field of historical work. Their work tends to center in the
professional service academies, staff colleges, or in contributions from retired
officers and merchant mariners. In other countries, the professional seamen have
made links with academics and with research organizations that have helped to
raise historical standards and broaden out understanding of events at sea. In other
places, it is the museums that have taken the lead in research and writing, as well
is in educating the public on the historical role of sea affairs. In a few places,
maritime and naval history has become a subject for research and courses at the
university level. Yet, perhaps, nowhere has it reached the highest level at which
we would like to have it.
Overall, maritime and naval history is an area with tremendous potential for
serious historical research, yet as a field, it often lacks methodological standards.
Professional seamen have been the first to promote study in this area, finding it
valuable for their own professional concerns. However, when interest in the
field expands, too often it consists initially of only a fascination with ships or in
some romantic notion of seafaring, rather than in broader, historical under-
standing. In order for the general study of maritime and naval history to reach
a higher level, its focus must break out beyond a confined, self-contained and
self- referenced view to make links with wider events and with trends of broad,
general interest. Indeed, the best studies in naval and maritime history, up to this
point, are those that specifically use naval and maritime affairs as examples,
6 Introduction
extensions or variations of already established general themes in topics like the
history of science and technology or economic, social, political, international or
intellectual history. Yet, maritime and naval history affairs are more than just
stray examples. Man's activities at sea involve complex interrelationships of many
strands in human affairs. When seen together, they constitute a broad theme
within general history that should be neither isolated nor ignored. The develop-
ment, over time, in the technologies of ships, the range of the nautical sciences,
the skills and character of seamen, form the central strands of this theme as one
traces its interaction with other areas of human activity.
Taken as a whole, the essays in this volume suggest both the strengths and
weaknesses in the field of maritime and naval history. As a field, it is generally
underdeveloped when compared to other historical topics. Nevertheless, some
very important basic work has been done in laying the foundations for proper
study: Significant progress has been made in establishing some key bibliographies
and there are already available some important research guides to manuscript
materials. Scholars have begun to publish critical editions of key documents and
they are identifying, where available, the standard works which new research
work can test and expand upon. Pressures from both within and without the
maritime community are slowly opening its closed, self-referenced shell that was
originally so valuable for early professional development. The wider contacts
and perceptions benefit equally the modern professional seaman as well as the
historian who wishes to observe them. In order to use them effectively, however,
those who work in maritime and naval history must be more fully aware of
progress that is being made toward improving methodology in the field.
The teaching area is the least developed of all. Aside from professional
academies which sometimes still deal with the subject only in outmoded
hagiographic, romantic, or nationalistic styles, there are only a very a few serious
academic courses that examine the broad historical implications of the subject.
With a few exceptions, university courses have tended to ignore the natural
international and comparative perspectives that maritime and naval affairs
naturally involve. Few have attempted to deal in the alternative patterns to
national history that such distinctive features of the subject as ocean currents and
the pattern of maritime trade might suggest. Some of the rare academic chairs,
designed to be filled by scholars who should be leading the teaching and work
in the maritime and naval field at great research universities, are unfilled or
diverted to specialists in distantly related themes. At universities, both under-
graduate and graduate students approaching the broad spectrum of historical
issues often entirely miss the maritime dimension. One hopes that, as methodol-
ogy improves and more researchers and writers in maritime and naval history
5 This is the subject of another volume of essays: John B. Hattendorf, ed., Doing Naval History: Essays
Toward Improvement (forthcoming).
Hattendorf 7
demonstrate the wider dimensions of the field, they will provide the materials
for teaching.
Where are we with the field of maritime and naval history? It is among the
"youngsters" in the historical profession; it is a field that needs to become more
sophisticated. By and large, we need to improve our methodologies and
techniques as well as to consolidate the intellectual foundations for our field. To
do that, we have the materials at hand. The following essays, however incom-
plete a collection, provide one basis for moving forward. These essays report
where we are now, and with this knowledge, we can begin to look for new
approaches and new linkages to improve the quality of future work in maritime
and naval history.
1
The Ancient World
Lionel Casson
The history of the sea in ancient times is a fledgling discipline. It came into
being, strictly speaking, only in the twentieth century. To date, it has
dealt almost exclusively with the technical aspects of ships. There are two reasons
for this. The first is that, in this century, new disciplines were developed, such
as archaeology, epigraphy, numismatics, art history, and, most importantly,
marine archeology in the latter half of the century, and these have transformed
our knowledge of the technical aspects, filling in what hitherto had been black
holes. Inevitably, research has concentrated on these. The second reason is that,
for the ancient world, we lack information on which to base meaningful exploration of
larger historical aspects.
Until the dramatic revelations of Near Eastern archaeology, for the many
centuries prior to ca. 1000 B.C., all ancient history, not merely the history of the
sea, was a blank. And, for the centuries after that, naval history was hindered by
a long-standing argument concerning the oarage of ancient war galleys, while
maritime history was hindered by widely held misconceptions that the ancients
used only relatively small sailing ships, that they clung to the coasts, that they
were unable to sail against the wind.
Naval History
The first genuinely scholarly contribution to the history of the sea was Cecil
Torr's Ancient Ships, published in 1895, in which Torr presented all the
information that could be gleaned from Greek and Latin writers. For maritime
history it was a notable contribution, since it not only made clear that the ancients
had ships of considerable size but provided details about their rig and equipment.
Naval history, however, was another matter. The standard warship of the
Lionel Casson, The Ancient Mariners, 2nd ed. (Princeton: 1991). A presentation for the general reader
of the maritime aspects of ancient history from the earliest beginnings to the end of the ancient world.
L. Casson, Ships and Seamanship in the Ancient World, 2nd ed. (Princeton: 1986). A scholarly
presentation with full documentation of all aspects of naval technology.
Lucien Basch, Le musee imaginaire de la marine antique (Athens: 1987). Over 1,100 figures reproduce
almost all the representations of ships that have survived from the ancient world.
C. Torr, Aticient Ships. (Cambridge: 1895). A reprint edition (Chicago: 1964).
'I
William L. Rodgers, Greek and Roman Naval Warfare. (Annapolis: 1937; reprinted 1980). A
1 0 The Ancient World
ancient world was a galley called a trieres in Greek and triremis in Latin — a trireme
in our nomenclature. The first means "three-fitted," the second "having three
oars," and centuries before Torr wrote, authorities had been arguing hotly over
how this was to be understood. Most held that the tri- indicated there were three
superimposed levels of oarsmen, and, since the evidence from written sources
pointed in this direction, it was the view Torr followed. However, a British
historian, W.W. Tarn, who wielded a skilled pen and was a master at polemics,
in the early decades of this century convinced the scholarly world otherwise,
that such an arrangement was impossible, that triremes must have had a single
line of oars arranged in clusters of three. The problem was complicated by the
fact that, in the fourth and third centuries B.C., ever bigger war galleys bearing
similar nomenclature came into being, "four-fitteds," "five-fitteds," right up to
a brobdingnagian "forty-fitted." The armchair experts of the nineteenth century,
preferring logic to maritime reality, were convinced that, since a trireme was a
ship with three levels of oars, the other names must embody this principle, and
so from their drawing boards came reconstructions of ships with four levels of
oars, ships with five levels, and so on up, monstrosities that would hardly stand
up to a zephyr to say nothing of the rigors of a sea battle. Tarn, of course, insisted
they were all one-level, even though this produced some meaningless arrange-
ments.
Tarn's views reigned until 1941, when a British scholar, John Morrison,
published a watershed article in which, exploiting not only information from
ancient writers but also some representations that he convincingly demonstrated
were of triremes, ended the argument: the trireme did indeed have three levels
of oars, the uppermost of which rowed over an outrigger. The tri- referred to
the three oarsmen in a vertical line: the oarsman in the lowest level, the oarsman
in the middle level seated above him, and the oarsman in the topmost level seated
more or less over the one in the middle. Four decades later, in the eighties,
Morrison, with the aid of naval architect John Coates, directed the building of
a replica of a trireme, the Olympias. It was launched in 1987 and put through
trials during subsequent years with spectacular success.
comprehensive review of the major sea battles and the strategy and tactics involved. Much of the
presentation requires revision on the basis of the evidence that has become available since the time of
writing.
Tarn's chief articles have been reprinted in the reprint edition of Torr, Ancient Ships.
5 J. Morrison and R. Williams, Greek Oared Ships 900-322 B. C. (Cambridge: 1968). A fully illustrated
study of the origin and development of the Greek war galley based on all surviving representations.
6 J. Morrison and J. Coates, The Athenian Trireme. (Cambridge: 1986). A study of all aspects of the
trireme — its development, construction, crews, equipment, use in battle. A chapter is devoted to the
principles on which the building of the replica was based.
7 J. Morrison and J. Coates, An Athenian Trireme Reconstructed: The British sea trials of Olympias, 1987.
BAR [British Archaeological Reports] International Series, 486 (1989). A monograph that presents the
results gained in the earliest trials. See also P. Lipke in Archaeology (March- April 1988), pp. 22-9.
Casson 1 1
What of the bigger ships, the "four-fitteds" and "five-fitteds" and so on? The
ancients never went beyond three levels of oars. The best explanation of these
galleys is that they had several men to each oar in one, two, or three levels,
although exactly how many is a matter of guesswork. A "four-fitted," for
example, may have had three levels with two men to the oar in the topmost and
one each in the other two. A "nine-fitted" may have had three levels with three
men to the oar in each, or two levels with five to the oar in the upper level and
four to the oar in the lower. The huge "forty-fitted" was probably a catamaran,
with three levels of multiple-rower oars in each hull (e.g., a top level of eight-man
oars, middle level of seven-man oars, lowermost level of five-man oars).
These huge war galleys, no doubt about it, did exist and — save for the extraor-
dinary "forty" — were by no means display pieces but saw action in many a battle;
they were the ancient world's equivalent of dreadnoughts. This has been put beyond
doubt by a recent dramatic archaeological find and the solving of a mystery posed
by an earlier find. The dramatic find was the recovery in the waters off Athlit, a
town on the coast of Israel near Haifa, of the ram of a warship (ancient war galleys
had a projecting forefoot which was sheathed in bronze; this, the ram as it is called,
was the vessel's key weapon). It was a mighty casting with an overall length of just
under seven and one-half feet and weighing somewhat more than a thousand
pounds. The mysterious earlier find was a series of curious sockets carved in a
retaining wall that formed part of a memorial monument set up by the Roman
emperor Augustus to commemorate his naval victory over Mark Antony at the
Battle of Actium in 31 B.C. The sockets were roughly graduated in size; the biggest
was almost two meters wide and three-quarters of a meter high. We know that
Augustus had included in the monument a display of rams removed from the enemy
ships that had been taken. An American scholar, William Murray, noticing that the
ram from Athlit would fit right into one of these sockets, realized that they must
have held the rams that were displayed as trophies; they varied in size because
they held rams from warships of different sizes. The socket nearest in size to fit
the Athlit ram shows that this, for all its weight of one thousand pounds, must
have come from a war galley of relatively modest size, a "four-fitted" or a
"five-fitted"; the ram that fitted into the largest socket, three times as wide and
proportionately bigger all around, must have been gargantuan.
New studies have clarified how warships were manned (never by state-owned
slaves but by free citizens or by hired rowers who were very well paid), built,
L. Casson and J.R. Steffy, ed., The Athlit Ram. (College Station: Texas A & M University Press,
1991). A comprehensive report on the ram found off Athlit.
W. Murray and P. Petsas, Octavian's Campsite Memorial for the Actian War. Transactions of the
American Philosophical Society, n.s. 79, pt. 4, (Philadelphia: 1989). Includes a detailed study of the
sockets that held the trophy rams.
On the manning of warships, see Casson, Ships and Seamanship (1986), chapter 13; Morrison and
Coates, The Athenian Trireme (1986), chapter 7; Chester Starr, The Roman Imperial Navy 31 B.C.-A.D.
324, 2nd ed. (Cambridge: 1960), chapters 3-5.
1 2 The Ancient World
1 1
equipped, and maintained, as well as the organization of the major fleets, that
1 0
of Athens in the fifth and fourth century B.C. and that of Imperial Rome in
the first three centuries A.D. In addition, the determining of the nature of the
oarage of ancient war galleys, together with an appreciation of their size, has
made possible a better understanding of the nature of naval battles.
Maritime History
The development around the middle of this century of SCUBA diving has
transformed our knowledge of ancient sailing ships, throwing light on critical
areas about which we had hitherto been totally in the dark. It brought into being
a new discipline, marine archaeology, in which archaeologist-divers locate ancient
wrecks and dig those that repay excavation as carefully and scientifically as their
colleagues on land dig sites. By now they have identified and studied over a
thousand ancient wrecks, most in more or less preliminary fashion, but a few
they have excavated completely. It soon became apparent that if a wreck had
been carrying a cargo that could stand up to erosion, such as clay shipping jars
or slabs of building stone or copper ingots and the like, the cargo would preserve
from destruction the portion of the hull it lay over — and these remains have
supplied vital information about an area which hitherto had been a blank, namely
ancient shipbuilding. We now know that ancient shipwrights had their own
special way of assembling a hull. They did not start with a skeleton of keel and
frames and clothe this with planks, as has been Western practice since at least
On equipment and maintenance, see Casson, Ships and Seamanship (1986), chapter 11, part 3, and
chapter 16, part 2; Morrison and Coates, Tlie Athenian Trireme (1986), chapters 8-9; Morrison and
Williams, Greek Oared Ships, chapter 8.
B. Jordan, The Athenian Navy in the Classical Period. Classical Studies, vol. 13 (Berkeley: University
of California Publications, 1975). A presentation of what is known about the organization of Athens'
fleet and its administration.
Starr, Roman Imperial Navy. A masterly study of the administration and organization of the major
fleets based in Italy and the provincial fleets based around the Mediterranean and elsewhere. In addition,
Starr reviews the history of each.
On the nature of sea battles, see Morrison and Coates, The Athenian Trireme (1986), chapters. 3-5;
Casson and Steffy, Athlit Ram, chapter 7; Murray and Petsas, Octavian's Campsite, chapter 6 on the battle
of Actium.
P. Gianfrotta and P. Pomey, Archeologia Subacquea (Milan: 1981). A comprehensive review of the
techniques of marine archaeology and the nature of their findings. See also International Journal of Nautical
Archaeology. This journal, started in 1972, specializes in the publication of articles dealing with marine archaeology.
16 G. Bass, ed., A History of Seafaring Based on Underwater Archaeology . (London: 1972). A review of
underwater finds in both the Old and New World.
A. Parker, Ancient Shipwrecks of the Mediterranean & the Roman Provinces. BAR International Series,
580 (1992). An invaluable catalogue of over 1,250 wrecks found so far, giving for each all known details
and a comprehensive bibliography. A series of terse introductory chapters summarizes marine
archaeology's key findings to date.
G. Bass and F. van Doorninck, Jr., Yassi Ada. I, A Seventh- Century Byzantine Shipivreck (College
Station: Texas A & M University Press, 1982). A comprehensive report of the results of a full-scale
excavation of a small freighter that went down off the southwest coast of Asia Minor about A.D. 625.
Casson 1 3
the Middle Ages. They started with the creation of a shell of planks by fastening
each plank to its neighbors by multiple mortise and tenon joints transfixed by
dowels, and then strengthening the shell with the insertion of frames. The
procedure goes back certainly to the fourteenth century B.C., and very likely
earlier, and lasted throughout ancient times. During the best period, from at least
the fourth century B.C. through the first A.D., the procedure was carried out with
rigorous care: the mortise and tenons were set so closely that at times they were
but a centimeter or so apart, the tenons fitted snugly in the mortises, each part
above and below the seam was transfixed by a dowel to keep the joint from ever
coming apart, and into this sturdy shell of planking was inserted a complete set
of frames. One wreck, of a small coastal freighter that had gone down around
300 B.C. off Kyrenia on the north shore of Cyprus, was so well preserved that
its excavators were able to construct a full-scale replica, Kyrenia II; in a series of
voyages it demonstrated excellent sailing qualities, including the ability to make
good progress against the wind. Not only merchant vessels but war galleys were
built in this fashion, as was revealed by the bow timbers that were found encased
in the Athlit ram.
After the second century A.D., the workmanship gradually got more careless:
the joints were placed further apart, the tenons fitted loosely, and the frames
were set further apart. A wreck of the seventh century A.D. clearly reveals changes
in the direction of skeleton-first construction; a wreck of about A.D. 1025 shows
the last step, full skeleton-first construction.
Marine archaeologists have been busy as well in the investigation of ancient
harbors and have provided welcome information about their shape, orientation,
and construction.
Europe and the British Isles
The discovery in western Europe and the British Isles of remains of boats in
or along lakes and rivers has supplied firsthand evidence of the craft used there
from early times through the period of Roman domination. Finds in Britain
reveal that as early as the second millennium B.C., skilled boatbuilders were
constructing planked craft at least 16 m long. Finds in Europe indicate that
boatbuilders there may have been using a form of skeleton-first construction by
at least the first century A.D.
On ancient shipbuilding, see Casson, Ancient Mariners (1991), chapters 3, 14; Casson, Ships and
Seamanship (1986), chapter 10; Casson, "Greek and Roman shipbuilding: New Findings," The American
Neptune, 45 (1985), pp. 10-9. On Kyrenia II, see Casson, Ancient Mariners (1991), p. 113 with
bibliography, p. 227 and illustration, fig. 30. On the wreck of the 7th century A.D., see Bass and van
Doorninck, YassiAda. On the wreck of A.D. 1025, see F. van Doorninck and J. R. Steffy in International
Journal of Nautical Archaeology, 11 (1982), pp. 7-34; on pp. 26-8, StefFy provides a brief, but invaluable,
survey of the gradual change in the ancients' method of shipbuilding.
1 ft
On harbors, see Casson, Ships and Seamanship (1986), chapter 16.
E. Wright, The Ferriby Boats: Seacraft of the Bronze Age (London: 1990). A detailed report on the
1 4 The Ancient World
Sea Power
As the above reveals, the emphasis in this century has been upon the technical
aspects of maritime history: shipbuilding, harbor construction, naval tactics, fleet
organization, etc. These subjects had hitherto been either totally or imperfectly
known, and the emergence of fresh evidence provided by the newly developed
technologies understandably gave them a leading role in scholarly research. But
the larger historical issues have not been ignored. A recent study, following in
Mahan's footsteps, surveys the influence of sea power on ancient history. A small
book, it says just about all that one can currently and safely say on the subject.
remains of several boats dating ca. 1300 B.C., including one that was 16 m long, that were found
along the Humber River. They were made in skilled fashion of massive oak planks, bound edge to edge
by lashings of yew withes.
P.Johnstone, The Sea-craft of Prehistory (Cambridge, Mass.: 1980). A worldwide survey, with chapters
1 1 and 12 dealing with the British Isles and Europe.
20 Chester G. Starr, The Influetice of Sea Power on Ancient History (New York: 1989).
Argentina
T
Captain Guillermo J. Montenegro
Argentine Navy, Retired
he state of naval and maritime history in Argentina is characterized by two
general features:
First, research and publication on Argentine naval and maritime history
has had, and still has, a strong emphasis on early nineteenth century naval
history.
Second, naval and maritime history has remained mainly inside the realm
of the sea-oriented community and with only a limited projection into the
outside world.
There are several reasons for the preeminence of studies on early nineteenth
century naval history:
• A long period of Argentine noninvolvement in international wars,
between the Wars of Independence and the War against Brazil (1810—
1828), and ending in 1982 with the Falklands/Malvinas War. In this long
period, the only exceptions were the Anglo-French interventions in the
1830s and 1840s and the so-called War of the Triple Alliance, involving
Brazil, Uruguay, and Argentina against Paraguay in 1864—70.
• A national sense of naval success in the early nineteenth century wars.
• A very limited naval participation in the civil wars that harried Argentina
later in the nineteenth century.
• A very limited maritime development in the merchant marine, fishing
and shipbuilding industries until the 1940s.
In spite of Argentina's geographical location and strong dependence on sea
communications, Argentineans were not, and still are not, strongly sea-minded
4
people. Using Mahan's concepts, Argentina has a large, fertile territory, a
comparatively small population, but the lack of natural harbors has worked
1 Alfred T. Mahan, The Influence of Sea Power upon History, 1660-1783 (Boston: Little Brown & Co.,
1890), pp. 35-39.
16 Argentina
against a smooth, self-sustained maritime development. This has led to the navy's
initiatives, or navy-sponsored initiatives, to try to educate the public about the
significance of sea power. The initiative in using naval and maritime history as
a means of giving an overall view of early Argentine naval history came from a
civilian, Anjel Justiniano Carranza, whose four volume work was published in
1914—16. It covered the Wars of Independence and the War against Brazil. It
was, and perhaps still is, the main reference work on that period. Later on,
Teodoro Caillet-Bois, a retired naval officer working on an individual initiative
basis wrote his well-balanced summary of Argentine naval history, with some
hints on the maritime field, covering the period from colonial times up to the
late 1920s. A third pioneer was Hector R. Ratto, also a retired naval officer,
who published some works on early nineteenth century naval heroes. Villegas
Basavilbaso, a former naval officer who went into the practice of law, made an
important contribution in a small booklet of 35 pages, putting a Mahanian touch
on the history of the wars of Argentine Independence. In parallel with these
efforts, the Centro Naval (Naval Club), published some firsthand accounts by
participants in early nineteenth century wars. There was an American author,
Lewis W. Bealer, who also made a contribution to early Argentine naval history
by writing about the corsairs of Buenos Aires.
The mid- 1930s also witnessed the publication of the first significant work that
focused on late nineteenth and early twentieth century Argentine naval history:
o
Los Viajes de la "Sarmiento, " depicting the twenty-nine round-the-world
midshipmen training cruises performed by the well known square-rigger, ARA
Presidente Sarmiento, between 1899 and 1931.
In addition to these publications, the Naval Museum, settled in 1892 in
downtown Buenos Aires and later moved to El Tigre, on the outskirts of Buenos
Aires in the early 1940s, gave an increasing momentum to spread the knowledge
of naval and maritime history.
Besides researching, publishing, and spreading Argentine naval and maritime
history, there was a deep interest within Argentine naval circles in foreign,
Anjel J. Carranza, Campanas Nauales de la Republica Argentina, 4 vols. (Buenos Aires: Ministerio de
Marina, 1914-16).
Teodoro Caillet-Bois, Ensayo de Historia Naval Argentina (Buenos Aires, 1929).
4 Hector R. Ratto, Hombres de Mar en la Historia Argentina (Buenos Aires: Circulo Militar, 1934);
Hector R. Ratto, Historia de Browti, 2 vols. (Buenos Aires: Facultad, 1939).
Benjamin Villegas Basavilbaso, La Injlueticia del Dominio del Mar en las Guerras de EmancipaciSn Argentina
(Buenos Aires: Ministerio de Marina, 1935).
6 Antonio Somellera, La Ultima Campana de la Guerra con el Brasil (Buenos Aires: Centro Naval, 1930);
Memorias del Almirante Guillermo Broiim sobre las Operaciones Nauales de la Escuadra Argentina de 1814 a
1828 (Buenos Aires: Centro Naval, 1936).
Lewis W. Bealer, Los Corsarios de Buenos Aires (Buenos Aires: Imprenta Coni, 1937). The original
is a Ph.D. dissertation, University of California, 1935.
Los Viajes de la Sarmiento (Buenos Aires: Ediciones Argentinas, 1931).
Montenegro 17
contemporary naval history. The Russo-Japanese War and the First World War
provided the subject for a massive amount of foreign literature which, in many
cases, was translated and published either by the Centro Naval (Navy Club), the
Naval War College (which was founded in 1934), or the Navy General Staff.
In addition to purely historical works, contemporary authors dealing with naval
and maritime strategy, such as Mahan, Corbett, Wegener, Groos, Di Giamber-
nardino, and Castex, were also translated and published by the same naval-related
9
presses.
Two main naval-related periodicals were publishing, and still publish, a
reasonable amount of historical work. One is the Boletin del Centro Naval (Naval
Club Bulletin), founded in 1882, which publishes primarily original works and
is a good source of Argentine naval and maritime history, as well as foreign naval
affairs. The second periodical is the Revista de Publicaciones Navales (Naval
Publications Review), founded in 1902. It is published by the Navy General
Staff and is intended primarily for reproducing translations of significant articles
appearing in foreign periodicals. As the reader may imagine, the 1920s and 1930s
were full of essays about the First World War (including translations of some
chapters of Corbett's Naval Operations).
Historical literature about the Russo-Japanese War deserves special mention.
On the eve of the war, Argentina sold to Japan two armored cruisers that were
being built in Italy for the Argentine Navy. The ships became HIJMS Nisshin
and HIJMS Kasuga. Commander Manuel Domecq Garcia, senior Argentine
officer supervising construction in Italy, traveled to Japan and was present in
several actions, including the battle of Tsushima. Domecq Garcia wrote a
five-volume report which was printed by the Argentine Navy as classified matter
and distributed amongst serving officers in the mid-1 9 10s; and, it still remains
one of the most interesting reports by a qualified, neutral witness.
Another impulse came from the Navy League, founded in 1933, which
worked hard to acquaint the general public with concepts such as sea power, sea
interests, the navy itself, naval traditions and, of course, maritime history. The
Alfred T. Mahan, Injluencia del Poder Naval en la Historia. 1660-1783, 2 vols. (Buenos Aires: Escuela
de Guerra Naval, 1935); Alfred T. Mahan, Estrategia Naval, 2 vols. (Buenos Aires: Escuela de Guerra
Naval, 1935); Julian S. Corbett, Algunos Principios de Estrategia Maritima (Buenos Aires: Escuela de Guerra
Naval, 1936); Wolfgang Wegener, La Estrategia Naval en la Guerra Mundial (Buenos Aires: Estado Mayor
General, 1935); Otto Gross, ha Doctrina de la Guerra Maritima segun las Ensehanzas de la Guerra Mundial
(Buenos Aires: Estado Mayor General, 1935); Oscar Di Giambernardino, El arte de la Guerra en el Mar
(Buenos Aires: Estado Mayor General, 1940); Raoul Castex, Teorias Estrategicas, 5 vols. (Buenos Aires:
Escuela de Guerra Naval, 1938-1942).
Julian S. Corbett, "La Batalla de Las Malvinas" (Chaps. 28 and 29 in Naval Operations, vol. 1) Revista
de Publicaciones Navales (Buenos Aires), 440 (July-September 1937), pp. 409-43; Julian S. Corbett, "La
Batalla de Coronel" (Chap. 25 in Naval Operations, vol. 1), Revista de Publicaciones Navales (Buenos Aires),
441 (October-December 1937), pp. 677-91.
Manuel Domecq Garcia, Guerra Ruso-Japonesa 1904-05, 5 vols. ([Buenos Aires: Ministerio de
Marina], 1917).
1 8 Argentina
Navy League started its own periodical, Marina, in 1934, which deals with both
naval and maritime affairs, and, given its life span, it provides an interesting record
for prospective researchers.
The Second World War produced a massive array of foreign naval historical
works, but this time the Argentine Navy's participation was less significant in
translating and publishing this literature than it was after the First World War.
The "classic" periodicals, (i.e., Boletin del Centro Naval and Revista de Publicaciones
Navales) kept on printing a large number of papers relating to the Second World
War, some by Argentine authors. On the naval side, Muratorio Posse's history
of naval operations during the war was the main work, intended primarily as a
textbook for the Naval War College.
The Navy-sponsored Instituto Browniano was founded in 1948. Its main task
1 'K
is to improve the knowledge about William Brown, his deeds and his times.
This Institute started publishing its own periodical, Boletin del Instituto Browniano,
in 1950. Later on, in 1953, its name was changed to Revista del Mar. The
commemoration of the centennial of Admiral Brown's death in 1957 led to the
creation of a Naval Historical Center. This office started a long line of publica-
tions. Among the first we may cite a new edition of Carranza's Campanas
Navales, as well as Burzio's Armada Nacional-Resefia Historica de su Origen y
Desarrollo Organico and Historia del Torpedo y sus Buques en la Armada Argentina,
Entraigas' Piedra Buena-Caballero del Mar, and Lenzi's Carlos Maria Moyano-
Marino, Explorador y Qobernante. The Naval Historical Center not only central-
ized historical research and publishing, but also took charge of the Navy Museum
and two historic ships: The aforementioned ARA Presidente Sarmiento (former
midshipmen training square-rigger) and the corvette ARA. Uruguay (a sail and
steam-propelled vessel which rescued the Swedish Nordenskjold expedition
from the Antarctica in 1904).
*2 See Guillermo J. Montenegro, "Research about the History of the Second World War in Argentina"
in Neue Forschungen zum Zweiten Weltkrieg, ed. Jiirgen Rohwer and Hildegard Muller (Koblenz: Bernard
und Graefe Verlag, 1990), pp. 10-12.
William Brown was an Irish Catholic who came to the Argentine service in the early 1810s and
distinguished himself as a leader and fighter in the Wars of Independence and in the war against Brazil.
He settled in Argentina, serving his adopted country loyally until his death. He is regarded as Argentina's
chief naval hero.
14 Anjel J. Carranza, Campanas Navales de la Republica Argentina, 4 vols., 2nd ed. (Buenos Aires:
Departamento de Estudios Historicos Navales, 1962).
Humberto F. Burzio, Armada Nacional-Resefia Historica de su Origen y Desarrollo Organico
(Buenos Aires: Departamento de Estudios Historicos Navales, 1960); Humberto F. Burzio, Historia del
Torpedo y sus Buques en la Armada Argentina 1874-1900 (Buenos Aires: Departamento de Estudios
Historicos Navales, 1968); Raul A. Entraigas, Piedra Buena. Caballero del Mar (Buenos Aires:
Departamento de Estudios Historicos Navales, 1966); Juan H. Lenzi, Carlos Maria Moyano: Marino,
Explorador y Gobernante (Buenos Aires: Departamento de Estudios Historicos Navales, 1962). Luis Piedra
Buena and Carlos Maria Moyano were two pioneers involved in nation-building on the Patagonia area,
the southern tip of Argentina, during the second half of the nineteenth century.
Montenegro 19
Works dealing with maritime history are not so numerous as the naval ones.
Some focus on subjects such as the merchant marine and harbors, giving
historical information as a by-product. In this first group, we may cite works by
Russo and Ortiz. A second group is of purely historical works, such as those
by Pinasco, Madero, and Gonzalez Climent.
The Naval Historical Center undertook a significant effort to commemorate
the Centennial of the Escuela Naval Militar (Naval Academy) in 1972. Two
major works deserve mention: Historia de la Escuela Naval Militar and Apuntes
1 8
sobre los Buques de la Armada Argentina. As the reader may imagine, both dealt
extensively with late nineteenth and twentieth century naval history. The late
1970s and early 1980s gave way to a series of works dealing with special aspects
of twentieth century Argentine naval history. Among them were two articles
published in German, "Latin American Dreadnoughts," by the American
historian, Robert Scheina, as well as this author's "The Argentine Navy since
1945,"' and Arguindeguy 's history of naval aviation. The Naval Historical
Center started a massive work in 1980: the ten-volume Historia Maritima
Argentina, covering both naval and maritime fields since early Spanish dis-
coveries up to current times..
Among the periodicals, there are two more sources of interest to the historian.
The first is the "Foreign Navies' Section" in the March issues of U.S. Naval
Institute's Proceedings. This section has been published since 1980 and regularly
carries references to the Argentine Navy. The second is Boletin de la Escuela de
Guerra Naval, started by the Argentine Naval War College in 1969 (later on, in
1979, its name was changed to Revista de la Escuela de Guerra Naval). In the same
style as the U.S. Navy's Naval War College Review, it has a varying portion of its
pages dealing with historical issues, both Argentine and foreign. Another
broad-scope work edited by the then Director of Naval History was published
Luis A. Russo, La Marina Mercante Argentina (Buenos Aires: Facultad de Ciencias Economicas, 1938);
Ricardo M. Ortiz, Valor Economico de los Puertos Argentinos (Buenos Aires: Losada,1943).
1 7
Eduardo H. Pinasco, El Puerto de Buenos Aires: Contribucion al Estudio de su Historia 1536-1898
(Buenos Aires: L. Lopez y Cia., 1942); Guillermo Madero, Historia del Puerto de Buenos Aires (Buenos
Aires, 1955); Aurelio Gonzalez Climent, Historia de la Industria Naval Argentina (Buenos Aires: Astilleros
y Fabricas Navales del Estado, 1973); Aurelio Gonzalez Climent and Anselmo Gonzalez Climent,
Historia de la Marina Mercante Argentina, 19 vols. (Buenos Aires, 1972—74).
1 ft
Humberto F. Burzio, Historia de la Escuela Naval Militar, 3 vols. (Buenos Aires: Departamento de
Estudios Historicos Navales, 1972); Pablo E. Arguindeguy, Apuntes sobre los Buques de la Armada Argentina,
7 vols. (Buenos Aires: Departamento de Estudios Historicos Navales, 1972).
Robert L. Scheina, "Lateinamerikanische Dreadnoughts" Marine Rundschau, 9 (1979), pp. 571-80.
Guillermo J. Montenegro, "Die Argentinische Marine seit 1945," Marine Rundschau, 6 (1978), pp.
375-97.
Pablo E. Arguindeguy, Historia de la Aviacion Naval Argentina, 2 vols. (Buenos Aires: Departamento
de Estudios Historicos Navales, 1980).
' Laurio H. Destefani, ed., Historia Maritima Argentina, 9 vols, to date, vol. 10 in press (Buenos Aires:
Departamento de Estudios Historicos Navales, 1980-1993).
20 Argentina
in 1984. It is essentially an illustrated summary of Argentine history, depicting
the contemporary naval participation.
The naval side of the Falklands/Malvinas War (1982) provided a large amount
of British and American published works, but Argentine production has not
been so significant. The main sources for the Argentine side of the naval war are
several papers published by participating naval officers in Boletin del Centro
Naval, plus Busser's book on "Operation Rosario." Other good sources
showing an Argentine viewpoint are Scheina's article on "The Malvinas Cam-
paign" and the chapters in his general history Latin America. In addition, volume
10 of Historia Maritima Argentina has a chapter on the Argentine naval
participation in the war.
Scheina's Latin America: A Naval History gives very good coverage of twentieth
century Argentine naval history, including the navy's intervention in Argentine
internal politics in the mid-1950s. A recently begun project is going to fill an
important gap in modern Argentine naval history: a history of the Naval War
College. As mentioned before, the college was founded in 1934 and its
development and its up and downs, have paralleled the Navy itself.
Naval and maritime history in Argentina is taught mainly at the navy's
academies and schools. The institutions at which it is taught are: the Naval War
College, the Naval Postgraduate School, the Naval Academy, and four navy-run
high schools (called "Liceos Navales" in Argentina). A word should be said about
the focus of this teaching. Due to the fact that, with the exception of the
Falklands/Malvinas War, there was no actual Argentine war experience during
this century, the analysis of World War II campaigns receive a good deal of
attention, especially at the War College and Postgraduate School level. As the
Enrique Gonzalez Lonzieme, ed., Evocation hacia el Futuro. La Armada en la Vida de los Argentinos
(Buenos Aires: Instituto de Publicaciones Navales, 1984).
Luis Anselmi, "La Aviacion Naval en las Malvinas" Boletin del Centro Naval, 735 (April-June 1983), pp.
1 17—38; Rodolfo Castro Fox, "La Tercera Escuadrilla de Caza y Ataque durante el Conflicto del Atlantico
Sur (1982)," Boletin del Centro Naval, 734 (January-March 1983), pp. 1-9; Jorge Colombo, "Operaciones
de aviones navales Super Etendard en la guerra de las Malvinas," Boletin del Centro Naval, 17>2>
(October-December 1982), pp. 319—30; Carlos Molteni, "Malvinas . . . Asi lo vivi yo," Boletin del Centro
Naval, 736 (July-September 1983), pp. 223—42; Norberto Pereiro, "La Segunda Escuadrilla Aeronaval de
Sosten Logistico Movil. Campana Aerea en Malvinas" Boletin del Centro Naval, 739 (April-June 1984), pp.
185—95; Miguel Pita, "Operaciones en la Guerra del Adantico Sur en 1982. Intervention de la Brigada de
Infanteria de Marina No. 1," Boletin del Centro Naval, 739 (April-June 1984), pp. 117-54; Carlos Robacio,
"El Batallon de Infanteria de Marina No. 5 en las Malvinas," Boletin del Centro Naval, 735 (April-June 1983),
pp. 139—62; Cesar Trombetta, "Ocupacion de las Islas Georgjas durante el conflicto del Atlantico Sur en
1982," Boletin del Centro Naval, 735 (April-June 1983), pp. 107-15.
Carlos Busser, ed., Operation Rosario (Buenos Aires: Atlantida, 1984).
26 Robert L. Scheina, "The Malvinas Campaign" USNI Proceedings, 109 (May 1983), pp. 98-117;
Robert L. Scheina, Latin America: A Naval History, 1810-1987 (Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 1987),
Chapters 14 and 15.
"El Conflicto Armado de 1982 con Gran Bretana por las Islas Malvinas," Chapter 18 in Historia
Maritima Argentina, ed. Laurio H. Destefani, vol. 10 in press.
Montenegro 21
reader may imagine, the Falklands/Malvinas War is also a principal field of study
for those colleges. For both World War II and the Falklands/Malvinas War, the
naval schools and colleges emphasize "the lessons," and not only "the facts." In
recent times there has been a promising departure from this state of affairs: In
1990, the Catholic University of Buenos Aires and the Navy League started a
jointly sponsored, two-year postgraduate course on "Sea Sciences." One of the
subjects of the curriculum in this course is "Naval and Maritime History" (this
is the word-by- word translation of the actual name in Spanish). The course is
given at the Catholic University to students who are mainly civilians. Perhaps
this is a short step, but it is a positive one towards moving naval and maritime
history a little closer to the academic community.
As the reader may recognize, when approaching the end of this paper, naval
and maritime history has remained mainly inside the realm of the sea-oriented
community and has had a limited projection into the outside world. At the same
time, research and publication on Argentine naval and maritime history is still
dominated by a strong emphasis on the early nineteenth century. There is still
a long way to go to fill the gaps in Argentine naval and maritime history, to
integrate both of them, and to take naval and maritime history out of the
professional, sea-oriented world and on to the general public. This is a significant
challenge facing current and future Argentinians, as well as motivated foreign
naval and maritime historians.
Two main references for future researchers are: Robert L. Scheina, "Unexplored Opportunities in
Latin American Maritime History," The Americas, XLVIII (January 1992), pp. 397-406, and Hector J.
Tanzi, "Historiografia Naval" Chapter 15 in Historia Maritima Argentina, ed. Laurio H. Destefani, vol.
10 in press.
/\USircMlcl
Commander James Goldrick and Sub-Lieutenant Alison Vincent
Royal Australian Navy
This paper aims to examine the status of naval and maritime history in
Australia. Its scope extends not only to the research and teaching activities
of tertiary institutions, but to work conducted under the auspices of the Royal
Australian Navy and other government organizations, by maritime museums,
and by societies and individuals, both professional and amateur. This survey
highlights matters of importance rather than attempting a comprehensive
coverage of the field and seeks to suggest the likely directions of further activity
in the field.
The Navy and Naval History
The attitude of the Royal Australian Navy to historical studies tends to
ambivalence. Although the RAN derives from the Royal Navy, and in tradition,
organization, and culture is closely related to it, the RAN has long been
uncomfortable with the apparent inconsistencies between much of the naval
ethos and the developing Australian identity. This discomfort has been magnified
by the fact that most of the active operations of the RAN were conducted on
the basis of integration into the Royal Navy's or the United States Navy's
operations, without a specific national identity above the level of individual ships
About the authors: James Goldrick is a warfare specialist commander in the RAN,
presently in charge of the Navy's warfare officer training and tactical development at
HMAS Watson. Having earned a BA (UNSW) and MLitt (University of New England),
he has contributed articles to a variety of journals on contemporary and historical naval
topics. His first book, The King's Ships Were at Sea: The War in the North Sea August
1914-February 1915, was published by the U.S. Naval Institute in 1984. Edited works
include With the Battle Cruisers (1987), and co-editor of Reflections on the Royal Australian
Navy (1991), and Mahan Is Not Enough (1993). Alison Vincent is a Sub-Lieutenant
presently completing seaman officer training at HMAS Watson. She graduated BA
(Honours) from University College of the University of NSW (the Australian Defence
Force Academy) in 1991, her thesis being "Women are Here to Stay: The Reintroduc-
tion of the Australian Women's Services, 1942-1955."
24 Australia
or small squadrons. Thus, anniversaries which could be claimed by the RAN as
significant to its history — such as the Battle of Cape Matapan (1941), Lingayen
Gulf (1945), or the Korean War (1951—53) — are more often seen as belonging
to the larger navies with which the RAN operated.
The history of the RAN has also been one of mixed success. Much of the
Navy's effort in both wars went to trade protection work in subsidiary theaters
which, while extremely important, was hardly glamorous or exciting. When the
RAN was involved in first-line operations, particularly during the Second World
War, this came at a time when naval forces were hard-pressed and heavy losses
were experienced in holding the line against the Germans and the Japanese.
Although there have been considerable efforts in recent years to focus the
traditions of the Navy on events such as the sinking of the Emden and the
successful passage by HMA Submarine AE2 of the Dardanelles in 1915, there
remains a certain reticence on the subject.
The other factor which has tended to overwhelm official support for naval
history has been the deliberate concentration of the Australian War Memorial
(AWM) on the activities of the First and Second Australian Imperial Force (AIF).
Charged with both a memorial role and a duty as a museum and center for the
production of the country's official war histories, the AWM was set on its path
by the remarkable C.E.W. Bean, a journalist who was the official historian of the
First AIF. The slant towards the Army was not unreasonable, considering the
scale of Australia's contribution to the land conflict in both world wars, and it
was certainly in proportion to the number of men and women involved.
Unfortunately, the fact that the official history task went in its entirety to the
AWM prevented the RAN — and the other services- — from developing a histori-
cal branch in the sense understood in the United States or Canada. Competent
1 9
and comprehensive histories of the RAN in the First and Second World Wars
were produced in good time, but these were commissioned works and the
authors' formal involvement with naval historical studies ended with publication
of their books. Since the RAN lacked the internal capacity to produce staff
histories, there was never any development of a historical analyses section.
Significantly, there was never any significant attempt to supplement the British
naval staff monographs with the Australian perspective of operations in the
Indian and Pacific Oceans.
Small and undermanned, the Directorate of Naval History within Navy
Office came to function as a source of information, not a center for analyses. A
succession of historical officers became highly expert in their ability to locate
1 A. W. Jose, The Royal Australian Navy, The Official History of Australia in the War of 1914-1918,
series ed., Robert O'Neill, vol. 9 (St Lucia: University of Queensland Press in association with the
Australian War Memorial, 1987). Reprint edition with minor corrections.
2 G. Hermon Gill, Royal Australian Navy, 1939-1945, The Official History of Australia in the War
of 1939-1945 (Canberra: Austrailian War Memorial, 1957, 1968), 2 volumes.
Goldrlck and Vincent 25
and distribute responses to specific questions of fact, but there were never the
resources to do more. There were some attempts to centralize the historical
effort within the Department of Defence, but the reality of the Directorate's
role is now recognized by its incorporation as a section of the Directorate of
Public Information.
More coherent interest in historical studies began to emerge with the
formation of the Australian Naval institute in 1975 by a group of naval officers.
While concerned primarily with contemporary issues, the institute resulted from
an increasing belief within the Navy that the service required the development
of a more active intellectual life. It accompanied moves within the RAN to
extend the nascent degree program to more junior officers and to allow more
arts degrees within a training scheme which had hitherto naturally emphasized
technical studies. It was in the 1970s, too, that naval history became a formal
part of the diploma-level Creswell Course which was undertaken by career
seamen and supply officers not chosen for degree studies. This elective within
the course did not, however, lead to further courses, and it remained a purely
in-house activity until the end of the diploma program a decade later. More
recent efforts in this area fall more properly within the frame of the following
discussion of Australian tertiary institutions.
What did occur within the Journal of the Australian Naval Institute was the
publication of a small but steady stream of articles with historical focus. It was
not the articles themselves that were so greatly important, but the interest in
history that they generated within the Service. When a Maritime Studies
Program was created within Navy OSice under the direction of Commodore
W.S.G. Bateman in the late 1980s, this included naval historical studies within
its charter as part of an attempt to improve the RAN's "corporate memory." At
the same time, the Australian Naval Institute embarked on a small oral history
program, which is now beginning to bear fruit.
Efforts by a number of naval officers and the support of the then Chief of
Naval Staff in combination with the staff of the Australian War Memorial
brought about a Naval History Seminar in 1989. This combined effort enjoyed
international participation and the proceedings were published in 1991 . Shortly
afterwards, a naval history workshop on the future of naval historical studies was
staged in Sydney.
It is too early to assess the direct results of this workshop, which canvassed a
range of issues. The key gap that has been identified, however, is the Navy's
Published quarterly. Membership in the Australian Naval Institute is available by writing to:
The Secretary, Australian Naval Institute, PO Box 18, Campbell ACT 2601, Australia
The oral history has so far concentrated on former Chiefs of Naval Staff and interviews have been
conducted with Admiral Sir Victor Smith and Vice Admiral Sir Richard Peek.
T.R. Frame, J.V.P. Goldrick, and P.D. Jones, Reflections on the Royal Australian Navy (Sydney:
Kangaroo Press, 1991).
26 Australia
lack of a historical section that can focus not on public information services but
on research and advice to policymakers. At the time of this writing, the subject
remains under discussion within Navy Office. One project that is in hand is a
history of Australian naval policy since Federation. Sponsored by the Chief of
Naval Staff, this work is intended to provide a comprehensive treatment of the
factors and considerations which have driven the development of policy in the
last eighty years.
Non-Government Organizations-— Naval
The Naval Historical Society of Australia was incorporated in Sydney in 1968
and included several state chapters. Formed by a band of retired officers, sailors,
and naval enthusiasts, the Society did much to highlight interest in RAN history
through its association with several memorials, a museum at Garden Island
Dockyard, and the publication of a series of ships' histories, as well as a regular
journal — the publication of which continues to this day. The early promise of
the Society to become a focus for naval historical studies was not, however,
fulfilled, largely because the organization remained preoccupied with the inter-
ests of veterans and enthusiasts. Australia's small population and the great
distances between its chapters stifled initiative for joint action. Thus, the Society
never acquired a substantial membership and therefore lacked the funds necessary
to realize professional standing.
The same difficulties apply to the various naval museum ships such as the
River-class frigate Diamantina in Brisbane and the Bathurst-class corvette
Castlemaine in Melbourne. The small societies of enthusiasts who have done the
remarkable work in preserving and displaying these ships are too small to conduct
or sponsor other historical activity and their focus remains very much upon the
ships and their crews.
A number of efforts have been made by professional associations to produce
histories of their branch or specialization. They, too, have suffered from a lack
of resources. Unable to employ professional researchers or writers, these semi-
official histories have tended to be produced in a form that is of interest only to
association members. For the naval historian, there is much good material but
little more than that.
Non-Government Organizations — Maritime
The leading organization in Australian maritime historical studies is undoubtedly
the Australian Association for Maritime History, formed in May 1978. This body
of over four hundred members has strong academic connections and is affiliated
with the International Commission of Maritime History. Apart from sponsoring
6 A history of the Radar branch has been written but not published, while the Anti-Submarine
Officers' Association is in the course of producing a 1939-45 history of HMAS Rushcutter and the
antisubmarine warfare branch.
Goldrlck and Vincent 27
many historical studies, the Association publishes the internationally circulated
journal, Great Circle, which has achieved a sound reputation in historical circles
and functions as the public forum for Australian maritime history, garnering high
quality contributions from both Australia and overseas. The subject matter covers
a wide spectrum of maritime affairs, although it has — to the chagrin of the editor,
Dr. Gray don Henning of the University of New England — enjoyed relatively
little support in the way of articles on Australian naval history. The Association
publishes a quarterly newsletter and has sponsored several books, including
Shipping Arrivals and Departures, Sydney, and the essay series, Minor Ports of
Australia.
The Association's intent, which is to improve the status of maritime history
studies, is demonstrated by its sponsorship of a conference on "New Directions
in Maritime History" held in Fremantle, the port of Perth, in December
1993 — the focal point of a week of activities staged under Western Australia's
Maritime Year 1993 program. The organizers noted that the conference "is
proposed to provide a full coverage of all major aspects of maritime history."
The Australian branches of the World Ship Society also deserve mention.
This organization enjoys a healthy membership across the nation. While its focus
is very much on the ships themselves, the Society has published a number of
very useful monographs and represents a largely untapped source of data, both
in the records and photographs held and in the membership itself.
Government Organizations
The Australian War Memorial holds responsibility for official histories and
for the preservation and display of war relics. Official histories that address the
naval component in the Vietnam War and the confrontation with Malaysia are
now in the course of preparation. The bias towards the Army in the Memorial's
displays has steadily declined, putting the roles of both the RAN and Royal
Australian Air Force into perspective, and the Memorial sponsors naval research
projects whenever it can. The truth is that few scholars have offered substantial
"7
proposals to the Memorial, and there has been little more success with amateur
Q
efforts, several of which have been funded. Apart from the 1989 Naval History
Seminar, the annual history conferences of the War Memorial have enjoyed only
very limited participation by naval historians.
The Australian National Maritime Museum at Darling Harbour in Sydney
was long in gestation and was also the subject of some controversy because of
cost over-runs in the construction of the museum buildings. Since its recent
opening, however, the museum has definitely proved to be a public success. It
The major success has been Where Fate Calls, the book on the Voyager disaster of 1964 written by
Tom Frame as the product of his PhD thesis at the Australian Defence Force Academy.
Projects on the World War II career of the cruiser Australia (1985), the earlier Pioneer (1986), and
Australia in the Boxer Rebellion (1980) have not produced concrete results.
28 Australia
has succeeded in producing an exhibit program that reflects a fair balance in both
traditional and more recent historical studies and covers both naval and maritime
issues. The museum's interest in naval matters was displayed by its support for
the 1989 Naval History Seminar and its sponsorship of a 1992 conference on
the Battle of the Coral Sea. Several recent publications of works on maritime
subjects reflect the broad approach taken by the museum, which will likely
become a center for historical work in the future. A particularly encouraging
sign is the museum's readiness to cooperate with other government organizations
and with bodies such as the Australian Association for Maritime History.
Tertiary Institutions
Maritime historical studies are in a generally healthy but limited state in
Australia. Maritime history is quite often included as an aspect of study in
economic, colonial, and Asian history, reflecting the nature of Australia's origins
and environment. While few universities run complete courses, many teach
maritime history as a component of other areas, although far fewer are active in
naval history.
The topics that the various history departments teach tend, naturally, to reflect
the specialties and interests of the academics concerned, and there is wide variety
in the approaches adopted by the six institutions, which do place emphasis on
maritime or naval history within their teaching programs; they are the Australian
Defence Force Academy (University College of the University of New South
Wales) (AD FA), the Australian National University (ANU), the University of
Sydney, the University of Western Australia (UWA), the University of New
England (UNE) and Bond University.
Although it has an obvious interest in defence-related subjects, ADFA attempts
a balanced approach to naval and maritime history. In 1994, the academy's
history department will introduce Australia's first undergraduate course on
specifically naval history. This will be taught by Dr. Malcolm Murfett, a visiting
lecturer from the University of Singapore and is to be a survey of the age of
steam, covering the international naval history of the nineteenth and twentieth
centuries. Naval history is also used as a component of politics units, notably in
the undergraduate course on the "Politics of Australian Defence Policy."
Postgraduate courses include several for the Master of Defence Studies program,
such as "Seapower and Australian Society" (Dr. Anthony Bergin and Com-
modore W.S.G. Bateman), "Australian Defence Since Vietnam" (Dr. Graeme
Cheeseman), "Armed Forces and Society" (Dr. Hugh Smith) and "Problems in
the History of Australian Defence and Foreign Policy" (Professor John Mc-
Carthy). Some undergraduate courses include a component of foreign naval and
maritime history, such as Dr. Stuart Lone's courses on Japanese and Chinese
In the case of the latter, the museum and the AAMH are cooperating to produce an index to vessel
illustrations within The Illustrated London Neivs in the nineteenth century.
Goldrick and Vincent 29
history. A purely maritime course is offered on the maritime history of Southeast
Asia from the eighteenth to the early twentieth centuries under the tutelage of
Dr. Charles Glynn-Daniel.
The other universities place more emphasis on maritime history. The Univer-
sity of New England, however, teaches some naval history components in its
courses and will increase its coverage with the introduction of a Master of
Defence Studies course in 1994. The University of Sydney conducts under-
graduate courses such as "Technology and Imperialism under the Southern
Cross" (Dr. Macleod), "The Sea and History" (Associate Professor S.M.Jack)
and "Australia and the World" (Associate Professor Meaney), while The
Australian National University offers "Whaling History" (H.C. Forster). At
Bond University, Dr. Ian Cowman conducts an undergraduate course on
"Strategic Policy in Australia's Relations," which has a naval component.
Perhaps most prominent is the University of Western Australia, due largely
to the energies of Professor Frank Broeze, who can fairly be described as a driving
force in Australian maritime historical studies. Until 1988, Professor Broeze
taught a full-year course that incorporated three areas: the British Empire, Britain
being overtaken by the USA, and the American Empire. The course covered
naval development and merchant shipping, set within a framework of interna-
tional political, technological, and economic change. Due to changes in univer-
sity rules, Professor Broeze now teaches a semester-long course on "Maritime
Australia." This study covers a wide variety of subjects, from ports and port cities
to overseas trade and the Australian "surf culture."
Research and Publication
The extent of academic research and publication within Australia is rather
wider than indicated by the availability of undergraduate and postgraduate
courses. In a survey of maritime history in Australia, published in the Australian
Historical Association Bulletin in late 1990, Frank Broeze noted that the numbers
of active researchers are increasing rapidly. Broeze suggested that Professor
Geoffrey Blainey's book, The Tyranny of Distance (Melbourne, 1966), was
seminal in focusing attention on the significance of the maritime element in
Australia's development; his thorough survey of works in the field since that date
indicates that exploration, shipping, and ports have been his primary topics.
Broeze also suggested that "gaping holes" in both maritime and naval history
exist in regard to social and cultural history and that much work remains to be
done in these areas. Australian historians need to continue the limited efforts
made so far to connect Australian maritime history with that of the greater
Pacific, Indian Ocean, and Southeast Asian regions.
The authors note their debt to Professor Broeze for his assistance with compilation of this paper.
Frank Broeze, "Maritime History in Australia," Australian Historical Association Bulletin, Numbers
64-65, October-December 1990. pp.43-53.
30 Australia
That research activity has increased is indicated by the fact that other journals
in addition to Great Circle are publishing maritime material. In September 1992,
the Australian Economic History Review published an issue entitled "Land and Sea,"
which featured five articles on shipping in Australia and New Zealand. Five
more articles were published on maritime topics in Studies in Western Australian
History.
There is, however, a dearth of research in non-military academic circles into
naval subjects. The Australian Historical Association annually prints a bulletin
showing topics under research in universities. In 1992, there were virtually no
naval projects listed. Perhaps the only university faculty member working in the
field without direct professional connections to the Defence Force is Ian
1 *K
Cowman of Bond University, who is researching a history of the RAN.
Books
The distinction between professional academic publications and those of
amateurs becomes less discernible when the focus shifts from articles to books.
Apart from the healthy number of authors within the universities themselves,
several retired academics continue to produce good work, and this is supple-
mented by authors who, although not possessing formal training, are, nonethe-
less, highly capable historians. An attempt to recite a complete history of
maritime publications in the last two decades would necessarily be incomplete,
but a few are worth mentioning. Professor John Bach's two books are
important works, as is Frank Horner's study of French exploration, and
Marsden Horden's acclaimed study on Stokes. Professor Oskar Spate com-
pleted his three-volume history of the Pacific in 1988. Alan Frost produced
1 R ■
his study on the early settlement in 1980, a work complemented by Margaret
Steven in 1983. Tom Frame's study of the Melbourne- Voyager collision was,
by any standards, a best-seller and is shortly to appear in paperback. Other naval
12 Volume 13 (1992).
Ian Cowman presented a paper at the Institute of Historical Research in London in February 1991
entitled "Indecent Obsession: Australia's Search for a Blue Water Navy."
John P.S. Bach, A Maritime History of Australia (Melbourne, Australia: Nelson, 1976); John P.S. Bach,
The Australia Station: A History of the Royal Navy in the South West Pacific, 1821-1913 (Kensington,
N.S.W.: New South Wales Univ. Press, 1986).
F.B. Horden, The French Reconnaissance: Baudin in Australia 1801-1903 (Carlton, Vic: Melbourne
Univ. Press, 1987).
Marsden Horden, Mariners are Wanted! John Lort Stokes and HMS Beagle in Australia 1837-1843
(Carlton, Vic: Melbourne Univ. Press, 1989).
17 O.H.H. Spate, The Pacific Since Magellan (Canberra: Australian National Univ. Press, 1979-1988).
Alan Frost, Convicts and Empire: A Naval Question 1116-1811 (Melbourne and New York: Oxford
Univ. Press, 1980).
Margaret Steven, Trade, Tactics and Territory (Carlton, Vic: Melbourne Univ. Press, 1983).
T.R. Frame, Where Fate Calls: The HMAS Voyager Tragedy (Sydney: Hodder and Stoughton, 1992).
Goldrlck and Vincent 31
works of interest include Robert Hyslop's two volumes on naval adrninistra-
0 1 00
tion as well as Ray Jones' work, which covers the development of Australian
naval aviation up until 1944 and which nearly constitutes a history of operational
policy in the inter- war years.
These scholarly books are supplemented by a number of more or less popular
works. While the majority of academic publications within Australia are essen-
tially maritime in nature, it is ironic that the "popular" effort tends more towards
naval subjects, either dealing with ships or war history. The retired journalist
Frank Walker has produced books on the Australian involvement in midget
submarine attacks on the Tirpitz and the sinking of HMAS Armidale. Other recent
works have dealt with subjects such as the Japanese submarine campaign against Australia
23
and the disastrous battle of Savo Island.
Enthusiasts such as Ross Gillett and John Bastock have produced a number
of beautifully illustrated and comprehensive guides to Australian warships, useful
reference material for any historian. This emphasis on pictorial work is a feature
of the Australian popular scene, and, although a maritime and naval photographic
data base has yet to be assembled, the country is particularly rich in such material.
Facing the Future
The striking feature of any survey of the maritime and naval historical scenes
in Australia is the fragmentation of activity and the division between military
and civil spheres. The Australian Association for Maritime History has done
much good work to bring together the maritime historians, and both its work
and that of the National Maritime Museum will continue this process. It is not
too much to assert that maritime history is now a thriving section of the discipline
and is gaining increasing attention. Its broad appeal will continue to draw interest
from special interest groups ranging from economists to conservationists to
merchant mariners.
The difficulty will be to bring naval history into the mainstream of historical
work. One of the obstacles to this process may be ideological; there are strong
anti-military sentiments within much of Australian society and within intellec-
tual circles in particular. The growth of conservation and peace organizations
has led to increased interest in related topics, such as whaling and, for many, an
aversion to military history as a whole. Such aversions can be overcome only if
naval historians produce a far greater volume of substantial work than has
21 Robert Hyslop, Australian Naval Administration 1900-1939 (Melbourne: Hawthorne Press, 1973)
and Robert Hyslop, Aye Aye, Minister: Australian Naval Administration 1949-1959 (Canberra: AGPS,
cl990).
Ray Jones, Seagulls, Cruisers and Catapults: Australian Naval Aviation, 1913-1944 (Hobart: Pelorus,
cl989).
Denis and Peggy Warner with Sadao Seno, Disaster in the Pacific (Sydney: Allen & Unwin and
Annapolis: U.S. Naval Institute Press, 1992).
32 Australia
occurred to date. The gaps in social and cultural studies which Professor Broeze
has noted are particularly acute in the history of the Royal Australian Navy and
efforts will have to be made to supplement the present activity, albeit limited,
in the areas of naval policy and technical development. The process is beginning
in a small way, largely under the auspices of the Australian Defence Force
Academy, and there remains much to be done. Critical to this process will be
the support that the Royal Australian Navy itself can give to historical studies.
Belgium
Christian Koninckx
To present and comment on a survey of maritime historiography, the very
least one needs at one's disposal is an inventory summing up, preferably
in a methodic way, monographs, articles, and reference works. Only then does
a first evaluation of the printed output on maritime history become possible.
Without a minimum of quantitative data, even the slightest analysis is unthink-
able if it is to avoid being criticized as impressionable or unscientific. In short,
an adequate and reasoned bibliography has to be available.
When a scientific committee was set up in November 1979 within the Royal
Belgian Academy of Sciences to promote research into Belgium's maritime
history, one of the most important tasks facing it was to draw up a bibliography
of published literature relating to all aspects of shipping, with special reference
to Belgium, from the earliest times to the present day. In so doing, the committee
was carrying on the tradition of the series, Bibliographie de l'histoire des grandes
routes maritimes, which had already appeared. Apart from the practical ad-
vantages of such a bibliography to research fellows and people interested in
maritime history in general, once completed, it would make it possible to
determine just how far research had progressed. Gaps could be traced and future
research could be stimulated and pushed in new directions in order to fill those
gaps. It is perhaps not superfluous to note that a bibliography really does offer a
possibility for evaluation, although it is all too often neglected. In addition, all
Wetenschappelijk Comite voor Maritieme Geschiedenis van de Koninklijke Academie voor Wctenschappen
Letteren & Schone kunsten van Belgie (Brussels). This Committee represents Belgium in the International
Commission for Maritime History. In fact, the Committee was not the only one and even not the first
to promote maritime historical research in Belgium. The Royal Belgian Marine Academy, founded in
1935, includes a section for Maritime History & Archeology, which has been active since that time, if
not the most active of the Marine Academy's five sections.
Bibliographie de l'Histoire des Grandes Routes Maritimes, edited by Charles Verlinden:
Tome I: Allemagne, Danemark, Frame, Pologne by H. Kellenbenz, K. Glamann, M. de la Ronciere, R.
Herve and M. Malowist in Boletin International de Bibliografia Luso-Brasileira, vol. IX, nos. 2 and 3 (1968).
Tome II: Etats-Unis d'Amerique by Philip Lundeberg in ibid., vol. X, no. 4. (1969) and vol. XI, no. 1,
(1970).
Tome III: Espagne, Greceby F. Perez-Emid and F. Morales Padron in ibid., vol. XIII, nos. 1 and 2 (1972).
Tome W .Grande Bretagne by W.E. Minchinton in ibid., vol. XIV, nos. 1, 2, and 3 (1973).
Tome V: Ocean Indien by M. Roda (Saint-Denis-de-la-Reunion, 1976).
34 Belgium
of us who are involved in maritime history must take advantage of the
conclusions of workshops or seminars.
Methodology
As happens whenever a historical bibliography is compiled, a number of
methodological problems arise. From the very beginning, one must set limits
on the time span and geographical areas to be covered, as well as to consider the
classification and the types of publications to be included. Where a maritime
bibliography is concerned, one has to cope with similar methodological
problems. Because of Belgium's general history, the case of Belgian maritime
historiography is certainly not an easy one.
In fact, the problem of the delimiting periods of time is very closely connected
with the geographical frame of reference. Throughout the ages, the provinces
constituting present-day Belgium — call them regions, if you please — have
frequently formed part of larger political entities. However, we consider his-
toriography as Belgian, even when it deals with history before Belgium became
a sovereign and independent state in 1830, as a result of the Congress of Vienna
in 1815. But this does not make it any easier to evaluate the specific role played
by Belgians among all the activities within and contributions to the domain of
shipping, even though they may have been "Belgians" avant la lettre. To mention
only a few, albeit very significant examples, the "Belgian" world of shipping and
that of these foreign powers were closely interwoven as part of the Burgundian
empire (1419—1477), subsequently under the rule of the Austrian (1477—1555)
and Spanish Habsburgers (1555—1716), for a long time unified with the northern
Netherlands, later still under Austrian regime, then called Austrian or Southern
Netherlands (1716-1795), under French domination (1796-1814), and then,
once again united, for the last but very short time, with the Northern Netherlands
(1815—1830), and finally, under German occupation in the two world wars.
Consequently, it was not always possible to draw a clear distinction between
genuinely local aspects and influences from abroad with a view to making an
inventory of everything in print. In doubtful cases, therefore, it was wisely
decided to include the publications.
Regardless of the foreign rulers — in some circumstances the interpretation
given to the term "foreign" may be open for discussion — we may not overlook
the fact that the Belgian provinces were not always the same entities as those
recognized today. For many a year, our provinces, or part of them, were ceded,
removed, or annexed. While this may be of less importance regarding the
maritime history of the inland provinces — except in the case of inland naviga-
tion— the case is quite different with regard to the coastal areas. For example,
one need look no further than to Zeeland Flanders and French Flanders or to
Dunkirk in the South. The same kind of problem arises when considering the
former colonies and overseas territories. Accordingly, the bibliography also
Koninckx 35
includes literature relating to these areas, including the independent Congo,
subsequently the Belgian Congo (1909) and, from 1960, the Republic of the
Congo (called Zaire from 1971 onwards), the mandated territories of Rwanda
and Burundi (1923—1962), the short-lived 18th century Banquibazar factory in
Bengal, the polar stations in Antarctica (1897— ), and so on.
In short, literature on the whole world of ships and shipping was taken into
consideration, so long as there was some clear relation with our part of the globe,
either as a collective entity or through the presence of individuals from our
regions. Because it is clear that maritime activities, in general, develop beyond
national frontiers, there will be a great difficulty in the future in supporting the
idea of a national historiography.
Classification
Another methodological aspect is related to the classification of the printed
works on maritime history. The committee classified them under thirteen
headings, convinced that this could be done in other ways too. No classification
can give complete satisfaction, and ours is no exception to the rule. But the
system finally adopted is modelled partly on that used for the catalogue in the
library of the National Maritime Museum in Antwerp, and partly on that of the
contents of the monumental Maritieme Geschiedenis der Nederlanden (Bussum,
1976—1979, 4 vols.). This major work stressed precisely how difficult it is to
write Belgian maritime history without considering together the southern
(Belgium) and northern Netherlands (Holland).
The main headings of the bibliography are as follows:
I. Generalities; II. Shipbuilding; III. Merchant shipping; IV. Naval shipping;
V. Fisheries; VI. Inland navigation; VII. Ports and harbours; VIII. Seafarers; IX.
Voyages of discovery and shipping routes; X. Navigation; XI. Maritime law;
XII. Education — science — culture; XIII. Personalia.
Of course, there is a measure of overlap among certain of the main sections.
For instance, merchant and naval shipping were for a long time closely linked;
it is only in more recent times that the distinction has become clearer. The same
can be said of inland and oceangoing shipping proper. In former times especially,
though it is true even today, it was not always possible to make a clear distinction
between the two. Coastal vessels can penetrate deep into inland waterways, just
as inland vessels occasionally sail in coastal waters. This is closely bound up with
the type of vessel used, but also with the depth of navigable waterways and with
the increased dredging of ship canals to allow oceangoing ships deeper into the
hinterland. Canal-building started under Grand-Duke Albert of Austria, at the
beginning of the 16th century, to link the major cities with the North Sea,
circumventing Dutch obstruction of the Scheldt.
For example, Rio Nunez in Guinea (1848-1852) and Belgian occupation forces in the Rhincland
(FRG) from 1945 on.
36 Belgium
The problem of overlap is even more acute in connection with overseas
territories. This is especially true of the Belgian Congo, since, in its dealings with
the homeland, just about all the strongest and most important links were built
up through maritime activity.
Evaluation of the Maritime Historiography
In processing the items for the bibliography, the committee discovered that
Belgian maritime historiography has mainly focused on ports and harbours,
accounting for close to 30 percent of the total production. This is not surprising
perhaps, since Belgian ports have always played, as they still do, a continuing
role in the maritime activity of the country. Even when foreign powers were
ruling the country controlling or supervising the maritime traffic, ports and
harbours were free to a greater or lesser extent to develop their activities. Not
infrequently, the existence of Belgian ports, serving a wide hinterland, made
them keenly pursued objectives if not targets.
The bibliographic heading "Ports and Harbours" includes port policy, port
authority, infrastructure and equipment, port activities and pilotage as well.
Because of their important networks, inland waterways and inland ports were
included here, too. The particular attention paid to the history of ports is not
surprising at all, since Belgium's economy was and still is highly dependent on
its maritime traffic and on its easy connections with neighbouring countries.
Thanks to a favourable topography, facilitating the development of inland
navigation on the Scheldt and the Meuse, which are linked in turn by adequate
canals, it is possible to reach from the sea, the Ruhr in Germany, the Swiss border
via the Rhine, and, closer to home, the coal mines in Wallonia, where the
industrial revolution started on the Continent. It is not necessary, perhaps, to
underline the fact that the port of Antwerp was studied in depth; but Bruges in
the Middle Ages, Zeebrugge in more recent times, and Ghent, too, were not
overlooked. Attention was paid to Liege, which, like Antwerp, is located at one
of the extremities of the well-known Albert Canal, Unking the sea, the Scheldt,
and the heavy industrial areas inland. Studies were also made of Matadi, the outer
harbour of Leopoldville-Kinshasa, although its historiography cannot be com-
pared with the research carried out on the metropolitan ports.
The arguments presented to explain the interest shown by historians in ports
and harbours are reinforced by quantifying the historiography: Studies on
merchant shipping comprise 11.2 percent of the total, with 9.85 percent devoted
to inland navigation. This illustrates, once more, the evidence of Belgium's
dependence on a maritime economy, based on a well-developed network of
inland waterways that in turn have stimulated inland navigation for two
centuries. One can, perhaps, observe the paradox more clearly if inland naviga-
tion is included in maritime historiography. Indeed, there are arguments for and
against doing so. We have taken this into consideration in the present paper,
Koninckx 37
because the heading appears in the already mentioned bibliography, although
personally we believe that inland navigation is not part of maritime history, in
a strict sense, and subsequently it is hard to insert it in the framework of maritime
historiography. It is true, as we have already pointed out, that in earlier times
the distinction between inland and oceangoing shipping was sometimes unclear.
But when looking at what is listed under the heading "Inland Navigation,"
focusing as it does on inland shipping during the last century, on inland shipping
to neighbouring European countries on the Rhine and in the colonies, repre-
senting all in all the majority of the items, we feel bound to assert that the
terminology of maritime historiography is no longer appropriate. Once again,
we are convinced that inland navigation would fit far more neatly into the
framework of economic history.
One cannot make the same remark when speaking about merchant shipping.
It is not surprising that a large quantitiy of publications deal with shipping during
the 19th and 20th centuries. Navigation on the Scheldt became free from 1863
on — we recall that the Scheldt had been officially obstructed by the Dutch since
1648 — and the gate to the seven seas opened only gradually for Antwerp. This
development was amplified by the colonial era, starting from the end of the 19th
century as far as Belgium is concerned.
It is appalling, however, to note the exaggerated interest historians have
shown in the history of the 18th-century East India Company at Ostend, called
the Ostend Company even though its Board of Trade was located in Antwerp.
Appalling, because this company was very short-lived. It is little wonder, then,
that its historiography should exaggerate its significance a little, compared to the
great East India companies, abroad. However, the Ostend Company remains
important for the country, and the huge interest shown in it can be explained
by the availability of sources, since the archives are still preserved. However,
interest in this topic contributes to the fact that maritime economic historiog-
raphy is dominant.
Looking at the other categories of Belgian maritime historiography: ship-
building (4.57 percent), naval shipping (4.97 percent), seafarers (4.75 percent),
discoveries (4.88 percent), navigation techniques (4.5 percent), maritime law
(3.9 percent), we observe that historical research seems to have been directly
proportional (see the diagram: Belgian Maritime History). Somewhat greater
attention has been paid to the study of fisheries (6.29 percent) and to the topic
of education, science and culture (5.89 percent). The minor role played by
naval history is self-explanatory due to the many foreign rulers; privateering was
included here, also. In fact, a genuine Belgian Navy did not exist before the end
Percentages are related to the number of publications. If not the most ideal method, the approach
is quite valuable as offering indications. Publications published from the 19th century until the eighties
of the 20th century were considered.
Although we do not mention the subheadings here, all bibliographical items have been computed.
38 Belgium
BELGIAN MARITIME HISTORY
EDUCATION/SCIENCE/CULTURE
MARITIME LAW 589%
3 90%
NAVIGATION
4.50%
DISCOVERY & SAIL
ROUTES 4.88%
SEAFARERS
4.75%
NAVAL SHIPPING
4.97%
FISHERIES
6.29%
INLAND NAVIGATION
9.85%
GENERALITIES
7.03%
SHIPBUILDING/SHIPS
4.57%
MERCHANT SHIPPING
11.20%
PERSONALIA
2.58%
PORTS & HARBOURS
29.60%
of the Second World War. Concerning Belgian participation in discoveries, the
same remark can be made; maritime history in this category is principally limited
to the contemporary period.
This very brief survey of Belgian maritime historiography cannot be con-
cluded without a word about the heading "generalities," which includes such
works as encyclopedias, reference works, dictionaries, bibliographies, inven-
tories, catalogues, and so on; these works are the necessary tools for successful
historical research. However, only Belgian production was taken into account
here. We do not intend to analyse every subheading, but something has to be
said about the inventories of records.
Looking at these, we observe that many important record collections had
already been inventoried, even those of foreign repositories. This is the case of
records kept in Paris concerning Belgian maritime history, as well as in Genoa,
Venice, Florence, and Simancas, to cite just a few examples. But limiting
ourselves to records kept in Belgium, we have to conclude that there is still a
great many records available.
Nevertheless, we are inclined to state that maritime historical research has not
made much progress in Belgium, in relation to what has been achieved in the
Netherlands, a country of comparable size. But, it can be stressed that there is
now a Belgium maritime bibliography, which is not yet the case in the Netherlands.
Koninckx 39
Perhaps, there is a lack of enthusiasm for maritime history, in general. Further,
we have to point out the striking lack of maritime history in the programmes of
Belgian universities and even in that of the Nautical College at Antwerp. When
one considers scientific research in this area, it has to be said that it is very much
limited to associations outside the universities, such as the Royal Belgian Marine
Academy at Antwerp and the Scientific Committee for Maritime History in
Brussels. However, the people involved are often members of both associations,
simultaneously. In addition, there is, of course, the National Maritime Museum
at Antwerp, housing in fact the Maritime Academy, and from which historical
Q
maritime research is also promoted.
In view of these facts, it is hardly surprising that maritime history in Belgium
is stagnating and still in its infancy. If this is a quite pessimistic view, our
survey — and by the way, the bibliography, itself — offered the opportunity to
make this statement.
Since 1935, the Academy has published a yearbook dealing mainly with maritime history.
The Committee established a series, entitled Collectanea Maritima, in which five volumes have already
been published:
Vol. I: Bibliography of Belgian Maritime History (Brussels, 1984), on which the present paper is based.
Vol. II: Source Material for the History of Antwerp Shipping Particularly the England Trade 1404-1485, by
G. Asaert (Brussels, 1985).
Vol III: Nautisch en Hydrografische kennis in Belgie en Zaire. Historische Bijdragen (Brussels, 1987), with
English summaries.
Vol. IV: Bijdragen tot de intemationale maritieme geschiedenis (Brussels, 1988), with English summaries.
Vol. V: Proceedings of the international colloquim: "Industrial Revolutions and the Sea" (Brussels, 1991).
o
Nationa Scheepvaartmuseum , Antwerpen, by A. de Vos, Coll. Musea Nostra, vol. 17, (Brussels, 1989).
Britain
N.A.M. Rodger
The most important single fact about naval and maritime history in Britain
today is conveyed by the awkward form of words which it is necessary to
adopt as a title. "Naval and maritime" history is widely conceived as an amalgam
or an uncomfortable hybrid of two distinct subjects, and not everybody would
accept that the connections between the two are or ought to be very close. This
seems to be a peculiarity of the English-speaking world, and it can be difficult
to find words in English to express the unified subject of maritime history as it
is understood in most European countries, or to translate into European
languages the distinctions implied in English academic usage by "naval" and
maritime.
This problem of definition is the key to the present state of the subject. All
historians can agree that in principle history is a seamless web in which every
country, every subject, and every period is bound closely to its neighbours; but
for the practical purposes of study in school and university, it is necessary to
divide it. Any subject that does not form one of the accepted divisions is at risk
of becoming fragmented if not ignored. This has been the fate of naval and
maritime history in Britain. Probably few historians, if pressed, would actually
deny the significance of the sea in British history, but many of them would
assume that it belonged naturally in someone else's department. The result has
tended to be that particular aspects of maritime history have received attention
in circumstances that tended to isolate them. Economic historians have studied
the history of overseas travel and fisheries, but have ignored anything to do with
warfare. Naval historians have studied battles and campaigns but supplied very
little historical context in which to locate them and establish their significance.
Military historians have in theory admitted the importance of the sea in warfare,
but in practice very often ignored it. Students of strategic studies have plundered
the recent past for case studies without penetrating far below the surface. The
I am very grateful for the comments and suggestions of Dr. Michael Duffy, Dr. Stephen Fisher, Dr.
R.J.B. Knight, Dr. A.D. Lambert, Dr. H.M.Scott, Professor Geoffrey Till, and Mr. David Williams.
French histore maritime, German Seegeschichte, Dutch Zeegeschiedenis, Italian storia marittima, Spanish
historia marltima, all refer to the history of man's use of the sea in general; in all these languages the word
marine or marina is not limited to the fighting service alone.
42 Britain
result has been that naval and maritime history, especially in universities, has
tended to be reduced to a number of disconnected minority interests in different
departments, often departments which themselves are regarded as peripheral to
the main business of the university.
In this context the breadth of the subject may be a practical disadvantage. It
has been well said of naval history, and might be as well said of maritime history
at large, that it is "a microcosm of national history; it is not a subject with its
own particular technique, but an application of different subjects, each with its
own technique, to a particular field. It has its own economic and constitutional
history, its own legal problems and its own relations with diplomacy and politics.
If national history may be compared to a cake, the different layers of which are
different aspects of national life, then naval history is not a layer but a slice of the
cake."" The breadth of the subject and the multitude of connections it has, or
ought to have, with many areas of history, explain much of the importance and
the excitement of the subject, but they also explain the difficulty of treating it
in its entirety and the ease with which it can be parcelled out among many
historians or history departments whose central interests lie elsewhere. However
desirable it may be in theory to abolish academic demarcation lines, in practice
there is no better way to get a neglected subject studied than to establish courses
and departments dedicated to it.
It is only possible to explain how and why English-speaking historians have
come to perceive the subjects of naval and maritime history as distinct by dipping
briefly into the history of history as a serious scholarly pursuit in Britain. For our
present purposes we may begin exactly a century ago in 1893, with the
foundation of the Navy Records Society, which shows most of the characteristic
features of its time. This was a period in which history was overwhelmingly the
record of great men and of the state; it was the history of gentlemen, for
gentlemen. Maritime history therefore naturally became naval history, and it was
naval history with a purpose. The founders of the N.R.S. included some
academics, notably its moving spirit, Professor J. K. Laughton, but most of them
were naval officers and civilians closely connected with the Navy who regarded
naval history as directly relevant to their professional concerns. The study of
history as a means of rediscovering the fundamental verities of naval strategy and
tactics was a key element in the institutional and intellectual reforms which were
then affecting the Navy. Young officers who thought seriously about their
profession were likely to be interested in history, and they conceived of naval
history as a source of guidance as well as inspiration, both in their own careers
and in the reform of the Service at large. It is also probable that the foundation
of the Society in 1893, just as Mr. Gladstone was fighting his last great political
3 John Ehrman, The Navy in the War of William III: Its State and Direction, 1689-1697 (Cambridge:
1953), p. xxii.
Professor of Modern History at King's College London, formerly a Naval Instructor.
Rodger 43
battle to cut the Navy Estimates, was not without political intent; the former
Conservative First Lord of the Admiralty, Lord George Hamilton, was
prominent among its founders, and the then First Lord, Earl Spencer, whose
sponsorship of some of the admirals' demands did so much to drive the Prime
Minister from office, accepted the presidency. Naval history was highly relevant
to the Navy of the day, and at times it had a radical, even subversive flavour, the
more so as many of the naval historians came to oppose the "materiel" school
of Sir John Fisher. They were prominent among the officers who in 1912
founded The Naval Review "to promote the Advancement and Spreading within
the Service of Knowledge relevant to the Higher Aspects of the Naval Profes-
sion," and the Review continued for many years to publish historical scholarship
of a high standard amongst papers on the current professional concerns of the
Navy.
The subject which interested these early naval historians was essentially the
history of naval operations, often studied in close detail. Many of them — notably
Q
Sir Julian Corbett and the then Captain H.W. Richmond — were keenly
concerned to trace the relationship of the Navy to strategy and diplomacy: The
Navy as an Instrument of Policy, to use the title of one of Richmond's books. They
were not much interested in other aspects of naval history which did not echo
their current professional concerns, nor in the history of merchant shipping
except as an aspect of the defence of seaborne trade. Few of them were academic
historians, indeed there were still few teachers of history in British universities,
but in spite of this the subject enjoyed the same high public esteem as the Navy
itself. The Council of the Navy Records Society in the first twenty years of its
life included King Edward VII and two royal princes, five Cabinet ministers,
eleven peers, twenty-seven admirals, four generals, and a variety of other
luminaries including two distinguished novelists (Kipling and Erskine Childers),
I owe this suggestion to Dr. Michael Duffy; it is also made by W.M. Hamilton, The Nation and the
Navy: Methods and Organisation of British Navalist Propaganda 1889-1914 (New York: 1986).
6 The Red Earl: The Papers of the Fifth Earl Spencer 1835-1910, ed. Peter Gordon (Northamptonshire
Record Society Vols. 31 and 34, 1981-86) II, pp. 28-32, gives the background.
For example the studies of eighteenth-century campaigns by Commander J. H. Owen printed in the
1930s. It still prints historical articles, but would no longer claim to be a vehicle for original historical
scholarship.
Q
Corbett's life has been written by Donald M. Schurman: Julian S. Corbett 1854-1922: Historian of
British Maritime Policy from Drake tojellicoe (Royal Historical Society Studies in History No. 26: 1981).
Richmond has no less than three biographies: Arthur J. Marder, Portrait of an Admiral (London: 1952);
D.M. Schurman, "Historian in Uniform," in The Education of a Navy: The Development of British Naval
Strategic Thought, 1867-1914 (London: 1965); and Barry D. Hunt, Sailor- Scholar: Admiral Sir Herbert
Richmond, 1871-1946 (Waterloo, Ontario: 1982). See also, James Goldrick and John B. Hattendorf,
eds., Mahan Is Not Enough: The Proceedings of a Conference on the Works of Sir Julian Corbett and Admiral
Sir Herbert Richmond (Newport: 1993).
But the few were eminent; besides Laughton, the Society's early editors included S.R. Gardiner and
Sir Charles Firth.
44 Britain
two Directors of Naval Construction, two Princes of the Holy Roman Empire,
the Secretary of the Admiralty, and the Lord Provost of Glasgow. No academic
discipline, then or now, could boast of such social prestige.
After the First World War naval history tended to suffer from the public's
disenchantment with all things military. The Vere Harmsworth Chair in Naval
history at Cambridge, endowed by Lord Rothermere in 1911, was converted
to one of Imperial and Naval History in 1932; since then only one naval historian
has held it, Sir Herbert Richmond, who was appointed in 1934 and was later
elected Master of Downing College. Richmond's election was applauded by a
previous holder of the chair as a signal that naval history would not be "pushed
1 1
into the background," but that is exactly what happened. In Cambridge, as
also in Oxford and London, naval history continued to be regarded as a serious
subject, but it was not a popular one. King's College London, which had agreed
to found a department of naval history in 1913, was unable to find a scholar to
1 9
continue Laughton's interests. At the same time it ceased to be the mark of
1 ^
the intellectual naval officer to engage in serious research. Richmond himself,
who had written part of one of his most important books while commanding
HMS Dreadnought, had no successors in this respect. The Second World War
had surprisingly little effect in changing this. Though the importance of sea
power had again been convincingly demonstrated, weariness and distaste for war
was hardly less marked in 1945 than it had been in 1918. In the 1940s several
British university historians with interests in maritime history began their careers,
notably C.N. Parkinson and A.N. Ryan at Liverpool, but the subject could not
be said to have established itself as a subject in British universities. It was
characteristic of the postwar years that while some maritime or naval historians
rose to become professors (notably John Bromley at Southampton and JCenneth
Andrews at Hull), scholars of ability were more likely to begin their careers as
naval historians, but to advance by moving rapidly into other areas. In
10 John B. Hattendorf, "The Study of War History at Oxford, 1862-1990," in The Limitatiotis of Military
Power: Essays presented to Professor Norman Gibbs on his eightieth birthday (London: 1990), pp. 3—61, at pp. 26—7.
Hunt, Sailor- Scholar, p. 217.
12 Ex inf. Dr. A.D. Lambert.
1 ^
And not only naval officers: A.W. Tedder (the future Air Marshal) was a young official in the Colonial
Service when he published The Navy of the Restoration (Cambridge: 1916).
14 The Navy in the War of 1 739-48, eventually published in 1920.
John Ehrman (The Navy in the War of William III) is a notable example, though he also abandoned
academic life for private scholarship. Others are Professor C.J. Bartlett of the University of Dundee
(Great Britain and Sea Power 1815-1853, Oxford: 1963), Professor H.T. Dickinson of Edinburgh
University ("British military and naval operations: Catalonia and Valencia, 1701-11," Durham M.A.
thesis, 1963; his Ph.D. thesis was on "Henry St. John and the Struggle for the Leadership of the Tory
Party 1702-14," Newcastle, 1968), Professor C.S.L. Davies ("Supply services of the English armed
forces, 1509-50," Oxford D.Phil, thesis: 1964), Professor Bernard Dietz ("Privateering in North- West
European waters, 1568 to 1572," London Ph.D. thesis: 1959), and Professor Norman Hampson of the
University of Newcastle-upon Tyne (La Marine de VAn II, Paris: 1952).
Rodger 45
Cambridge Captain S.W. Roskill, the official historian of the Royal Navy in
the Second World War, and undoubtedly one of the most distinguished naval
historians of this century, was offered a fellowship at Churchill College, but was
never elected to the Harmsworth Chair for which he was so well qualified.
The half century since the end of the Second World War has been marked
by a rapid growth in the size and number of British universities, and an equally
sharp decline in the size of the Royal Navy. For much of this period the study
of warfare in any form attracted little interest in universities. The largest research
institutions, with room for all sorts of minority interests, continued to produce
some work, and in Oxford the Chichele Chair in the History of War sustained
courses in military history and grand strategy which contained a naval element,
but until the late 1960s, naval history in universities had become almost
invisible. The period was, however, fruitful for the new subject of maritime
history. Its practitioners were predominantly economic historians by training,
appointed to positions in departments of economic history, and perhaps anxious
to demonstrate the superior scientific rigour of a numerate discipline compared
to the amiable vagueness of traditional historical scholarship. They did not feel
they had much in common with naval history as it had generally been studied.
Part of the problem here was that naval history was by this time being studied
largely by people outside university departments, people who were by definition
amateurs in the sense of not earning their living by scholarship, and also (it was
often implied) in the sense of not matching professional standards. The deroga-
tive implications of the term "amateur" were not entirely unjustified, for naval
history in the postwar years did indeed fall behind the professional standards of
the academic world, as well as losing touch with its fashions. It was until recently
a stronghold of the nationalist and triumphalist tradition, and it was late to be
marked by such academic fashions as social history. It is still almost untouched
by the spread of quantitative history, in spite of the existence of sources of
unequalled richness. This made it easier for university historians to ignore the
subject, and contributed to generations of history books which overlooked
maritime, and especially naval, history or accorded it brief and embarrassed
mention before turning to more agreeable matters. Another factor here may
have been fear of the complex technology of the sailing ship: to tackle it was to
risk making a fool of oneself before those who understood it, and perhaps also
to risk lowering one's status before those historians for whom real history was
the history of high politics and policy, and who shared the traditional English
16 John Ehrman, "Stephen Wentworth Roskill, 1903-1982," Proceedings of the British Academy, LXIX
(1983), p. 579-94, at pp. 589-91. His deafness would admittedly have hampered him in the chair, but
it did not stop him teaching for the History Tripos.
17 Hattendorf, War History at Oxford.
18 Table 1.
46 Britain
view that technical expertise was what distinguished the player from the
gentlemen.
All this continued to be true throughout the 1950s and 1960s when British
universities were expanding and creating new posts and departments. It only
began to change in the 1970s, and was soon overtaken by a deepening crisis in
university finance and morale. Faced with public hostility towards students and
their teachers, dependent for funds on a government which identified univer-
sities as a cause of economic decline and talked seriously of closing some or even
many of then as superfluous, academics entered a prolonged and uncomfortable
period of change which shows no signs of ending. Among the many consequen-
ces have been departments and whole institutions closed, merged or struggling
for survival; a collapse of morale in some quarters; the departure of some of the
ablest and most ambitious for early retirement or the United States; and the loss
of a generation of younger scholars unable to enter or make a career in the
academic world. This has meant that there has been little money to spare for
new ideas and new subjects. University departments have devoted all their
attention to survival, meaning in practice the survival of their existing courses.
Always conservative and bureaucratic institutions, difficult to steer onto new
courses, British universities have until recently been in a particularly poor
position to respond to new intellectual currents.
Among these has been the revival, change, and even to some extent the
merging of naval and maritime history. By the 1980s the political climate in
universities, following somewhat behind that of Britain as a whole, was turning
more conservative, and both naval and military history were regaining some
degree of respectability. The Department of War Studies established at King's
College London in 1965 had a notable influence on military history? and in
particular on the new theme of "war and society," which linked the hitherto
old-fashioned world of military history with the post-war interest in social
history. "Just as some thought war too serious a matter to be left to the generals,"
wrote Professor Geoffrey Best,
so the history and scientific analysis of war seemed too serious a matter to be left
to the military men and war enthusiasts who did most of the writing about it. Not
that they had the whole of the field. The study of war has attracted, and still attracts,
the attentions of scholars of the finest kind. But such men were to be found, no
doubt reluctantly, in company with a huge crowd of narrower-minded writers,
for whom "military historian" was the most complimentary title that could be
found, military enthusiast or even war maniac often the more apposite. War and
society studies began largely in reaction against that kind of stuff Sometimes
It is not irrelevant to note here that books on ship design are published in Britain not by academic
presses but by specialist houses like Conway Maritime Press or Arms and Armour Press, whose products
are associated by publishers and much of the learned public with the world of model-makers,
train-spotters and collectors of all sorts of memorabilia, and are not reviewed in academic journals.
Rodger 47
sinking to uniforms, badges and buttons, it rarely rose above campaigns and battles;
it viewed them from the professional soldier's angle; it tended to extract the
fighting side of war from its total historical context; and it usually meant a view
of an army, navy or air force from within, little concerned about the nature of
their connections with the society on whose behalf war was, nominally, being
fought. Much might be learnt from such books about the way an army did the
job set for it and, especially from between the lines, about the ways soldiers viewed
themselves; little, however, about how soldiers got to be like that, and nothing at
all about how armed forces fitted into, emerged from, and perhaps in their turn
made impressions upon the societies to which they belonged.
The election of Professor Michael Howard, former head of the Department
of War Studies at the University of London, and subsequently Chichele Professor
of the History of War at Oxford, to the Regius Chair at Oxford in 1980 did
much to enhance the respectability of the new military history. So did the skill
with which Sir Michael handled the History Faculty at Oxford, still on his
election inclined to be suspicious of a former soldier. At the same time some
university scholars, notably Paul Kennedy, were making their names in naval
history, or at least the naval aspects of economic history and high policy. These
trends gathered pace in the late 1980s, with substantial contributions to naval
history by established university scholars who had made their reputations in other
fields. During this decade the proportion of doctoral and other theses in naval
history completed in British universities rose for the first time to a substantial
fraction of those in "maritime" history. ~ What did not happen was any
significant number of new appointments to university departments of scholars
with such interests. When so few posts were being filled anyway, a department's
major interests always took priority. The renewed vigour of the subject was
indicated by the interest shown in it by established scholars rather than by new
appointments. Only the King's College Department of War Studies could be
said to have a continued, if not central concern for the subject, and in 1992 it
appointed its first naval historian to a lectureship. By contrast, the position of
20 "Editor's Preface" toJ.R. Hale, War and Society in Renaissatice Europe 1450-1620 (Leicester: 1985), p.7.
It should be noted that the Regius Chair is in the gift of the Crown, not the University.
David Loades, The Tudor Navy: An Administrative, Political and Military History (AJdershot: 1992);
Bernard Capp, Cromwell's Navy: The Fleet and the English Revolution 1648-1660 (Oxford: 1989); Loades
is Professor of History at the University College of North Wales, Capp is Reader in History at the
University of Warwick; they represent the schools of Sir Geoffrey Elton and Christopher Hill
respectively. One might also cite the eminent military historian John Terraine's Business in Great Waters:
The U-Boat Wars 1916—1945 (London: 1989), though he has never held a university post.
See Table 1: doctoral theses on naval subjects represented 18 percent of those in maritime history
in general in the 1950s, 40 percent in the 1960s, and 42 percent in the 1970s and 1980s.
Hitherto, the subject had been sustained by the volunteer and part-time efforts of two successive
Professors from the P^oyal Naval College Greenwich, Bryan Ranft, and Geoffrey Till. It is also worth
mentioning that on filling each of the last two vacancies in the Harmsworth Professorship, the electors
were instructed not to ignore the claims of naval historians, though the chair was advertised in terms
calculated to discourage them, and none was appointed.
48 Britain
maritime history, like that of all minority subjects in universities, tended to weaken.
Several of its leading practitioners retired or died during the crisis years and were
not replaced. Possibly it also suffered from a reaction against economics, by no means
the most admired and respected academic discipline of the 1990s. The maritime
historians had always been interested especially in the economics of trade and the
business history of shipping firms, and had tended to see history from the perspective
of the boardroom rather than the forecastle or the quarterdeck. They were not
perfectly placed to profit from the post-war interest in social history.
University historians in general, preoccupied with survival in the 1980s, were
taken somewhat by surprise by the rise in the popularity of history as a subject among
the general public. At the very time when professors of history were publicly
agonising over the future of their discipline, amateur historians of every age and
condition were tackling a remarkable range of subjects with skills ranging from the
negligible to the sophisticated, but with an enthusiasm which some academics had
lost for ever. One engine driving this movement was the growth of local history
among adults, and of school "projects," often in local history, among children.
Another was the rapid rise in genealogy, which has been the route by which many
beginners have advanced to historical knowledge of some sort, often no more than
antiquarianism, but in some cases attaining the level of serious scholarship. Naval
and maritime history has certainly participated in this popular revival. One inter-
esting symptom of public enthusiasm has been the revival of the naval historical
novel. Originally a product of the early nineteenth century, rediscovered in the
1940s by OS. Forester, it has become a phenomenon of modern publishing and in
Patrick O'Brian has produced one of the best modern English novelists.
Another symptom has been the increase in the number of maritime museums
and of people eager to visit them. The Merseyside Maritime Museum, the
Scottish Maritime Museum, the Royal Naval Museum, the Submarine
Museum and Chatham Historic Dockyard are among the best-known estab-
lished within the last twenty years, and there are many smaller institutions.
Coupled with them has been the rapid increase in the number of historic
ships preserved and open to the public. Where a generation ago there was
little more than the Victory and the Cutty Sark, there are now literally scores
of preserved ships large and small. Among the most notable recent additions
are the Tudor warship Mary Rose, the sailing frigates Unicorn and Trincomalee
(ex-Foudroyanf) , Brunei's Great Eastern, Scott's Discovery, the cruiser Belfast,
the Royal Navy's first submarine Holland No. 1, and its first ironclad battleship
the Warrior. It is still an open question whether maritime history benefitted any
more than, say, military history, country houses, or industrial museums from the
boom years of the 1980s, and it is already clear that there is now a serious problem
in generating sufficient income to support the number of ships which has grown
And museums: some of the smaller maritime museums, notably the Exeter Maritime Museum, are
known or rumoured to be in serious financial difficulties.
Rodger 49
even faster than public enthusiasm, but on the most pessimistic assessment there
is now a large public interest in maritime history which did not exist twenty
years ago.
Until very recently, university history departments lacked the money and the
freedom of manouvre to respond to it. Only now is this beginning to change,
and one reason for the change is the growing tendency for university finances
to be to some extent "market- driven." Universities are being obliged, some
more reluctantly than others, to recruit growing numbers of students from a
wider range of ages and qualifications than before and to compete for them on
a basis on the range and quality of their teaching. Specialist post-graduate courses,
until recently unusual in British university history, are proliferating, and it is
becoming common for departments to be credited with part of the fees they
bring to the university by recruiting people onto their courses. This gives them
an incentive to identify and promote popular subjects and to tap the enthusiasm
of amateur historians with the time (and, most importantly, the money) to
engage in serious study. Among the fruits of this new situation is the Centre for
Maritime Historical Studies at Exeter University, established in 1991, which
combines existing lecturers from the separate departments of Economic and
Social History, and History and Archaeology. It is still necessary to establish a
Oft
special institution to associate naval and maritime historians, but the early
indications are that the Centre is drawing substantial numbers of students to its
courses.
Maritime history is also attracting attention at other universities. At St.
Andrew's, the Institute of Maritime Studies teaches an M.A. course in maritime
archaeology and runs a seminar in maritime history. The University College of
North Wales at Bangor now offers a B.A. degree in History and Marine
Archaeology, which draws on Professor Loades's interest in naval history. The
Economic and Social Research Council has funded two large studies of the Port
of London by Professors Roseveare and Minchinton and Dr. Sarah Palmer of
Queen Mary College London. But these new projects do not yet have an assured
future, and it is not clear that departments and universities entering the field are
doing more than balancing the loss of others. The pattern for many years has
been of interest in maritime history generated by individual scholars, but that
interest does not survive their departure. Southampton in Professor Bromley's
time, Liverpool for much of the post-war period, were centres of maritime
history and are so no longer. The same may easily happen to other universities
and colleges, and the same observation could be made of other minority subjects,
such as diplomatic history, whose fortunes have depended on individual scholars
rather than established departments. Indeed there is an obvious connection
In Exeter, as in many universities, economic and "traditional" historians are in separate departments and
buildings.
Table 2 shows this quite clearly.
50 Britain
between foreign policy and naval history, and a number of historians are
prominent in the recent revival of both. Underwater archaeology has provided
a notable intellectual stimulus to maritime history in recent years, but it has not done
much to bridge the traditional division between historians and archaeologists,
so that here again maritime history suffers from fragmentation.
It is a mistake, however, to concentrate on universities alone, for much of
what institutional support the public enthusiasm for maritime history has
received, has come from other institutions. This has been notably the case with
the maritime museums. The National Maritime Museum has expanded its
activities to run a range of lectures and courses, to support research fellowships
in naval and maritime history, and to run a (heavily over-subscribed) conference
for new researchers in maritime history. To some extent these are intended to
replace the major scholarly projects for which curators nowadays seldom have
time, as well as to provide a home for serious scholarship in subjects not
supported by university departments. Other public institutions, notably the
Public Record OfEce and the record offices of counties and cities, have provided
facilities for a large increase in interest in naval and maritime history. At the
Public Record Office, where amateur historians make up more than three-
quarters of the readers, naval and military records are the single most popular
category of records used. Much of this use is not very sophisticated, but the
amateur researchers, who include a significant minority of children, display an
enthusiasm for research (and a respect for the archives) which are by no means
universal among professionals. Moreover there is evidence that they are
willing to explore a wider range of sources than professional historians, whose
research tends to be confined to the record classes cited in other people's
footnotes.
Public institutions concerned to train officers for either the Navy or the
merchant service have not made a notable contribution to naval and maritime
history. The training of merchant navy officers ashore takes place in departments
unconnected with history, by lecturers brought up as seafarers, engineers or naval
architects, and there are only a few who maintain a serious interest in history.
The former Naval Historical Branch of the Ministry of Defence is too small and
overworked to undertake scholarly projects of significance, and in recent years
has been somewhat isolated from both academic and amateur historians. Young
officers under training for the Royal Navy now spend only six months at the
28 Such as Dr. Jeremy Black of Durham, Dr. Michael Duffy of Exeter, and Dr. Hamish Scott of St.
Andrew's.
But not necessarily with enthusiasm.
P.R.O. statistics from the early 1980s suggest that amateur researchers consult about three times as
many record classes as professionals, including many of value to the serious historian.
Dr. Ian Buxton, Reader in Marine Transport at the University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, is a notable
exception.
Rodger 51
Royal Naval College Dartmouth before going to sea, and no serious attempt
is made to cram history into a curriculum already grossly overloaded. Those
officers who attend courses at the Royal Naval College Greenwich later in their
career have some opportunity to make contact with naval history, but until
recently it was unusual for them to take advantage of it. The Staff Course,
however, has now been accredited as an M.A. degree, including options to study
maritime history, and in this, the first year of the new course, about a score of
officers have chosen to study some history. The Professor of History and
International Affairs at Greenwich, a historian of repute, is now teaching a
significant amount of history (as distinct from strategic studies) for the first time
since his appointment.
Outside public institutions, interest in naval and maritime history is sustained
by several historical societies, notably the Navy Records Society, which still
flourishes, and the Society for Nautical Research. The S.N.R. originally repre-
sented the amateur and antiquarian interest, especially in medieval shipping,
which the Navy Records Society did not accept as respectable, or at least useful.
Throughout its history it has acted both as a society of (in most cases) amateur
enthusiasts, and as a vehicle for scholarship of a high standard. It is not always
an easy balance to achieve, and for much of the past thirty years its journal, The
Mariner's Mirror, has not been regarded in universities as a scholarly publication
of the first rank, but under its present editor, the quality of its articles has been
excellent. At the same time it has not abandoned its original, not to say eccentric
character, which has retained the loyalty of a society with a membership of over
two thousand. Unusually, among either academic or amateur bodies, the S.N.R.
has never accepted the division between "naval" and "maritime" history, and
has always published material on an electric variety of "nautical" subjects and
periods, but it is perceived by many "maritime" (meaning economic) historians
as biased towards naval history, and this is certainly true of the interests of its
membership. Undoubtedly the recent revival of The Mariner's Mirror owes
something to healthy competition from the new International Journal of Maritime
History.
The institutional division, and consequently the weakness, of naval and
maritime history in Britain is in contrast to the situation in many other countries,
and it is worth mentioning contacts with other countries to illustrate aspects of
the subject in Britain. The biennial Anglo-French Naval Historians' Conferen-
ces, of which the fifth took place at Lorient in 1994, are now established and
successful, but it is noteworthy that the initiative came from the French Service
But engineer officers spend four years at R.N.C. Manadon, where they take a degree which includes
some non-technical courses.
33 Professor Geoffrey Till.
Dr. Michael Duffy of the Exeter Centre for Maritime Historical Studies, who has started the practice
of "peer-review" of articles. The Review Editor, Dr. David Starkey, is also from the same Centre.
52 Britain
Historique de la Marine, which has published all the proceedings so far, and that
no public or private body could at first be found to take responsibility for
organising them in Britain, though the Society for Nautical Research has now
assumed the burden. Neither the Royal Navy nor any British university has
shown interest. When the Dutch Navy organized a conference on the occasion
of the third centenary of the 1688 revolution, British historians were invited
and the British government was represented diplomatically, but the only
institutional response was made possible by the generosity of a commercial
sponsor. There appear to be no significant institutional links with maritime
historians in Germany, Spain, or Italy, other than through the International
Association of Maritime Museums. The Association of North Sea Societies,
"which organises a biennial conference, provides an important connection
between Britain, the Scandinavian countries, Germany, and the Netherlands,
but it is largely confined to maritime historians in the narrow sense, particularly
historians of the fisheries. The International Commission for Maritime History
at its international level does not appear to regard naval history as forming part
of its subject, though the British Committee (in conjunction with the S.N.R.)
organises a lively and eclectic lecture series covering every aspect of the subject.
In international relations, where institutional coherence matters, the picture is
one of disorganisation and division.
If we turn from the question of who organises research, to what subjects are
being studied and how, we find that naval and maritime history is in many
respects flourishing. It is true that maritime history in the narrow sense is suffering
from a smaller university base, but it remains strong, particularly in the
nineteenth and twentieth centuries, the periods for which the materials survive
for economic and quantitative analysis and for business history. It has moreover
been enriched by contact with imperial historians, who have long been interested
in the economic causes and consequences of empire, and have lately noticed
that it was ships which bound the British Empire together. The result has been
some notable studies of merchant shipping in relation to wider issues. A good
The first British conference of the series, at Portsmouth in 1 988, was organised by an ad hoc committee
with much support from Hampshire County Council and Portsmouth City Council, but none at all
from the Royal Navy.
At the Koninklijke Instituut voor de Marine at Den Helder: its proceedings were published as Navies
and Armies: The Anglo -Dutch Relationship in War and Peace 1688-1988, ed. G.J.A. Raven and N.A.M.
Rodger (Edinburgh: 1990).
1688: The Seaborne Alliance and the Diplomatic Revolution, the proceedings of a conference sponsored
by Shell International Petroleum (National Maritime Museum: 1989).
38 The last was at Aberdeen in 1993.
Table 1 shows that the number of theses produced in maritime history has declined in recent years,
but no more than the decline in university research in all subjects.
For example Andrew Porter's Victorian Shipping, Business and Imperial Policy: Donald Currie, the Castle
Line and Southern Africa (Royal Historical Society: 1986).
Rodger 53
deal of valuable work is being undertaken, much of it by amateurs, in the history
of the coasting trades and fisheries. For earlier periods it is more difficult to find
evidence for commercial shipping, but there is a long and eminent tradition of
extracting the history of medieval shipping and overseas trade from the Customs
Ports Books. It is particularly interesting to observe that historians of the
sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries — a period in which it always made
particularly little sense to distinguish naval and maritime history — are now
treating overseas trade, exploration, piracy, privateering, and naval warfare as a
common subject. There is still a tendency for scholars to stick to the records
they are familiar with — the naval historians with the State Papers, the
privateersmen with the High Court of Admiralty and so on — but the
movement is in the right direction, and it is to be hoped that it will be imitated
in other periods in which the academic demarcation lines have not been much
crossed.
Naval history has undoubtedly suffered from its isolation from the academic
world, but it has at least preserved an electric variety and profited from the
explosion of popular interest in all aspects of history. The present century,
especially the Second World War and more recent naval wars which are within
living memory, continue to attract immense public enthusiasm and to justify
large numbers of publications of varying levels of scholarship. The eighteenth
and nineteenth centuries are attracting strong interest again, especially in such
areas as the technical history of warships, where our understanding has been
transformed by recent research. A number of outstanding younger scholars are
working in seventeenth century naval history. Naval administration has received
a good deal of attention, and such important auxiliary subjects as naval medicine
have been attacked from various directions. "The Navy as an instrument of
policy" is once again receiving serious attention and figures prominently in
recent books on grand strategy and diplomacy, as well as in the studies of
economic historians interested in the relationship between Britain's maritime,
colonial, and economic expansion. The social history of the Navy, however,
and of seafarers in general, remains largely unexplored, and the naval and
maritime history of the Middle Ages is very much neglected. Moreover the study
of actual warlike operations remains much less popular than hitherto, and study
of tactics in battle is now completely abandoned.
Dr. Wendy Childs of Leeds University is the best-known scholar now working in this field.
Such as H.M. Scott's British Foreign Policy in the Age of the American Revolution (Oxford: 1990).
Notably Professor P.K. O'Brien, now Director of the Institute of Historical Research of London
University.
The recent publication of Brian Tunstall's Naval Warfare in the Age of Sail: The Evolution of Fighting
Tactics 1650-1815, ed. Nicholas Tracy (London: 1990), is an apparent rather than a real exception, as
the book was largely written in the 1930s.
54 Britain
A valuable collaborative work, The New Maritime History of Devon, combines
the work of a large number of maritime and naval historians. It is particularly
encouraging not only that it attempts to span the full width of the subject, but
that the editors have chosen contributors from a variety of institutions and walks
of life other than universities. Moreover, it was supported by the Leverhulme
Trust and the British Academy as well as other national and local sponsors. This
is one approach which evidently has the potential to heal many of the damaging
divisions and weaknesses within the subject. It is, however, a complex,
expensive, and unwieldy one, and not likely to be suitable for general application;
nor does the assembling of contributions, from many hands, on everything to
do with the sea necessarily define the subject.
There remain many areas and periods of maritime history which have been
neglected, but it may be suggested that the most urgent wants are less the
coverage of neglected topics than the definition of the subject. At present,
maritime history suffers from a lack of coherence. It is neither clearly identified
as a discrete subject nor properly integrated into national and international
history at large. It may seem paradoxical to suggest that a subject fragmented
among many departments is yet not properly connected with any of them, but
in practice it is easier to ignore a minority subject on the periphery of your own
interests than a subject of major importance to others. If the importance of
maritime history is to be recognized, it must be understood as forming an
essential element in all sorts of history, but the best way of demonstrating that
it does is to define it as a coherent subject in itself. Naval and maritime history
would be stronger if it had more practitioners with the ability and the self-con-
fidence to write big books, which would both define and project the subject.
Here the lack of institutional base tells, for few historians outside universities
(and fewer and fewer within them at present) have the time to write books on
a grand scale. Many excellent books and articles on diverse aspects of the subject
are being written, but we need historians able to take a large view and present
the sweep of maritime history, both to a public hungry to read it and to the
learned readers who need to be educated in its importance. At present journalists
rush in where historians fear to tread, not always with happy results. In this
connection it matters that no body in Britain giving grants for historical research,
with the limited exception of the Leverhulme Trust, will accept applications
from persons not holding full-time university posts. No other institution, not
Vol. I, From Early Times to the Late Eighteenth Century, eds. Michael Duffy, Stephen Fisher, Basil
Greenhill, David J. Starkey and Joyce Youings (London: 1992); Vol. II is not yet published. This work
was begun before the formal institution of the Centre for Maritime Historical Studies but is closely
associated with it.
The contributors to the first volume are as follows: thirteen university historians, three university
scholars of other subjects, two lecturers in other institutes of higher education, six museum staff, three
officials of other public institutions, and five others.
The possibility of a similar work on Cornwall is now being investigated.
Rodger 55
even the British Museum, is regarded as a home of respectable scholarship.
Without financial backing, few people will have the luck or ingenuity to support
a big book.
It must also be said that not all historians are completely qualified to do
so. Parochialism is a real weakness of both naval and maritime history in
Britain, which is too often vigorous but narrow. This is a natural weakness
in the self-taught amateur, and not as rare as it should be among people with
an academic training. It is especially unfortunate that a subject which by its
very nature is an international one, the history of the sea which brings men
of different nations together in war and peace, is usually written from a
national if not from a nationalist perspective. Though many British historians
study the history of other countries, very few are interested in foreign
navies. Comparative studies of one nation with another are extremely rare,
and much published work is still more or less monoglot. " This is not a
problem confined to Britain, or to maritime history, but it is a serious flaw
in any sort of scholarship.
So the state of naval and maritime history in Britain is in many respects
vigorous and hopeful, but there remain notable weaknesses. The subject has
never been more popular among the general public, and its inclusion in the
new National Curriculum for English schools ought to ensure that it remains
so. University departments that recognize and exploit this popularity ought
to profit by doing so as well as strengthen the subject in process. At the same
time it would be rash to ignore the existence of prejudice against it among
academics of an older generation, meaning the generation now at the head
of their profession. At a time when university departments are being graded
on the quality of their research by committees of their peers, departments
fear that exploiting vulgar popularity will earn them a low mark and lose
them research funds. This matters, because no institutions outside universities
are likely to be able to provide the support the subject needs if its importance
is to be recognised. The national museums, especially the National Maritime
Museum, are hard-pressed to cover their core responsibilities and unlikely to
be able to increase their backing. The Navy sees almost no value in the study
of history for its officers and is indifferent to the rise of popular interest in
naval history, which, with imaginative handling, might do much for the
Navy's popular constituency. Maybe the Navy's decision to participate in the
celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of the Battle of the Atlantic in May
48 An exception is R.A. Stradling of the University of Wales, Cardiff, author of The Armada of Flanders:
Spanish Maritime Policy and European War 1568-1668 (Cambridge: 1992).
Capp's Cromwell's Navy recently offered an unfortunate example; the author was unaware of
Hans-Christoph Junge's Flottenpolitik und Revolution: Die Enstehung der englishchen Seemacht wahrend der
Herrschaft Cromwells (Stuttgart: 1980), which had already covered much of the same ground.
56 Britain
1993 marks a change of heart, but we are still very remote from any official
support for naval or maritime history.
Of all the desiderata, it may be suggested, the most to be wished for is
some large books, conceived of with breadth and imagination, written with
a skill to attract the general public, founded on scholarship which will compel
academic acceptance, and sold too widely to be ignored. This may seem a
tall order, but it has been done in our own day by historians, including one
who made his name in naval history, and it could be done again. What
maritime history needs is essentially the same as history in general needs — a
strong scholarly base linked to wide popular interest. A good deal of that is
in place already, but the situation will remain unsatisfactory until the subject
is better recognized in universities.
Table 1: University Theses by Subject, 1900-1990
1900-09
1910-19
1920-29
1930-39
1940-49
1950-59
1960-69
1970-79
1980-90
Totals
Source: A Select Bibliography of British and Irish University Theses about Maritime History, 1 792—1990,
eds. David M. Williams and Andrew P. White, International Maritime Economic History
Association, Research in Maritime History No. 1 (St. John's: Newfoundland, 1991).
The figures in table 1 are for doctoral theses plus masters' theses (including
B.Litt. and B.Phil.). In this table "Naval" includes combined operations,
grand strategy and war planning; "Maritime" includes commercial shipping,
overseas trade, fisheries and ports (other than dockyard ports); "Both"
includes piracy, privateering, seaborne trade in wartime, and the connections
between commerce, strategy, and policy. Economic geography, maritime
law, and tourism are not included. Theses dealing with periods less than
twenty years earlier than the date of submission have been excluded as dealing
with current affairs rather than history. The classifications are based on the
thesis titles and are inevitably subjective, so the figures should be taken as
indicative only.
Naval
Maritime
Both
Total
0
4+5
1 + 1
5+6
0+5
1 + 12
2+1
3+18
1+5
5+39
4+4
10+48
6+12
36+50
4+8
46+70
5+3
11+20
5+0
21+23
6+11
55+40
6+5
67+56
29+17
58+37
9+3
96+57
56+14
96+61
14+9
166+84
50+12
86+41
li+2
147+55
153+79
352+305
56+33
561+417
) Paul M. Kennedy, author of The Rise and Fall of British Naval Mastery and The Rise and Fall of the
Great Powers.
Rodger 57
Table 2: Theses of Selected Universities, 1900-1990
Liverpool
Exeter
London
Oxfor
1900-09
0
0
5
3
1910-19
1
0
11
1
1920-29
1
0
22
6
1930-39
6
0
45
27
1940-49
1
0
12
5
1950-59
6
0
51
17
1960-69
11
4
65
15
1970-79
16
19
59
32
1980-90
6
6
48
22
Cambridge St. Andrew's Wales
0
0
4
4
4
13
19
24
12
0
1
0
3
0
7
0
8
0
2
0
5
1
6
5
9
7
4
48 29 318 128 80 13 45
In this table the theses are those listed in table 1 from the three most prominent
"research universities" and some others with interests in maritime history.
6
Maritime History in Canada
The Social and Economic Dimensions
Lewis R. Fischer and Gerald E. Panting
Canada is a nation with a significant maritime heritage. The aboriginal
peoples who first occupied the land were overwhelmingly maritime in
orientation. The earliest Europeans to visit the shores of the "New Found Land"
were attracted principally by the lure of maritime resources, and they built the
richest fishery in the world. The non-aboriginal portion of the population was
comprised overwhelmingly of intra-continental migrants, most of whom arrived
by sea. Until the coming of the railways in the middle of the nineteenth century,
settlements almost always abutted water, and the penetration of the great North
American landmass utilized the system of rivers and lakes that cut deeply into
the continent. In the nineteenth century Canada built upon its comparative
advantages to amass the third largest merchant fleet in the world. In the current
century, offshore resources, especially oil, offer the promise of the latest in a
series of resource booms that have shaped much of the Canadian experience.
Given the importance of marine features to its history — and as one of the few
countries in the world to border on three oceans — it might be imagined that
maritime topics would occupy a central place in the national consciousness. Such
an assumption, however, would be erroneous. That maritime interests have
always been peripheral to Canadians reflects a reality similar to that in the United
States: the main currents of our historical thought have always been concerned
with the dramatic saga of filling what Europeans perceived to be an "empty"
continent. As in the U.S., the North American landmass has been associated
with progress and opportunity; the sea, on the other hand, has been a moat
which protects us from the depravity from which our ancestors fled in the old
world. Moreover, as a non-imperialist nation, Canadians have never seen the
•i
sea as a route to expansion, as have the people of many other nations.
Canadian expansionism has assumed an economic rather than a political character. In particular, this
has been reflected in the penetration by Canadian banks into certain parts of the Caribbean and Canadian
resource companies into various parts of Latin America. But as a nation which has traditionally been
more concerned with protecting its sovereignty from the American leviathan, the activities of Canadian
businesses overseas remain virtually unknown to the majority of the population.
60 Maritime History in Canada
As a result, maritime history in Canada has not been blessed with a surfeit of
public support. To make matters worse, the subject has been largely ignored in
Canadian universities. While in part this reflects the state of public interest, much
of the responsibility for this state of affairs rests with those who have chosen to
study maritime subjects. Many of the questions posed by maritime historians
have not been illuminated by mainstream scholarly ideas or debates, and a good
deal of maritime history in Canada — as in most of the rest of the world — has
been compromised by an unhealthy dose of antiquarianism. These characteristics
have often made it difficult for the bulk of the historical profession to take
maritime history seriously.
Fortunately, there is evidence that the constraints which have prevented
maritime history from being central to the way we think about the past are being
overcome. A new awareness of the importance of the maritime past has been
reflected in the past two decades by the construction of major new maritime
museums in Halifax and Kingston, Ontario, as well as the opening of a spate of
smaller museums elsewhere. As well, many of our more established museums,
such as the Maritime Museum of British Columbia, are undergoing significant
facelifts and expansions, even in a time of general fiscal restraint. Maritime
heritage organizations and societies for marine enthusiasts grew substantially in
the 1980s and show no signs of stagnation in the 1990s.
The scholarly community has also been part of this ferment. A new generation
of scholars is finally asking questions of interest to other historians, who are
conversely beginning to comprehend the way that the fruits of maritime
historical research can illuminate their own scholarship. These relatively new
phenomena have led to an expansion in the number of scholars willing to identify
themselves as maritime historians as well as to growth in the number of courses
and programs offered.
All of this makes us reasonably optimistic about the state of maritime history
in the Dominion. This paper presents evidence to support this assessment. Our
concern is with the state of non-naval maritime scholarship in Canada. Despite
the intellectual artificiality of separating naval and non-naval maritime scholar-
ship, as a heuristic tool this division has some justification. This is because in
important ways the Canadian contribution to the study of the social and
economic aspects of maritime history has been relatively greater than in many
To refer to the non-naval side of the topic, we will generally use the term "maritime history." This
conforms to the distinction between naval topics and the remainder of the historical study of man's
relationship to the sea first suggested by the Robert G. Albion in his series of bibliographies; see Maritime
and Naval History: An Annotated Bibliography (Cambridge, Mass.: 1951). This semantic convention was
enunciated even more clearly by Robin Craig in his editorial in the first issue of the journal Maritime
History, I (1971), pp. 1—3, and by the late Ralph Davis in his review essay, "Maritime History: Progress
and Problems," in Sheila Marriner ed., Business and Businessmen: Studies in Business, Economic and
Accounting History (Liverpool: 1978), p. 169. We are grateful to David M. Williams for drawing these
references to our attention.
Fischer and Panting 61
other nations. While this is certainly not true if measured by the quantity of
scholarly output, the judgement is defensible when Canadian scholarship is
placed in international perspective. Although space does not permit us to set out
the complete international context, a careful comparison of the Canadian
contribution with what is described elsewhere in this volume will, we believe,
sustain this point.
We make no pretence in this essay to being complete, and we apologize that
so much of importance has necessarily been omitted. Our focus is on Canadian
scholars and scholarship, and we have little to say about maritime history in its
more "popular" manifestations. This same caveat extends to our discussion of
historians, university programmes, and historiography. For the most part we
intend to focus on those areas in which we believe Canadians have made
particularly significant contributions and to a lesser extent on areas in which
Canada has been especially weak; we generally exclude the great middle ground
from consideration. Likewise, we will have little to say about non-historians
who probe the maritime past except where they have had a demonstrable
influence on the work of historians. Although we recognize the legitimate role
of those from other disciplines, to make the subject manageable requires us to
sharpen our focus.
We begin by examining the Canadian scholarly community with an interest
in maritime history. The place of maritime history in Canadian universities is
dealt with in the second part. The third section discusses scholarly organizations
and journals dealing with maritime history. The final part of the paper focuses
on some important Canadian contributions in the realm of scholarly publishing.
Although our focus will be on scholarship about Canada written by Canadians,
it would be parochial to ignore the contributions of non-Canadians who have
written about this country or the achievements of those who have focused on
the historical experience elsewhere. Because our purpose is to present a picture
of the state of maritime scholarship in Canada today, we will limit our discussion
in the last section to works written since the mid-1970s, with a particular
emphasis on what has been produced in the last decade.
Canadian Maritime Scholars
One of the authors present has conducted several surveys in the past few years
of Canadian maritime scholars. They are worth citing here, both as an introduc-
tion to the Canadian maritime scholarly community and as a context in which
to place it. In 1987 the Canadian Nautical Research Society (CNRS), the
Canadian sub-commission of the International Commission for Maritime His-
tory (ICMH), published a research directory in its newsletter, ARGONAUT A. A
While the term "scholarly community" in this paper includes historians employed not only in
universities and community colleges but also in archives and museums, we do not intend in this essay
to discuss the state of Canadian museums and archives.
62 Maritime History in Canada
breakdown of the directory shows that approximately two-thirds of the scholarly
membership had a primary focus on maritime rather than naval topics.4 An
analysis of an updated directory published in 1990 yielded similar results. While
the membership of CNRS is not perfectly representative of Canadian maritime
scholars, we estimate that about 90 percent of the historians who have made
maritime topics a significant part of their research are included in one or the
other of the directories. The naval to non-naval ratio underscores the relative
importance of non-naval topics in Canada. This is in stark contrast to findings
elsewhere. A breakdown of the U.S. membership in the North American
Society for Oceanic History (NASOH) shows that the relationship between naval
and non-naval scholars is almost exactly the obverse of Canada. And a published
study of German maritime historians shows that the vast majority have naval
rather than maritime interests. Canada is thus somewhat unique in having such
a high proportion of maritime specialists.
A spatial analysis of the interests of Canadian maritime scholars suggests its
strengths and weaknesses. The largest concentrations were concerned with
the East Coast and the Great Lakes— St. Lawrence system; together, they
comprised the geographic foci of about two-thirds of Canadian maritime
scholars. The Arctic and the West Coast account for almost a quarter,
although the proportions would be higher if we included scholars interested
in contemporary events in the Arctic and non-historians for the West Coast.
About 10 percent of Canadian maritime scholars are interested in international
maritime history. The international component is certainly higher than in
most European countries, although it is not clear if it is higher than in the U.S.
Nonetheless, it reflects a condition to which we will return later in the paper:
the fact that some Canadian scholars have attempted to study maritime history
in a larger, less place-specific context than is the case in many other nations.
Not surprisingly, the largest components of this international group have been
interested in topics such as merchant shipping and exploration.
In a nation which by world standards has a relatively short history, it is not
surprising that the vast majority of Canadian maritime historians have focused
on the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Those scholars who study earlier
4 For a full discussion of the interests of members, see Lewis R. Fischer, "Maritime History around
the World: Canada, ARGONAUTA, V, no. 2 (March 1988), pp. 2-4. The directory appeared in
ARGONA UTA, IV, no. 4 (October 1987). For an opposing view, see Eric W. Sager, "Counterpoint,"
ARGONAUTA, V, nos. 2-3 (June-September 1988), pp. 6-7.
5 ARGONAUTA, VII, Special Supplement (October 1990).
This estimate is, of course, somewhat arbitrary, since maritime history cuts across a variety of other
sub-disciplines. We make this estimate based upon our knowledge of the field rather than on any precise
empirical criteria.
See Rolf Walter, "Maritime History in Germany," Maritime Economic History Group Neivsletter, I, no.
2 (September 1987).
Fischer and Panting 63
periods tend to be concentrated in exploration, ethno-history, and the fisheries
of the East Coast and the St. Lawrence Paver.
The vast majority of Canadian maritime historians writing scholarly works
are employed in universities. Unlike in many European nations, Canadian
maritime museums have not traditionally funded research posts only tangentially
Q
related to the mounting of exhibits. A similar survey taken twenty or thirty
years ago would likely have found a larger contribution from archives, but the
professionalization of archival work has reduced the number of historians
employed in such repositories who are able to devote a significant amount of
time to scholarship. Since maritime scholarship in Canada has clearly been
concentrated in universities — and since it is in the universities that new maritime
historians are being trained — an examination of the place of maritime history in
academe is essential for comprehending the state of the field.
Maritime History in Canadian Universities
At an international congress in the mid-1980s, an informal poll was taken among
the maritime historians in attendance concerning their training. Not surprisingly,
the overwhelming majority indicated that their graduate preparation was in some-
thing other than "maritime history." On one level, this is not surprising. After all,
the techniques of business history can be applied equally well to studying a steel
company or a shipping firm; the insights of social history are applicable to both
landward and maritime-oriented groups; and so on. Indeed, maritime historians
need to admit that their field has no discrete boundaries to separate it from other
historical experiences and no particular set of insights or approaches which mark it
as a distinct historical sub-discipline. Yet it is also true that a focus on the relationship
between man and the sea provides a clear distinction from which to build a
sub-discipline. Moreover, maritime history has spawned a literature which, if not
wholly separate from other realms of history, at least contains some common
characteristics. This suggests that it ought to be possible to develop undergraduate
and graduate programs in maritime history and hence to produce a body of graduates
with unique perspectives and knowledge. Such programs will of course not be
isolated from other parts of the discipline; rather, they will borrow insights and
approaches where necessary.
If we accept that it is legitimate to offer programs in maritime history, we
must also concede that Canada has been slow to develop identifiable courses and
programs in the field. This does not make the country unique; indeed, a survey
Q
Although some European museum people might take exception to this characterization, it must be
assessed comparatively. It is unquestionable that relative to conditions in North America museum
employees in Europe (at least outside Britain) in general have more time for research.
Another argument for providing training in maritime history is that traditional preparation, organized
as it is for the most part around national histories, may not be the most appropriate approach for
understanding what is, after all, one of the most international of phenomena.
64 Maritime History in Canada
of the state of the teaching of maritime history in most other countries would
produce strikingly similar results. It is therefore safe to say that the majority of
the next generation of maritime historians will be trained in more or less the
same way as were their predecessors.
But this will not be true for the entire new generation of Canadian maritime
historians. The number of universities which offer regular courses in maritime
history is increasing gradually and currently includes Dalhousie and Queen's
University, as well as the Universities of Calgary, British Columbia, and Victoria.
A number of others offer maritime courses on an irregular basis. But the school with
the greatest commitment to maritime history is Memorial University of New-
foundland, which is the only institution in North America to offer a regular program
of both undergraduate and graduate courses in the field. Indeed, to our knowledge,
1 n
only the University of Leiden in the Netherlands offers comparable training.
Memorial's core undergraduate program is not all-inclusive. Instead, it focuses
on the maritime history of the North Atlantic since 1450. In addition, there are
a series of advanced seminars in specific aspects of maritime history and a variety
of supplemental cognate courses. On the graduate level, Memorial offers a series
of seminars leading to both the MA and PhD degrees. Since the program is
relatively new, it is too early to judge its success with any degree of confidence.
But it does represent an acceptance of the significant role that maritime history
has to play in the training of undergraduate and graduate students.
In early 1991 we did a survey of graduate theses currently in progress in maritime
history at Canadian universities. To compile this overview, we contacted every
director of graduate history programs at all Canadian universities. Although some
failed to respond, most did. At the time there were seventeen theses underway, nine
of which were on non-naval topics. Of the latter group, six were being pursued at
Memorial (four PhDs and two MAs); the others were being written at the
Universities of Guelph, New Brunswick, and York.
It is clear that regardless of how the Memorial program evolves, many (and
perhaps most) future Canadian maritime historians will be trained in traditional
ways. Basically, this means that they will write maritime theses at a variety of
universities. Although many will be supervised by maritime historians, they will
not be trained specifically in maritime history.
Canadian Maritime History Organizations and Journals
In most nations in which maritime history has a reasonably high profile, there
are a variety of organizations to encourage and promote its study. Many such
10 In the U.S., the Williams College program may develop similarly, as may East Carolina's program,
if that school is ever granted approval to offer the PhD. Texas A&M offers a similarly comprehensive
program in nautical archaeology.
11 The graduate student research directories appeared in ARGONAUTA, VIII, No. 1 (January 1991)
and no. 2 (April 1991).
Fischer and Panting 65
groups, such as the World Ship Society and the Steamboat Historical Society,
are unabashedly popular in orientation, providing a home for enthusiasts and
only occasionally promoting what we recognize as scholarship. Others, such as
the Society for Nautical Research (SNR) in Britain, are umbrella organizations
which cater to both enthusiasts and scholars. There are relatively few maritime
organizations which are devoted solely to scholarly work.
Canada has some of each type of organization. Those that have enjoyed the
most rapid growth in the past two decades are almost certainly the support groups
which have evolved around maritime museums and heritage societies. While
they deserve recognition for the important work they have done in helping to
alter the public consciousness, their accomplishments fall outside the purview
of this paper. In keeping with the focus enunciated in the introduction, we
would like to concentrate here on the second two categories.
Canada's equivalent to the SNR, or to NASOH in the U.S., is the Canadian
Nautical Research Society (CNRS), which is also the Canadian national commission
1 9
of the International Commission for Maritime History. Current membership is
approximately three hundred, about one-third of whom are actively engaged in
scholarly research and writing. While CNRS is far from the largest of the twenty-
three national commissions that comprise ICMH, a reflection of its success is that it
has roughly twice the membership of NASOH, although Canada's population is
1 ^
only one-tenth that of the United States. CNRS seeks to promote interest in
maritime history through an annual conference, a series of awards for books and
articles to honour excellence in Canadian maritime history, and by publishing both
a quarterly newsletter, ARGONAUTA, and a quarterly scholarly journal, The
Northern Mariner /Le Marin du nord. CNRS members also frequently are members
of other marine organizations, although the goals of many of these societies tend to
be popular rather than scholarly. Many Canadian maritime historians are also
members of NASOH. Indeed, NASOH's immediate past president, Barry Gough,
is a distinguished Canadian maritime historian.
To achieve its goal of promoting Canadian maritime scholarship, the publi-
cation of The Northern Mariner /Le Marin du nord is probably the most significant
activity of CNRS. TNM/LMN, which began in 1991, accepts both naval and
maritime articles. Its first ten issues have contained a variety of essays on maritime
historical subjects, including Canadian whaling, fishing, harbour development,
shipbuilding, merchant shipping, and the Arctic. Especially significant has been
Like CNRS, NASOH is a national commission affiliated with ICMH. SNR, on the other hand, is
not the British national commission.
1 "\
Lest the comparison prove offensive, we should admit that about 10 percent of the CNRS
membership is drawn from abroad, with the U.S. providing the largest component. But it is also the
case, as we suggest below, that many Canadians are members of NASOH.
Both of these publications are published at Memorial University of Newfoundland and edited by
Lewis R. Fischer, Gerald E. Panting, and Olaf U. Janzen.
66 Maritime History in Canada
the development of what is arguably the most comprehensive maritime book
review section in the world. TNM/LMN has been averaging about sixty reviews
per issue; its policy is to attempt to review all books on Canadian maritime
history and the most important volumes published elsewhere, including a
number written in languages other than English.
Also important for promoting the scholarly study of Canada's maritime past
are the Keith Matthews Awards, presented annually to the best book and best
article either on a Canadian marine subject or by a Canadian on a foreign topic.
There are also honourable mentions awarded at the discretion of the committee.
The book award, which was inaugurated in 1984, has gone to non-naval books
about half the time. The article award, which began in 1985, has been dominated
by non-naval essays.
Canada also occupies a key role in the umbrella organization of which CNRS
is a part, the International Commission for Maritime History. The Secretary-
General of ICMH is currently Canadian, which means that the secretariat of the
largest international maritime and naval organization is in Canada. ICMH's
newsletter, ICMHNews, is edited at Memorial University of Newfoundland.
Moreover, the next quinquennial congress of the ICMH, traditionally the largest
maritime history conference in the world, will be held in Montreal in 1995 and
is being organized by a Canadian. This prominent role in ICMH helps to ensure
greater visibility for Canadian scholarship in international circles.
Canadians also play significant roles in the only international maritime history
organization solely for scholars. This is the International Maritime Economic
History Association (IMEHA), which is concerned principally with the
economic and social aspects of maritime history. Founded in 1986, one of the
two Vice-Presidents is a Canadian, as are both the Secretary and the Treasurer.
As with the ICMH, the secretariat of the IMEHA is located at Memorial.
The IMEHA also sponsors an international scholarly congress every four
years. The First International Congress of Maritime History, held in Liver-
pool, England, in August 1992 attracted more than one-hundred scholars
from over thirty nations. Fifteen percent of the papers were presented by
Canadians.
In addition, the IMEHA publishes the leading scholarly journal in maritime
history, the International Journal of Maritime History. Although the IJMH, which
began publishing in 1989, has an international focus, it has included a respectable
sample of Canadian maritime writing. The IMEHA also publishes monographs,
It is worth noting, however, that Marc Milner, who contributes an essay on Canadian naval history to this
volume, was a winner of the article award in 1 989 for his essay "The Implications ofTechnological Backwardness:
The Royal Canadian Navy: 1939-1945," Canadian Defense Quarterly, DC, no. 3 (Winter 1989).
The Second International Congress of Maritime History will be held in Amsterdam in 1996; the
third will be in Esbjerg, Denmark, in the year 2000.
Fischer and Panting 67
bibliographies and reprints in a regular series entitled Research in Maritime
1 7
History. Both are edited and published at Memorial.
There is one other Canadian maritime journal that publishes a reasonable
proportion of scholarly essays. FreshWater, a journal of Great Lakes maritime
history published at the Marine Museum of the Great Lakes in Kingston, has in
a short time attained a reputation for scholarly publishing at least equal to its
American counterpart, Inland Seas. But because its subscription list is heavily
weighted toward museum supporters, it is unlikely that Fresh Water will ever
become primarily a scholarly journal.
On balance, we feel safe in asserting that Canadian maritime historians are
well-served by the existing maritime organizations and journals in the country.
Although precise comparisons are difficult, given the size of the community we
would judge that Canadian maritime scholars are served at least as well as any
comparable group in the world.
Recent Canadian Contributions to Maritime Historical Scholarship
Any judgement about the state of Canadian maritime history scholarship
depends on the approach adopted. For example, within the country some
geographic regions, such as the East Coast, have been reasonably well-served
while others, such as the West Coast, have been studied less adequately by
scholars. Canadians have made major contributions in the histories of merchant
shipping, methodology, fishing (including whaling and sealing), and maritime
social and economic history, but have been relatively neglectful of topics such
as the history of shipping firms and the impact of technological change. Among
Canadian scholars whose focus has been outside the country, it is more difficult
to discern any particular specialties.
Ultimately, though, a balanced evaluation depends on the choice of criteria.
If we assess their contribution to national scholarship, Canadian scholars fare
better than if we use international recognition as a standard. This should not be
taken as a criticism, however, since there is little doubt that a similar verdict
could be made about maritime historians virtually anywhere. Our view is that
on balance the Canadian contribution has been above average. To support this
contention we examine below some of the main trends in recent Canadian
maritime scholarship.
The Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal of Maritime History is Lewis R. Fischer, who also is
series editor of Research in Maritime History.
1 ft
FreshWater is edited by a board including Maurice D. Smith, M. Stephen Salmon, Walter Lewis,
Ken Macpherson, and Gordon D. Shaw.
The organization below is based loosely on a number of topics. The discerning reader will recognize
that many of the works discussed could have been included in two or more categories. To avoid
repetition, however, we have discussed particular books and articles only once.
68 Maritime History in Canada
One of the topics in which Canadians have made internationally recognized
contributions is the history of merchant shipping, especially on the East Coast.
Twenty years ago the recognized authority on the subject was still Frederick William
Wallace, whose romantic and often antiquarian books dated from the 1 920s. That
this has changed is largely, but not entirely, due to the work of individuals associated
with the Atlantic Canada Shipping Project (ACSP) at Memorial University of
Newfoundland. Since both of the present authors were associated with this
project, we feel compelled to admit that its reputation and output were at least
as much a function of the resources available as the people involved. This is not
to deny that the ACSP benefitted from the talents of some exceptional scholars,
especially the late Keith Matthews, who conceived of the study in the first place;
the late David Alexander, who provided much of the intellectual direction; and
Eric W. Sager, who has gone on to become one of the most prolific and insightful
maritime historians not only in Canada but also in the world. Yet without the
benefit of six years and more than $1 million, this project to examine the rise
and decline of the eastern Canadian shipping industry in the nineteenth century
would never have produced the results it did.
The best place for a neophyte to begin to understand the contributions of the
ACSP is with Eric Sager and Gerry Panting' s Maritime Capital, which not only
summarizes many of the project's conclusions but also extends the analysis in new
directions. Yet a full appreciation of the topics investigated by those associated
with the project requires more comprehensive reading. The micro-level work
of the ACSP can be found in six volumes of essays, which include not only
contributions from project members but also papers by a wide range of national
and international scholars for context. In addition, there are a series of other
publications which contain material and insights not found in Maritime Capital.
See Frederick William Wallace, Wooden Ships and Iron Men (London: 1924); Wallace, In the Wake
of the Wind Ships (Toronto: 1927); Wallace, Record of Canadian Shipping (London: 1929).
Eric W. Sager with Gerald E. Panting, Maritime Capital: The Shipping Industry in Atlantic Canada,
1820-1914 (Montreal: 1990).
Keith Matthews and Gerry Panting, eds., Ships and Shipbuilding in the North Atlantic Region (St. John's:
1978); Lewis R. Fischer and Eric W. Sager, eds., The Enterprising Canadians: Entrepreneurs and Economic
Development in Eastern Canada, 1820-1914 (St. John's: 1979); David Alexander and Rosemary Ommer,
eds., Volumes not Values: Canadian Sailing Ships and World Trades (St. John's: 1979); Rosemary Ommer and
Gerald Panting, eds., Working Men Who Got Wet (St. John's: 1980); Lewis R. Fischer and Eric W. Sager,
eds., Merchant Shipping and Economic Development in Atlantic Canada (St. John's: 1982); and Lewis R. Fischer
and Gerald E. Panting, eds., Change and Adaptation in Maritime History: The North Atlantic Fleets in the
Nineteenth Century (St. John's: 1985).
Chief among these are a series of works by Eric W. Sager and Lewis R. Fischer, including "Patterns
of Investment in the Shipping Industries of Atlantic Canada, 1820-1900," Acadiensis, IX, no. 1 (Autumn
1979), pp. 19-43; "Atlantic Canada and the Age of Sail Revisited," Canadian Historical Revieiv, LXIII, no.
2 (June 1982), pp. 125-50; and Shipping and Shipbuilding in Atlantic Canada, 1820-1914 (Ottawa: 1986).
See also David Alexander and Gerald Panting, "The Mercantile Fleet and Its Owners: Yarmouth, Nova
Scotia, 1840-1889," Acadiensis, VII, no. 2 (Spring 1978), pp. 3-28; Rosemary Ommer, "Anticipating the
Trend: The Pictou Ship Register, 1840-1889," Acadiensis, X, no. 1 (Autumn 1980), pp. 67-89; Ommer,
Fischer and Panting 69
Given the complexity and cost of the ACSP, it is not surprising that it has
failed to stimulate comparable studies of other Canadian fleets. This point
notwithstanding, it is nonetheless disappointing that scholarly research on
merchant shipping in other parts of the country has been disappointing. The best recent
work on the St. Lawrence has been done by Jean Leclerc. On Canadian merchant
shipping on the Great Lakes the contributions by Steven Salmon, Walter Lewis, and
Kenneth Mackenzie have been first-rate, but merchant shipping on the Lakes has by and
large been left to the popularizers. For the west coast, there is no comprehensive work,
although the recent volume by Ken Coates and Bill Morrison and a preliminary essay
by Eric Sager give a good feel for what might be done. If the approach of the ACSP
to merchant shipping has not been emulated for other parts of the country, it has been
applied to Norway and the international economy by Lewis Fischer in collaboration
97
with Helge Nordvik.
But aside from the ACSP, the most important work on merchant shipping done
by Canadians has been on foreign fleets. Richard W. Unger is an acknowledged
authority on medieval shipping, concentrating mostly on the Low Countries. Jake
Knoppers, a pioneer in applying computer-assisted analysis to maritime history, has
written a seminal work on the shipping involved in eighteenth-century Dutch trade
on
with Russia. And David Eltis has made important contributions to the ongoing
-irv
debate about shipping in the slave trade.
"The Decline of the Eastern Canadian Shipping Industry, 1880-95," Journal of Transport History, V,
no. 1 (March 1984), pp. 25-44.
24 Jean Leclerc, Le Saint-Laurent et ses pilotes 1805-1860 (Montreal: 1990).
See, for example, M. Stephen Salmon, "'Rank Imitation and the Sincerest Flattery': The Dominion
Marine Association and the Revision of the Canadian Coasting Regulations, 1922—1936," The Northern
Mariner/he Marin du nord, I, no. 3 (July 1991), pp. 1-24; Kenneth S. Mackenzie, "C.C. Ballantyne and
the Canadian Government Merchant Marine, 1917—1921," The Northern Mariner /Le Marin du nord, II,
no. 1 (January 1992), pp. 1-13.
Ken Coates and Bill Morrison, The Sinking of the Princess Sophia: Taking the North Down with Her
(Toronto: 1990); Eric W. Sager, "The Shipping Industry in British Columbia from 1867 to 1914," The
Northern Mariner /Le Marin du nord, III, no. 3 (July 1993), pp. 45-50.
See, for example, Lewis R. Fischer and Helge W. Nordvik, "A Crucial Six Percent: Norwegian
Sailors in the Canadian Merchant Marine, 1863-1913," Sjefartshistorisk Arhok, 1984 (Bergen: 1985), pp.
139-59; "Myth and Reality in Baltic Shipping: The Timber Trade to Britain, 1863-1908," Scandinavian
Journal of History, XII, no. 2 (Summer: 1987), pp. 99-116; and "Finlandere i den Kanadensiska
Handelsflottan, 1863-1913," Historisk Tidskrift for Finland, LXXIII, no. 3 (1988), pp. 373-94. As with
the ACSP, much of their work is based on large-scale data sets.
See, for example, Richard W. Unger, The Art of Medieval Technology: Images of Noah the Shipbuilder (New
Brunswick, N.J.: 1991); Unger, "The Tonnage of Europe's Merchant Fleets, 1300-1800," American
Neptune, LII, no. 4 (Fall 1992), pp. 247-61; Unger, "Marine Paintings and the History of Shipbuilding,"
in David Freedberg and Jan DeVries, eds., Art in History, History in Art: Studies in Seventeenth Century Dutch
Culture (Los Angeles: 1991), pp. 75-93; Unger, "Integration of Baltic and Lower Countries Grain Markets,"
Interactions of Amsterdam and Antwerp with the Baltic Region, 1400-1800 (Leiden: 1983), pp. 1-10.
Jake V.T. Knoppers, Dutch Trade with Russia from the Time of Peter I to Alexander I: A Quantitative
Study of Eighteenth Century Shipping (2 vols., Montreal: 1976).
See, especially, David Eltis, Economic Growth and the Ending of the Transatlantic Slave Trade (Oxford: 1987).
70 Maritime History in Canada
The other contribution of the ACSP was in pioneering techniques in the
computer-assisted quantitative analysis of large masses of historical material.
Indeed, some of its data sets remain among the largest yet created by historians.
Here the spin-offs have been slightly more encouraging; the software and
techniques developed by the project have been used in Canada by the Marine
Museum of the Great Lakes and abroad by the National Maritime Museum in
-i-i
the United Kingdom and the Bergen Maritime Museum in Norway. Lewis
Fischer has also used ACSP material as part of the data base for an international
study of maritime wages in the nineteenth century.
Fishing has also attracted a good deal of recent Canadian interest. Although
no one has yet expanded on the seminal work of the late Keith Matthews on
the seventeenth and eighteenth-century migratory fishery from the west of
-2-1
England, there has been a flurry of work on the French period on the East
Coast, in particular by Jean-Francois Briere, Olaf Janzen, and Laurier Turgeon.
The best introduction to the project's methodology is Lewis R. Fischer and Eric W. Sager, "An
Approach to the Quantitative Analysis of British Shipping Records," Business History, XXII, No. 2 (July
1980), pp. 135-51.
2 For some examples of the study of international wages, see Lewis R. Fischer, "International Maritime
Labour, 1863-1900: World Wages and Trends," The Great Circle, X, no. 1 (Spring 1988), pp. 1-21 ; "Seamen
in a Space Economy: International Regional Patterns of Maritime Wages on Sailing Vessels, 1863-1900,"
in Stephen Fisher, ed., Lisbon as a Port Town, the British Seaman and Other Maritime Themes (Exeter: 1988),
pp. 57-92; "Seamen in the Industrial Revolution: Maritime Wages in Antwerp during the Shipping
Transition, 1863-1900," Collectanea Maritima, V (1991), pp. 331-42; "Around the Rim: Seamen's Wages
in North Sea Ports, 1863—1900," in Lewis R. Fischer et ah, eds., The North Sea: Twelve Essays on the Social
History of Maritime Labour (Stavanger: 1992), pp. 59—78. In collaboration with Helge W. Nordvik, Fischer
has also completed a number of wage studies of the Norwegian maritime sector; see, for example, Fischer
and Nordvik, "From Namsos to Halden: Myths and Realities in the History of Norwegian Seamen's Wages,
1850-1914," Scandinavian Economic History Review, XXXV, no. 1 (1987), pp. 41-65; "Wages in the
Norwegian Maritime Sector, 1850-1914: A Re-Interpretation," in Lewis R. Fischer, Helge W. Nordvik
and Walter E. Minchinton, eds., Shipping and Trade in the Northern Seas, 1600-1939 (Bergen: 1988), pp.
14-35; "Regional Wages in the Age of Sail: The Price of Sailing Ship Labour in Towns along the Oslofjord,
1899-1914," Norsk Sjofartsmuseum Arsberetning 1987 (Oslo: 1988), pp. 159-86; "Salaries of the Sea: Maritime
Wages in Stavanger, 1892-1914," Stavanger Historisk Arbok 1987 (Stavanger: 1988), pp. 103-32;
"Norwegian Matroser. Seafarers and National Labour Markets in Norway, 1850-1914,"
Scandinavian-Canadian Studies, IV (1989), pp. 58-81; "The Regional Economy of Late Nineteenth Century
Norway: Maritime Wages as a Measure of Spatial Inequality, 1850-1914," in Illka Nummela, ed., Sita
Kuusta Kuulenincn (Jyvaskyla: 1990), pp. 89-112.
33 Keith Matthews, "A History of the West of England-Newfoundland Fisher" (unpublished D.Phil,
thesis, Oxford University, 1968).
Among Briere 's most important contributions are La Peche francaise en Amerique du Nord au XVIII siecle
(Montreal: 1990); "The Safety of Navigation in the 18th Century French Cod Fisheries," Acadiensis, XVI,
no. 2 (Spring 1987), pp. 85-94; "Le commerce triangulaire entre les ports terre-neuviers francais, les
pecheries d' Amerique du nord et Marseilles au XVIIIe siecle," Revue d'Histoire de V Amerique Francaise, XL,
no. 2 (September 1986), pp. 193—214; and "Peche et politique a Terre-Neuve au XVIIIe siecle: la France
veritable gagnante du traite d'Utrecht?" Canadian Historical Review, LXIV, no. 2 (June 1983), pp. 168—87.
Olafjanzen's meticulous work can be sampled in "'Une Grande Liaison': French Fishermen from lie Royale
on the Coast of Southwestern Newfoundland, 1714—1766 — A Preliminary Survey," Neivfoundland Studies,
III, no. 2 (Fall 1987), pp. 183-200; "The American Threat to the Newfoundland Fisheries, 1776-1777,"
American Neptune, XLVIII, no. 3 (Summer 1988), pp. 154—64; "'Une Petite Republique' in Southwestern
Fischer and Panting 71
For the nineteenth century there are recent books by Shannon Ryan and
Rosemary Ommer, the former focusing on the marketing of Newfoundland
cod overseas and the latter on the rise and decline of Jersey-dominated fishing
in the Baie des Chaleurs. Sandy Balcom's study of the Lunenburg fishery,
which originated as graduate thesis at Memorial, also has much to recommend
it. The sociologist Peter Sinclair has produced a string of books and articles
on the nineteenth and twentieth-century Newfoundland fishery and its com-
munities. A recent superb collection of essays puts the credit system which
bound labour to the fisheries in international perspective. For the more recent
Newfoundland fishery, the magnum opus is David G. Alexander's The Decay of
Trade.
While the Great Lakes fisheries have received much less attention from
historians, the West Coast has been better served. Of particular importance is
the collaborative volume written by Patricia Marchak, Neil Guppy, and John
McMullan, which not only examines the history of the industry but also advances
important theoretical considerations. Several works by Dianne Newell have
added to our understanding of the Pacific salmon fishery. The most important
Canadian contributions to foreign fishing history have unquestionably been
Laurier Turgeon's work on France and Daniel Vickers' series of studies on
colonial Massachusetts.
Newfoundland: The Limits of Imperial Authority in a Remote Maritime Environment," in Lewis
R. Fischer and Walter Minchinton, eds., People of the Northern Seas (St. John's: 1992), pp. 1-33; and
"'Bretons . . . sans scruple': The Family Chenu of Saint-Malo and the Illicit Trade in English Cod during
the Middle of the 18th Century," in Proceedings of the Fifteenth Meeting of the French Colonial Historical Society
(Lanham, Md: 1992), pp. 189-200. Turgeon's best essay on the Canadian east coast fishery is "Colbert et
la peche francaise a Terre-Neuve," in Roland Mousnier, ed., Un Nouueau Colbert (Paris: 1985), pp. 255-68.
35 Shannon Ryan, Fish Out of Water: The Newfoundland Saltftsh Trade, 1814-1914 (St. John's: 1986);
Rosemary E. Ommer, From Outpost to Outport: A Structural Analysis of the Jersey- Gaspe Cod Fishery,
1767—1886 (Montreal: 1992). Nicolas Landry, "Les peches canadiennes au XIXe siecle," The Northern
Mariner /Le Marin du nord, II, No. 4 (October 1992), pp. 23—30, is a recent review essay which puts the
writings on the nineteenth-century eastern Canadian fishery in perspective.
B.A. Balcom, History of the Lunenburg Fishing Industry (Lunenburg: 1987).
The most historically-minded of these is Peter R. Sinclair, From Traps to Draggers: Domestic Commodity
Production in Northwest Newfoundland, 1850-1982 (St. John's: 1985).
Rosemary Ommer, ed., Merchant Credit and Labour Strategies in Historical Perspective (Fredericton:
1990).
David Alexander, The Decay of Trade: An Economic History of the Newfoundland Saltftsh Trade,
1935—1965 (St. John's: 1977. Many of Alexander's seminal essays on the fishery and other matters were
collected posthumously in Eric W. Sager, Lewis R. Fischer and Stuart O. Pierson, comps., Atlantic
Canada and Confederation: Essays in Canadian Political Economy (Toronto: 1983).
An exception is A.B. McCullough, The Commercial Fishery of the Great Lakes (Ottawa: 1989).
Patricia Marchak, Neil Guppy, and John McMullan, Uncommon Property: The Fishing and
Fish- Processing Industries in British Columbia (Toronto: 1987).
See, for example, Dianne Newell, ed., The Development of the Pacific Salmon- Canning Industry: A
Grown Man's Game (Montreal: 1989).
Turgeon's most important work is "Le temps des peches lointaines, Permanences et transformations
72 Maritime History in Canada
In recent years there has also been a flurry of publications dealing with whaling
and sealing. On the east coast, Chesley Sanger and Anthony Dickinson have
virtually re-written the history of shore-based whaling in Newfoundland. In
addition, they have made important contributions to our understanding of this
activity on the Pacific coast and Sanger has also written on international
whaling. The West Coast has also been blessed with a superb history of whaling
by the American scholar, Robert Lloyd Webb. ' While less scholarly — but
ironically more popular — a work that has appeared in recent years on the Arctic,
a book by Dorothy Harley Eber, has deepened our understanding of the human
dimension of this important industry. The most impressive body of work on
a non-Canadian topic has been Danny Vickers' magnificent work on Nantucket
whalemen.
On sealing, the place to begin is with Tony Busch's The War against the Seals,
a comprehensive account of the development of this important, if currently
unpopular, occupation. Jim Candow's study of the development of the
Newfoundland seal fishery is the standard source on the topic, but should
(vers 1500-1850)," in Michel Mollat, ed., Histoire des Piches Maritimes en France (Toulouse: 1987).
For a flavour of Daniel Vickers' achievements, see "Merchant Credit and Labour Strategies in the Cod
Fishery of Colonial Massachusetts," in Ommer, ed., Merchant Credit and Labour Strategies in Historical
Perspective, pp. 36—48; and '"A Knowen and Staple Commoditie': Codfish Prices in Essex County,
Massachusetts, 1640-1775," Essex Institute Historical Collections, CXXIV (1988), pp. 186-203.
Their key essays include "The Origins of Modern Shore Based Whaling in Newfoundland and
Labrador: The Cabot Steam Whaling Co. Ltd., 1896—98," International Journal of Maritime History, I, no.
1 (June 1989), pp. 129-57; "Modern Shore-Based Whaling in Newfoundland and Labrador: Expansion
and Consolidation, 1898-1902," International Journal of Maritime History, II, no. 1 (June 1990), pp.
83-1 16; and "Expansion of Regulated Modern Shore-Station Whaling in Newfoundland and Labrador,
1902-03," The Northern Mariner/Le Mann du nord, I, no. 2 (April 1991), pp. 1-22; "Modern
Shore-Station Whaling in Newfoundland and Labrador: The Peak Season, 1904," International Journal
of Maritime History, V, no. 1 (June 1993), pp. 127-54.
C.W. Sanger and A.B. Dickinson, "They Were Clannish as Hell": Origins of Modem Shore-Station
Whaling in British Columbia — The Newfoundland Factor (Halifax: 1991); and "Newfoundland Involvement
in Twentieth -Century Shore-Station Whaling in British Columbia," Newfoundland Studies, VII, No. 2
(Fall 1991), pp. 97-123; Sanger, "'On Good Fishing Ground but Too Early for Whales I Think': The
Impact of Greenland Right Whale Migration Patterns on Hunting Strategies in the Northern Whale
Fishery, 1600-1900," American Neptune, LI, No. 4 (Fall 1991), pp. 221-40; Sanger, "'Saw Several Finners
But No Whales:' The Greenland Right Whale (Bowhead) — An Assessment of the Biological Basis of
the Northern Whale Fishery during the Seventeenth, Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries,"
International Journal of Maritime History, III, No. 1 (June 1991), pp. 127-54.
46 Robert Lloyd Webb, On the Northwest: Commercial Whaling in the Pacific Northwest, 1790-1967
(Vancouver: 1988).
47 Dorothy Harley Eber, When the Whalers Were up North: Innuit Memories from the Eastern Arctic
(Montreal: 1989).
48 See Vickers, "Nantucket Whalemen in the Deep-Sea Fishery: The Changing Anatomy of an Early
American Labor Force," Journal of American History, LXXII (1985), pp. 277-96; and "The First
Whalemen of Nantucket," William and Mary Quarterly, Third series, XL (1983), pp. 560-83.
49 Briton C. Busch, The War against the Seals: A History of the North American Seal Fishery (Montreal:
1985).
Fischer and Panting 73
be supplemented by several works by Shannon Ryan and Chesley Sanger.
Anthony Dickinson has published several works on sealing outside of
Canada.
Another area which has received attention is maritime social history. Bor-
rowing insights from the social sciences, some talented scholars are beginning to
use them to illuminate previously dark corners of the maritime experience. Any
discussion of the writing of maritime social history by Canadians must begin
with books by Eric Sager and Judith Fingard. Sager's Seafaring Labour, which
appeared in 1989, is a pathbreaking analysis of life at sea which does for the
nineteenth century what the American historian Marcus Rediker did for the
eighteenth and the British historian Nicholas Rodger did for the Royal Navy.
Judith Fingard'sjdc/e in Port is a penetrating study of the "sailortowns" in Halifax,
Saint John and Quebec. Both have been widely cited and emulated overseas.
We suspect that the same will be true for Sager's new book, Ships and Memories.
Sager and Fingard have not, however, made the only significant contributions.
Gilles Proulx, for example, has written an under-rated volume on conditions at
sea in the trade between France and New France. And of special note is a
recent collection of essays which brings many of the best Canadian and American
scholars into the field. Canadian social historians also have had a special interest
50 J.E. Candow, "Of Men and Seals": A History of the Newfoundland Seal Hunt (Ottawa: 1989); Shannon
Ryan, Seals and Sealers: A Pictorial History of the Newfoundland Seal Fishery (St. John's: 1987); Ryan, "The
Industrial Revolution and the Newfoundland Seal Fishery," International Journal of Maritime History, IV,
no. 2 (December 1992), pp. 1-44; Ryan, "Newfoundland Sealing Disasters to 1914," The Northern
Mariner/he Marin du nord, III, no. 3 (July 1993), pp. 15—43. Ryan is currently writing a history of the
seal fishery which should supersede previous works. See also Chesley W. Sanger, "The 19th Century
Newfoundland Seal Fishery and the Influence of Scottish Whalemen," Polar Record, XX (1980), pp.
231-52; Sanger, "Dundee Steam-Powered Whalers and the Newfoundland Harp Seal Fishery,"
Newfoundland Studies, IV, no. 1 (Spring 1988), pp. 1-26; Sanger, "Changing Resources and Hunting
Grounds of Scottish Whaling-Sealing Vessels in the Second Half of the Nineteenth Century," Scottish
Geographical Magazine, CVII, no. 3 (1991), pp. 187-97.
See especially Anthony Dickinson, "Some Aspects of the Origin and Implementation of the
Eighteenth-Century Falkland Islands Sealing Industry," International Journal of Maritime History, II, no.
2 (December 1990), pp. 33-68.
52 Eric W. Sager, Seafaring Labour: The Merchant Marine of Atlantic Canada, 1820-19 14 (Montreal: 1 989) ;
Marcus Rediker, Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea: Merchant Seamen, Pirates, and the Anglo-American
Maritime World, 1700-1750 (Cambridge: 1987); N.A.M. Rodger, The Wooden World: An Anatomy of
the Georgian Navy (London: 1986). The importance of the Sager and Rediker books can be seen most
clearly by consulting the "Roundtable" feature in the International Journal of Maritime History. This format
features six to eight analyses of the book under consideration, with a response by the author. The
roundtable on Sager's book appeared in International Journal of Maritime History, II, no. 1 (June 1990),
pp. 227-74, while the roundtable on Rediker was in I, no. 2 (December 1989), pp. 311-57.
Judith Fingard, Jack in Port: Sailortowtis of Eastern Canada (Toronto: 1982). For a perspective that
dissents from some of her main conclusions, see Richard Rice, "Sailortown: Theory and Method in
Ordinary People's History," Acadiensis, XIII, No. 1 (Autumn 1983), pp. 154-68.
Eric W. Sager, Ships and Memories: Merchant Seafarers in Canada's Age of Steam (Vancouver: 1993).
Gilles Proulx, Between France and New France: Life aboard the Tall Sailing Ships (Toronto: 1984).
Colin Howell and Richard Twomey, eds., Jack Tar in History (Fredericton: 1991).
74 Maritime History in Canada
in labour relations, and a spate of books have appeared in the past few years on
en
the histories of Canadian maritime unions. Internationally, the work by TJ.A.
LeGoff on eighteenth-century French mariners and Lewis Fischer on Nor-
wegian seamen is part of this same trend.
The history of maritime exploration has also enjoyed a rebirth in recent
years, particularly on the West Coast. Although the Columbia quincentenary
did little to inspire a renewed interest in exploration history on the East
Coast, the two hundredth anniversary of George Vancouver's voyage and
a series of anniversaries of Spanish exploration had a more important impact
in the West.
Finally, we would like to draw attention to an approach in which
Canadians have taken a particularly important international role. This is the
attempt to treat maritime history in its broad international context. Although
maritime history has almost always been studied in particular local, regional,
or national contexts, it has an equally important international dimension. One
Canadian scholar who has chosen this approach is the economic historian C.
Knick Harley, who has contributed important analyses on such subjects as
trends in maritime productivity and international freight rates. The imperial
historian, Ian K. Steele, who has written a superb book on seventeenth and
5 Among the most influential have been John Stanton, Life and Death of a Union: The Canadian Seamen 's
Union (Toronto: 1978); Jim Green, Against the Tide: The Story of the Canadian Seamen's Union (Toronto:
1986); William Kaplan, Everything that Floats: Pat Sullivan, Hal Banks and the Seamen's Unions of Canada
(Toronto: 1987); Sue Calhoun, A Word to Say: The Story of the Maritime Fishermen's Union (Halifax:
1991).
See, for example, T J .A. LeGofF, "Le rerecrutement geographique et social des gens de mer bretons
a la fin de TAncien Regime," in La Bretagne, une province h I'auhe de la Revolution (Brest: 1989); LeGofF,
"Les gens de mer devant le systeme des classes, 1755—1763: resistance ou passivite?" Revue du Nord, I
(1986), pp. 463-78; LeGofF, "L'impact des prices efFectuees par les Anglais sur la capacite en hommes
de la marine francaise pendant le guerres de 1744—1748, 1755-1763, 1778-1783," in Martine Acerra
et al., eds., Les marines de guerre europeennes XVII-XVIIIe siecles (Paris: 1985), pp. 103—22; Fischer, "Fish
and Ships: The Social Structure of the Maritime Labour Force in Haugesund in the 1870s,"
Sjofartshistorisk Arhok, 1986 (Bergen: 1987), pp. 139-70; Fischer, "The Sea as Highway: Maritime Service
as a Means oFlnternational Migration, 1863—1913," in Klaus Friedland, ed., Maritime Aspects of Migration
(Koln: 1990), pp. 293-307.
An exception is J.C.M. Oglesby, "In Search of Christopher Columbus," The Northern Mariner /Le
Marin du nord, II, no. 4 (October 1992), pp. 37-41.
See, for example, Christon I. Archer, "The Voyage of Captain George Vancouver: A Review
Article," BC Studies, No. 73 (Spring 1987), pp. 43-61; Archer, "The Voyages of the Columbia to the
Northwest Coast, 1787-1790 and 1790-1793," BC Studies, no. 93 (Spring 1992), pp. 70-81; John
Kendrick, The Voyage ofSutil and Mexicana, 1192: The Last Spanish Exploration of the Northwest Coast of
America (Spokane: 1991); Kendrick, The Men with Wooden Feet: The Spanish Exploration of the Northwest
Coast (Toronto: 1985); Barry Gough, The Northwest Coast: British Navigation, Trade and Discoveries to
1812 (Vancouver: 1992).
61 C.K. Harley, "Ocean Freight Rates and Productivity, 1740-1913: The Primacy of Mechanical
Invention Reaffirmed, "Journal of Economic History, XXVIII, no. 4 (December 1988), pp. 851-75; Harley,
"Coal Exports and British Shipping, 1850-1913," Explorations in Economic History, XXVI, no. 3 (July
1989), pp. 311-38.
Fischer and Panting 75
eighteenth-century trans-Atlantic communication 'would also fall into this
category. So, too, would much of Lewis Fischer's work on nineteenth-century
international shipping.
Despite all the scholarly activity in recent years, there are some rather large
gaps in our knowledge of Canadian maritime history. One which can be
inferred from this brief survey is the maritime history of the West Coast,
which has by and large been the preserve of popular historians rather than
scholars. Another is the business history of shipping. Aside from some of the
work cited previously by Gerry Panting, there are virtually no scholarly
studies of Canadian maritime businesses. But some Canadians have adopted
a business history perspective to delve into non-Canadian topics. The best
and most prolific of these scholars is William D. Wray, whose work has
become the standard interpretation on late nineteenth and twentieth-century
Japanese shipping, especially the NYK. Also important is the contribution
of Jack Bosher, who has written an important book on the structure of the
La Rochelle business community that traded with Canada in the first half of
the eighteenth century. Lewis Fischer has recently begun a project to
examine the business history of modern shipbroking. And J.D. Alsop has
Ian K. Steele, The English Atlantic 1675—1740: An Exploration of Communications and Community
(New York: 1986).
See especially Lewis R. Fischer and Helge W. Nordvik, "Maritime Transport and the Integration
of the North Atlantic Economy, 1850-1914," in Wolfram Fischer, R. Marvin Mclnnis, and Jiirgen
Schneider, eds., The Emergence of a World Economy, 1500-1914 (Wiesbaden: 1986), pp. 519-44; Fischer,
"A Flotilla of Wood and Coal: Shipping in the Trades between Britain and the Baltic, 1863—1913." In
Yrjo Kaukiainen, ed., The Baltic as a Trade Route: Competition between Steam and Sail (Kotka, Finland:
1992), pp. 36—63. Many of his works cited previously also fit this description.
Wray's most important work is Mitsubishi and the N. Y. K. , 1870- 1914: Business Strategy in the Japanese
Shipping Industry (Cambridge, Mass.: 1984), which is the first of a projected three-volume set. See also
his "The NYK and World War I: Patterns of Discrimination in Freight Rates and Cargo Space
Allocation," International Journal of Maritime History, V, no. 1 (June 1993), pp. 41-63; "Kagami Kenkichi
and the N.Y.K., 1929-1935: Vertical Control, Horizontal Strategy, and Company Autonomy," in
Wray, ed., Managing Industrial Enterprise: Cases from Japan's Prewar Experience (Cambridge, Mass.: 1989),
pp. 183-227; "NYK and the Commercial Diplomacy of the Far Eastern freight Conference,
1896—1956," in Tsunehiko Yui and Keiichiro Nakagawa, eds., Business History of Shipping: Strategy and
Structure (Tokyo: 1985), pp. 279-311; and "'The Mitsui Fight,' 1953-1956: Japan and the Far Eastern
Freight Conference," in Lewis R. Fischer and Helge W. Nordvik, eds., Shipping and Trade, 1 750-1950:
Essays in International Maritime Economic History (Pontefract: 1990), pp. 213—34.
65 J.F. Bosher, The Canada Merchants 1713-1763 (Oxford: 1987). See also Bosher, "The Imperial
Environment of French Trade with Canada, 1660-1685," English Historical Review, CVIII, No. 1
(January 1993), pp. 50-81.
Lewis R. Fischer and Anders M. Fon, "The Making of a Maritime Firm: The Rise of Fearnley and
Eger, 1869-1917," in Lewis R. Fischer, ed., From Wheel House to Counting House: Essays in Maritime
Business History in Honour of Professor Peter Neville Davies (St. John's: 1992), pp. 303-22; Fischer and
Helge W. Nordvik, "The Growth of Norwegian Shipbroking: The Practices of Fearnley and Eger as
a Case Study, 1869-1914," in Fischer, ed., People of the Northern Seas, pp. 135-55. Fischer and Nordvik,
"From Broager to Bergen: The Risks and Rewards of Peter Jebsen, Shipowner, 1864-1892,"
Sjefartshistorisk Arbok, 1985 (Bergen: 1986), pp. 37-68, also adopts a business history approach.
76 Maritime History in Canada
shed a good deal of light on the business practices of traders during the slave
trade period. A third topic which remains relatively untouched is technological
history. Most of what has appeared have been narrow studies of single vessels or
types of ships. Nonetheless, there has been some important recent work on the
history of canal technology on the Great Lakes. Also worth consulting is Bill
Wray's essay on the transition from sail to steam in Japan and Knick Harley's
paper on the same topic in Britain.
Despite these lacunae, in general the state of Canadian maritime scholarship is
healthy. Indeed, the exponential increase in published works in the past two decades
has gone far to alleviate gaps in our knowledge. If the trend continues — and there
is no reason to believe that it will be reversed — it may be that even some of the
neglected topics identified here will find their scholars in the near future.
Conclusion
This essay has rendered some positive judgements on the state of Canadian maritime
history. A mere two decades ago it would have been difficult to make such optimistic
assessments. But the state of Canadian maritime history is much healthier today than
any realistic observer would have predicted. The principal reason for this improvement
is not funding, because Canadian universities have hardly been immune from the
cutbacks and retrenchment that have haunted post-secondary institutions around the
world in the past few years. Instead, the impetus behind the advance of the discipline
has come from people. The increased awareness of the importance of maritime heritage
by the general public has been part of this. But most of the credit must go to the
maritime historians who, through hard work, have built respectable programs and
organizations as well as a world-class body of scholarly literature. They are to be found
in colleges and universities from coast to coast.
In the late 1970s, an eminent British maritime historian could identify the
essence of what we believe has underpinned this resurgence of scholarly interest
in maritime history in Canada. Robin Craig, then of University College,
London, reminded participants at the Third Conference of the Atlantic Canada
Shipping Project that the most recent ACSP volume was entitled The Enterprising
Canadians. Noting the impressive work that was being done not only in St.
John's but also elsewhere in Canada, he exclaimed "I will say Amen to that." It
See, for example, J.D. Alsop, "The Career of William Towerson, Guinea Trader," International
Journal of Maritime History, IV, no. 2 (December 1992), pp. 45-82.
68 Brian S. Osborne and Donald Swainson, The Sault Ste. Marie Canal: A Chapter in the History of Great
Lakes Transport (Ottawa: 1986); Robert W. Passfield, Technology in Transition: The "Soo" Ship Canal,
1889-1985 (Ottawa: 1989).
William D. Wray, "Shipping: From Sail to Steam," in Marius Jansen and Gilbert Rozman, eds.,
Japan in Transition: From Tokugawa to Meiji (Princeton: 1986), pp. 248—70; C.K. Harley, "The Shift from
Sailing Ships to Steamships, 1850-1890: A Study in Technological Change and Its Diffusion," in C.N.
McCloskey, ed., Studies on a Mature Economy: Britain after 1840 (London: 1971), pp. 215-34.
Fischer and Panting 77
is indeed by their enterprise that Canadian maritime historians have earned the
positive evaluation in this paper.
The Historiography of the Canadian Navy
The State of the Art
Marc Milner
Of all the nations under discussion in this volume, Canada scarcely ranks
as a naval power in the historical sense. The Canadian Navy dates only
from 1910, and although it had flexed its nascent "sea power" muscle during
convoy duty in the First World War, only in the Second World War and the
Cold War did it show strength of any international importance. As a nation
Canada has fought no wars on its own, nor have its armed forces been the object
of particular enemy attention. Indeed, one might say that Canada has no
independent national naval history at all. Moreover, as a distinct field of
scholarship, Canadian naval history is a very recent phenomenon. It is also, at
present, a sub-field of Canadian military history, and as such is poorly integrated
into the wider maritime history of the country. Not surprisingly, the brevity and
peculiar nature of Canada's naval history have profoundly shaped its historiog-
raphy and the extent to which Canadian naval history is taught.
For these reasons, any discussion of the state of Canadian naval history must
be prefaced by a short discourse on the nature of that history. Perhaps more than
other nations, Canada's naval history is but a thin thread in a much larger tapestry.
This situation is somewhat paradoxical, since by the end of the nineteenth
century Canada had become a very considerable maritime state, as Professors
Panting and Fisher demonstrate. But Canada — like its antecedents, the British
North American colonies — rested secure in the bosom of British sea power.
With the mother country as the predominant naval power in the world, it would
have been absurd for the new self-governing Dominion of Canada to even try
to develop its own navy in the nineteenth century. Quite apart from the fact
that Britain retained responsibility for Canadian foreign affairs, the metropolitan
power, whether French or British, had always been responsible for the maritime
security of its North American colonies. It was the colonists' task to defend the
land frontier, and so it remained after 1867 when the new Dominion's military
efforts were devoted to the raising of militias. Paradoxically then, Canada was a
I am especially grateful to J. A. Boutilier, W.A.B. Douglas, M. Hadley, R. Sarty, and D. Zimmerman for
their comments on the draft of this paper. The final conclusions, errors or omissions remain entirely my own.
80 The Historiography of the Canadian Navy
"British" nation, dependant upon the sea for her well-being. Though many of her
people followed the sea, her military heritage was decidedly continental in flavour.
The founding of the Royal Canadian Navy in 1910 did little to alter that
situation. The debate over the establishment of a naval service reflected the
increasing ambiguity over Canada's constitutional position: should Canada
simply give money to Britain to support her naval armaments race with
Germany, or establish a Canadian branch of the Imperial Navy. A Canadian
Navy might keep problems at arm's length, it was argued, but conversely, it also
might draw Canada into confrontations which might otherwise be avoided.
Something also had to be done about policing Canada's fishing grounds. It is a
moot point whether it was German hostility in war or the American threat to
the fisheries that was more responsible for the establishment of the RCN. Sir
Wilfrid Laurier's Liberal government prevailed and the RCN was born on 10
March 1910. The issue of a tiny local navy — too small to fight and big enough
to get into trouble — was so contentious that the 1911 federal election was fought
partly around it. The Conservatives, who favoured direct financial aid to Britain,
won the election. But Robert Borden's government could not bring itself either
to nurture the new navy or abolish it entirely.
The RCN's tenuous existence in the defence firmament lasted for the next
thirty years. The First World War did nothing to salvage it from obscurity. The
fleet in 1914 consisted of two aged cruisers acquired for training purposes. One
of these, Rainbow, was at sea off Vancouver Island when war was declared. Slow,
tired, under-gunned and equipped only with sand-filled training rounds, Rain-
bow was ordered to search for von Spee's powerful East Asiatic squadron of
modern cruisers off the U.S. coast. Admonished by Ottawa to "Remember
Nelson and the British Navy," she got by all accounts to within fifty miles of at
least one German ship (Leipzig), but the enemy "escaped." What Edwardian
writers would have made o£ Rainbow's valiant and utterly futile end at the hands
of such powerful ships we can only guess. But no gallant tradition of death and
For a discussion of this issue see, Roger Sarty, "Canadian Maritime Defence, 1892—1914," Canadian
Historical Review, vol. LXXI, December 1990, pp. 48-73.
The debate over German naval armaments and the need to assist the Mother Country is the traditional
context for the Canadian naval debate of 1909-1910, for example in Gilbert Tucker's The Naval Service
of Canada, volume I (Ottawa: King's Printer 1952). The problem of fisheries protection — although not
to the exclusion of the German problem — has been the focus of much recent debate, as in Richard
Gimblett's '"Tin Pots' or Dreadnoughts?: The Evolution of the Naval Policy of the Laurier
Administration, 1896—1910," unpublished MA thesis, Trent University, 1981. And then there is the
"Sarty Thesis": the little known, but sophisticated and sound, view that the development of a small
Canadian navy in the early 20th century was crucial to the perfection of Canada's existing system of
coast defence based on long range gunnery — what might be called, "the Navy as an outgrowth of coast
artillery theory" of the origins of the RCN. See Roger Sarty, "'There will be trouble in the North
Pacific': The Defence of British Columbia in the early Twentieth Century." B.C. Studies, 61, Spring,
1984, pp. 3-29.
4 Tucker, I, pp. 261-79.
Milner 81
glory befell the fledgling service. Instead, Canada poured troops onto the western
front, where the Canadian Corps earned an enviable reputation for its fighting
effectiveness. The First World War also produced a number of internationally
famous Canadian airmen, with the likes ofBishop, Collishaw, and Barker household
names within Canada and throughout the Empire by 1918. Nothing in the RCN's
wartime experience compared; most of it was a dreary war of patrols. Even the U-boat
operations of 1918 off the east coast failed to feed the public imagination with images
of Canadian naval heroes. Quite the contrary, newspapers unfairly maligned the RCN
for its supposed bungling and post-war critics accused the Navy of incompetence,
"culpable negligence" and worse.
The Navy nearly disappeared in the inter-war years despite some attempts to
put the RCN on a firmer footing after the war. At the height of the Depression,
the General Staff, dominated by the Army and the Air Force, voted to reduce
the RCN to care and maintenance status; ships laid-up, recruiting and training
halted, and bases all but closed. Though it was ultimately saved, the RCN never
forgot its brush with extinction and came to see that its principal enemies were
perhaps those closest to home.
As another major war loomed on the horizon in the late 1930s, another Liberal
government, this time under W.L.M. King, saw the RCN as a marvelous vehicle
for contributing to imperial security without sending thousands of troops
overseas again. Although King could not forestall public clamouring for another
big Canadian army on the western front once the war got underway, he did
develop a very large navy (and a large air force as well) . The Navy, in particular,
suited King's desire to involve Canadian industry in war production, because
many of the basic ships needed for the escort fleet could be built in Canada. By
1943 fully half of the Allied escorts in the main theatre of the Atlantic war were
RCN, and by the end of the Second World War Canada — for a brief moment —
had the third largest navy in the world.
The wartime fleet was overwhelmingly small-ship and reservist in flavour.
The ships themselves were almost all war-built for basic escort roles and had
little long-term value to the post-war Navy. Their crews too were "hostilities
only." Only 5,000 of the Navy's wartime personnel strength of nearly 100,000
belonged to the professional naval service. Not surprisingly, the tiny fraternity
of professional RCN officers used the war to secure the basic elements of a
balanced post-war Navy and kept most of its own personnel in "proper"
warships: fleet class destroyers, cruisers, and the like. This dichotomy of wartime
experience between the reservists in small ships battling U-boats and the RCN
waging a struggle for long-term viability coloured not only the conduct of the
war itself, but also much of the writing that followed.
See M. Hardley and R. Sarty, Tin-Pots and Pirate Ships (Kingston/Montreal: McGill-Queen's Press,
1991), p. 301.
See for example W.A.B. Douglas' seminal piece, "Conflict and Innovation in the Royal Canadian
82 The Historiography of the Canadian Navy
The expansion of the RCN during the Second World War was a remarkable
accomplishment — truly staggering by Canadian standards and a significant event
in naval history in general. For the RCN, however, it was a precarious victory,
and the Navy's fortunes were salvaged only by the advent of the Cold War.
Under King's successor, Louis St. Laurent, post-war Liberal governments built
a large and capable navy in the 1950s. To a considerable extent this early Cold
War fleet was simply an outgrowth of the wartime experience. Moreover, the
wave of new construction and modernization of reserve vessels that followed
the Korean War was part of a general military expansion. While the Navy was
large and modern by the early 1960s, in terms of budgets and personnel the RCN
remained clearly in third place within the Canadian defence establishment. Little
new was added after the early Cold War building boom, and by the 1980s the
Navy faced block obsolescence. The last deep freeze in the Cold War produced
orders for a new fleet in the mid-1980s, which is just now being completed.
None of the new ships saw service in the Gulf War, where the Navy fought
largely without incident and without loss. It is too early to tell just how the Navy
will fare in the new world order.
Several key points affecting the development of Canadian naval historical
writing emerge from this very brief survey. The first — and most obvious — is
that the history itself is only some eighty years old. It is difficult, although by no
means entirely impossible, to push the antecedents of the RCN much further
back than 1900. Secondly, much of that history is uneventful. Apart from the
Second World War and the early years of the Cold War, the RCN has lived a
low-key, often marginal existence. The third point is that since the Navy's
founding in 1910, Canada has acted within the confines of much larger
international organizations, initially the British Empire and latterly NATO and
the UN. This has left little scope for distinctly Canadian naval operations and
none whatever for distinctly Canadian wars. Where other nations might well
have resorted to gunboat diplomacy abroad to secure their national interests,
Canada has been able to rely on collective action. After all, who was Canada
likely to fight — on her own — in the twentieth century? Canadian naval his-
tory— as presently structured — is, therefore, drawn from a very narrow base in
space and time. Ironically, the only uniquely Canadian naval missions in defence
of Canadian sovereignty have been typically directed at our friends in peacetime.
The final point is that for the first sixty years of its existence the RCN defined
itself within a largely British context. Until 1939 the RCN was simply a flotilla
of the Imperial Navy; training, uniforms, equipment, ships, tactics, doctrine were
all British, and Canadian officers appeared on a combined Empire and Com-
monwealth seniority list. This was much less so after 1945. But the notion of
Navy 1919—1945," in G. Jordan, ed., Naval Warfare in the Twentieth Century: Essays in Honour of
Arthur Marder (New York: Crane Russack, 1977), pp. 210—32, for a discussion of the tension between
fighting the war against the Germans and the battle for long-term viability at home.
Milner 83
the RCN as a direct descendant of Nelson's Band of Brothers survived in the
RCN until the full effects of armed forces unification were felt in the early 1970s,
and even now Nelson's ghost surfaces on occasion.
It is important to understand, therefore, the very restricted nature of the Canadian
naval experience, its very "British" character, and the importance of Canada's powerful
militia tradition when assessing the development of Canadian Navy historiography.
While many recent works on the origins and early days of the RCN take their
accounts back into the latter stages of the nineteenth century, the colonial period
and great age of sail have not been embraced as part of Canadian naval heritage. In
part this is because the Canadian military establishment has been loath to adopt any
of the military or naval traditions of the French era. The work of Guy Freqault on
the first distinctly Canadian naval hero, Pierre le Moyne d'Iberville, and Jacques
Mathieu's work on French naval building in Quebec in the eighteenth century
remain solidly part of Canadian colonial history. D'Iberville, a native son of New
France, sailed his lone ship Pelican into Hudson's Bay in 1697 and in a brilliant action
with three English ships sank two and secured command of the area, a feat
o
unremembered in the myths and culture of the Canadian navy. In fairness, though,
the British colonial period also stands outside of mainstream Canadian naval history,
despite the efforts of W.A.B. Douglas, Faye Kert, Richard Wright, and others. Even
the substantial body of work done by Barry M. Gough on naval activity in British
North American waters during the nineteenth century, such as his The Royal Navy
and the Northwest Coast of North America, 1810-1914 (1971), fall into imperial,
colonial or maritime history, not naval.
The failure of the often desperate and typically disparate naval efforts of the
colonists of New France and British North America to find resonance within
Canadian naval history remains enigmatic. Among academics this disconnection
is almost certainly due to the fact that the study of history itself is subdivided
into fields which often do not talk to one another — like military and colonial
history. But the Navy, too, cleaving first to its Royal Navy lineage and involved
in a constant battle to maintain its blue-water capability, finds little of value in
these puny antecedents. The result is that Canadian naval history as presently
Guy Fregault, Pierre le Moyne d'Iberville (Montreal/Paris: 1968), and Jacques Mathieu, La Construction
Navale Royale a Quebec, 1739-1759 (Quebec: 1971).
A replica of Pelican was launched in Montreal in 1993.
W.A.B. Douglas, "The Anatomy of Naval Incompetence: The Provincial Marine of Upper Canada
before 1813," Ontario History, LXXXI, 1979, pp. 3-26, and "Nova Scotia and the Royal Navy,
1715-1766," unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, Queen's, 1973; Faye Kert, "The Fortunes of War:
Privateering in Atlantic Canada in the War of 1812," Unpublished MA Thesis, Carleton University,
1986, Richard J. Wright, "Green Flags and Red-Coated Gunboats: Naval Activities on the Great Lakes
during the Fenian Scares, 1866-1870," Inland Seas, XXII, no. 2, Summer 1966, pp. 91-110.
Barry M. Gough, 77ie Royal Navy and the Northwest Coast of North America, 1810-1914 (Vancouver:
UBC, 1971) and Gunboat Frontier: British Maritime Authority and Northwest Coast Indians, 1846-90
(Vancouver: UBC, 1984).
84 The Historiography of the Canadian Navy
constituted derives none of its traditions from the age of sail — the key formative
period for many of the navies of the world.
Moreover, nothing occurred in RCN history prior to 1939 to save it from
obscurity, particularly when set against the deeply entrenched national militia
tradition and the tremendous accomplishments of the Canadian Corps in the
First World War. Prior to 1939 legitimacy for the RCN derived from its
connection with the RN. But set against the RN standard — the only measure
suitable among Canadians until a generation ago — there was not much to say of
Canada's experiment in naval power before the Second World War.
The first thirty years of RCN history were thus seen as something of a
wasteland; little but policy and unfulfilled dreams. By contrast, the scope and
scale of the RCN's Second World War accomplishment captured the imagina-
tion of the first generation of post- 1945 historians — and with good reason. The
RCN rose from utter obscurity to a global standing in a few short years. And
while the wartime fleet had not been a balanced one in the traditional sense, the
acquisition of heavy cruisers and light fleet carriers at the very end of the war
gave promise that one day it would be. Further, Canada had demonstrated her
naval potential in time of crisis, and the myriad of small ships required of modern
naval warfare gave Canada tremendous leverage. Not surprisingly, the RCN's
post-war official histories, Gilbert Tucker's The Naval Service of Canada (two
volumes, 1952) and, more especially, Joseph Schull's The Far Distant Ships (1950,
reprinted in 1990), were celebrations of Canadian accomplishment. Tucker's
first volume covered naval developments up to 1939 and seemed to say all that
was needed about that colourless period. His second volume, on naval ad-
ministration ashore between 1939 and 1945, chronicled the growth of the RCN's
institutions as they coped with the rapid expansion of the fleet. Tucker planned
a series of three operational volumes on the war, but these were axed by the
Naval Staff and a Minister of Defence, who were not interested in a detailed
1 9
accounting of the exploits of reservists in small, hastily built escorts. What the
Navy wanted, and what it commissioned Schull to write, was a popular history
which would foster support for post-war naval expansion plans. Schull's delight-
fully written The Far Distant Ships was therefore long on colour and short on
analysis or context. To what extent it helped in the building boom of the RCN
during the 1950s is an interesting — and unexplored — historical question.
What is clearer is that the combination of Tucker and Schull — both official
histories — satisfied the need for information on the wartime RCN for a genera-
G.N. Tucker, The Naval Service of Canada: Its Official History, volume I, Origins and Early Years and
volume II, Activities on Shore during the Second World War (Ottawa: King's Printer, 1952), and Joseph
Schull, The Far Distant Ships: An Official Account of Canadian Naval Operations in the Second World War
(Ottawa: King's Printer, 1950), reprinted by Stoddart of Toronto in 1990.
See C.P. Stacey, "The Life and Hard Times of an Official Historian," Canadian Historical Review,
LI, no. 1, March 1970, pp. 21-47.
Milner 85
tion. Two other monographs on RCN history appeared over that period, Thor
Thorgrimsson and E.G. Russell's Canadian Naval Operations in Korean Waters,
1950-1955 (1965), and J.D.F. Kealy and E.C. Russell's A History of Canadian
Naval Aviation (1967). These too were official histories, and it is possible to see
them both as celebrations of Canadian naval maturity and broadsides in the
on-going budgetary battles of the 1960s. Until the 1980s these official histories
constituted the total of scholarly monographs on RCN history.
The lack of scholarly monographs on the Navy — or even wider academic
interest in the RCN by non-government historians in the twenty-five years
following the war — is hard to explain. It may be that the RCN's wartime
experience failed to capture anyone's imagination. Certainly the notion of
Canada as a sea power was a new — and perhaps transitory — experience, and few
Canadian academics were interested in the subject. Gerald Graham, a Canadian
who became a distinguished historian of imperial Britain, had served briefly as
an official historian during the war, but he preferred to concentrate on the
intellectually more rewarding delights of the British Empire. So, too, did Donald
Schurman. A veteran of the RCAF, Schurman was drawn to naval history
through an interest in the intellectual roots of twentieth-century British maritime
strategy. Both of these men, Graham and, perhaps more so Schurman (whose
career has been spent at the Royal Military College of Canada and Queen's
University, both in Kingston), profoundly influenced the way in which aspiring
Canadian academic naval historians viewed their field. Both foreswore the
particular in favour of breadth and depth, emphasising the larger context of naval
history. It seems fair to say that the very recent nature of Canada's expression of
sea power and Tucker and Schull's emphasis on the uniqueness of the Canadian
experience failed to stir them. Moreover, while the Army's historical section
under C.P. Stacey nurtured a coterie of young historians who went on to
academic posts — Reg Roy, George Stanley, Jack Hyatt, Don Goodspeed to
name a few — the collapse of Tucker's project in the late 1940s left Canadian
naval history in the hands of a few devoted amateurs in the naval historical
section. In the end, however, perhaps the most compelling reason for the
Thor Thorgrimsson and E.C. Russell, Canadian Naval Operations in Korean Waters, 1950-1955
(Ottawa: Queen's Printer, 1965) and J.D.F. Kealy and E.C. Russell, A History of Canadian Naval Aviation,
1918-1962, (Ottawa: Queen's Printer, 1965)
Schurman's influence has been unquestionable; among his former pupils was the late Barry Hunt,
who taught naval history at RJV1C for twenty years and Schurman's friend and former colleague at RMC
W.A.B. Douglas, has for the last twenty years been writing the official history of the Canadian Armed
Forces. Gerald Graham's influence has been perhaps less direct, but no less profound. Much of recent
academic activity on the RCN has been at the University of New Brunswick, where one of Gerald Graham's
former students, Dominck S. Graham, ran the military history program until 1986. Milner and Zimmerman
were products of that program, which Milner now runs. The latest UNB naval historian, Michael
Hennessey, has taken the late Barry Hunt's position in the History Department at PJV1C.
J. M.S. Careless left the naval historical section to pursue a career in Canadian history at Toronto.
86 The Historiography of the Canadian Navy
dearth of published material on the RCN in the generation after 1945 is that the
files were still closed to everyone except the official historians.
It was possible, therefore, until 1970, to count the number of monographs
on RCN history on the fingers of one hand- — and all of them were government
publications. There were a few memoirs of note, a few articles, some passages
on the RCN in Don Goodspeed's The Armed Forces of Canada, 1867—1967
(1967), and some wartime public relations publications. But apart from the
official histories, the only thing that passed for serious scholarship on the RCN
were the sections in James Eayrs' first two volumes of In Defence of Canada (1964
and 1965).17
Several things conspired to alter this complacency during the 1970s. Perhaps
the most important was that sometime between 1 960 and 1 980 Canada cast off
its colonial mentality and Canadians started measuring the RCN in its own right,
as the service of an independent, sovereign state. This was facilitated by armed
forces unification, announced in 1964 and put into effect on 1 January 1968.
With that the Royal Canadian Navy ceased to exist, becoming "Maritime
Command" of the new Canadian Armed Forces and adopting the new standard
green uniform of the combined forces. Unification shook the navy to its very
core, forced a process of redefinition, and forced the retirement of many of the
last wartime veterans who either did not or could not accept Canadianization
of the Navy. The Navy, which had seen itself in 1960 as more Royal than
Canadian, was by 1980 distinctly Canadian in outlook — right down to its green
uniforms and the replacement of Trafalgar Day in favour of Battle of the Atlantic
Sunday as the feast day of the Canadian fleet. The Navy has since gone back
into distinctive naval uniforms, derived — appropriately enough given its new
"imperial" orientation — largely from those of the United States Navy. Con-
current with this altered state within the Navy and the nation was the opening
of wartime archive material which allowed non-official historians a more critical
look at the Navy's most significant experience — the Second World War.
The need to look more closely at the RCN's Second World War ex-
perience— and the inadequacies of Tucker and Schull on the subject — had been
evident for some time. The only critical assessment of the RCN's contribution
to the actual fighting to appear in the generation after 1945 came from the pen
16 See Alan Eastern's superb wartime memoir 50 North (Toronto: Ryerson, 1963), William Sclater's
excellent Haida (Toronto: Oxford UP, 1946), and W.H. Pugsley's two volumes on the lower deck,
Saints Devils and Ordinary Seaman (Toronto: Collins, 1945) and Sailor Remember (Toronto: Collins, 1948).
James Eayrs, In Defence of Canada: From the Great War to the Great Depression (Toronto: Univ. of
Toronto, 1964) and In Defence of Canada: Appeasement and Rearmament (Toronto: Univ. of Toronto,
1965).
Much of the old RN tradition still survives, however, as evidenced by the practices outlined in
Lt.(N) Graeme Arbuckle's Customs and Traditions of the Canadian Navy (Halifax: Nimbus Publishing
Ltd., 1984). Indeed, one is hard-pressed to find anything distinctly Canadian in the customs and traditions
which Arbuckle describes.
Milner 87
of Captain Donald Macintyre, RN. One of the war's best escort commanders
and a naval historian of note, Macintyre savagely attacked the RCN's wartime
operational efficiency in his memoir U-Boat Killer (1956). Macintyre charged
the RCN with bungling incompetence, described its fleet as "travesties of
warships" and accused the Canadian naval staff as bent on nothing more than
placing the maximum number of RCN ships on operational plots.
The issue of the fleet's efficiency was addressed briefly in C.P. Stacey's official
volume on Canadian defence policy during the war, Arms, Men and Governments
(1 970) . However, by the 1 970s the conventional wisdom on the wartime RCN
was a blend of both the Canadian and Macintyre themes; the Navy had been
big, but probably misguided. The difficulties of such a limited Canadian literature
and its concentration on the peculiarly Canadian exploits of the war years were
demonstrated in 1979 with the publication of John Swettenham's Canada's
Atlantic War. Swettenham, one of Canada's best known military historians,
produced a very conventional account of the war at sea into which he
attempted — without much luck — to integrate the Canadian story. What he
achieved in the end was the standard British interpretation of events, punctuated
by Canadian incidents. In that sense, Canada's Atlantic War accurately reflects
the state of the art — at least with respect to Second World War history — at the
end of the 1970s. It was hardly Swettenham's fault.
By the 1970s, however, Canadians were beginning to awaken to their naval
history largely, although by no means exclusively, through the experience of the
Second World War. Several major research projects were underway and the
voice of veterans began to be heard in the first of what has become a fairly steady
stream of memoirs and nostalgia. In 1972 the first postwar graduate master's
thesis in RCN history was completed, and another followed by the end of the
decade. By the end of the 1970s two doctoral dissertations were underway,
and the appearance of two new wartime naval memoirs, James Lamb's The
Corvette Navy (1977) and Hal Lawrence's A Bloody War (1979) marked the
beginning of a series of books by these two writers and the commencement of
a significant memoir phase in the field. The decade also brought the first
Captain Donald Macintyre, U-Boat Killer (London: Weidenfeld and Nicholson, 1956).
C.P. Stacey, Arms, Men and Governments: The War Policies of Canada, 1939-1945 (Ottawa:
Department of National Defence, 1970).
21 W.G. Lund, "Command Relationships in the North West Atlantic, 1939-1943," unpublished MA
thesis, Queen's University 1972 and M. Milner "Canadian Escorts and the Mid Atlantic, 1942-1943,"
unpublished M.A. thesis, University of New Brunswick, 1979. See W.A.B. Douglas, "Canadian Naval
Historiography," Mariner's Mirror, 70, no. 4, November 1984, pp. 349-62, for a list of other theses and
dissertations in related fields, such as imperial maritime history.
22 Marc Milner, "No Higher Purpose: The Royal Canadian Navy 's Mid-Atlantic War, 1939-1943,"
University of New Brunswick, 1983 (and published by University of Toronto Press in 1985 as North
Atlantic Run) and Thomas Richard Melville, "Canada and Sea Power: Canadian Naval Thought and
Policy, 1860-1910," unpublished Ph.D., Duke University, 1981.
James B. Lamb, The Corvette Navy: True Stories from Canada's Atlantic War (Toronto: Macmillan, 1977) and
88 The Historiography of the Canadian Navy
serious, scholarly questioning of the Navy's wartime policy in the form of W.A.B.
Douglas' seminal article in Arthur Marder's festschrift.
If the 1970s was the decade of gestation, the birth of modern Canadian naval
historical writing (it cannot truly be called a renaissance) dates from a historical
conference convened in 1980 at Royal Roads Military College, Victoria BC. The
conference was the work of Dr. Jim Boutilier, a member of the RRMC Department
of History and Political Economy. Boutilier was spurred by what he saw as the
astonishing failure of both historians and naval personnel to analyze RCN history.
His solution was to get the Navy and a few scholars together to think and write
about the subject for a conference convened in March 1980, the first on RCN
history. It brought together many — if not most — of the surviving senior officers of
the RCN, who dominated the program. Of the nineteen speakers during the three
day conference, eleven were "Old Salts" speaking largely within their own sphere
of expertise. Among the more innovative elements of Boutilier's conference were
papers on RCN history prior to 1939, especially its origins. Significantly, no paper
dealt with operations in the First World War.
"The RCN in Retrospect" Conference was not an academic tour de force,
but it met Boutilier's expectations; the Navy awoke to its history. The
publication of the conference proceedings in 1982 marked a watershed in RCN
historiography. When Alec Douglas produced his review of Canadian naval
history for the Mariner's Mirror in 1984, he could count the five volumes of official
history, the proceedings of Boutilier's conference, a few more memoirs (includ-
ing the first of a series of collective reminiscences published as Salty Dips by the
Naval Officers Association of Canada (Ottawa Branch)), "a half dozen theses,"
a number of scholarly articles, and the first volume of Jeff Brock's two-volume
memoir, The Dark Broad Seas (1981) and The Thunder and the Sunshine (1983),
the only memoir of any substance — however fanciful — by a senior RCN
officer. Douglas tactfully omitted reference to another memoir and the only
biography ever written on a Canadian naval officer. H.N. Lay's Memoirs of a
Mariner (1982) had potential to make a major contribution to the field, but spoke
more to his family than to those interested in the Navy. J.M. Cameron's Murray:
The Martyred Admiral (1980), was a seriously flawed attempt to vindicate the
career of the RCN's most famous operational commander, R.Adm. L.W.
Hal Lawrence, A Bloody War: One Man's Memories of the Canadian Navy 1939-45 (Toronto: Macmillan,
1979).
For a full reference see footnote 6.
The conference proceedings were published as The RCN in Retrospect (Vancouver: Univ. of British
Columbia Press, 1982). The table of contents is unaltered from the list of speakers.
The model was used later by Commander James Goldrick, RAN, to spur interest in Australian naval
history. The proceedings were published as Reflections on the Royal Australian Navy, T.R. Frame, J.V.P.
Goldrick and P.D.Jones, eds. (Kenthurst, NSW: Kangaroo Press, 1990).
As discussed in W.A.B. Douglas, "The prospects for Naval History," The Northern Mariner, vol. 1,
no. 4, October, 1991, p. 19.
Milner 89
Murray, who moved to England in 1945 after rioting servicemen destroyed
much of downtown Halifax. Cameron's hagiographic account of Murray's life
is notable only because it remains the only biography ever published on a
Canadian naval figure. Douglas' 1984 listing also neglected two substantial
recent books on RCN history, Fraser Mckee's The Armed Yachts of Canada and
Macpherson and Burgess' Ships of Canada's Naval Forces, 1910-1980.
Alec Douglas gave this burgeoning field a push in 1985 with his own
conference commemorating the 75th anniversary of the founding of the RCN.
He filled the program with a largely academic crowd. Among their contributions
were the first serious scholarship on the First World War since Tucker's Volume
One and the first serious academic work on the post- 1945 period to emerge
since Eayrs' earlier material in the 1960s.
The proceedings of "The RCN in Transition" Conference were published
in
in 1988, when the stream of publications in Canadian naval history had — to
use Douglas' words — "turned into a torrent." By 1991 Douglas was able to list
as many substantial publications in the seven short years since his Mariner's Mirror
article appeared as had been published in the previous 74 years of RCN history
combined. The first scholarly monographs on Canadian naval history by
academic historians were published in 1985, both dealing with the Second
World War: Michael Hadley's U-Boats Against Canada and Marc Milner's North
Atlantic Run (the latter was one of the two Ph.D. dissertations completed on
RCN history up to that point). David Zimmerman's The Great Naval Battle of
Ottawa (1989) had also begun as a Ph.D. dissertation (the third in RCN history)
at the University of New Brunswick. Amid this torrent of new publications
were more memoirs and David Perkins' monograph on Canadian submariners
in the First World War, Alan Snowie's history of the carrier Bonaventure, and
some popular and privately published histories of individual ships and ship
types. Indeed, there was enough scholarship available by the late 1980s to
28 Rear-Admiral H. Nelson Lay, OBE, CD, RCN (Retd), Memoirs of a Mariner (Stittsville, Ontario: Canada's
Wings, 1982) and James M. Cameron, Murray: The Martyred Admiral (Hantsport, NS: Lancelot press, 1980).
Fraser McKee The Armed Yachts of Canada (Erin, Ontario: Boston Mills, 1983), and Ken Macpherson
and John Burgess The Ships of Canada's Naval Forces, 1910-1981 (Toronto: Collins, 1981).
30 W.A.B. Douglas, ed., The RCN in Transition (Vancouver: University of British Columbia, 1988).
31 See Douglas, "The Prospects for Naval History," The Northern Mariner, vol. 1, no. 4, October 1991.
Michael L. Hadley, U-Boats Against Canada: German Submarines in Canadian Waters
(Montreal/Kingston: McGill-Queen's, 1985), Marc Milner, North Atlantic Run: The Royal Canadian
Navy and the Battle for the Convoys (Toronto: Univ. of Toronto Press, 1985), and David Zimmerman,
The Great Naval Battle of Ottawa (Toronto: Univ. of Toronto Press, 1989).
33 Gordon W. Stead, A leaf Upon the Sea: A Small Ship in the Mediterranean (Vancouver: UBC, 1988),
James B. Lamb, On The Triangle Run (Toronto: Macmillan, 1989), Hal Lawrence's Tales of the North
Atlantic (Toronto: McClelland and Stewart, 1989) and Victory at Sea (Toronto: McClelland and Stewart,
1990), Salty Dips volumes I and II, Anthony Law, White Plumes Astern (Halifax, NS: Nimbus Publishing,
1989) and Frank Curry, The War at Sea (Toronto: Lugus, 1991).
34 David Perkins, Canada's Submariners, 1914-1923 (Erin, Ontario: The Boston Mills Press, 1989),
90 The Historiography of the Canadian Navy
permit the writing and publication of Tony German's The Sea Is at Our
Gates, the first popularly written comprehensive one-volume history of
the RCN.35
The 'eighties, then, mark a major watershed in the historiography of
the RCN. Since then the pace has not slackened. There is no space here
to list all of the new work, but some key works warrant mention. In 1991
the first scholarly monograph on pre-1939 RCN history appeared: Tin-
Pots & Pirate Ships: Canadian Naval Forces & German Sea Raiders 1880—
1918, by Michael Hadley and Roger Sarty. The heavy emphasis on the
Second World War has continued apace, and many new, young scholars
are entering the field. In recent years substantial scholarly articles on the
RCN have appeared in The Mariner's Mirror, The Northern Mariner, The
Canadian Historical Review, The Canadian Defence Quarterly, Military Af-
fairs, Canadian Military History, The Naval War College Review, and The
RUSI Journal. Many of these new historians are working on the Cold War
era, for which the documents are becoming available. Others are
pushing their research back into the pre-1939 period, and volume I of
the forthcoming new official history of the RCN will go a long way to
filling that crucial gap. Work is underway at the University of Victoria
on the social history of the pre-1939 Navy and an official account of the
Gulf War is forthcoming from the Department of National Defence.
Alan Snowie, The "Bonnie" (Erin, Ontario: the Boston Mills Press, 1987) and, for example, Tom
Blakely's privately published Corvette Cobourg: The Role of a Canadian Warship in the Longest Sea Battle
in History (Cobourg, Ontario: Royal Canadian Legion Branch No. 133, nd), and Ken Macpherson's
River Class Destroyers of the Royal Canadian Navy (Toronto: Charles Musson, 1985), and Frigates of the
Royal Canadian Navy (St. Catharines, Ontario: Vanwell, 1989).
Commander Tony German, The Sea is at Our Gates: The History of the Canadian Navy (Toronto:
McClelland and Stewart, 1990). German's book was accompanied by a video tape as part of the attempt
to popularize the Navy's history among a younger generation. See also Jack Macbeth's Ready, Aye,
Ready: An Illustrated History of the Royal Canadian Navy (Toronto: Key Porter Books, nd).
Published by McGill-Queen's Univ. Press of Montreal and Kingston.
See for example Peter T. Hay don's, The 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis: Canadian Involvement Reconsidered
(The Canadian Institute of Strategic Studies, 1993), which contains new information on the RCN's
role, as does his chapter, "The RCN and the Cuban Missile Crisis," in M. Milner, ed., Canadian Military
History (Copp Clark Pitman, 1993), pp. 349-67.
See BJ.C. McKercher, "Between Two Giants: Canada, the Coolidge Conference and Anglo-American
Relations, 1927," in Anglo-American Relations in the 1920s, BJ.C McKercher, ed., (Edmonton: Univ. of
Alberta Press, 1990), pp. 81-124, Michael J. Whitby, "In Defence of Home Waters: Doctrine and Training
in the Canadian Navy during the 1930s," Mariner's Mirror, May 1991, pp. 167—77, and a series of works by
Roger Sarty; "The Naval Side of Canadian Sovereignty, 1909—1923," The Niobe Papers, volume rV, F.W.
Crickhard and K. Orr, eds. (Halifax, NS: Nautical Publishing, 1993): "The Origins of Canada's Second
World War Maritime Forces, 1918-1940, papers of the 1990 Society for Military History AGM
(forthcoming), '"Entirely in the hands of the friendly neighbour': The Canadian Armed Forces and the
Defence of the Pacific Coast 1909-1937," in D. Zimmerman, ed., Redirection: Defending Canada, the Pacific
Perspective (forthcoming), and "Mr. King and the Armed Forces, 1939," paper to the Canadian Committee
for the History of the Second World War, Elora, Ontario 1989. Sarty is also the principal author of the
pre-1939 volume of the new official history of the RCN.
Milner 91
Ships, too, remain a source of interest, especially Second World War escort
vessels and two major books on Canadian corvettes appeared in 1 993. If there
is a major gap in the current state of Canadian naval historiography, it would
be on the role of individuals. At present only one biography, that of Engineer
Rear Admiral G.L. Stephens, is in the wind, as are a couple of memoirs by retired
senior officers.
A complex and comprehensive Canadian naval historiography is, therefore,
a very recent phenomena. Probably for that reason there is little evidence that
Canadian naval history is yet widely seen as a viable field of instruction for
academic credit in Canada. Military history, of which naval history in Canada
is a part, is offered as a bona fide academic subject at only a few Canadian
universities and within the three military colleges. The emphasis in such courses
is usually on Canada's military past or on the broader international military
experience, approaches which are strongly biased towards land warfare. Few of
those who teach military history in Canada have either the expertise or the
interest to separate Canadian naval history from the general pattern of the
nation's military history. In that sense, the Canadian Navy's experience remains
an aberration even in Canadian military history courses; an obligatory reference
in an otherwise traditional survey of Canada's long and colourful army heritage.
Those, like this writer, who teach both Canadian military history and courses
in the history of sea power, also invariably set the Canadian naval story in a much
wider context. It forms a piece, sometimes bigger, usually quite small, of a much
larger tapestry. Perhaps surprisingly, Canadian naval historians accept such an
approach as a given. They do not see an independent existence for the RCN
outside of the large context of either the empire or the collective security
organizations joined since 1945. In that sense, Canadian naval history is always
subordinated to another mainstream military or naval (sea power) field. In only
one instance — from what could be determined — has the focus been reversed
and a Canadian naval history course been given for academic credit. In 1991,
Michael Hadley, of the Germanic Studies Department at the University of
Victoria, gave a one-time term-length honours seminar on naval history funded
by the university's Military and Strategic Studies Program. Hadley was given the
liberty by the Department of History to do whatever he wished in a seminar on
sea power, so he turned it into a case study using the RCN as the model. The
course, "The Canadian Navy and the Major Powers," has since became a regular
undergraduate offering. Apropos of the comments made earlier here, there is
John Harland and John Mackay's The Flower Class Corvette Agassiz (Anatomy of the Ships Series)
(London: Conway, 1993) and Ken Macpherson and Marc Milner's Corvettes of the Royal Canadian Navy
(St. Catharines, Ontario: Vanwell, 1993).
Information courtesy of Michael Hadley, who, in addition to being an accomplished historian in
his own right, is also a retired naval reserve captain.
92 The Historiography of the Canadian Navy
no indication that Canadian naval history is ever taught within the context of
Canadian maritime history.
It remains to be seen whether Hadley's course itself is an aberration or a
reflection of the maturity of Canadian naval historical writing. In 1980 it was
possible to conduct a couple of individual seminars on aspects of Canadian naval
history, especially its origins and the controversy over fleet efficiency, as part of
a course on naval or Canadian military history. But it would have been difficult
to do more. Hadley demonstrated that by 1990 it was possible to mount at least
a term length course for academic credit on Canadian naval history. It is ironic,
and indicative of the strong contextual bias evident among naval historians (writ
large) within Canada, that many of them consulted for this paper could still not
see the merit in offering a course in Canadian naval history. Maybe they are
right, since much remains to be done. Important new scholarship on the early
Cold War will emerge within the next few years with Ph.D. theses from Mike
Hennessey and Shawn Cafferky. Hennessey's work, in particular, draws together
many of the elements of national naval and maritime policy and will help bridge
that gap between naval history proper and the wider fields of which it is a part.
There are now a number of substantive articles available on the inter- war years
and a new and thorough volume of official history in the wings. Hadley and
Sarty's Tin-Pots and Pirate Ships seems to have satisfied interest in the First World
War for the time being. However, despite their efforts a comprehensive
monograph on the Navy prior to 1914 is still needed. So too is some way of
bridging the gap between the events of the twentieth century and all that went
before. Perhaps when the Navy finds its roots in the age of sail and in the larger
context of Canadian history, Canadian naval history will truly have come of age.
See for example his, "Canada, The Navy and the Shipbuilding Industry: Plus ca Change?" in Michael
A. Hennessey and Kenrick G. Hancox, eds., Canada, the Navy and Industry (Toronto: Canadian Institute
for Strategic Studies, March 1992); "The State as Innovator: Controlling Command Technology for
Warship Production in Canada, 1949—1965," in Peter A. Baskerville, ed., Canadian Papers in Business
History, vol. II (Victoria, BC: Public History Group, University of Victoria, 1993); and "Post-War
Ocean Shipping and Shipbuilding Policy in Canada: An Agenda for Research," The Northern Mariner,
vol l,no. 3, July 1991.
Chile
Captain Carlos Tromben, Chilean Navy
Chile's naval and maritime history can be traced in a vast bibliography whose
main titles are included in this paper. This history is the result of the work
of Chilean and foreign researchers and authors, who through the years have
shown their interest in describing, documenting, and analyzing the facts and
ideas related to these topics.
The period before Ferdinand Magellan discovered Chile's southern tip in
1520 and Diego de Almagro explored the central zone in 1536, has not been
the subject of in-depth studies, probably because the major source materials are
in Spanish archives. The aboriginal civilizations were less developed, if compared
with the degree reached by the people of what is today Peru, Mexico, and
Central America. In spite of this, Chile's native inhabitants were skilled coastal
navigators, due to the fact that they obtained an important part of their food
from the sea.
Likewise, Hispanic presence in Chile is a subject that has not been thoroughly
investigated. Only recently, with Spanish support in connection with the
celebration of the quincentenary of Columbus's arrival in America, one of the
interesting aspects of this period, the Hispanic forts at Valdivia and Corral, are
being studied and restored. For Chilean scholars, the major problem is that most
of the related documentation is in Europe.
The war for independence, which took place intermittently between 1811
and 1826, was full of naval events. These naval events were at the forefront of
Histories that include general aspects of Chilean maritime affairs are:
Francisco Antonio Encina, Historia de Chile desde la prehistoria hasta 1891 (Santiago: Nascimento,
1940-1952); Jaime Eyzaguirre, Historia de Chile (Santiago, 1965); Jay Kingsbruner, Chile, a historical
interpretation (New York: Harper Torch Book, 1973); Jose M. Martinez-Hidalgo y Teran, Enciclopedia
general del mar (Barcelona: Garriga, 1968), 8 volumes; Benjamin Subercaseaux, Tierra de oceano (Santiago,
nd); Gonzalo Vial, Historia de Chile 1891-1973 (Santiago: Santillana, 1984).
Early naval histories and chronicles of Chile include:
Luis Novoa de la Fuente, Historia naval de Chile (Valparaiso: Imp. de la Armada, 1944); Francisco
Rojas M., Administracion naval de Chile comparada: su desarrollo, evoluciSn y organization 1817—1932
(Santiago: Imp. Chile, 1934); Carlos Sayago, Cronicas de la Marina militar de Chile (Copiapo: Imp. de la
Union, 1864); Alberto Silva Palma, CrSnicas de la Marina chilena (Santiago: Talleres del estado Mayor
Jeneral, 1913); Horacio Vio Valdivieso, Manual de historia naval de Chile (Valparaiso: Imp. de la Armada,
1972).
94 Chile
opening the Chilean economy to international trade, spawning the birth of a
strong maritime activity. The new state that emerged out of the far off and,
probably, the poorest of the Spanish colonies, with its particular geography of
extended and fragmented coasts, attracted the attention of many Europeans and
Americans, who registered their experiences in memoirs or narratives that have
become the main historical source for this period. Among the many authors
was Mary Graham, a dynamic and learned British woman, who arrived in
Valparaiso on board a ship commanded by her husband, who passed away a few
days before their arrival. She stayed in this country for a prolonged period and
depicted the facts, people, and customs of the period between 1822—23 in a very
interesting book.
Another important author of this era is John Miller, who penned the memoirs
of his brother, General William Miller, who held a high command post in what
has become the Chilean Marine Corps.
Famous for his memoirs on the Chilean independence period is Admiral
Thomas Alexander Cochrane, who came to Chile from England at the invitation
of General Bernardo O'Higgins. In the four years that Admiral Cochrane
remained in command of the fleet — created with great effort by Chile — he was
able to eliminate completely the Spanish naval presence in the American Pacific.
While in command, he proposed several initiatives that failed to come to fruition
due to the internal conflicts that were present during General Bernardo
O'Higgins' term of rule. His memoirs, published in London several decades
later, are interesting, detailed, and valuable, allowing historians to understand
this distinguished mariner and his times.
Another important source on this period is the papers of General Bernardo
O'Higgins, a thirty-three volume work, edited by the Chilean Government and
published in 1950, containing many letters and documents related to the
founder of the Chilean Navy, who was an important ruler of those initial days.
Fernando Campos Harriet, Los defensores del rey (Santiago: Andres Bello, 1958); Brian Loveman, Chile
the legacy of Spanish capitalism (New York: Oxford University Press, 1979).
J.F. Coffin, Diario de unjoven norteamericano detenido en Chile durante elperiodo revolucionario 1817—1819
(Santiago: Imp. Elzeveriana, 1898); Coleccion de Historiadores i de Documentos relativos a la Independencia de
Chile (Santiago: varios impresores, 1900-1937), 30 volumes.
Maria Graham, Diario de mi residencia en Chile en 1822 (Santiago: Del Pacifico, 1956).
John Miller, Memorias del general Miller al servicio de la Republica del Peru (Santiago: Imp. Universitaria,
1912), 3 volumes.
Books on the subject viceadmiral Thomas Alexander Cochrane:
James Blakwood, The life and daring exploits of Lord Cochrane (London: Paternoster Row, 1861);
Enrique Bunster Tagle, Lord Cochrane (Santiago: Zig-Zag, 1942); Francisco Garcia Reyes, La primera
escuadra nacional (Santiago, 1860).
Thomas Cochrane, Earl of Dundonald, Autobiography of a Seaman (London, 1860); Narrative of Service
in the Liberation of Chile, Peru and Brazil from Spanish and Portuguese domination (London: James Ridway,
1859), 2 volumes.
Archivo Nacional, Archivo de Don Bernardo O'Higgins (Santiago: Nascimento, 1946-50), 33 volumes.
Tromben 95
-?
These volumes abound in material related to the difficulties of creating a fleet
and merchant navy in a country that lacked resources and was worn out by war.
Admiral Cochrane returned to England at the end of Spanish dominion of
what was then Chile and Peru. The Chilean Navy experienced a period of
neglect. Nevertheless, foreign travellers and scientists still kept coming, and they
left impressions on a variety of different matters, particularly about Chilean
maritime geography.
The next conflict involving the Chilean Republic was the war against the
Peru-Bolivian Confederation, but the actors involved in this war left no books
describing the maritime campaign in particular, in spite of its importance in
dismantling the Confederation.
Something similar happened in Chile and Peru's joint war against Spain
between 1865 and 1866. However, many years later, the commander of the
Chilean-Peruvian naval force, Rear- Admiral Juan Williams Rebolledo, wrote
about the events in which he participated.
In contrast, the War of the Pacific, 1879—1883, inspired many books of
narrative, documents, and analysis on the most serious foreign conflict that
Chile had faced since its independence. The writers were either civilian
historians or members of the Navy. Among the first were Diego Barros
Eugenio Pereira Salas, Las actuaciones de los ojiciales navales norteamericanos en nuestras costas, 1813—1840
(Santiago: 1935); Eduard Poepping, Testigo en la alborada de Chile: 1826-1829 (Santiago: Zig-Zag, 1960);
William Bennet Stevenson, A Historical and Descriptive of Twenty Years of Residence in South America
(London: Hurst, Robenson & Co., 1825), 3 volumes.
Benjamin Vicuna Mackenna, Historia de laguerra de Chile con Espana (Santiago: 1883); Juan Williams
Rebolledo, Guerra del Pacifico: Breve narracion historica de la contienda de Chile y Peru contra Espana
(1865—1866) (Santiago: Imp. Elzeveriana, 1901); Herbert W. Wilson, Ironclads in action (London: Marston
Low, 1896); Pedro Novo y Colson, Historia de la Guerra contra Espana en el Pacifico (Madrid: 1882).
Books about the war between Chile, Peru and Bolivia started in 1879:
Correspondencia de Don Antonio Varas sobre la Guerra del Pacifico (Santiago: Imp. Universitaria, 1918);
Arturo Cuevas, Estudio estrategico sobre la campana maritima de la guerra del Pacifico (Valparaiso: Imp. de la
Armada, 1901); Miguel Grau, Correspondencia general de la Comandancia de la 1 Division Naval (Santiago:
Imp. de la Libreria de "El Mercurio," 1880; Joaquin Larrain Zanartu, El 21 de Mayo. Homenaje de "La
Patria" a los heroes de "La Esmeralda" y "La Covadonga" , en el primer aniversario delglorioso combate de Inquique
(Valparaiso: Imp. de "La Patria," 1880; Jacinto Lopez, Historia de laguerra del guano y del salitre; o Guerra
del Pacifico entre Chile, Bolivia y Peru (New York: De Laisne and Rossboro, 1931); Francisco A. Machuca,
Las cuatro campanas de la Guerra del Pacifico (Valparaiso: Imp. Victoria, 1927); Clements Markham, History
of the War between Peru and Chile (London: Sampson Low, Marston, Searle Rivington, 1883); Lieutenant
W.T.B.M. Mason, USN, War on the Pacific Coast (Washington: 1883); Nicanor Molinari, Asalto y toma
de Pisagua, 2 de noviembre de 1879 (Santiago: Imp. Cervantes, 1912); Nicanor Molinari, Asalto y toma de
Pisagua, 2 de noviembre de 1819 (Santiago: Imp. Cervantes, 1912); Pedro Nolasco Prendez, La Esmeralda
(Santiago: Imp. de la Repiiblica de Jacinto Nunez, 1879); Juan Williams Rebolledo, Guerra del Pacifico:
Operaciones de la escuadra mientras estuvo a las ordenes del contra- almir ante Williams Rebolledo, 1819 (Valparaiso:
Imp. del Progreso, 1882); Herbert W. Wilson, Battleships in Action (London: Marston Low, 1927).
Much writing on this period focuses on Arturo Prat:
Arturo Prat I El Combate Naval De Iquique (Santiago: Imp. Gutenberg, 1880); Jose Toribio Medina,
Arturo Prat (Valparaiso: Imp. de la Armada, 1952); Marfisa Munoz Yurazeck, Arturo Prat (Santiago: Imp.
Universitaria, 1914); Juan Peralta Peralta, Arturo Prat Chacon: Hkroe del Mar (Valparaiso: Imp. de la Escuela
96 Chile
Arana and Benjamin Vicuna Mackenna. Others include the already men-
tioned Admiral Juan Williams Rebolledo, who wrote another book about his
participation as commander of the fleet in the early part of the war, and
Vice- Admiral Luis Uribe Orrego, who was a lieutenant at the beginning of the
conflict. The latter's works refer not only to this war, but to the complete
history of the Chilean Navy and Merchant Navy. Pascual Ahumada Moreno
17.
and Justo Abel Rosales compiled documents that are an interesting source for
consultation about this period.
In spite of the Chilean victory in the War of the Pacific, some logistic and
organizational weaknesses were acknowledged. These facts, together with the
rapid evolution of navies, gave way to a stage of great intellectual and professional
development within the Chilean Navy. At the same time, the armed forces
participated in the positive educational development that was taking place in the
country. As a result of this, in 1885, the Naval Circle [Circulo Naval] was
established. Initially chaired by Vice-Admiral Uribe, it is an organization
dedicated, among other things, to debate and to publication of developments in
the naval and maritime sciences. The Navy Review [Revista de Marina] originated
in this organization, and for over a century, historians and analysts have written
and published, uninterruptedly in its pages. This bimonthly publication is an
important source for those who want to get acquainted with Chilean naval
history and the professional activities of the folio wing generations.
At the end of the nineteenth century, there was a bloody civil war that took
place in 1891, and there were acute tensions in Chilean relations with Argentina
and the United States of America. The Chilean Navy reached an important new
stage, as the fleet gained power and obtained the consensus of support for its
activities in controlling the sea, so important for a country with a geographic
configuration like Chile.
Naval, 1953); Arturo Prat Chacon, Observaciones a la lei electoral vijente (Valparaiso: Imp. de "El
Mercurio", 1876); Juan Simpson, Algunos rasgos ineditos de la personalidad de Arturo Prat (Valparaiso: Imp.
Victoria, 1925); Carlos Toledo de la Maza, Arturo Prat: Vida y obra de un hombre ejemplar (Valparaiso:
Ediciones Prat, 1975).
Diego Barros Arana, Historia General de Chile (Santiago: Rafael Jover, 1884-1902), 16 volumes.
1 Benjamin Vicuna Mackenna, Las dos Esmeraldas (Santiago: 1879).
Juan Williams Rebolledo, Guerra del Pacifico: Operaciones de la escuadra mientras estuvo a las drdenes del
contra- almit 'ante Williams Rebolledo (Valparaiso: Imp. del Progreso, 1882).
Luis Uribe Orrego, Los combates navales en la Guerra del Pacifico: 1879-1881 (Valparaiso: Imp. de la
Patria, 1886); Neustra Marina militar (Valparaiso: Tipografia de la Armada, 1910).
Pascual Ahumada Moreno, Guerra del Pacifico (Valparaiso: Imp. del Progresso, 1884-1891), 8 volumes.
Justo Abel Rosales, La apoteosis de Arturo Prat i de sus compaheros de heroismo muertos por la patria el 21
de mayo de 1879 (Santiago: Imp. de los Debates, 1888).
Julio Banados Espinosa, Balmaceda: su gobiemo y la reuolucion de 1891 (Paris: Libreria de Gernier
Hermanos, 1894); Jose Miguel Barros Franco, Apuntes para la historia diplomdtica de Chile: el caso del
Baltimore (Santiago: Casa Nacional del Nino, 1950); Maurice H. Harvey, Dark Days in Chile (London:
1892); Antonio Ifiiquez Vicuna, El golpe de estado y la reuolucion, primero y siete de enero 1891 (Santiago:
Imp. Victoria, 1891); Emilio Rodriguez Mendoza, Ante la descendencia (Santiago: Imp. Moderna, 1899);
Tromben 97
To the publications of Admirals Williams and Uribe, we may add those of
Captain Francisco Vidal Gormaz that refer to scientific matters and the story of
the explorations performed by Spanish navigators in the southern tip of Chile,
based in documental reseach done by this notable naval hydrographer in Spain.
At the turn of the century, the trend increased toward more critical, historical,
and scientific research, supported by many officers who were sent to study in
European countries with greater naval development. The arrival of British officers
in Chile, who came to act as instructors, promoted this trend toward professional
improvement by creating the Naval War College and other initiatives. This
increased the spreading of the doctrines on sea power developed in Europe and in
the United States, particularly those of Captain Alfred T. Mahan. Since that time,
there has been a tendency to analyze past events, stressing these doctrines.
In Chile, during the first half of this century, a new generation of naval
historians and analysts developed. Among them were Rear Admirals Luis
Langlois Vidal, Alejandro Garcia Castelblanco, and later, Captain Horacio
Vio Valdivieso. Simultaneously, the First World War and the serious political
events of the 1920s and 30s, with their repercussions in the Chilean military,
gave origin to different articles published in the Revista de Marina and to the
memoirs of Admirals Jose T. Merino Saavedra, and Edgardo von Schroeders
Sarratea. By mid-century, Vice Admiral Juan Agustin Rodriguez Sepulveda
finished his work of historical research, reaching a wide audience.
The Chilean Academy of History, a center for the study and publication of
history, was founded in 1933. Among its membership are notable researchers
and specialists in naval history. One of its founding members was the already
mentioned Admiral Garcia Castelblanco. Other members that joined the
academy later were Captain Rodrigo Fuenzalida Bade, author of a large work
on the history of the Chilean Navy, and Dr. Carlos Lopez Urrutia, who lives
Fanor Velasco, La revolution de 1891: Memorias de don Fanor Velasco, 2nd ed. (Santiago: Direccion
General de Talleres, 1925); P. WycrofF, "The Chilean Civil War, 1891" U.S. Naval Institute Proceedings
88 (October, 1962), pp. 58-63.
Luis Langlois Vidal, Injluencia delpoder naval en la historia de Chile desde 1810a 1910 (Valparaiso: Imp.
de la Armada, 1911).
Alejandro Garcia Castelblanco, Estudio critico de las operaciones navales de Chile (Valparaiso: Imp. de la
Armada, 1929).
Horacio Vio Valdivieso, Resena historica de los nombres de las unidades de la Armada (Santiago: 1938);
Manual de Historia Naval de Chile (Valparaiso: Imp. de la Armada, 1972).
Jose T. Merino Saavedra, La Armada National y la dictadura militar. Memorias del ultimo Director General
de la Armada (Santiago: Imp. de la Direccion General de Prisiones, 1932.)
Edgardo von Schroeders, El delegado del gobierno y el motin de la escuadra (Santiago: Imp. y Litografia
Uni verso, 1933).
Juan Agustin Rodriguez Sepulveda, Cronicas nacionales y navales (Valparaiso: Imp de la Armada, 1953.)
Rodrigo Fuenzalida Bade, La Armada de Chile desde la alborada al sesquicentenario (Santiago: Talleres
Empresa Periodistica "Aqui Esta," 1978), 4 volumes; Marinos ilustres y destacados del pasado (Santiago:
Sipimex Ltda., 1985).
98 Chile
and teaches in the United States and is the author of several books and articles
oft
on the same topic. The current commander in chief of the Chilean Navy,
Admiral Jorge Martinez Busch, author of an extensive bibliography on historical
and geopolitical matters, recently joined the Chilean Academy of History.
Throughout its existence, the Chilean Academy of History has contributed
to the research of many aspects related to naval and maritime history, the
publication of the O'Higgins archives among them. One of the academicians
that participated, Luis Valencia Avaria, has published books and articles specializ-
ing on the independence period and on the efforts of the O'Higgins government
to create the Chilean Navy. Another academician, Alamiro de Avila Martel,
completed several month's of research in English and Scottish archives on
Admiral Cochrane, sponsored by the academy, and later published a biography.
A collection of edited documents is awaiting publication.
It is worthwhile noting that the academician Gabriel Guarda Geywitz has
developed part of his work on the history of architecture and urbanization in
Chile considering the Spanish fortifications at the south of the country, where
many important events related to the Chilean Navy took place. One of his books
treats the topic of the seizure of Valdivia during the War of Independence.
The civilian researchers who are more oriented toward naval history are at
the Catholic University of Chile (Universidad Catolica de Chile) in Santiago.
Some of these individuals include Professors Roberto Hernandez Ponce,
Ximena Rojas Valdes, and Emilio Meneses Cuiffardi. The latter is a political
scientist oriented toward topics in geopolitical and international relations. He
has published a book on difficulties in the naval relations between Chile and the
United States.
David Mahan Marchese, M.D., has done a great and valuable research effort
on
on naval historiography and iconography. He is in possession of a private
collection that is the widest and best organized in the country, collaborating with
many researchers on the subject.
In the field of Chilean maritime history, Admiral Uribe and Claudio Veliz
have publications on the merchant navy. Also worth mentioning in this
context are Pedro Sapunar, Jorge Lira, Mateo Martinic, and Manuel Fernandez,
who have referred to the history of Chilean ports in different periods of this
century.
El Mercurio publishes, in several of its newspapers, a supplement entitled Our
Sea (Nuestro Mar), under the direction of Rear Admiral Francisco Ghisolfo
Araya, Chilean Navy (retired), who is a prolific author of essays on historical,
Carlos Lopez Urrutia, Historia de la Marina de Chile (Santiago: Andres Bello, 1969).
Alamiro de Avila Martel, Cochrane y la independencia del Pacifuo (Santiago: Universitaria, 1976).
Emilio Meneses Ciuffardi, El factor naval en las relaciones de Chile y EE. UU., 1881-1951 (Santiago).
David Mahan, La Marina de Chile: Proyecto de ensayo Bibliografico (Valparaiso: 1974).
Claudio Veliz, Historia de la Marina Mercante de Chile (Santiago: Universidad de Chile, 1961).
Tromben 99
strategic, and tactical topics. This publication characteristically publishes inter-
esting articles on naval and maritime activities. Otherwise unavailable back-
ground information can also be found in its pages.
In Chile, in general terms, there is a trend to treat naval and maritime subjects
without any distinction between them. The Chilean Navy has a special concern for
the latter. Furthermore, there is a branch of the Navy that performs the coast guard
function, and merchant marine officers are educated at the Naval Academy.
The Naval Review [Revista de Marina], normally publishes articles on subjects
relating to naval history. In addition to this Review, the Chilean Navy publishes
Lookout [Vigia], which includes similar topics, although graphically treated and
in a lighter manner, providing both knowledge and entertainment. It also
includes notes on current naval and maritime situations that will become future
sources of information for historians.
Several books relating to the special branches of the Chilean Navy have been
published during the last decade, some of them with many illustrations and
-1-1 io
references. Such is the case of books about naval aviation, naval engineering,
supply, the submarine force, and naval artillery, and Marine Corp.
English speaking countries have developed recently an interest in Chilean
naval history. Different factors might account for this interest. In the case of
British authors, the reason might lie in the important naval influence their
country exerted in the days of the independence, when many British officers
and personnel came here, either with Cochrane or by themselves, and in the
great amount of naval shipbuilding that was performed by British shipyards for
the Chilean Navy by the middle of the past century. Later, at the beginning of
this century, through the First World War, and even after this conflict, British
instructors came to Chile, while a great number of Chilean officers were
educated in Britain and in Europe.
The work of Philip Somervell on the subject is quite important. We can
also name Adrian English, who is a journalist who publishes articles on
Carlos Tromben Corbalan, La Aviation Naval de Chile (El Belloto: Comandancia de Aviacion Naval,
1987).
Carlos Tromben Corbalan, Ingenierta naval, una especialidad centenaria (Valparaiso: Imp. de la Armada,
1989).
Francisco Astudillo Tapia, y Fernandez A., Marco Historia de la especialidad de Abastecimiento,
1818-1940 (Valparaiso: Imp. de la Armada, 1991).
Armada De Chile, Fuerza de Submarinos (Concepcion: Comandancia en Jefe de la Fuerza de
Submarinos, 1992).
Juan Anderson Diaz, Centenario de la Escuela de Armamentos, 1892-1992 (Valparaiso: Imp. de la
Armada, 1992).
Curpo de Infanteria de Marina (Santiago: Sipimex Ltda., 1994).
Philip Somervell, "Amistad naval anglo-chilena", Revista de Marina, 102: 767 (July-August, 1985),
pp. 481-93.
100 Chile
the Chilean Navy in specialized reviews; in time they will be a source of
historical data.
The Chilean Navy has also been a subject of study in the U.S. Besides the articles
of the aforementioned Dr. Carlos Lopez, we should mention the books by William
Sater and Robert L. Scheina and others who have written their degree theses
for different American and British universities. All of these scholars share a curiosity
for this small country with its huge coastline that throughout its history has had a
rather important naval force compared to its territorial size and which, by the end
of the last century, was even able to threaten the emerging naval superiority of the
United States in the Pacific Ocean. A subject of interest for American authors is the
participation of the Chilean Navy in internal conflicts and the influence exerted by
the U.S. Navy, particularly since the Second World War, when Great Britain
notably decreased its presence in this part of the world, but Americans have also
done some substantial work on earlier periods.
An interesting book on Chilean sea power [El Voder Naval Chileno], was
published to celebrate the centennial of the Revista de Marina. Several distin-
guished historians and analysts, some of them already mentioned, directed by
Captain Claudio Collados Nunez, reviewed the historical evolution of the
concept of sea power in Chile from different perspectives.
Currently, there is no official professorial chair in maritime and naval history,
except at the Naval Academy. The Chilean Navy focusses research in the field in
the Historical Division of the Naval Museum and Historical Archives, and Naval
History Bureau in the General Secretariat of the Navy. These two centers of work,
research, and analysis are supporting several current research projects to be published.
The transfer of the Naval Museum (which until 1967 had been occupied
by the Naval Academy) to its current building in Valparaiso meant not only
Adrian J. English, Armed forces in Latin America (London: Jane's Publishing Co., 1984).
William F. Sater, The Heroic Image in Chile: Arturo Prat, Secular Saint (Berkeley: Univ. of California
Press, 1973).
40 Robert L. Sheina, Latin America: a Naval History 1810-1987 (Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 1987);
The Influence of Sea Power Upon Latin America: A bibliography (2nd ed. Offset, 1972); "Indigenous Latin
America Sea Power" Ph.D thesis, Catholic University of America, 1976).
Robert N. Burr, By Reason of force: Chile and Balance of Power in South America, 1830-1905 (Berkley:
Univ. of California Press, 1967); David J. Cubitt, "Study of the Naval Aspects of the War of
Independence of Chile" (Portsmouth, UK: Portsmouth Polytechnic, 1978-79); D.J. Cubitt, Lord
Cochrane and the Chilean Navy (1818—1823), with an Inventory of the Dundonald Papers relating to his service
with the Chilean Navy (University of Edinburgh); Leland Henschel Jackson, "Naval Aspects of the War
of the Pacific" (M.A. thesis, University of Florida, 1963); Donald E. Worcester, "Sea power and Chilean
Independence" (thesis, University of Florida.)
Edward Baxter Billingsley, In Defense of Neutral Right: the United States Navy and the Wars of
Independence in Chile and Peru (Chapel Hill: Univ. of North Carolina Press, 1964); Hanson U. Hancock,
A history of Chile (Chicago: Sergei and Co., 1983); Robert Hart, The Great White Fleet (Boston: Little
Brown & Co., 1965); Robert Erwin Johnson, Thence round Cape Horn (Annapolis U.S. Naval Institute,
1963). For the recent period, see Robert L. Sheina, Latin America: A Naval History.
Armada de Chile, El poder naval chileno (Santiago: Alfabeta, 1985).
Tromben 101
the renewal of the museum's exhibits in accordance with latest standards for
museums, but the creation of the specialized Historiography Division, headed
by Professor Jorge Garin Jimenez (who has been involved in a research at the
National Archives) to select and to classify naval and maritime-related material.
The first volume of the papers of Vice- Admiral Thomas A. Cochrane is the fruit
of this work, jointly developed with the Naval History Bureau of the General
Secretariat of the Navy. It will be published soon with the sponsorship of the
office of the commander in chief of the Navy.
The Chilean Navy has two other important on-going projects. The first
consists of continuing research at the National Archives, and in other places,
in order to make available the most important documents, enabling special-
ized researchers to use them. The second is a project to remodel an additional
part of the old building of the Naval Academy, supplementing the current
Naval Museum with a library and archive for naval and maritime history.
As a final consideration we can add that the independence period and, in
general, all of the last century have been treated in depth by Chilean naval
and maritime historiography, probably because it was mainly a time of
external conflicts and it is easier to agree on their interpretation. By the same
token, recent events are less addressed, probably because naval and even
maritime affairs are related to internal political problems or other aspects that
are subject to the most different interpretations.
There are many newspaper and specialized review articles, together with
professional theses written by naval and military officers about the events of
the 1920s and 30s. The published institutional histories for this period
cover controversial matters lightly, but there is very little published about
the following decades. Due to a lack of perspective, it is certainly not
easy to provide a fair historical judgment on recent events. Nevertheless,
this should not be an excuse to dispense with the personal viewpoints of
recent events, as authors such as Admirals Uribe and Williams did in the
past century or as von Schroeders and Merino Saavedra did at the
beginning of this one. The works of Admirals Ismael Huerta Diaz and
Sergio Huidobro Justiniano, especially Admiral Huerta's work, which is
undeniably valuable in literary and documentary terms, seem to be isolated
Jorge Garin Jimenez, Archivo Historico Naval, Volume I Book I: Vicealmirante Thomas Alexander
Cochrane (Valparaiso: Imp. de la Armada, 1993).
Ricardo Donoso, Alessandri, agitador y demoledor (Mexico: 1954); Ernesto Gonzalez, El parto de los
monies o la sublevacion de la marineria (Santiago: Talleres Graficos "Condor," 1932); Leonardo Guzman
Cortes, Un episodio olvidado de la historia national, julio-noviembre de 1931, (Santiago: Anrdes Bello, 1966);
Antonio Quintanilla, Memorias del general Quintanilla (Santiago: 1960); Ramon Vergara Montero, Por
rutas extraviadas (Santiago: Imp. Universitaria, 1933); Lorenzo Villalon Madrid, Combate naval de Inquiaue,
Valparaiso 21 de mayo e 1925 (Valparaiso: Fisher e Ihnen, 1925).
Ismael Huerta Diaz, Volveria a ser marino (Santiago: Andres Bello, 1988).
Sergio Huidobro Justiniano, Decision Naval (Valparaiso: Imp. de la Armada, 1989).
102 Chile
efforts that find their way amid many newspaper publications and books that
treat these subjects partially or antagonistically. The lack of good analytical and
interpretative works on the naval aspects of recent events is a void that we
cannot but regret.
Denmark
Hans Christian Bjerg
Denmark commands a significant maritime geostrategic position. It is
beyond dispute that this position has played a decisive role in the
development of our country and has given it the essence of its historical identity.
It's curious, therefore, to observe that the maritime aspect of Danish history has
been assigned a relatively humble position in historical literature, research, inter-
pretation, and consciousness. Apparently, in the general consciousness of the Danish
people, their country is more an agricultural nation than a maritime one.
Fortunately, that state of affairs seems to be changing. In the last three decades
the interest for naval and maritime history has increased significantly in Denmark.
One of the reasons for the previous lack of comprehensive research in naval
and maritime history in Denmark is that we used to speak about maritime issues
in terms of traditional grievances. We did not consider the maritime cultural
concept as a whole, wherein all the diffuse but important maritime aspects come
together.
It would be fair at this point to note that the situation described above is
obviously not unique to Denmark.
The Museums
The Royal Danish Navy has maintained museum collections since the
eighteenth century. Still, the public was not normally given access to these
collections and therefore a general interest in naval history was not stimulated.
R. Steen Steensen, Orlogstnuseet Marinehistorisk Selskabs Skrifternr, 6 (Kobenhavn: 1961), and Hans
Chr. Bjerg, "Den marinehistoriske forskning og Sovsernets museumsproblemer," in Marinehistorisk
Tidsskrift no. 1, 1973, pp. 7-18.
Hans Christian Bjerg graduated from the University of Copenhagen in 1971. He was
Assistant Keeper at the Danish National Archives 1971-81, Consultant on Naval History
of the Royal Danish Navy in 1974, Lecturer in Naval History at the Royal Naval
Academy in Copenhagen in 1975, and Chief Archivist and head of the Military Archives
in 1981. He is author of several books and articles about naval history and was editor of
the Danish Naval Historical Review from 1967 to 1978. He has been a member of the
board of the Society for Danish Naval History since 1964.
104 Denmark
The first maritime museum was founded in Denmark in 1914. It was named
The Museum for Trade and Shipping, (Handels og Sefartsmuseet) and was
located in the old castle of Kronborg, near Elsinore. For a long time this museum
was the center for the only research in maritime history officially undertaken in
Denmark.
Starting in 1958, parts of the naval collections were put on permanent
exhibition. That exhibition eventually evolved into a genuine museum. The
Royal Naval Museum [Orlogsmuseet] finally moved into its own building in
Copenhagen in 1989. Unfortunately, due to lack of financial support, the
opportunities for the Royal Naval Museum to initiate and attract research
projects in naval history has been restricted.
In 1964, The National Museum established a special laboratory for ship
history, primarily to develop research on the ships during the Viking age and in
the Early Middle Ages. A Viking museum was connected to this laboratory in
1968 and is located in Roskilde on Zealand. Since 1993 this museum's activities
have expanded and should develop into a more ambitious Research Center for
Maritime Archaeology, which will be supervised by a special council of experts.
In 1908 the a screw frigate Jylland, which had been launched in 1860, was
stricken by the Royal Danish Navy in order to be scrapped. Instead, the frigate
was bought by a group of private individuals who, for a period, used it as a
floating exhibition platform. In 1960 it was placed at Ebeloft on Jutland and
opened as a museum ship. At the end of the 1980s, support from a private
foundation made it possible to completely restore the ship. That process was
finished in early 1994. The ship is a success as a museum and it has stimulated
an interest for the special development of warships and the history of the Navy
and its men.
In 1993 an integrated maritime museum was open for the public in Aaiborg
on Jutland. There it is possible to visit a submarine and a fast patrol boat and to
view collections showing the nation's general maritime and naval development.
It warrants mention that the Arsenal and Arms Museum [Tejhusmuseet] in
Copenhagen also contains rich collections related to naval development and that
the historians of that museum have also contributed to research and publishing
of naval history.
Within maritime ethnology and the development of fishing, which also had
an important role for the country's economy, The Museum for Fishing and
Shipping [Fisker i og Sefartsmuseet] at Esbjerg on Jutland has made exceptional
studies in the research of this aspect of our history.
Olde Crumlin-Pedersen "Marinarkaeologisk Forskningscenter i Roskilde — en aktuel orientering,"
in Fortid og Nutid (1994), pp. 24-52.
The history of the museum ship can be found in R. Steen Steensen, Fregattenjylland, Marinehistorisk
Selskabs Skrifter (Kobenhavn: 1965); and F.H. Kjoolsen, "The Old Danish Frigate," in Mariner's Mirror
(1965) pp. 27-33.
Bjerg 105
All in all, the museum situation in Denmark regarding the nation's naval and
maritime history is more favorable today than ever.
Instruction and Education
One of the reasons for the lack of the interest on naval and maritime history
in general in Denmark is due to the fact that there has never been a Chair on
this subject at the Danish Universities. Of course, courses in maritime aspects of
certain disciplines have been held. But the concept as such has never been object
for profound and comprehensive research. As of this writing, only three doctoral
dissertations have been prepared in this field.
The situation at the universities for the last two decades seems to be following
the general trend noted above. In advanced classes in history, several now choose
to prepare papers about relevant naval and maritime subjects and related
problems.
There is, however, no formal education or instruction on the maritime history
at the schools for the merchant marine and shipping. Only at the Royal Naval
Academy do they provide regular instructions and lectures on Danish Naval
History and development of the naval tactics during the ages. But, once again,
there is no formal chair. The lectures are given by the historical adviser of the
Royal Danish Navy, who is a naval historian and also head of the military archives
in Denmark.
Organizations
For many years the only forum for discussions about naval and maritime
history was the so-called Society of Naval Lieutenants (See-lieutenant-
Selskabet), founded in 1784. In the beginning, only lieutenants of the Navy
could be members. Later, all naval officers of the line could be members. The
Society is a closed circle and is only visible for the public through the Society's
the Naval Review [Tidsskrift for Sevssen], which the Society has published since
1856 when it took over from private sources who had published it since 1826.
Now it is one of the oldest reviews on naval affairs in the world.
In 1951 a small group of interested naval officers and historians founded the
Naval Historical Society (Marinehistorisk Selskab). Their intention was to
stimulate research in, and interest for, the history of the Royal Danish Navy.
Furthermore, another goal was to develop a naval museum where the rich
collections of the Navy could be shown to the public.
Ever since 1951 this society has been the primary forum for discussions on
primarily naval history and, to a lesser extent, on maritime history in general.
Henning Henningsen, Crossing the Equator: Sailor's Baptism and Other Initiation Rites (Copenhagen:
1961); Ole Feldbaek, India Trade under the Danish Flag 1 7 12- 1 #0# (Scandinavian Institute of Asian Studies
Monograph Series no. 2) (Copenhagen: 1969); Anders Monrad Moeller, Fra Galeoth til Galease. Studier
i de kongerigske provinsers so/art i det 18. arh. (Kobenhavn: 1981).
106 Denmark
From its inception, the society published books on Danish naval history. In 1967
it began to publish the Naval Historical Review [Marinehistorisk Tidsskrift], for
which the first editor was the present author. This Review has fulfilled its purpose
and has really stimulated research on naval historical matters. Today the Review
constitutes an important forum for naval and maritime matters.
From 1959—73, a naval officer was attached to the naval staff as a consultant on
historical questions. In 1974 a civilian historian became the consultant of the Navy
on naval historical matters and has, in reality, worked as the official naval historian.
The Board of Marinehistorisk Selskab discussed in 1971 the general condition
of naval historical research in Denmark and how it could stimulate general
interest in seeing naval and maritime history as a whole and as aspects of the
same overall concept. The discussions were also inspired by the development in
Sweden of an official council for maritime research in 1971—72. As a conse-
quence, the Board decided to initiate the First Danish Conference on Maritime
History in March 1974. The purpose of the conference was to develop a baseline
for research on Danish maritime history and to investigate the possibilities for
coordinating the efforts of the different disciplines.
The result of the conference was the creation of the Contact Committee for
Danish Maritime Historical and Social Research, which, since 1974, has ar-
ranged a biennial conference for maritime research. Furthermore, the committee
had taken the initiative to publish surveys periodically of on-going research as
well as a guide to where sources for maritime history can be found. Each year
the Committee publishes a bibliography of books and articles related to naval
and maritime matters.
Naval History Research and Literature
The research and publishing of Danish naval history, until the second part of
the present century, has been dominated by naval officers. The literature on
these matters was characterized by general works and very few special investiga-
tions. As a matter of fact, very few educated historians had previously dared to
step into the field.
One who did was H.D.Lind, a vicar, who in the last decades of the nineteenth
century has published works about the sixteenth and seventeenth century Danish
Navy. His works are still used as textbooks today.
The first survey of relative modern Danish naval history was printed in small
booklet form in 1818 by W.A. Graah, a naval officer. After comprehensive
studies of the archives, another naval officer, H.G. Garde, published a four-
7 _
volume history of the Dano-Norwegian Navy dating from 1500. The edition
Hans Christian Bjerg, "Den maritimhistoriske forskning i Denmark," in Fortid og Nutid XXVI (1976),
pp. 392-7.
W.A. Graah, Udkast til Danmarks Soekrigshistorie (Kobenhavn: 1818).
7 H.G. Garde, Efterretninger on den danske og norske Semagt, bd. I-IV (Kobenhavn: 1832-35).
Bjerg 107
was not a continuous history, but rather a chronological synthesis of periodic
information. It does, however, remain a useful work.
Garde expressed the hope that its publication would inspire historians to write
about Danish naval history, but he was to be disappointed. It was Garde himself
who would, in 1852 and 1861, publish two general works on the history of the
Q
Danish Navy, covering the period 1500—1814. He later brought that history
up to 1848. General works on Danish naval history were not produced until
1875 and 1906 respectively. The authors, once again, were naval officers.
The same was the case when a new general naval history was published in
1934. A two-volume publication emerged in 1941—42, following the same
model. The two last mentioned books must be considered in view of the existing
political context. With regard to the first publication, it must be noted that, in
the 1930s, the wave of disarmament nearly strangled the Navy in Denmark, and
the naval officers had to profile their occupation. When the two-volume work
was published, Denmark was occupied by German troops, and one purpose of
the publication was apparently to emphasize the long history of Denmark and
the strength of the national will which, over the ages, had been secured by the
Navy.
The last publication in the list of general books about history came in
1961-62. It followed the same model as its predecessors, but for the first time,
some of the contributors were civilian historians. This was apparently a result of
the efforts of Marinehistorisk Selskab since 1951. The general works did not
communicate new knowledge to the naval history other than the contemporary
activities of the Royal Danish Navy.
The increase of interest in naval history from the beginning of the 1 970s
produced a demand for new knowledge about naval history. Therefore, the time
for general works had passed and several books and articles about special and
narrower subject areas based on a scientific approach emerged. However, one
general work from this period was produced. It is a two-volume book about the
shipbuilding activity in the Danish-Norwegian Navy in the period of the sailing
warship, 1690—1860, which was published in 1980. That book revealed the
richness of the huge collections of technical drawings and plans which existed
in the naval files of the Danish National Archives. It has contributed to our
knowledge of an important aspect of our maritime heritage which had not been
8 H.G. Garde, Bidrag til Semagts Historie 1 700-1814 (Kobenhavn: 1 852), and Den dansk-norske Semagts
Historie 1535-1 100 (Kobenhavn: 1 86 1 ) .
9 H.G. Garde, "Bidrag til Somgtens Historie 1814-48," Historisk Tidskrift, 3.Rk. V. Bd. (1866-67),
pp. 165-216.
Fldden gennem 450 Ar, Red. af R. Steen Steensen, G. Honnes de Lichtenberg og M. Frils Metier,
(Kobenhavn, 1961) (vol. 1), and Fladen - administration, teknik og civile opgauer, Red. af K.G. Konradsen,
G. Honnens de Lichtenberg og M. Frils Moller, (Kobenhavn, 1962) (vol. 2).
Hans Christian Bjerg and John Erichsen, Danske Orlogsskibe 1690-1860, Konstruktion og Dekoration,
Bd. I-II (Kobenhavn: 1980).
108 Denmark
researched previously. It also inspired basic studies about technical development
in Denmark where, for a long time, the Naval Shipyard in Copenhagen was the
largest workplace in the country. In the 1980s, profound and comprehensive
studies were published on the ships and shipbuilding of the Danish Navy in the
1 9
seventeenth and the eighteenth centuries.
Now we also have a comprehensive knowledge on the Navy in the last part
of the seventeenth century, thanks to discussions among the Danish naval
historians about the course of the Naval Battle of K0ge Bugt on the 1st of July
1 'X
1677. This discourse has brought many new facts to light on that period.
Contemporary research also exists on the last part of the eighteenth century and
on the first decade of the nineteenth century.
Much remains to be done. For example, we still need modern research on
the administration of the Navy, its political role, the social conditions for the
officers and the crews, and among other things, new investigations on the naval
battles fought by the Navy.
In 1975 the present author published A Bibliography of Danish Naval History
from 1500-1975 [Dansk Marinehistorisk Bibliografi 1500-1975]. It lists 2,086
items, most of them small articles and booklets. Unintentionally, the bibliog-
raphy became a chronicle of the status of Danish naval history prior to the
increasing interest which appeared in the 1970s. Since then, there have been
around 500 items published, which, on average, are far more detailed and
extensive than most of the items listed in the mentioned bibliography. It is not
surprising, therefore, that a revision to that bibliography is planned for publica-
tion in the next two to three years.
Danish naval historians realize today that a lot of trends common to other
European naval development can be recognized in the Danish materials. But they
are also of that opinion that knowledge of the development of the small Danish
Navy can provide important pieces to an understanding of the general puzzle.
Heretofore, very few books or articles on Danish naval history have been published
in English or another major language. It is, therefore, the claimed intention ofDanish
naval historians today to publish more in English in the future.
Maritime History Research and Literature
As compared to naval history, maritime history has thus far been characterized
by general surveys and sporadic scientific research. It is worthwhile to observe
See for instance, Niels M. Probst and Frank Allan Rasmussen in several articles in Marinehistorisk
Tidsskrift in the 1980s and 1990s.
Jorgen H. Barfod, Niels Juel, liv oggeming i den danske seetat (Arhus: 1977). The discussions about the
Battle of Koge Bugt can be followed in articles in Tidsskrift for Sevcesen og Marinehistorisk Tidsskrift in the
beginning of the 1950s and from 1977 and on.
14 Ole L. Frantzani Trualan tra vat. Dansk-norsk fladepolitik 1769-1807, Marinehistorisk Selskabe
Skrifter, no. 16 (Kobenhavn: 1980) and Ole Feldbaek, Slaget pa Reden (Kobenhavn: 1985).
Bjerg 1 09
that the two disciplines have followed separate tracks. But, in general, the interest
in maritime history has been greater than that shown for naval history.
In 1919 a huge book in two volumes was published. The title was The Shipping
and Trade of Denmark during the Ages [Danmarks Sofart og Sohandel fra de oeldste
Tider til vore Dage]. The contributors were esteemed historians, naval officers,
and men working with the shipping trade. For a long time this book represented
the general knowledge of the maritime history of Denmark, but did not inspire
further research.
Research and writings about maritime history have concentrated around the
Handes og Sofartsmuseet and its yearbook, the articles which represent the main
part of the published maritime history up to current times. A lot of information
may also be found in the jubilee publications of the different Danish shipping
companies.
Denmark and the Sea [Danmark og Havet] was the title of a general two-volume
book about the maritime history of Denmark and the maritime contemporary
institutions in the country. It was published in 1948.
The 1970s were also a breakthrough for the maritime historical interest and
research centered around the Conference for Maritime History and the Contact
Committee mentioned above. In 1980 the Contact Committee began to publish
the Maritime Contact [Maritim Kontakt] , which now, in addition to the yearbook
of the Museum for Trade and Shipping, is the main forum for published maritime
research in Denmark. One of the few doctoral dissertations on maritime history
was published in 1981.
The situation for maritime historical research in Denmark is, therefore,
generally in very good shape at the moment. An example of this is the working
plan for a general and comprehensive work on the maritime history of Denmark,
which is going to be published within the next 3—4 years in 4—5 volumes, written
by historians who belong to the new school that emerged after the 1970s. It is
expected that this new history will compile all the new knowledge provided by
the modern and scientific research approach.
15
By Anders Monrad Moller, cfr. note 4.
10
Dominican Republic
Cesar A. De Windt Lavandier
Rear Admiral, Dominican Republic Navy, Retired
Following twenty-two years of Haitian military occupation, Dominican
Republic independence was proclaimed on 27 February 1844. On that very
same day, Commander Juan Alejandro Acosta took possession of the port
facilities at the Harbor on the Ozama River, and the Dominican Navy, known
as the National Fleet, was born.
The Navy was initially composed of five converted merchant ships provided
by three Dominican businessmen, and was organized by its founders, Com-
manders Juan Bautista Cambiaso and Juan Bautista Maggiolo. The first ship to
carry the Dominican banner was the schooner Leonor, which departed Santo
Domingo on 2 March 1844 bound for Curacao. Her mission was to return
previously exiled patrician Juan Pablo Duarte, the founder of the Dominican
Republic, to his newly independent homeland.
The Navy's first five converted merchant vessels were soon joined by seven
other ships that had been purchased for use in the new nation's defense. The
Dominican Navy then comprised twelve ships, with attendant Naval Artillery
and Naval Infantry units from 1844 to 1861. It was to play a leading role in
securing the independence of our fledgling country. This was particularly true
during the war between the Dominican Republic and Haiti from 1849 to 1850,
when the Navy successfully met the Haitian Navy in combat while transporting
substantial quantities of troops and supplies in that conflict.
Despite this proud and significant introduction, however, much of the
Dominican Republic's naval and maritime history has fallen into a state of neglect
in recent times. It is this issue which merits our attention.
Authentic historiography in the Dominican Republic began with Jose Gabriel
Garcia who, during the last decade of the nineteenth century, wrote wrote four
volumes in a compendium of the history of Santo Domingo dating back to the
arrival of the Spaniards to the islands. Garcia, it should be noted, also served as
Duarte was destined to be exiled again that same year by his Dominican rival, Pedro Santana, and
would lead a wandering lifestyle, largely in Venezuela, until his death in 1876. Still, he is widely regarded
as the founder of the Dominican independence movement.
Jose Gabriel Garcia, Historia Moderna De La Repubica Dominicana (Santo Domingo: Garcia hermanos,
112 Dominican Republic
an artillery lieutenant in one of the warships that fought against the Haitian forces
during the 1849—50 war. He took part in the naval battle of Aux Cayes off the
southern coast of Haiti in December 1849, from which the Dominican Republic
emerged victorious.
Antonio del Monte y Tejada, another author who actually preceded Garcia,
■I
made reference to the Dominican Corsairs activities from 1738 to 1760. Both
writers based their ideas on their studies of the West Indian Chronicals. Since
Garcia did not have access to many primary sources of information, it is possible
that he used del Monte y Tejada's notes, as Antonio had traveled to Havana,
Cuba to conduct extensive research in the official files and deposits held there.
Also ranking among the noteworthy researchers of our history is Emilio
Rodriquez Demorizi, who, most notably, made reference to the evolution of
our merchant marine as well as the Dominican Navy in many of his books.
In fact, in our country the military affairs dealing with seafaring events are
very closely related to non-military maritime issues. All matters associated with
port authorities are in the hands of the military officials. Since the Dominican
Republic is a small nation, the Navy supervises all activities concerning all of
our ports of call, including trade, defense and security. Thus, our naval heritage
is very much a part of our national history.
Unfortunately, there is no institution in the Dominican Republic,
governmental or private, intended solely to teach our naval history. The only
entity currently teaching maritime history is the Dominican Naval Academy,
and even those courses are taught under precarious conditions. Appropriate
research facilities are nonexistent, and the lack of resources, materials, and
primary documents prevent students from obtaining a validated understanding
of that history.
The Academy of History (Academia de la Historia de la Republica
Dominicana) is an official institution founded by a group of prominent and
distinguished historians dedicated to the study of the history of the two countries
sharing the island of Hispaniola: the Dominican Republic and the Republic of
Haiti. As such, it concerns itself with many aspects of the island's history, but it
has not undertaken the study of either the Dominican Navy or its merchant
marine.
Several individuals in the private sector have accumulated documents relating
to events that took place during our War for Independence and those chronicling
the Dominican Republic's naval participation in World War II, but those efforts
have not enjoyed the support of our public institutions.
1893-1906; reprint 1968), 4 vols.
Antonio del Monte y Tejada, Historia de Santo Domingo (1890; reprint: Ciudad Trujillo, 1952-1953),
3 vols.
See, for example, Emilio Rodriguez Demorizi, Hostos en Santo Domingo (Ciudad Trujillo,
1939-1942), 2 vols.
De Windt Lavandier 1 1 3
In my personal opinion, our country is in great need of institutions that
promote the studies of naval historiography. For example, the creation of a
special department at Universidad Autonoma de Santo Domingo, the oldest
university in the New World and a very prestigious institution, to study maritime
and naval history would be extremely important.
It would also be possible to integrate a special branch for the study of maritime
history with the collaboration of other international organizations with our
government. Proposals for such a development could be made through the
Museum of History and Geography or through the Academy of History of the
Dominican Republic.
The absence of a sound and vigorous branch of maritime history in the
Dominican Republic is due largely to the imperatives of national priorities; we
are a small and poor country and must husband resources accordingly. The
potential for cooperative or collaborative efforts with international organizations
dedicated to maritime research may provide the opportunity to overcome the
resource limitations and permit us to more thoroughly develop and better
understand this important aspect of our nation's history.
11
France
Herve Coutau-Begarie
For much of the twentieth century, France has maintained a leading role in
the study of history. At the turn of the century, the positivist school helped
decisively to settle the emerging rules of scholarly history. In the 1930s, the
Annales school played a leading role in the revival of historical studies with its
interests in economy and social history. Today, Fernand Braudel, Emmanuel Le
Roy-Ladurie, and Pierre Chaunu are well known to the international com-
munity of historians. Yet, despite this rich relationship with historical studies
in general, it is not at all certain that the same positive observations can be made
about the influence of the French school on maritime history.
Such an assertion may be surprising. France, after all, has played an important
role in the International Commission of maritime history. It was through French
influence that the revision of the Glossaire nautique by Jal, and the creation of a
maritime history working group five years later at the Stockholm Congress, was
approved at the 10th International Congress of Historical Sciences in Rome in
1955. The first international symposia were organised in Paris from 1956 to 1959
by the Academie de Marine, the Comite de documentation historique de la
Marine, the Centre national de la recherche scientifique and the IVe Section de
l'Ecole pratique des Hautes Etudes. Subsequent symposia have taken place all
over the world, but the mainspring has always been a French source. Symposia
products were also for some time published by the S.E.V.P.E.N. in France, in
a collection known to all maritime historians.
Given all this, how could one have doubts as to the influence of French
maritime historiography? The balance sheet is impressive, but it is essentially the
work of one man: Michel Mollat, President of the International Commission of
Maritime History for twenty-five years. Mollat authored many books, served as
the head of the working groups for the revision of the Glossaire nautique, of a
survey concerning the marine ex-votos, and of a bibliography of oceanic routes.
He was a leading figure in dozens of national or international symposia and,
finally, was founder of the Laboratorie d'Histoire maritime. An entire article
devoted just to his work would not suffice to relate his contribution to maritime
Herve Coutau-Begarie, Le phSnomene Nouvelle Historie, Grandeur et dkadence de I'ecole des Annales
(Paris: Economica, 2e ed., 1989).
1 1 6 France
history. Following him are those who are today known to the international com-
munity: Jean Meyer, Etienne Taillemite, Jean Boudriot, and Philippe Masson.
But French maritime historians have been unable to establish a common
methodological approach with which to challenge the Anglo-Saxon hegemony in
this field. The reasons for this situation are, of course, complex. First, we have to
consider the absence of a structure around which French maritime historians could
gather. For instance, there is no counterpart to the British Navy Records Society in
France. The Commission francaise d'Histoire maritime (CFHM), is relatively new,
dating back only to 1976, and its means have always been very modest. For various
reasons, the integration of the Commission into the Comite de documentation
historique de la Marine, which was logically appropriate, has not been possible.
Furthermore, there is no real center for research within academia except the
Laboratoire d'histoire maritime. That laboratory was created in 1973 by Michel
Mollat at the Sorbonne when the IVeme section de l'Ecole pratique des Hautes
Etudes was finally integrated into the Centre National de la Recherche Scien-
tifique. Additionally, no journal of maritime history enjoying the same impor-
tance as the American Neptune or the Mariner's Mirror exists in France. As a result,
the professional articles which are produced are dispersed in various reviews, the
most important of which do not give them the space or attention they deserve.
In 1979, the CFHM began publication of a Chronique d'histoire maritime, which,
in fact, is more a simple bulletin than a true review. Of course, we have the
excellent review, Neptunia, published by the Musee de la Marine, but it is more
interested in archeology than in history, and its size prohibits the publication of
extensive articles. The review Marins et Oceans, published for the first time by
the CFHM in 1990, was stopped after the third issue with a change in the
Commission's editorial policy. The same situation exists in the publishing of
other scholarly maritime and naval history; for instance, the well-known
S.E.V.P.E.N. no longer exists after having once been the publishing resource
for substantive studies.
The Service historique de la Marine publishes certain works, but only when
they are the result of researchers using the documents kept by that Service. Some
works remain unpublished, particularly if they are extensive, unless it is possible
to adopt the imperfect solution of the anastatic process. For example, the work
on the Chinese Navy by Jacques Dars was published more than twenty years
after its examination by the university, and the book by Claude Huan on the
Soviet Navy in the Arctic during the 1940-1945 war waited more than ten years
for a publisher. These are but two examples among others.
This lack of structure has created an unfortunate separation between naval
history and maritime history. The former has suffered from a long-lasting
2 Naturally there are other centres of research having fewer resources such as Centre d'historie des
Espaces atlantiques in Bordeaux under the supervision of Paul Butel.
Coutau-Begarle 117
-I
prejudice against military history, anathematised by the Annales school. The
study of naval history has been relegated for decades to retired naval officers or
ship lovers, interested in the ships themselves. Thus, naval history has long
focused on technique and tactics and emphasized activities of ships-of-the-line
or the actions of privateers in the guerre de course. Maritime history, on the other
hand, survived by adapting itself to external subjects such as economic history,
through which its revival began.
In a Revue historique article in 1971, Professor Andre Martel foresaw a revival
of military history in France. It is not going too far to say that a similar occurrence
has been observed for the last two decades in the studies of naval and maritime
histories. Both have finally reached, if not unity, at least a complementarity
which allows them to coexist in academia. The number of studies has increased
in various spheres. Today, French maritime history covers almost all historical
research fields, although, unfortunately, some important areas exhibit weakness
or obsolescence. As an initial conclusion, therefore, we may say that the results
of this progress remain mixed.
The distinction between naval history and maritime history has given rise to
some disputes. The most common point of view, in accordance with the
etymology currently being accepted, is that naval history should include every-
thing which concerns the ships themselves, while maritime history would be
more one of the environment. It does not seem necessary to debate that question
here, but to remain with the commonly accepted interpretation, naval history
means the history of the military forces used at sea, while maritime history
concerns all the rest. This division has the advantage of being easily under-
standable and also corresponds in a certain way to an institutional reality which
is almost sociological: naval historians form a particular group in which academics
remain a minority; maritime historians are much more numerous and more
diversified, while at the same time more closely connected to academia.
Naval History
Before 1940, France seemed to have a promising and solid base in naval
history. Famous historians had dedicated their studies to it: Lacour-Gayet wrote
a whole set of volumes on French maritime and colonial policy before the
Revolution. Charles de la Ronciere wrote a monumental, six volume Histoire
de la marine francaise. Although his history was never completed, the final volume
he produced, concerning Louis XIV's navy, is still considered a reference for today's
research.
Herve Coutau-Begarie, "L'histoire militaire face a la nouvelle histoire," Strattgique, 18, 1986.
This statement is in no way exhaustive. Its aim consists in bringing tendencies to the fore and in not
seeking an exhaustive evaluation. The only works mentioned are the most important or the most
significant as such.
1 1 8 France
The historical method also remained highly regarded in French naval circles despite
the consequences of the First World War. Officers studying at the Ecole de guerre
navale were typically required to write a thesis, and most often they were of a historical
nature, with a predilection for works on the seventeenth and eighteenth century
periods. For this reason, we have a number of important studies based on archival
research and presenting original interpretations which have been brought to the
attention of the public by historians since the Second World War.
This tradition continued through the 1950s, with an inclination towards
contemporary history. Then, in the following decade, it was interrupted when
military teaching turned from history and gave priority to technical subjects.
This lack of interest, demonstrated by both the Navy and academia, was very
harmful to the progress of research. It was only in the 1980s that naval history
was revived and claimed its rightful place among historical studies.
Contemporary Naval History. Contemporary naval history reached an excep-
tional level of development in France between the two world wars, when the
memory of the First War was still vivid, furthering the publication of works on
naval warfare. The undisputed leader of that form of literature was Paul Chack, who
published a number of small works with much success, and which have recently
been collected in one volume by Jacques Antier. Simultaneously the Service
historique de la Marine, created in 1920 by Captain Raoul Castex, began publishing
some strategical studies through its historical section. Other purely historical studies,
written primarily by Captains Adolphe Laurens and Louis Guichard, are remarkable
for the way the authors scrupulously used official records. These works remain useful
today.
This worthy historical effort was brought to a sudden halt by the Second
World War. Of course, at the end of that war, just as in 1918, a number of
popular works on naval war emerged. Some of them have achieved great success,
particularly those by Jacques Mordal (pen name of naval doctor Herve Cras,
who also wrote several other works on the Second World War) . At the same
time, just as in 1918, the historical section of the Service historique de la Marine,
renewed publication of historical studies through official histories. Cras and
Captain Caroff wrote most of those studies, which deal with almost all the
theaters of operation: Mediterranean, Atlantic, the Channel, North Sea, and
See for instance the works listed in the bibliography of Philippe Masson, Histoire de la Marine (Paris:
Lavauzelle, 1982, volume I).
Paul Chack et Jean-Jacques Antier, Histoire maritime de la premiere guerre mondiale (Paris: France-Empire,
1970 in 3 volumes and 1992 in one volume).
Adolphe Laurens, Histoire de la guerre sous-marine allemande (Paris: Editions maritimes et coloniales,
1930); he commandement naval en Mediterranee (Paris: Payot, 1931); Precis d'histoire de la guerre navale (Paris:
Payot, 1929); Louis Guichard, Histoire du blocus naval 1914-1918, (Paris: Payot, 1929).
Coutau-Begarie 119
Indochina. Other similar works have been devoted to certain postwar events,
Q
particularly the colonial war in Indochina and the Suez crisis.
Unfortunately, this effort was stopped in the 1960s for several reasons. The
primary one was the lack of resources available to the Service historique de la
Marine, but the slow progress of granting access to official records or documents
to unofficial researchers also contributed to the problem. Thanks to the 1979
change in French national security law, which reduced the required time delay
for opening records to the public from fifty to thirty years, part of the access
problem has been alleviated. Still, we must contend with the fact that many of
our historical records suffered significant disorder, or even destruction, both
during the 1940 French collapse and during military actions before and after
Liberation. Therefore, reconstitution of naval archives has been difficult and
only partially successful. Additionally, some of the series in the French naval
archives are incompletely listed or without detailed inventories. This, of course,
further complicates the researcher's task.
Despite the various limitations, the contemporary period is the best studied.
Among the best works are those by Philippe Masson, head of the historical
section of the Service historique de la Marine, and those by Claude Huan,
dispersed through many articles and conference papers.
A number of French researchers have extended their consideration of
maritime issues beyond France. Here too, Captain Claude Huan has studied
Soviet and German naval history in a number of important articles and begun a
history of the German-Soviet war, the first volume of which has just been
published. Captain Francois-Emmanuel Brezet chose to study the Imperial
1 o
German Navy; his original analysis of the Jutland battle replaces the famous
book by Captain Georg von Hase, La bataille du Jutland vue du Derflinger, which
had impressed many French naval officers in the 1930s.
We are, however, unable to mention any noteworthy study on the Royal
Navy (contrary to what happens on the other side of the Channel), or on the
Q
Herve Cras, Les forces maritimes du Nord, 1955; C.F. Caroff, Le thS&tre atlantique, 1958—1959; Le tht&tre
mtditerranken, 1960; Les formations de la marine aux armies, 1953, reed. 1984; La campagne de Norvege, 1955,
reed. 1986; Herve Cras, L'armistice de juin 1940 et la crise franco-britannique, 1959; C.F. Caroff, Les
dSbarquements alliis en Afrique du Nord (Novembre 1942), 1960, reed. 1987; Andre Reussner, Les conversations
franco-britanniques d'Etat-Major (1935-1939), 1969; V.A.E. Chaline et C.V. Santarelli, Historique des Forces
navalesfrancias libres, t. 1, 1989; Jacques Michel, La marine francaise en Indochinede 1939 a 1956, 1972-1977,
reed. 1991-1992; Philippe Masson, La crise de Suez, 1966.
Claude Huan, La marine sovietique en guerre. I Antique (Paris-Caen: Economica-Memorial, 1990).
Two other volumes will follow: one for the Black sea, another for the Baltic. Huan has already published
a great number of studies, mainly in the 1960s in Revue Maritime.
This author has previously published important articles: "Une flotte contre l'Angleterre. La rivalite
navale anglo-allemande 1897-1914" in Marins et Ockans /(Paris: 1991); "Le croiseur de bataille: mythe
ou realite," in Marins et Odans II (Paris: 1992).
11 F.E. Brezet, Le Jutland 1916 (Paris: Economica, 1992).
120 France
navies of Italy and Japan. Contemporary naval history in France remains
markedly introverted.
Despite the individual efforts noted above, there are a considerable number
of lacunae in contemporary French naval history. It is, for instance, obvious that
biographical research lags in France. Most of the British admirals of the First
World War had their biographies written; this is not the case for the French
admirals. Admiral Guepratte, well known for his gallantry during the First World
War, was the only one to be the subject of biographies, but they are all too often
anecdotal or hagiographic. None of the chiefs of the naval staff nor the
commanders-in-chief of the French fleet have been accorded this honor.
1 o
With regard to the Second World War, only two admirals, Castex and
Darlan, have had biographies published; the former as a naval thinker and the
latter for his political importance. This course of events seems surprising,
particularly when we recall the important role played by several other admirals,
such as de Laborde, Commander in Chief of the French High Sea Forces at the
time of the scuttling of the French Navy in Toulon in November 1942; or
Muselier, Commander of the Free French Naval Forces until his break with de
Gaulle; or Abrial, who defended Dunkirk, was governor of Algeria after 1940,
and Secretary of State for the Navy during the dramatic events leading to the
scuttling of the fleet.
There are many more examples of the lack of biographical research of French
naval history in France. Through the work of Philippe Masson, we do have a
general history of the French Navy during the Second World War. This work
replaces the obsolete and inadequate one by Admiral Auphan and Jacques
Mordal, whose work suffered from the research restrictions noted earlier. The
history by Philippe Masson is a synthesis of complementary investigations into
the mass of documents kept in Vincennes. There is no comparable work for the
First World War, which has been widely neglected since the death of Henri Le
Masson. The fundamental reference about the Navy of the Belle Epoque remains
American Theodore Ropp's work, written between the two wars at the time
when the public record offices were closed (although there is a study in progress
by Admiral Ausseur). Another key work is the study by Genevieve Salkin
on naval attaches, bringing to naval history the methods of prosopography.
Herve Coutau-Begarie, Castex le stratege inconnu (Paris: Economica, 1985).
Herve Coutau-Begarie et Claude Huan, Darlan (Paris: Fayard, 1989), followed by Lettres et notes de
I'amiral Darlan, (Paris-Caen: Economica-Memorial, 1992).
Philippe Masson, La marine Jrancaise et la guerre 1939-1945 (Paris: Tallandier, 1991).
Amiral Auphan et Jacques Mordal, La marine Jrancaise pendant la seconde guerre mondiale (Paris: Hachette,
1958).
Unpublished for a long time, this book has been magnificently edited by Stephen Roberts: Theodore
Ropp, The Formation of a Navy (Annapolis: Naval Institute Press 1987).
Genevieve Salkin-Laparra, Marins et diplomates. Les attache's nauals 1860-1914 (Vincennes: Service
historique de la Marine, 1990).
Coutau-Begarle 121
Another work by Philippe Masson concerns the postwar mutinies, but no
fundamental study exists on naval law. A thesis on interwar naval policy
was abandoned, but we shall soon have a book published, unfortunately
posthumously, by Admiral de Lachadenede, which considers the French
9ft
Navy during the Spanish Civil War. As for the study of the officer corps
by Ronald Chalmers Hood, it is slightly exaggerated and warrants some
21
revision.
Today, ships' histories are pursued by passionate specialists. One of the
best is Robert Dumas, the matchless connoisseur of the battleships. While
.9^
the French Fleet Air Arm looks forward eagerly for a historian, Henri Le
Masson, publisher of the Flottes de Combat and a renowned historian,
produced several remarkable studies on the history of the light craft and of
submarines from a broader perspecive than that usually employed. Captain
Huan is also working on a revised history of French submarines.
The history of French naval thought actually lay essentially fallow until
the launching of the international programme under the supervision of the
Fondation pour les Etudes de Defense Nationale (FEDN), to which historians
from eleven countries contributed. The studies on naval disarmament,
which proliferate in the Anglo-Saxon world, are very rare in France. The
Washington Conference aroused the attention of a German historian who
97 >-»-.
has written a thesis on the subject. The London Conferences also await
98
a French historian's approach.
Philippe Masson, La marine francaise et la mer Noire (Paris: Publicatioons de la Sorbonne, 1982).
1 Captain Huan is working on this subject.Philippe Masson, La marine francaise et la mer Noire (Paris:
Publications de la Sorbonne, 1982).
Rene Sabatier de Lachadenede, La marine francaise et la guerre civile d'Espagne (Vincennes: SHM, 1994).
Ronald Chalmers Hood, Royal Republicans, French Naval Officers Corps between the Wars (Batan Rouge:
Louisiana Univ. Press, 1985).
Robert Dumas, Les cuirassh de 23 000 tonnes (Brest: Editions de la Cite, 1980); Le cuirasse Jean Bart
(Bourg-en-Bresse: Marine Editions, 1992).
Let us mention the recent creation of an Association pour la recherche de la documentation sur
l'histoire de l'aeronautique navale (ARE) HAN), 3 Avenue Octave Greard. 00300 Armees.
Henri Le Masson, Du Nautilus au Redoutable (Paris: 1960); Histoire du torpilleur en France (Paris:
Academie de Marine, 1966).
L'AGASM (Association generale des anciens sous-mariners) has a remarkable review of little
diffusion, Plongee, which has published several issues treating of highly technical questions on submarines
of the main sea powers.
France, Great Britain, Germany, Italy, Belgique, Portugal, Rumania, Sweden, Finland, United
States, Argentina. Three volumes have been published under the title L'evolution de la penste navale,
(Paris: FEDN, I, 1991; II, 1992; IN, 1993). At least two other volumes are programmed.
Hannsjorg Kowar, Die Franzosische Marinepolitik 1919-1914 und die Washingtoner Konferenz
(Stuttgaart: Hochschulverlag, 1978); a digest of this work is about to be published in French.
The study by Maurice Vai'sse, Securite d' aboard (Paris: Pedone, 1980) is most particularly dedicated
to general disarmament according to the rules of the SDN.
1 22 France
Today, some famous events need reinterpretation. For instance, the 1916
Athens affair still provokes a misplaced reserve in historical circles. Nobody wants
to shed light on the causes which resulted in that show of force which culminated
in tragic failure. That is not so for the Mers el-Kebir episode, but, even fifty
years later, that tragedy warrants historical clarification. For instance, all existing
sources continue to give the erroneous number of losses as 1 ,294 killed, while
many aspects of the decision-making process are left undisclosed. The same
can be said of the scuttling of the French fleet in Toulon. A number of important
messages between Toulon and Algiers remain unknown, while everyone tells
the legend of a major SS operation, which participated with only a small
detachment.
The deficiencies of French contemporary naval history are, in fact, logical, if
we take into account the lack of interest which surrounds naval strategy in
France. The tradition personified by Admiral Castex in the interwar years and
following the renowned authors at the turn of the century, Admirals Daveluy
and Darrieus, has fallen by the wayside. There is not a single work concerning
French naval strategy, outside some historical works, since Espagnac du Ravay's
1941 essay, Vingt arts de politique navale, written by order of Admiral Darlan. By
contrast, consider, for instance, that in the 1970s and 1980s, approximately ten
books concerning naval strategy were published in England by authors such as
Sir James Cable, Eric Grove, and Rear- Admiral Richard Hill.
This is the result of a political censorship enduring from the memory of the
Second World War (as exemplified by the absence of a commemoration of the
fiftieth anniversary of Mers el-Kebir, the official celebration of which was strictly
the work of the British). It is due also to an instinctive suspicion towards any
reflection that could threaten the delicate consensus about defence policy. Further-
more, it is the consequence of a sensitive juxtaposition of hierarchical interests,
divided between a lack of interest for genuine research and a particular interest in
preventing even a muffled criticism of its actions. The freedom of expression that
favored research on strategy and history through the 1930s simply does not exist
anymore. There is, of course, the beginning of a scholarly interest in French naval
strategy following 1945, but the results of these efforts are still undetermined.
Contemporary naval history, despite all, is tied to an understanding of
previous periods.
Ancient Naval History. The deficiencies in French maritime and naval
historiography are particularly manifest with regard to antiquity. We can note
only a few works, which are generally governed by an archeological approach.
Herve Coutau-Begarie et Claude Huan, Mers el-Kebir. La rupture franco-britatmique, (Paris: Economica,
1994).
For example, studies still unpublished by Philippe Ouerel on the naval policy of the 4th Republic
and Jean-Marc Balenci on naval diplomacy in the Indian ocean since 1967.
Coutau-Begarie 123
The most impressive study concerning Roman history was presented by Michel
-11
Redde, and focused on the Roman Imperial Navy. This monumental work
stands out because of a very erudite analysis of the infrastructure of naval bases
at the disposal of the Roman Navy. On the other hand, it must be noted that
his consideration of naval tactics and strategic employment of fleets was some-
what thin; Redde did not take a keen interest in these important aspects of naval
warfare. It is to Jean Pages' works that one must turn for treatment of those
features of ancient naval warfare.
There has been little work on Greek naval history (with the singular exception
of a small book by Jean Rouge, who presented a very short synthesis of the
subject) until the studies by Jean Pages on naval thought, armament, tactics, and
thalassocracies. Still, these articles, dispersed in different publications, provide
-19
materials for synthesis in future publications.
The current disinterest in ancient naval history contrasts notably with the
nineteenth when Admiral Jurien de la Graviere, Admiral Serre, and Professor
Cartault acted as pioneers in the field. Historians of ancient naval wars still
appreciate their studies, despite their age. One must also note that there is a
recent work in French on ancient ships, Le Musee imaginaire de la marine antique.
It was, however, written by Lucien Basch, a Belgian specialist, and to credit his
excellent work to the French school would be inappropriate.
Medieval Naval History. Medieval history is just slightly better off. Here
again, there are only a few names worthy of mention. One, of course, must be
Professor Mollat, whose interests lay more in maritime history than in naval
history. Nevertheless, he contributed to naval history in a number of his works.
Another historian, Anne Martin-Chazelas, has shed light on the question of the
Clos des Galees, which was the first real attempt to establish a naval dockyard
in France. Her study, however, is based on a set of unique documents.
Furthermore, the life of Jean de Vienne still awaits a sound biography.
Some incidents mentioned in the works by Charles-Emmanuel Dufourq on
Catalonia, Michel Balard on Genoa, Freddy Thiriet on Venice, and Clause
Cahen on the Crusades make one regret the absence of naval historical studies
on those subjects. Maurice Lombard has opened new avenues for consideration
% 1
Michel Redde, Mare Nostrum Les infrastructures de la marine romaine h Vepoque imperiale (Rome: Ecole
francaise de Rome, 1987).
Jean Pages, "La pensee navale atheienne au Ve siecle" in Herve Coutau-Begarie, L'evolution de la
pensee navale I, 1991; "La pensee navale hellenistique" in L'euolution de la pensee navale //(Paris: FEDN,
1992); "Les armes navales dans l'Antiquite," Marins et Oceans II (Paris: FEDN, 1991); "Etudes sur le
combat naval antique," Marins et Oceans III, 1992; "Y a-t-il eu une pensee navale romaine?" V Evolution
de la pensee navale III; "Les Thalassocraties antiques" et "Geostrategie maritime d'Athenes" in Herve
Coutau-Begarie, La lutte pour V empire de la mer (Paris: 1993).
For instance, La vie quotidienne des gens de mer en Atlantique, Moyeti-Age-XVe sikle (Paris: Hachette, 1983).
See Economic History in the present paper.
1 24 France
or
in his work, but they, too, have not been pursued. In France, there are no
works comparable to those of Lewis or Pryor.
It is important when discussing this era to mention the activities of scholars
devoted to research of Byzantine history and among these, particularly Helene
Archweiler, with her primary work on this subject, Byzantium and the Sea.
This enormous work, almost exhaustive for all that concerns the structure and
the organization of the Byzantine navy, has, unfortunately, serious shortcomings
in the areas of tactics and strategy. We find the same institutional tendencies in
the works of Helene Antoniadis-Bibicou. For example, the nearly total absence
of reference to the very rich Byzantine naval thought, which is known only by
the work of Alphonse Dain, who is preoccupied with establishing a critical
edition of historical texts and providing a philological study of them without
trying to single out main trends in tactical or strategic terms.
Very few works can be mentioned on Arab or Ottoman naval histories in the
Mediterranean. One exception, Michel Lesure, has devoted several works to
in
the Ottoman fleets and to Turkish naval thought. It is symptomatic to note
that the remarkable work by John Guilmartin on galley warfare has made little
impact in France.
Modern Naval History. Modern naval history is, save for the contemporary
era mentioned above, the period best represented in French historiography. It
is the period in the French Navy's heritage which has the richest and most
interesting information. Richelieu is the true founder of the modern French
Navy, and nineteenth century historians have already emphasized the Cardinal's
impact on naval issues. Following Richelieu, the credit for the resurrection of
the French Navy during the reign of Louis XIV belongs to Jean Baptiste Colbert.
The question has been entirely reexamined during the last two decades. Cardinal
Richelieu has been subject of several studies, but the most interesting results,
covering the end of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, have been
achieved by Jean Meyer and his colleagues, who have worked since the 1970s
with the group at the Laboratoire d'histoire maritime (CNRS Paris-Sorbonne).
Jean Meyer started his career as historian of nobility, but his research turned
Maurice Lombard, Espaces et reseaux du haut Moyen-Age (Paris-La Hayre: Mouton, 1972).
Archibald Lewis, Naval Power and Trade in the Mediterranean, AD 500-1100 (New Jersey: Princeton
Univ. Press, 1951) and John H. Pryor, Geography, Technology, and War: Studies in the Maritime History of
the Mediterranean 649-1571 (Mass.: Cambridge Univ. Press, 1988).
Helene Archweiler, Byzance et la mer (Paris: Presses Universitaries de France, 1966).
Michel Lesure, Lepante (Paris: Gallimard-Julliard, Archives, 1974).
39 Ibid.
John Guilmartin, Gunpowder and Galleys, Changing Technology and Mediterranean Warfare at Sea (Mass.:
Cambridge Univ. Press, 1974). Jean Pages prepares a translation accompanied by commentaries of Delia
Milizia Marittima (1542) composed by the Venitian admiral Da Canal who, in the third book, exposes
the tactics of the Venetian fleet at Lepanto (1572).
Coutau-Begarie 125
progressively towards naval history, where he has achieved very important
results, and has compiled his studies in works of synthesis written in collaboration
with Martine Acerra. Daniel Dessert produced a revisionist work on the navy
of Louis XIV. It is a very remarkable work, though unfortunately it is marred
by hostility to Colbert. The systematic study of the documents dealing with the
shipyards, and maritime administration, particularly the records of the Inscription
maritime (administration of the French professional seamen created by Colbert) ,
has opened new avenues to maritime scholarship, which are quite different in
many aspects from those obtained through the classical approach founded on
the studies of naval campaigns and ministers' papers. For example, this new
approach has ended the myth about the effects of the battle of la Hougue and
partly rehabilitates Pontchartrain's reputation.
Andre Corvisier observed at the beginning of the 1 970s that the revival of
military history was achieved by means of the history of military men; in other
words, through social history applied to the army. A similar approach may be
observed in naval history, particularly in modern times. Indeed, naval history
benefits directly from the results of research in economic and social history. In
terms of social history, one can see this in the monographs on ports, such as those
produced by Alain Boulaire on Brest, by Martine Acerra on Rochefort, and by
Jean Peter on Toulon. In his thesis on la guerre de course, Philippe Villiers
succeeded in reviving the subject from a military point of view, largely by using
methodologies belonging to economic history.
The studies on social history are widely dispersed at the extremeties of the naval
hierarchy. They range, on the one hand, from lower work by Andre Zysberg on
galley rowers, and Alain Cabantous' study on mutineers and deserters, to several
studies on officers, most particularly on admirals. The thesis by Jacques Aman on
"blue" officers was widely noted when it was published in 1976. More recently,
we have the enormous work by Michel Verge-Franceschi on flag officers, which
is full of details on admirals' genealogies. Unlike earlier studies, these works do
not focus on tactics or strategy.
Martine Acerra et Jean Meyer, La grande epoque de la marine a voile (Rennes: Ouest-France, 1988);
Marine et Revolutions (Rennes: Ouest-France, 1991). Let us mention also his contribution "L'Europe et
le mer," in Andre Corvisier et al., L'Europe a Louis XVI, 1990. On "la guerre de course," see the
posthumous work by Auguste Toussaint: Avant Sucouf; Corsaires en ocean Indien (Aix: Publications de
l'Universite d'Aix-Provence, 1989).
Patrick Villiers, Le commerce colonial atlantique et la guerre d'Independance americaine, 1976 and Marine
royale, corsaires et traffic dans V Atlantique de Louis XIV ci Louis XVI, 1990. On "La guerre de course"; the
posthumous work by Auguste Toussaint, Avant Surcouf: Corsaires en I'ocian Indien (Aix: Publications de
l'Universite d'Aix-Provence, 1989).
Andre Zysbert, Les galeriens (Paris: Le Seuil, 1987).
Alain Cabantous, La vergue et lesjers. Mutins et deserteurs dans la marine de Vatiaetme France (Paris: Tallandier, 1 984) .
Jacques Aman, Les offiders bleus dans la marine jrancaise au XVIIIe siecle (Paris-Geneve: Droz, 1976).
Michel Verge-Franceschi, les officers generations de la marine au XVIIIe rikle (Paris: Librarie de l'lnde, 1990).
1 26 France
It must be pointed out that the studies which formerly would have been
labelled "naval," that is to say, focused on tactics and strategy, are not insig-
nificant. The research led by Jean Meyer and his colleagues, specially those on
ports and naval bases, gave historians a better understanding of the logistical
imperatives which weighed heavily on navies in the days of sailing ships.
Research on galley rowers have also allowed scholars to create a model which
explains the way galleys were manned and operated in battle (Zysberg, for that
purpose, obtained assistance from a physicist). The research concerning officers
and, particularly, admirals has brought to light masses of documents that provide
a better view on naval operations. Finally, it is important to mention the
fundamental contribution that Jean Boudriot has made, which offers new insight
on the technical aspects of battleships. Boudriot's contribution is fully as
important as J.S. Morrison's on the problem of the trireme.
Besides the works which disassociate themselves from the old approach, one
can not ignore the persistence or, rather, the revival of studies having a more
traditional perception; that is to say, a viewpoint centered on tactics and strategy.
First among them are those by Captain F. Caron on the capitulation of
Louisbourg in 1758 and on the War of Independence, to which he will soon
add a work on Suffren's campaigns. Francois Caron has reached conclusions
which have been disputed by some Anglo-Saxon authors, but his detailed
knowledge of seafaring has helped him to take the lead in certain, little
understood aspects of naval warfare, such as the problem of the continuity in
the line-ahead battle formation.
Other studies are in process. Michel Depeyre is writing an anxiously awaited
thesis, the first of its kind, on naval thought during the seventeenth and
eighteenth centuries. There is also a revival of biographical studies after several
decades of indifference. The well- written and popular biographies based on
rather limited documentation by Jean de la Varende have been followed by new
studies on Duquesne by Michel Verge-Franceschi, and on Tourville by Marc
Vigie. Suffren has been the subject of less convincing biographies.
The period of the French revolution and the Imperial period have tradition-
ally remained the field of a very learned but isolated group of historians.
Jean-Boudriot, Le vaisseaux de 14 cations (Paris: 4 vol., 1976-1978); Les vaisseaux de la Compagnie des bides
(Paris: 1990).
Francois Caron, La guerre iticomprise ou les raison d'un echec. Capitulation de Louisbourg (Vincennes: SHM,
1983). La victoire volee. Bataille de la Chesapeake (Vincennes: SHM, 1989). Jacques Aman, Utie campagne navale
meconnue A la ueille de la guerre de Sept Ans. L'escadre de Brest en 1755 (Vincennes: SHM, 1986).
See his study on "Le vicomte de Grenier: Heritier de Bigot de Morogues ou disciple de Suffren?"
in L' evolution de la pensee navale ///(Paris, 1993).
See his articles on Hoste and Clerk in L'evolution de la penske navale I et II.
Michel Verge-Franceschi, Abraham Duquesne, huguenot et matin du Roi Soleil (Paris: France-Empire, 1992).
52 Marc Vigie, Tourville (Paris: Fayard, 1993).
Marc Vigie, Tourville (Paris: Fayard, 1993).
Coutau-Begarie 1 27
Following A. Thomazi and Captain Muracciole, Rear-Admiral Maurice
Dupont has just crowned his extensive research with a biography of Decres,
Minister of the Imperial Navy Department. The nineteenth century is not so
well represented, despite an extensive field of research which has scarcely been
explored. Bernard Lutun is currently working in this area.
The Contribution of French Orientalists. France has always had a great
interest in the Far East, but naval studies in that area, while important, are few
in number. Arab sources have been studied by Rear Admiral Henri Labrousse
in articles recently gathered in a single volume concerning, principally, the Red
Sea. Chinese naval history has benefited from the thesis by Jacques Dars, although
it was long delayed in publication, as mentioned earlier. Dars deepened the intuitive
ideas of Lo Jun Pang, whose pioneer work dealt with the expansion of the Chinese
Navy from the Song period to the Ming period. It is a very highly focussed work,
but one of very high quality.
Compared to what is typical practice in Great Britain and the United States,
the results achieved by French naval historians are, all in all, rather poor. The
chasm which has for so long divided the Navy and acadamia, the lack of tradition
in maintenance of archives, and the destructive effects of domestic and interna-
tional disruptions have taken their toll on French sources. The harmful effect of
this combination of factors continues to hamper research.
For instance, we must observe that the continued publication of important
documents has never been the rule in France. The Fench naval classics, from Hoste
to Castex, have not been republished. The memories of most of the great sailors cannot
be found today, and there are no collections of documents similar to those so frequendy
found in political, administrative and economic history. This is a real and eminendy
prejudicial deficiency, for which there appears to be no solution whatsoever.
All the same, French naval history remains largely inward-looking. However, it
is true that international contacts are increased, as demonstrated by the Franco-
British symposium on maritime history, held since 1986 on the initiative of the
Service historique de la Marine, as well as many other symposia. But, it is
impossible to mention any wide-ranging study on Great Britain, Italy, or Japan.
Claude Huan's research on the Kriegsmarine and the Soviet Navy are an exception.
Particularly his very important contribution to the Dictiomtaire Napoleon, by Jean Tulard, (Paris: Fayard, 1 987) .
Amiral Maurice Dupont, L'amiral Decres et Napoleon (Paris: CFHM-Economica, 1991).
An enormous work of almost 1 ,000 pages on the Guerigny forges; "L'epuration dans la marine
1814-1817." Revue historique 285 (1992).
Amiral Labrousse, Recits de la mer Rouge et de V ocean Indien (Paris: CFHM-Economica, 1992).
en
Jacques Dars, La marine chinoise du Xe siecle au XIV e siecle (Paris: CFHM-Economica, 1992).
The acts have been published by the Service historique de la Marine: Guerres et paix, 1660-1815
(1986); Les empires en guerre et en paix 1793-1860 (1988); Francais et Anglais en Mediterranee 1789-1830
(1990).
Les marines de guerre europSennes au XVIIIe siecle (Paris: Presses de l'Universite de Paris-Sorbonne,
128 France
Such an attitude contrasts sorely with the numerous contributions coming from
abroad which have been beneficial to the French naval history. Consider, for
instance, the works of Jenkins, Bamford, Symcox, T. Le Goff, Dull, Halpern,
Ropp, Kowark.
Nevertheless, a perceptible improvement has been observed during the last two
decades as the summary sketched out here shows. For several years we have had at
our disposal some instruments of research which were previously lacking and which
now signal new developments. Rear Admiral Fremy has published a splendid
dictionary of ships. Etienne Taillemite, for his part, is the author of an exhaustive
but eminendy readable dictionary on French sailors. In the same period, we have
witnessed the publication of a vast synthesis concerning the history of the French
Navy by Philippe Masson. It is rather paradoxical that, previously, the primary
reference was the work of a British historian, H.E.Jenkins, which was published
in 1973 and translated into French five years later. In that book, Jenkins
expressed the perfect synthesis of the traditional points of view, certain of which
were being challenged by the conclusions of more recent research. Philippe
Masson's book was followed by one of Etienne Taillemite in such a way that
we have at hand two works with diverging views on the same subject. They
provide a genuine basis for setting aside the caricature suggesting that "if France
is not ashamed of her Navy, the Navy has some grounds to be ashamed of France"
(Jenkins). It is wrong to say, notwithstanding a few exceptions, that the French
governments have never understood their Navy. Masson would better accuse
the naval men themselves, with their lack of great leaders and with a chronic
lack of discipline in the officer corps. For his part, Etienne Taillemite considers
first the structural handicaps, the insufficient coastal populations, the lack of good
Channel harbours. All this remains a problem of determinism which must be
considered anew.
1985); Fleurieu et la marine en son temps (Paris: CFHM-Economica, 1992); Marine et technique au XIXe
siecle (Paris: IHCC-SHM, 1989); Les marines de guerre du dreadnought au nucleaire (1988), (Paris:
IHCC-SHM, 1991).
Paul W. Bamford, Forest and French Sea Power 1660-1783 (Toronto: Univ. of Toronto Press, 1956);
Jonathan Dull, The French Navy and American Independence: A Study in Arms and Diplomacy 1774—1781
(New Jersey: Princeton Univ. Press, 1975); Paul R. Halpern, The Mediterranean Naval Situation
1908—1914 (Cambridge: Harvard Univ. Press, 1971); Hannsjorg Kowark, Die Franzosische Marinepolitik
1919-1924 und die Washingtoner Konferenz (Stuttgart: Hochschulverlag, 1978); TJ.A. Le Goff,
"Problemes de recrutement de la marine francaise pendant la Guerre de Sept Ans," Reuu Historique, 283
(1990), pp. 205-33; Theodore Ropp, The Development of a Modem Navy: French Naval Policy 1871-1904.
Edited by Stephen S. Roberts (Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 1987); and Geoffrey Symcox, The Crisis
of French Sea Power 1688—1697: From the guerre d'escadre to the guerre de course (The Hague: Martinus
Nijhoff, 1974).
Raymond Fremy, Des noms sur la mer (Paris: ACORAM, 1991).
Etienne Taillemite, Dictionnaire des marins francais (Paris: Editions maritimes et d'outremer, 1982).
H.E.Jenkins, Histoire ignore" e de la marine francaise (Paris: Albin Michel, 1978).
Philippe Masson, Histoire ignoree de la marine (Paris: Lavauzelle, volume 1, 1982 and volume 2, 1983).
Etienne Taillemite, Histoire ignoree de la francaise (Paris: Perrin, 1988).
Coutau-Begarie 129
But, again, we must not forget that those very few works are insignificant
compared with the flowering of those in other branches of the French historical
research. It simply indicates that a vast area of historical research remains to be
carried out.
Maritime History
If naval history has a clearly delimitated field of research, the same does not
hold true for maritime history. At different levels, all human activities have
something to do with the sea in such a way that maritime history deals with all
fields of historical research. Despite its slow development in France, maritime
works are numerous, and it is difficult, within the scope of this paper, to provide
an indicative example. Therefore, it seems better to look to the main tendencies
of research by theme rather than by period.
Bibliographies and Aids to Reseach. Maritime bibliography was overlooked
for a long time. Finally, in the 1970s, it required a remarkable collection through
the work of Jean Polak, which is well-known and used among the French
maritime historians. One can follow it through all the different categories in the
Bibliographie ennuelle de Vhistoire de France.
Some remarkable work has been done to inventory archival sources. Etienne
Taillemite and Philippe Henrat have done this for the Archives Nationales. The
Service Historique de la Marine has made a similar great effort but, for lack of
money, the inventories made during the last few years, particularly those
concerning contemporary events, have not all been published.
Among these means of research, while we must regret the absence of ships
lists or the lack of biographical dictionaries (the one by Taillemite being mostly
centered on naval officers), we still must mention one of the most interesting
efforts in contemporary maritime history: the revision of the Qlossaire nautique
by Jal, initiated by Professor Michel Mollat du Jourdin and pursued under
Christiane Villain-Gandossi's leadership within the scope of a seminar compris-
ing several dozens of specialists. As of this writing, six sections have been
published, as far as the letter "I," and a seventh has gone to press. It is needless
to insist here upon the exceptional importance of such a revision. Nevertheless,
one must keep in mind that the original work contains much information that
is not included in the revised edition.
In the same vein, but on a different subject, we must point out another
undertaking initiated by Michel Mollat: the survey of the votive ships. This
investigation, started in the 1970s within the Laboratoire d'histoire maritime, is
now completed. Such a work is extremely useful, not only for art history, but
also for the history of ship-building and for the history of seafaring peoples.
Unfortunately, because of budget difficulties, we regret that nothing of it has yet
been published.
1 30 France
General Works. We have a clear idea of the ground lost by French maritime
history when we perceive the scarcity of that kind of work. Marine et Oceans by
Philippe Masson, which concerns only the contemporary period, is an excep-
tion. There is no recent scholarly synthesis on maritime history except the very
recent work by Michel Mollat: L'Europe et la met. It is clear that there are no
general studies in French about the history of the oceans. L'Histoire de VAtlantique
by Jacques Godechot dates back to 1947 and, so far, has not been replaced. On
the Indian ocean, we have Histoire de V ocean Indien (1961) by Auguste Toussaint.
The author died before completing the second edition. Such an important work,
still partly obsolete, can only be completed by fragmentary eighteenth century
/TO
studies and by others on the history of the Mascarenhas Islands. We may well
ask if Auguste Toussaint, although born in Mauritius and a French-speaking
historian, may be considered as belonging to the French maritime history, rather
than to that of Mauritius.
We have no general French study on the Pacific ocean. On the other hand,
it is much more surprising when we see the lack of a similar work on the
Mediterranean; the sea so close and so dear to the heart of many Frenchmen.
The principal work of Fernand Braudel, la Mediterranee et le monde mediterraneen
h Vepoque de Philippe II, belies the lack of general study on the Mediterranean in
French. However, we must mention Jean Rene Vanney, author of an erudite
study on the Southern Seas, which helped to fill the gap. In spite of all, there
is much to do in order to ensure that non-specialists might easily have sufficient
documentation at hand. The bibliographical references at the end of Vanney's book
contain a warning which could be valid for many oceans of the world: "The place
occupied by the often translated French works is so modest that a grave question is
posed as soon as we want to facilitate an easy access for the non-specialist."'
What is true for the regional synthesis is also true, to a large extent, for very
71
particular studies. French maritime studies are very much in need of works
designed to put within easy reach of the readers research results which, in spite
of all, are still going on very actively.
Underwater Archeology. Naval archeology has been somewhat neglected by
academia, but it has succeeded in becoming implanted in the CNRS and also in
the Ministere de la Culture. The benefit of this was the creation in 1970 of the
Department of submarine archeological research (DRASM), which from that
Philippe Masson, Marine et oceans (Paris: Imprimerie nationale, 1982).
Michel Mollat du Jourdin, L'Europe et la mer (Paris: Le Seuil, 1993).
Auguste Toussaint, Histoire de I 'ocean Indien (Paris: Presses Universitaires de France, 1961); L'ocean Indien
au XVIIIe siecle (Paris: Flammarion, 1973); Histoire des iles Mascareignes (Paris: Berger-Levrault, 1972).
Jean-Rene Vanney, Histoire des mers australes (Paris: Fayard, 1986).
70 Ibid., p. 699.
Philippe Masson's book, Grandeur et misere desgetis de mer (Paris-Limoges: Lavauzelle, 1986), is an exception.
Coutau-Etegarie 131
time has managed all underwater finds. The results of that research have appeared
in Gallia and in Gallia Informations. A review of underwater research, Cahiers
d'archeologie subaquatique, began publication in 1972 and, in 1977, CNRS com-
menced publishing another, Archeonautica. The research covers, at the same time,
harbours and ships; the wreck called epave de la madrague de Giens (1st c. B.C.)
for instance, has been the subject of a very careful research. Among the
prominent scholars are Patrice Pomey for ancient archeology and Eric PJeth on
medieval archeology. These authors recently presented an overall survey of
researches in process during a recent symposium on maritime heritage.
Additionally, as a matter of interest, we must not forget to mention the
archeological excavations near Bercy. These two 4,500-year-old dugouts were
•7-1
recently brought to light thanks to a research group of the Vieux Paris. In yet
another area, Gabriel Camps has published the results of his research on early
navigation in the Mediterranean in several articles.
Modern naval archeology in France today is brilliantly represented by Jean
Boudriot. All maritime historians know his works (I have already mentioned
those on the 74-gun ships-of-the-line, and on the French vessels of the
Compagnie des Indes), among others on merchant ships. Jean Pierre Moreau
has worked on finds in the Caribbean and specialized in archeological treasures.
With regard to contemporary naval techniques, we could bring together with
industrial archeology certain research on the first steamships, or those on the
passengers ships, which have always been popular with the public.
Without commenting on the relationship between maritime history and
interior navigation history, it is important to remember, just as a matter of
interest, the very active groups working on river history today.
Finally, we must speak of the efforts in favour of the maritime preservation.
Without coming under maritime history, in the strict sense, preservation is
closely linked to it. The international symposium held in Nantes in 1991,
organised by both the Ministere de la Culture and the CFHM, provided a
summation of work and the recent initiatives taken in a long neglected area of
historical research. The symposium papers, just published, define a part for
maritime historians in the process of restoring maritime heritage.
Economic History. Economic history was one of the strong points of the
Annales school, and it is only natural that the maritime trade benefited from its
study. This is clearly demonstrated by the important theses published between
the 1950s and 1970s which cover all the periods. Regarding antiquity, the work
Le patrimoine maritime etjluvial (Paris: Colloques du patrimoine, 1993).
There is also the discovery of the Henri Cosquer cave, but that only indirecdy concerns maritime history.
Jean-Pierre Moreau, Giude des trSsors archeologiques sous-marins des petites Antilles (Paris: J. -P.M., 1988).
Most particularly, the numerous works by Francois Beaudouin.
132 France
by Jean Rouge on Roman sea-trade, followed by the less imposing, but very
rich work by Julie Velissaropoulos on ancient greek maritime institutions set the
stage. Considering the medieval period, the fundamental thesis by Michel
Mollat on Norman trade, and the publication, fifteen years later, of a study by
7Q
Henri Touchard on the commerce of Brittany as well as one on the Bordeaux
trade by Jacques Bernard, continue the tradition.
The Mediterranean has been the subject of several important studies; Henri
Bresc on Sicily, Jean-Claude Hocquet on Venetian salt trade, Jacques Heers
on Genoa, Jean Delumeau on Rome, Michel Balard on Genoese Romania
. 8£
and, finally, Freddy Thiriet on Venetian Romania. Spain has been less studied
than Italy, but we cannot ignore the work of Charles-Emmanuel Dufourcq on
87
Catalonian Spain and the Maghreb, and another on Valencia by Catherine
88
Guiral. The north of Europe, in comparison, has received much less investiga-
tion than the Mediterranean. Still, there are at least two important studies: one
by Stephane Lebecq on the medieval Frisians, which is an exemplary collabora-
80
tion between the use of written sources and archeology, and another by
Philippe Dollinger on the Hanse, which extends substantially into modern
times. For this last period we have in the first place, the monumental and justly
famous thesis by Pierre Chaunu on Sevilla, those by Frederic Mauro on
09 Q^
Portugal and the Atlantic, Victor Magalhaes-Godinho in the Indian ocean,
Jean Rouge, Recherches sur I 'organisation du commerce maritime en Mkditerranke sous I'Empire romain
(Rome: Ecole fracaise de Rome, 1966).
Julie Velissaropoulos, Les nauchUres grecs. Recherches sur les institutions maritimes en Grece et dans V Orient
hellenise (Paris-Geneve: Minard-Droz, 1980).
Michel Mollat, Le commerce maritime normand a la fin du Moyen-Age (Paris: Plon, 1952).
Henri Touchard, Le commerce maritime breton & la fin du Moyen-Age (Paris: Les Belles-Le teres, Annales
litteraires de l'Universite de Nantes, 1967).
Jacques Bernard, Nauires etgens de mer & Bordeaux vers 1450 - vers 1550, (Paris: S.E.V.P.E.N., 1968).
81 HenriBresc, UnmondemSditerraneeti. Economic etsodeteen Sidle 1300-1450 (Rome: Ecole ftancaise de Rome, 1986).
82 Jean-Claude Hocquet, Le sel etlafortum de Venise, 1200-1650 (Lille: Presses de l'Universite de Lille, 1978-79).
83 Jacques Heers, Genes au XVe siecle (Paris: S.E.V.P.E.N., 1961).
84 Jean Delumeau, Vie konomique et sociale de Rome dam la seconde moitU du XVJe siecle (Paris: S.E.V.P.E.N.,
1957-1959); L'alun de Rome (Paris: S.E.V.P.E.N., 1962).
85 Michel Balard, La Romaine genoise, Xlle debut de XVe siecle (Rome, Ecole francaise de Rome, 1978).
Freddy Thiriet, La Romanic vtnitienne au Moyen-Age. Le developpement et I' 'exploitation du domaine coloniale
vetiitien, Xlle-XVe siecle (Paris: de Boccard, 1975).
87 Charles-Emmanuel Dufourcq, L'Espagtie catalane et le Maghreb, (Paris: Presses Universitaires de France, 1 965) .
Catherine Guiral, Valence, port mediterraneen (Paris: Presses de la Sorbonne, 1975).
Stephane Lebecq, Marchands ettiavigateursjhsotis du Haut-Moyen-Age (Lille: Presse Universitaire de Lille, 1983).
90 Philippe Dollinger, La Hanse (Paris: Aubier, 1968).
91 Pierre Chaunu, Seville et I'Atlantxque 12 vol. (Paris: S.E.V.P.E.N., 1955-1960).
92 Frederic Mauro, Le Portugal et I'Atlantique (Paris: S.E.V.P.E.N., 1960).
Victor Magalhaes-Godinho, L'economie de I'empire portugais au XVe et au XVIe siecle (Paris: Fondation
Gulbenkian, 1969).
Coutau-Begarie 133
and those on the French trade during the eighteenth century by Paul Butel,
Charles Carriere, Christian Huetz de Lemps, Louis Dermigny, Jean Tar-
rade and, finally, the very recent one by Jean Ducoin.
The contemporary period has received much more attention by the
economists and historians. For example, I note the work of Jean HefFer on New
York harbour during the second half of the nineteenth century, who employed
the methods of New Economic History. All the works just mentioned above
are the best known and are directly focused on maritime history. There are,
however, many others which also consider sea-trade. The slave-trade, which no
one dares put under the single heading "Economic History," has given impetus
to rather numerous studies of mixed interest.
There is also a branch of maritime history which is all too often forgotten: the
history of fishing. It is usually left to local historians who have produced works not
easily accessible: we cannot, however, ignore important contributions in this field,
such as the one by Thierry du Pasquier on the French whaling industry.
Among all these works published during the last years, we must preserve a
special place for those concerning the history of Marseilles. This is largely because
of their quality, but it is also thanks to the support constantly provided historians
by the Chamber of Commerce of this premier French port. This fortunate
collaboration has allowed publication of numerous works in a unique situation
in France. Just the same, there are also numerous histories of coastal towns.
History of the French Seafaring People. Social history has been another
strong point of the Annales school, but it may be that maritime history has not
benefited from this as much as it has from economic history. Among the regional
studies, which have so much for French historians, some theses deal with
maritime populations. The northern part of France has an advantage by virtue
of the 1963 work by Jacques Toussaert on the population of the Flemish coast
1 o^
at the end of Middle Ages, and more recently another by Alain Cabantous,
Paul Butel, Les negotiants bordelais au XVIIIe siecle. L' Europe et les iles (Paris: Aubier, 1974).
Charles Carriere, Negotiants marseillais au XVIIIe siecle. Contribution & I'etude des economies maritimes (Paris:
1973).
Christian Huetz de Lemps, Geographic du commerce bordelais alafin du regne de Louis XIV (Paris: La Haye,
Mouton, 1975),
Louis Dermngy, La Chine et VOccident. Le commerce a Canton au XVIIIe siecle (Paris: S.E.V.P.E.N., 1964).
98
Jean Tarrade, Histoire du commerce atlantique au XVIIIe siecle, these inedite (1976).
Jean Ducoin, Naufrages, conditions de navigation et assurances dans la marine de commerce. Le cas de Nantes
et de son commerce colonial avec les Us britanniques (Paris: Librairie de l'lnde, 1993).
Parmi les plus recents, Jean-Michel Deveau, La traite rochelaise (Paris: Karthala, 1990); Serge Daget, La
traite des Noirs (Rennes: Ouest-France, 1990).
101 Thierry du Pasquier, Les baleiniersfrancais de Louis XVI a Napoleon (Paris: H. Veyrier, 1990).
See the series edited by Lindt and published in Toulouse.
Jacques Toussaert, Le sentiment religieux en Flandre maritime a la Jin du Moyen-Age (Paris: Plon, 1963).
1 34 France
which covers an adjacent region in more modern times. Still, one would
expect to find a greater number of studies concerning the coastal regions. In fact,
many often give only a secondary place to maritime subjects.
The revival in understanding seafaring populations was accomplished through
the history of mentalites. Alain Cabantous has made an important contribution
to this subject. It is a field in which many promising points of view have
recently been observed, for example, in Alain Corbin's original consideration
of the coastal region during the nineteenth century. The path followed by
Corbin is particularly interesting, since he started with a study on a mountainous
region far from the sea.
This very short account should be considerably extended by listing all the
studies that dealt incidentally or substantially with social history, and this is also
the case with almost all of the studies under the rubric of economic history. The
work by Michel Mollat, which bears a significant subtitle, "Studies of Economic
and Social History," is typical of the Annales school. Among recent works which
illustrate this connection, there is the thesis on the merchants of St. Malo by
Andre Lespagnol. To all this, one could add other numerous works, symposia
proceedings or books belonging to the much known series, La vie quotidienne des
gens de met dans I'Atlantique, IXe—XVIe siecle by Michel Mollat; La vie quotidienne
dans les ports mediterraneens, by Charles-Emmanuel Dufourcq, or La vie quotidienne
a Bordeaux au XVIIIe siecle by Paul Butel and Jean-Pierre Poussou.
Colonial history. There is a close relation between maritime history and
colonial history, the latter being called in France today, "overseas" history.
During the nineteenth century, the dependence of maritime and colonial affairs
on a single ministry was institutional in France but has since been abandoned.
Nevertheless, the bond between them has remained present in academia. During
recent years, colonial history has enjoyed a brilliant revival, reaching a peak at
the end of the 1980s with several remarkable works. In particular, one by
Philippe Haudrere, La Compagnie francaise des Indes 1719-1795, and another by
Jacques Weber Les etablissements jrancais en Inde au XIXe siecle 1816—1914, were
both submitted for consideration within a period of several weeks in 1987.
These two theses confirm the vitality of the French research on the Indian
Ocean. Additionally, a group led by Jean Aubin started a publication, Mare
104 Alain Corbin, Le territoire du vide. U Occident et le desir du rivage 1 750-1850 (Paris: Aubier, 1988).
Alain Cabantous, Dix mille matins face a Voce" an. Les populations maritimes de Dunkerque au Havre vers 1 660- 1 194
(Paris: Publisud, 1991).
106 Alain Corbin, he del dans la met. Christianisme et civilisation maritime XVe-XIXe siecle (Paris: Fayard,
1990).
107 Andre Lespagnol, Ces Messieurs de Saint-Malo. Une elite negociante au temps de Louis X/K(Saint-Malo:
L'Ancre de Marine, 1991).
See for instance, the Symposium of Boulogne on the seafaring populations; the proceedings were
published in a special issue of Revue du Nord, 1986.
Coutau-Begarie 135
Luso-Indicum, in the 1970s. There also are a number of works by Genevieve
Bouchon on India during the Portuguese investiture. The French have also taken
an active part in researching South-East Asian history, the maritime aspect of
which is clearly evident. This sector has also a specialized review, Archipel, and
has recently benefited by the monumental thesis on Java by Denys Lombard.
Nineteenth-century colonial history has generated many works, some of
which contribute to the maritime dimension; consider, for instance, those by
Jean-Louis Miege, former president of the CFHM. The idological aspect in some
of them was denounced several years ago by Francois Caron, and provoked
a controversy with Charles-Robert Ageron, but this must not overshadow
their important role in the development of maritime history.
The history of explorers cannot be ignored either. Jehan Desanges has
produced a very important study of the Roman activity along the african coast.
But nothing exists yet in French which equates to the remarkable analytical
editions of the ancient Peripli that have just been published in English. Michel
Mollat studied medieval sea voyages and edited a volume on the Verrazano
voyage; Etienne Taillemitte, for his part, edited the diary of La Perouse; Admiral
de Brossard did the same with the journal of Bougainville; and Numa Broc did
so with the journal of Pager. Special mention must also be made of Jean-Pierre
Faivre, for his important study of the South Pacific during the first half of the
nineteenth century.
A very productive and specialized branch also contributes to the work on the
explorers. For instance, the history of map-making, as exemplified by Mireille
Pastoureau's Voies Oceanes, or the oft-ignored thesis by Yoro K. Fall on
Majorcan portolan charts (showing that certain coasts were known before the
dates of their official discovery), add substantially to our body of knowledge.
For the contemporary period, Jacqueline Carpine-Lancre has published a
number of works on oceanography.
A good example of the link existing between both disciplines is the history
of naval and colonial medicine. This is a specialized subject, but demonstrates
the evolution of maritime history in France. As General medical doctor Niaussat,
Denys Lombard, Le carrefour jauanais (Paris: Editions de l'EHESS, 1990).
Francis Caron, La Frame des patriotes, volume V ofHistoire de France by Jean Favier (Paris: Fayard,
1987).
This is clarified in a long letter which has remained unpublished but is widely known.
1 1 0
Jehan Desanges, Recherches sur les activities des MediterranSens le long des cStes africaines (Rome: Ecole
francaise de Rome, 1980).
Jean-Paul Faivre, L 'expansion francaise dans le Pacifique, 1800-1842 (Paris: Nouvelles editions latines, 1953).
Mireille Pastoureau, Voies oceanes. Cartes marines etgrandes decouuertes (Paris: Bibliotheque nationale,
1992).
Yoro K. Fall, L'Afrique ci la connaissance de la cartographie modeme, (Paris: Karthala-CRA, 1982).
Jacqueline Carpine-Lancre, Souuerains ocSanographes: Dom Carlos Ier roi de Portugal et Albert Ier prince
de Monaco (Paris-Lisbonne: Fondation Gulbenkian, 1992).
1 36 France
one of the leaders of the naval and colonial medicine, put it, "It has been, if not
ignored, at least neglected ..." until a recent date. Here, France was unques-
tionably behind Great Britain, Germany, or Italy. There are only several isolated
individuals, (General medical doctor Carre on history of the naval medical
schools, Dean Jean-Pierre Kerneis on medical officers serving at sea, and
Professor Pierre Huard on the Far East) who can be cited in this field. Even so,
starting around the 1980s, we have observed several efforts in that field, along
with the organization of conferences on the history of naval and colonial
medicine and with the increase in the number of studies under the auspices of
Niaussat or Carre. Historians have stood somewhat apart from this process,
largely because of their lack of technical knowledge. Unfortunately, Jacques
Leonard, who was the exception, was not able to create a viable school because
of his untimely death.
• • •
This brief survey cannot pay homage to all the numerous authors who
contributed to, enhanced, and revived the knowledge of maritime history in its
diverse aspects. To the individual studies cited here, one must add a great number
of essay collections, particularly when considering the numerous symposia and
countless articles of high quality that have been produced. We hope, however,
that a vision of a French maritime and naval history, after a too long period of
marginalization, will emerge, fully integrated into the historical studies pursued
in academies and in the CNRS, including the irreplaceable contribution of the
amateurs, particularly those belonging to learned societies or coming from the
maritime professions. There are considerable deficiencies in the field, but there
is no doubt that maritime history is one of the most promising fields for future
work and development in the years to come.
Cf. P.M. Niaussat, "A propos d'une disciple historique trop meconnue: l'histoire de la medecine
navale et d'outremer," Chronique d'histoire maritime, ler semestre 1984, no. 9.
1
Germany
Kapitan zur See Dr. Werner Rahn, German Navy
Before we deal with naval history and the history of shipping in Germany,
a few preliminary remarks of a linguistic nature and definitions with regard
to contents are called for in order to prevent any misunderstandings.
Military History and Naval History: Some Remarks on Basic Terms
The German term Schiffahrtsgeschichte, literally translated as the "history of
shipping," can, without hesitation, be equated with the Anglo-Saxon term
"maritime history." This field of research centers on the ship as a system of
transportation with its economic, social, and technological context. The
development, construction, operation and handling, manning, and ultimately
the fate of the ship as well as many other spheres are fields of research in "maritime
history."
If we take the terms "military history" and "naval history," it is clear and
simple to most Anglo-Saxon historians what these terms involve. In the case
of "military history," research interest focuses on land forces, i.e. the army,
while in the case of "naval history" this interest focuses on naval forces or — to
put it in more general terms — the navy as an armed service. Both these spheres
are subordinate elements of general history, in particular that of strategy and
politics.
In contrast, since 1945 in Germany, the term "military history" has come to
be accepted as a generic term for that part of the study of history whose central
subjects of research are the armed forces and war. Military history deals with
the evolution and structure of the armed forces and their position in state and
society. Military history studies the importance of armed forces as a means of
policy and as an instrument of state authority. It analyzes the problems associated
with the exercise of command and control over armed forces in peacetime and
in war at the various levels.
A recent summary of the development of military historiography in Germany may be found in
Roland G. Foerster, "Military History in the Federal Republic of Germany and the Bundeswehr," in
David A. Charters, Marc Milner, and J. Brent Wilson, eds., Military History and the Military Profession
(Westport, Conn, and London: Praeger, 1992), pp. 191-210.
138 Germany
In this sense, "naval history" in Germany is taken to mean that part of military
history which focuses its study of the above-mentioned fields of research on the
"navy" as an armed service. When the term "military history" is used in the
following basic remarks, it always includes "naval history."
However, when dealing with the above-mentioned fields of research, there
is one sphere that must not be neglected, as it is the greatest challenge for military
history — I am referring to war! Ultimately, armed forces are raised, equipped
and trained so that they can one day be sent into battle. Thus, it is not only
legitimate but imperative that military history also deal with war and warfare in
the widest sense. This approach to research would appear, on the face of it, to
be self-evident; however, many years ago, John Keegan, in his seminal book The
Face of Battle, pointed out critically that many professional historians are shy of
exploring and portraying the profundities and realities of the phenomenon of
"war." This inhibition is also widespread in Germany.
Generally speaking, it can be expected of the military historian that he also
has a certain affinity with the subject of his research, namely the military, and
that he possesses a modicum of basic theoretical — and if possible also practical —
knowledge about the military in the same way that we naturally expect an
economic historian to have a sound basic knowledge of economic theory. John
Keegan is thus justified in demanding that the military historian should spend as
much time as possible among military personnel, "because the quite chance
observation of trivial incidents may illuminate his private understanding of all sorts
of problems from the past which will otherwise almost certainly remain obscured."'
The same is true for naval history. A historian who studies the origins and use
of naval forces will find that his research profits greatly if he has ever had the
opportunity to spend some length of time aboard a warship. He will find it easier
to evaluate and integrate most of his sources, such as reports, memoranda, and
planning documents from all levels of naval command. This is true especially
since some structural factors for the building and deploying of naval forces change
only very little over time.
Like any historian, the naval historian bears a great responsibility in his striving
after historical truth, if he wants to be taken seriously. This striving will never
be free of subjective values. The uncritical patriotic history which used to glorify
military and naval actions and successes is a thing of the past. Today, some
military historians tend to judge personalities, events, and structures according
to today's moral categories, and they end up "putting the past on trial, and since
the critical historian, armed with his generation's self-confidence or with his
See Carl von Clausewitz, Vom Kriege, Erstes Buch, II: "Der Soldat wird ausgehoben, gekleidet, bewaffnet,
geiibt, erschlaft, ifit, trinkt und marschiert, alles nur, urn an rechter Stelle und zu rechten Zeit zufechten."
John Keegan, The Face of Battle (London: Jonathan Cape, 1976), p. 29.
4 Ibid., p. 34.
Rahn 139
progressive concept of the future, knows everything better, in this trial he will
be prosecutor, judge and legislator all in one.
,.5
Research into German Naval History after 1945
After 1945, the documents of the German Navy, preserved almost in their
entirety, were available initially only to the Allied forces' historical research
sections. The files were transferred onto microfilm on a large scale; where more
than one original copy existed — e.g., several original copies of war diaries — the
British kept copy no. 1, while the second copy went to Washington D.C. This
was the case with numerous U-boat war diaries and the War Diary of the Naval
Staff. The Allied historians evaluated the material for their respective official
accounts of World War II, as is apparent from numerous references in the various
volumes. In most cases, however, the evaluation was confined to strategic and
operational sectors in order to make the Allies' corresponding actions and
reactions more easily understandable.
On the German side, initially, only former naval officers were allowed access
to selected files. On behalf of the British Admiralty or the U.S. Navy, they
compiled special operational and tactical studies that seemed necessary given the
fact that a conflict with the Soviet Union could no longer be ruled out. The
long-serving Head of the Historical Research Department of the Navy, Vice
Admiral Kurt Assmann, for example, worked in London writing an account of
the naval war in the Arctic Sea from the German point of view. Grand Admiral
Karl Donitz's son-in-law, Commander Giinter Hessler, was given unlimited
access to all files of the Naval Staff and the U-boat Command, in order to write
a comprehensive operational history of the Battle of the Atlantic. Hessler
performed this task in an outstanding manner and produced an operational
history which comprises an abundance of material and provides precise refer-
ences throughout, and which will surely remain unequaled for a long time to
come. The British Admiralty had the three-volume study translated, and from
1950 onwards had it distributed among the Royal Navy as Confidential Book
OB. 4523, later renamed B.R. 305. The third volume, covering the period June
1943 to May 1945, was, however, not published until 1977. For the translation,
Thomas Nipperdey, "Wozu Geschichte gut ist," Militargeschichtliche Mitteilungen, 41 (1987), pp. 7-13,
quotation p. 9.
See, for example, Stephen W. Roskill, The War at Sea 1939-1945, vol. I, The Defensive, (London:
HMSO, 1954), pp. xix, 51-60.
See Christian Greiner, "'Operational History (German Section)' und 'Naval Historical Team,'
Deutsches militarstrategisches Denken im Dienst der amerikanischen Streitkrafte von 1946 bis 1950,"
in Manfred Messerschmidt, Klaus A. Maier et al., eds., Militargeschichte. Probleme — Thesen — Wege,
(Stuttgart: DVA, 1982), pp. 409-35.
Vizeadmiral a.D. Kurt Assmann, "Die deutsche Kriegflihrung gegen den englisch-russischen
Geleitverkehr im Nordmeer 1941-1945," (unpublished manuscript, Bundesarchiv-Militararchiv,
Freiburg: RM 8/1126).
140 Germany
the German original version was somewhat abridged. It was not until 1989 that
the British Ministry of Defence decided to publish the study in the form of a
facsimile edition. The German Military History Research Office is currently
preparing the publication of the original German version.
The favorable source situation — due to the fact that the majority of the naval
documents were soon accessible and were extensively transferred onto
microfilm — at an early stage prompted a number of historians in America to deal
with the individual phases and problems of German naval history. In addition,
this group of documents provided an excellent starting point for studying the
German conduct of war and politics during World War II.
From among the numerous research studies, this article will mention only
the works of Keith W. Bird, Holger H. Herwig, Daniel Horn, Ivo Nikolai
Lambi, L.W. Lewis, Janet M. Manson, Eric C. Rust, Allison W. Saville, Charles
Thomas, Gerhard L. Weinberg, and Gary Weir.
Any new research into German naval history will first of all fall back on a
book which has been available since 1985 and which is likely to be used not
only as an indispensable aid but in many cases also as a sound guide: I am referring
to Keith W. Bird's bibliography, which he compiled in an exemplary manner,
entitled German Naval History. A Guide to the Literature. This work completely
covers and comments on the entire German naval literature of the nineteenth
and twentieth centuries. In addition, it is a comprehensive research report which
contains only few gaps. Bird not only lists sources and literature, but also provides
a comprehensive academic historical survey to which the individual titles are
allocated accordingly. Bird divides German naval historiography from the
nineteenth century to the present into six periods, and the demarcation lines
between the periods are generally undisputed. In this context, only the last two
periods are of interest: the period from 1945 to 1965 and the period from 1965
to the present. For research in Germany, the year 1965 constituted a turning
9 Ministry of Defence (Navy), German Naval History: The U-Boat War in the Atlantic, 1939-1945.
Facsimile edition with Introduction by AndrewJ. Withers, 3 parts in 1 volume (London: HMSO, 1989).
Militargeschichtliches Forschungsamt or MGFA.
For complete bibliographical datas of their publications up to 1984, see Bird, Keith W., German Naval
History. A Guide to the Literature (New York, London: 1985). Cf. further Janet M. Manson, Diplomatic
Ramifications of Unrestricted Submarine Warfare, 1939-1941 (New York: Greenwood Press, 1990), Gary E.
Weir, Building the Kaiser's Navy: The Imperial Naval Office and German Industry in the von Tirpitz Era,
1890-1919 (Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 1992), Eric C. Rust, Naval Officers under Hitler: The Story of
Crew 34, (New York: Praeger, 1991) and for the recent publications of Holger H. Herwig: "The Failure
of German Sea Power, 1914—1945: Mahan, Tirpitz, and Raeder Reconsidered," The International History
Review, February 1988, pp. 68-105; "Wolfgang Wegener and German Naval Strategy from Tirpitz to
Raeder" Introduction to Wolfgang Wegner, The Naval Strategy of the World War, Classics of Sea Power
series (Annapolis: Naval Institute, 1989), pp. xv-lv; "The Influence of A.T. Mahan upon German Sea
Power," in John B. Hattendorf, ed., The Influence of History on Mahan, (Newport, R.I.: Naval War College
Press, 1991), pp. 67-80.
12 Keith W. Bird, German Naval History. A Guide to the Literature (New York: Garland, 1985).
Rahn 141
point in that the process of returning most of the naval documents to Germany
was concluded in that year. Only the U-boat files of World War II remained
until 1978 in the custody of the British Ministry of Defence, which was very
restrictive in allowing use of these documents.
Besides the already mentioned naval officers who worked for the British
Admiralty or for the U.S. Navy, Walther Hubatsch, in 1956—57, was the first
German civilian historian to be allowed access to the German naval files in London;
he could, however, only evaluate them in parts. His findings resulted in the book
Der Admiralstab und die obersten Marinebehorden in Deutschland 1848—1945 (Naval Staff
and Supreme Naval Commands in Germany 1848—1945). This book and other
works by Hubatsch determined for a long time how the historical development of
the Navy was viewed, not least by the Navy itself! Thus, initially, one book remained
largely unnoticed, a book that was published in 1965 and which Bird justly calls a
"turning point": It is Jonathan Steinberg's work, Yesterday's Deterrent. Tirpitz and the
German Battle Fleet. For the first time since 1945, Steinberg — who consulted an
extensive wealth of original sources — examined the background against which, in
the late nineteenth century, Tirpitz was appointed Secretary of the Navy and
Germany began building a battle fleet.
After the return of the naval documents to Germany, from 1969 onwards a growing
interest also emerged among researchers in Germany in studying more thoroughly
the strategic and political aims as well as the individual military-technical plans of the
German Naval Command, using the source material that was then accessible. In this
context, it is noticeable that research focused on the following points:
• Naval arms policy in Imperial Germany, with the Secretary of the Navy,
Grand Admiral Alfred v. Tirpitz, in charge of building up the high seas fleet
(Volker Berghahn, Wilhelm Deist);
• The continuity or discontinuity of naval armaments from Emperor William
II to Hitler (Jost Dulffer, Werner Rahn, Michael Salewski);
Walther Hubatsch, Der Admiralstab und die obersten Marinebehorden in Deutschland 1848—1945
(Frankfurt/M.: 1958).
For complete bibliographical datas of their publications, see Bird, German Naval History, passim., and
recendy Volker R. Berghahn and Wilhelm Deist, Rustung im Zeichett der wilhelminischen Weltpolitik.
Grundlegende Dokumente 1890-1914 (Dusseldorf: Droste 1988) and Wilhelm Deist, "Kiel und die Marine
im Ersten Weltkrieg," in J. Elvert, J. Jensen, and M. Salewski, eds., Kiel, die Deutschen und die See (Stuttgart:
Steiner, 1992), pp. 143-54.
For complete bibliographical datas of their publications, see Bird, German Naval History, passim., and
recently Michael Salewski, "Das maritime Dritte Reich — Ideologic und Wirklichkeit 1933-1945," in
Deutsches Marine-Institut and Militargeschichtliches Forschungsamt, eds., Die deutsche Flotte im
Spannungsfeld der Politik 1848-1985. Vortrage und Diskussionen der 25. Historisch-Taktischen Tagung der Flotte
1985, Schriftenreihe des Deutschen Marine Instituts, Band 9 (Herford: Mitder, 1985), pp. 1 13-39; Werner
Rahn, "Kriegfuhrung, Politik und Krisen — Die Marine des Deutschen Reiches 1914-1933," ibid., pp.
79-104; M. Salewski, "Deutschland als Seemacht," Kiel, die Deutscheti und die See, pp. 21-34; Jost Dulffer,
"Wilhelm II. und Adolf Hitler. Ein Vergleich ihrer Marinekonzeption," ibid., pp. 49-69.
142 Germany
• The ideological orientation in the Naval Command's strategic and political
thinking up to 1945; and the planning and decision-making of the Supreme
Naval Command during World War II (Michael Salewski, Gerhard Schreiber,
Werner Rahn).16
After Volker Berghahn published his seminal book on Der Tirpitz-Plan in
1971, a gap still remained in the research on the Imperial Navy which was
closed only recently by Michael Epkenhans' study Die Wilhelminische
1 R
Flottenriistung 1908—1914. On a broad basis of sources, he analyses the phase
of naval armament policy which Berghahn had already characterized as a "decline
of Tirpitz' original concept." Epkenhans establishes that Tirpitz succeeded until
1914 in keeping his armaments program going despite declining public en-
thusiasm for the fleet and despite political doubts.
As historians concentrated on the Tirpitz era, two important phases of the
Imperial Navy were long neglected: the time before 1890, and World War I.
Recently , Jorg Duppler presented a comprehensive analysis of the development
of the Navy from 1848 to 1890, which concentrates mainly on naval relations
between Germany and Britain. Duppler proves in great detail that since 1848
the Royal Navy, by selling ships and training officers, gave a kind of "develop-
ment aid" to the fledgling German Navy.
The naval historians' reluctance to take a closer look at war itself has been
mentioned before. It is particularly evident for World War I. All the documents
are well catalogued and easily accessible in the archives, and they challenge the
historian to revise the official version as presented in Der Krieg zur See 1914—
19 IS. Even so, in recent years only two historians dealt with questions relating
to the war at sea from 1914 to 1918. Bernd Stegemann's doctoral dissertation
analyzed naval policy from 1916—1918, mainly concentrating on the interdepen-
dence of fleet deployment and submarine warfare. In his Ph.D. dissertation
For complete bibliographical datas of their publications, see Bird, German Naval History, passim., and
recendy Werner Rahn, "Der Seekrieg im Adantik und Nordmeer," Derglobale Krieg. Die Ausweitung zum
Weltkrieg und der Wechsel der Initiative 1941-1943 (Stuttgart: 1990) [= Das Deutsche Reich und der Zweite
Weltkrieg, ed. by MGFA, Vol. 6], pp. 275-425. [Paperback edition: Die Welt im Krieg 1941-1943, vol. I:
Von Pearl Harbor bis zum Bombenkrieg in Europa (Frankfurt a.M.: Fischer Taschenbuch Verlag, 1992), pp.
329-496], and W. Rahn, "Strategjsche Wechselwirkung zwischen Nord- und Ostseekriegfuhrung im 19.
und 20. Jahrhundert," Kiel, die Deutschen und die See, pp. 89-103.
Volker R. Berghahn, Der Tirpitz-Plan. Genesis und Verfall einer innenpolitischen Krisenstrategie unter
Wilhelm II (Dusseldorf: Droste, 1971).
1 R
Michael Epkenhans, Die wilhelminische Flottenriistung 1908-1914. Weltmachtstreben, industrieller
Fortschritt, soziale Integration (Munich: Oldenbourg, 1991) [ = Beitrage zur Militargeschichte, ed. by
MGFA, vol. 32]. - Cf. in this context also, Weir, Building the Kaiser's Navy.
Jorg Duppler, Der Juniorpartner. England und die Entwicklung der deutschen Marine 1848-1890,
Schriftenreihe des Deutschen Marine-Instituts, Band 7 (Herford: Mittler, 1986).
Der Krieg zur See 1914—1918, ed. by Marinearchiv, by Kriegswissenschaftliche Abteilung der Marine
and by Arbeitskreis fur Wehrforschung, 22 vols. (Berlin/Frankfurt/M.: 1920-1966).
21 Bernd Stegemann, Die deutsche Marinepolitik 1916-1918 (Berlin: 1970).
Rahn 143
presented in 1989, Gerhard P. GroB — an Army major! — concentrates entirely
on the conduct of the naval war in 1918. A comprehensive study of the
Imperial Navy, with particular emphasis on the naval war of 1914— 1918, similar
to Arthur J. Marder's exemplary five volumes on the Royal Navy, cannot be
expected in the foreseeable future.
Even the Handbuch zur deutschen Militdrgeschichte 1648—1939 (six volumes,
completed in 1981) makes a point of excluding the individual campaigns and
wars. The military, as a means of conducting war, was meant to be eclipsed by
the military as a structural part of society. However, the historical process called
"war" always influences the thoughts and actions of the military, even in
peacetime. It is regrettable that, while this seminal handbook contains an article
on the principles of land warfare, a similar chapter on naval warfare was not even
attempted.
With regard to the German naval campaign during World War II, and the
U-boat campaign in particular, an abundance of widely varying literature is
available, ranging from popular general accounts to special studies rich in material
that deals with operational and tactical questions regarding the employment of
surface units and anti-convoy operations by U-boats. However, there is as yet
no comprehensive learned overall account of the naval war compiled on the
basis of both German and British files. The World War II series edited by the
MGFA entitled Das Deutsche Reich und der Zweite Weltkrieg is not comparable
in its conceptional approach to corresponding works published in Great Britain
by Stephen W. Roskill and in the USA by Samuel Eliot Morison. Thus, for
instance, in volume 6, Der globale Krieg. Die Ausweitung zum Weltkrieg und der
Wechsel der Initiative 1941—1943, the account of the Battle of the Atlantic from
the spring of 1941 to May 1943 had to be confined to one hundred fifty printed
pages, since this volume with a total length of 1,181 pages was, after all,
designed to give an account of everything that happened in the war in Europe,
the Mediterranean, the Atlantic and also the Pacific. With his three-volume
work, Die deutsche Seekriegsleitung 1935—1945, Michael Salewski, too, was not
Gerhard P. GroB, Die Seekriegfuhrung der Kaiserlichen Marine imjahre 1918 (Frankfurt/M., Bern: Peter
Lang, 1989).
For the naval aspects, see Wolfgang Petter, "Deutsche Flottenriistung von Wallenstein bis Tirpitz" and
Jost Dulffer, "Die Reichs- und Kriegsmarine 1918—1939," Handbuch zur deutschen Militdrgeschichte
1648-1939, ed. by Militargeschichtliches Forschungsamt, vol. 4 / part VIII (Munich: 1978).
See Wolfgang Petter, "Ein neues Handbuch zur Marinegeschichte," Marineforum, 53 (1978), pp.
201-3, and the critical comments of Paul Heinsius, Hans-Otto Steinmetz and Thilo Bode, ibid., pp.
236 and 314-15.
Volumes 1-6, to be continued; English translation published by Oxford University Press under the
title, Germany and the Second World War.
Cf. Werner Rahn, "Der Seekrieg im Atlantik und Nordmeer," Derglobale Krieg, pp. 275-425.
27 Michael Salewski, Die deutsche Seekriegsleitung 1935-1945, vol.1: 1935-1941 (Frankfurt a.M.:
Bernard & Graefe, 1970), vol. 2: 1942-1945 (Munich: 1975), vol. 3: Denkschriften und Lagebetrachtungen
1938-1944 (Frankfurt a.M.: 1973).
144 Germany
able to study and describe the actual naval war; rather, he concentrates mainly
on the events at the heart of the Naval Command, i.e., in the Naval Staff, where
the strings were pulled and the decisions taken. With regard to the U-boat war,
the interested historian continues to be dependent above all on the numerous
works by Jiirgen Rohwer. In addition, the memoirs of Erich Raeder and Karl
Donitz, which the two published soon after their release from Spandau, are
consulted time and again. English translations followed a few years later. Today
we know fairly well how these memoirs came to be written. Raeder's memoirs
were for the most part the work of a team of former flag officers led by Erich
Forste, who felt particularly attached to their former commander-in-chief. Karl
Donitz, on the other hand, was able to rely on the already-mentioned work
by his son-in-law, Giinter Hessler, of which the latter had at his disposal a
complete copy — either unknown to his British employers or with their tacit
permission. At any rate, it later struck the historians in Germany that the U-boat
files used by Hessler, and later also quoted by Donitz, had not been freely
accessible to researchers until 1977. It was not until 1978 that they were
returned to the Federal Republic of Germany, and they are now in Freiburg
where they are available to historians.
In addition, the notes left by the two commanders-in-chief, Raeder and
Donitz, on their conferences with Hitler continue to remain an indispensable
source for any research activity into the German Navy during World War II.
The edition of these conferences with their numerous annexes contains a lot of
source material on all problems of naval warfare and naval armaments, illustrating
the Naval Command's struggle for resources and priorities. These conferences
were first published in English in 1948 in Brassey's Naval Annual. In this version,
however, the original texts were abridged in places, and some important annexes
to the conferences are also missing. This information is of particular importance
to historians from English-speaking countries, since an unaltered reprint of the
1948 edition was published in 1990 without mentioning the missing sections.
This reprint unfortunately also contains a preface giving a misleading statement
For complete bibliographical datas of his publications, see Bird, German Naval History, passim. Cf.
also the recently published new edition of J. Rohwer and G. Hiimmelchen, Chronology of the War at
Sea 1939-1945. The Naval History of World War Two (Annapolis: Naval Institute, 1992).
Erich Raeder, Mein Leben, vols. 1 and 2 (Tubingen: Schlichtenmayer, 1956-57), English translation
in one volume: My Life (Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 1960). Cf. Salewski, Seekriegsleitung, vol. 2,
p. 590.
-irk
Karl Donitz, Memoirs, Ten Years and Twenty Days, with an introduction and afterword by Jiirgen
Rohwer (Annapolis, Md.: Naval Institute Press, 1990). Cf. also Dieter Hartwig, "Karl Donitz - Versuch
einer kritischen Wurdigung," Deutsches Schiffahrtsarchiv, 12 (1989), pp. 133-52.
See the critics of Salewski, Seekriegsleitung, vol. 2, p. 276, note 21 and p. 658.
' Gerhard Wagner, ed., Lagevortrage des Oberbefehlshabers der Kriegsmarine vor Hitler 1939-1945,
(Munich: Lehmanns, 1972).
11
Fuehrer Conferetues on Naval Affairs 1939-1945, (Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 1990).
Rahn 145
on the genesis of the German original edition of 1972. Michael Salewski, in his
comprehensive and fundamental study of the German Naval Staff, was right in
pointing out that the topic "German naval armaments" deserved "extensive
special treatment." As far as the history of the entire German U-boat construc-
tion is concerned, a work by Eberhard Rossler, rich in material, has been
available for quite a few years. It is indispensable, above all, concerning
technical details of the individual types of U-boats and their variants as well as
for problems concerning the mass production of U-boats. In Das Deutsche Reich
und der Zweite Weltkrieg, the problems of the German war economy are examined
primarily at the level of the Wehrmacht High Command and the Reich Ministry
of Armaments and Ammunition. The analysis focuses on Army and Luftwaffe
armaments. Naval armaments are only touched upon, which means that the
special study of German naval armaments during World War II based on the
documents, as suggested by Salewski, will continue to remain a desideratum.
Apart from the OKW (German Supreme High Command) War diary, the
War Diary of the Naval Staff, Part A, is one of the most important and most
comprehensive sources for World War II. Day by day, it documents the
situation, the strategic and operational deliberations, and decisions of the naval
high command, as it strove assiduously for an adequate role of the naval
component within German overall warfare. In 1988, the MGFA began to publish
a facsimile edition. It will include a reprint of all sixty-eight volumes, covering
a month each, from August-September 1939 to April 1945. In view of the
enormous size of this publication, which will run to some 35,000 pages when
it is completed, the editors had to cut rigorously their critical apparatus. Their
annotations concentrate on clarifying difficult handwritten alterations, notes and
inserts as well as on cross-references to other Naval Staff documents. Even so,
on average, each volume contains some two hundred footnotes. Even if this
does not reach the standard of a comprehensive critical edition, this procedure
was the only feasible option if this important source for the history of World
War II is to be made available to researchers at large. Forty-four volumes have
Salewski, Seekriegsleitung, vol. 1, p. 130, note 98.
Eberhard Rossler, The U-boat. The evolution and technical history of German Submarines (Annapolis:
Naval Institute Press, 1981).
Cf. Das Deutsche Reich und der Zweite Weltkrieg, vol. 5, part I: B. Kroener, R.D. Muller, H. Umbreit,
Organisation und Mobilisierung des deutschen Machtbereichs, part I: Kriegsverwaltung, Wirtschaft und personelle
Ressourcen 1939-1941 (Stuttgart: DVA, 1988), pp. 570-74, 626-30 (Muller) and pp. 966-80 (Kroener).
Compare in this context the documentation of Werner Rahn, "Einsatzbereitschaft und Kampfkraft
deutscher U-Boote 1942," Militargeschichtliche Mitteilungen, 47 (1990), pp. 73-132.
P.E. Schramm, ed. Kriegstagebuch des Oberkommandos der Wehrmacht (Wehrmachtfuhrungsstab)
1940-1945, vols. 1-4, (Frankfurt a.M.: Bernard & Graefe, 1961-1979).
Werner Rahn and Gerhard Schreiber with the assistance of Hansjoseph Maierhofer, eds.,
Kriegstagebuch der Seekriegsleitung 1939-1945, Teil A, vol. 1 (August/September 1939 ); vol. 44 (April
1943) (Bonn, Herford: Mittler, 1988-93), [to be continued].
146 Germany
been published so far, containing 20,150 pages, covering the period up to April
1943.
In concluding, I should like to point out some gaps in research. So far, there
are no comprehensive biographical analyses for either Raeder or Donitz, nor
for the leading admirals of the Imperial Navy, including Tirpitz. For the
post- 1945 period, there are only very few studies which, based on original
sources, cover the origins and development of the two German navies between
1955 and 1990. The three-volume series Anfdnge westdeutscher Sicherheitspolitik
1 945— 1 956, however, presents first results of ongoing research into the origins
and beginnings of the Federal German Navy.
Naval History: The State of Teaching
German universities offer naval history neither as an independent subject nor
in specialized courses. As a consequence, the forces are the only organization to
teach naval history on various levels of their cadet and officer training programs.
The naval cadets receive an instruction in naval history as part of their term with
the Naval Academy, Flensburg. The level they are expected to achieve is defined
as follows:
The cadet will be able to describe the development, structure and tasks of German
naval forces during the 19th and 20th centuries as well as German strategy and
naval strategy during both World Wars. As a future leader of men, he has to be
able to instruct his subordinates on the origins and role of the Navy within the
Bundeswehr.
During a cadet course, which lasts for four or six months, twenty or thirty
hours respectively will usually be allotted to the naval history teacher. He will
explain the basic pattern of naval development from 1 848 to the present, with
particular emphasis on the twentieth century. The naval cadet will be acquainted
with the strategic aims and political repercussions of Tirpitz' fleet-building
program as well as with the command problems of the World War I German
Navy. Another period which receives special attention is the inter-war years and
naval warfare 1939—1945.
The Bundesmarine, the Federal German Navy, has been in existence for
nearly forty years now, which is longer than the combined lifespan attained by
the Reichsmarine and Kriegsmarine from 1919 to 1945. Therefore, it is
necessary and legitimate to place particular emphasis on teaching about this
Militargeschichtliches Forschungsamt, ed., Anfdnge westdeutscher Sicherheitspoltik 1945-1956, vol. 1:
Roland G. Foerster et al., Von der Kapitulation bis zum Pleven-Plan (Munich: Oldenbourg, 1982); vol.
2: Lutz Kollner et al, Die EVG-Phase (Munich: Oldenbourg, 1989); vol. 3: Hans Ehlert et al., Die
NATO -Option (Munich: Oldenbourg, 1993).
Information from Commander Dr. Dieter Hartwig to the author, May 1993.
Rahn 147
period, even more so, since the present navy was founded as a result of the Cold
War, which has shaped its development and structure up to 1990.
Since 1958, a large "historical collection" has been available as a valuable
teaching aid. In 1976, it was reorganized into the "Naval Historic Training
Center," which combines naval history, tradition of the Navy, and teaching.
This collection largely resembles a museum, and will be discussed later.
Following their first military training period, the cadets or young officers continue
their education at one of the Bundeswehr universities, either in Hamburg or
Munich. These universities do offer a course in history, but it is largely unconnected
with military or naval history. Since the professors who teach history at these
universities are intent on preserving their academic independence, they will not
discuss subjects drawn from military history on a regular basis.
After taking his degree, the young officer will return to the Naval Academy
for a few months to prepare himself for his first posting in the Navy. At this
point, a more thorough naval historical education is envisaged, but experience
shows that most officers have lost virtually all previous knowledge they might
have acquired in this field, making the job more challenging for teachers.
As part of their continued training, some 10 to 12 percent of every class attend
the two-year course for general-admiral staff officers at the Armed Forces
General Staff College in Hamburg. During this course, eighty-six hours are
scheduled for military and naval history. Here, the intended level of achievement
is defined as follows:
The officer on Admiral Staff Duty should be able to understand the interdepen-
dence and mutual influence of political and military leadership. He should
understand the influence of the various elements of war on past concepts of warfare
and draw conclusions which apply to the present. Based on historical examples,
he should be able to follow some basic principles of military commanders.
In this course, particular care is taken that the officer will get to know und
understand German and international concepts of naval strategy, of both the
ninteenth and twentieth centuries. Selected examples should enable him to
realize the nature and the elements of the reality of war. About thirty-five hours,
i.e., about 40 percent of the total reserved for the entire discipline, are scheduled
for these two fields of naval historical teaching. A special form of academic
training at the Armed Forces General Staff College is the requirement that
students write a thesis. This will analyze a specified, limited subject and must be
written during their stay at the Staff College. The lecturers in military history
41 Jorg Duppler, "Das Wehrgeschichtliche Ausbildungszentrum Flensburg-Miirwik," in Nordseestadt
Wilhelmshaven/Der Oberstadtdirektor, ed., Dokumentation Symposium Deutsches Marine-Museum
(Wilhelmshaven: 1988), pp. 91-5.
Curriculum of Fuhrungsakademie der Bundeswehr for the 34th AdmiralstafF Course (information
from Commander Dr. Nagler to the author, May 1993).
148 Germany
regularly offer a choice of historical topics, some of which will be researched
using original sources. A number of especially qualified papers have been
published, indicating the high standards of teaching at the Armed Forces General
Staff College.
Beginning in 1957, the German Navy began to develop a new approach in
studying its own history. That year, the first Commander-in-Chief Fleet, Rear
Admiral Rolf Johannesson, organized the first Historical-Tactical Convention.
Since then, it has been held every year, and it is now a standard element of the
entire naval officer corps' historical education. Admiral Johannesson's aim was
to distance himself from the subjective naval historiography about World War
I. He hoped that a critical discussion of the past would teach the officers truth,
loyalty, and moral courage, and that they would determine their own position
more solidly by a recourse to history and to the federal constitution. One of his
successors, Vice Admiral Giinter Fromm, summed this up in 1985 in a phrase
which can be taken as exemplary for any serious dealing with the past: "Yet,
there must be no taboos. What is necessary is rather a permanent effort to come
closer to the truth. Only truth, however difficult it may be to attain and to bear,
can give us the security of a sound foundation."
Up to 1993, thirty-three conventions have been held, covering a wide variety
of subjects. Papers are usually presented by junior officers (commanders and
captains are exceptions) from the fleet who are assisted in their preparations by
naval historians. The papers presented in some of the conventions have been
collected and published as books. The contents and results of the conventions
are regularly reported in the monthly naval journal, Marineforum. The papers do
Cf. H. Schuur, R. Martens, W. Koehler, Ftihrungsprobleme der Marine im Zweiten Weltkrieg, 2nd ed.
(Freiburg: Rombach, 1986); Diether Hiilsemann, "Die Versorgung des deutschen Kreuzergeschwaders
1914 und ihr EinfluB auf seine Operationen," Die Bedeutung der Logistikfiir die militarische Ftihrung von
der Antike bis in die neueste Zeit (Herford, Bonn: Mittler, 1985) [= Vortrage zur Militargeschichte, vol.
7], pp. 167-209; Uwe Dirks, "Julian S. Corbett und die britische Seekriegfuhrung 1914-1918,"
Militargeschichtliche Mitteilungen, 37 (1985), pp. 35-50; and Wulf Diercks, "Der EinfluB der
Personalsteuerung auf die deutsche Seekriegfuhrung 1914—1918," Militargeschichtliches Beiheft zur
Europaischen Wehrkunde, Nr. 1/1988.
Statement of Rear Admiral Rolf Johannesson (Ret.) to the audience in Deutsches Marine Institut,
ed., Der Marineoffizier als Ftihrer im Gefecht. Vortrage auf der Historisch-Taktischen Tagung der Flotte 1983
(Herford: Mittler, 1984), p. 241.
Giinter Fromm, "SchluBbemerkungen des Befehlshabers der Flotte," in Deutsches Marine-Institut
and Militargeschichtliches Forschungsamt, eds. Die deutsche Flotte im Spannungsfeld derPolitik 1848—1985.
Vortrage und Diskussionen der 25. Historisch-Taktischen Tagung der Flotte 1985, Schriftenreihe des
Deutschen Marine instituts, Bd 9 (Herford: Mittler, 1985), p. 223.
46 See "Generalthemen der Historisch-Taktischen Tagungen 1957-1985," ibid., pp. 225-7.
Cf, for example, Bild der russischen und sowjetischen Marine. Vortrage der 5. Historisch-Taktischen Tagung
der Flotte, 6.-7- Dezember 1961 (Frankfurt a.M.: Mittler, 1962) [= Beiheft No. 7/8 of Marine
Rundschau]; Die EntuHcklung des Flottenkommando. Vortrage der 7. Historisch-Taktischen Tagung der Flotte
am 5. und 6.12.1963 (Darmstadt: Wehr und Wissen, 1964); and Deutsches Marine Institut, ed., Der
Einsatz von Seestreitkraften im Dienste der auswartigen Politik. Vortrage auf der Historisch-Taktischen Tagung
der Flotte 1981 (Herford: Mittler, 1983).
Rahn 149
not always live up to the standards of the professional historian, but their
presentation and the candid, often lively, discussion of subjects relevant to the
business of the day usually give testimony of the multiple intellectual talents
among the Navy's officer corps. Many an admiral-to-be made his mark when,
as a lieutenant, he presented some sharply critical theory in the Naval Academy's
Grand Hall, provoking the older generation's opposition.
Maritime History: State of Research and Publications
The field of maritime history extends its range far back into ancient history
and covers the central aspects of the age of exploration. A key German language
work in this area is the comprehensive multivolume collection of documents
covering the history of European expansionism, covering the entire period of
European expansionism prior to the age of imperialism. However, the sources
have been translated into German only. The first volume covers the period from
about 500 A.D. to 1500, i.e., the beginnings of the age of exploration.
The second volume covers the great voyages of exploration from Henry the
Navigator in the fifteenth century to the opening up of the Pacific in the
eighteenth century. The third volume deals with the origins of the colonial
empires from about 1500 through the mid-eighteenth century.
The Deutsches Schiffahrtsmuseum (DSM — German Maritime Museum) at
Bremerhaven is the only learned institute in Germany that is exclusively
concerned with maritime history. At present, eleven historians and scholars of
other branches work in this museum. Their research covers, among others,
subjects such as: passenger shipping, merchant shipping, whaling, oceanography,
social history of navigation, marine painting, naval industrial archeology.
For a long time, the museum's research was focussed on maritime archeology,
which was justified by the finding and restoration of the Hanse Cog of 1380.
This aspect will be presented in more detail later on. Another focus of museum
work is the social and economic history of navigation. Recent publications by
members of the museum's staff deal mostly with problems of social history, such
as harbor workers, shipbuilders and the sailors' work.
Eberhard Schmitt, ed., Dokumente zur Geschichte der europaischen Expansion, 7 vols. (Munich: Beck,
1984 ff.).
Eberhard Schmitt, ed., Dokumente zur Geschichte der europaischen Expansion,, vol. 1 : Die mittelalterlichen
Urspriinge der europaischen Expansion, ed. by Charles Verlinden and Eberhard Schmitt with contributions
of Hanno Beck et al. (Munich: Beck, 1986).
Eberhard Schmitt, ed., Dokumente zur Geschichte der europaischen Expansion, vol. 2: Die grofien
Entdeckungen, ed. by Matthias Meyn et al. (Munich: Beck, 1984).
Eberhard Schmitt, ed., Dokumente zur Geschichte der europaischen Expansion, vol. 3: Der Aujbau der
Kolonialreiche, ed. by Matthias Mey et al. with contributions of Annegret Bollee et al. (Munich: Beck,
1986). Vols. 4 through 7 cover economy, trade, and life in the colonies, their role in international politics
and the end of the colonial system.
1 50 Germany
This varied research results in a large number of specialized publications which
are listed every year in the museum's annual report. These annual reports are
published in the museum's journal, Deutsches Schiffahrtsarchiv, which has existed since
1975 and has been published annually since 1980. It is now one of the leading
publications on maritime history in the German language. Also, the traditional
Hansische Geschichtsbldtter, which appeared in its 111th annual volume in 1993,
contains important contributions to the research of maritime history. Its regular
report on publications, called Schiffahrt und Schiffbau (Navigation and Shipbuilding),
and edited with profound knowledge by the museum's director, Professor Dedef
Ellmers, deserves particular attention. Out of the numerous tides published by
members of the museum's staff, only a few can be listed here. Arnold Kludas's
five- volume Geschichte der deutschen Passagierschiffahrt (History of German Passenger
CO
Shipping) is by now complete. Lars U. Scholl, a well-known expert in history of
German marine painting and economical aspects of maritime history, has published
the results of his research in several articles and catalogues. However, there is still
no comprehensive history of German merchant shipping. Any interested historian
will have to make do with representative volumes whose individual articles offer
important summaries of the latest research.
Maritime History: State of Teaching
So far, there are no courses in maritime history in any German university.
However, the departments of history in several north German universities
regularly offer seminars on subjects that are closely related to maritime history:
history of emigration, social history of shipbuilders and sailors. The lecturers will
often be staff members of the German Maritime Museum in Bremerhaven or
historians who have touched upon questions of shipbuilding and ship design as
part of their work on the history of technology.
Maritime and Naval Museums and Collections. Archaeology of Ship-
ping and Private Maritime Collections
Before World War II, Germany had a central institution for the study and
display of objects relating to shipping, namely the Museum fur Meereskunde
Arnold Kludas, Die Geschichte der deutschen Passagierschiffahrt, vols. 1-5, (Hamburg: Kabel,
1986-1990).
53 Lars U. Scholl: Claus Bergen 1885-1964. Marinemalerei im 20.Jahrhundert (Bremerhaven: 1982); Felix
Schwormstadt 1870-1938 (Herford: Koehler, 1990) and Der Marinemaler Hans Peter Jurgens (Herford:
Koehler, 1991); "Shipping Business in Germany in the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries," in
Tsunehiko Yui and Keiichiro Nakagawa, eds., Business History of Shipping. Strategy and Structure (Tokyo:
University of Tokyo Press, 1985), pp. 185-213, and "The Harriman-Hamburg- American Line
Agreement of June 1920: The Foremost German Shipping Company's Return to the Seas," Research
in Maritime History, 2 (1992), pp. 349-81. Dr. Scholl presented a paper, "German Maritime Historical
Research during the past twenty-five years. A critical survey" at the conference on New Directions in
Maritime History (December 1993, Perth-Freemantle, Australia).
Cf., for example, Volker Plagemann, Ubersee. Seefahrt und Seemacht im deutschen Kaiserreich (Munich:
Beck, 1988).
Rahn 151
(Museum of Oceanography) in Berlin. During the war, the building and large
parts of its collections were destroyed. Only a few pieces survived, and today
they are scattered among various collections and museums. Not least, the division
of Germany and of her capital Berlin meant that for several decades it was
impossible to fill this gap in an appropriate manner.
As a result of the vacuum created by the lack of a central museum, smaller
museums in the port towns and cities gained in importance. Thus, today, almost
every German port from Emden in the West to Stralsund in the Fast has a small
maritime museum. They often developed from private collections, and today
they provide the maritime historian and ship lover with an abundance of material
from different eras of maritime history. From the point of view of their location
and tasks, they naturally concentrate their collections on local peculiarities and
those of the adjacent coastal region.
The city of Wilhelmshaven has been canvassing for a central German Naval
Museum since 1988. However, this project did not get beyond its initial stage,
i.e., the preparation of a small collection. In 1992, an attempt failed to take
over the former naval training vessel, the Deutschland, and to set it up as a museum
ship.
From among these numerous museums, one museum stands out, which is to
be described in greater detail here. This is the Deutsches Schiffahrtsmuseum
(German Maritime Museum) in Bremerhaven. The starting point for the
foundation of the museum lay in three different spheres:
• When the Bremerhaven Morgenstern Museum moved to new premises in
1961 , a maritime section was also opened. In the years that followed, the museum
succeeded in acquiring important estates and collections, which today form a
major foundation of the German Maritime Museum.
• In 1962, the city of Bremerhaven decided not to fill in the old docks located
directly on the Weser but to preserve them as an expanse of water. This created
ideal conditions for a subsequent museum harbor, which got its first old ship in
1966.
• The salvage in 1962 of a medieval Hanseatic cog was a pioneer achievment
in the archaeology of shipping. Immediately after the ship had been salvaged,
funds for its lengthy restoration were also obtained. Thus, there was a major
impulse for the establishment of a central German maritime museum. The
museum was subsequently founded in 1971 and opened in 1975.
In the museum's charter of foundation, its tasks are described as folio ws:
Nordseestadt Wilhelmshaven/Der Oberstadtdirektor, Dokumentation Symposium Deutsches
Marine-Museum (Wilhelmshaven: 1988).
Cf. Wolf-Dieter Hoheisel, "Aufgaben und Aufbau des Deutschen Schiffahrtsmuseums," Hansische
Geschichtsblatter, 91 (1973), pp. 54—7, and Deutsches Schiffahrtsmuseum '75, Fiihrer des Deutschen
Schiffahrtsmuseums, Nr. 1 (Bremerhaven: 1975), and "Deutsches Schiffahrtsmuseum Bremerhaven,"
Museum, Januar 1/1977 (Braunschweig: Westermann, 1977).
152 Germany
1 . To collect historical exhibits, to illustrate and to document German maritime
history and its correlations;
2. To conduct academic research into all fields of German maritime history;
3. To use the museum's scientific and technological capabilities at its disposal in
order to work for the public on behalf of German maritime history.
In January 1972, the first ships were able to dock in the museum harbor. From
1970 to 1975, the museum's main building was constructed to a design by Hans
Scharoun. The concept of this building was to combine systematically arranged
exhibits in the building with an open-air collection of museum ships.
One of the major difficulties of maritime history exhibitions is caused by the size
of the ships, which precludes the use of originals to illustrate the evolution of ship
types. It is necessary to resort to scale models and accept the effect of niinirnization
that this involves. To counterbalance this, the German Maritime Museum has
attached particular importance to establishing the relation to the original dimen-
sions— the ships in the Old Docks and on the Weser can be seen from the exhibition.
At the same time, these ships, plus a few original-size systems, form the centerpieces
of the individual exhibition sections, to which the other exhibits are clearly
subordinated. From among the museum ships, I should like to mention only the
naval ships: they are a fast patrol boat from the early days of the post-war
Bundesmarine and the only surviving Type XXI World War II submarine. The
museum includes a separate naval department which displays, inter alia, an original
type Seehund midget submarine of fifteen tons.
The Hanse Cog
Archaeology of shipping and reconstruction is exemplified by the Hanse
58
cog. On 9 October 1962, during dredging work in the Weser river, the wreck
of a ship was discovered which, on the basis of numerous symbols on seals, was
identified as a medieval Hanseatic cog. This type of ship was not only the
regular cargo ship of the early Hanseatic league until well into the fifteenth
century, the cog was also the means of early Hanseatic naval warfare. As this
wreck had been found by chance, nobody was prepared for salvaging such a
ship. However, the rescue of the find had to commence immediately, as the cog
was in danger of breaking apart as soon as the supporting masses of sand were
Cf., Technikmuseum U-Boot "Wilhelm Bauer." Kleine Geschichte und Technik der deutschen U-Boote
(Bremerhaven: 1990).
58 The following part is based on the special journal Museum, 1 (1977), pp. 20-24. (This chapter was
written by Wolf-Dieter Hoheisel) . Cf. also Klaus-Peter Kiedel and Uwe Schnall, The Hanse Cog of 1380
(Bremerhaven: 1985) and Die Kogge von Bremen, vol. 1, Werner Lahn, Bauteile und Bauablauf, Schriften
des Deutschen Schiffahrtsmuseums, 30 (Hamburg: Kabel, 1987) with 37 plans and 161 illustrations.
See Paul Heinsius, Das Schiff der hansischen Fruhzeit, 2nd ed. (Cologne and Vienna: Bohlau, 1986).
Rahn 153
removed. Eventually, a great effort made it possible to complete most of the
salvage operation before the onset of the winter of 1962— 63. However, another
ten years were to elapse before it was possible to lay down the keel of this
Hanseatic ship for a second time, this time in the purpose-built "Kogge-Haus"
of the German Maritime Museum on 1 November 1972. As nobody knew the
exact size and shape of the cog, the restorers had to put the ship back together
by assembling some 2,000 pieces. It was one big jigsaw puzzle. They often had
to rely on conjectures, which were then checked by using the actual conditions.
In the course of their work, the restorers tested new measurement, damp wood
bonding, and preservation techniques. The reconstruction of the cog took place
in a foggy atmosphere, since otherwise the saturated, almost six-hundred-year-
old oak would have shrunk by 25 to 30 percent. Then, a preservation basin had
to be constructed around the ship in which the cog is impregnated with a
preservation fluid for many years. During this time, the water-soluble preserva-
tion agent, polyethylne glycol, slowly penetrates all the components starting
from the surface. In the process, the water present in the cells of the wood is
gradually replaced by the polywax, which then, during the subsequent drying
process, forms a "supporting corset" and prevents shrinkage. This process should
be completed in around 10 years. The cog is now the central exhibit of the
"Middle Ages" section at the German Maritime Museum.
Once the restoration of the original cog had progressed so far that it was
possible to clearly distinguish the design of the ship, the suggestion was made to
build an exact reproduction of the cog. It was hoped that tests with this replica
under actual sea conditions in the area in which it used to operate, i.e., primarily
the North Sea and the Baltic, might answer questions as to the cogs' sail-carrying
ability, their seaworthiness, load capacity, navigation, etc.
The replica's length overall is 23 meters, its beam over all is 7.26 meters.
When loaded with the maximum cargo of 87 metric tons, the draught is 2.25
meters, giving a displacement of about 120 metric tons. The cog, which was
salvaged from the Weser, had been lost in an accident in 1380 while being built.
Because none of the rig's original parts were found near the wreck, which would
have provided clues to the ship's sail-carrying ability, replicating the rig posed
special problems. The rig's reproduction had to be based on old representations;
a description by the Italian, Timbotta, dating from 1 444 could also be used. Final
details such as the sail area of 200 square meters were eventually decided upon
after a model had been tried in a wind tunnel.
From 1987 to 1990, two replicas of the cog were built, one in Kiel and another
in Bremerhaven. They were meant for two different purposes:
The following description is based on Wolf-Dieter Hoheisel, "A Full-Scale Replica of the Hanse
Cog of 1380," Yearbook of the International Association of Transport Museums, 15/16 (1988/1989), pp.
26-33. Cf. also Wolf-Dieter Hoheisel, "Rekonstruktion der Bremer Hans-Kogge," fahrbuch der
Schiffbautechnischen Gesellschaft, 82 (1988), pp. 223-9.
154 Germany
• The Kiel replica was built as true to the original as possible, to permit a
better analysis of the advantages and disadvantages of the medieval structure and
its influence on the ship's characteristics. Without an engine or any other aids,
it was used to determine exactly how a Bremen cog sailed in the Middle Ages.
• The Bremerhaven replica was built for a different purpose. It was to
undertake studies in long-term cruises along the Hanseatic sailing routes in the
North Sea and in the Baltic. For safety reasons, an engine and modern navigation
aids had to be included to prevent accidents, e.g., on a lee shore. Of course, the
city of Bremerhaven also sees visits of this cog to former Hanse cities as good
public relations for Bremerhaven and its German Maritime Museum.
In June 1991, the first sailing trials of the Kiel cog commenced. Their results
confirmed the prior calculations. Up to wind-force 4—5, the cog could run under
full sail, heeling less than 15 degrees. With wind-force 6—7 from nearly abaft,
the cog made slightly more than 7 knots. However, during the first trials the cog
was unable to beat against the wind. Scientific results of the trials, however, are
not expected until 1994—5, and will probably be published in the Jahrbuch der
Schiffbautechnischen Gesellschaft.
Until 1945, the Museum fur Meereskunde (Museum of Oceanography) in
Berlin included a large department of naval history. Among other items, it held
the first German submarine, the Brandtaucher, built by Wilhelm Bauer in 1848.
When this museum was destroyed, Germany lost its most valuable exhibits,
which had documented naval history.
Before 1990 the German Armed Forces had no central museum of military
history which might have included a separate section for naval history. This was
for a variety of reasons, not the least being a lack of funds. After reunification in
October 1990, the Bundeswehr took over the former East German Army (NVA)
Museum of Military History, which had been established in Dresden. At the
moment, it looks as if that museum will eventually be the central German
museum for military history. It includes a naval department with a number of
valuable exhibits and good models. Its showpiece is certainly the Brandtaucher
which, although very badly damaged during World War II, was rescued from
among the ruins of the Museum of Oceanography and later restored.
The best collection documenting naval history can be found in the Naval
Historic Training Center of the German Naval Academy at Flensburg. When
this collection originated in 1958, its aims were defined as follows:
Information from Professor Dr. Detlev Ellmers and Dr. Lars U. Scholl, both of German Maritime
Museum, Bremerhaven, to the author, May-September, 1993.
Cf. Wolf-Dieter Hoheisel, "Erste Segelversuche mit dem Kieler Nachbau der Bremer Hanse-Kogge
von 1380," Deutsche Schiffahrt, 2 (1991), pp. 23-5.
Cf. Klaus Herold, "Der Kieler Brandtaucher. Ergebnisse einer Nachforschung," Kiel, die Deutschen
und die See, pp. 123-42.
Rahn 155
The Historic Collection, as part of the Center of Military History, will illustrate
the various epochs of the German naval past to the officer cadets and officers as
part of their education, so as to motivate them for their chosen profession as naval
officers. Also, it will serve to cultivate naval tradition and to inform the public
about Germany's maritime interests, past and present. The exhibition will there-
fore center on the development and history of naval forces from the end of the
19th century.
Based on a Naval Staff order dated April 1958, the Naval Academy developed
a department which was initially called the "Historical Collection." Renamed
"Naval Historical Training Center" in 1976, it united naval history, the tradition
of the Navy, and teaching into an organic whole, with all three components
enjoying equal status.
This collection started from humble beginnings in 1958, and it is not actually
a museum. Still, in view of the large number of exhibits, some of which are
extremely valuable, it compares favorably with other, similar institutes. Today,
it holds some 150 model ships, 350 oil paintings and prints, 300 flags and
pennants, 15 busts, 7 figureheads, 25 coats of arms from ships' bows, 80 situation
maps, 300 ships' diagrams as well as several thousand photographs depicting
individuals, ships, and events. The photographs are often from old albums which
have been presented to the collection by former officers and men of the Navy.
The collection is mainly used for the instruction and education of the officer
cadets. Also, some 6,000 visitors per year, excluding Navy personnel, find it a
source of valuable information for their historical interests. The manuscript
collection now numbers about 17,000 items, and it is used increasingly by
historians, both from Germany and from abroad. Meanwhile, the exhibition has
found better accommodation in what used to be the commandant's villa, making
it more accessible to outside visitors.
This report on German museums and collections relating to maritime and
naval history can by no means be complete; it can only present a selection.
However, one private collection has to be mentioned. It has a special position
as one of the largest and most important of its kind. Its owner is the publisher
and former Chief Executive of Springer Publishing Company, Peter Tamm, in
Hamburg. This collection includes not only a special library of about 60,000
volumes, it consists of a vast number of extremely valuable ship models, paintings
Jorg Duppler, "Das WehrgeschichtlicheAusbildungszentrum Flensburg-Muiwik, " Dokumentation Symposium
Deutsches Marine-Museum, pp. 91-5, and Franz Hahn, "Ein Rundgang durch das Wehrgeschichtliche
Ausbildungszentrum," in Deutsches Marine Institut. Conception and Redaction: Dieter Matthei, Jorg
Duppler and Karl Heinz Kruse, Marine schule Murwik (1910-1985), 2nd rev. ed. (Herford: Mittler, 1989),
pp. 213-20.
Cf. Heinrich Walle, "Private Sammler maritimer Kunst," in Deutsches Marine Institut and
Militargeschichtliches Forschungsamt, eds., Seefahrt und Geschichte (Herford and Bonn: Mittler, 1986),
pp. 220-5, and [without author] "Das Wissenschaftliche Institut fur Schiffahrts- und Marinegeschichte,"
Marinejorum, 67 (1992), pp. 426-7.
1 56 Germany
dating from the sixteenth century to the present, innumerable manuscripts,
charts, uniforms, decorations, weapons, and other historic maritime exhibits.
The collection is now a part of the private Institute of Maritime and Naval
History, which is still in the process of development. Large parts of the collection
have time and again enriched major exhibitions elsewhere.
Correlations between Naval and Maritime History
The close relationship between maritime and naval history makes it obvious
that there is an interdependence between the two fields of research. Even so,
cooperation between historians dealing with maritime and naval history, respec-
tively, has so far been sporadic rather than intensive. As there was always a tension
between naval and merchant navigation, this distance is also quite discernible
between historians researching naval and maritime history. The much-regretted
general tendency of all historians to specialize also contributes to a neglect of
subjects which cover more than one narrow field. A number of learned
associations exist, but they do not care to improve cooperation. In view of the
forthcoming cuts in research grants, cooperation will be more essential than ever
if the available monetary and staff resources are to be employed effectively for
fundamental naval and maritime research.
Conclusion
It is a basic, and perennial challenge to historians to try and come close to
historic truth. Today, the German Navy has both a lively interest in its history
and also a special relationship with it. A clear link can be seen between the
historical self-perception of its officers and the history of their service. In the
past, this link often served only to legitimize and to secure the Navy's own
position in its fight for recognition and even for its existence, during a relatively
short period. In such situations, there is a danger if historical interest is limited
only to the Navy itself and to naval warfare, and too little attention is paid to
the "general context, to the subordination of the individual aspect under the
varied panorama of historical development."
The various aspects of highly specialized maritime historiography are beset by
similar dangers. The commercial success of popular publications as well as the
number of visitors attracted to the museums indicate how many people have
some historical interest. This continuing interest is a stimulating challenge for
the professional historian. We should continue to try and present our findings
about past backgrounds and structures in such a way that the message gets across,
i.e., in such a way that historical knowledge and sensitivity become a stabilizing
factor for a liberal society. And if this calling sounds ponderous enough, we
Wilhelm Deist, "Auflosungserscheinungen in Armee und Marine als Voraussetzungen der deutschen
Revolution," in MGFA, ed., Menschenfiihrung in der Marine, Vortrage zur Militargeschichte, 2 (Herford
and Bonn: Mittler, 1981), p. 37.
Rahn 157
should not forget the humorous touch — it always was and always will be a
refreshing element of human life.
In 1943, the following story received clearance for publication in Germany:
A circus had been hit during an air raid on Berlin. Two lions escaped and were
on the loose without anyone having any idea where they might be.
After two weeks had passed, one of the lions returned ruefully to his cage. He
looked worn out and thin and swore to his fellows: "Never again! I'd rather put
up with bad horse meat than have to find my own food in Berlin!"
The next day, the other lion came back; proud as anything and fatter than he had
ever been before. "Hello! Where have you been?" the others called to him, "what
have you been up to?"
"Who me? — I was in Naval Command Headquarters and every day I had an
admiral for my supper. But be careful not to tell anyone — no one's noticed yet."
And back he ran to the Naval High Command.
To draw an analogy from this story, you could say that after World War II,
German naval archives were indeed eaten by British and American historians
while German historians, without any access to the original documents, looked
worn out and thin for a long time.
• • •
The collation of this material and its translation into English was generously
supported in a variety of ways by a number of colleagues. I am grateful to Colonel
(GS) Dr. Roland Foerster and Major Winfried Heinemann, both of the MGFA,
as well as to Commander Dr. Dieter Hartwig of the Naval Academy in
Flensberg, Lieutenant Commander Dr. Frank Nagler of the Armed Forces Staff
College, Hamburg, Professor Dr. Detlev Ellmers and Dr. Lars U. Scholl, both
of the German Maritime Museum, Bremerhaven, and Professor John Hattendorf
of the Naval War College.
Peter Ernst Eiffe, Seemannsgam. "Splissen und Knoten " zweite Folge. Heitere Marinegeschichten mit einem
Geleitwort des Admiralinspekteurs der Kriegsmarine des GroBdeutschen Reiches GroBadmiral Raeder
(Magdeburg: 1943), pp. 45—6.
13
India
Captain C. Uday Bhaskar, Indian Navy
The study of naval and maritime history offers a curious paradox in the
Indian context. For a nation whose recent political history has been
inextricably linked with the dictates of sea power and whose maritime history
goes back to earliest antiquity — namely to the Mohenjo— Daro— Harappa period
(c. 3000—1500 B.C.) — the actual study of naval and maritime subjects in India is
modest, to say the least.
History itself, as interpreted in the Western context, is something alien to the
Indian psyche. There are various reasons for this trait. At the broad level of
civilizations, it is averred that the timelessness of Indian thinking and metaphysics
defies the special perch of history. The continuum of time is seen as an endless
cycle punctuated by the birth, life, death, and rebirth of the protagonist — be it
the individual or the soul — the only perennial entity being the essence of
civilization. At a more simplistic level, a casual observer may look at language
and deduce that in Hindi, the national language of the country, the word for
yesterday and tomorrow is the same, kal, thereby diluting the need to preserve
the past in a codified and rigorous manner.
Be that as it may, a preliminary survey suggests that, barring the professional
naval establishments, there is no dedicated institutional infrastructure for the
study of naval and maritime history in India. All the universities in India offer
detailed courses in the study of history per se, but the division is more traditional
in the sense that ancient Indian history, the medieval period, and the British
period are some of the broad areas studied. These may be explored further in
their political, social, and economic dimensions, but the actual study of military
history, with specific reference to the naval and maritime dimension is currently
in its infancy.
A wealth of material remains to be excavated. For instance, the linkages
between sea power and the political fortunes of the early Indian dynasties — the
Satavahanas and the Mauryans — need to be authoritatively analyzed and, in like
fashion, specific linkages in maritime commerce, ship-building, and contacts
Captain C. Uday Bhaskar, Indian Navy, is currently Senior Fellow at the Institute for
Defense Studies and Analyses, New Delhi.
160 India
with the rest of the ancient world need to be rigorously examined. Some research
at the post-graduate level is now being encouraged in certain universities in
India, such as those in Delhi, Calcutta, Bombay, and Madras. A more detailed
survey of Indian academia may be warranted at a later stage to fill in the
inadvertent omissions of this preliminary report.
Among the service establishments, naval and maritime history receives
tangential attention at the Defence Services Staff College, Wellington, Nilgiris,
Tamil Nadu, and at the College of Naval Warfare, Bombay, and the National
Defence College, Delhi. But none of these three establishments teach the
subjects in the pristine, academic sense. In an effort to infuse a historical sense
into their respective studies, these colleges correlate naval and maritime history
strands with the specific issue or subject being studied. Here, the threshold at
which the students come to the college is relevant and this gives one an insight
into the manner in which naval and maritime history are woven into the
curriculum.
The Defence Services Staff College is the first stepping stone for higher
command in the Indian armed forces, and officers enter at the grade of lieutenant
commander and its equivalent, major or squadron leader. Here, naval and
maritime history are related to specific tactical studies and are undertaken in
groups. Campaign studies receive greater attention, and, here again, the correla-
tion is between the principles of war and twentieth century naval battles and
campaigns. The Atlantic and Pacific campaigns of World War II are studied in
detail, specifically the Battle of Midway, the Normandy landing, along with the
Korean War landing at Inchon. More recently, the Falklands campaign and the
Gulf War have become logical priorities in the Defence Services Staff College.
In sum, the Defence Services Staff College does not teach maritime or naval
history, but it deals with specific historical issues that encompass naval battles at
sea or amphibious operations that are taken up in the syndicate and divisional
portions of the group study program. Each group makes a final presentation to
the entire college, at which stage certain relevant aspects of naval and maritime
history are discussed.
The College of Naval Warfare conducts courses for officers at the rank of
senior commander or captain. Here also, there is no attempt to teach naval and
maritime history. However, in the effort to infuse a historical sense into studies
of naval strategy, the discussions on ancient and medieval Indian history include
specific aspects of naval and maritime history. This syllabus is still being refined,
and I believe that there will be a gradual shift from the political science content
to a marked maritime strategy content in the years ahead. Currently, the College
of Naval Warfare offers a separate session on the maritime heritage of India and
the ancient methods of navigation in these waters. The latter aspect is also
receiving attention in the Bombay University.
Bhaskar 161
The National Defence College, New Delhi, is the apex college for the Indian
Armed Forces and also has representatives from other nations. Student officers
are of brigadier and equivalent rank. Here again, there is no formal teaching of
naval and maritime history. However, during this one year— long course at the
National Defence College, sea power per se is analyzed. The historical perspec-
tive, the Indian context, and the colonial paradigm are explored. Guest lecturers
are invited to address these subjects and, for the last two years, I have been
involved in structuring lectures around these subjects. For example, subject
themes, such as "Maritime Rivalry in the Indian Ocean: A Historical Perspec-
tive" and "The Impact of Sea-power on the Littoral of the Pacific and Indian
Oceans: Prognosis in the Post— Cold War," have evolved to cover all the salient
political, economic and military aspects of naval and maritime history.
There is no single intellectual trend or critical theory that is adhered to in the
discussions at the above institutions, but there is little doubt that the perspective
of the naval and maritime events under study is from that of a non- white, former
colony. It is often averred in India that the lack of adequate appreciation about
the relevance of sea power by early Indian rulers led to the later colonization of
the sub-continent. This theme has been amply dealt with by K.M. Panikkar in
his books on the subject and provides the basic intellectual thrust to the current
Indian interpretation.
No Indian university offers any specific courses in naval/maritime history per
se. These subjects are dealt with as part of a larger sub-heading, e.g., in addressing
economic history of a period or region, the maritime trade aspects are covered.
In like fashion, while naval battles or capabilities receive little individual attention
in the universities, references are made to the maritime strand while dealing with
the specifics of political history.
While it has not been possible to survey all the Indian universities individually,
one has been able to look more closely at the syllabus of the Jawaharlal Nehru
University, New Delhi and some of the findings here may be extrapolated to
the larger Indian university canvas as a general indicator of the current trend.
For example, one of the courses offered at the post-graduate level in the
Center for Historical Studies at the Jawaharlal Nehru University is entitled:
"Economic History of India: Trade, Commerce and Industry in India in the
17th and 18th centuries." The subject is treated in the following manner:
Structure of Asian trade: 10th-15th centuries; the Portuguese domination of the
Indian Ocean in the 16th century; the response of Indian merchants and rulers
to Portuguese hegemony; the Dutch rule in intra-Asian trade; Dutch trade in
India; the English East India Company; the economy of Gujarat; the Indian
merchants and their trading practice; the role and position of merchants in
K.M. Panikkar, India and the Indian Ocean (London: George Allen and Unwin, 1962).
162 India
economy and society; the Coromandel; the economy of Bengal; and some
aspects of technology and industry.
In like fashion, while dealing with medieval Indian history, for instance, the
Cholas in the ninth to thirteenth centuries of peninsular India are the subject of
a separate course. In this course, the maritime trade practices of the Cholas and
their expeditions into Sri Lanka and South East Asia are dealt with as part of the
economic and political history of the period.
Further, a course on "Trade Networks in the Indian Ocean: Fifteenth to
Eighteenth Centuries" examines the geographical setting of the Indian Ocean,
the pre-European concepts, nature and meaning of the Indian Ocean as a world
economy, the Indian Ocean trade network before the fifth century, the con-
tribution of European trading companies, the role of China and East Asian
countries and ship-building technology.
These illustrative examples from the Jawaharlal Nehru University are
symptomatic of the larger trend in Indian academia, wherein there appears to
be a lack of any specialization in naval and maritime history perse. This is a glaring
gap as far as the professional sailor is concerned, and more recently there has
been an attempt by the Indian Navy to make a modest contribution in this
regard. Naval Headquarters has been encouraging naval historians to research
specific subjects, and in the last few years retired Rear Admirals Satyindra Singh
and K. Sridharan have made noteworthy contributions.
A small but significant step in creating a national maritime consciousness has
been the addition of a naval-maritime wing to the National Museum in New
Delhi. Despite the claims to an ancient maritime past that goes back to about
4000—6000 B.C., there was no dedicated maritime museum in India barring the
few naval museums outside of Delhi. This lacuna was partially redressed by the
addition of this new maritime wing to the National Museum in 1992.
However, there is a need to encourage greater specialist studies in Indian naval
and maritime history in the first instance and then attempt an interdisciplinary
study of the different strands that, taken collectively, will point to a more holistic
understanding of the Indian past.
Academic Perspectives (New Delhi: Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharal Nehru University, 1989),
pp. 105, 106.
3 Ibid., p. 113.
4 Ibid., p. 118.
Rear Admiral Satyindra Singh, Under Two Ensigns: The Indian Navy, 1945-50 (New Dehli: Oxford
and IBH Publishing Company, 1985); Rear Admiral Satyindra Singh, Blueprint to Bluewater: The Indian
Navy, 1951-65 (New Delhi: Lancer International, 1992).
6 Rear Admiral K. Sridharan, History of the Naval Dockyard Bombay — 250 Years, 1735-1985 (Bombay:
The Admiral Superintendent, Naval Dockyard, 1989).
14
Ireland
John E. de Courcy Ireland
The independent Irish State was set up in 1922 after centuries of unrest
following the definitive English occupation of the island early in the
seventeenth century. The Irish had always been a maritime people, and in the
two centuries preceding the definitive English occupation, Irish seamen and
shipowners were engaged in lively maritime commerce with England and
Scotland, Portugal, Spain, France, the Netherlands, Germany, and Scandinavia.
There is powerful evidence that as well as a variety of traditional— type vessels,
Irish shipowners had ships of the most modern types available in Europe. The
Irish sea fisheries were very rich and were frequented by continental as well as
Irish fishermen. Some of them were fishing the Grand Banks by the 1550s, and
the wealth of these fisheries was one of the reasons for the English government
undertaking a final conquest of Ireland later in the sixteenth century.
Being divided into nearly one hundred petty principalities, with about a score
of largely autonomous seaport towns and no centralized Irish authority, the Irish
people had no navy or naval policy and only rudimentary systems of maritime
law. In the past, a remarkable English seaman, Thomas Stucley from Devon,
with ambitions to become a power in Ireland, was the first person to realize the
strategic importance of Ireland. He presented Philip II of Spain with detailed
ideas on the subject of Waterford as an ideal base for Spain to seize to exercise
permanent strategic pressure on England. After Philip ignored the advice, Stucley
fell out with the government in London and offered his services to Spain. Only
Hugh O'Neill, leader in the last phase of resistance to the English invasion,
understood the need to create an Irish state with a navy and merchant ships at
its disposal.
Very few leaders of the numerous movements that arose in Ireland in the
centuries after 1607 showed serious interest in the economic potential of
Ireland's geographical situation, if it attained freedom, or in the end, was given
independence, in some kind of naval defence forces, nor, indeed, in considera-
tion of means, during a struggle for independence, to try to cope with the fact
that the struggle was against the leading sea power in the world. In the final and
successful phase of the independence struggle, only one leader, Arthur Griffith,
164 Ireland
had thought profoundly about the importance of the sea to an independent
Ireland, and he died within a few months of the establishment of the new state.
Yet, throughout the centuries of English occupation and despite the imposi-
tion of restrictions, particularly on the development of the fisheries, an Irish
maritime economy continued to function, given a particular boost by the arrival
of maritime Protestant refugees from France in the late seventeenth and
eighteenth centuries. Thousands of Irishmen served in the British Navy (probab-
ly 15 percent of its personnel were Irish over a long period) and in the merchant
navy. Shipbuilding flourished in Ireland and hundreds of Irishmen distinguished
themselves at sea in the navies of France, Spain, Portugal, the Netherlands,
Austria— Hungary and in at least ten countries on the American continent, North
and South.
The state that was set up in 1922 introduced no legislation establishing an
Irish merchant fleet; therefore, merchant ships registered in Irish ports continued
to fly the British ensign until such legislation in September 1939, and no attempt
was made to create a coast defence navy until August of that year.
Maritime history was ignored in the schools and in the universities to the
point where, thirty years ago, the head of Ireland's oldest university, a historian,
wrote publicly that Ireland had no maritime history or traditions. In the 1930s,
with the likelihood of a world war growing closer, isolated individuals, all of
whom were later to become active in the Maritime Institute of Ireland set up
in 1941 to crusade for the creation of a strong Irish maritime economy and for
the revival of Ireland's great maritime tradition, spoke out about the need to
operate an Irish merchant navy and coast guard fleet and to revive the almost
defunct fishing fleet. When, ten years ago, the Department of Defence archives
were opened to the public, I was immediately shown a detailed document,
marked Top Secret and evidently left to smoulder quietly in a pigeon hole for
half a century, in which two officers of the Irish Army, on instructions from the
Chief of Staff, demonstrated clearly what sort of coastal defence navy would be
suitable for Ireland. They then reasoned that the provision of such a navy would
be of little ultimate value unless a merchant navy and a revived fishing fleet also
became part of policy. This document had never before seen the light of day
nor awoken the smallest echo in political circles.
The 1939—45 war led to the improvisation of a navy, the establishment of an
Irish merchant fleet, and the revival of the fishing fleet, though that did not really
start to grow until 1962. Since then it has increased quite phenomenally in size
and catching capacity in spite of a variety of problems associated with the
over-fishing of Irish waters and the slow growth of the essential research work.
1 See for example, John de Courcy Ireland, "The Confederate States Navy 1861-1865: The Irish
Contribution," Mariner's Mirror, 66 (August 1980), pp. 259—63 and "Irish Naval Connections in Brest
in the Eighteenth and Ninteenth Centuries," Irish Sword, 17 (Summer 1987), pp. 57-60.
de Courcy Ireland 1 65
From its foundation, the Maritime Institute of Ireland, an independent
non-official body, has conceived the teaching of maritime history — general or
even Irish — to be one of its absolute priorities. It runs regular lectures and
occasional conferences on maritime historical topics, provides lectures for any
organization, society, or college that requests one; has published books and
pamphlets on both maritime history and actualities; and has since 1946 (though
with a break of several years in the late 1960s) published, under different titles,
a journal, at first monthly, now quarterly, containing maritime historical
information as well as information on maritime activities. The Institute has been
able to interest the official radio— television station and several local radio stations
in transmitting maritime historical material quite regularly. It has encouraged
primary and secondary schools to allow students to specialize on maritime topics,
although it has not yet persuaded the state educational authorities to recognize
maritime history as a subject. The Institute has helped undergraduate and
graduate students at Irish universities and at foreign ones, allowing them to
choose maritime topics for degree theses, and it has enabled the Free University
of Ireland, set up in Dublin in 1986, to offer annually a course in maritime
history. Each of the country's local history societies is invited to study its own
local maritime history and to invite a lecturer from the Institute. The Institute
helped to found the Military History Society of Ireland in 1949 and has provided
lecturers for its annual October-March lecture programme. Institute members
have contributed frequently to its prestigious twice-a-year journal, The Irish
Sword. In 1959 the Institute founded (and operates through volunteers as with
all its other work) the non-state subsidized National Maritime Museum of
Ireland, which presents a series of lessons on Irish and general maritime and naval
history. Schools and learned societies that visit the museum are provided with a
guide competent in maritime history.
The museum is affiliated with the International Congress of Maritime
Museums and is represented at its triennial conferences. Members of the Institute
form the Irish section of the International Conference of Maritime Historians
and have provided papers at its conferences, which began in 1975 and are held
every five years, as well as at conferences organized by the French and British
sections. The Institute has helped in the last five years to persuade the universities
at Cork, Limerick, and Belfast in Northern Ireland to consider seriously the
introduction, in the next few years, of courses on maritime studies, including
maritime history. It has also assisted in the establishment of a local maritime
historical research center for Northwestern Ireland at Derry, Northern Ireland.
The Institute can also take some credit for the fact that, whereas between 1948
and 1981 only one maritime book was published in Ireland, now three or four
The Maritime Institute of Ireland, B. Donnelly, Hon. Sec, Haigh Terrace, Dun Laoghaire, Co.
Dublin, Republic of Ireland.
The Irish Maritime Journal.
166 Ireland
are published annually. Ten books on maritime history published in Ireland in
the last twelve years were either written or edited by Institute members.
Outside of the Institute, whose members are all volunteers, Irish maritime
history is taught to the cadets at the maritime division of Cork Regional
Technical College (formerly the Irish Nautical College) by Captain Brunicardi,
a staff member who has also written a history of the Irish Naval Service and
whose father, Commander Brunicardi, has written and lectured locally in West
Cork on local maritime history.
The officers of the Naval Service receive rather elementary education in the
history of their service and some very sketchy international naval and maritime
history as part of their training. Occasional arrangements are made for officers,
cadets, or seamen to attend lectures by Captain Brunicardi; but, apparently,
unless they do courses abroad (at which some have excelled) Irish naval officers
are not adequately educated about naval history.
Other than the Institute and its members on the Free University staff, no
academics in Ireland teach these subjects, though some good economic historians
do deal with aspects of maritime history inevitably (and quite well), and moves
are being made for the academics who run the archives at Cork to start
propagating maritime history based thereon. Some fishery history is taught at
the fine Fisheries Training College, Greencastle, County Donegal.
There is no coordination of Irish maritime studies. The innate and more or
less unconscious anti-British bias with which history is generally approached in
Ireland tends to be nullified by the fact that outside the Institute maritime history
is dealt with in English and from British sources. The periods least covered are
probably the medieval, eighteenth, nineteenth, and twentieth centuries. Most
help is needed in the post-medieval field in getting at the vast amount of archival
material which we know to be available in the National, Cork city, and Northern
Ireland archives, and in archives abroad (e.g., France, Britain, Portugal, Spain,
the United States and the Netherlands), where Institute members have identified
material and done much preliminary work on it. The gulf between naval and
general maritime history is not great as presented in Ireland, and it should be
possible to prevent its swelling when the study of maritime history in Ireland
becomes better organized and less elementary.
A very recent and very welcome development was the Argentine Navy's
invitation to the Irish Naval Service to send one of its most promising young
Irish officers on a training cruise in the famous Argentine naval sail-training ship,
Among recent works, see for example, John de Courcy Ireland, Ireland and the Irish in Maritime History
(Dun Laoghaire: Glendale Press, 1986) and Ireland's Sea Fisheries: A History (Dublin: Glendale Press,
1989); Nicholas Rossiter, Wexford Port: A History (Wexford: Wexford Council of Trade Unions, 1989).
A History of the Irish Naval Service (Haulbowline: Naval Base, 1989), 10 pages.
For example, Niall Brunicardi, Haulbowline, Spike and Rocky Islands in Cork Harbour (Fermoy, n.d.).
See Thomas A. Adams, Irish Naval Service (Kendal, Cumbria: World Ship Society, 1982).
de Courcy Ireland 1 67
the Libertad. The invitation followed, but may not have been inspired by, a long
lecture tour in the autumn of 1993 by the Maritime Institute's research officer,
author of the soon-to-be published first English-language biography of the
Irishman, William Brown (1777—1857), founder of the Argentine Navy. In
1922, Argentina was the first country to recognize the separate Irish state. Irish
Naval Service officers have been trained in Britain, but it is hoped that this first
serious contact with another naval tradition may become permanent.
Meanwhile, the Irish Navy's ships are kept busy protecting, with their insuffi-
cient numbers, Irish and European fishery zones from frequent intruders, varied
from time to time with a visit abroad, notably to revictual Irish military units on
peace-keeping duty in the eastern Mediterranean basin.
IS
Israel
Meir Sas, Nadav Kashtan, and Sarah Arenson
Geographical and historical factors give Israel an important role to play in
the contacts between the two seafaring systems, the Red Sea and Indian
Ocean on the one hand, the Mediterranean and the Atlantic Ocean on the
other. Since the days of King Solomon and his maritime expeditions in the
South seas, through the maritime exploits of the Hasmonean Kings and Herod's
Caesarea Maritima, to the tragedy of the Great Jewish Revolt against Rome,
there was a sound link between the land, the people, and the sea.
After the destruction of the Second Temple, the Talmud and other literary
sources point out the continuity of Jewish maritime activity in the diaspora. All
through the Middle Ages, and especially under Charlemagne, the Jews carried
on a vast maritime, commercial network. They shared in the development of
astronomy and cartography prior to the period of the great discoveries, fought
Spain along with the Barbary corsairs, and were among the first settlers in the
New World.
The rise of the Jewish national movement at the end of the nineteenth century
changed radically the situation of the Jewish people. Nevertheless, agriculture
took the lead at first, and there was no awareness of the sea until the 1930s.
During those years, the first attempts were made to train Jewish mariners at
Riga in Latvia and Civitavecchia in Italy. These first attempts were superseded
by the Haifa Nautical School of Technology, which later moved to Acre to
become the still active Israel Nautical College. In 1936 a new port was built in
Tel Aviv, due to the Arab Revolt and the difficulties in using the ports of Jaffa
and Haifa.
The British Mandate on the land of Israel (1918—1948) put severe restrictions
on Jewish immigration. During those years, especially in the last four years of
British rule, illegal immigration by sea, which had already started in the 1930s,
took on growing proportions. There are many written works that deal with this
period, offering general descriptions and monographs of particular ships and
The first portion of this essay is by Dr. Meir Sas of the Israeli Nautical College, Acre. Dr. Sas passed
away on 26 July 1993. His two coauthors dedicate this chapter to his memory.
J. Halperin wrote about his experience in his book in Hebrew, The Renaissance of Jewish Seamanship
(Tel-Aviv: Hadar, 1962).
170 Israel
actions, but due to the authors' general ignorance of conditions at sea, they do
not contribute much to the analysis of Jewish, illegal, maritime immigration as
a historical phenomenon during this period.
In those years, the prevalent opinion was to strengthen the maritime inclina-
tion of the people through the study and revival of old traditions. The first
historical essay was by R. Patai and dealt with Biblical and Talmudic times, 700
B.C. to A.D. 700. N. Slouschaz wrote another historical study, centering around
Carthage and the Phenico-Punic achievement, and S. Tolkowsky wrote a
general history of Jewish involvement in naval affairs.
Since the moment that the State of Israel was declared on 15 May 1948, it
started fighting for its existence. The same vessels that had served the immigrants
were converted to form the nucleus of the new marine corps of the Israel
Defence Forces. The role of the Navy in the Israel War of Independence was
summed up by E. Tal in the best work on any of the Israeli Defence Forces'
naval operations, which, since then, have been covered only by journalistic essays
in various Hebrew language military and naval magazines. The Encyclopedia of
Army and Security has published one volume dedicated to the Navy, but it consists
mainly of pictures accompanied by a short text.
Meir Sas has published many short articles on the history of seafaring and
naval affairs, including translations from the classics such as A.T. Mahan's The
Influence of Sea Power upon History. He has also written a monograph on the history
Q
of Acre. As there are no textbooks in Hebrew for the general history of seafaring
and sea power, Dr. Sas has compiled several textbooks for high school and naval
college students.
Z. Herman is another prolific writer of maritime themes in Hebrew* Most
1 o
of his books deal with the ancient world, but he has dealt also with modern
11.
Jewish commercial shipping. His most recent book deals with the history and
1 o
challenge of oceanography.
R. Patai, JeuHsh Seafaring in Ancient Times, a Contribution to the History of Palestinian Culture (Jerusalem:
Mass, 1938) in Hebrew.
4 N. Slouschaz, The Book of the Sea (Tel Aviv: 1948) in Hebrew.
5 S. Tolkowsky, They Took to the Sea (New York: Yoseloff, 1964).
E. Tal, Naval Operations in the Israeli War of Independence (Tel Aviv: Ministry of Defence Publications,
1964) in Hebrew.
7
Zahal Beheilo (Tel Aviv: Revivim, 1 982) in Hebrew.
Q
Meir Sas, Maritime Acre (Acre: Israel Nautical' College, 1981) in Hebrew.
Meir Sas, The Book of the Sea (Haifa: Renaissance, 1970) and Oars and Sails Qerusalem: Ministry of
Education, 1973). His most recent book is Seapower through the Ages (Jerusalem: Ministry of Defence
Publications, 1991) in Hebrew.
For example, Z. Herman, Man and the Sea (Haifa, 1979); People, Seas and Ships (Tel Aviv: Massada,
1964) and Carthage, A Maritime Empire (Tel Aviv: Massada, 1963) in Hebrew.
Z. Herman, History of Hebrew Shipping (Tel Aviv: 1978) in Hebrew.
12 Z. Herman, The Depth of the Sea (Haifa: 1985) in Hebrew.
Sas, Kashtan and Arenson 1 71
The Academy of the Hebrew Language has summarized the professional,
1 %
linguistic innovations that maritime activity has brought to Hebrew.
Haifa University Center for Maritime Studies
The Leon Recanti Center for Maritime Studies at the University of Haifa
was established in 1972. Guided by an interdisciplinary concept, the center
conducts and promotes research projects which encompass man's activities
relating to the sea, bringing to light what was known in the past, man's
involvement in the present, and what man can accomplish by using the sea in
the future. By combining disciplines, such as history, archaeology, earth sciences,
and marine resources, the Center has found a way of bridging between
humanities, sciences, and technology. This is reflected in the graduate program
of the Department of Maritime Civilizations, initiated by the Center for
Maritime Studies in the framework of the Faculty of Humanities.
The Department of Maritime Civilizations offers courses that aim to broaden
and deepen the historical, archaeological and geographical knowledge of cul-
tures, people, countries, and coastal settlements whose history and development
were or are affected by the sea. Emphasis is placed on maritime activities and
interrelations in the Mediterranean and the Red Sea. These courses include
subjects such as: history of naval power, coastal and marine archaeology,
development of ships in antiquity, navigation and seamanship, ancient harbors,
marine ecology and geology.
The National Maritime Museum in Haifa
Founded forty years ago, the National Maritime Museum in Haifa, Israel
celebrated the twentieth anniversary of the opening of its current, 1972 pur-
pose—built facility. The Museum grew out of the significant personal collection
of Arie L. Ben— Eli, who at the time in 1953 was a lieutenant commander in the
Israeli Navy. By the end of the following year, the museum had been turned
over to the Haifa Municipality with the full support of the Israel Maritime
League. Its first premises were on one floor of the League's building near the
port of Haifa. Arie L. Ben— Eli became its first Director.
Soon a familiar pattern emerged. As the collections grew, the facility became
overcrowded, while interest and demand grew for a proper museum building
that could do justice to the museum's programs. This was finally built and opened
in 1972. Named the National Maritime Museum, Haifa, the new museum aimed
at establishing itself as the major maritime museum in Israel. It has achieved its
goal, while attracting substantial donors along the way.
Dictionary of Maritime Terms, Hebreiv-English— French— German (Jerusalem: The Academy of the
Hebrew Language, 1970).
The following section is by Dr. Nadav Kashtan, Director, of the National Maritime Museum, Haifa.
172 Israel
The overall theme of the museum is the "History of Seafaring," which is
presented in two complementary ways: chronologically and through the il-
lumination of specific themes. The chronological approach has four main
periods: ancient seafaring, seafaring in the Middle Ages, modern seafaring, and
present— day shipping. This history is richly illustrated by artifacts acquired by
the museum or donated by collectors. Objects which are relevant to ancient and
medieval seafaring have come primarily from underwater archaeological activity.
These artifacts include anchors, storage jars, statuettes, terra-cotta oil lamps, and
ancient coins. An important core of the museum's collection is a large number
of ship models. Sub-themes have also been developed which include: geography,
including discoveries and cartography; economics, including maritime trade,
types of ships and cargoes; science and engineering, including warships and naval
battles; and art and culture, including the development of coastal cities and ports
along with the relationships between peoples.
The museum has produced a number of temporary exhibits that have travelled
within Israel and abroad. A wide range of educational programs are offered, and
a university course on the "Maritime History of Israel in Antiquity" is held in
cooperation with Haifa University. The first two Directors, Arie Ben— Eli and
Joseph Ringel, created an active publication program and produced several
monographs, but most important of all is the scholarly journal Sefunim, of
which eight volumes have been published since 1966.
The museum has a research library of over 5,500 volumes and subscribes to
a number of periodicals. Over 190 periodical titles are represented in the
collection.
The current director's goals are to maintain the museum's excellent standing
among the world's maritime museums and to continue the development and
expansion of its collections and programs. Construction of a new floor of
exhibition space is planned. The museum also needs to strengthen its finances
and to introduce environmental controls in the entire building.
Maritime Research and Activity in Israel
The following is a list of marine-related institutions and activity centers in
Israel:
The National Maritime Museum in Haifa exhibits ancient seafaring from
Pharaonic times to the end of the Middle Ages and modern shipping. Special
items include The Athlit ram, Jewish ship graffiti, anchors and amphoras
A. Ben-Eli, ed., Ships and Parts of Ships on Ancient Coins (Haifa: National Maritime Museum, 1975);
A. Zemer, Storage Jars in Ancient Sea Trade (Haifa: National Maritime Museum, 1977); D. Avrahami,
Eskimo and N. W. Indian Art at the Maritime Museum, Haifa (Haifa: National Maritime Museum, 1979);
and J. Ringel, Marine Motifs on Ancient Coins (Haifa: National Maritime Museum, 1984).
The following section was compiled by Mrs. Sarah Arenson, Director of the Man and Sea Society,
Israel.
Sas, Kashtan and Arenson 1 73
discovered by marine archaeology, Greek Fire containers, figurines of sea-god-
desses, and coins with marine symbols. The museum has a fine collection of old
maps of the Holy Land and its shores, as well as rare nautical instruments.
The Museum of Illegal Immigration, also in Haifa and adjacent to the National
Maritime Museum, is concerned with Jewish seaborne immigration to Israel,
mostly between the Second World War and the establishment of the State of
Israel.
The National Oceanographic and Limnological Institute in Haifa conducts
basic and applied research, mainly in marine geology, biology, and chemistry.
It cooperates in international projects such as MAP and other regional plans
concerned with marine resources and pollution. It has a branch on the Lake of
Galilee and another on the Red Sea, in Eilat. Its publications include annual
conference reports and special issues in English.
The Fisheries Research Institute is centered in Haifa, as well, and conducts
field research projects in the Eastern Mediterranean and brackish waters along
the coast. The Ministry of Agriculture has a central research institute, Vulcani,
which is also involved with fishing experimentation. Its publications are in
Hebrew.
The Research Institute of Shipping and Aviation is concerned with the
planning of ports, the economics of shipping, the welfare of seamen, and weather
problems. It is located at Haifa University. Its publications are mostly in English
with a few in Hebrew.
Zim Shipping company has its own research unit located in Haifa and
publishes its work in Hebrew.
The Technion, Israel Technological Institute, has a naval engineering
laboratory, which conducts research in port engineering and the architecture of
ships. Its reports are published mostly in English.
The Hyperbaric Medicine Institute (M.R.I) is affiliated with the Navy and
situated at the Rambam Hospital in Haifa. It does both basic and applied research
in all aspects of physiology and medicine related to the sea, on the surface and
underwater, and treats both civil and military cases. Its publications are in English.
The Center for Maritime Studies at Haifa University is occupied with
academic and applied research in all fields concerned with man and sea relations,
such as marine archaeology, marine biology, and oceanography. There is also a
Department for the History of Maritime Civilizations, granting the master's
degree. Publications in English and Hebrew.
Marine Biology Department at Tel Aviv University is academically active and,
together with several other universities in the country, maintains a laboratory in
Eilat. Its publications are in English and Hebrew.
The Center for Strategic Research is affiliated with Tel Aviv University and is
involved also with naval affairs. Its publications are in Hebrew and English.
174 Israel
The Israeli Defence Forces Navy has an academic historical branch which
conducts historical and practical research in naval affairs. Its publications are
mostly in Hebrew and with restricted circulation.
In Jerusalem, the government Geological Institute has a marine section, which
conducts surveys in all Israeli waters.
The Antiquities Authority has a marine section, situated at present in Kibbutz
Neve-Yam, South of Haifa. It is concerned with guarding the coasts against
damage to the cultural heritage and conducts surveys and salvage excavations as
necessary. Its publications are in Hebrew and English.
The Society for the Preservation of Nature in Israel (SPNI) has a network of
field-schools, several of which are marine related, such as the ones at Akhziv,
Maagan-Michael, and Eilat, as well as Kinrot and Yarkon. It publishes Eretz
magazine, in English.
The Man and Sea Society of Israel is concerned with educational
programs for the youth and the wider public. It has initiated a major TV series,
"The Encircled Sea: Mediterranean Maritime Civilization," a British-Israeli
joint venture production. Among other projects, there is an innovative high-
school program of maritime studies and a summer course, "A Maritime Ex-
perience in Israel."
16
Twentieth Century Italy
Brian R. Sullivan
An understanding of the present state of Italian naval and maritime history
benefits from a review of the context in which such history has been and
is being researched and written. Perhaps most useful for American readers in this
regard are some relevant comparisons between Italy and the United States. Such
comparisons involve both material and non-material factors.
Perhaps the most significant physical factors involve considerable differences
in scale between the United States and Italy. Italy is considerably smaller in terms
of territory and population than the United States. Furthermore, their national
income makes contemporary Italians somewhat less wealthy on a per capita
average than Americans. More relevant is the fact that, while the gap between
average individual incomes in the United States and Italy has narrowed consid-
erably in the last twenty years, previously, Americans enjoyed a far higher
standard of living, particularly before 1960. Certainly the differences between
Italian and American national geography are likely to remain permanent. The
Republic of Italy covers 301,000 square kilometers, with a coastline of about
5,000 kilometers long, entirely within the Mediterranean; the territory of the
United States is over thirty-one times larger and includes a coastline of almost
20,000 kilometers on the Atlantic, Pacific, and Arctic Oceans and the Gulf of
Mexico. In mid-1993, the Italian population reached 58 million, while that of
the United States rose to nearly 257 million. In 1991, the American gross
domestic product was $5,695 trillion, Italian GDP for that year was about $1 .099
trillion. The Italian merchant marine numbers about 1,600 vessels of some 8
million gross tons, while that of the United States counts over 6,300 vessels of
nearly 20 million gross tons.
But ratios in favor of the United States are even more imbalanced when navies
are compared. Proportionately, the United States has far outspent Italy on
defense, even when differences in size of populations and economies are taken
into consideration. The following table compares American outlays on defense
1 Central Intelligence Agency, Tlte World Fact Book 1992 (Washington: 1992), pp. 167-69, 358-60;
International Monetary Fund, International Financial Statistics August 1993 (Washington: 1993), pp. 304,
556.
1 76 Twentieth Century Italy
with Italian defense budgets in the 1985 to 1991 period, each expressed in billions
of dollars.
Year Italy United States
1985 8.6 245.2
1986 9.8 265.5
1987 13.4 274.0
1988 16.1 282.0
1989 16.7 294.9
1990 19.6 289.8
1991 19.7 262.4
Even with the marked decrease in American defense spending and the
doubling of Italian defense spending over the past decade, the Italian government
expends far less per capita on its armed forces than does the American govern-
ment. At present, Americans spend about 5.7 percent of their GNP on defense,
Italians about 2.2 percent. These disparities are reflected in the different sizes
of the two national navies.
In mid-1993, the United States Navy numbered about 515,000 and the U.S.
Marine Corps about 180,000, for a total of roughly 695,000 men and women.
In comparison, the Italian Navy and Marine Corps comprised some 54,500
personnel. True, the U.S. Navy is expected to decline from its present strength
of 452 ships to about 340 by 1999; the Italian Navy is expected to retain its
present strength, thanks to a healthy building and replacement program. How-
ever, this will maintain the Italian Navy at only about 60 major warships and
support vessels. In addition, the U.S. Navy not only vastly outweighs the Italian
Navy in numbers of warships but in size of warships. At present, the U.S. Navy
has 23 ships of over 39,000 tons full-load displacement in commission, compared
to just two ships of over 9,000 tons in the Italian Navy. Even with the coming
decommissioning of a number of the largest American warships and the
construction of a second Italian light aircraft carrier and several large destroyers,
•i
these differences in scale between the two navies will remain indefinitely.
A glance at the history of the American and Italian navies emphasizes the
smaller and less prominent role of the latter in its nation's development. The
United States came into existence in 1776 and fought ten major wars over the
next 215 years. Its navy took a significant part in every conflict and had a major
role in at least seven. Perhaps more important, the American Navy established
a highly favorable reputation during the first decades of its existence, as a result
of its actions during the Revolution, the Quasi- War with France, the naval
campaign against the Barbary Pirates and, most of all, the War of 1812. The
2 The International Institute for Strategic Studies, The Military Balance 1986-87 (London: 1986), p.
70; ibid.: 1987-88, p. 68; ibid.: 1988-89, p. 69; ibid.: 1989-90, p. 67; ibid.: 1990-91, p. 71; ibid.:
1991-92, p. 63; ibid.: 1992-93, pp. 17, 49; The World Factbook 1992, pp. 169, 360.
3 Richard Sharpe, ed., Jane's Fighting Ships 1993-94 (London: 1993), pp. 321-40, 753-802.
Sullivan 177
exploits of Paul Jones, Biddle, Barry, Truxton, Preble, Bainbridge, Decatur,
Hull, Lawrence, Stewart, Perry, and Macdonough and their sailors helped create
the worshipful attitude of the American people toward their navy that has
sustained its popularity ever since. Equally important for maintaining interest in
and support for the U.S. Navy were American naval actions after the early
nineteenth century, especially during the Civil War, the Spanish American War
and, of course, the Second World War. Such successful campaigns have
encouraged a strong interest in American naval history among both the general
public and the scholarly community.
The Italian naval tradition offers a rather stark contrast. Following its unifica-
tion in 1861, Italy engaged in seven major wars in which six involved naval
activity but only four in a major way. In contrast with the history of the U.S.
Navy, the early decades of the Italian Navy proved extremely difficult. Its first
war in 1866, the short mid-summer conflict with Austria, ended in the disastrous
Italian naval defeat at Lissa, marred by the incompetence of the Italian com-
mander, Admiral Carlo Persano, and the treachery and cowardice of his
subordinates, Admirals Giovanni Battista Albini and Giovanni Vacca. There-
after, the Italian Navy experienced no significant wartime action until 1911,
although draining its impoverished nation of significant resources to little
practical end until the turn of the century. While the subsequent history of the
Italian Navy offers numerous examples of heroism, Italy's only major victorious
naval conflict came to an end in 1918, and its last serious naval conflict ended
in humiliation in September 1943 with the surrender of its battle fleet. At the
moment of its capitulation in World War II, the Italian Navy enjoyed its all-time
maximum size: 259,000 officers and men. In contrast, the United States Navy
reached a maximum strength of 3.4 million in 1944—45, joined with a U.S.
Marine Corps of 475,000.5
These facts help explain Italian political and psychological attitudes toward
their navy and merchant marine, as well as the limited degree of general Italian
interest in the history of these institutions. In brief, Italians have shown and
continue to exhibit far less fascination with their naval and maritime history than
do Americans with their own. But the major negative influence on the Italian
attitude in these regards — indeed on the Italian attitude toward almost all public
institutions — comes from widespread perceptions of the defunct monarchy and
of the Fascist regime, culminating in the disasters of 1940— 45. Such attitudes
The Italian Navy engaged in considerable action in the Italian-Turkish War of 1911-12; World
War I, 1915-18; Italian intervention in the Spanish Civil War, 1936-39; World War II, 1940-43 (as
well as providing some naval assistance to the Allies in 1943—45). The Italian Navy fought one losing
battle in the war of 1866 with Austria and provided major naval support in the Italian-Ethiopian War
of 1935-36, without engaging in hostilities.
For a survey of Italian naval history, see the relevant portions of Lucio Ceva, Leforze annate (Turin:
1981).
1 78 Twentieth Century Italy
have created additional obstacles to the pursuit of naval and maritime history in
Italy.
Throughout the first eighty-odd years of Italian unification, despite severe
national poverty, the state spent very heavily on its armed forces. Well into the
twentieth century, the House of Savoy and the ministers who served it relied
on the army to hold together a kingdom whose subjects felt little sense of
nationalism. In turn, the royalist officer corps was expected not only to provide
internal security but to enhance the prestige of the monarchy and the weak sense
of Italian nationalism by waging expansionist wars. In the mid— 1880s, with the
enthusiastic support of the monarchy, Italy founded an African empire and began
a series of foreign wars that were to last until 1943. Naturally, the establishment
of an overseas empire stimulated the expansion of the Italian Navy. In the 1860s,
spending on the Navy amounted to only 22 percent of spending on the Army.
By the 1890s, following the creation of the Italian colonial empire, that
percentage had expanded to 39 percent. In the first decade of the twentieth
century, thanks to a surge in national industrialization and wealth, spending on
the Italian Navy rose to 51 percent of military spending. It remained on roughly
that level until the Second World War.
As much as such oppressive military and naval spending burdened the subjects
of the Kingdom of Italy, it could be justified to some degree by Italian successes
in the Italian-Turkish War of 191 1—12 and, especially, the First World War. But
the arms spending of the Fascist dictatorship from the mid— twenties onward
reached unprecedented levels, crushing the ordinary Italian under an array of
ever— mounting direct and indirect taxes. Simultaneously, Italians were bom-
barded by hysterical militarist and navalist propaganda in support of such
spending. Such propaganda efforts included considerable official support for
highly subjective naval historical publications and navalist sloganeering at every
level of the Italian school system. The argument of national prestige was also
enlisted in support of the expansion of the Italian merchant marine, devastated
by submarine warfare in the Great War, and the construction of such giant
trans-Atlantic ocean liners as Rex and Conte di Savoia.
The monarchy maintained an attitude of reserve toward some aspects of the
Fascist regime and, as a means of self-protection, remained closely associated
with the highly royalist officer corps. But the approval of the naval officer corps
for the Fascist regime's large program of naval and maritime construction and
the bestowal of many monarchist names on the Italian vessels built in the 1920s
and 1930s necessarily linked the House of Savoy with Mussolini's navy in the
public mind.
For statistics on Italian naval spending, see Giorgio Rochat and Giulio Massobrio, Breve storia
dell'esercito italiano dal 1861 al 1943 (Turin: 1978). Despite its title, the book deals with all the Italian
armed forces.
Sullivan 179
By 1940, the Fascist dictatorship had constructed a navy roughly the same
size as the French Navy but — due to autarkist economic policies and officially-
tolerated corruption — at about twice the expense it should have cost, in a
country of approximately half the wealth of France. When these sacrifices were
followed by the humiliating Italian naval defeats of 1940-41, the loss of the
colonial empire, the destruction of most of the merchant marine, the surrender
of the battle fleet to the British in September 1943 and the ruinous war fought
up the length of the Italian peninsula in 1943—45, it is no wonder that the Italians
abolished their monarchy in 1946 and rejected with disgust the legacies of the
Fascist era. Among that baggage was excessive navalism and heavy official support
for naval and maritime history. Such attitudes continued to affect very negatively
the study of those areas of Italian history for the next several decades. The fact
that in the generation after 1945 a certain number of historians who could be
described as ex-Fascist or neo-Fascist continued to work in the fields of military
and naval history made it difficult for others to write on those subjects and to
be judged objectively.
The end of the Cold War, Italy's rise to third in rank among the European
economies, and the simultaneous earthquake shaking the Italian political system
marks the end of what may be called the post-Fascist period of Italian history.
While it is too soon to state with certainty, a greater degree of Italian national
assertiveness and of Italian willingness to deploy armed force abroad will probably
become evident over the next few decades. In fact, such tendencies have been
discernible for the past ten years or so and have stimulated a growing interest in
Italian naval and maritime history. The study of such history, long tainted by
its unfortunate association with the Fascist regime, has already begun a modest
revival since the 1970s. Nonetheless, while these areas of Italian history will
almost certainly benefit from growing official and public support in the future,
the present state of their study is hardly robust.
For a detailed examination of aspects of corruption in the naval shipbuilding industry under the
Fascist regime, see Lucio Ceva and Andrea Curami, Industria bellica anni trenta. Commesse militari, I'Ansaldo
edaltri (Milan: 1992).
For an appraisal of the influence of domestic politics on Italian historiography since 1945, see chapter
6, "The eclipse of anti-Fascism in Italy," ofR.J.B. Bosworth, Explaining Auschwitz and Hiroshima. History
Writing and the Second World War 1945-1990 (London & New York, 1993).
One recent example of increased national pride in naval accomplishments is the renaming of two
Italian destroyers, completed in 1992—93. The names originally to be given to these ships were Animoso
and Ardimentoso. Before commissioning, however, they were renamed Luigi Durand de la Penne and
Francesco Mimbelli.
Durand de la Penne was the commander of the two-man guided torpedo that sank HMS Valiant in
Alexandria harbor in December 1941. Mimbelli commanded the torpedo boat Lupo, which engaged
three British light cruisers at point-blank range and escaped while escorting a German troop convoy to
Crete in May 1941. Mimbelli later led motor torpedo boat flotillas in many legendary actions in the
Black Sea and off Sicily against Soviet and British forces. See Marc' Antonio Bragadin, The Italian Navy
in World War II (Annapolis: 1957), pp. 108-9, 269, 278, 284-6, 301; Callum MacDonald, The Lost
Battle: Crete 1941 (New York: 1993), pp. 237-42; Jane's Fighting Ships 1993-94, p. 326.
1 80 Twentieth Century Italy
Within the Italian university system, the teaching of naval and maritime
history has been limited recently to only two schools, the Universities of Pisa
and Rome, and to two scholars, the highly respected Mariano Gabriele and his
student, Alberto Santoni. For many years earlier in this century, the University
of Rome had a chair in naval history and policy, held by the illustrious expert
on World War I at sea, Camillo Manfroni. After the Second World War,
Manfroni was effectively succeeded by Gabriele. However, since Gabriele was
and remains a civil servant in the Ministry of Finance, he has been forbidden
under Italian law from being an official professor at the University of Rome and
has been only an incaricato (adjunct). Since such a position within the Italian
university system has been abolished recently, it is now legally impossible for
Gabriele to go on teaching at the University of Rome. Barring the unexpected,
when Santoni eventually retires from the University of Pisa, the teaching of naval
and maritime history may well cease there. In fact, officially, Santoni holds a
chair in military history and technology and will probably be succeeded by a
scholar of land warfare.
The situation within the Italian Navy educational system is slightly better.
The Italian Naval Academy at Livorno offers a three-year course in naval history
and policy taught by Commander Pier Paolo Raimono. In effect, Raimono has
attempted to carry on the work initiated by Camillo Manfroni at the University
of Rome. In this effort Raimono collaborates closely with Alberto Santoni, aided
by the proximity of the Livorno Academy and the University of Pisa. Raimono
is attempting to expand his course to four years. However, most of the subject
matter covered by Raimono involves the naval and maritime history of other
countries, rather than of Italy.
The Istituto di Guerra Marittima, also located on the grounds of the Italian
Naval Academy, is roughly equivalent in purpose and functioning to the U.S.
Naval War College. That is, the Istituto di Guerra Marittima offers both a junior
and senior course, corresponding to the command and staff college level and the
war college level. For these courses, Commander Raimono teaches a one-year
course in naval strategy and history, with somewhat greater emphasis on Italian
matters than is the case for his courses at the Naval Academy. However, the
stress on the above-mentioned course at the Istituto di Guerra Marittima is on
naval strategy, rather than history. Raimono has succeeded in getting a number
of prominent Italian military and naval historians to give guest lectures at the
Italian Naval War College and to expand the teaching of Italian naval history
there. However, given the politically sensitive nature of many aspects of of Italian
naval history, Raimono has encountered difficulties. In fact, many of his students
Manfroni's most significant published works include La marina militate durante la guerra mondiale
(Bologna: 1923); / nostri alleati nauali (Milan, 1927); Storia della Marina italiana durante la guerra mondiale
19 1 5- 1918 (Bologna: 1933).
Sullivan 181
seem to have a greater knowledge of the naval history of Britain or the United
States than of their own country.
The schools of the Italian Army and Air Force largely ignore naval history,
whether that of Italy or of other nations. The two-year Italian Military Academy
at Modena has abolished the teaching of the history of ground, sea, or air warfare.
When the graduates of the academy at Modena pass on to the two-year Scuola
di Applicazione at Turin, they receive a one-year course in military history that
includes a modest naval component. However, this is limited to such points as
a passing mention of the battles of Trafalgar, Jutland, or Midway. The Italian
Army War College (Scuola di Guerra) at Civitavecchia offers a one-year course
in military history. Naval history is covered by an annual conference with
lectures by a few naval officers. Neither the Italian Air Force Academy nor the
Italian Air War College offers any naval history whatsoever.
Italy has no equivalent of the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, although it
does have a number of government high school-level vocational schools for
mariners. The University of Naples offers a program in maritime studies that
provides roughly the type of education available in the United States from Kings
Point. However, in none of these schools is Italian maritime history taught,
except for passing references.
In pleasant contrast to the state of the teaching of naval history is the status of
Italian Navy official history. Such history falls under the jurisdiction of the
Ufficio Storico della Marina Militare (USMM). The archives and publication
service of the USMM are located in Rome, at present under the able direction
of Admiral Renato Sicurezza.
The Navy historical archives are undoubtedly the best organized and most
accessible of the three Italian services. They are devoted to the history of the
Italian Navy since the amalgamation of the Sardinian and Neapolitan Navies in
1861, obviously covering only the age of steam. Utilizing teams of professional
archivists and historians, the USMM directorate is completely reorganizing the
archive and creating comprehensive finding aids as it progresses through its huge
collection of documents. The USMM staff is extremely knowledgeable and very
helpful. Probably the only serious criticism that one can make of the USMM
archive is its lack of adequate photocopying services.
Two other archives in Rome also contain much material relevant to Italian
naval and maritime history. The Archivio Centrale dello Stato in the EUR
suburb holds the records of the Naval Ministry, the Merchant Marine Ministry,
and also the records of cabinet discussions that sometimes touched on naval
matters, Air Ministry records from the Fascist period that occasionally deal with
relations with the Navy, and records of the Fascist-era Ministry of Communica-
tions that controlled ports and the merchant marine. The archives of the Foreign
Ministry are located separately in the Foreign Ministry office and contain
diplomatic records of naval and disarmament conferences. Both these archives
1 82 Twentieth Century Italy
are quite well ordered and researchers can have access to good rinding aids.
However, those using such archives must be prepared to deal with the frustrating
practices of the Italian bureaucracy, especially those of its lowliest members.
The publications of the USMM are generally well researched and of high
quality, although they are devoted almost exclusively to technical and narrative
questions. The single most impressive of the USMM publications remains its
excellent twenty-three-volume history of the Italian Navy in World War II, ha
marina italiana nella Seconda Guerra Mondiale, published between 1950 and 1988
(including revisions of earlier volumes) . The value of this massive work lies in
its objectivity, accuracy, thoroughness and honesty of self-appraisal. It stands in
striking contrast to the Navy's eight-volume official history of World War I
(published under the heavy hand of Fascist censorship in 1935—42), to the Italian
Army's official history of its operations and activities in World War II — -the
earlier volumes of which fall so short of historical objectivity that newer volumes
are being produced to supercede the older — and to the Italian Air Force historical
effort, which has never even issued an official history of the 1940—45 period that
it has been willing to publish.
Much of the credit for the success of the Italian Navy's official history of
World War II should go to Admiral Giuseppe Fioravanzo, the director of the
USMM at the time of its publication. Admiral Fioravanzo was himself the author
of a number of the twenty-three volumes and ensured the adherence of the
entire project to the high standards that he laid down. Fioravanzo was ably
assisted in the project by its other authors, notably Carlo De Risio, Aldo Cocchia,
and P.F. Lupinacci. It is a pleasure to note that Admiral Sicurezza has restored
the USMM to that same high level of performance.
Admiral Sicurezza is also president of the Commissione Italiana di Storia
Militare, which is in the process of publishing a series of volumes entitled L'ltalia
in Guerra, on the history of Italy in the Second World War. These volumes, one
for each year of Italian participation in the conflict, are resulting from annual
conferences that began to be held in 1990. Each volume explores topics of
considerable depth and breadth, going beyond the operations of the three
services to include strategy, diplomacy, civil-military relations, propaganda,
industrial production, weapons design and procurement, intelligence, logistics
and German-Italian relations.
It is to be hoped that such an approach to official history will be reflected in
future USMM publications in general. For too long even its best publications
have been rather narrowly focussed. The USMM can be rightly proud of
Giovanni Bernardi's massive work, // disarmo navalefra le due guerre mondiali (1975)
or Ezio Ferrante's short but excellent La grande guerra in Adriatico (1987).
Nonetheless, both studies would have benefitted from a greater and more frank
For the records of the naval and merchant marine ministries, see Guida generate degli ArchitH di Stato
Italiani (Rome: 1981), vol. 1, pp. 179-93.
Sullivan 183
analysis of related political and strategic questions. The naval historical office has
recently issued a long-awaited monograph on a previously taboo subject: Mario
Bargoni, L'impegno navale italiano durante la Guerra Civile Spagnola (1936—1939)
(1992). In many ways, Bargoni's book is admirable, offering the first complete
narrative of Italian naval operations in the Spanish Civil War, revealing many
previously unknown facts and offering a candid assessment of the Navy's tactical,
operational, and technical weaknesses. However, again there is a disappointing
lack of strategic and political discussion and a failure to place Italian naval
activities within the broader context of international naval, military, and
diplomatic developments.
One hopes for the appearance of USMM publications on the development of
Italian naval doctrine, strategic thinking, and warship design akin to such official
Italian Army publications as Filippo Stefani, La storia della dottrina e degli
ordinamenti delVesercito italiano (1984-85); Ferruccio Botti and Virgilio Ilari, II
pensiero militare italiano dalprimo al secondo dopoguerra (1985), and Lucio Ceva and
Andrea Curami, La meccanizzazione delVesercito fino al 1943 (1989). Mariano
Gabriele has produced such monographs for the USMM on the earlier years of
the Italian Navy: Le convenzioni navali della Triplice (1969) and in collaboration
with Giuliano Friz (Fritz) : Lajlotta come strumento di politica nei primi decenni dello
stato unitario (1973), and La politica navale italiana dal 1885 al 1915 (1984). But
there is a serious scholarly need for similar studies on the period of World War
I, of Mussolini's expansion of the Italian Navy in the 1920s and 1930s, the naval
aspects of the Italian-German alliance, and the Italian Navy as part of NATO's
1 o
southern flank forces.
Of indisputable merit is the USMM's quarterly Bollettino d'Archivio dell Ufficio
Storico della Marina Militare, which has been published since 1987. Each 300 to
400-page issue is divided into two sections. One describes a section of the USMM
archives and provides a detailed finding aid, the result of the ongoing reorganiza-
tion and indexing project. (Eight recent issues provide a complete guide to the
archive's holdings related to the Spanish Civil War.) The other section of each
Bollettino contains fine scholarly articles on various aspects of post-1861 Italian
naval history, often accompanied by complete documents.
Of related interest are the historical publications of the official Italian naval
journal, Rivista Marittima, which are produced under the overall direction of
Admirals Vincenzo Pellegrino and Francesco Pascazio. Rivista Marittima itself
usually contains at least one historical article in each issue. However, such articles
are aimed at Italian naval officers in general and are not always of the same high
However, USMM has published Mariano Gabriele, Operazione C.3: Malta (1965) on the strategic
and operational planning for the aborted Axis seizure of Malta in mid-1942. Also useful in regard to
Italian Navy strategy in World War II is the Italian Army Historical Office publication of the transcripts
of the chiefs of staffs discussions during their 1939-43 meetings: Stato Maggiore dell'Esercito, Ufficio
Storico, Verbali delle riunioni tenute dal capo di SM Generate, 3 vols. (Rome: 1982-85).
1 84 Twentieth Century Italy
scholarly quality as those that appear in the Bollettino. On the other hand, one
or more times a year, Rivista Marittima is accompanied by usually superb historical
supplements in the same format as the journal. Among such supplements are
Ezio Ferrante's short but illuminating biography, // Grande Ammiraglio Paolo
Thaon di Revel (1989), his examination of all-too-neglected subjects, II potere
marittimo. Evoluzione ideologica in Italia, 1861—1939 (1982), and Ilpensiero strategico
navale in Italia (1988), and Erminio Bagnasco and Achille Rastelli's he costruzioni
navali italiane per Vestero (1991).
Beyond official publications, a fair number of Italian books and articles on
Italian naval history have appeared since 1945. Most are popular and only a few
scholarly; the majority, as might be expected, devoted to the Second World War
period. However, recently, publications devoted to naval and maritime history
prior to 1915 have appeared in increasing volume. Until the last twenty— five
years or so, the general quality of such works was not very high, with the
exception of the studies and memoirs of Admirals Alberto Da Zara, Vittorio
Tur, Romeo Bernotti, and Angelo Iachino, and the work of Mariano Gabriele.
Recently, however, as one sign of the revival of Italian military and naval history,
a number of good studies have been published. These include the books and
articles of the above-mentioned Alberto Santo ni, Lucio Ceva, Andrea Curami,
Ezio Ferrante, as well as Walter Polastro, Giorgio Giorgerini, Matteo Pizzigallo
and Francesco Mattesini. Admittedly, some twenty or so Italians working in
the field is not many. In fact, as an indication of the number of Italians devoted
13 Alberto Da Zara, Pelle d'ammiraglio (Milan: 1949); Vittorio Tur, Plancia ammiraglia, 3 vols. (Rome:
1958—63); Romeo Bernotti, Cinquant'anni nella marina militate (Milan: 1971); idem., Storia delta guerra
nel Mediterraneo 1 940-43 (Milan: 1960); Angelo Iachino, La campagna navale di Lissa, 1866 (Milan: 1966);
idem., Le due Sirti (Milan: 1953); idem., Gaudo e Matapan (Milan: 1946); idem., Hpuntosu Matapan (Milan,
1969); idem., La sorpresa di Matapan (Milan, 1962); idem., Tramonto di una grande marina (Milan, 1959).
In addition to Gabriele's works cited elsewhere in this article, noteworthy are his La politica navale
italiana dall'Unith alia vigilia di Lissa (Milan: 1958) and Da Marsala alio stretto. Aspetti navali delle campagne
di Sicilia (Milan: 1961).
Among the more important publications of these authors not already cited are: Alberto Santoni, U
vero traditore. U ruolo documentato di ULTRA nella guerra del Mediterraneo (Milan: 1981); idem., La seconda
battaglia delta Sirte (Rome: 1982); idem., Da Lissa alia Falkland: storia e politica dell'eta contemporanea (Milan:
1987); idem., "Strategia marittima ed operazioni navali dell'anno 1940" in L'ltalia in guerra, il primo
anno — 1940 (Rome: n.d. [but 1991]); Francesco Mattesini, H giallo di Matapan (Rome: 1985); idem.,
La battaglia di Punto Stilo (Rome: 1990); Santoni and Mattesini, La participazione tedesca alia guerra aeronavale
nel Mediterraneo (Rome: 1980); Lucio Ceva, "L'evoluzione dei materiali bellici in Italia" in Ennio Di
Nolfo, Romain Rainero and Brunello Vigezzi, eds., L'ltalia e la politica di potenza 1938—1940 (Milan:
1985); Ezio Ferrante, "Un rischi calcolato? Mussolini e gli ammiragli nella gestione della crisi di Corfu"
in Storia delle relazioni intemazionali, no. 2, 1989; idem., "L'ammiraglio Lais, Roosevelt e la 'beffa' delle
navi" in Storia delle relazioni intemazionali, no. 2, 1991; Walter Polastro "La marina militare nel primo
dopoguerra, 1918-1925" in II Risorgimento no. 3, 1977; Giorgio Giorgerini, La battaglia dei convogli in
Mediterraneo (Milan: 1977); idem., "La preparazione e la mobilitazione della Marina italiana nel giugno
1940" in L'ltalia inguerra, il primo anno — 1940 (Rome: n.d. [but 1991]); idem., "II problema dei convogli
e la guerra per mare" in L'ltalia inguerra, ilsecondo anno — 1941 (Gaeta, 1992); Matteo Pizzigallo, "L'ltalia
alia conferenza di Washington (1921-1922)" in Storia e Politica July-September and October-December
1975.
Sullivan 185
to naval and maritime history of all kinds, the International Naval Research
Organization lists only about seventy— five Italian members.
However, one other group of Italians deserve to be mentioned as enthusiasts
of Italian naval and maritime history: the Associazione Italiana di Documen-
tazione Marittima e Navale (AIDMEN) and the Associazione Navemodellisti
Bolognesi. Together, these organizations number about 250 members and are
devoted to preserving photographs of ships and original builder's plans, building
models, and publishing books and articles on ship designs. Prominent among
these passionate experts are the famous Aldo Fraccaroli, as well as Erminio
Bagnasco, Giorgio Giorgerini, Augusto Nani, Franco Gay, Elio Ando, Achille
Rastelli and Gino Galuppini, each of whom has written one or more books on
merchant or naval ship design, construction or armament. All these men have
aided USMM over the years in its superb publications devoted to the specifica-
tions of Italian naval vessels and have authored many of them. Such work
constitutes more the raw material for naval and maritime history rather than the
heart of such studies, but it deserves mention for the painstaking care that has
gone into its creation. Italian research and publication on ship design — perhaps
reflecting Italian superiority in design of all kinds — is of particularly high quality.
Italian maritime history has been advanced by an extensive series of excellent
publications subsidized by the Istituto per la Ricostruzione Industriale (IRI), the
government holding agency created by the Fascist regime in 1933, which still
plays a huge role in the Italian economy. IRI also maintains an extensive and
well-ordered archive in Rome devoted to the history of Italian industry,
especially the state-sponsored naval armaments, steel and shipbuilding industries,
and the government-supported Italian ports. In contrast to the publications of
the USMM, IRI's volumes have been devoted to Italian shipyards, ports, maritime
and naval industries, and seaborne commerce from the end of the Napoleonic
period to the present. V. Marchese, Mariano Gabriele, Fulvio Babudieri, and
L.A. Pagano have all produced volumes notable for their detail, accuracy and
careful research. Equally excellent private scholarship on the history of the
Aldo Fraccaroli, Italian Warships of World War /(London: 1970); idem., Italian Warships of World War
II (London: 1968); Erminio Bagnasco, Submarines of World War Two (London: 1977); idem., Le armi
delle navi italiane nella seconda guerra mondiale (Parma: 1978); Erminio Bagnasco and Elio Ando, Naui e
marinai italiani nella seconda guerra mondiale (Parma: 1977); Erminio Bagnasco and Mark Grossman, Italian
Battleships of World War Two (Missoula, Mont.: 1986); Erminio Bagnasco and Achille Rastelli, Le
costruzioni navali italiane per Vestero (Rome: 1991); Giorgio Giorgerini and Augusto Nani, Gli incrociatori
italiani 1861-1964 (Rome: 1964); idem., Le navi di linea italiane 1861-1961 (Rome: 1962); Franco Gay
with Elio Ando and Franco Bargoni, Orizzonte mare. Naui italiane nella seconda guerra mondiale, 14 vols.
(Rome: 1972-79); Franco and Valerio Gay, The Cruiser Bartolomeo Colleoni (London & Annapolis, 1987);
Gino Galuppini, Guida alle naui d'ltalia. La marina da guerra dal 1861 ad oggi (Milan: 1982).
16 V. Marchese, L'industria armatoriale italiana dal 1815 al 1859 (Rome: 1955); idem., L'industria ligure
delle costruzioni nauali dal 1815 al 1859 (Rome: 1957); idem., Ilporto di Genoua dal 1818 al 1891 (Rome:
1959); Mariano Gabriele, L'industria armatoriale nei territori dello stato pontificio dal 1815 al 1880 (Rome:
1961); idem., L'industria delle costruzioni nauali nei territori dello stato pontificio dal 1815 al 1880 Rome,
1 86 Twentieth Century Italy
Italian merchant marine, shipbuilding, maritime law and, of particular, Italian
ports was pioneered by Arturo Assante after the First World War. More
recently, such work has been continued and expanded (to include studies of the
seafarers' union and maritime law, among other subjects) by Vito Dante Flore,
Tomaso Gropallo, Francesco Ogliari, Ennio Poleggi, Guglielmo Salotti,
Pasquale B. Trizio, and Ludovica De Courten. Thanks in particular to the
work of Gabriele in the area of Italian maritime history, there has been an unusual
and happy integration of naval and maritime history in Italy. Whatever other
criticism can be fairly leveled at IRI, its support of such scholarship deserves high
praise.
Outside of Italy, few historians have paid much attention to that country's
naval and maritime history. What work has been done has been almost
exclusively limited to the period from the Italian— Turkish War to the end of
World War II and often in the context of Italian naval activities in alliance with
or in conflict with other powers. Paul G. Halpern deserves special mention for
his studies of the Mediterranean naval situation from 1908 to 1918. Other
Americans include MacGregor Knox, James Sadkovich and the author. Also,
1961); idem., Iporti dello stato pontificio dal 1815 al 1880 (Rome: 1963); Fulvio Babudieri, L'industria
artnatoriale di Trieste e della regione giulia dal 1815 al 1918 (Rome: 1966); idem., I porti di Trieste e delta
regione giulia dal 1815 al 1918 (Rome: 1967); L.A. Pagano, L'industria artnatoriale siciliana dal 1816 al
1880 (VLome: 1966).
Arturo Assante, II porto di Napoli (Naples: 1938); idem., Lafunzione mediterranea del porto di Napoli
(Naples: 1941).
Vito Dante Flore, L'industria dei trasporti marittimi in Italia, 1860—1943 (Rome: 1970); idem.,
L'inserimento nei mercati intemazionali (Rome: 1973); idem., Le emergenze nazionali (Rome, 1973); Tomaso
Gropallo, Naui a vapore ed armamento italiano dal 1818 ai nostri giomi (Milan: 1976); Francesco Ogliari,
Trasporti marittimi di linea, 1 vols. (Milan: 1975-87); Ennio Poleggi, Porto di Genoua: Storia e attualith
(Genoa: 1977); Guglielmo Salotti, Giuseppe Giulietti: il sindicato dei marittimi dal 1910 al 1953 (Rome:
1982); Pasquale B. Trizio, La marineria a vapore del Levante d'ltalia 1876-1932 (Bari: 1983); Ludovica
De Courten, La Marina mercantile italiana nella politica di espansione, 1860-1914: industria,finanza e trasporti
marittimi (Rome: 1989).
19 Paul G. Halpern, The Mediterranean Naval Situation, 1908-1914 (Cambridge, Mass.: 1971); idem.,
The Naval War in the Mediterranean, 1914-1918 (London: 1987).
20 MacGregor Knox, Mussolini Unleashed 1939—1941. Politics and Strategy in Fascist Italy's Last War
(New York: 1982); idem., "The Italian Armed Forces, 1940-3" in Allan R. Millett and Williamson
Murray, eds., Military Effectiveness, vol. Ill, The Second World War (Boston: 1988); James Sadkovich,
"Aircraft Carriers and the Mediterranean: Rethinking the Obvious " in Aerospace Historian, December
1987; idem., "Re-evaluating Who Won the Italo-British Naval Conflict, 1940-42" in European History
Quarterly October 1988: idem., "The Italian Navy in World War II: 1940-1943" in Sadkovich, ed.,
Reevaluating Major Naval Combatants of World War II (Westport, Ct.: 1990); Brian R. Sullivan, "Prisoner
in the Mediterranean: The Evolution and Execution of Italian Maritime Strategy, 1919-1942" in
William B. Cogar, ed., Naval History. The Seventh Symposium of the U.S. Naval Academy (Wilmington,
Del.: 1988); idem., "A Fleet in Being: The Rise and Fall of Italian Sea Power, 1861-1943" in The
International History Review, February 1988; idem., "The Italian Armed Forces, 1918—1940" in Millett
and Murray, op. cit., vol. II, The Interwar Period; idem., "The Strategy of the Decisive Weight: Italy,
1882-1922" in Williamson Murray, Alvin H. Bernstein, and MacGregor Knox, eds., The Making of
Strategy (New York, 1993); "Italian Naval Power and the Washington Disarmament Conference of
1921-1922" in Diplomacy & Statecraft, Fall 1993.
Sullivan 187
the French Pierre Barjot, Jean Savant, and Raymond De Belot stand out for
their work several decades ago on the naval aspects of the Second World War
91
in the Mediterranean. The Germans, Michael Salewski, Walter Baum, and
most of all, Gerhard Schreiber deserve praise for their more recent studies, as do
00
Josef Schroder and Jiirgen Rohwer for their more specialized research. In the
area of Italian ship design and construction, Siegfried Breyer, Robert O. Dulin,
91
Jr., and William H. Garzke, Jr., have published outstanding work.
This brief survey of the state of Italian naval and maritime history indicates
that much work in the field remains for the future, particularly in naval history.
To begin with, there is no truly adequate history of the Italian Navy. Fioravanzo's
La marina militare nel suo primo secolo di vita 1861—1961 (Rome, 1961) and
Giuliano Colliva's Uomini e navi nella storia della marina militare italiana (Milan,
1971) are the best available. But neither are sufficiently detailed nor analytical,
nor based on primary research, nor on extensive use of foreign sources. Both
are also outdated, even in regard to recent Italian publication in the field.
Scholarly biography, until recently, has not been emphasized in any area of
Italian history. This is certainly true in regard to Italian naval history. Carlo
Persano, Simone de Saint-Bon, Benedetto Brin, Augusto Riboty, Carlo
Mirabello, Vittorio Cuniberti, Giovanni Bettolo, Giovanni Sechi, Luigi di
Savoia, Paolo Thaon di Revel, Alfredo Acton, Costanzo Ciano, Umberto
Pugliese, Giuseppe Sirianni, Domenico Cavagnari, Arturo Riccardi, Angelo
Iachino, Inigo Campioni, and Romeo Bernotti all deserve modern, detached
biographies. Ezio Ferrante has written a short study of Brin and the previously
mentioned brief biography of Thaon di Revel. Recently, Aldo Santini has
published a biography of Costanzo Ciano that covers his naval career to some
9^
extent. Otherwise, with the exception of the short, although generally excel-
lent, sketches and bibliographies that have appeared in the forty— odd volumes
Pierre Barjot and Jean Savant, Histoire mondiale de la Marine (Paris: 1961); Raymond De Belot, La
guerra aeronavale nel Mediterraneo 1939-1945 (Milan: 1971).
Michael Salewski, Die deutsche Seekriegsleitung 1935—1945, 3 vols. (Frankfurt am Main & Munich,
1970—75); Walter Baum, Der Krieg der "Achsenmachte" im Mittelmeer-Raum. Die "Strategic" der Diktatoren
(Ottingen, Zurich & Frankfurt am Main: 1973); Gerhard Schreiber, "Italien im machtpolitischen Kalkul
der deutschen Marinefuhrung 1919 bis 1945" in Quellen und Forschungen aus italienischen Archiuen und
Biblioteken, no. 62, 1982; idem., Revisionisms und Weltmachtstreben. Marinefuhrung und deutsch-italienische
Beziehungen 1919 bis 1944 (Stuttgart: 1978); idem., "Die Seeschlacht von Matapan" in Marineforum, no.
50, 1975; Gerhard Schreiber et al., Das Deutsche Reich in der Zweite Weltkrieg, vol. 3, Der Mittelmeerraum
und Sudosteuropa: Von der 'non belligeranza' Italiens bis zum Kriegseintritt ver Vereinigten Staaten (Stuttgart,
1984); Josef Schroder, "Weicholds Plane zur Aktivierung der Seekriegfuhrung im Jahre 1943" in
Wehrwissenschafliche Rundschau, no. 19, 1969; Jiirgen Rohwer, Axis Submarine Successes 1939—1945
(Annapolis: 1983).
23 Siegfried Breyer, Battleships and Battle Cruisers 1905-1970 (Garden City, N.Y.: 1973); William H.
Garzke, Jr. and Robert O. Dulin, Jr., Battleships. Axis and Neutral Battleships in World War II (Annapolis:
1985).
Ezio Ferrante, Benedetto Brin e la questione marittima italiana 1866-1898 Rome, 1983).
25
Aldo Santini, Costanzo Ciano, ilganascia delfascismo (Milan: 1993).
1 88 Twentieth Century Italy
of the far from completed Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani (Rome, I960-) (up
to the "Ds" so far) and the even shorter entries by MacGregor Knox and the
author in Philip V. Cannistraro's Historical Dictionary of Fascist Italy (Greenport,
Ct.: 1982), all the above-mentioned major Italian naval figures lack objective
studies of their lives.
A third aspect of Italian naval history that has been neglected is the period
since 1945. Given the Italian political situation described above, this is to be
expected. Bernardi's monograph for the USMM on the naval aspects and
consequences of the 1947 peace treaty, the latter parts of Admiral Franco
Maugeri's two books of memoirs, Enea Cerquetti's Marxist analysis of the Italian
armed forces, 1945—1975, and Elizabeth Macintosh's unpublished doctoral
dissertation on Italian naval arms sales and foreign policy, 1949—89, are the only
major works known to the author. The revelations that have emerged in recent
months about the degree of corruption that has tainted relations between the
Italian government and private industry will probably expand to Italian shipyards
and naval armaments firms. If true, this would present yet another impediment
to the study of recent Italian naval history.
For those interested in seeing Italian naval history, Venice provides its
excellent Museo Storico Navale. The museum is only a short walk from St
Mark's catherdral and illustrates the naval history of both Venice and of modern
Italy.
The gaps in Italian naval and maritime historiography have been mentioned
above. The most serious appears to be the near-total neglect of the teaching of
naval and maritime history in Italian universities. Given Italy's re-emergence as
a major power in the Mediterranean region, the Balkans, and in the European
Community, and given the likely diminution of American naval power in the
waters surrounding Italy, it is very much in the interest of Italian democracy that
Italy's citizens understand such aspects of their nation's history. Over the last
dozen years, Italian naval forces have returned to taking a major role in Italy's
foreign policy, making operational deployments to the Suez Canal and the Red
Sea, to the waters off Lebanon, Libya and Somalia, to the Persian Gulf and to
the coastlines of Albania and Croatia. Given the turbulence in North and East
Africa, the Middle East, and Eastern Europe, such Italian naval operations seem
likely to increase in future. Italy's citizens seem on the brink of remaking their
nation's politics and of creating a new, far more accountable system of govern-
ment. While it is presumptuous for a non-Italian to so state, to make wise
Giovanni Bernardi, ha marina, gli armistizi e il trattato di pace, settembre 1943-dicembre 1951 (Rome:
1979); Franco Maugeri, From the Ashes of Disgrace (New York: 1948); idem., Ricordi di un marinaio. La
Marina italiana dai primi del Nouecento al secondo dopoguerra nelle memorie di uno dei suoi capi (Milan: 1980);
Enea Cerquetti, Leforze armate italiane dal 1945 al 1915 (Milan: 1975); Elizabeth Macintosh, "Italy:
Defense Industries and the Arms Trade, 1949-1989," Ph.D. dissertation, University of Edinburgh, 1989.
Sullivan 1 89
decisions about their national security, it would be best for Italians to have a far
better knowledge of their naval and maritime past and present.
In the writing of this article, the author has relied heavily on two publications of the Centro
Interuniversitario di Studi e Ricerche Storico-Militare of the Universities of Padua, Pisa, and Turin: La
storiografta militare italiana negli ultimi venti anni (Milan: 1985) and Bibliograjia italiana di storia e studi militari
1960-1984 (Milan: 1987). In addition, he wishes to express his gratitude for help from his friends Lucio
Ceva, Willard C. Frank, Jr., and Paul G. Halpern.
Comments on Brian Sullivan's
"Twentieth Century Italy"
James J. Sadkovich
Dr. Sullivan has presented an excellent paper on those Italian archives, authors,
and publications that are concerned with contemporary naval and maritime
history. He has raised a number of issues, including the question of whether the
Italian peninsula's naval and maritime history is synonymous with twentieth-century
Italy's naval and maritime history or should it also include those of the maritime
republics of the late medieval and early modern periods as well as those of the
pre-Risorgimento navies of Naples, Sardinia, Venice, and Tuscany.
Italians have certainly been preoccupied with the role of the Regia Marina
since unification, and they have debated its performance during the Fascist
ventennio and World War II in numerous books and articles, including such
popular histories as those by Arrigo Petacco and Gianni Rocca. That Rocca's
book, Fucilategli ammiragli [Shoot the Admirals] was published in 1987 and reissued
in 1990 as one of Monadadori's popular Oscar Storia series indicates that there
is a large public for such offerings, and its title, like that of Di Sambuy's Match
pari fra due grandi Jlotte [Drawn Match between Two Great Fleets] , hints at the
polemical nature of the historiography on World War II. The publication over
the past two decades of a large number of technical and scholarly studies on
World War II and the fascist era by both academics and former naval officers
demonstrates that if the Italians have not adopted a "worshipful attitude" toward
their navy, they certainly are interested in recent naval history.
At the same time, there is also an interest in ancient and early modern naval and
maritime history, and there appears to be a public for books on such subjects as
This essay is an expanded version of the remarks that I made during the Conference on Naval and
Maritime Affairs and contains a number of observations that I neglected to make in June. I have tried to
retain the spirit of my comments, while including bibliographic information and interpretive comments
precluded in an oral presentation. Both Dr. Sullivan and I concentrated on contemporary naval and
maritime history, much to the distress of Dr. Herve Coutau-Begarie, who correctly observed that Italian
naval and maritime history extends far beyond the twentieth century. I have therefore alluded to works
on the medieval and modern period as well. The bibliographic notes are not comprehensive, but are
intended to serve as a guide to recent publications, many of which have excellent bibliographies.
Gianni Rocca, Fucilategli ammiragli: la tragedia delta Marina italiana nella seconda guerra mondiale (Milan:
Mondadori, 1987, 1990) and La battaglia di Matapan (Milan: Mondadori, 1985); and Arrigo Petacco, Le
battaglie navali del Mediterraneo nella seconda guerra mondiale (Milan: Mondadori, 1977). The interest in
recent naval history has tended, perhaps properly, to blur the lines between amateur enthusiast and
professional historian and to move popular and academic history closer together.
192 Comments
maritime archaeology and folklore. There are also strong regional and local
organizations, such as the Centro Veneto per le Ricerche Storiche, which
launched a new journal, Ricerche Venete, in December 1989, and the University
of Genoa's Istituto di Medievistica, which has published a number of studies on
Genoa and Liguria, including a series of volumes that deal with everything from
early modern business women (donne d'affari), to deserters, pirates, foreign affairs,
and Genoese colonies in the Black Sea. The Institute has also published a
number of studies dealing with the history of Liguria, among them Laura
Balletto's interesting collection of essays on piracy, fishing, and port operations.
It is therefore no surprise that the Italians have continued their tradition
of publishing popular and scholarly works on maritime centers such as
Ancona, Carrara, Florence and Tuscany, Genoa, Manfredonia,
3 For example, Attilio Delia Porta, Marina di Vietri: Storia, vicende, folklore (Cava dei Tirreni: Arti
Grafiche Palumbo & Esposito, 1984); Peter Throckmorton, Atlante di archeologia subacquea: la storia racconta
dal mare: dall'Oddissea di Omero al Titanic (Novara: Istituto Geografico De Agostini, 1988); Anna Maria
Crino's edition of Petruccio Ubaldini, La disfatta dellajlotta spagnola, 1588: due commentari autobiografi
inediti (Florence: L. S. Olschki, 1988). Also see Elizabeth Bostwick Shuey, Etruscan Maritime Activity in
the Western Mediterranean c. 800-400 B.C.: An Archaeological Perspective on Historical Interpretations (Ph.D.,
University of California at Santa Barbara, 1982). For the importance of archaeology to Italians during
the early 1900s, see Maria Petricoli, Archaeologia e Mare Nostrum (Rome: Valerio Leri, 1990).
4 Istituto di Medievistica, Miscellanea di storia ligure, vols-. I and IV (Genoa: 1958, 1966), vols. II and
HI (Milan: 1961, 1963); Miscellanea di storia ligure in onore di Giorgio Falco, (Milan: 1962 and 1966);
Miscellanea di studi storici (Genoa: 1969); Miscellanea di storia italiana e mediterranea per Nino Lamboglia
(Genoa: 1978); Miscellanea di storia savonese (Genoa: 1978). The Centro per la Storia della Tecnica del Consiglio
Nazionale delle Ricerche (Sezione 4), has published Studi di storia navale (1975).
5 Laura Balletto, Genova nel Duecento: uomini nelporto e uomini sul mare (Genoa: 1983) is volume 36 of
the Institute's Collana storica di fond e studi. Also see her Battista de Luco mercante genovese del secolo XV
e il suo cartulario (Genoa: 1979), and Mercanti pirati e corsari nei mari della Corsica (Genoa: 1978). Among
the more recent publications by the Institute are G. Airaldi, Studi e documenti su Genova e Voltremare
(Genoa: 1974); M. L. Balletto, Navi e navigazione a Genova nel quattrocento. La "Cabella marinariorum"
(1482—1491) (Genoa: 1973); and G. Forcheri, Navi e navigazione a Genoa nel Trecento. H "Liber Gazarie"
(Genoa: 1974).
6 Alberto Caracciolo, Le port franc d'Ancone: Croissance et impasse d'un milieu marchand su XVIIIe siecle
(Paris: SEVPEN, 1965), and Francesco Trionfi: capitulista e magnate d' Ancona (Milan: Giuffre, 1962).
7 Antonio Bernieri, H porto di Carrara (Genova: Sagep, 1983), a volume in the Collana I Manufatti
series.
The recent works by Cesare Ciano, footnote 81, below, and Camillo Manfroni's early study, La
marina militare del granducato mediceo (Rome: Forzani & C, 1895).
9 Mario Bottaro, Genova 1892 e le celebrazioni colombiane (Genoa: F. Pirella, 1984); Georg Caro, Genova
e la supremazia sul Mediterraneo, 1257—1311 (Genoa: Societa Ligure di Storia Patria, 1974); Giovanni
Forcheri, Navi e navigazione e Genova nel Trecento, op. cit., Antonino Ronco, Genova tra Massena e
Bonaparte: storia della Repubblica ligure, il 1800 (Genoa: Sagep, 1988). Also B. Z. Kedar, Mercanti in crisi
a Genoa e Venezia nel '300 (Rome: 1981), and Camillo Manfroni, Banco di Genova (Genoa: A. Donath,
1911); and Anita Ginella Capini, Enrica L. Aronica, and Maria G. Buscaglia, eds., Immagini di vita tra
terra e mare: la Foce in eta moderna e contemporanea, 1500-1900: mostra storico-documentaria (Genoa: Azione
Cattolica S. Zita, 1984), an exhibition held in Genoa from 31 May to 8 June 1984.
Vincenzo Gennaro Valente, Manfredonia: Storia della citta di Manfredi (Rome: Manzella, 1986).
Sadkovich 193
Massa, Messina, Milan, Naples, Sardinia, Taranto, Trieste, and Venice.
Genoa hosted two international congresses on maritime history over the last decade,
Ancona held a conference on Zara and other Yugoslav cities, and even Lake Como
has its historians. Authors such as Gino Galuppini, Marc 'Antonio Bragadin, Ezio
11 Stefano Giampaoli, Vita di sabbie e d'acque: il litorale di Massa, 1500-1900 (Massa: Palazzo di S.
Elisabetta, 1984).
^ R. Battaglia, Mercanti e imprenditori in una citta marittima. H caso di Messina (Milan: Giufire, 1992).
13 Milan functioned as an inland port, whose superb canals made it a major commercial center. Giuseppe
Codara, J navigli delta vecchia Milatio (1977). For a general history, Domenico Sella, U Ducato di Milano
dal 1535 al 1196 (Turin: UTET, 1984).
Among the many works on Naples and Sicily, Antonio Calabria, The Cost of Empire: The Finances of
the Kingdom of Naples in the Time of Spanish Rule (New York: Cambridge Univ. Press, 1991).
15 Giorlamo Sotgiu, Storia della Sardegna sabauda, 1720-1847 (Rome: Laterza, 1984).
* Giacinto Peluso, Taranto, 1919—1953: una citta, un monumento: cronaca, fatti, personaggi (Taranto:
Mandese, 1984); Giuseppe Mataluno, "Cenni storici sull'arsenale M. M. di Taranto," Riuista marittima
(1986).
For example, Fulvio Babudieri's many works, e.g., Industrie, commerci e navigazione a Trieste e nella
regione Giulia dall'inizio del Settecento ai primi anni del Novecento (Milan: Giuflre, 1982), La funzione
dell'emporio marittimo di Trieste nell'ambito della Monorchia absburgica nell' Ottocento (Milan: 1980), II porto di
Trieste nel quadro della politica absburgica dell' Ottocento (Innsbruck, 1977), Iporti di Trieste e della regione Giulia
dal 1815 al 1918 (Rome: 1965), L'industria armatoriale di Trieste e della regione Giulia dal 1815 al 1918
(Rome, 1964), and La nascita dell'emporio commerciale e marittimo di Trieste (Genoa: 1964). Also Spiridione
P. Nicolaidi, La presenza greca a Trieste (Triest: B & MM Fachin, 1990); Gottfried von Banfield, L'aquila
di Trieste: V ultimo caualiere di Maria Teresa nana la propria vita (Triest: LINT, 1984) (originally published
in German as Der Adler von Triest: der letzte Maria-Theresien-Ritter erzahlt sein Leben (1984).
18 For example, the late Roberto Cessi's Venezia ducale (Venice: Deputazione di Storia Patria per la
Venezia, 1963), Studi sul Risorgimento nel Veneto (Padua: Liviana, 1965), and Storia della Repubblica di
Venezia (Milan/Messina: G. Principato, 1968); and Armando Lodolini's, Le repubbliche del mare (Rome:
Ente per la Diffusione e l'Educazione Storica, 1967), part of the Biblioteca di Storia Patria series. Also
Thomas F. Madden's recent dissertation, Enrico Dandolo: His Life, His Family, and His Venice before the
Fourth Crusade (Ph.D., University of Illinois at Urbana— Champagne, 1993); Frederic Chapin Lane's
classic history, Venice. A Maritime Republic (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Univ. Press, 1973), published in
Italy as Storia di Venezia (1978), vol. 137 of the Biblioteca di Cultura Storica. Lane's bibliography is still
useful.
Raffaele Belvederi, ed., Atti del congresso internazionale di studi storici. Rapporti
Genoua — Mediterraneo — Atlantico nell' eta modema (Genoa: Prima Cooperativa Grafica, 1982).
S. Anselmi, ed., Sette citta jugo— slave tra Medioevo e Ottocento (Ancona: Quaderni di Proposte e ricerche,
1991). The "seminario" was held in September 1989 and focused on a number of cities, including Zara.
L'idea del lago: un paesaggio ridefinito, 1861-1914 (Milan: G. Mazzotta, 1984), was published on the
occasion of an exhibition on Lake Como.
In addition to Guida alle navi d'ltalia dal 1861 a oggi (Milan: Mondadori 1982), Gino Galuppini has
published La bandiera tricolore nella Marina sarda (Rome: Ufficio Storico della Marina Militare, 1987), "La
scuola per i sottufficiali della marina borbonica," Rivista marittima (1985), and "Lo schnorchel e una
invenzione italiana," Rivista marittima (1975).
Marc' Antonio Bragadin's Le repubbliche marinare (Milan: Mondadori, 1974) is a popular, illustrated
history of Venice, Pisa, Genova, and other maritime republics prior to Venice's capitulation to Napoleon
in 1797. It has neither bibliography nor notes, but does have a definite nationalist bias that credits the
Italian republics with writing "many of the most luminous chapters" of human history, notes that Europe
is indebted to Venice for repelling the Turks and insists that the spirit of the early modern republics lives
on in today's Italian mariners.
1 94 Comments
Ferrente, and Lamberto Radogna, have dealt with the Bourbon and Sar-
dinian navies of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries as well as those of the
early modern maritime republics of Venice, Genova, and Pisa and the modern
Italian Navy.
But if early modern history is fairly robust, my impression, perhaps skewed
by my own research, still is that contemporary naval history dominates Italian
bookstores and that since 1945 relatively little has been done on the nineteenth
and early twentieth centuries. To the best of my knowledge, there is no
organization comparable to the Italian Naval League, which popularized naval
affairs from 1897 to the 1920s, although the Historical Office of the Italian Navy
has done a great deal to keep naval and maritime history before the Italian
public. Such studies by historians, as those by Caracciolo on early modern
capitalism in Ancona and by Babudieri on the shipbuilding industry in Triest,
are notable, but more is needed on the development of maritime industries, ship
design, and maritime law, and it is reassuring to know that IFJ is sponsoring
In addition to Benedetto Brin e questione marittima italiana, 1866-1898 (Rome: Rivista Marittima,
1983) and La sconfitta navale di Lissa (Rome: Vito Bianco, 1985)., Ezio Ferrente has published "Romanze
navali e guerre ipotetiche nel secolo XIX," Informazioni parlamentari difesa (1982), "August Vittorio
Vecchj: lugotenente di vascello e storico della Marina," Rivista marittima (1972).
Lamberto Radogna, Cronistoria delle unita di guerra delle marine preunitarie (Rome: Ufficio Storica della
Marina Militare, 1981). This is an extremely useful listing of the ships of the various Italian navies prior
to unification.
26 Also Carlo Zaghi, P. S. Mancini, I' Africa e il probkma del Mediterraneo 1884-1885) (Rome: Casini,
1955); and the numerous articles published in Rivista marittima, including Augusto De Toro, "La squadra
austriaca prima e dopo Lissa: interessanti elementi da due immagini fotografiche," (1987); Nunzia
Esposito Elefante, "La marina Sarda nella guerra di Crimea" (1986); Antonio Formicola and Claudio
Romano. "L'industria navale nel regno delle due Sicilie sotto Ferdinando II" (1986), and "1860: Marina
borbonica ultimo atto" (1984); Giovanni Macchi, "La marina italiana a Creta in una operazione
multinazionale di fine ottocento," (1985); Arturo Marcheggiano, "Le operazioni navali italiane nella
prima guerra di indipendenza (1848-49)" (1984).
For example, Ferruccio Botti's articles in Rivista marittima: "Esercito e armata navale nel pensiero
militare 'terrestre' dalla fine del secolo XIX all'inizio della prima guerra mondiale" (1987), "La
'correlazione terrestre marittima': un precedente italiano dell'attuale cooperazione interforce all'inizio
del secolo XX" (1987), and "Aviazione navale in Italia agli inizi del secolo i un raffronto con le intuizioni
precorritrici di Clement Ader" (1986). Botti has also published on armored forces and military doctrine
with Nicola Pignato and Vicenzo Ilari. Also see Luigi Romani, D'Annunzio e il mare (Rome: Rivista
Marittima, 1988) and Timothy W. Childs, Mediterranean Imbroglio: The Diplomatic Origins of Modem Libya
(The Diplomacy of the Belligerents during the Italo-Turkish War, 1911—1912) (Ph.D., Georgetown
University, 1982).
The Lega Navale Italiana published an illustrated periodical, La lega naval (Florence, 1897-98, La
Spezia, 1898-1901, Rome, 1901-19), as well as a number of studies on naval and maritime affairs. For
example, the patriotic The Adriatic Avenged: The Apotheosis ofNazario Sauro (Rome: E. Armani, 1917)
and La marina italiana nella guerra mondiale, 1915-1918 (Rome: 1920). The League also published the
Album marinaresco (Rome: 1914), as well as Luigi Castagna, Dizionari Mamaro (Rome: LNI, 1955) and
Giuseppe di Maceo, La battaglia di Lepanto e il mare di Gaeta (Gaeta: Tipografia Salemne, 1930). For the
League's official history, Angjolo Ponti, Venticinque anni di vita della Lega navale italiana (1899-1924)
(Rome: LNI, 1924).
Sadkovich 1 95
studies on maritime industries and commerce. I agree with Dr. Sullivan that
a great deal also needs to be done on the Italo-Turkish war of 1911—12 and
World War I, both significant, if neglected, victories for the Italian Navy that
were crucial to its development and affected the evolution of such naval
weapons as MTBs, pioneered as Mas (Motoscafi antisommergibili) by the
Italians. Nor is there an abundant biographical literature on those who
shaped and implemented Italian naval policy. And even many official
histories are now out of date.
^ Above for Babudieri and Caracciolo. The recent study that Dr. Sullivan has cited by Lucio Ceva
and Andrea Curami has interesting data on naval weaponry and the scandal at Ansaldo in the 1930s; see
Industria bellica anni Trenta (Milan: Franco Angeli, 1992). Also Michele Nones, "L'industria militare in
Liguria da 1945 al 1975." Storia contemporanea (1986); Maria Ottolino, Commercio e iniziativa marittima in
Puglia, 1876-1914: la Societa di navigazione a uapore Puglia (1981); Donato Riccesi (1956—), Gustavo
Pulitzer Finali: il disegno della nave: allestimenti interni, 1925—1967 (1985); Valerio Staccioli, "II linguaggio
architettonico nel disegno della nave passeggeri: I. Dai transatlantic! di Brunei agli anni vend." "II. Dagli
anni trenta ai nostri giomi," Rivista marittima (1987). Also see Francesco La Saponara, The Shipping Industry
and Statistical Information in Italy: A Survey (1986). For maritime law Riniero Zeno, Storia del diritto
marittimo italiano nel Mediterraneo (Milan: Giuffre, 1946), vol. 3 of the series Fondazione Vittorio Scialoia
per gli Studi Giuridici and Documenti per la storia del diritto marittimo nei secoli XIII e XIV (1970/1936),
vol. 4 of the series Documenti e Studi per la Storia del Commercio e del Diritto Commerciale Italiano;
and Luigi Benvenuti, Lafrontiera marina (Padua: CEDAM, 1988), who examines the concept of territorial
waters.
Most of the studies on these topics are dated, e.g., Adolfo Balliano and Giuseppe Soavi, L'ltalia sul
mare nella grande guerra (Turin: Successore Loescher Ermanno, 1934); Capitano di Fregata Roncagli,
Guerra italo-turca. I. Dalle origini al decreto di sovranita su la Libia (Milan: Hoepli, 1937); and Camillo
Manfroni's works, Guerra Italo—turca (1911—1912). Cronistoria delle operazioni navali (Milan: Hoepli,
1918-26), which is the official history of the war; Tripoli nella storia marinara d'ltalia (Padua: Drucker,
1911); LTtalia nelle vicende marinare della tripolitania (Intra/ Verbania: A. Airoldi, 1935/1942); Marina e
aviazione italiane nella guerra mondiale (Milan: F. Vallardi, 1937); and Storia della marina italiana durante la
guerra mondiale, 1914-1918 (Bologna: Zanichelli, 1923).
Among the more recent works on early twentieth-century naval history are the two works Dr.
Sullivan has cited by Paul Halpern, and E. Europoli, "La lega navale italiana," Rivista marittima (1980).
Among the works that are now dated are those by Adolfo Balliano and Camillo Manfroni; Guido Po,
II grande ammiraglio Paolo Thaon di Revel (Turin: Lattes, 1936); Ettore Bravetta, La grande guerra sul mare,
2 vols. (Milan: Mondadori, 1925); Bernardo Melli, La guerra italo-turca (Rome: E. Voghere, 1914);
Whitney Warren, The Role of the Italian Navy in the Great War: A Lecture Given at the Colony Club, Netv
York, 22 January 1920 (New York, 1920/microfilm); and A. Thomazi, La guerre navale dans VAdriatique
(Paris: Payot, 1927); and La guerre navale dans la Mediterranee (Paris: Payot, 1929).
Most of the early histories tended to fall within the category of pamphlets and apologies more than
scholarly analysis. La Marina italiana (Rome: Ministero della Marina, 1918), was only eleven pages long;
La marina italiana nella guerra mondiale, 1915—1918 (Rome: Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore della
Marina, 1920), only 84 pages; and The Italian Navy in the World War 1915—1918. Facts and Figures (Rome:
Ufficio Storico della Regia Marina Italiana, 1927) was a defense of Italian naval operations during the
war. Also see G. Almagia and A. Zoli, La marina italiana nella grande guerra. I. Vigilia d'armi sul mare
(Florence: Vallecchi, 1935), published by the Office of the Chief of Staff of the Royal Italian Navy's
Historical Section (Ufficio Storica dello Stato Maggiore della Regia Marina Italiana); and Storia della
campagne oceaniche della regia marina (Rome: Ufficio Storico della Stato Maggiore della Regia Marina
Italiana, 1936, 1960), 4 vols.
196 Comments
On the other hand, since the 1940s there has been a continual outpouring
of literature on the fascist era, often of a polemical nature. Why this is so is
not clear, but it certainly is due partially to the impression that the Italian fleet
was largely intact when it surrendered in 1943, because it had elected to stay in
port rather than fight during the war. But if a handful of cruisers and most
battleships survived the war, few smaller vessels did so, because they played the
major role in a war that was characterized by convoy, not fleet, operations.
Nonetheless, the polemical conflagration that touched off efforts to assign blame
for the apparent failure of the Navy to perform well during the war has been
fuelled by the difficulty of reconciling antifascist postwar politics with a
patriotism that was compromised by fascism during the Ventennio. As a result,
there is a massive literature on World War II and the fascist era, and a great many
historians have contributed to it.
Among the better known are Erminio Bagnasco, Franco Bargoni, Giovanni
Bernardi, Marc 'Antonio Bragadin, Carlo De Risio, Vittorio Di Sambuy, '
For example, Achille Rastelli, "II naviglio mercantile requisito nella storia della marina militare,"
Rivista marittima (1984); Ernesto Giuriati, "Storia e tradimento," Riuista marittima (1981); Gino Jori, "La
crittologia nelle operazioni navali in Mediterraneo (1940-1943)," Riuista marittima (1982); Nino Bixio
Lo Martire, Naui e bugie (1983); Gianni Padoan, Laguerra nel Mediterraneo (Bologna: Capitol, 1978); and
Dobrillo Dupuis, Lajlotta bianca: le naui ospedale italiane nel secondo conjlitto mondiale (Milan: Mursia, 1978).
Also Renzo De Felice, Mussolini I'alleato. I. L'ltalia in guerra 1940-1943. II. Crisi e agonia del regime
(Turin: Einaudi, 1990), 2 vols., who discusses the Navy's role; Salvatore Minardi, Italia e Francia alia
conferenza nauale di Londra del 1930 (1989); and Rosaria Quartararo, "Imperial Defence in the
Mediterranean on the Eve of the Ethiopian Crisis (July-October 1935)," Historical Journal (1977).
Erminio Bagnasco collaborated with Elio Ando on Naui e marinai italiani nella seconda guerra mondiale
(Parma: Ermanno Albertelli, 1977/1981), and with Marco Spertini on J mezzi d'assalto della X" MAS,
1940-1945 (Parma: Ermanno Albertelli, 1991). On his own has published a number of studies, including
Le armi delle naui italiane nella seconda guerra mondiale (Parma: Ermanno Albertelli, 1978); Italian Battleships
of World War II: A Pictorial History (1986); La portaerei nella marina italiana. Idee, progetti e realizzioni dalle
origini a oggi (Rome: Rivista Marittima, 1989); Submarines of World War Two (Annapolis: USNIP, 1977);
"Navi incorporate nella Marina italiana durante la seconda guerra mondiale." Riuista marittima (1961); /
M.A.S. e le motosiluranti italiane, 1906-1968 (Rome: Ufficio Storico della Marina Militare, 1969).
Franco Bargoni, L'impegno nauale italiano durante la Guerra ciuile spagnola (1936—1939) (Rome: Ufficio
Storico della Marina Militare, 1992); Corazzate italiane classi Duilio— Italia— Ruggiero di Lauria, entrate in
seruiziofra il 1880 e il 1892 (Rome: Ateneo e Bizzarri, 1978); and Le prime naui di linea della marina italiana
(1861-1880) (Rome: Bizzarri, 1976).
Giovanni Bernardi, La Marina, gli armistizi e il trattato di pace: settembre 1943 — dicembre 1951 (Rome:
Ufficio Storico della Marina Militare, 1979); and 7/ disarmo nauale tra le due guerre mondiali, 1919—1939
(Rome: Ufficio Storico della Marina Militare, 1975); "La dibattuta questione della parita navale tra Italia
e Francia nel periodo tra le due guerre mondiali," Reuue intemationale d'histoire militaire (1978).
■xn
Marc Antonio Bragadin, U dramma della marina italiana, 1940-1945 (Milan: Mondadori, 1982), and
The Italian Nauy in World War //(Annapolis: USNIP, 1957, 1980). Both works are slightly revised reissues
of earlier studies.
Carlo De Risio, Naui diferro, teste di legno: la marina italiana, ieri e oggi (Rome: Ciarrapico, 1976).
in
Vittorio Di Sambuy, Match pari tra due grandeflotte. Mediterraneo, 1940-1942 (Milan: Mursia, 1976);
and "Un segreto svelato — il segreto 'Ultra'," Riuista marittima (1976).
Sadkovich 197
Mariano Gabriele, Giorgio Giorgerini, Tullio Marcon, 4\ Francesco
Mattesini, Riccardo Nassigh, Sergio Nesi, and Alberto Santoni. Al-
though the fascist period is relatively narrow and early approaches were often in
the nature of reciprocal reproaches, a rather wide spectrum of approaches has
evolved, while a keen interest in such elite units as the San Marco marine division
and the X Mas has remained high. Bagnasco, Di Sambuy, Mattesini, Nassigh,
40 Mariano Gabriele, Operazione C/3: Malta (Rome: Ufficio Storico della Marina Militare, 1965, 1990);
"La guerre des convois entre l'ltalie et l'Afrique du nord," in Comite d'Histoire de la 2e Guerre
Mondiale, La guerre en Mediterranke, 1939-1945. Actes du colbque International tenu Paris du 8 au 11 avril
1969 (Paris: Editions du Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, 1971). He has also written on
other periods, e.g., Lajlotta come strumento di politica nei primi decenni dello stato unitario italiano (Rome:
Ufficio Storico della Marina Militare, 1973); La politica navale italiana dal 1885 al 1915 (Rome: Ufficio
Storico della Marina Militare, 1982); "La politica navale italiana alia vigilia del primo conflitto mondiale,"
Riuista marittima (May 1965): pp. 15-32; "La convenzione navale italo-franco-britannica del 10 maggio
1915," Nuoua antologia (April-May 1965): pp. 483-502, 69-84.
Giorgio Giorgerini, La battaglia dei convogli in Mediterraneo (Milan: Mursia, 1977); Da Matapan al Qolfo
Persico: la Marina militare italiana dalfascismo alia Repubblica (Milan: Mursia, 1989); Almanaco storico delle
naui militari italiane: la Marina e le sue navi dal 1861 al 1915 (Rome: Ufficio Storico della Marina Militare,
1978); "The Role of Malta in Italian Naval Operations, 1940-43," in New Aspects of Naval History
(Annapolis: U.S. Naval Institute Press, 1985); and with Aldo Nani, Le naui d'ltalia. I. Le naui di linea
italiane, 1961—1969 (Rome: Ufficio Storico della Marina Militare, 1969), Gli incrociatori italiani,
1861—1975 (Rome: Ufficio Storico della Marina Militare, 1976), and Almanacco storico delle naui militari
d'ltalia, 1861-1915 (Rome: Ufficio Storico della Marina Militare, 1980).
Tullio Marcon, "Operazione Malta due owero il rispetto del nemico," Riuista marittima (1976); AH
marine: gli osseruatori della Regia Marina nella seconda guerra mondiale (Milan: Mursia, 1978).
Francesco Mattesini, La battaglia aeronauale di mezzo agosto (Rome: Edizioni dell'Ateneo, 1986); II
giallo di Matapan. Reuisione di giudizi (Rome: Edizioni dell'Ateneo, 1985); La battaglia di Punta Stilo
(Rome: Ufficio Storico della Marina Militare, 1990); I sommergibili di Betasom 1940—1943 (Rome: Ufficio
Storico della Marina Militare, on press); "Navi da guerra e mercantili della Gran Bretagna e nazioni
alleate affondate e danneggiate in Mediterraneo (10 giugno 1940 — 5 maggio 1945)" Archiuio Storico
Marina. XI (9); "I retroscena inediti del mancato intervento delle navi di superficie italiane nella battaglia
di mezzo agosto 1942," II Giomale d'ltalia (5 January 1984); "La battaglia aeronavale di mezzo agosto,"
Aeronautical mensile dell' auiazione italiana (1985), nos. 8, 9, 10, 11.
Riccardo Nassigh, Guerra negli abissi. I sommergibili italiani nel secondo conflitto mondiale (Milan: Mursia,
1971); Operazione mezzo agosto. (Milan: Mursia, 1976).
Sergio Nesi, Decimaflottiglia nostra: i mezzi d'assalto della Marina italiana al sud e al nord dopo Varmistizio
(Milan: Mursia, 1986).
As Dr. Sullivan has noted, Alberto Santoni has published a number of important works on
contemporary naval history, especially // uero traditore: il ruolo documentato di ULTRA nella guerra del
Mediterraneo (Milan: Mursia, 1981). He has also collaborated with Theodor Fuchs on "Der Einfluss von
'ULTRA' auf den Krieg im Mittelmeer," Marine Rundschau (1981); and with Francesco Mattesini on
La partecipazione tedesca alia guerra aeronauale nel Mediterraneo (1940-1945) (Rome: Edizioni dell'Ateneo
eBizzarri, 1980).
The official history has a volume on the X Mas, which was popularized by Julio Valerio Borghese,
Sea Deuils (Chicago: Henry Regnery, 1954). Among the recent publications on the unit is the excellent
volume by Bagnasco and Spertini, and Ricciotti Lazzero, La decima Mas (Milan: Rizzoli, 1984). Also
see Pieramedeo Baldrati, San Marco. . .San Marco. . .Storia di una diuisione (Milan: San Marco Infantry
Division, 1989); Guido Bonavicini, Decima Marinai! Decima comandante! Lafanteria di marina, 1943—45
(Milan: Mursia, 1988); and Aurelio Scardaccione, Ildelfino dorato: in guerra sui sommergibili (Fasano: Schena,
1988), a diary by a former submariner.
1 98 Comments
Nesi, and Santoni have generally focused on the technical and operational aspects of naval
affairs; Bargoni, Bernardi, and Gabriele have been more concerned with policy and
diplomacy; and Giorgerini and Bragadin have written synthetic works on the Italian
Navy. In short, there are a great many Italians who are currendy working on naval and
maritime topics. While the number of foreign scholars is much smaller, as Dr. Sullivan
notes, many, such as Germany's Gerhard Schreiber, have made contributions to the
field49
Recent naval history thus seems to be thriving; and if some cliaff remains, that is the
price the Italians pay to stimulate interest in the subject. The firms of Mursia, Rizzoli,
and Mondadori may not always publish scholarly studies, but they provide a valuable
service by issuing memoirs and popular studies that keep the public interested in naval
and maritime history, while Edizioni dell' Ateneo e Bizzarri and Ermanno Albertelli focus
on a more restricted audience interested in the nuts and bolts of naval history.
In short, while there are undoubtedly enormous differences between the United States
and Italy, I am not sure that Italians are less enthused with their naval history than we are
with ours; and if ground forces played a much greater part in Italian development than
naval forces, that was also true of the United States, save in the Caribbean, where our
Navy and Marines consolidated an informal empire against weak forces, and in the Pacific,
where a combination of naval and air secured victory in the early 1940s. Our Navy is
certainly larger than the Italian Navy, and it is better publicized in this country, where
I am indebted to Admiral Renato Sicurezza, who currently heads the Italian Navy's Historical Office
and to Admiral Francesco Pascazio, the former editor of Rivista Marittima, for their generous help in
identifying those Italian historians who are currently working in the contemporary era; to Professor
Domenico Sella for his suggestions regarding the early modern period; to Professor Alberto Santoni for
his courteous and informative reply to my inquiries; and to Admiral Carlo Gottardi, for his interest.
Among those who are currently writing on contemporary history are Vittorio Barbati, Franco Bargoni,
Colonel Ferruccio Botti, Admiral Alfredo Brauzzi, Augusto De Toro, Admiral Luigi Donini, Admiral
Antonio Flamigni, Antoni Formicola, Aldo Fraccaroli, Professor Mariano Gabriele, Commandante
Franco Gay, Admiral Gino Galuppini, Giorgio Giorgerini, Admiral Carlo Gottardi, Tullio Marcon,
Francesco Mattesini, Riccardo Nassigh, Franco Puddu, Admiral Luigi Romani, Claudio Romano,
Professor Alberto Santoni, and Admiral Pietro Zancardi.
See Gerhard Schreiber, "Italien im machtpolitischen Kalkiil der deutschen Marineflihrung 1919 bis
1945," in Quellen und Forschungen aus italienischen Archiven und Bibliotheken (Tubingen: Istituto Storico
Germanico in Roma, 1982) vol. 62; "Les structures strategiques de la conduite de la guerre
italo-allemande au cours de la deuxieme guerre mondiale" RHDGM (1980); "Sul teatro mediterraneo
nella seconda guerra mondiale: inediti punti di vista della marina germanica del tempo." Rivista marittima
(1987). Also see Josef Schroder, "Les pretensions allemands a la direction militaire du theatre italien
d'operations en 1943" RHDGM (1974).
Given that the United States has five times the population of Italy and is considerably wealthier, the
disparities between the two states diminish or disappear. Multiplying Italy's budget by five, one gets an
annual outlay of $120 billion, not $24 billion, about a third of the US budget of $290 billion; the adjusted
size of the Italian navy is 275,000, about half that of the USN; and the number of ships about 300,
comparable to the 340 that Dr. Sullivan projects for the USN. Indeed, the adjusted merchant figures
yield 8,000 Italian ships displacing 40 million GRT, compared to 1,600 American vessels displacing 8
million. It is also worth noting that while there is a considerable public for works on the Navy in the
United States, there is not a large market for histories of such maritime organizations as the Coast Guard
and merchant marine.
Sadkovich 1 99
only a handful of academics have devoted any attention to Italian naval matters
over the past twenty years. But that is to be expected, given our preoccupation
with superpowers.
Whether "the major negative influence" on Italian attitudes toward the Navy,
merchant marine and public institutions in general have derived from
"widespread perceptions of the defunct monarchy and of the Fascist regime" is
debatable, although there is no doubt that during the 1950s the Italians had
nothing comparable to America's Victory at Sea to extol their Navy, and a spate
of critical works, such as Antonio Trizzino's Navi epoltrone, censured the Italian
Navy as so inept as to be treasonous.
But such attitudes predated Mussolini's era and seem to be rooted in the
problems that accompanied the creation of a unitary Italian state, including the
monarchy's emargination of Mazzini and its "betrayal" of Garibaldi, the South's
resistance to Piedmontese rule, and the influence of socialism, syndicalism, and
anarchism in areas as diverse as Puglia, the Romagna, Lombardy, and Sicily. A
great many Italians thus came to view the armed forces as repressive, and Italy's
failure to realize an African empire disillusioned the more patriotic, even if it
stimulated Enrico Corridoni and the ANI to clamor for even more spending on
overseas expansion and eventually led Mussolini to discern and exploit the
political advantages of the concept of an Italian "proletarian" nation. In other
words, if the Fascist regime disillusioned many Italians, the liberal Italian state
had already alienated many others. Since 1945, pugnacious and partisan media
have helped to keep political debate lively and censorious in Italy, whereas in
the United States the mass media have usually fallen into line behind government
efforts to glorify its military and naval exploits. And, as noted above, the
difficulties of reconciling postwar antifascism with a patriotism and navalism
tainted by their association with the fascist regime has created a climate in which
polemics flourish.
51 Brian Sullivan, "A Fleet in Being: The Rise and Fall of Italian Sea Power, 1861-1943," The
International History Review (1988); and Marco Rimanelli, The "Least of the Powers": Italy's Foreign, Security,
and Naval Policy in the Quest for Mediterranean Pre-eminence, 1860s- 1989, (Ph.D, Johns Hopkins Univ.,
1989). Bernard MacGregor Knox, Mussolini Unleashed, 1939-1941. Politics and Strategy in Fascist Italy's
Last War (Cambridge: UP, 1982), also deals with naval matters in his survey of Italy's war effort. Jack
Greene is an aficionado of naval history and his Mare nostrum: The War in the Mediterranean (Watsonville,
Calif.: Typesetting, etc., 1990) is a useful compilation of data, all the more so because few academic
studies have been published in this country. Also see James J. Sadkovich, The Italian Navy in World War
II (Westport, Conn.: Greenwood, 1994); "The Italian Navy," in Reevaluating Major Naval Combatants
of World War II (Westport, Conn.: Greenwood, 1990); "Aircraft Carriers and the Mediterranean,
1940-1943: Rethinking the Obvious," Aerospace Historian (1987); and "Re-evaluating Who Won the
Italo-British Naval Conflict, 1940-42," European History Quarterly (1988).
CO
Antonio Trizzino, Navi e poltrone (Milan: Longanesi, 1966). From 1945 into the 1960s, American
films exalted our victory in the war, but in Italy such fare as Citth aperta and Bicycle Thief reflected a
resigned weariness with the whole subject of war, as Fellini and others created a pacifist postmodern
world.
200 Comments
Yet I do not think that one can simply dismiss the fascist era and its naval and
maritime achievements. It seems to me that the success of the fascist campaigns in
Africa and the prestige conferred on Italy by its trans- Adantic liners more than offset
earlier defeats. The Rex's brief appearance in Fellini's Amarcord underlined the effect
on the Italian psyche of such spending, even if in retrospect the achievements proved
as illusory as the ship's illuminated outline on a summer night. The defeat of 1943
was unquestionably a major blow to the Italians, but there were no decisive defeats in
1940-41, except in the minds of Allied wartime propagandists and some postwar
historians, and after 1945 the Italians had no choice but to reject those "legacies of the
Fascist era" not approved by the Allies. But if the neo-fascists have been reduced to
a fringe group in postwar Italy, the referendum mounted by the Radical Party in 1977
reminded everyone that their legacy included the penal code and IRJ, both integral
parts of the postwar liberal regime.
Italy's excessive navalism and heavy official support for naval and maritime history
prior to 1945 was fairly typical of great powers, and its more moderate military
pretensions since then characteristic of such former imperial powers as Britain. There
were a number of ex-fascist or neo-fascist historians in the postwar era who tried to
refurbish the fascist ventennio, but the greatest impact on the historiography of the war
has been that of such naval officers as Angelo Iachino, Marc'Antonio Bragadin, and
Giuseppe Fioravanzo, who had served in the "fascist" navy and sought to set the record
straight by challenging an Allied wartime propaganda that was anything but objective.
Although the fascist media were hardly objective, I think it still a safe assumption that many Italians shared the
pride in Italy's naval achievements expressed in such articles as Domenico Cavagnari, "La Marina delTltalia fascista."
Rassegna italiana (1938).
Of course, prior to 1943, the fascist regime issued its own propaganda, e.g., Vincio Araldi, Marittai d'ltalia sulk
vie della gloria (Bologna: Cantelli, 1942); Marc'Antonio Bragadin, Vittoria sui man di Roma, 15 giugno XX (1942)
(Verona: Mondadori, 1942); Vittorio Calvino, La guardia del mate: Vaviazione da ricognizione marittima (Rome:
Editoriale Aeronautica, 1942); Giuseppe Fioravanzo, U Mediterratieo, centra strategico del mondo (Verona: Mondadori,
1943); Vittorio G. Rossi, Laguerra dei marittai (Milan: Bompiani, 1941); Ministero della Marina, Amanecer heroico
en el Mediterramo: dos torpederos contro utia escuadra britanica. La epica empresa de los torpederos "Circe y Vega" (Milan:
1941), and Appello cd mare (Rome: Tipografia Novissima, 1940).
' Aldo Cocchia and Giuseppe Fioravanzo, who oversaw the writing of the first official monographs on the
Navy, were both members of the fascist navy, the one a war hero, the other a serious theorist. A prolific writer,
Fioravanzo wrote on theory in the 1930s, composed propaganda during the 1940s, and was instrumental in issuing
the Italian official histories in the 1950s, e.g., Manuale teorico-pratico di cinematka aero-ttavale e d'impiego delle uniti in
combattimetito (Livomo: Accademia Navale, 1930), Laguerra sul mare e laguerra integrate (Turin: Enrico Schioppo,
1931), 2 vols, Basi navali ml mondo (Milano: Istituto per gli studi di politica intemazionale, 1936), History of Naval
Tactical Thought (Annapolis, Md: USNIP, 1979), U Mediterratieo, centro strategico del mondo (Verona: Mondadori,
1943). Iachino published a number of books and articles, e.g., Le due Sim' (Milan: Mondadori, 1953), Gaudo e
Matapan. Storiadiun'operazione della guerra navale nel Mediterramo, 27-28-29 marzo 1941 (Milan: Mondadori, 1946),
Operaziom mezzo giugno. Episodi dell 'ultima guerra sul mare (Milan: Monadadori, 1955), Hpunto su Matapan (Milan:
Mondadori, 1969), and Tramonto di unagrande marina (Milan: Mondadori, 1959). See above for Bragadin, and the
official histories for Aldo Cocchia, as well as "II peso strategico di Malta fu veramente determinante?" Rivista
marittima (1964). Virgilio Spigai also published on the war, e.g., "Italian Naval Assault Craft in Two World
Wars." United States Naval Institute Press (1965); and V. Spigai and L. D. De la Penne, "The Italian Attack
on the Alexandria Naval Base." United States Naval Institute Press (1956).
Sadkovich 201
Dr. Sullivan's observations regarding the Italian university system are not
encouraging, but essentially the same could be said of our own system, with the
caveat that ours is so much bigger than the Italian's that it can accommodate a
few more professors in fields such as naval and maritime history. Like Camillo
Manfroni, Mariano Gabriele has been crucial to the development of Italian naval
history, and Alberto Santoni has written a number of valuable works, including
his work on Ultra and the study he co-authored with Francesco Mattesini on
German participation in the Mediterranean during World War II. But as valuable
as Santoni's contributions have been, like those of Mattesini, they tend to be
pointedly revisionist and critical of the performance of the Italian armed forces,
while on occasion appearing to rationalize German failures in the Mediterranean
theater. It thus seems that polemics are an unavoidable part of doing contem-
porary Italian naval history.
Professor Raimono's efforts to continue Manfroni's work at the Naval
Academy at Livorno are laudatory, as are the activities of the Istituto di Guerra
Marittima. But I would be curious to know what sorts of "difficulties" Raimono
has encountered and wonder if the acquaintance of his students with Anglo-
American naval history is more a function of the number of works published on
the subject than of "the politically sensitive nature of Italian naval history."
That the other service academies ignore naval history is to be expected,
although it seems a shame that there has been no effort to coordinate at least air
and naval studies, especially since historians like Nino Arena and Nicola Malizia
have written works that include both areas and there is no question that to fully
understand the war in the Mediterranean between 1940 and 1945 it is necessary
to integrate naval and air actions. In this regard, it is worth noting that the
publications of the Italian Foreign Ministry and the Italian army are useful to
those doing naval history.
The holdings of the Naval Archives, the State Archives (Archivio Centrale
dello Stato), and the Foreign Ministry's Archives (Archivio Storico del Ministero
Nino Arena, Bandiera di combattimento: Storia delta Marina militare italiana (1925—1945) (Rome: CEN,
1974), 2 vols., and La regia aeronautica, 1939—1943 (Rome: Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore
Aeronautica, 1981-1984); and Nicola Malizia, Inferno su Malta. Lapiu lunga battaglia aeronauale della second
guerra mondiale (Milan: Mursia, 1976), and with Christopher Shores, and Brian Cull, Malta: The Hurricane
Years, 1940-1941 (London: Grub Street, 1987), and Malta: The Spitfire Year, 1942 (London: Grubb
Street, 1991).
The Army is in the process of publishing the General Staffs war diary, and its volumes on the minutes
(verbali) of the meetings held by Comando Supremo during the war are indispensable. See Ufficio
Storico dell'Esercito, Diario storico del Comando Supremo [Antonello Biagini, Fernando Frattolillo] (Rome:
1986), Vol. I— III. and Verbali delle riunioni tenute dal capo di Stato Maggiore Generate (Rome: 1985), Vols.
I— III. For the Foreign Ministry, Ministero degli AfFari Esteri, Commissione per la pubblicazione dei
documenti diplomatici, I documenti diplomatici italiani. Ottava serie, 1935-39 (Rome: 1952, 1953), Vols.
XII, XIII; Nona serie, 1939-43. (Rome, 1957-1988), Vols. I-VIII. Also see Istituto Centrale di Statistica
del Regno d'ltalia, Compendio statistico italiano, 1939-1942, (Rome, 1939-42) Vols. XIII-XVI, and
Sommario di statistiche storiche italiane, 1861-1958 (Rome: 1958).
202 Comments
degli Affari Esteri) are useful to anyone working in naval history, and the
helpfulness of their personnel is well known. It is also noteworthy, as Dr. Sullivan
stresses, that only the Navy has published solid monographs of World War II.
Although I am not as critical of the Army's publications as he is, there is no
question that the Air Force has lagged behind the other services, and despite its
length, even Arena's recent work is not a great improvement on earlier studies
CO
by Santoro and Licheri. However, the recent publication of two volumes of
Superaereo's directives should help to fill in gaps in our knowledge of the
air-naval war during 1940.
Admiral Sicurezza's efforts to reorder the MM's archives and to bring together
contributions by established historians on strategy, diplomacy, and other aspects
of naval and maritime history are laudatory. But long-range activities are also
needed, as well as support for historians new to the field, especially given that
while maritime history can disguise itself as social or economic history, naval
history suffers from the same sort of emargination within the academic com-
munity as diplomatic, political, and military history. And if it is unreasonable to
expect naval historians to become postmodernists, it seems equally unrealistic to
expect that traditional ways of doing naval history will retain a large audience.
Yet those of us writing on contemporary naval affairs seem mired in yesterday's
polemics and content with an approach that seems increasingly dated and
irrelevant, and I can personally attest to how difficult it is to shake off traditional
approaches and find a way out of the polemical maze, which I still regularly
wander.
Although service histories may be expected to have a narrow focus and a
certain bias because of institutional restraints, Dr. Sullivan's praise for the high
standards maintained by the Italian Navy's historical office is not misplaced.
Bemardi's works are exceptionally well-done analyses of diplomatic matters and the
Arena, op. cit.; Giuseppe Santoro, L'aeronautica italiana nella seconda guerra mondiale (Milan: Edizioni
Esse, 1957), 2 vols., and Sebastiano Licheri, L'arma aerea italiana nella seconda guerra mondiale, 10 giugno
1940 — 8 settembre 1943 (Milan: Mursia, 1976). Also Mario Angelozzi and Ubaldo Bernini, H problema
aeronavale italiano (Livorno: Belforte, 1981); M. Circi and A. Guglielmetti, Gli attuali reparti A.M. della
aviazione per la marina. Note storiche dal 1926 al 1912 (Rome: Grafica Veant, 1977); Carlo Unia, Storia
degli aerosiluranti italiani (Rome: Bizzarri, 1974); Corrado Ricci, II corpo aereo italiano (CAI) sulfronte della
Manica (1940-1941) (Rome: Ufficio Storico dell'Aeronautica Militare, 1980); Corrado Ricci and
Christopher E. Shores, La guerra aerea in Africa Orientate, 1940-41 (Rome: Ufficio Storico
dell'Aeronautica Militare, 1979); and Vincenzo Lioy, V Italia in Africa. Serie Storico-Militare. Vol. III.
L'opera dell'Aeronautica (Rome: Ministero degli Affari Esteri, 1964). Lioy has also written two early works
on the Italian air force and operations during the war, Elementi storici nell' Aeronautica Italiana (Nisida:
Accademia Aeronautica, 1960), and Gloria senza allori (Rome: Failli, 1953). Others, like Giulio Lazzati,
have contributed to the literature on air operations, e.g., his Stormi d' Italia. Storia dell' aviazione militare
italiana (Milan: Mursia, 1975). Also see Guido Bonavicini, Carlo Gaffioni e gli aerosiluranti italiani (Milan:
Cavallotti, 1987), and Andrea Curami and Giancarello Garello, "L'aviazione ausiliaria per la Regia
Marina fra le due guerre (1923-1940)," Riuista marittima (1985).
59 Franco Mattesini and M. Cermelli, eds., Le direttiue tecnico- operative di Superaereo (Rome: Stato
Maggiore Aeronatuica/Ufficio Storico, 1992), 2 vols.
Sadkovich 203
Italian official histories in general are of a very high quality that compares
favorably with the best that has been done by Italian, British, and American
academics. On the other hand, more detailed monographs on the evolution of
the Italian Navy, recruitment, contracting, and the formulation of naval policy
would be welcome.
The publications mentioned by Dr. Sullivan, from the Bollettino d'archivio
delVufficio storico della marina militare to Kivista marittima are extremely useful, and
the organizations he mentions (Associazione italiana di documentazione marit-
time e navale and Associazione navemodellisti bolognesi) have helped to
stimulate interest in naval affairs and provided some of the raw stuff of naval
history, as anyone who has used the publications on naval ships and weaponry
by Aldo Fraccaroli and Erminio Bagnasco can attest. And it is reassuring to know
that a fascist institution, IRI (Istituto per la ricostruzione industriale) is funding
scholarly studies on naval and maritime history.
Dr. Sullivan is also correct to note that we do not have enough biographies of
Italian naval and maritime personalities, that there is no comprehensive study of the
Italian Navy, and that the post— 1945 development of the Navy has been ignored.
However, I am not as convinced as he is that it is necessary to teach naval history
in order to make good citizens out of Italians, given that the popularity of naval
history in this country has not appreciably increased the sophistication with which
the average American reacts to domestic and foreign crises.
There are a few observations I would like to add to those made by Dr.
Sullivan, whose paper I found both interesting and informative, and whose
acquaintance with Italian archives and historians I can only envy. Indeed, that
is my first observation — while there are relatively few Italians working in naval
The data in the twenty-two volumes of the Italian Navy's World War II series is both abundant and
comprehensive, with everything from details on the losses of merchant and naval shipping to convoy
operations, naval battles, technical development, and command structures. The Navy's seven-volume
series on naval vessels contain extremely useful data on the technical aspects of classes and individual
ships, complete with operational summaries. See La marina Italiana nella seconda guerra mondiale (Rome:
Ufficio Storico della Marina Militare, 1952— present), 22 vols., and Le navi d' Italia (Rome: Ufficio Storico
della Marina Militare, 1969-present), 8 vols. Among those who collaborated on the historical series
were Giuseppe Fioravanzo (series editor and various volumes), Mario Peruzzi (hospital ships, 1956),
Aldo Cocchia (convoy operations, 1958-76), P. F. Lupinacci (Mines, 1968, and Albania and Aegean
operations, 1972), U. Mori Ubaldini (submarines, 1976), M. Bertini (submarines, 1968, 1972), Carlo
De Risio (X Mas and blockade runners, 1972), and V. Rauber (ASW, 1978). The series dealing with
ships was compiled by Giorgio Giorgerini and Augusto Nani (battleships, 1969; cruisers, 1976; and an
almanac, 1980); P. M. Pollina (torpedo boats, 1974), and with Mario Bertini (submarines, 1971); G.
Fioravanzo, P. M. Pollina, G. Riccardi, and F. Gnifetti (destroyers, 1971); E. Bargoni (scouts, frigates,
and corvettes, 1974); and Erminio Bagnasco (Mas and Ms, 1969).
Fioravanzo's slim volume on naval tactics was a good beginning, and Ezio Ferrente's history of Italian
perceptions of the Mediterranean is unusual in its stress on ideas rather than facts. Ezio Ferrante, H
Mediterranean nella coscienza nazionale (Rome: Rivista Marittima, 1987); and Giuseppe Fioravanzo, A
History of Naval Tactical Thought, op. cit. Fioravanzo has published a number of theoretical works,
including Basi navali nel mondo, op. cit.
204 Comments
and maritime history, there are even fewer Americans, in large part owing to
problems obtaining funding. There is, to the best of my knowledge, no easy way
for scholars in this country to obtain grants to use Italian naval and maritime
archives, and our priorities, especially in an age that flaunts its commitment to
"diversity," should include ways to encourage the American academic com-
munity to support the study of such "marginal" subjects as naval history and to
encourage an interest in such "minor" powers as Italy. In this country, Dr.
Sullivan rightly mentions only a handful of scholars in the field: MacGregor
Knox, who focuses on political and diplomatic questions; Halpern, whose studies
on the Mediterranean were published in 1971 and 1987; and the two of us, who
have published a handful of articles on contemporary Italian naval history. Nor
has there been a rush to do Italian naval and maritime history recently. Still,
there are a number of Americans, for the most part recent Ph.D.s, who have
dealt with naval and maritime topics, among them Marco Rimanelli, who
finished a two— volume dissertation at Johns Hopkins on Italian naval policy, and
Timothy W. Childs, whose 1982 dissertation dealt with the diplomacy of the
Italo-Turkish war. There are also a number of Americans who have written
on subjects that involve Italian naval history, such as the siege of Malta.
Yet even a brief glance at the annual bibliographies put out by the Society
for Italian Historical Studies is enough to confirm the impression that naval and
maritime studies have become more marginal in this country as social history
has become more dominant. Non-academics like Jack Greene, whose interest
in tactics and whose careful compilation of orders of battle are very useful to us
academic types, are fascinated by naval history, but our colleagues seem not to
be, unless naval and maritime history is viewed in another context. Benjamin
Arbel therefore highlighted the social aspects of Venetian trade in the fifteenth
century, Mark John Angelos discussed the role of women of twelfth— century
Genoa's commerce, Robert Davis discussed the workers of the Venetian
arsenal, and Richard Jackson, Mediterranean seamen. Irene Katele has taken
Timothy Childs, Mediterranean Imbroglio: The Diplomatic Origins of Modem Libya (The Diplomacy of the
Belligerents during the Italo-Turkish War, 1911-1912) op. cit.; and Marco Rimanelli, The "Least of the
Powers" Italy's Foreign Security and Naval Policy in the Quest for Mediterranean Pre-eminence, 1860s— 1989,
op. cit. While the works of Salewski, Breyer, and Dulin are useful, they are not primarily concerned
with the Italian war effort in the Mediterranean. Those by Barjot, de Belot, Baum, Weichold, Ruge,
and others are more directly focused on the Mediterranean theater, but many are now dated, others
rather biased by the participation of the authors in the war.
63 Charles A Jellison, Besieged. The World War II Ordeal of Malta, 1940-42 (New England: 1987); Dora Alves,
"The Resupply of Malta in World War II," Naval War College Review (1980); and Rowena Reed, "Central
Mediterranean Sea Control and the North African Campaigns, 1940-1942" Naval War College Review (1984).
Benjamin Arbel, "Venetian Trade in Fifteenth Century Acre: The Letters of Francesco Bevilaqua
(1471-72)," Asian and African Studies (1988).
Mark John Angelos, Genoese Women, Family Business Practices, and Maritime Commerce, 115-1216
(Ph.D., Univ. of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne, 1992).
Robert C. Davis, Shipbuilders of the Venetian Arsenal: Workers and Workplace in the Preindustrial City (Baltimore:
Sadkovich 205
another look at piracy in the late middle ages, Catherine Bracewell has studied
the Uskoks of Senj, and Ilona Klein reexamined the Order of Santo Stefano.
In effect, early modern naval and maritime historians seem to have resolved the
problem of how to make the subject germane, whether it is looking at technique
(shipbuilding, contracts, organization) or recasting naval history as social, cultural,
or gender history. Such studies as that by Augusta Molinari on sanitary conditions
aboard ships carrying emigrants show that the same approach can work for
contemporary history. At this point, one can even hope to publish in such unlikely
places as Asian and African Studies, rather than in the handful of journals and with
the few publishers who will consider studies of twentieth-century Italian naval
history. Yet, on the whole, in this country there are relatively few secure outlets for
studies on Italian naval and maritime topics.
If finding a place to publish can be frustrating in the United States, where relatively
few journals and publishers concern themselves with Italian naval and maritime
affairs, there is still a fairly wide choice of publications and publishers to choose from,
whether one is writing on the early modern period or dealing with more
contemporary questions. For example, Storia epolitica published Francesco Lefebvre
d'Ovidio's studies on the London naval conference and Italian and British naval
policy in the 1930s, Storia contemporanea published Luigi Castioni's essay on the
development of Italian radar, the Revue de V Occident musulman et de la Mediterranee
Johns Hopkins, 1991). Also Richard Paul Jackson, "Ma misimeperl'alto mareaperto" Mediterranean Seamen
during the Medieval Commercial Revolution (Ph.D., Yale, 1992).
Irene Birute Katele, Captains and Corsairs: Venice and Piracy, 1261—1381 (Maritime, Pirates, Naval, Military,
Medieval) (Ph.D., Univ. of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne, 1986). Like Angelos and Madden, Katele did her
work under Donald E. Queller.
Catherine Wendy Bracewell, The Uskoks of Senj: Piracy, Banditry, and Holy War in the Sixteenth-Century
Adriatic (Ithaca: Cornell Univ. Press, 1992).
69 Ilona Klein, The Order of Santo Stefano in the Levant: An Unpublished Account of a Voyage in 1621 (Berkeley:
Univ. of California Press, 1990). Also see Giuseppe Gino Guarnieri, J Cavalieri di Santo Stefatto nella storia della
Marina italiana (1562—1859) (1960), and L'ordine di Santo Stefano net suoi aspetti organizzativi intemi e navali sotto il
Gran Magistero Lorenese (1965).
For example, Brian Pullen's Rich and Poor in Renaissance Venice (Oxford: Blackwell, 1971) and his more
recent The Jews of Europe and the Inquisition of Venice, 1560-1670 (Oxford: Blackwell, 1983), a social history of
a maritime port, but strictly speaking neither a maritime nor a naval history, save in the sense that any history of
a port could be defined as maritime.
Augusta Molinari, Le navi di lazzaro: aspetti sanitari delVemigrazione transoceanica italiana: il viaggioper mare (Milan:
Angeli, 1988).
Although not concerned with naval and maritime history, of some interest is Jonathan Morris, "Italian
Journals: A User's Guide," Contemporary European History (1992).
Francesco Lefebvre d'Ovidio, "Politica e strategia britannica nel Mediterraneo, 1936-1939," Storia epolitica
(1978); "L'ltalia e la conferenza navale di Londra del 1930," Storia epolitica (1978).
Luigi Carillo Castioni, "I radar industriali italiani. Ricerche, ricordi, considerazioni per una loro storia." Storia
contemporanea (1987). Rivista marittima had published a series of articles on radar by Ugo Tiberio, but Castioni's
was the first systematic treatment of the subject. See Ugo Tiberio, Ugo, "Cenni sull'opera della Marina italiana
nel campo radiotecnico durante la guerra, 1940-1945," "Un ricedisturbatore antiradar italiano del 1942," and
"Ricordo del primo radar navale italiano," Rivista marittima (1948, 1976, 1976).
206 Comments
printed Salvatore Bono's article on buying Turkish slaves for papal galleys, and
the Centre de recherches sur 1'evolution de la vie rurale issued Marie-Claude
Dionnet's study on the Abruzzi.
Judging from recent publications in early modern maritime and naval history,
it would seem that the subject is doing relatively well in Italy. In addition to
local and regional histories, such as those noted above, there are a number of
studies on the early modern and late medieval periods. Franco Gay has published
77
numerous works on Venetian history, Gino Benvenuti contributed 300 pages on
the maritime republics to the Quest'Italia series, Raflaella Brunetti and Lorenza
70
Mazzino have written a popular history of Genoa's naval leaders, Pierangelo Cam-
podonico has published works on Genovese mariners in the middle ages and the
Renaissance, and Cesare Ciano has written excellent monographs on Medicean
maritime history. A number of works deal with shipbuilding, and a good deal has
been written on the arsenal at Venice. There are also works on the Venetian
Salvatore Bono, "Achat d'eclaves turcs pour les galleres pontificales (xvie — xviii siecles)," Revue de
Voccident musulman et de la Mediteranee (1985).
Marie-Claude Dionnet, L'Abruzze maritime: un mezzogiomo en evolution (Pisa: Biblioteca del Bollettino
Storico Pisano, 1986). Also see Terence K. Hopkins and Immanuel Wallerstein, "Capitalism and the
Incorporation of New Zones into the World Economy," Review (Fernand Braudel Center) (1987).
For example, Franco Gay, "Fantasticherie galleggianti, splendori e ricchezze delle feste acquatiche
veneziane," Rivista marittima (1982); "Port Louis, un museo navale nuovo, Una proposta per l'Arsenale
di Venezia," Rivista marittima (1976); "La campagna navale del 1810-1811 in Adriatico," Rivista Marittima
(1977); and Le navi delta Marina Militare italiana (Rome: Salomone, 1977).
78 Gino Benvenuti, Le repubbliche marinare: Amalfi, Pisa, Genova e Venezia: la nascith, le vittorie, le lotte e
il tramonto delle gloriose cittd-stato die dal Medioevo al XVIII secolo dominarono il Mediterraneo (1989). Also the
late Angelo Iachino's Le marine italiane nella battaglia di Lepanto (1971), a 48-page volume published by
the Accademia nazionale dei Lincei.
RafFaella Brunetti and Lorenza Mazzino, Guerre e guerrieri genovesi (Genoa: D'Amore Editore, 1989).
Also see Giuseppe Gavotti, Battaglie navali delta Repubblica di Genova (1990).
Pierangelo Campodonico, Navi e marinari genovesi nell'etd di Cristoforo Colombo (Genova: Edizioni
Colombo, 1991), and La marineria genovese dal medioevo all'unith d'ltalia (1991).
Cesare Ciano, Iprimi Medici e il mare: note sulla politica marinara toscana da Cosimo I a Ferdinando I (Pisa:
Pacini, 1980), and La sanith marittima nell'eth medicea (Pisa: Bollettino Storico Pisano, 1976).
Franco Gay, Le costruzioni navali nelV Arsenate di Venezia (Rome: Rivista Marittima, 1989); Guglielmo
Zanelli, L'Arsenale di Venezia (Venice: Centro Internazionale della Grafica di Venezia, 1991); Ugo
Pizzarello, Pietre e legni dell' arsenate di Venezia (Venice: Cooperativa editoriale l'altra Riva, 1988); Giorgio
Bellavistis, L'Arsenale di Venezia (Venice: Marsilio Editore, 1983); Romano Chirvi, Franco Gay, Maurizio
Crovato, Guglielmo Zanelli, L'Arsenale dei Veneziani (Venice: Filippi Editore, 1983); Frederic C. Lane,
Navires et constructeurs h Venise pendant la Renaissatice (Paris: Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes, 1965);
Cesare August Levi, Navi da guerra costruite nell' Arsenate di Venezia dal 1664 al 1896 (Venice: A. Forni,
1983), a reissue of an 1892 study; and Renato Fadda, "L'Arsenale di Venezia," Editizia Militare (1983);
Frederic C. Lane, Navires et constructeurs h Venise pendant la Renaissance (Paris: SEVPEN, 1965); and Bruno
Caizzi, Industria e commercio della Repubblica Veneta net xviii secolo (Milan: banca Commerciale Italiana,
1965). Also see Giuseppe Mataluno, "Cenni storici sull'arsenale M. M. di Taranto" Rivista marittima
(1986), and La Spezia e l'Arsenale MM: mostra storica 1860-1960, 3-21 agosto 1960, Palazzo degli Studi,
Piazza Verdi: catalogo (1961); and Domenico Sella, Commerci e Industrie a Venezia net secolo XVII (Venice:
Istituto per la Collaborazione Culturale, 1961).
Sadkovich 207
gondola and galley, Mario Murino has examined early maritime law, and
Giorgio Silvini has analyzed the role of Venice and Portugal in the spice trade.
There are also, as noted earlier, general surveys and local and regional histories
of ports such as Triest and maritime provinces like Liguria that run the gamut
from scholarly monographs of notarial contracts to broad popular surveys
. • 86
spanning centuries.
There are also a large number of museums and local maritime archives in
Italy, and as Dr. Sullivan has noted, the Universities of Pisa and Rome offer
naval courses, and the University of Naples has a department of maritime
sciences. Among the better known museums are the Museo Storico Navale
Venezia, La Spezia's Museo Tecnico Navale and Genoa's Museo Navale.
Italians have been a maritime people for centuries, and there are still numerous
organizations in Italy that concern themselves with naval and maritime affairs.
Graziella Chiesa Buttazzi, Venezia e la sua gondola (Milan: Gorlich, 1974); Gabriella Cargasacchi,
Neve, La gondola (Venice: Arsenale Cooperativa Editoriale, 1975); and Giorgio Crovato, Maurizio
Crovato, and Luigi Divari, Bardie della laguna di Venezia (Venice: Arsenale Cooperatrice Editrice, 1980);
Guglielmo Zanelli, Silvio Testa, Quirino del Brazolo, Squeraroli e squeri (Venice: Ente Gondola, 1986);
and Giovanbattista Rubin de Cervin Albrizzi, Bateau e Batellerie de Venise (Lausanne: Edita, 1978).
Mario Murino, Andar per mare nel Medioevo: le antiche consuetudini marittime italiane (Chieti: Vecchio
Faggjo Editore, 1988). Also see Riniero Zeno, Storia del diritto marittimo italiano nel Mediterraneo (Milan:
Giuffre, 1946), and G. Cassandro, "La formazione del diritto marittimo veneziano," Annali di storia del
diritto (Milan: Giuffre, 1968-69).
85 Giorgio Silvini, Venezia e Portogallo sulla via delle spezie (1498-1517) (Treviso: TET, 1982).
For example, Franco Gay, Le navi della Marina militare italiana (Rome: Salomone, 1978); and with
Elio Ando and Frano Bargoni, Orizzonte mare: il naviglio militare italiano dal 1861 alia 2" guerra mondiale
(Rome: Bizzarri, 1976), cited by Dr. Sullivan. Also the late Armando Lodolini's heavily illustrated Le
repubbliche del mare (Rome: Ente per la Diffusione e l'Educazione Storica, 1967).
The University of Naples has a Dipartimento Scienze Marittime, and the University of Pisa offers
courses on naval history.
The museum is located at Riva degli Schiavoni 2148, 30100 Venezia, and its current curator is
Admiral Carlo Gottardi, who has discussed some of its holdings in his "La Sala svedese del Museo storico
navale di Venezia," Riuista marittima (1986).
La Spezia's Museum is operated by the Marina Militare and is located on the Piazza Chiodo, 19100
La Spezia.
Genoa's Museo Navale is administered by the Servizio Beni Culturali and is located in the Villa Doria
on Piazza Bonavino, 16156 Genoa— Pegli. Also, Mario Marzari, "II museo della marineria di Cesenatico,"
Riuista marittima (1986) 119(5); Mostra navale italiana (Genoa, Italy: 1982), 669 pp.; and Mostra navale italian
(1986); Velieri di Camogli: la quadreria del Museo marinaro "Gio Bono Ferrari" (1981).
Other museums include (ship models) Museo delle Navi, Via Zamboni 33, 40126 Bologna; Museo
Storico Navale, Campo S. Biagjo 2148, Via degli Schiavoni, 30122 Venice; (Roman Ships) Museo delle
Navi, 00049 Nemi; (fishing) Civico Museo del Mare, Via di Campo Marazio 5, 34123 Trieste; (flags) Museo
Sacrario delle Bandiere della Marina Militare, Vittoriano, Rome; (models, relics, navigation equipment)
Civico Museo Navale Didattico, Via San Vittore 21, 20123 Milan; (collection on Amalfi's role as a maritime
republic) Museo Civico, Piazza Municipo, 84011 Amalfi. There is also a naval museum at Imperia.
Among these are the Centro di Studi sulla Storia della Tecnica at the University of Genoa's Istituto
di Storia Moderna e Contemporanea, Via Balbia 6, 16126 Genoa; the Instituti Policattedra di Ingegneria
Navale dell' Univesrsita di Genova, Via Montanello, 16145 Genova; the Associazione Italiana di Diritto
208 Comments
As noted above, there are relatively few monographs on the Risorgimento,
and, like Nunzia Elefante's article on the Sardinian navy in 1986 or the pieces
by Antonio Formicola and Claudio Romano on the Bourbon navy, they
seem to focus more on the navies of Italian states than on maritime matters.
Moreover, aside from Ferrante's study of Thaon di Revel, there are few
biographies and relatively little recent work on the early twentieth century.
But the lack of biographies does not mean that Italy has had no naval heroes.
Although such traditional heroes as Andrea Doria spring most easily to mind,
there are a number of major and minor twentieth-century naval figures, some
of whom have written memoirs or autobiographies, including Romeo
Bernotti, Mario De Monte, Oscar di Giamberardino, Angelo Iachino,
Franco Maugeri, Vittorio Tur, Alfredo Viglieri, and Alberto Da
Marittimo in Rome, Via Po 1, Palazzo Assitalia; the Istituto Nazionale per Studied Esperienze di
Architettura Navale, Via Corrado Segre 60, 00146 Rome; the Istituto Italiano per gli Studi Storici, Via
Benedetto Croce 12, 80134 Naples; The Instituto di Studi Adriatici, 1364-A Riva 7 Martiri, 30122
Venice; and the Istituto per gli Studi di Politica Internazionale, Palazzo Clerici, Via Clerici 5, 20121
Milan.
2 Nunzia Esposito Elefante, "La marina Sarda nella guerra di Crimea," Riuista marittima (1986);
Antonio Formicola, and Claudio Romano, "L'industria navale nel regno delle due Sicilie sotto
Ferdinando II," Rivista marittima (1986), and "1860: Marina borbonica ultimo atto," Riuista marittima
(1984). Also see La marina militare italiana nel 1848 (Rome: Ufficio Storico della Marina Militare, 1948);
Giovanni Macchi, "La marina italiana a Creta in una operazione multinazionale di fine ottocento,"
Riuista marittima (1985); Arturo Marcheggiano, Arturo, "Le operazioni navali italiane nella prima guerra
di indipendenza (1848—49)," Riuista marittima (1984); Sante Romiti, Le marine militari italiane nel
Risorgimento, 1748— 1861 (1950); and Franco Micali Baratelli, La marina militare italiana nella uita nazionale
(1860-1914) (1983).
For recent biographies, Paolo Luigj, Andrea Doria (Milan: Editoriale Nuova, 1984). Among earlier
biographies are Robert Sabatino Lopez, Genoua marinara nel Duecento. Benedetto Zaccaria, ammiraglio e
mercante (Genoa: 1933), Vol. 17 of the Biblioteca storica Principato series; Alberto Tenenti, Cristoforo
Da Canal: la marine uenitienne auant Lepante (1962); and Mario Battaglieri, La politica nauale del conte di
Cauour (1942). And, of course, there are a great many works in Italian and English on Columbus,
including Kirpatrick Sale's critical The Conquest of Paradise: Christopher Columbus and the Columbian Legacy
(New York: Knopf, 1990).
For the minor, Alessandro Caldara, Quelli di sottocastello: cronaca di guerra, 1940-1943 (Milan: Mursia,
1978); and Dino Selmi, Marb, li ricordi di guerra sul mare, 1940-1943 (Pisa: Giardini, 1977).
Romeo Bernotti, Cinquant'anni nella Marina militare (Milan: Mursia, 1972); Storia della guerra in
Mediterraneo, 1940-1943 (Rome: 1960).
Mario De Monte, Uomini ombra. Ricordi di un addetto al seruizio segreto nauale, 1939—1943 (Rome:
Nuova Editoriale Marinara Italiana, 1955). Also see Giovanni Roccardi, Gioco d'ala (Rome: Trevi, 1981).
Oscar Di Giamberardino, La marina nella tragedia nazionale (Rome: Danesi in via Margutta, 1947);
and La politica bellica nella tragedia nazionale (Rome: Polin, 1945).
See Dr. Sullivan's paper and footnote 55, above, for Iachino's works.
Franco Maugeri, From the Ashes of Disgrace (New York: Reynal & Hitchcock, 1948); Ricordi di un
marinaio: la Marina italiana dai primi del Nouecento al secondo dopoguerra nelle memorie di uno dei suoi capi
(Milan: Mursia, 1980).
Vittorio Tur, Plancia ammiraglio (Rome: Editzioni moderne, 1958).
Alfredo Viglieri, In mare, in terra, in cielo. Vicetide di pace e di guerra (1915-1945) (Milan: Mursia, 1977).
Sadkovich 209
Zara. 1 That more biographies are not being done is probably due to the association
of such figures as Costanzo Ciano and Gabriele D'Annunzio with the fascist
regime and the tendency of the Italian services to credit units, such as the X Mas,
rather than commanders, like Julio Borghese, with spectacular performances — a
tendency that has also created the impression that Italy had no aces during World
War II.104
But while I am not particularly pessimistic with regard to Italy, I am less sanguine
when contemplating the future of Italian naval and maritime studies in this country.
Not only does it appear that most Americans, including academics, have little interest
in the field, but if the Pentagon's budget is cut, surely one of the first things to go,
aside from low-level personnel, will be the historians. It thus might be worth
considering ways in which to stimulate interest in naval and maritime studies, and
by extension, military, diplomatic, and political history, because all of these suffer
from the same diseases — the hegemony of social history within academics and the
general indifference to things Italian among the general public, which includes
publishers and editors. Finding a niche in the curriculum can thus be as difficult
as finding a publisher in this country.
One way to promote naval and maritime history is, of course, to recast it as
social history by rejecting Mahan and embracing Braudel. This, I think, will
102 Alberto da Zara, Pelle d'ammiraglio (Milan: Le Scie, 1949).
Ciano and D'Annunzio thus tend to be thought of as subjects for studies on "fascism," not on naval
or maritime history, and it is reassuring to know that there is a recent biography on Costanzo Ciano.
For example, Gioacchino Volpe, Gabriele D'Annunzio: L'italiano, il politico, il combattetite (Rome: Volpe,
1981); Giovanni Rizzo, D'Annunzio e Mussolini: la uerita sui loro rapporti (Rocco San Casciano: F. Cappelli,
1960); or Ludovico Domenico, Gli auiatori italiani del bombardamento nellaguerra 1915—1918 (Rome: Ufficio
Storico Aeronautica Militare, 1980), which stresses D'Annunzio impact on air operations, and Giovanni
Battista Giuriati, Con D'Annunzio e Millo in difesa dell'Adriatico (Florence: Sansoni, 1954). Franco Cordova
and Michael Ledeen therefore both treated D'Annunzio and the occupation of Fiume in 1919—20 as
"political" subjects. Similarly, even though he headed the seamen's union, Giuseppe Giulietti has acquired
a political aura; see his biography, Pax Mundi (Naples: Rispoli, 1945).
For an example of the tendency to deal with the unit, Maurizio Circi, 30° stormo idrovolanti. Note
storiche dal 1931 al 1974 (Rome: Ufficio Storico Aeronautica Militare/Bizzarri, 1974); Antonio Duma,
Quelli del cauallino rampante. Storia del 4° stormo caccia (Rome: Ateneo, 1981); Nino Arena, 50° stormo
d'assalto (Modena: STEM, 1979); Alberto Borgiotti, 97° gruppo autonomo bombardamento a tuffo
1940-1941: Sicilia, Balcani, Africa Settentrionale (Rome: Ateneo & Bizzarri). Also Junio Valerio Borghese,
Sea Deuils, op. cit., also wrote a history of his unit rather than an autobiography.
This certainly has been my experience. Evidently books on Italy, whether on prostitution in the
Renaissance or nineteenth-century military policy, do not sell well in this country. As one editor of a
major publishing house, both of which shall remain anonymous, wrote me regarding a manuscript on
the Italian Navy during World War II, "surely the obsession with Germany is a correct one" because
"Anglo— Italian clashes" were "thoroughly unimportant" in the "Battle of the Atlantic."
For example, Alvarez Javier Guillamon, "Congresso historico: ciudad y mar en la edad moderna,"
Contrastes (Spain) (1985), describes a September 1984 conference in Cartagena that focussed on (1)
geographical framework and urban development, (2) demography and socioprofessional structures, (3)
economic bases and productive factors, (4) market and commercial relations, (5) institutional and military
aspects, and (6) maritime science and techniques. Or one could follow the example of David A. Cappell,
210 Comments
occur in the field of contemporary naval studies as it has in the field of early
modern naval and maritime history. Such a shift in emphasis would undoubtedly
be healthy because it would expand the horizons of those of us who dabble in
naval and maritime history as well as those of our colleagues who do not. But
while such a shift will be relatively easy for Italian historians, who are close to
archival sources, it will be more difficult for those of us who survive by using
published sources, at least until a solid foundation of published documents and
monographs on naval and maritime history is available.
Another way to promote naval and maritime history is to do colonial and
transnational studies. But this will be difficult, since one of the characteristics of
naval histories is that they tend to be parochial, and too often hyperbolically
patriotic, which is certainly one of the reasons that the field is not taken seriously
1 07
by many historians. Yet in the case of Italian navies, such an approach makes
considerable sense, since the essence of Italian naval and maritime history is its
diversity and the interaction of the navies of Italian states over the centuries with
each other and with surrounding naval forces, whether Barbary corsairs, Dal-
matian Uskoks and the Turkish fleet in the early modern period; the French fleet
and the Austrian navy during the Napoleonic wars and the Risorgimento; or the
108
British and Austrian fleet during this century.
By its very nature, naval and maritime history is part of an international
political, economic, social, and diplomatic history, and it should not be contained
within narrow national boundaries but connected to the wider world. Dragan
ivojinovi has done this for the Dalmatian littoral by focusing on topics as diverse
as the role of naval officers in the Adriatic during the unsettled period of 1918— 21
and the relations between Dubrovnik and the American colonies in the late
1700s. Indeed, cities such as Dubrovnik— Ragusa, Rijeka— Fiume, Split—
"Shipboard Relations between Pacific Island Women and Euroamerican Men, 1767- 1887 '," Journal of Pacific
History (1992), and write on such topics as "madamismo" in Italian East African ports and aboard Italian ships.
For example, the exaggeration of the role played by British submarines in the Adriatic during World
War I in Paul Kemp and Peter Jung, "Five Broken Down B Boats: British Submarine Operations in
the Northern Adriatic, 1915-1917," Warship International (1989).
1 Oft
For example, Gligor Stanojevi, Senjski Uskoci (Belgrade: Vojnoizdavaki Zavod, 1973); and Alberto
Tenenti, Piracy and the Decline of Venice, 1580-1615 (London: Longman, 1967), originally published as
Venezia e i corsari, 1580-1615 (Bari: Laterza, 1961); and Giulio Giacchero, Pirati barbareschi, schiavi e
galeotti nella storia e nella leggenda ligure (1970), a volume in the Scaffaletto Genovese series. Tenenti dealt
with Uskoks, Barbary Corsairs, and English, Spanish, Maltese and Florentine pirates. Unfortunately, the
tendency is to draw a line through the middle of the Adriatic and treat one side as Italian, the other as
eastern European, e.g., Apostolos E. Vacalopoulos, Constantinos D. Svolopoulos, and Bela K. Kiraly,
eds., Southeast European Maritime Commerce and Naval Policies from the Mid-Eighteenth Century to 1914
(Boulder: Columbia Univ. Press, 1988), vol. 23 of the War and Society in East Central Europe series.
The volume discusses the British, French, Austrian, and even American navies, and policy in the Adriatic
and on the Danube, but Italy is largely ignored.
Dragan ivojinovi, Amerika reuolucija i dubrovaka republika, 1 763-1790 (Belgrade: Prosveta, 1976), and
"The United States and its Unknown Role in the Adriatic Conflicts of 1918-21" (1989), Occasional
Paper, East European Program, European Institute, n. 15.
Sadkovich 21 1
Spalato, Zadar— Zara, Pola— Pula, and Sibenik— Sebenico are as integral to Italian
history as Trst— Triest, Venice, or Bari, and the Adriatic is as international a sea
as the Tyrrhennian, Ionian, or Mediterranean. Although the tendency is to
see the Adriatic as dividing Italy from eastern Europe, it is clear that the sea unites
the Italian to the Balkan peninsula, and authors as diverse as Paolo Alatri and
Bernard Stulli have dealt with the connection in one context or another.
To the extent that the Adriatic, Tyrrhenian, Black, and Red Seas are
extensions of the Mediterranean, Italian naval and maritime history forms an
integral part of Italian colonial and imperial history. In a sense, Austrian, Italian,
French, and Balkan history — whether Turkish, Yugoslav, Greek, or Albanian — -
are therefore complementary. But while there are studies ranging from the
expansion of the early maritime empires into the Black sea to the role played by
the Italian Navy in colonial expansion in Africa in this century, there is a great
deal that can still be done. For example, to the best of my knowledge, there are
no comprehensive histories of the Adriatic or Tyrrhenian seas that would
integrate a variety of approaches over time, as Braudel did almost a half-century
•I'll
ago for the Mediterranean.
Finally, let me note that while relatively few publishers and journals take a
consistent interest in naval and maritime history, there are a number of journals
For the Adriatic, its cities, and its fleets, see Lawrence Thomas Sondhaus, Austria and the Adriatic: The
Development o/Habsburg Maritime Policy, 1 797-1866 (Ph.D., University of Virginia, 1986); Lothar Hobelt,
"Die Marine," Habsburgermonarchie 1848-1918 (1987); Karl Gogg, Osterreichs Kriegsmarine, 1848-1918
(Salzburg: Verlag das Berland-Buch, 1967); Roberto Cessi, La Repubblica di Venezia e ilproblema adriatico
(Naples: 1953); Barisa Kreki, Dubrovnik et le Levant au Moyen Age (Paris: Mouton, 1961), and Dubrovnik
in the 14th and 15th Centuries (Norman, Okla.: Univ. of Oklahoma Press, 1972).
111 Paolo Alatri, Nitti, D'Annunzio e la questione adriatica (Milan: Feltrinelli, 1959), and Bernard Stulli,
"Talijanski historiografija i jadranska irredentizam," Hrvatski Zbomik (1954). Also see Milan Marjanovi,
Borba zajadran, 1914—1946: Iredenta i imperializam (Split: 1953); Vjekoslav Mastrovi, Kako je svrhna
okupacija Zadra 1918. godina (Zadar: 1951); and Berislav Viskovi, "Ratna 1943. Godina kao presuda
forza bitke zajadran," Vojnoistoriski Glasnik (1984); Ferdo ulinovi, Rijeka drava (Zagreb, 1953).
For example, Kenneth M. Setton, Venice, Austria, and the Turks in the Seventeenth Century
(Philadelphia: American Philosophical Society, 1991); or Juliette Bessis, La Mediterranie fasciste: I'ltalie
mussolinienne et la Tunisie (Pairs: Editions Karthala, 1981). Although neither of these is a naval history,
the interaction of the Mediterranean states makes a transnational approach natural for maritime and naval
history.
The Italian Foreign Ministry's Comitato per la documentazione dell'opera dell'Italia in Africa
sponsored a series of studies on the work of the Italian services overseas, including that by Giuseppe
Fioravanzo and Guido Viti on the navy, L'ltalia in Africa. Serie Storico-militare. Vol. II. L 'opera della marina
(1868-1943) (Rome: Istituto Poligrafico dello Stato, 1959). But the work is now rather dated. Among
works on the subject, see Vittorio Giglio and Angelo Ravenni, Le guerre coloniali d'ltalia (Milan: Francesco
Vallardi, 1942); Luigi Goglia, "Sulla politica coloniale fascista," Storia contemporanea (1988); and E. S.
Zevakin and A. Penko, "Ricerche sulla storia delle colonie genovesi nel Caucaso occidentale nei secoli
XIII-XIV," in Miscellanea di Studi Storici (Genoa: Istituto di Medievistica, 1969), vol. I. There have been
a great number of works published on Italy's colonial policy over the past fifteen to twenty years, but
they have tended to focus on land operations, economics, and diplomacy rather than maritime or naval
matters, even though the Navy played a crucial role in the Italian conquests of Libya in 1911-12 and
Ethiopia in 1935-6.
21 2 Comments
that will publish works on naval and maritime history. In Italy, Rivista marittima,
Bollettino d' Archivio dell'Ufficio Storico delta Marina Militare, Panorama Difesa, Storia
Militate, and Rivista Italiana Difesa regularly publish articles dealing with naval
and maritime history, technique, and current policy, as do such organizations
as Genoa's Istituto Medievistica. Storia contemporanea, Storia e politica,
Archivio Storico Italiano, Nuova Rivista Storica, Rivista Storica Italiana, Quad-
erni Stefaniani, and Rassegna Storica della Liguria have also published essays
on naval and maritime history. In this country, aside from the Naval War College
Review and the United States Naval Institute Press, there are few outlets for naval
historians, although, as with major publishers, major journals will publish articles
117
on maritime and naval history. In Italy, a handful of editorial houses publish
the bulk of the books on maritime and naval history, among them Ermanno
Albertelli, who publishes Bagnasco and others; Mursia, which has published
Giorgerini; and Edizioni delTAteneo e Bizzarri, which publishes a variety of
air-naval studies. In this country a major press, such as Johns Hopkins, might
issue a work like that by Davis on early modern maritime history, but they shy
away from works on World War II Italian naval history, leaving only Greenwood
118
and a few publishing houses in England, like Frank Cass.
What is needed, it seems to me, is some way to provide more outlets for
articles on naval and maritime history that are not associated with a service
institute, and to create an organization that would provide a network for those
of us interested in the area, even if we teach in such places as Hattiesburg,
Mississippi where merely keeping up with the literature is an impossible task and
where beauty pageants, the NFL draft, and the Dixie League are of much more
immediate interest to most people than naval and maritime history.
See Ezio Ferrente, La Rivista Marittima dallafondazione ai nostrigiomi. La storia, gli autori, le idee (Rome:
Rivista Marittima, 1986). My thanks to Admiral Pascazio and Professor Alberto Santoni for calling my
attention to these publications, some of which Dr. Sullivan has also mentioned.
Or the Deputazione di Storia Patria per le Venezie, which publishes the Archivio Veneto.
For example, Cesare Ciano, "Considerazioni sulla disciplina a bordo delle navi mediterranee nel
XVII secolo," (1987); Franco Gay, "L'Arsenale di Venezia," (1984). Quaderni Stefaniani is published in
Pisa.
117
Contemporary European History, the Journal of Strategic Studies, and the Journal of Contemporary History,
the Journal of Modem History, Economic History Review, and the Journal of European Economic History also
have published pieces on Italian naval or maritime history. Other possible outlets include, but are not
limited to journals such as the Mediterranean Historical Review, War & Society, Revue intemationale d'histoire
militaire, Aeronautical mensile dell 'aviazione italiana, Marine Rundschau, Revue d'histoire de la deuxieme guerre
mondiale et des conflits contemporains, Archivio storico marina, and The Mariner's Mirror.
Among other editorial houses that have published works on Italian naval history are Biblioteca del
Bollettino Storico Pisano (Pisa) and Istituto di Medievistica (Genoa); Harvard Univ. Press; and the
Istituto Storico Germanico in Roma. But only the Istituto di Medievistica in Genoa has a large list of
titles, which include the works of Laura Balletto.
17
Japan
Mark R. Peattie and David C. Evans
Fifty years ago Alexander Kiralfy, writing about Japanese naval thought,
asserted that the Japanese "lack interest in waters which do not directly
concern them." Allowing for a certain degree of wartime ignorance and
prejudice about the Japanese enemy which he displayed in the article, Kiralfy
had a point. For reasons that have to do with geography and history, Japan's
maritime interests throughout its history have been mostly limited to its home
waters and to those of the northeast Asian littoral. Only for one brief period,
1940—1945, did those interests stretch as far as the mid-Pacific, southeast Asia,
and the eastern Indian Ocean.
This regional focus, or "continental strategy," as Clark Reynolds would have
it, has meant that modern Japanese naval thought has been subjective, rather
than objective, concerned with the specific application of the principles of sea
power to the Japanese case, rather than with the study of sea power as a general
historical phenomenon about which broad judgments can be drawn. Even the
most erudite of Japan's modern naval thinkers, Sato Tetsutaro, sometimes
mistakenly referred to as the "Japanese Mahan," framed his arguments solely for
a Japanese audience. While the evidence on which he rested his ponderous and
somewhat mystical On the History of Imperial Defense (1908) was drawn from
examples of the naval and maritime history of the West, his theoretical point of
reference was exclusively Japanese. Those lesser Japanese naval writers who
followed after Sato in the 1920s and 1930s were even more subjective in their
concerns. In the decade immediately prior to the Pacific War, Japanese naval
thought, expounded by civilians as well as naval professionals, was essentially
directed toward the mobilization and increase of Japanese naval power and the
defeat of the American naval enemy.
General State of the Field in Postwar Japan
Given its outcome, it is not surprising that the Pacific War did nothing to
broaden the Japanese perspective on naval matters and, indeed, in one sense
Alexander Kiralfy, "Japanese Naval Strategy," in Edward Earle et al., eds., Makers of Modem Strategy:
Military Thought from Machiavelli to Hitler (New Jersey: Princeton Univ. Press, 1943), pp. 457-84.
214 Japan
further narrowed its focus on national concerns. Certainly, any discussion of the
state of naval history in postwar Japan must begin with the impact of the Pacific
War on that nation. Not only did that conflict shape the view of the Japanese
public toward the subject of military history in general, but the nation's defeat
in that war and the Imperial Japanese Navy's role in it have shaped the concerns
of those who have been most active in thinking and writing about naval history.
To begin with, for decades after its conclusion there was a general turning
away from the rationale for the Pacific War by the majority of the Japanese
people. Civilian scholars, indifferent if not hostile to operational history, sought
explanations for Japan's defeat in the nation's pre-war political, economic, and
social systems. Those who were concerned with the Navy's operational history
were those former officers who had served in the Navy. But there were
inhibitions to writing about it publicly, even for those naval professionals, for
the undeniable fact was that the history of the Japanese Navy ended badly.
Whatever the early triumphs of the Imperial Japanese Navy, its humiliating
demise cast a pall of gloom over its story. In the United States, following naval
victory on two oceans, there were hundreds of thousands of Navy veterans who
looked forward to reading about the triumphant campaigns in which they had
taken part. In Japan, a large portion of the potential audience rested at the bottom
of the ocean and that portion which survived wished largely to forget the trauma
of war. In the early postwar years, moreover, the existence of the war crimes
tribunals undoubtedly had a chilling effect on the publications and pronounce-
ments of anyone who had held a responsible position in either of the two services
during the war.
Nevertheless, in the first decades after the war, a small group of former
Japanese naval officers did begin sifting through the ashes of defeat to study the
pre-war navy, seeking answers as to how and why it played a leading role in the
initiation of the war, and how and why it was defeated in the end. With the
establishment of the War History Office in 1955 as part of the Japanese Defense
Agency, their central effort, along with that of a number of former Imperial
Army officers, was channeled into participation in the research and writing of
what eventually became the official Senshi sosho, (War History Series), more than
one hundred volumes recounting the activities of both services in the China and
Pacific wars. Over the course of time, building on their work on the Senshi sosho,
through books and articles they wrote as individuals, a number of these former
Navy men-turned historian — Normura Minoru and Seukuni Masao, to name
two of the most prominent — came to enjoy a solid reputation in the field for
their firsthand knowledge and for their professional integrity. Other former
Navy officers not connected with the project have produced important works
on the war: Chihaya Masataka has written on strategy, 6i Atsushi on antisub-
marine warfare, and Torisu Kennosuke on submarine operations. It has been by
the hands of these men that such operational history of the Japanese Navy as
Peattie and Evans 21 5
exists has been preserved since 1945. On the whole, their work has been highly
informative and often usefully analytical. But to much of the academic com-
munity in postwar Japan, their writings have lacked intellectual rigor, their
subject matter has been seen as irrelevant, and they have been regarded,
sometimes unfairly, as apologists for the old navy.
In any event, what has distinguished the work of these men from that of their
counterparts in the West has been the absence of personal controversy among
themselves and of any open professional debate as to the principal naval
campaigns of the war or as to the reputations of the foremost naval commanders
who conducted them (some of whom were their direct superiors). In part this
may be due to the Navy's traditional reputation as the silent service, but more
importantly, perhaps, to the Japanese cultural tradition which does not en-
courage the open airing of disputes or assaults on the reputations and character
of individuals. Nor does it permit a Japanese, no matter how highly placed, to
claim achievements for himself, a fact that explains the absence of any real naval
autobiographies of the free-wheeling, now-I-can-tell-it variety known in the
West. Those autobiographies which do exist are often simply records of long
interviews conducted at the behest of disciples. There are, of course, dozens of
detailed biographies, often being the product of committees composed of the
admirers of the naval figure in question; they too often concentrate on externals
and the inconsequential.
Though in the immediate postwar decades the academic community itself,
by and large, continued to avoid naval history as a suspect field, established
scholars (political scientists and international relations specialists for the most
part) and front-rank publishing houses touched upon naval matters in a number
of major publications. The collections of primary sources like the Documents
on Modern History [Gendai shi shiryo] (1962—70) and analytical histories such as
The Road to the Pacific War [Taiheiyo senso e no michi\ (1962—63) contained a wealth
of information on the Navy and served as departure points for a myriad of more
specialized studies on the role of the Navy in the modernization of Japan and in
the origins of the Pacific War.
In the past several decades, moreover, younger academics, educated after the
war and thus with no particular bias for or against the pre-war Navy, have begun
to enter the field. Many have furthered the study of the Navy's involvement in
the origins of the Pacific War, though their perspective is almost entirely that of
international relations, domestic politics, or foreign policy. Asada Sadao of
Doshisha University, publishing in both Japanese and English, has established
himself as the world's authority on Japan's role in the interwar naval treaty
system. I to Takashi of Tokyo University has done important work on the Navy's
actions in politics. Ikeda Kiyoshi of Tohoku University has produced a survey
history and a set of critical essays on the old Navy. Others have sought to broaden
the study of the Navy in the Pacific War into such non-operational topics as the
21 6 Japan
character and impact of the Navy's administration of those occupied areas
assigned to the Navy in Southeast Asia. Still others have sought to push back the
study of their nation's naval history to the Meiji (1868—1912) and Taisho
(1912—1926) periods, illuminating new aspects of the Navy's history: finances,
statutes, personnel policies, education, institutions, and other topics which
reflect, to a certain extent, the "new military history" so much in vogue in the
West.
The quality of these nonoperational studies is generally good. Yet, what still
characterizes almost all the study of naval history in postwar Japan, either by
former naval personnel or by civilian scholars, is that which characterized it
before the war: its subjective quality, its absolute absorption in the Japanese case.
Still lacking is any major work in Japanese which has attempted to provide
observations on sea power with global, rather than just national, implications,
or any major work that has made wide use of primary sources for a study of the
naval history of any Western nation (although articles appear on such topics from
time to time), or any that has sought to place Japanese naval thought and history
in a comparative context. Until such studies appear, Japanese naval history, for
all its intrinsic interest and importance, will remain isolated by language and by
narrowness of perspective, a monologue in what should be a dialogue.
The public attitude toward Japan's naval past has been ambivalent to say the
least. On the one hand, books and magazines for the layman relay masses of
information on the old Imperial Navy, its ships, its planes, and especially its
exploits during the Pacific War. Some years ago, model kits of the super-bat-
tleship Yamato were among the top sellers in Japanese toy stores, and a recent
NHK (government) television documentary series on the Pacific War, which
featured the major naval engagements in the Pacific, 1941—1945, drew a wide
audience. On the other hand, any governmental efforts to promote public
respect or reverence for Japan's military past can be expected to meet stout public
resistance, particularly from the political left, as witnessed by the heated protests
over the occasional visits by the Emperor and various Japanese prime ministers
to Yasukuni Shrine, dedicated to the spirits of Japan's military dead. Indeed, the
general public acceptance of the present Maritime Defense Force, like the other
Defense Forces, rests upon the assumption that it is qualitatively different from
its hugely more prestigious Imperial predecessor. A third element, the most
In this connection, the authors recall that, on a visit to the First Service School of the Maritime
Self-Defense Force at Etajima (the site of the prewar Academy) in 1985, they stopped in to view the
naval museum and were surprised to see at the top of the grand stairway leading into the building a
triptych of portraits: Togo HeihachirS, Horatio Nelson, and John Paul Jones. Later, when asked what
sort of message the last portrait was intended to convey to aspiring young Japanese naval cadets, the
superintendent of the Service School replied somewhat vaguely that it was the duty of the Self-Defense
Force to instill "a spirit of internationalism" in its graduates. Clearly, it meant that, while Togo was
sufficiently removed in time to be an acceptable icon to postwar Japanese naval officers, and while the
addition of Nelson's portrait paid tribute to British tutelage of the Japanese Navy in its infancy, the
Peattie and Evans 21 7
conservative band in the Japanese political spectrum, further complicates public
attitudes toward Japanese naval history. Though small in numbers, its power to
influence scholarly discourse on military matters is out of proportion to its size.
While this influence is difficult to gauge with any accuracy, it does appear to
limit research into topics deemed too delicate, such as the relationship of the
Imperial family to the pre-war Navy, or too revered, such as the reputation of
Admiral Togo, to be appropriate subjects for unrestricted scrutiny and discussion.
The authors have been told by younger Japanese naval historians on more than
one occasion that foreign researchers are able to write about the Imperial Navy
in ways that would not be possible for them. Such assertions do not in any way
imply that contemporary Japanese naval historians have maintained anything less
than the highest professional standards in their work, but they do indicate that
Japanese researchers are obliged to be a bit more guarded in their judgments and
in their choice of subjects than are their counterparts in the West.
Institutions Promoting the Study of Naval History
The principal element of the Japanese government involved in promoting
the study of naval history in Japan is the Japanese Defense Agency, both through
its instruction at the various service academies (see below) and through the
research activities of the Military History Department (Senshi-bu, which suc-
ceeded the War History Office) of the National Institute for Defense Studies.
Since the completion of the Senshi sosho series, the mission of the Department
has broadened to include research on military and naval history in general,
though the thrust of its studies is largely related to Japan and the rest of Asia.
Though the faculty of the department contributes to scholarly journals outside
the Defense Agency, the purpose of the department is essentially the training
and education of members of the Japanese Defense Forces.
More specifically devoted to the promotion of studies on the former Imperial
Navy is the Japanese Navy History Preservation Association (Kaigun Rekishi
Hozonkai), a semi-governmental foundation affiliated with the Defense Agency.
At present, the main efforts of the association are directed toward the compilation
of a ten-to-twelve volume narrative history, with substantial appendices, of the
Imperial Navy.
Two private institutions promote the study of naval history to varying degrees.
The larger of these, the Military History Society (Gunjishi Gakkai), was founded
in 1955 to bring together both scholars and military professionals interested in
furthering the study of military history in general. While the focus of its interest
is largely that of land warfare, its regularly published journal, Military History
inclusion of any Japanese commanders from the Pacific War, such as Yamamoto Isoroku, Ozawa
Jisaburo, or Nagumo Chuichi, could only create an image problem for the Self-Defense Force. Far safer
to honor an American naval hero whose combat experience had nothing to do with Japan and whose
reputation, in any event, was largely unknown to the Japanese.
218 Japan
[Gunjisht] occasionally carries articles of naval interest. It is a sign of the slowly
increasing respectability of military history among Japanese academic circles that
the Society was admitted as a member of the Science Council of Japan in 1984.
A smaller institution, The Navy Library (Kaigun Bunko) in Tokyo, is devoted
entirely to the study of Japanese naval history and its regularly published journal,
Navy History Research [Kaigunshi Kenkyu], presents articles almost exclusively
focused on the Imperial Navy and largely based on materials possessed by the
Library.
Resource Collections and Basic Sources
The library of the Military History Department of the National Institute for
Defense Studies is a major resource for the study of Japanese military and naval
history, housing as it does some 25,000 books, 48,000 maps, and 146,000
documents, of which 33,000 deal with naval matters. The library is essentially
closed to the public, though limited access is available on a selected basis. The
Kaigun Bunko, with approximately 30,000 volumes, is somewhat smaller but
similarly valuable. Public access to the collection is similarly limited and granted
selectively. The National Diet Library also has a good number of important naval
works, though these do not comprise a major consolidated collection, nor is
there a specialist in naval history on the library staff.
One of the principal difficulties in the study of Japan's modern naval history
is the dearth of primary sources, at least in comparison to those available in major
archives in the United States and Western Europe. There are a number of reasons
for this state of affairs, but none is as critical as the wholesale destruction of files
and documents by the Japanese military services and civilian government in the
several days after the Japanese surrender which ended the Pacific War. It is
regrettable, but inevitable, therefore, that there are numerous issues of major
importance concerning the Japanese Navy and its plans and operations in the
China and Pacific wars that will never be resolved or which will be understood
incompletely because of the absence of adequate documentation. Of course, a
significant portion of the Navy's records did escape destruction and the compilers
of the 106— volume Senshi sosho, published from 1966 to 1980 by the Asagumo
Shimbunsha, have exploited these, supplementing them wherever possible with
diaries and interviews with former Imperial Army and Navy officers.
The thirty-three volumes of the Senshi sosho, which are devoted to naval
matters, therefore, comprise the most detailed, most complete, and most
authoritative record of the Navy's plans, operations, organization, weaponry,
strategy and tactics from 1937 to 1945. One can scarcely research any topic
within these categories as they relate to the Imperial Navy without consulting
the relevant volumes of the series. Nevertheless the collection not only suffers
from the usual debilities of official history, but presents a number of problems
to the serious researcher. A practical difficulty is that the series, like most Japanese
Peattle and Evans 21 9
scholarly works, includes neither an overall index nor indexes for any of the
individual volumes. More serious is the lack of any interpretive or critical
approach to the subjects treated. This is due partly to the fact that the hundred
or more compilers of the series, most of them former members of the Imperial
armed forces, were reluctant to critique the actions of the major commanders,
most of whom were deceased and many of whom were their own superior
officers. More importantly, most of those involved in this huge effort in research
and writing were untrained in historical inquiry and thus frequently became
absorbed in accumulating enormous detail without being able to stand back and
ask larger questions of the material which came under their hands, believing,
perhaps, that great masses of fact would naturally and inevitably yield the truth.
A final and curious defect in the series is the frequent and unfortunate redundancy
from volume to volume whereby campaigns and operations are given in
exhaustive detail from the standpoints of both services, a ghostly echo of the
traditional rivalry between the Imperial Army and Navy, which reached
dangerous levels during the Pacific War.
The Senshi sosho comprise only the largest and best known of the published
collections which deal, inter alia, with the Japanese Navy. While even a partial
listing of the histories on specialized naval topics is impossible to provide here,
by way of example we note the History of Naval Organization [Kaigun seido
enkaku], originally produced by the Navy Ministry in the 1930s and reissued in
twenty-six volumes by Hara Shobo (1971—72); the four— volume History of
Japanese Naval Aviation [Nihon kaigun kokilshi], published in 1969 and compiled
by veterans of the Japanese naval air service: the History of Shipbuilding in the
Showa period [Showa zosenshi shi\, a two— volume work published in 1977, of
which the second volume is devoted to naval construction from the mid— 1920s
onward; the two— volume study of the Japanese Navy's use of naval fuels [Nihon
kaigun nenryoshi shi\, published in 1972; and the Showa period social and
economic history collection of Navy Ministry materials [Showa shakai keizaishi
shusei: Kaigunsho shiryo], which is now being published by the Daito Bunka
Daigaku Toy 6 Kenkyujo and contains some important naval documents not
found elsewhere. When it is completed in 1995, the multivolume history of the
Imperial Navy by the Hozonkai, mentioned earlier, will undoubtedly be a major
resource. Finally, we should mention the existence of a number of important
diaries of leading figures in the prewar and wartime Japanese Navy, including
those of Kato Kanji, Ishikawa Shingo, Fujii Shigeru, Takagi Sokichi, Nagumo
Chuichi, and Ugaki Matome, the last of these having recently appeared in an
English translation.
With very few exceptions, this material remains untranslated and thus
inaccessible to those researchers who cannot read Japanese. But gradually, as the
number of Western-trained Japanese scholars in the field increases, along with
the number of Western naval historians possessed of Japanese language facility,
220 Japan
we in the West will gain a more sophisticated understanding of Japanese naval
history.
Instruction in Naval History
Formal study of naval history in Japan is confined to the educational
institutions of the Defense Agency.
At the Defense Academy, cadets aiming at a commission in the Japanese
Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) take several courses that include naval
affairs, for example, "Technology and War," "Western Military History" and
"Contemporary Military History." Naval history is the exclusive focus of one
course, "History of Naval War." A prospectus, echoing Mahan — who enjoys a
high reputation seemingly undiminished by time and change among JMSDF
-I
officers - — states that it "examines the influence of sea power on the rise and fall
of states." Instructors of this course are normally senior JMSDF officers who have
done a stint as scholars of naval history at the National Institute for Defense
Studies. In recent years, all have been active scholars. Toyama Saburo, a Pacific
War veteran and rear admiral, JMSDF (ret.), published an exhaustive study of
the battles of the Russo-Japanese War and several other books of naval battle
history. Nomura Minoru, already mentioned in connection with the Senshi
sosho, wrote on the Navy's role in the politics of the prewar period and many
other subjects. Hirama Yoichi, the current Professor of Maritime Defense
Studies, has published on the Japanese Navy in World War I, the influence of
Sun Tzu on naval thinking, and other topics.
At the JMSDF Staff School, lieutenants and lieutenant commanders take part
in seminars on strategic affairs and national security matters. Their work often
involves naval history, and they often publish their work in the Staff School
journal, Waves [Hato], though their studies are often of a narrow technical nature.
Maritime History
This area of scholarship, in the words of a knowledgeable Japanese informant,
is "at a low ebb." Why this should be so is difficult to understand, particularly
given Japan's current position as one of the world's leaders in maritime
commerce. One reason may be that the professional schools and colleges run by
the government, at which maritime history might be pursued, have a strictly
technical and practical curriculum that excludes such "soft" subjects as history.
This is true of the Maritime Safety (coast guard) Academy, the Marine Technical
Hirama Yoichi's recent article, "The influence of A.T. Mahan on the Japanese navy" (A.T. Mahan
ga Nihon kaigun ni ataeta eikyS), Seiji keizai shigaku, no. 320 (February 1993), pp. 29-48, documents
the continuing popularity of Mahan, who is "still revered as the god of sea power." The most recent
Japanese translation of The Influence of Sea Power upon History appeared in 1984. Its editor, Kitamura
Ken'ichi, admiral, JMSDF, Ret., said in an interview with one of the authors (10 June 1986) that Mahan
was still valid for today provided proper allowance was made for technological advances since Mahan's
time.
Peattie and Evans 221
College, the Tokyo Merchant Marine Academy, the Tokyo College of Fishery
and the Kobe Merchant Marine Academy. The Tokyo Merchant Marine
Academy sponsors the Japan Nautical Association, which publishes Seafaring
[Kokai\, but its articles are almost all on technical subjects.
For many years a private organization, the Japan Maritime History Association
has published a well-respected journal, Studies in Maritime History [Kaijishi
kenkyU]. Recently, however, the organization has suffered from lack of funding.
Further, it shares the parochialism of the naval history establishment in Japan by
concentrating on Japanese maritime history, primarily that of the early and
medieval periods.
One slim hope for maritime history in Japan would seem to be the example
of the just-married Crown Prince. While at Oxford, Naruhito studied medieval
river traffic on the Thames.
1
Republic of Korea
Kim 111 Sang
Ancient Korea was closely tied to the Chinese Empire, and for the people
of Korea, China represented the external world almost exclusively. As a
result, Koreans viewed the Korean peninsula as an appendage of the Asian
continent rather than as a separate entity poised on the sea. Given this landward
focus, ancient Koreans were not concerned with naval and maritime affairs. This,
however, does not mean that there was no maritime activity or sea transporta-
tion. It has, in fact, been demonstrated that intercoastal sea communication
existed, although limited, as early as 4000 B.C. One example of this activity is the
body of comb-pattern earthen wares which have been excavated all along the
Korean peninsula coastline.
The Kokuryo (37-66 B.C.), Shila (57-935 B.C.) and Paekche (18-660 B.C.)
empires were all deeply entwined with the Chinese Empire. All three empires
maintained important and close political and economic relations with the
Chinese. At the same time, however, these empires failed to develop strong
naval forces, so their military systems were designed to meet land-based threats
rather than those from the sea. It is not surprising, then, that Japanese sea pirates
frequently encroached upon the southern coast of Korea in those lean years of
the Three Empires.
In 1592, Toyotomi, then Emperor of Japan, decided to invade the Korean
peninsula with the intent of changing the international balance of power which,
until then, had been a hierarchy in terms of power and influence with China at
the top, Korea in the middle, and Japan at the bottom. In the end, the Shila
Empire unified the peninsula through the advantage provided by their control
over the Han River, which facilitated communications with China. After
unification, a significant development in Korean maritime history was brought
about by Bo-Ko Chang in A.D. 828. He became a base commander of Wan-Do,
an island off the southern coast, after serving in the Chinese Army as a general.
With the security Chang provided on that strategic island, Shilla was able to
achieve economic growth through international trade and destroy the pirate
menace.
224 Republic of Korea
In 1231, the Mongols invaded the Koryo dynasty. The King of Koryo resisted
the usurpation for 30 years by taking refuge on Kwang-Hwa Island. The
Mongols never completely dominated Korea and, after 30 years conflict, they
made peace. A number of important factors made this long resistance possible.
First, Kwang-Hwa island was isolated by the sea and strongly fortified. Addi-
tionally, the Koreans built combatant vessels of various sizes, some with cannon
aboard, to enhance the island's defense. Finally, thousands of Koreans were on
the islands, providing the manpower base to continue the resistance.
It is interesting to note that, in the process of the peace negotiations, the
Mongols asked the Koryos to join them in a combined forces to invade Japan.
The Koreans agreed to this request. Two joint invasion operations failed,
however, because of bad weather, which the Japanese called Kami-Kaze (God's
Wind). The first joint invasion force of 1274 consisted of 20,000 Mongol-
Chinese and 5,400 Koryos in 900 ships built in Koryo. In 1281, the second joint
invading forces totalled 40,000 men with more than 4,000 ships.
This mission's failure led the Japanese to believe that Koryo and the Mongols
were militarily weak. Japanese pirates then increased their encroachment of the
southern part of Koryo in the fourteenth century. By the end of the Koryo
dynasty, Japanese pirates had become quite powerful. Koreans living on the
coastlines began to move inland, and the Korean government had difficulty
protecting seaborne commerce. This created many problems for Korea. For
instance, the ancient Korean taxation system was primarily monetary, but an
important part involved assessments in grain (mostly rice) for government use.
Typically, the local authorities shipped the grain to the authorities at the Imperial
Palace by sea. The sea pirates, however, interdicted this trade and contributed
to the decline of the Koryo dynasty's power. In fact, the failure of the two joint
invasion operations and the suspension in shipping tax grain were the two most
important events that led to the Koryo dynasty's collapse.
The early fifteenth century witnessed a number of significant changes for
Korean maritime affairs. In 1408, the Lee dynasty consolidated a naval force, as
the number of vessels increased from 412 to 597, and the number of the sailors
increased to 49,000. In 1413, the Koryo dynasty invented the turtle ship. In
1415, 10,000 guns were manufactured.
In 1592, Toyotomi's Japanese invading forces attacked Pusan and then
advanced toward Seoul. However, Admiral Soon-Shin Lee recovered control
of the entire southern part of the sea basin, and swept the enemy from the
southern part of the coastline except for the Pusan area. Admiral Lee fought
many sea battles against the Japanese and won every engagement. During the
Japanese invasion of Korea, the most important sea battles were fought at
San-Han Myung-Yang and No-Ryang. Admiral Lee was killed in the battle of
No-Ryang, but in doing so he saved the Lee dynasty, in a manner similar to
Sang 225
that of Nelson, who achieved his victory over the French and Spanish at Trafalgar
three hundred years later.
By the nineteenth century, a policy of isolation was firmly entrenched in both
Japan and Korea. In 1853-54, a U.S. naval squadron under command of
Commodore Perry took an aggressive attitude toward Japan with regard to
opening that country's ports for trade. Japan, in the end, accepted an open door
policy.
In Korea however, the "open door" came with greater difficulty. In 1866,
an American merchantman, the General Sherman, was burnt by Pyong-Yang
officials in Tae-Dong River. The Americans protested this incident on Kwang-
Hwa island, and a military engagement between the Korean garrison forces and
five U.S. naval ships ensued.
In 1875, Japan took coercive action toward Korea in much the same way as
Admiral Perry had done to Japan before. The Korean peninsula was soon
occupied by Japan, and an open door policy was adopted under Japanese
"guidance."
Japan completed the colonization of the Korean peninsula following her
victory over China in the Sino-Japanese War of 1894. In 1904, Japan soundly
defeated the Russian Navy in the Russo-Japanese War. One of the most
important reasons for this important victory was the Japanese occupation of the
Chinhae Bay of Korea. Later, Japan started building a naval base at that location.
This Japanese decision is significant because it later turned out to be one of the
critical naval bases supporting Japanese military operations in the Pacific during
World War II.
Today, the geopolitical position of Korea is similar to that of 1890-1910 in
Alfred T. Mahan's terms. It occupies a strategically central position. Korea's
strategic importance as a peninsula surrounded by the four major powers, U.S.,
Russia, China, Japan, has remained significant even in the post-Cold War period.
It is unfortunate that most Korean universities and colleges do not cover the
naval and maritime history, with the exception of the Naval War College. Most
of them consider naval and maritime history only in connection with other,
independent aspects of the nation's history.
The Naval War College does cover the history of war at sea, naval tactical
and strategic thought in the context of sea power and history of sea power.
The Naval Academy, on the other hand, has a system similar to civilian
universities and consists of departments of various engineering, management,
oceanography and international relations. The department of international
relations is divided into international politics and military history. The school
curriculum does provide a history of sea war in the third year of study. The
National Defense College and its post-graduate school cover the history of sea
power the and tactical and strategic thought of the great leadership.
Naval and maritime history is also considered in other courses as follows:
226 Republic of Korea
The Korea Maritime University provides post-graduate education in
Maritime Industry and the College of Science provides degrees in maritime and
social science.
The Mokpo Merchant Marine Junior college has departments in navigation,
engineering, and communication.
The National Fisheries University of Pusan has colleges of sciences, engineer-
ing, humanities-social science, as well as a post-graduate school of industry.
The Che Ju National University consists of colleges of humanities, law,
economic-commercial, agriculture, oceanography, natural science and en-
gineering.
Editor's note: Very little writing on Korean naval and maritime history is available in English, but
see the references in various volumes of The Cambridge History of Japan (Cambridge: Univ. Press, various
years); G.M. Hagerman, "Lord of the Title Boats," U.S. Naval Institute Proceedings 93 (1967), pp.
67-75; Edward D. Rockstein, "Maritime Trade and Japanese Pirates: Chinese and Korean Responses
in Ming Times"; Asian Pacific Quarterly of Cultural and Social Affairs, vol. 5, no. 2 (no year given), pp
10-19, and Sang-woon Jeon, Science and Technology in Korea: Traditional Instruments and Techniques
(Cambridge: MIT Press, 1974).
On U.S. naval affairs, see Frederick C. Drake, The Empire of the Seas: A Biography of Rear Admiral
Robert Wilson Shufeldt, USN (Honolulu: Univ. of Hawaii Press, 1984), chapters 13-14: "The Opening
of Korea, 1881-1882," and the Korean War (1950-53) sources listed in Barbara A. Lynch and John E.
Vajda, United States Naval History: A Bibliography (Washington: Naval Historical Center, 1993), p. 74.
Professor Kim is Chairman of the Maritime Policy and Strategic Studies Department of the Korean
Naval War College. He is a 1957 graduate of the Korean Naval Academy, and a captain (retired) in the
Korean Navy (ROK).
19
The Netherlands
Jaap R. Bruijn
Historians always look back. That is their profession. Naval and maritime
historians are no exception to that rule, and the same is certainly true
for historiographers. Hence, there is a feeling of being completely at sea when
asked to write an outline o£ the present status of naval and maritime history
in the Netherlands. While the present status has its history, which is
worthwhile telling, there is a reason for feeling hesitant about the subject:
the suggested dichotomy between naval and maritime history. In the
Netherlands, that dichotomy is nonexistent. For this reason, the Dutch
historiography which I will now examine refers only to sea history or to
maritime history.
The Founding Period: A Private Interest
During the seventeenth century, the contemporary was aware of the impor-
tance of the Dutch activities at sea. A surprisingly high number of books were
published about the exploits at sea, which were always assured of wide readership
and were often reprinted. The discovery of the sea route to Asia and the
subsequent voyages of the East India Company were treated by I. Commelin in
1645. The year before, in 1644, a director of the West India Company, J. de
Laet, published the history of his company, year-by-year, based on archival
sources. The biographies of at least three admirals were written soon after their
deaths. G. Brandt's Life of Admiral De Ruyter, containing data drawn from the
admiral's papers and letters, became famous. Books on less spectacular topics
such as the whaling industry and the mechanisms of the Amsterdam staple
market were published as well. More or less the same happened in the
I. Commelin, Begin ende voortgangh van de Nederlantsche geoctroyeerde Oost-Indische Compagnie, 2 vols.
(Amsterdam: 1645).
J. de Laet, Historie qfte jaerlijck vethael van de verrichtinghen der geoctroyeerde West-Indische Compagnie (Leiden:
1644).
G. Brandt, Het leven en bedrijfvan den heere Michiel de Ruiter (Amsterdam: 1687). Further, A. Montanus,
Het leven en bedrijf van den doorluchtigen zeeheldt Johan van Galen (Amsterdam: 1654) and n.n., Leven en
bedrijfvan den vermaarden zeeheld Cornelis Tromp (Amsterdam/Haarlem: 1692).
C.G. Zorgdrager, Bloeijende opkomst deraloude en hedendaagsche Groenlandsche visscherij (The Hague: 1727)
and J. le Moine de l'Espine and J. le Long, Den Koophandel van Amsterdam (Amsterdam: 1719; 3rd ed.).
228 The Netherlands
shipbuilding industry. Most of these works that were written by interested
contemporaries can to a great extent be considered the entirety of history books
written until the nineteenth century when a survey study of the history of the
Dutch at sea was published. It was written by the head of the General State
Archive, J.C. de Jonge and entitled The History of Dutch Marine Affairs, in ten
volumes, published between 1833 and 1848. Marine affairs, according to De
Jonge, were the 'faits et gestes' of the navy. This connotation stayed alive for
more than a century and was used by later historians as well; the most famous
example is J.E. Elias' Sketches from the History of our Marine Affairs, six volumes
dealing with the Eighty Years' War (1568-1648), published between 1916 and
1930. Marine affairs were naval affairs. Other 'wet' matters were considered
different and belonged, though not explicitly, to the field of economic history.
De Jonge's study was and still is a landmark. It describes in great detail the
naval activities from the sixteenth to the early nineteenth century and is based
upon original material, much of which was burned in a fire in the Ministry of
the Navy in 1844; hence, the study's irreplacable value. Around 1870 de Jonge's
work was followed by that of J.J. Backer Dirks. A teacher of naval history at the
Royal Naval College of the Dutch Navy, he devoted four volumes to the Dutch
Navy and included its exploits in the East Indies up to his own time; he created
Q
a still useful, though old-fashioned reference book.
During the same period the study of "non-naval" marine affairs was en-
couraged by competitions held by learned societies, which resulted in two
excellent books on the history of early Dutch whaling and the fishing industry.
The prize winners were a young lawyer, later an archivist, S. Muller Fzn, and
an economist, later a professor, A. Beaujon. A remarkable event in 1874 was
the opening of a maritime museum in a yacht club at Rotterdam. The heart of
the exposition was a collection of about two hundred models of nineteenth-
century ships. The underlying idea was to stimulate the public's interest in
seafaring in general. The display was in chronological order and it dealt with the
mercantile marine, the navy, and fishing.
New developments took place in the first three decades of the twentieth
century when several naval officers, secondary schoolteachers, and a few private
N. Witsen, Aeloude en hedendaegsche scheepsbouw en bestier (Amsterdam: 1671) and C. van IJk, De
Nederlandsche scheepsbouwkonst opengestelt (Amsterdam: 1697).
J.C. de Jonge, Geschiedenis van het Nederlandsche zeewezen, 10 vols. (The Hague: 1833—1848); also
the annotated second edition in 5 vols. (Haarlem: 1858-1862).
J.E. Elias, Schetsen uit de geschiedenis van ons zeewezen, 6 vols. (The Hague: 1916-1930).
J.J. Backer Dirks, De Nederlandsche zeemagt in hare verschillende tijdperken geschetst, 4 vols. (Rotterdam:
1865-1876).
S. Muller Fzn, Geschiedenis der Noordsche Compagnie (Utrecht: 1874) and A. Beaujon, Overzicht der
geschiedenis van de Nederlandsche zeevisscherijen (Leiden: 1885).
L.M. Akveld, "De Watersport-Prins," in Ph.M. Bosscher a.o., Prins Hendrik de Zeevaarder (Naarden:
1975), pp. 91-107.
Bruijn 229
scholars took a keen interest in the naval side of the Dutch Golden Age
(seventeenth century) and in the discoveries of the Arctic and in the East. These
people, who came to know each other, published and joined forces in founding
the Linschoten Society in 1908 and the Scheepvaartmuseum at Amsterdam in
1916. Like the Hakluyt Society, the Linschoten Society started editing original
descriptions of sea and land voyages — in practice, nearly always late sixteenth
and early seventeenth-century sea voyages — producing a new volume each year.
The only person who looked at the social aspects of seafaring was the archivist
J. de Hullu. He wrote a substantial number of handsome articles on life on board
Dutch East Indiamen in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Until the
1970s he would remain an exception.
Academic Recognition
During the Interbellum, the leading person was the retired naval ofticerJ.C.M.
Warnsinck. He published several well-written monographs, based upon good
historical insight and archival research in combination with nautical knowledge.
His great interest was in admirals, naval campaigns and battles. He also made sea
history, as it was then called, academically fashionable. Professor P. J. Blok,
prominent historian of the University of Leiden, obtained Warnsinck's advise
about his biography of Admiral De Ruyter, published in 1928. Academic
recognition was realized in 1933. In that year the Royal Academy of Sciences
founded the Committee for Sea History, with Warnsinck as its secretary, who
also became an unsalaried university lecturer at the University of Amsterdam,
and four years later at Leiden too. In 1939 at the Univerity at Utrecht, a special
1 9
chair for the history of marine affairs was created for him.
The Committee for Sea History was very active and was instrumental in
getting several good monographs published, amongst which were a few Ph.D.
theses. Only two exceptions challenged the then unwritten rule that the topics
deal with seventeenth-century naval history. The publications of the foreigner,
C.R. Boxer, strengthened this trend. During the years of the German
occupation, 1940-45, books on naval history of the seventeenth century were
popular. The same was true for studies on the early period of the Dutch presence
in Asia. The history of fishing or overseas trade, let alone social or institutional
aspects of marine affairs, were hardly studied.
J.R. Bruijn and J. Lucassen, eds., Op de schepen der Oost-Indische Compagnie. Viff artikelen van J. de
Hullu (Groningen: 1980).
For a short sketch of Warnsinck and also J.E. Elias, see: Biografisch Woordenboek van Nederland, vol.
I (The Hague: 1979) and vol. II (The Hague: 1985).
i "\
On C.R. Boxer, see the introduction to the third Dutch editon of his The Dutch Seaborne Empire:
Het profijt van de macht (Amsterdam: 1988).
14 For example: J. H. Kernkamp, De handel op den vijand 1572-1609, 2 vols. (Utrecht: 1931-1934); M.
Simon Thomas, Onze IJslandvaarders in de lie en 18e eeuw (Amsterdam: 1935) and, though older, J.E.
Elias, Het voorspel van den Eersten Engelschen oorlog, 2 vols. (The Hague: 1920).
230 The Netherlands
Warnsinck died in 1943, but academic recognition of sea history was soon
continued. In 1946 the university at Leiden appointed former naval officer and
professional historian T.H. Milo, professor of colonial history and the history of
marine affairs. Milo's Ph.D. topic had broken with the seventeenth-century
tradition. It dealt with a Dutch naval expedition during the French Revolution-
ary wars. Milo focussed his research interest on two projects: 1) the edition of
documents on late sixteenth-century naval administration and campaigns, and
2) a study of the Dutch Navy during World War II. Meanwhile a few of
Warnsinck's students continued publishing. Abroad, Boxer was joined by C.
Wilson in his interest in Dutch history. The Dane, K. Glamann, was the first
(foreign) student who did serious research into Dutch trade with Asia in the
seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.
A Difficult Period (c. 1955-1975)
The future looked bright for sea history during the early fifties. There were,
however, symptoms of gloom. Milo's lectures always attracted a reasonable
number of students, but very few of them started research of their own. Both
of Milo's two projects failed. In 1960, after his sudden death, no obvious
successor was available. His chair was abolished. The Committee for Sea History
of the Royal Academy of Sciences had no manuscripts suitable for publication.
Volume 13 appeared in 1955, and it would be fifteen years, before volume 14
was published. Up till then, publication of yearbooks and special exhibitions had
stimulated directors and staff of the two great museums at Rotterdam and
Amsterdam to jot down the results of their investigations. That custom lapsed
into disuse.
In 1961 two former students of Warnsinck, R.E.J. Weber and Miss A.M.P.
Mollema, who were worried about the status of sea history, founded the
Nederlandse Vereniging voor Zeegeschiedenis (Dutch Society for Sea History).
At the start they collected sixty members. A newsletter was published. The new
society also acted as a national subcommittee of the recently founded Commis-
sion Internationale d'Histoire Maritime.
The society was well and enthusiastically received, and its membership
increased rapidly. Nevertheless, the situation remained difficult. The great
majority of the members only took an amateur's interest in the past, though in
their professional life they were often actively involved in the shipping busi-
nesses. Those members seldom published, and professional sea historians were
scarce indeed. Despite this handicap, the newsletter slowly increased in scope
T.H. Milo, Degeheime onderhandelingen tusschen de Bataafsche en Fransche Republieken van 1 195 tot 1 191
in uerband met de expeditie van schout bij nacht E. Lucas naar de Kaap de Goede Hoop (Den Helder: 1942).
On Milo see Biograftsch Woordenboek van Nederland, vol. IV (The Hague: 1994).
C. Wilson, Profit and power; a study of England and the Dutch wars (London: 1957) and K. Glamann,
Dutch-Asiatic trade 1620-1140 (The Hague: 1958).
Bruljn 231
and quality of content. The variety of topics became vast. And, not in vain, at
its inaugural meeting the society stipulated that sea history was more than naval
1 7
history. Dutch historians in general took a growing interest in economic and
social aspects of centuries other than the seventeenth. That line was folio wed by
the society and its biannual publication.
Although the time period of sea history that was being studied was broadened,
naval and maritime history were artificially separated in 1972. The tables,
however were now reversed. In that year, the Historical-Scientific Commission
of the Royal Academy of Sciences began an investigation into the status of
historical research. It proclaimed sea history a field of its own, dealing with social
and economic aspects of seafaring. Naval history was attached to military history,
and the historical department of the Navy, founded in 1946, was considered its
main representative.
Revitalization (c. 1975-present)
De Jonge's interpretation of marine matters as identical with naval matters
definitely belonged to the past. And in the mid and late seventies some important
developments took place, which resulted in a revitalization of the study of sea
history as a natural entity.
Perhaps all-important were the conception, writing and publication of a
1 Q
four-volume Maritime History of the Low Countries between 1974 and 1978. All
volumes had the same structure, and the dividing lines for periods were
innovative: c. 1585, c. 1680, and c. 1850—70. The approach was thematic. Each
volume started with chapters on ships and shipbuilding, ports, shipowning,
seafarers, and navigation. Next came the operational chapters on the five
different Dutch branches of seafaring: the mercantile marine in Europe and
outside Europe (mainly Asia and the Americas), fishing, whaling, and the Navy.
An annotated bibliography was added to each chapter. Lacunae were indicated.
Right from the beginning it was obvious that such a book could be written only
by a team of authors. To prevent delays in time, no author was asked for more
than two chapters; thirty-seven authors committed themselves. Most of them
got to know each other, and this often proved fruitful in later days. All chapters
in a volume were read in draft by all authors contributing to that volume. The
Maritime History of the Low Countries was well received and several thousand of
the four-volume set were sold, to the delight of the publisher as well as the
authors.
The new handbook, which included the Netherlands as well as Belgium,
made any idea about a dichotomy between naval and maritime history obsolete.
1 7
Mededelingen Nederlandse Vereniging voor Zeegeschiedenis, vol. 1 (1961), p. 6.
Rapport over de huidige stand en toekomstige planning van het wetenschappelijk onderzoek der Nederlandse
geschiedenis (Amsterdam: 1974), pp. 7, 33-5 and 126-38.
Maritieme Geschiedenis der Nederlanden, 4 vols. (Bussum: 1976-78).
232 The Netherlands
The five branches of seafaring have their common base in the chapters on ships,
seamen, navigation, and administrators. Only their operations are different,
having their own characteristics. Since that time the teaching of maritime history
has been structured along this concept.
A second development in the seventies occurred at the universities. The
democratization of the Dutch society made an academic education possible for
larger sections of the population. The enrollment of students overall increased
enormously, as it did in the departments of history. Lectures and research
seminars in sea or maritime history at the university at Leiden also got their share
of this students' boom. At Leiden, a lectureship in maritime history had been
created in 1968, followed by a readership in 1977, and three years later converted
into a chair. From 1978, a steady stream of completed Ph.D. theses in maritime
history began to flow.
A third development was the growing internationalization of the study of
maritime history. The International Commission for Maritime History (the
French name disappeared when M. Mollat's initiative became widely accepted)
held a conference every five years, bringing together scholars from different
countries. Their attention always focussed on one well-prepared theme. Also,
general trends in the study of history at-large could no longer escape the maritime
historian's notice. Smaller international meetings became popular, where staff
members of universities, research institutes, and museums discussed one special
topic or period. The International Commission for Maritime Museums and its
meetings also stimulated wider cooperation.
Factor number four in revitalizing the world of Dutch maritime historians
was the Dutch Society for Maritime History. Its membership increased vastly
and reached about five hundred around 1980. But its journal, in particular,
became the vehicle for an exchange of research products. The original newsletter
was transformed into a proper journal with articles, book reviews, and a
bibliography. In 1982 the name was changed from Communications to Journal for
21
Maritime History. The bibliography had become so vast and elaborate that
journals abroad republished sections of it.
Summing up the main trends of the past fifteen to twenty years, one can
observe, firstly, that the four-volume Maritime History of the Low Countries
functions as a book of reference and a starting point for most research. Secondly,
more students of maritime history with an academic background are now
available. Thirdly, Dutch maritime historians actively participate in international
One of the first students was Frank J. A. Broeze, who in 1971 was invited to start a course in maritime
history at the University of Western Australia (Nedlands). His Ph.D. degree was awarded at Leiden in
1978. The author of this article was appointed to the Leiden-positions.
91
Mededelingen Nederlandse Vereniging uoor Zeegeschiedenis vol. 1-27 (1961-73) quarto, vols. 28-43
(1974-81) octavo; Tijdschrift voor Zeegeschiedenis vols. 1 (1982) in two issues per year (vol. 13, first issue
has just been published).
Bruijn 233
organizations and meetings, and fourthly, the Journal is being offered so many
manuscripts that its editorial board can be very selective. Special issues have
become possible.
The Present Organizational Status
Those who are interested in maritime history in the Netherlands, one might
safely say, are members of the Dutch Society. At present, about 650 members
are registered. The Journal is considering three issues per year. The financial
means have grown. Publishers' advertisements and flyers are holding the costs
down.
The wide range of maritime museums — the two great ones at Rotterdam and
Amsterdam plus a variety of specialized or regional ones — -all restrict themselves
firstly to the preservation and exposition of artifacts of all kinds. For the major
museums, which are highly dependent on state or municipal funds as well as
activities that raise sponsorships, increasing the number of visitors to museums
has become top priority. Sometimes an occasional lecture is organized in relation
to a special exhibition. Museum publications are rare indeed, though the
Shipping Museum at Amsterdam has re-established its former tradition of
publishing a yearbook with object-related articles. The regional museum at
Sneek in Friesland never abandoned that good tradition and is, incidentally, not
afraid to publish an M.A. thesis or an article of wider importance. The libraries
in the museums also keep manuscripts and regularly attract research students. By
and large, however, one must say that Dutch maritime museums do not function
as active centers of research.
As to the actual teaching of naval, and nowadays maritime, history, the Royal
Naval College at Den Helder has the oldest tradition. All naval cadets must take
a short course in history. This same requirement existed in the nineteenth
century, though naval battles then did not have to compete with social structures.
Teaching the history is a part-time job and in the past seldom fulfilled by one
person for a long period. The most renowned teacher was Backer Dirks, the
author of the nineteenth century handbook. A well-known teacher in the sixties
and seventies was Ph.M. Bosscher, who finally wrote a three-volume history of
the Dutch Navy in the second World War, the work his former professor, T.H.
Milo, had only started. In 1980 the position of naval history at the college was
strenghtened by the appointment of G. Teitler as professor of strategic studies.
His main research interest being in the strategic position of the Navy in the
former Dutch East Indies.
J.C.M. Warnsinck's appointment at the universities at Amsterdam, Leiden,
and Utrecht in the thirties only had a sequence at Leiden with a chair in maritime
Jaarboek Fries Scheepvaartmuseum en Oudheidkamer. See for example, G. Groenhof, "De N.V. Friesche
Kofscheepsrederij (1839-1859)," in Jaarboek 1989, pp. 46-115.
23 Ph.M. Bosscher, De Koninklijke Marine in de Tweede Wereldoorlog, 3 vols. (Franeker: 1984-1990).
234 The Netherlands
or sea history. No other university created facilities for teaching maritime history.
In 1992, however, FJ.A.M. Meijer, senior lecturer in ancient history, was appointed
extra-ordinary professor of the Maritime History and Archaeology of Classical
Antiquity at the university of Amsterdam. To my knowledge Meijer is the first
professor combining history and archaeology in teaching and research.
The academic staff for maritime history at Leiden university includes one full
professor and a half-time senior lecturer, F.S. Gaastra, and a few research
students. The teaching is at several levels and is always optional for students. An
introductory lecture course is in two parts, one dealing with the seventeenth
and eighteenth centuries, the other with the modern time, each for two hours
during twelve weeks. Point of reference for this course is the Maritime History of
the Low Countries, but the scope is also international: British, American, and
German aspects are treated as well. A short introduction into archival work is
also included in the course (often the reading of early modern ship logs), plus
visits to two maritime museums to discuss museum policy with staff members.
An oral exam based upon the course work and some additional reading
completes this course. The number of students per part differs annually, but is
mainly in the range often to twenty. Each year there are also thematic classes,
often given by research students. Such a class studies the literature and printed
sources on one general theme as, for instance, the modernization of the
nineteenth-century navy, mutinies, passenger transport or naval administration
in the sixteenth century. These classes take two weekly hours during twelve
weeks, and the student must write a paper. Research is done in special seminars,
one or two per year. A seminar is twenty-four weeks long. The main body of
the research material has to be investigated in the archives; research papers always
bring new information. The themes vary greatly, from the Dutch whaling
industry after the Second World War and the shipping policy of the Dutch
Trading Company (NHM) to the careers of East India captains and the lives of
fishermen's wives. The number of participants is always between eight and
sixteen. A lecture course of twelve weeks on a broad theme was begun in 1989,
and it is open to students as well as to interested people from outside the
university.
Individual research work is done for the M.A. thesis and the Ph.D. degree.
The topic is the student's choice or as advised by the staff. The M.A. thesis is
supposed to take at least six months and is the last piece of work before leaving
the university. Work for the Ph.D. degree does not require enrollment and is
done either in one's private time or in the scarce position of research student for
which one has to apply. The supervision is on on a personal but regular basis,
though groups of Ph.D. students meet together in bimonthly sessions; about
FJ.A.M. Meijer, Een duik in een zee van bronnen. Oude Geschiedenis vanafde bodem van de Middellandse
Zee, inaugural address 30 March 1993 (Amsterdam: 1993); see Warnsinck, note 12.
Bruijn 235
twenty dissertations are in preparation, a few even abroad. The topics deal with
the sixteenth to the twentieth centuries.
The research potential can be divided into three categories. The greater part
of original research is from the Ph.D. students and from the staff members at
Den Helder, Leiden and some other universities. Next is the group of amateur
maritime historians who devote their leisure time to their favorite topics. They
are not very numerous, but the share of those with an academic background is
increasing. There is, however, a third, not yet mentioned category of researchers:
the academic staff of the department of Maritime (!) History at The Hague. This
department of the Naval Staff of the Ministry of Defense is committed to
stimulating research and publications on the Navy, publishing its own in first
instance. Though the production has not yet been particularly impressive, the
department's potential promises well.
This gets us straight on to the last organizational aspect: the publishing
facilities. In 1985 the Department of Maritime History at The Hague substan-
tially enhanced these facilities by starting the publication of a series of books
called Contributions to Dutch Naval History. Volume 6 was published in 1992.
In 1972 the Committee for Sea History of the Royal Academy of Sciences
resumed its publications. Volume 18 appeared in 1990. The Linschoten Society
never stopped its activities and continues editing descriptions of sea and land
travels: volume 92 in 1993. Even more important is the interest in maritime
history demonstrated by several publishing houses, an interest that tends to shift
from one house to another over the course of time. In the seventies De Boer
Maritiem was a prolific publisher, but was forced to give it up. In the eighties,
other smaller ones took over: De Bataafsche Leeuw, Walburg Press, Van Wijnen
and Verio ren, for example. They have published many a Ph.D thesis as a
monograph. Modern equipment and the heigtened birth of one-man publishing
houses has facilitated the printing of manuscripts — an asset for young scholars
who want to have their dissertations published.
Production and Trends
The days of naval campaigns and discoveries as the most favored topics in
maritime historiography have long gone. The study of maritime history now
figures in the study of history as an academic discipline. Therefore, it is regularly
being influenced by new ideas about the relevant approaches of the past.
Economic, social and institutional aspects are studied as well as mental and
technical ones. Statistics are common features in many publications. These
aspects also permeate the publications of some amateur historians.
The production over, say, the past twenty years has been carefully registered
in the extensive bibliography in each issue of the Communications (later the Journal
25
The Dutch name is: Bijdragen tot de Nederlandse Marinegeschiedenis.
236 The Netherlands
for Maritime History of the Dutch Society). Dutch titles are intermingled with
foreign ones. A quantitative approach to the production is feasible, but I rather
prefer to point out the main trends of the publications, which cover the early
modern and modern periods evenly. The sixteenth century and the Middle Ages
have received less attention than later periods.
The general themes which cross the ages and trades are ships, ports, navigation
and seamen. As to ships, there were hardly any typically Dutch, apart from the
fluyts. Hence the focus in Dutch publications is more on shipbuilding: ship
carpenters' guilds by R.W. Unger, the East India Company dockyard at
Amsterdam by J. Gawronski, nineteenth century-naval engineers and innova-
tions by J.M. Dirkzwager and A. A. Lemmers. Shipbuilding was also an
important industrial activity in the late nineteenth and twentieth century. Most
shipyards have now gone. Their rise and fall have been studied neither for the
industry as a whole nor for any of the main yards. Some archives have been saved
from destruction. The demise of the major shipyards around 1980 has been
investigated by a parliamentary commission and has produced huge files of
documentation, on government interference in particular. Financial problems
in the 1980s surrounding the construction of submarines had the same very
attractive opportunity for historians. As to the Navy, the history of their
dockyards from the late sixteenth century to the present day is mainly a blank.
Ports and port cities have not been studied intensely. CM. Lesger set a fine
standard in 1990. He studied Hoorn in the early modern times, regarding this
port city as part of a network and central location system. J. P. Sigmond published
a handsome survey of the planning and digging of smaller and greater harbors
from the sixteenth to eighteenth centuries. For ports in the modern period, some
studies of a different nature have become available; for instance, two monographs
on post-Second World War labor relations in the port of Rotterdam and the
cooperation between international liner shipping, stevedoring, and road haulage
industry at Rotterdam in the container era. Two articles deal with Rotterdam's
tariff policy and Amsterdam's efforts to invest in its infrastructure before World
War II. Social and financial aspects of seamen's lives in port cities were also
R.W. Unger, Dutch Shipbuilding before 1800 (Assen/Amsterdam: 1978); J. Gawronski's book on
wrecks of East Indiamen and shipbuilding at Amsterdam in the 1740s will be published in 1994; J.M.
Dirkzwager, Dr. B.J. Tideman 1834-1883. Grondlegger van de modeme scheepsbouw in Nederland (Leiden:
1970) and some recent articles from his hand in the Tijdschrift voor Zeegeschiedenis; A. A. Lemmers is
preparing a Ph.D. thesis based on the huge collection of late 18th and 19th century naval models and
instruments, kept in the Rijksmuseum at Amsterdam.
27 Enquete Rijn-Schelde-Verolme (RSV), Tweede Kamer, vergaderjaar 1984-1985, 17817, no. 16. Het
Walrusproject. Besluituorming en uituoering, Algemene Rekenkamer September 1985.
CM. Lesger, Hoom ah stedelijk knooppunt. Stedensystemen tijdens de late middeleeuwen en vroeg modeme
tijd (Hilversum: 1990); J.P. Sigmond, Nederlandse zeehavens tussen 1500 en 1800 (Amsterdam: 1989); E.
Nijhof, "Gezien de dreigende onrust in de haven. . . ." De ontwikkeling van de arbeidsverhoudingen in de
Rotterdamse haven 1945-1965 (Amsterdam: 1988); H. van Driel, Samenwerking in haven en vervoer in het
containertijdperk (Rotterdam: 1990); A.H. Flierman, '"This much too high retribution.' Municipal
Bruijn 237
touched upon. The evolution and transformation of modern port cities, as
entities has not yet been tackled.
The art of navigation, the education of it, the maps and the instruments have
been carefully studied by C.A. Davids, G.G. Schilder, and W.FJ. Morzer Bruyns;
their results have been widely published. The main developments and many
details are now known for the early modern period, not only for European and
Atlantic waters, but also for the Indian Ocean. Navigational education during
the nineteenth and twentieth centuries was the theme of a special issue of the
Journal in 1985. Elly Decker introduced research into the influence of
astronomers on the development of navigation technology. This side of
maritime history during the modern period requires specialized knowledge.
The fourth and last general theme regards the seamen, popular since the 1970s.
It was started in the eighteenth century with studies of naval and East Indian
personnel. It was mainly quantitative: total numbers, geographical origins, and
wages. Pay and muster rolls provided the information. Not only the officer, but
also the common seaman was of interest. The relevant chapters of the Maritime
History of the Low Countries presented estimates of the labor force employed by
all seafaring branches. In the early eighties, studies of a more qualitative nature
began to be published. It is likely that a reissue of J. de Hullu's innovating articles
on life on board East Indiamen had a stimulating effect. Davids wrote about
music and songs on board sailing vessels, mutinies were studied, and P.C. van
Royen published a book on the social side of the mercantile marine around
1700. Seamen's unions also came into the picture and the same is true of social
harbour fees and the competiviness of the port of Rotterdam 1900-1940," and M. Wagenaar,
"Amsterdam harbour between 1850" and "1940: from national focus to regional prop," both in L.M.
Akveld and J.R. Bruijn (eds.), Shipping Companies and Authorities in th 19th and 20th Centuries (The
Hague: 1989), pp. 87-106 and 107-24 resp.
M.A. van Alphen, "The Female Side of Dutch Shipping: Financial Bonds of Seamen Ashore in the
17th and 18th Centuries," in J.R. Bruijn and W.FJ. Morzer Bruyns, eds., Anglo-Dutch Marine Relations
1700-1850 (Amsterdam-Leiden: 1991), pp. 125-32; J.R. Bruijn, "Seamen in Dutch Ports: c. 1700-c.
1914," in Mariner's Mirror, 65 (1979), pp. 327-38.
The most important publication is C.A. Davids, Zeewezen en wetenschap. De wetenschap en de
ontwikkeling van de nauigatietechniek in Nederland tussen 1585 en 1815 (Amsterdam-Dieren: 1986), an
extensive bibliography included. For later publications see the Joumafs bibliography. Further, E. Dekker,
"Frederik Kaiser en zijn pogingen tot hervorming van 'Het sterrekundig deel van onze zeevaart,'" in
A. de Knecht-van Eekelen and G. Vanpaemel, eds., Met zicht op zee. Zeewetenschappelijk onderzoek in de
Lage Langen na 1800 (Amsterdam: 1990), pp. 23-41.
31 J.R. Bruijn, "Dutch Men-of-War: Those on board c. 1700-1750," in Acta Historiae Neerlandicae:
Studies on the History of the Netherlands, vol. 7 (The Hague: 1974), pp. 88—121; idem, "De personeelsbehoefte
van de VOC overzee en aan boord, bezien in Aziatisch en Nederlands perspectief," in Bijdragen in
Mededelingen Geschiedenis der Nederlanden 91, 1976, pp. 218—48; for a correction, see K.L. van
Schouwenburg's articles in Tijdschrifi voor Zeegeschiedenis 7 (1988), pp. 76-93 and 8 (1989), pp. 179-86.
C.A. Davids, Wat lijdt den zeeman al uerdriet: Het Nederlandse zeemanslied in de zeiltijd (1600-1900)
(The Hague: 1980); P.C. van Royen, Zeevarenden op de koopvaardijvloot omstreeks 1700 (Amsterdam:
1987); J.R. Bruijn and E.S. van Eyck van Heslinga, Muitery. Oproer en berechting op schepen van de VOC
(Haarlem: 1980). For de Hullu, see note 11.
238 The Netherlands
legislation. The medical side did not escape the maritime historian's attention
either. Research into a number of detailed aspects is making good progress.
Time is almost ripe for overview monographs for each branch of seafaring. One
thing, indeed, has become clear: the background of seamen differed with each
branch. A seaman did not switch between the Navy and the mercantile marine,
as was the case for his British colleagues. The traditional influx of foreign labor
on Dutch ships made the situation even more complex. The theme of seamen
suits an international comparitive approach: numbers, level of wages, and
movement of labor.
Coming now to the five different branches of seafaring, one can establish that
two have been studied intensively in the recent past: the whaling trade and the
East India Company (in Dutch: VOC). The Dutch played a prominent role in
early whaling in the Arctic. At its peak (1721), nearly 260 ships were involved.
The South- African economic historian C. de Jong wrote a good, though not
easily accessible survey of two centuries of Dutch whaling (the 17th and 18th).
A.M. van der Woude integrated the whaling industry into the social, economic
and demographic structure of the northern part of the province of Holland. P.
Dekker studied the careers of several masters of whaling vessels. Innovative,
because of its multi-disciplinary approach, is L. Hacquebord's study of the first
Dutch whaling activities and settlements on Svalbard in the first part of the
seventeenth century. He puts the numbers of vessels involved into the right
perspective and proves that new patterns in whaling were caused by climatical
changes. FJ.A. Broeze has demonstrated why the Dutch failed to participate in
nineteenth-century whaling in the Southern Hemisphere. The post- World War
II activities in the Antarctic have also been studied. Further whaling research
will probably serve only to refine the available knowledge.
The story of research into the VOC is an interesting one. In the sixties, Dutch
society in general did not want to be reminded of its colonial past in Asia.
Colonial history was out of date. In the early seventies, however, interest in the
maritime aspects of the VOC was regenerated by the university at Leiden and
J.M.W. Binneveld and F.S. Gaastra, "Organisatie en conflict van een vergeten groep," in Economisch-
en Sociaal-Historischjaarboek 35 (1972), pp. 303-23; J.R. Bruijn, "Marinevakbonden tussen wereldoorlog
en muiterij (1914-1933)," in Tijdschrift voor Zeegeschiedenis 9 (1990), pp. 135-57; A.E. Leuftink, Harde
heelmeesters: Zeelieden en hun dokters in de 18e eeuw (Zutphen: 1991).
C. de Jong, De geschiedenis van de oude Nederlandse walvisvaart, 3 vols. (Pretoria: 1972-1979); A.M.
van der Woude, Het Noorderkwartier (Wageningen: 1972); FJ.A. Broeze, "Whaling in the Southern
Oceans. The Dutch Quest for Southern Whaling in the Nineteenth Century," in Economisch- en
Sociaal-Historischjaarboek 40 (1977), pp. 66-112; WJJ. Boot, De Nederlandsche Maatschappij voor de
Walvischvaart (Amsterdam: 1987); J.R. Bruijn, "De Nederlandse Maatschappij voor de Walvisvaart,
1946-1967," in Economisch- en Sociaal-Historischjaarboek 48 (1985), pp. 233-57. For Dekker's articles
see the bibliography of the Communications between 1970 and 1979.
A study on Dutch whaling in Davis Strait is prepared by J.R. Leinenga (University at Groningen).
J.R. Bruijn, F.S. Gaastra and I. SchofFer, Dutch-Asiatic Shipping in the 17th and 18th Centuries, 3 vols.
(The Hague: 1979-1987). C.R. Boxer's The Dutch seaborne Empire 1600-1800 (London: 1965) was
Bruijn 239
the discovery of some shipwrecks. New insight about frequency of sailings,
numbers of people on board and those who died, and duration of the voyages
even reached the newspapers. It made the VOC fashionable, which then also
became an item for museums. Replica's of East Indiamen were constructed.
Reports of the discovery of more wrecks and the auction of their cargoes
sometimes reached the world press. Recently it was decided that the VOC will
be boosted as a cultural and tourist asset of the Netherlands! Meanwhile,
historical research continues and is resulting in a number of Ph.D. theses and
books. F.S. Gaastra is the expert at large on the history of the VOC. The
overall picture of the maritime aspects is now considered to be complete, apart
from the intra- Asian shipping and trade of the company. A second generation
of Ph.D. students is well on its way, dealing with more detailed topics like the
transport of mail, medical care, the effects of malaria, and social life on board.
The maritime activities have also been put in a wider, comparative context.
Of the three remaining branches of seafaring, the fisheries have been studied
the least. H.A.H. Kranenburg's analysis of the early modern herring and cod
fishery of 1946 has not been matched by the study of other kinds of fishery.
There are, of course, a number of popular or local publications, but from a
scholarly point of view the catch is small. The early period has hardly been dealt
with. Promising, however, is a forthcoming book on the fisheries in the Meuse
estuary in the first half of the seventeenth century. The economic and social
aspects of the modern period (c. 1860—1940) have been given a bit more
attention. A new development is the interest taken by cultural-antropologists in
seafaring communities.
translated and had several reprints.
P. Marsden, The Wreck of the Amsterdam (London: 1974); C.J.A. Jorg, The Geldermalsen. History and
Porcelain (Groningen: 1986); J. Gawronski a.o., Hollandia Compendium. A Contribution to the History,
Archeology, Classification and Lexicography of a 150-foot Dutch East Indiaman, 1740-1750 (Amsterdam: 1992).
38 F.S. Gaastra, Bewind en beleid by de VOC 1672-1702 (Zutphen: 1989); E.S. van Eyck van Heslinga,
Van Compagnie naar koopuaardij. De scheepvaartverbindingen van de Bataafse Republiek met de kolonien in Azi'e
1795—1806 (Amsterdam: 1988) and I.G. Dillo, De nadagen van de Verenigde Oostindische Compagnie
1783—1795. Schepen en zeevarenden (Amsterdam: 1992).
F.S. Gaastra, De geschiedenis van de VOC, first edition Bussum: 1982, second Zutphen: 1992). A short
survey in English is E.M. Jacobs, In pursuit of pepper and tea. The story of the Dutch East India Company
(Zutphen- Amsterdam: 1991). The inventory of the Company's archive was printed in 1992.
J.R. Bruijn and F.S. Gaastra, eds., Ships, Sailors and Spices. East India Companies and their Shipping in
the 16th, 17th and 18th Centuries (Amsterdam: 1993).
H.A.H. Kranenburg, De zeevisscherij van Holland in den tijd der Republiek (Amsterdam: 1946).
R.D. van der Vlis, "Friese haringvisserij in de zeventiende en achttiende eeuw," in It Beaken 50
(1988), pp. 345-62; R.T.H. Willemsen, Enkhuizen tijdens de Republiek (Hilversum: 1988), chapter II.
A. P. van Vliet's study will be published in 1994.
See the special issue "Holland en de Visserij" of Holland, Regionaal Historisch Tijdschrift 16 (1984).
For the communities see R. van Ginkel, Elk vist op zijn tij. Een Zeeuwse maritieme gemeenschap, Yerseke
1870-1914 (Zutphen: 1991) and his study of Texel, Tussen Scylla en Charybdis (Amsterdam: 1993).
240 The Netherlands
Much more research has been done into the mercantile marine. A com-
prehensive survey, however, of the different European trades in the early modern
period is not available and is difficult to write. No register like that of British
shipping has ever existed; shipownership and the exploitation of ships can only
be studied per single ship. There is no equal to Ralph Davis' The Rise of the
English shipping Industry in the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries (1962). One
book, however, explains lucidly the practice of shipownership at the end of the
early modern period. That is FJ.A. Broeze's De Stad Schiedam, complete with
the texts of many documents. It has been estimated that about 1 ,750 ships were
used in the seventeenth century and about 1,500 in the eighteenth century.
Other estimates provide the number of seamen employed in the European trades
at around the year 1700. The best studied trade is the Russian, apart from the
Baltic which can always rely on the Sound Toll Registers. The other trades are
hardly known in general or in detail. As to Dutch shipping in the Atlantic
Ocean, the slave trade is covered by J. Postma's already classic survey. Research
on eighteenth century African and Caribbean trade is in progress. The biggest
shipowner and merchant in the early nineteenth century, Anthony van
Hoboken, has found his biographer. Privateering belongs to warfare as well as
to commercial shipping. Its size and its economic, legal, and administrative
aspects have been studied in detail for the War of the Spanish Succession and
more generally for the Second and Third Anglo-Dutch Wars. Sources are there
4ft
for other wars, the Eighty Years' War in particular.
For the later periods of steam navigation and other means of ship propulsion,
a variety of studies have been published, but there has been no survey. The one
ship company had almost completely disappeared and the incorporated com-
panies came into existence. If one needs a survey of all major and middle-sized
companies, chapters 6 and 7 in the Maritime History of the Low Countries, volume
FJ.A. Broeze, De Stad Schiedam. De Schiedamsche Scheepsreederij en de Nederlandse vaart op Oost-Indie
omstreeks 1840 (The Hague: 1978).
Van Royen, Zeevarenden op de Koopvaardijvloot om streeks 1 700.
J.V.T. Knoppers, Dutch Trade with Russia from the Time of Peter I to Alexander I. A Quantitative Study
in Eighteenth Century Shipping, 3 vols. (Montreal: 1976) and P. de Buck, "De Russische uitvoer uit
Archangel naar Amsterdam in het begin van de achttiende eeuw (1703 en 1709)," in Economisch- en
Sociaal-Historisch Jaarboek 51 (1988), pp. 126-93. Further studies by De Buck and J.Th. Lindblad and
other authors in three bundles: The Interactions of Amsterdam and Antwerp with the Baltic region, 1400-1800
(Leiden: 1983), W.G. Heeres a.o., From Dunkirk to Danzig. Shipping and Trade in the North Sea and the
Baltic, 1350-1850 (Hilversum: 1988) and J.Ph.S. Lemmink and J.S.A.M. van Koningsbrugge, Baltic
Affairs. Relations between the Netherlands and North-Eastem Europe 1 500- 1 800 (Nijmegen: 1 990) . A whole
survey of Dutch trade is, of course, J.I. Israel's, Dutch Primacy in World Trade 1585-1140 (Oxford: 1989).
47 J.M. Postma, The Dutch in the Atlantic Slave Trade, 1600-1815 (Cambridge: 1990); B. Oosterwijk,
Koning van de Koopvaart: Anthony van Hoboken, 1756-1850 (Rotterdam: 1983).
Aft
J.Th.H. Verhees-Van Meer, De Zeeuwse Kaapvaart tijdens de Spaanse Successie oorlog, 1702-1713
(Middelburg: 1986); J.R. Bruijn, "Dutch Privateering during the Second and Third Anglo-Dutch
Wars," in The Low Countries History Yearbook 1978: Acta Historiae Neerlandicae 11 (1979), pp. 79-93.
Bruijn 241
4, will help as well as B. Oosterwijk's, Op een koers for the more recent decades. At
the level of the one single company, J.N.F.M. a Campo's study of the Royal Packet
Company in the East Indies is voluminous but brilliant. He combines the study of
the development of a network of liner services within the archipelago and with the
outside world, foreign competition, and colonial state formation into one book.
There is also a many-sided book on the Zeeland Company, dealing with cargo and
passenger traffic between Holland and Britain; a comparable study is available for
the Rotterdamsche Lloyd around 1900. Further research in this field would be
welcome. Diaries or memoirs in printed form from captains of the shipping industry
are very rare indeed. Most valuable are the diaries of Ernst Heldring covering the
first four decades of the twentieth century. The memoirs of D.A. Delprat for some
later decades are rather disappointing, still keeping his own council. The Royal
Shipowners' Association, the expression of the need amongst shipowners of closer
cooperation in their relations with trade unions and the increasing numbers of
national and international rules, has been studied. A new approach of the shipping
industry is the financing of the Rotterdam maritime sector after World War II.
Traditional is Bezemer's study in three volumes of the role and fate of the mercantile
marine in that war. The hinterland is vital for the Dutch economy. The transpor-
tation of goods over the rivers has received attention for only the nineteenth
51
century.
As to the Navy, there are two modern surveys, one for the early modern and
the other for modern times. Not only the 'fairs et gestes,' but also the naval
administration, officers, crews, and ships are treated, though in a different degree
CO
of detail. The focus on battles and campaigns has gone. Only one article was
dedicated to the fighting tactics during the Anglo-Dutch Wars, other studies are
more interested in strategical and tactical planning of the defense of the East
Indies in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. By and large, however, one
B. Oosterwijk, Op een koers. Nedlloyd (Rotterdam: 1988); J.N.F.M. a Campo, Koninklijke Paketvaart
Maatschappij. Stoomvaart en staatsvorming in de Indonesische archipel 1888—1914 (Hilversum: 1992); P. W.
Klein and J.R. Bruijn, eds., Honderd jaar Engelandvaart. Stoomvaart Maatschappij Zeeland. Koninklijke
Nederlandsche Postuaart nu, 1875—1975 (Bussum: 1975); F. de Goey, ed., Vaart op Insulinde. Uit de
beginjaren der Rotterdamsche Lloyd NV, 1883-1914 (Rotterdam: 1991). For a recent merger see H. van
Driel, Een verenigde Nederlandse scheepvaart. De fusie tussen Nedlloyd en KNSM in 1980-1981, een
bedrijfshistorische analyse (Rotterdam: 1988).
50 J. de Vries, ed., Herinneringen en dagboek van Ernst Heldring 1871-1954, 3 vols. (Utrecht: 1970); D.A.
Delprat, De reeder schrijft zijn joumaal (The Hague: 1983); A.H. Flierman, "Het centrale punt in de
reederswereld. " De Koninklijke Nederlandse Redersvereniging. Vijfenzeventig jaar ondememingsorganisatie in de
zeevaart (Bussum: 1984).
P.Th. van Laar, Financieringsgedrag in de Rotterdamse maritieme sector 1945—1960 (Amsterdam: 1991);
K.W.L. Bezemer, Geschiedenis van de Nederlandse Koopvaardij in de Tweede Wereldoorlog, 3 vols.
(Amsterdam: 1986-1990); H.P.H. Nusteling, De Rijnvaart in het tijdperk van stoom en steenkool,
1831-1914 (Amsterdam: 1974).
52 J.R. Bruijn, The Dutch Navy of the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries (Columbia, S.C.: 1993); G.J.A.
Raven, ed., De Kroon op het anker: 175 jaar Koninklijke Marine [1813-1993] (Amsterdam: 1988).
R.E.J. Weber, "The Introduction of the Single Line Ahead as a Battle Formation bv the Dutch.
242 The Netherlands
observes that most attention has been given to the twentieth century. The
research policy of the historical branch of the Navy has been successful. The role
of the Navy in the Second World War has been described, as well as many naval
activities in the period after 1945. The equivalent of the American Waves are
at present being studied. The relations between Navy and society have been
analyzed as to the failed introduction of a Navy law in 1923 and a spectacular
mutiny in 1933. The early modern period has been given a comparatively less
generous share of attention. Some biographies of naval officers have been
published — most extensive is one of Admiral J. H. van Kinsbergen. There is, of
course, more: a study of the Dutch naval side of the Glorious Revolution of
1688, for example, and not to be forgotten, a nice analysis of the phenomenon
of the Sea Beggars around 1570.
One can easily describe the lacunae and research opportunities in naval
history. Naval finances have not yet been placed in a wider context. The
structure of the naval administration needs more attention as well as the study
of some important administrators. The same is true of the officers' corps as such.
The leading scientific role of naval officers in the eighteenth and nineteenth
centuries is quite remarkable. Several technical innovations were then instigated
by the Navy. The structure and development of a naval base like Amsterdam,
Flushing, and Den Helder in particular, have not yet been dealt with. In some
of these directions research is already in progress.
A Balance
When comparing the past fifteen to twenty years with the period after the
Second World War, the balance in all respects is more favorable for the recent
span of time. The amount of publications is greater and more varied in kind and
topic. In general, all the fashionable points of view in history are present: from
political to social and cliometric. Maritime history books are reviewed in the
1665-1666," in Mariner's Mirror 73 (1987), pp. 5-19; G. Teitler, Anatomie van de Indische defensie.
Scenario's, plannen, beleid 1892-1920 (Amsterdam: 1988); G. Teitler, De strijd om de slagkruisers
(Amsterdam: 1984); G. Jungslager, Recht zo die gaat. De maritiem-strategische doelstellingen terzake van de
verdediging van Nederlands- Indie in de jaren hvintig (The Hague: 1991). Teitler is the most productive
author in this field. To keep in touch with his publications requires careful consultation of the
bibliography in the Tijdschrift voor Zeegeschiedenis, to which I refer for most other naval history books
and articles.
Ph.M. Bosscher, De Koninklijke Marine in de Tweede Wereldoorlog. See also j.J.A. Wijn, ed., Tussen
vloot en politiek: lOOjaar marines taf 1886-1986 (Amsterdam: 1986).
' H.J.G. Beunders, Weg met de Vlootwet! De maritieme bewapeningspolitiek van het kabinet-Ruys de
Beerenbrouck en het succesvolle verzet daartegen in 1923 (Bergen: 1984); J. C.H. Blom, De muiterij op de Zeven
Provincial. Reacties engevolgen in Nederland (Bussum: 1975).
A. van der Kuijl, De Glorieuze overtocht. De expeditie van Willem III naar Engeland in 1 688 (Amsterdam:
1988); J.C.A. de Meij, De Watergeuzen en de Nederlanden, 1568-1512 (Amsterdam: 1972); R.B.
Prud'homme van Reine, Jan Hendrik van Kinsbergen (1735-1819): admiraal enfilantroop (Amsterdam:
1990).
Bruijn 243
leading historical journals and also in national newspapers and magazines. The
Journal of Maritime History shows quality and is not lacking manuscripts submitted
for publication. A difference between naval and maritime history does not exist.
Ideology is an unknown word and does not permeate any kind of debate. The
three academic staff members of the historical department of the Navy have a
scholarly past in maritime history, if one uses this term in the American
connotation!
The present group of maritime historians is bigger than ever before. The staffs
of museums have been enlarged, in Amsterdam and Rotterdam in particular;
their output in the shape of scientific publications, however, is small. There are
no more than a total of six to seven historians attached to universities, the naval
academy, the naval historical department; although that is certainly a number
that would be unbelievably high for earlier generations. Their scholarly output
is considerable. One may fear a growing discrepancy between museum and
academic institutions in this respect. The aims of the present policy of the
ministry of culture, to which most museums belong (and not to that of
education), is to reach the general public in an effort to have well-visited
exhibitions. The best that one can hope for at the moment is the preservation
of good library and research facilities. Gratifying is the fact that a considerable
number of Ph.D. students are involved in maritime history, broadening the
group of scholarly trained maritime historians.
Plans for research do exist, but only on a small scale. In general, the personal
preference for a subject is decisive. The interest of the established scholars is
regularly guided away from their own research by (international conferences
and commemorations of events of national historic importance. At times one is
inclined to think of a superabundance of those events. Dutch maritime historians,
as far as I have observed, bear a fair share of that burden. They do not do research
into non-Dutch topics, though well aware of foreign publications. It was a long
time before they published in a language other than Dutch, but several books
and articles are now available in English. International contacts have boosted this
trend.
Periods and aspects which have lacked attention belong to the later Middle
Ages, the sixteenth century, and plus the fisheries. A survey of the mercantile
marine would be welcome. The results of the excavation of shipwrecks should
be better incorporated in historical research. New information can be expected
from the archive of the Zeeland auditor's office for the early modern period
which is presently being inventoried and from the files of the nineteenth century
Dutch Trading Company (NHM). The soon to be introduced "twenty year-
rule" for governmental and local administration records (instead of closing them
for fifty years) will offer greater opportunities for contemporary research. There
is sufficient vitality amongst young and older Dutch maritime historians to
exploit both the forthcoming and the already existing opportunities.
New Zealand
Ian McGibbon and Gavin McLean
As an island state in a vast ocean, New Zealand has always had a strong
relationship with the sea. It was colonized by people who sailed long
distances across the ocean, first, Polynesians who began arriving more than a
thousand years ago, and later Europeans, mainly from the British Isles, for whom
the voyage to the antipodes was often one of months-long hardship and
deprivation. The economy which these people developed was — and remains —
uniquely dependent on seaborne trade. New Zealanders have traditionally been
conscious, moreover, that any direct threat to their security must come from
across the sea. The importance of New Zealand's maritime environment has
been enhanced by the resource management measures associated with the
establishment of exclusive economic zones. New Zealand's zone, proclaimed in
1978, is one of the largest in the world.
At times, New Zealanders have been inspired by visions of maritime greatness.
This was especially so during the heyday of the British Empire, when British
naval and maritime predominance seemed part of the natural order. Some saw
New Zealand, in time, emulating its British mentor. William Massey, the
imperialist-minded Prime Minister from 1912 to 1925, for example, was apt to
proclaim New Zealand's future naval greatness. That these aspirations have gone
largely unfulfilled is less surprising than that New Zealanders have tended
increasingly to take for granted the sea and its importance to their well-being.
New Zealand's economy has been characterized by its supply of a narrow
range of unprocessed primary products to markets that are a great distance from
its shores. At first, wool held pride of place, but the introduction of refrigerated
ships in the 1880s allowed a diversification of the nature, if not the direction, of
New Zealand's overseas trade. The ability to transport meat and dairy products
to the other side of the world helped transform the pattern of farming in New
Zealand. While the direction of its trade has shifted as the assured British market
has disappeared, New Zealand remains as dependent in 1993 upon the free flow
of its produce across the seas as it did in 1893. Because of its limited industrial
base, it was — and is — equally dependent upon the import by sea of a great range
of commodities and goods.
246 New Zealand
New Zealanders were, from an early stage, engaged in a range of maritime
activities, including shipbuilding, though inevitably on a small scale. Shipping
companies were founded by enterprising capitalists, usually with the backing of
British capital. Two companies were especially important — -the New Zealand
Shipping Company established in Christchurch in 1873 and the Union Steam
Ship Company established in Dunedin in 1875. The former competed on the
United Kingdom-New Zealand route, while the latter came to dominate the
New Zealand coastal and inter-colonial shipping scene. Both were taken over
by the British P&O group during the First World War. Small, locally based
companies continued to operate in a coastal role in the first three-quarters of
this century. The fishing industry in New Zealand was generally small scale and
at a subsistence level until the late 1970s when the establishment of the exclusive
economic zone brought new attention to local fishing resources. Fishing's
importance to the New Zealand economy has been greatly enhanced in the last
twenty years.
The vital importance of New Zealand's sea trade routes ensured that maritime
activities would play a significant role in its affairs, even if ownership of the
shipping lines upon which it depended lay outside New Zealand hands. The
rapid turnaround of shipping demanded attention to port facilities and cargo
handling. Periodically union activities on the waterfront have caused major
disruptions, notably in 1890, 1913, and 1951. Governments, conscious of the
adverse economic impact of the resulting hiatus in cargo flow, have often reacted
strongly during such disputes. In 1951, even troops were deployed on the
waterfront to work the cargo ships. More recently, attention has been focused
on resource management. The need to monitor and control the operations of
foreign fishing vessels has placed the spotlight on New Zealand maritime policing
capacity, primarily the responsibility of the Royal New Zealand Navy.
For more than a century, the British connection dominated New Zealand's
naval activities even more completely than it did general maritime activities. The
Royal Navy was deeply involved in New Zealand's establishment as a colony
of the British Empire. It was Captain James Cook, RN, who took possession of
the country on behalf of the British Crown, and another British naval officer,
Captain William Hobson, RN, who not only signed the Treaty of Waitangi
with Maori chiefs in 1840 but also became the new colony's first governor.
British naval vessels were involved in operations in New Zealand during the
conflict over land issues of the 1860s. Moreover, New Zealanders regarded the
Royal Navy as their shield against invasion or attack by potential external
enemies and as an essential protector of the trade routes upon which they
depended for their economic well-being. When that shield was threatened, they
were prepared to make financial contributions to its sustenance, culminating in
the gift of a battle cruiser to the Royal Navy in 1909 as well as financial
McGibbon and McLean 247
contributions towards the construction of the Singapore Naval Base between
the world wars.
Within this framework, a small New Zealand naval force emerged, initially
as a Division of the Royal Navy. Established in 1913, the New Zealand Naval
Forces were heavily dependent on the Royal Navy for both ships and personnel.
This reliance had not been significantly lessened when, in 1941, the New
Zealand Division was reconstituted as the Royal New Zealand Navy. The
provision of British officers for senior and technical posts remained of vital
importance to the viability of the force for another twenty years. British influence
within the RNZN's higher command was also considerable, with the last British
officer not leaving the New Zealand Naval Board until 1966.
Since cutting the painter with the Royal Navy, the RNZN has survived with
difficulty. Whereas in the early days New Zealand borrowed warships from the
Royal Navy, paying only for their maintenance and upkeep, the RNZN today
is faced with the capital charges of replacing warships. This has caused political
problems, which were especially evident when New Zealand and Australia in
the late 1980s developed a joint project to build a series of frigates for their navies.
By participating in the construction of the so-called ANZAC frigates, New
Zealand is deriving spin-off economic benefits. In particular, its languishing
shipbuilding industry has been given a shot in the arm. Nevertheless, opposition
within New Zealand has been substantial. Lulled by their sense of isolation from
the world's trouble spots, many New Zealanders no longer consider their
country's naval defence a significant problem, requiring prudent long-term
planning and diversion of resources from other, socially oriented activities. Two
vessels only are scheduled at present, with options on two more unlikely to be
exercised in New Zealand's straitened circumstances.
While New Zealanders remain chary of expenditure on naval defence in
peacetime, they have responded with alacrity to calls to arms this century. New
Zealand's naval involvement in the First World War was limited to its newly
acquired cruiser HMS Philomel, which operated in the Red Sea area for three
years until being decommissioned in 1917. A number of New Zealanders served
in a variety of Royal Navy vessels, one of them winning the Victoria Cross for
his exploits. New Zealand's "gift" warship, HMS New Zealand, took part in all
the major encounters of the British and German battle fleets during the First
World War. In the Second World War, this pattern was repeated, though on a
much larger scale. One of New Zealand's cruisers, HMS Achilles, had early action
when it took part in the Battle of the River Plate. New Zealand ships were
active in the Pacific War. Moreover, New Zealanders participated in every facet
of the naval war aboard British ships. The Second World War also gave a boost
to shipbuilding in New Zealand, with small craft being built for the British,
United States, and New Zealand navies.
248 New Zealand
Given this background, maritime and naval history might have been expected
to attract significant academic attention. That this has not been the case is a
reflection of both the smallness of New Zealand's scholarly establishment and
the fact that social themes hold the field in New Zealand history at present, with
inevitable effect on the composition and interests of university history depart-
ments. Maritime history gets limited attention from a few academics in the
universities as part of more general courses, especially in economic history. There
is a School of Maritime Studies at the Otago Polytechnic in Dunedin, but its
skills-based course is designed to meet the practical needs of an expanding
deep-sea fishing industry rather than academic enquiry.
There are only a few individuals specializing in maritime history. Gavin
McLean, the New Zealand Historic Places Trust's historian, has been con-
spicuous in recent years, producing ground-breaking work on the business of
shipping in New Zealand and a series of books on maritime themes, but his
interest is necessarily limited by his other duties. Some other scholars publish on
maritime-related themes from time to time. For example, Simon Ville, until
recently a member of Auckland University's Economic History Department,
but now in Australia, has recently published a study of New Zealand's coastal
shipping. Gordon Boyce of Victoria University of Wellington's Economic
History Department is working on aspects of the Furness Withy Group. Other
maritime subjects to engage scholarly attention have included Polynesian voyag-
ing, the early European exploration of the Pacific and whaling. The staging of
New Zealand's first maritime history conference in 1992 provided a boost to
scholarly interest, and this will be reinforced by the decision of the Stout
Research Centre at Victoria University of Wellington to devote its 1993
conference to the theme of "The Sea."
Despite the lack of academic interest, there is a vast secondary literature on
New Zealand's maritime history, though much of it is of indifferent quality.
Most books deal with company histories and fleet lists. Prolific writers from the
past have included S.D. Waters, J. O'C. Ross and A.A. Kirk. The most active
writers today are David Johnston, whose Maritime History of New Zealand is a
key document, and Gavin McLean, whose works include Canterbury Coasters,
Richardsons of Napier and The Southern Octopus: The Rise of a Shipping Empire.
Other themes to have received attention include port histories. The majority
are commissioned works, with Otago leading the way with two major scholarly
Simon Ville, "The Coastal Trade of New Zealand Prior to World War One," New Zealand Journal
of History, vol. 27, no. 1 (1993).
David Johnston, Maritime History of New Zealand (Auckland: David Bateman/Collins, 1989).
3 Gavin McLean, Canterbury Coasters (Wellington: NZ Ship & Marine Society, 1987).
Gavin McLean, Richardsons of Napier (Wellington: NZ Ship & Marine Society, 1989).
Gavin McLean, The Southern Octopus: The Rise of a Shipping Empire (Wellington: NZ Ship & Marine
Society and Wellington Harbour Board Maritime Museum, 1990).
McGlbbon and McLean 249
histories: A.H. McLintock, The Port ofOtago and Gavin McLean, Otago Harbour:
Currents of Controversy. Lyttelton and Oamaru are well served by W.H. Scotter,
A History of Port Lyttelton and Gavin McLean, Oamaru Harbour, respectively.
Production of port histories peaked in the late 1970s and early 1980s, although
updated accounts of Napier and Nelson harbors have recently appeared.
There is an extensive literature on migration. The publication of migrants'
diaries began last century and has gained its second wind with an upsurge of
interest in genealogy in recent decades. Sir Henry Brett's White Wings remains
a key document. Charlotte Macdonald's A Woman of Good Character is a rare
example of a scholarly publication in this field.
Shipwrecks are a major theme. An updated version of C.W. Ingram and P.O.
Wheatley's 1936 Shipwrecks and Maritime Disasters is still in print. Academic
writers have also shown intermittent interest in waterfront labour in recent
decades. Little has yet been written on Maori craft, though this deficiency is
currently being remedied.
The pattern of naval history in New Zealand is similar. No tertiary institutions
offer courses in naval history. The nearest approach to such treatment is coverage
of naval aspects within a course on New Zealand defence run on an extramural
(off-campus) basis by Massey University. There is no naval academy which might
provide a focus for such activity. Because of the smallness of its naval estab-
lishment, New Zealand has traditionally sent its young officers to schools in
Britain and Australia.
If maritime history has a tenuous place in scholarly interests, naval history is
virtually ignored by the scholarly community. There is consequently no his-
toriographical debate. In recent times, Ian McGibbon, Senior Historian in the
Historical Branch, Department of Internal Affairs, has been alone in the field.
Although unable to devote himself full time to the subject, he is currently
working on the naval aspect of New Zealand's involvement in the Korean War.
While there is no ongoing tertiary-based work on New Zealand's naval
history, a small body of literature does exist. A starting point is S.D. Waters's
1 "\
Royal New Zealand Navy in the official war history. It provides in-depth
coverage of RNZN operations and the activities of New Zealanders with the
Royal Navy during the Second World War. Ian McGibbon, in his Blue-water
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
A.H. McLintock, The Port of Otago (Dunedin: Otago Harbour Board, 1951).
Gavin McLean, Otago Harbour: Currents of Controversy (Dunedin: Otago Harbour Board, 1985).
W.H. Scotter, A History of Port Lyttelton (Christchurch: Lyttelton Harbour Board, 1968).
Gavin McLean, Oamaru Harbour (Palmerston North: Dunmore Press, 1982).
Sir Henry Brett, White Wings, 2 volumes (Auckland: Brett Publishing Company, 1924 and 1928).
Charlotte Macdonald, A Woman of Good Character (Wellington: Allen & Unwin, 1991).
C.W. Ingram and P.O Wheatley, Shipwrecks and Maritime Disasters (Auckland: Beckett Publishing,
1990).
13 S.D. Waters, Royal New Zealand Navy (Wellington: War History Branch, 1956).
250 New Zealand
Rationale, The Naval Defence of New Zealand 1914—1942, sought to place these
operations in a strategical context, while outlining the development of the New
Zealand Division of the Royal Navy. Naval policy was also covered by W. David
Mclntyre in his New Zealand Prepares for War, Defence Policy 1919—39. More
recently, in his The Path to Gallipoli, Defending New Zealand 1840-1915,16 Ian
McGibbon has further examined the origins of New Zealand's naval policy
leading to the payment of subsidies to the Royal Navy and the creation of the
New Zealand Naval Forces in 1913. He has also given attention to the naval
relationship between Australia and New Zealand. Among the areas awaiting
scholarly treatment are the Royal Navy in New Zealand and the New Zealand
Naval Forces.
For the time being, naval history seems likely to remain largely the preserve
of enthusiastic amateur historians and antiquarians. They will add to an extensive
antiquarian literature on naval activities. T.D. Taylor's New Zealand's Naval
Story leads the field, providing much useful information about naval visits to
New Zealand in particular. More recently, R.J. McDougall, in his New Zealand
Naval Vessels, has exhaustively catalogued the ships of the RNZN and its
antecedents. Among other recent works of a non-academic nature are accounts
of New Zealand's wartime cruisers by Jack S. Harker, two largely pictorial
21
histories by Grant Howard, and a brief account of the Royal Navy in New
Zealand and a study of the hydrographic branch by Rear Admiral John O'C.
Ross.
In the absence of interest among tertiary institutions, museums will continue
to play a key role in promoting New Zealand's naval and maritime heritage.
There are three of primary importance. At the RNZN Naval Base at Devonport,
Auckland, the Royal New Zealand Naval Museum will soon assume a higher
Ian McGibbon, Blue-water Rationale, The Naval Defetice of New Zealand 1914-1942, (Wellington:
Government Printing Office, 1981).
W. David Mclntyre, New Zealand Prepares for War, Defence Policy, 1919—39 (Christchurch: University
of Canterbury Press, 1988).
16 Ian McGibbon, The Path to Gallipoli, Defending New Zealand 1840-1915 (Wellington: GP Books,
1991).
1 7
Ian McGibbon, "Australian-New Zealand Naval Relations," in T.R. Frame, J.V.P. Goldrick and
P.D.Jones, eds., Reflections on the RAN ( Kenthurst NSW: Kangaroo Press, 1991).
18 T.D. Taylor, New Zealand's Naval Story (Wellington: A.H. & A.W. Reed Ltd, 1948).
19 R.J. McDougall, New Zealand Naval Vessels (Wellington: GP Books, 1989).
20 Jack S. Harker, HMNZS Achilles (Auckland: Collins, 1980); Well Done Leander (Auckland: Collins,
1971); HMNZS Gambia (Wellington: Moana Press Ltd, 1989); Almost HMNZS Neptune (Wellington:
Moana Press Ltd, 1991).
21 Grant Howard, The Navy in New Zealand, An Illustrated History (Wellington: A.H. & A.W. Reed,
1981); Grant Howard, Portrait of the Royal New Zealand Navy, A Fiftieth Anniversary Celebration
(Wellington: Grantham House, 1991).
22 J.O'C. Ross, The White Ensign in New Zealand (Wellington: A.H. & A.W. Reed, 1967); This Stem
Coast (Wellington: A.H. & A.W. Reed, 1969).
McGibbon and McLean 251
profile when a planned new building is completed. Its growing collection of
material will provide a basis for future research. Particularly useful will be an
ongoing series of oral history interviews with former naval personnel, being
conducted by the present director.
The country's premier maritime museum is the Wellington Maritime
Museum and Gallery on Wellington's Queen's Wharf. Founded by the former
Wellington Harbour Board in the early 1970s, it holds the country's largest
collection of maritime archives, photographs, and models. Merchant shipping is
its specialty. It hosted the maritime history conference in 1992. A newsletter,
Leading Light, is published.
The Auckland Maritime Museum was formed in the late 1980s. Its large
multi-million dollar complex will open at Auckland's Hobson Wharf in August
1993. The museum will be less of a research centre than its Wellington
counterpart and will specialize in small craft and Polynesian/Maori vessels. It
will operate a fleet of approximately forty authentic and replica craft and will
franchise shops designed to keep alive traditional crafts such as sailmaking and
boat-building. The museum's quarterly journal, Bearings, has a wide general
circulation.
In addition, there is a small maritime museum at Bluff, Southland, which was
expanded in 1992, and museums at Port Chalmers and Lyttelton are maritime-
dominated. The new Museum of New Zealand will be devoting space and
resources to the history of Polynesian and Maori voyaging and watercraft.
Several societies have been formed to restore veteran craft. The Paeroa
Maritime Park has a collection of small coasters and former RNZN craft, but is
less active than it was a decade ago. At Picton, the Edwin Fox Society is planning
to restore the Edwin Fox, the world's last East Indiaman. At Wanganui, a
historical society has recovered a paddle steamer for restoration. Private in-
dividuals have restored several trading schooners and scows. Shiplovers' societies
also provide a maritime-focused network. Founded in 1949, the New Zealand
Ship and Marine Society has branches in Wellington, New Plymouth, and
Napier and publishes a quarterly journal, New Zealand Marine News. The
Auckland Maritime Society and Otago Maritime Society service their respective
areas.
Where to from here? There appears little prospect of early change to the
pattern described above, wherein maritime and naval history is mostly the
preserve of non-professionals. Previous generations of New Zealanders were
forcibly reminded of their country's dependence on the sea during the world
wars. Such concerns have not been of overriding importance in the late
twentieth century. In the absence of some new disruption of New Zealand's
trading links, or some shift in strategic outlook which might reawaken a sense
of vulnerability, it is likely that academic interest will remain limited, and that
252 New Zealand
personal rather than institutional influences will remain the main driving force
in maritime and naval studies in New Zealand.
Norway
Captain Tore Prytz Dahl, Royal Norwegian Navy
In the wake of the unification of Norway under one king, a defence system
-was created that included all the coastal districts. This system, called the
leidang, was based on earlier local defence arrangements. The coastal districts
were divided into skipreder, and each skiprede was to build, equip, and maintain
a longship of a certain size. From about the year 950, the leidang- system included
all Norway. The defence system represented a cornerstone in the formation and
protection of the Norwegian realm which included approximately the present
Norwegian area of land as well as Iceland, Greenland, the Faroe Islands, the
Shetland Isles, the Orkneys, the Hebrides, and the Isle of Man. The leidang was
an efficient system for about 250 years. Then new, more costly types of ships
were introduced in the seafaring countries around the North Sea. The Nor-
wegian realm, sparsely populated and ruled by kings in possession of very limited
resources, came increasingly under foreign influence and fell apart.
The story of leidang has been of great interest to military as well as civilian
historians. In 1951, the Norwegian naval high command marked the millennium
of the leidang with a publication. The book was based on contributions from
military and naval historians, Colonel G.P. Harbitz, Commodore S. Oppegard,
and Commander Rolf Scheen, with the advisory help of civilian historians.
With the Treaty of Kalmar in 1397, the three northern countries, Denmark,
Norway, and Sweden, entered a union under one king. A century later, in
1523, the Swedes succeeded in breaking out of the union, while Norway steadily
became more closely knitted with Denmark. From the Danish rulers' point of
view, the ideal thing was to regard Norwegian territory simply as "a part of
Denmark." In practical policy, however, this proved to be impossible due to the
size of the Norwegian population and resources compared with the might of
the Danish colonial power.
Captain Tore Prytz Dahl, Royal Norwegian Navy, is Senior lecturer in naval history
at the Norwegian Naval Academy (Sjokrigsskolen), N-5034 Ytre Laksevag.
G.P. Harbitz, S. OppegSrd, Rolf Scheen, Den norske leidangen (Oslo: 1951).
Gottfrid Carlsson, Medeltidens nordiska unionstanke (Stockholm: 1945).
254 Norway
The period of Danish dominance, which lasted for about 400 years, from
1397 to 1814, is traditionally treated by Norwegian historians in a rather
nationalistic way, with great emphasis on the emergence of new Norwegian
institutions. This trend in Norwegian historical ideology has been significant
for the status of Norwegian naval history as opposed to the country's military
history. During the reign of King Hans (1483—1513), a combined Danish-Nor-
wegian navy was created with its main base in Copenhagen. The primary task
of this navy was to protect and dominate the sea routes in the Baltic. In this
area, both Sweden and Denmark had large economic interests at stake. During
the century between 1620 and 1720, the heyday of this common Danish— Nor-
wegian navy, about two-thirds of the seamen and many of its officers were of
Norwegian descent.
In 1628, however, a new Norwegian army came into being by royal decree.
This army, called the "legdshaer" was based on conscription in the rural areas.
For practical reasons, the new army was, to a great extent, administered in
Norway, with its high command in the capital, Christiania, and different
administrative arrangements in rural districts. The new army became an impor-
tant factor in Norwegian national growth. It had, for instance, the very first
institutions of higher education in the country. At the same time, the Norwegian
Army in the wars against an expansive Sweden in the last half of the seventeenth
century and the beginning of the eighteenth, fought mainly on, and defended,
Norwegian soil. In that way, the Army became well known in the country,
while as a rule, the common navy operated out of its main base in Copenhagen
for equally important, but not so well-known or well-appreciated operations in
distant Baltic waters. Emphasized by the nationalistic trend in Norwegian
historical writing, this contributed to the pronounced military tradition in
Q
Norway. Traditional Norwegian history tends to be rather narrowminded,
nationalistically, but there are a few exceptions to this, for instance the work of
Commodore Olav Bergersen and Commander Rolf Scheen, who have tried to
stress the great Norwegian share in the achievements of the common Danish-
Norwegian Navy. Traditional writing has tended to overemphasize the impor-
tance of the operations of the legdshaer and, to some extent, discounting or even
omitting the deeds of the Navy.
The Napoleonic wars brought the Danish-Norwegian union to an end. After
the bombardment of Copenhagen in 1807 and the British capture of the seagoing
Ottar Dahl, Norsk historieforskning i det 19. og 20. arhundre (Oslo: 1959).
Kayjungersen, Danmarks Sekrigshistorie (Kobenhavn: 1945) pp. 51-2.
O. Eidem and O. Liitken, Vor Somagts Historie (Kristiania and Kobenhavn: 1906) p. 182.
Axel Coldevin, Vart folks historie, vol V (Oslo: 1963) pp. 163-67.
Ibid. pp. 158-63.
Niles P. Vigeland, Norge pa havet, 2 volumes (Oslo: 1953-54).
Forsvarets Krigshistoriske Avdeling, Forsuarets rolle i Norges historie (Oslo: 1965), pp. 7-20.
Prytz Dahl 255
portion of the combined Danish— Norwegian Navy, the two countries, allied
with Napoleon, entered an unhappy war with Great Britain. The outcome
of the war brought Norway into a union partnership with Sweden in 1814.
However, the Norwegian— Swedish union was more restrictive than the
earlier connection with Denmark: primarily a common king and joint foreign
policy. After the Napoleonic wars, the new Norwegian state was in fact
bankrupt. For the new Norwegian Navy, the sad economic picture implied
unrealized plans for a new seagoing fleet. At the same time, based on
experience from the war, most Norwegians thought that the waters along
our extended coasts were dominated, as well as protected, by the Royal Navy.
With the exception of spasmodic naval efforts in the wake of the Crimean
War and in the last decade before the breakup of the union with Sweden,
1895—1905, the Army dominated Norwegian national defence.
After a peaceful restoration of an independent kingdom of Norway in
1905, Norwegian defence policy was dominated by fear of Swedish plans for
revenge. With the long land frontier between the two countries, this naturally
resulted in an augmentation of the Army and, to a large extent, neglect of
the Navy. A late awakening to the dangerous aspects of the Anglo— German
naval race before 1914 produced very few material results in our Navy.
During World War I Norway remained neutral, but with steadily increasing
pro-allied sentiment, not least because of the sufferings of thousands of
Norwegian sailors caused by the German war against shipping. However,
during the war the Norwegian Navy guarded national waters on neutrality
patrol, and the seas outside territorial waters were protected by the Royal
Navy. The dominance of the Royal Navy in adjacent waters remained a
prevailing belief in Norwegian naval and political circles up to the German
invasion in 1940. This conception had a decisive influence on our small
defence effort during the interwar years.
After a stumbling start, the Norwegian Army fought against the German
invaders for two months in 1940, rather inefficiently supported by French
1 7
and British troops. In connection with the withdrawal of Allied forces from
Norway in the beginning of June 1940 (the principal cause was the collapse
in France), an armistice was signed between the German and Norwegian
military high commands. The Norwegian king and government, however,
10 Knut Mykland, Norges historie, vol. 9 (Oslo: 1977), pp. 145-55, pp. 425-76.
11 Francis Sejersted, Norges historie, vol. 10 (Oslo: 1978), pp. 32-65.
12 Article by Tore Prytz Dahl in Roald Gjelsten, ed., Verkteyforfred (Oslo: 1993), pp. 58-66.
13 Ibid. pp. 66-8.
Olav Riste, Forsuar og neytralitet under 1. uerdenskrig (Oslo: 1965).
15 Olav Riset, The neutral ally (Oslo: 1965).
16 Nils 0rvik, Sikkerhetspolitikken 1920-1939, 2 volumes (Oslo: 1960-61).
17 Odd Lindback-Larsen, Krigen i Norge 1940 (Oslo: 1965).
256 Norway
fled to England to continue the war from abroad. The armistice affected the
Army in particular, while naval vessels, destroyers, patrol vessels and a submarine
sailed for the British Isles. A few naval planes succeeded in reaching the British
shores as well. While it was rightly considered impossible to muster a sufficient
number of soldiers to form new army divisions abroad, naval officers and pilots
were in demand to join the new Norwegian armed forces in Great Britain.
Therefore, during the government's exile in Great Britain, the Norwegian Navy
was the largest service, and the Navy and Air Force participated in a great number
of operations along with British forces. The small Norwegian Army on British
soil, however, was to a great extent held in reserve by our political authorities
for use in a possible campaign to liberate Norway. Luckily, the Germans in
Norway capitulated as a result of defeats outside our country.
After the war, a special historical branch was established in the Norwegian
Defence Staff. The members of the historical branch had their background
chiefly from service academies; only a few of the members came from civilian
universities, for instance Professor Nils 0rvik, who had studied at the universities
of Oslo and Wisconsin. The main task of the historical branch was to clarify
the background and the events of Norwegian participation in World War II.
Consequently, Army historians treated the Norwegian Army's operations during
the war. In Particular, they treated in great detail the two months of war in
Norway in 1940. The Air Force had their histories as well, and last but not
least, the operations of the Royal Norwegian Navy during the period of
neutrality and in conditions of war, have been dealt with by Commander E.A.
Steen. In the beginning of the eighties, the historical branch was disbanded in
the belief that its work was completed. At present, no special unit exists for the
treatment of historical topics in the Norwegian armed forces, with the exception
of the work done by the Museum of Defence in Oslo and its subdivisions: the
Norwegian Home Front Museum, the Air Force museum in Bodo, the Naval
Museum in Horten, and a small centre of defence studies in Oslo, led since 1980
by Professor Olav Riste.
The Norwegian Museum of Defence has, until recently, been directed by
officers with an Army background. The last military director resigned in protest
against the transfer of the Air Force museum from Gardemoen near Oslo to
Bodo in northern Norway. The new director, Rolf Scheen, the first director of
the Museum of Defence with a non-military background, is an archaeologist in
Halvdan Koht, Norway, neutral and invaded (London: 1941).
Forsvarets Krigshistoriske Avdelning, Forsvarets wile i Norges historie (Oslo: 1965), pp. 37—50.
20 Norges Statskalender 1951 (Oslo: 1951), p. 1086.
Forsvarets Krigshistoriske Avdelning, Krigen i Norge i 1940, Ca. 15 volumes (Oslo: 1952-1965).
Fredrik Meyer, Haerens og Marinens jlyvapen 1912-1945 (Oslo: 1973).
23 Erik Anker Steen, Norges Sjekrig 1940-45, 7 volumes (Oslo: 1954-1963).
24 Norges Statskalender 1993 (Oslo: 1993), pp. 141, 174.
Prytz Dahl 257
his mid-forties. Rolf Scheen's pronounced goal is to improve the cooperation
with civilian bodies. The new director judges his museum as one of the biggest
in the country and aims at making the institution a center for competent research
in matters concerning Norwegian defence forces. At present, with few
exceptions, the majority of the museum's personnel have a military background.
In the same way the Naval Museum at Horten, the main naval base of Norway
until the 1960s, has a director educated at the Norwegian naval academy.
The teaching of Norwegian naval history, with the exception of occasional
museum lectures, is done almost exclusively by the Norwegian naval academy
in Bergen. At the academy, all the students, regardless of specialization, attend
courses in naval history. The executive branch students, however, have the most
extensive syllabus. The prescribed texts in Norwegian naval history are prepared
mainly at the academy. Thanks to the efforts of Captain K.E. Kvam, who was
the lecturer in naval history during the first decades after World War II, naval
officers were selected as future teachers and prepared for their profession through
M.A. theses in naval history in addition to their general education at the naval
academy. In that way, since the middle of the sixties, the teachers in naval history
have possessed professional naval knowledge in combination with a passed
9Q
examination for a university degree in history. In addition to Norwegian naval
history, international naval history is also taught. The students at the Norwegian
naval academy are expected to graduate with a fairly good insight into the naval
history of the United States, Great Britain, Russia, France, Germany, and Japan
as well. To that end, the Potter and Nimitz text book, Sea Power, is highly
valued.
Maritime History
The field of maritime history can be defined widely to include both the history
of the merchant fleet as well as that of the Navy. Traditionally in Norway,
however, there is a division between the study of naval affairs and non-military,
>i4
maritime history. A merchant fleet is an important constituent of sea power,
since its protection provides the Navy with a rationale. The resources of the
merchant marine (hulls, sailors, and expertise) can support naval strength to a
considerable degree. However, civilian and naval types of maritime power do
not necessarily sail together, and that is clearly the case in Norway. First and
25 Forsuarets Forum, 19 (1992).
26 Ibid., 21 (1992).
27 Norges Statskalender 1993 (Oslo: 1993), p. 141.
Norwegian Naval Academy, Education plans 1993, (SKUP-3).
K. Kvam, Beretning om den twrske sjekrigsskoles virksomhet 1817-1967 (Oslo: 1967), pp. 584, 629.
Norwegian Naval Academy, Education plans 1993, (SKUP-3).
Helge W. Nordvik: "Norwegian Maritime Historical Research during the past twenty years: A
Critical Survey," Sjefartshistorisk Arbok 1990 (Bergen: 1991), p. 241.
28
29
30
31
258 Norway
foremost, the Norwegian Navy is a coastal one, while the Norwegian
merchant fleet ranks among the foremost in the field of international transportation
across the oceans.
The last century of Norwegian political independence in the Middle Ages, saw a
steady increase in the Hanseatic cities' participation in Norway's foreign trade,
eventually dominating it. Not until the great economic expansion in the Netherlands
by the turn of the sixteenth century did Norwegian economic life experience a
substantial change for the better. Norway's forests proved to be one of her most
important resources, with timber being exported to the Netherlands and to other
countries in Western Europe such as England and Scodand. To a great extent, this
trade was carried out on Dutch keels. The blooming of the Dutch economy led
thousands of Norwegians, especially from southern Norway, to emigrate to the
Netherlands. Norwegians served in the Dutch Navy as well as on Dutch mer-
chantmen. The Dutch served as our teachers in naval and maritime matters since these
specialties, to a large extent, had sunk into oblivion in Norway after the Middle Ages.
England struck a serious blow against the Dutch carrying trade to English ports by
the Navigation Act of 1651 . However, by the exclusion of Dutch merchantmen from
the timber trade between Norway and England, Norwegian ships were given an
advantage, giving the Norwegian merchant fleet many favourable years at the turn of
the seventeenth century. These conditions also prevailed in the 1750s and later during
the American War of Independence and in the first decade of the French Revolu-
-1/:
tionary War. During these periods, Denmark— Norway enjoyed a profitable
neutrality.
The battle in the roadstead of Copenhagen in 1801, and especially the British
bombardment of Copenhagen in 1807 and the taking away of the better part of the
Danish— Norwegian Navy, however, brought the countries into the turmoil of the
Napoleonic wars, and a war against the mistress of the seas, Great Britain. The British
blockade brought disaster to the Norwegian merchant fleet. Since free transportation
by sea was of vital importance for Norway, some parts of the country even experienced
famine when the sea routes were interrupted.
After the union with Sweden in 1814 and the restoration of peace, British
protectionism put obstacles in the way of Norwegian maritime expansion, for instance
the favoring of Canadian instead of Norwegian timber. The abolition of the British
32 Geoffrey Till, Modern Sea Power, vol. 1 (London: 1987), pp. 12-3.
33 Statistical Yearbook of Noway 1992 (Oslo: 1992), p. 460.
34 Ole Jorgen Benedictow, Norges historie, vol. 5 (Oslo: 1977), pp. 207-8, 232-39.
35 Axel Coldevin, Vart folks historie, vol. 5 (Oslo: 1963), pp. 87-90.
36 Ibid., pp. 348-51.
37 Ibid., pp. 407-16.
38 Knut Mykland, Norges historie, vol. 9 (Oslo: 1977), pp. 145-55.
39 Bernt A. Nissen, Vart folks historie, vol. 6 (Oslo: 1964), p. 129.
Prytz Dahl 259
Navigation Act in 1849, however, was of the greatest importance for the growth
of the Norwegian merchant fleet.
During the 1850s, Norwegian shipping expanded dramatically in the overseas
trades. Sailings between foreign ports, without Norwegian ports of call, became
customary. Norway was able to maintain competitive advantage by paying low
wages to the sailors and using second-hand ships. At the same time, the
conditions of life in the Norwegian coastal districts produced sailors well adapted
to the seafaring life.
The upward trend for Norwegian shipping continued, with a few setbacks,
into the present century. By the beginning of the twentieth century, Norway's
merchant fleet ranked number four after Great Britain, Germany, and the United
States. Before 1914, most shipowners had managed the transition to steam, and
Norwegian shipyards mastered the new technology.
The merchant fleet of neutral Norway was highly affected by World War I;
however, due to political sympathy for the Allied cause, common economic
interests, and Allied pressure, the Norwegian policy became definitely pro-Al-
lied. In the final years of the war, the largest part of the merchant fleet was
engaged in British transport, although at very high expense. Nearly half (49.6
percent) of the pre-war fleet was lost. About 900 ships were sunk due to
war-related causes, and nearly 2,000 sailors perished.
After the war, the development of Norwegian liner trades continued, hand
in hand with the reconstruction of the fleet. The difficult market was met by
modernization — for instance a change from steam to motor. At the same time,
new, more specialized trades were developed, most importantly the tanker trade.
In 1921, tonnage reached the pre-war level. With the exception of a few
setbacks, the expansion of the merchant fleet went on throughout the inter- war
years. By the outbreak of World War II, Norwegian merchant tonnage had
doubled to 4.9 million G.R.T. and ranked fourth after Japan. Before 1914, during
the previous period of great expansion, growth had taken place through the
procurement of cheap, old ships. During the inter-war years, the competitive
ability was maintained by sailing vessels that, in technical terms, were the best
of ships. In 1939, 70 percent of the fleet used motor propulsion, and 20 percent
of the world's tanker tonnage was Norwegian.
After the German attack in 1940, about 16 percent of the Norwegian ships,
the "home fleet," came under German control. The rest of the fleet, about 4
million tons, remained under the control of the legal Norwegian government.
By decision in cabinet, the Norwegian merchant fleet was placed under
40 Hans Try, Norges historic vol. 11 (Oslo: 1979), pp. 116-53.
41 Per Fuglum, Norges historie, vol. 12 (Oslo: 1978), pp. 234-52.
42 Chr. A.R. Christensen, Vart folks historie, vol. 8, (Oslo: 1961), pp. 66-83).
43 Edvard Bull, Norges historie, vol. 13 (Oslo: 1979), pp. 59-68.
44 Niels P. Vigeland, Norge pa hauet, vol. 2 (Oslo: 1954), p. 582.
260 Norway
governmental control for the duration of the war. In that way, "The Nor-
wegian Shipping and Trade Mission," usually abridged to NORTRASHIP, was
born. NORTRASHIP, with its estimated 1,000 ships and 25,000 sailors, was the
most valuable asset of the Norwegian government in exile. The income from
NORTRASHIP made the government economically independent during its
forced stay in Great Britain. At the same time, the Norwegian merchant fleet
was Norway's greatest contribution to the Allied victory. For instance, in the
period "when Great Britain stood alone," nearly 50 percent of the vital
oil-transports came to Britain on Norwegian keels. As during World War I,
the cost was grim: 2.7 million tons, 47 percent of the fleet, was lost and about
4,000 Norwegian sailors died.
Within five years after the end of World War II, the Norwegian merchant
fleet had reached its pre-war level. All through the fifties and sixties, the fleet
had a remarkable growth, reaching 25 million tons in the middle of the seventies.
In that decade, however, the merchant fleet experienced a downward economic
trend and felt the negative consequences of the higher Norwegian costs of
operation. Competition from ships registered under "flags of convenience," with
lower taxes and far less social costs, elucidated the competitive disadvantages that
the post-war Norwegian welfare state implied for international shipping. The
result was a pronounced downward trend in the Norwegian tonnage of shipping.
Not until the creation of the Norwegian International Ship's Register (NIS) in
1987 was the decline halted, perhaps temporarily. By the end of 1992, the size
of the Norwegian merchant fleet was about 23 million G.R.T. Of this total,
21,769 million tons was in the NIS.
After this very short survey of Norwegian maritime history, what is the present
state of naval and maritime history in Norway? Maritime finds from antiquity
and the Middle Ages are regulated by law. The Chief of Inspectorate of Ancient
Monuments and Historic Buildings [Riksantikvar] has country— wide authority.
As for archeological finds, the country is divided between the University of Oslo
and the Norwegian Maritime Museum in Oslo, the Archaeological Museum,
and the Maritime Museum in Stavanger, the University of Bergen and the
Maritime Museum in Bergen, the University of Trondheim and the Museum
at the University of Tromso. According to Norwegian law, maritime finds from
the modern period, if they are more than one-hundred years old, belong to the
Norwegian state when private ownership is impossible to establish. The respon-
45 Ibid., p. 579.
46 Chr. A.R. Christensen, Vart folks historic vol. 9 (Oslo: 1961), pp. 422-23.
47 Niels P. Vigeland, Norge pa hauet, vol. 2 (Oslo: 1954), p. 582.
48 Ibid., p. 609.
49 Edvard Bull, Norges historie, vol. 14 (Oslo: 1979), pp. 197-203.
50 Central Bureau of Statistics of Norway, Monthly Bulletin of Statistics, 1/1993 (Oslo: 1993).
Prytz Dahl 261
sibility for material of this category is divided in the same way among the above
mentioned institutions.
As for maritime history in the modern period, it has been maintained that
fascinating ships, sailors, and personalities always tend to win in the competition
Co
with structures, strategies, and politics. In a somewhat exaggerated reaction to
this issue, primarily to the book on The History of Norwegian Shipping up to 1914,
Professor Johan Schreiner published his study of Norwegian shipping in the
period 1914—1920. In his preface, Professor Schreiner explicitly stated that his
book contained no pictures of ships or portraits and no accounts of ships and
men. Instead, Schreiner concentrated on the new problems created by the war
and the shipping boom of the period.
The history of the individual shipping firms, quantitatively the most common
type of maritime history in Norway, has largely been written through commis-
sioned assignments to journalists and "popular" writers. Fortunately, however,
there are several exceptions to this fact. Some research is being done in this area,
but it is usually done outside the universities, because Norwegian professional
historians generally have concentrated their research on Norwegian political
history, especially the emergence of the new state after 1814 and the creation of
the modern welfare state. The most prominent institutions that have dealt with
maritime history in the shape of scientific research published in books and
well-edited yearbooks are the maritime museums of Oslo and Bergen, both of
which are led by professional historians. Bard Kolltveit is the director at the
Norwegian Maritime Museum and Dr. Atle Thowsen is at the Maritime
Museum in Bergen. The foundation of the "Norwegian Research Fund for
Maritime History" at the Bergen Maritime Museum in 1971 is an attempt to
turn the tide in favor of scientific research in the field of Norwegian maritime
history, but its resources are very limited. Consequently, the foundation can
support only a few research workers per year. Although some progress has taken
place, the negative trend has not been changed permanently. During the two
decades leading up to the 1990s, some twenty master of arts theses in maritime
history have been written at Norwegian universities. In the same period, only
three doctoral theses in maritime history have been defended at Norwegian
academic institutions.
Lov om kulturminner av. 9. juni 1978, Lovendring av 3. juli 1992.
Helge W. Nordvik, "Norwegian Maritime Historical Research during the past twenty years: A
Critical Survey," Sjefartshistorisk Arbok 1990 (Bergen: 1991), p. 242.
Jac. S. Worm-Muller, Ed., Den norske sjefarts historie fra de aeldste tider til uore dage, 3 volumes
(Kristiania-Oslo, 1923-51).
Preface to Johan Schreiner, Norsk skips/art under krig og heykonjunktur 1914-1920 (Oslo 1963).
55 Ottar Dahl, Norsk historieforskning i det 19, og 20. arhundre (Oslo: 1959), pp. 268-71.
56 Universitetet i Bergen, Arsmelding 1968-69 (Bergen: 1970), p. 133; Hvem er Hvem (Oslo: 1984), p.
419.
■ Helge W. Nordvik, "Norwegian Maritime Historical Research," Sjefartshistorisk Arbok 1990
262 Norway
Among the most important works published recently is Commander Jon
Rustung Hegland's account of the NORTRASHIP Fleet. ' This well-docu-
mented account studies the activities of 1,081 ships and about 25,000 seamen.
Based on primary sources, Hegland used maritime statutory declarations, actions
reports from naval gunners aboard the ships, the Admiralty's War Diary,
NORTRASHIP's records of losses, Norwegian naval documents, as well as some
British and German printed documents. Although Hegland only treated the
economic and administrative aspects when they are important for the overall
view, the very comprehensive works of Lauritz Pettersen, Bjorn L. Basberg,
Guri Hjeltnes, and Atle Thowsen on The Merchant Navy at War have more
completely elucidated these aspects.
These works are good examples of the complementary research done by naval
and civilian historians. To a certain extent, the two groups may be said to be
mutually prejudiced, with naval men writing oversimplified explanations of
complex historical causes and effects, while civilian historians tend to give
amateur treatment to naval and military problems.
In the future, one may hope that the goal of the new director of the
Norwegian Museum of Defence, to improve contact between civilian and
military research establishments, may help to bridge the existing gulf between
Norwegian maritime and naval history.
(Bergen: 1991), pp. 243, 248, 256; Atle Thowsen, "Norsk sjofartshistorie — periferi eller sentrum i
norsk historieforskning?" Sjefartshistorisk Arbok 1912 (Bergen: 1973), p. 38, (Summary in English).
58 Jon Rustung Hegland, Nortraships Flate, 2 volumes (Oslo: 1976).
59 Atle Thowsen, Handelsjlaten i krig 1939-1945, vol. 1; Bjorn L. Basberg, Handelsjlaten i krig
1939-1945, vol. 2; Guri Hjeltnes, Handelsjlaten i krig 1939-1945, vols. 3 & 4; Lauritz Pettersen,
Handelsjlaten i krig 1939-1945, vol. 5 (Oslo: 1992-1995).
Pakistan
Commodore S.Z. Shamsie, Pakistan Navy, Retired
Pakistan came into existence on 14 August 1947. Prior to that date there
was only one well-established maritime institution in what was to become
Pakistan, that being the Karachi Port Trust. It was on that same day in August
that the Royal Pakistan Navy was born, with its ships being allocated from the
old Royal Indian Navy.
The region has a long-standing relationship with the sea. Two small islands
near the mainland in Karachi harbour contain a thriving shipbuilding industry
which, for many years, has been focused on building dhows. Even today, these
indigenous boats ply the Arabian and Red Seas, the Persian Gulf, as well as other
areas. Now equipped with diesel engines, the dhows are able to operate in nearly
all weather conditions. They also carry a surprising amount of cargo, as little
space is devoted to comfort, and crews are small.
The infancy of the Pakistan Navy was difficult, given the chronic lack of financial
resources, manpower, and expertise. It took time to create these new institutions,
and it was not until the 1950s that substantive growth appeared. Two important
facilities were developed during that time frame: the Royal Pakistan Navy Dockyard
and, near it on West Wharf, the Karachi Shipyard and Engineering Works.
Although the subject of a naval academy and a marine academy had been
discussed as early as 1948, nothing significant happened for several years. The Cadet
Training School was started in HMPS Himalaya (the training complex) on Manora
Island in the early 1 950s. The Naval Academy was commissioned at another location
on the island in 1957. The Pakistan Marine Academy was eventually set up in 1961
in East Pakistan, near Chittagong. After East Pakistan became Bangladesh in 1971,
temporary accommodation for the Marine Academy was found in Karachi.
Construction of a new Academy, not far from Sandspit Beach, was started in 1976.
That institution is now under control of the Ports and Shipping Wing.
A general history of the development of the Pakistan Navy is provided in the official history, titled
the Story of the Pakistan Navy 1947-1972, (Karachi: Elite Publishers, Ltd., 1991); See also, Herbert
Feldman, Karachi Through a Hundred Years; the Centenary History of the Karachi Chamber of Commerce and
Industry, 1860-1960 (Karachi: Pakistan Branch, Oxford Univ. Press, 1970).
This information, and that which follows about the Pakistani National Shipping Corporation, the
Academy, the Coast Guard, and Port Qasim, was obtained from official Naval Headquarters Records
264 Pakistan
The Ports and Shipping Wing was established in Karachi at the end of 1961,
under a director general who held the rank of commodore. He was assisted by
two directors who were naval officers. Although it initially functioned under
the Ministry of Defence, the Wing was later transferred to the Ministry of
Communications.
The National Shipping Corporation was established in the public sector by
the government to ensure better operation and development of shipping in
Pakistan. The first ship was purchased in 1964, and by 1971 the number had
increased to thirty-two. From its inception this corporation has been led by a
naval officer.
The concept of a coast guard, initiated by the Navy, was developed as a
seagoing force for the protection of national marine resources, patrolling coastal
waters, anti-smuggling and assistance to merchantmen. It had been assumed that
this was a natural function of the Navy. The proposal to establish a coast guard
bumbled through the meandering channels of bureaucracy and emerged, having
suffered a significant metamorphosis, as a land-based, ancillary force to assist the
local police and Customs agencies.
The Karachi Shipyard and Engineering Works (KSEW) proved to be an
unprofitable industry. With high overhead and labour unrest it was not com-
petitive. After a Presidential Order, it was taken over by the Ministry of Defence
and placed, in 1970, under the charge of a naval officer.
Discussions were also held on the subject of creating another port to ease the
burden on Karachi. The intent was that it be close so that transportation of goods
from the north would be enhanced. Finally, it was decided that both the steel
mill (which was to be set up with the help of the USSR) and the new port should
be located at Pipri, which is close to Karachi while just to the south of it. That
port was named after the man who conquered Sindh in 711; Port Mohammad
Bin Qasim.
The Department of Hydrography was established in 1948 with the assistance
of an officer from the Royal Australian Navy. A continuous demand by the
Navy for scientific information about the marine environment led to the
formation in 1958 of the National Committee for Oceanographic Research
(NCOR). This organization was chaired by the Hydrographer of the Navy. The
Pakistan Navy took part in the International Indian Ocean Expedition (1962-65)
and generated much interest in the region. UNESCO organized training schemes
for naval personnel, and equipment was donated by a number of countries,
including the United States.
The Ministry of Technology was established in 1978. The Navy played a
significant role in the establishment of the National Institute of Oceanography,
(NIO) as the Committee for Oeanographic Research was the primary advisory
and Naval Archives and from the Office of the Director, General Ports and Shipping.
Shamsie 265
body for the development of that organization. That institute was set up in
Karachi in 1981, with the aim of initiating oceanic research and exploiting
marine resources.
The Navy further extended its research and training facilities. Close coopera-
tion with the Pakistan Navy led to an increase in the activities of the National
Institute of Oceanography. For instance, the need for tidal data from the United
Kingdom was eliminated through the introduction of tidal predictions in
Pakistan. In addition, coastal protection works were commenced. The Institute
also arranges special lectures for the Navy and other organizations. The Institute's
Director was appointed Vice Chairman of the Inter-governmental
Oceanographic Commission For UNESCO, in Paris 1989—93.
The need for an oceanographic research vessel had been felt for some time,
and approval had been pending for some time. Continued pressure by the Navy
and National Institute of Oceanography ultimately lead to action and, in 1982,
a research vessel was launched. This Oceanographic vessel was commissioned
and named Behr Paima in 1983. It is under the administrative control of the
Ministry of Communications, while naval personnel man it.
Two Pakistan research expeditions have been undertaken to the Antarctic.
The first was from 12 December 1990 to 1 March 1991. An Antarctic station
was established and named after the founder of our nation: Jinnah. On the second
expedition, the ship left Karachi on 27 December 1992 and returned on 11
March 1993. There were twenty scientists, thirteen naval officers, eleven Army
officers and one Air Force observer. Jinnah Station 2 and Iqbal Observatory were
established on the ice shelf, while detailed scientific research was carried out in
the surrounding waters.
In addition, an oceanographic ship was chartered by the Ministry of Tech-
nology for National Insitute of Oceanography and expeditions were organized
and led by the Pakistan Navy. Scientists from the Institute and other institutions
carried out extensive research on the ice shelf and adjacent waters, with the
Navy and Army providing assistance.
As mentioned earlier, the Navy initiated a case for the establishment of the
Coast Guard which, unfortunately, became a para-miliary unit. The situtation
was reconsidered in order to redress that error, and the Coast Guard was
reconstituted in 1986 to perform its originally assigned functions. This organiza-
tion is now called the Maritime Security Agency. It is currently manned by naval
personnel and was started with ships allocated by the Navy.
Some years ago, a body called the Foundation for Development through
Moral Revival was formed as a non-profit making public charity trust by retired
Information about general oceanographic developments was obtained by interview with the former
Director of the National Institute of Oceanography.
Specific data for the 1992 expedition was provided in an interview with the naval officer directly in
charge of the 1992 expedition.
266 Pakistan
Vice Admiral Choudri, who was the first Pakistan naval officer to become the
commander in chief. His purpose was to call together various intellectuals and
persons interested in discussing matters of national importance. At a later stage,
a maritime studies group was formed, as attention was focused on maritime
subjects. Admiral Choudri has developed an abiding interest in maritime matters
and has actively supported them on every suitable occasion. Last year, the
decision was made to expand its activities and form an independent research
body. It has now been named the Pakistan Institute of Maritime Affairs (PIMA).
Its charter encompasses many aspects of maritime history, including merchant
ships, shipbuilding, ship repairs, ports, fisheries, offshore activity, pollution and
hinterland infrastructure.
The Pakistan Navy is also in the process of building a museum, to be named
the Pakistan Maritime Museum. This museum will include display rooms, a
laboratory, a historic reference section, and a library. Construction is scheduled
to be completed in 1994.
Most maritime institutions are under the control of the Ministry of Com-
munications. All of them have published articles on their activities on special
occasions. A book was published on the occasion of the centennial of the Karachi
Port Trust in 1980. A souvenir magazine was produced by the Pakistan Marine
Academy, providing a brief history, an account of its activities, and the courses
held subsequent to the aid provided by Japan.
Given that our country is very young, the histories are very limited as well.
In 1997, when we celebrate the 50th anniversary of our Independence, all these
institutions will publish special issues to commemorate the event. When con-
sidered together, they will comprise our maritime history.
There is, however, another aspect of Pakistani maritime history which also
warrants a certain amount of attention. Specifically, the Muslims did much
productive work in that regard between the eighth and fifteenth centuries.
Though books and articles that touch on the maritime aspect have been written
in the past, many of them are in Arabic or Turkish. A fair amount was also
written by the English during their rule in India. But the impression is that not
enough has been written in the Urdu language (the language of Pakistan) or in
English. While a few articles have appeared from time to time in newspapers
and periodicals on navigation, astronomy, ship construction, and charts, and
instruments for navigation, research in this area deserves greater attention and
resources. In general, books on maritime history are not readily available to the
public.
Considering our ethos, our people's thoughts are focused landward, par-
ticularly to the north. Very little happened at sea during the rule of the Moghuls,
and the small navy which existed for a short period of time remained in the
eastern part of the subcontinent. Historically, the only person who understood
the importance of the sea and the Navy was Tippu Sultan, and his advice went
Shamsie 267
unheeded. Today, paradoxically, most naval personnel are recruited from the
north. But, in general, there is little interest in maritime affairs.
In fact, the word maritime has a different connotation to most students in this
country. In the universities, there are few students who have shown interest in
the subject, though some have displayed an interest in the Muslim history in the
period A.D. 700—1500. In the recent past, some Sindh students have been keen
to study the history of old Sindh as a maritime province, going back as far as the
time of Moenjo Daro, and the Indus Valley civilization. Some books in the
Sindhi language are available. An effort has been made to encourage the
University of Karachi to create a Department of Maritime History.
Naval history is taught, on a limited scale, in the Naval Academy at the Navy
Staff College. Certain aspects are taught in the Army and Air Force Staff Colleges
and in the National Defence College.
The intellectual atmosphere in Pakistan was vitiated some years ago. There
are, however, faint signs that interest in intellectual subjects may be revived in
the future, but this will come only slowly. Significant interest in maritime affairs
is not likely to develop soon. In 1992, an international seminar was held in
Lahore on the achievements of the Muslims, including the maritime sphere, in
order to generate interest. Many experts came from abroad. That seminar did
generate some interest. But, without concerted follow-up, that interest is also
likely to wane.
The Institute of Maritime Affairs held a seminar in Islamabad in 1992, and
planned to hold another in Lahore in May 1993, to raise the consciousness of
maritime issues for those who are generally far removed from the sea. Political
events forced them to postpone the seminar which was to be held in Islamabad
in March 1994. The institute's objective was, and is, to make the maximum
possible contribution as a non-political, non-governmental organization, inter
alia, through study/research and development, in as many of the maritime
subjects as resources permit. They also hope, wherever possible, to help other
organizations engaged in similar work in the interest of the country.
The Pakistan Maritime Museum will probably assume the task of producing the
maritime history of the country. One of the functions of a maritime museum is to
make people aware of their maritime heritage. In this case, it will be entrusted with
the task of writing notes on the achievements of the Muslims. Any assistance which
can be provided from other sources will certainly be deeply appreciated.
As mentioned earlier, while there has been a slight resurgence of interest
recently in the achievements of the Muslims, there is inadequate intellectual
interest presently in the maritime sphere. Just the same, an effort to record
maritime history is underway. A modest start in this process was made by the
publication of the Story of the Pakistan Navy, which was referenced earlier in this
article. That book provides the first reference to our extended maritime history.
Peru
Commander Jorge Ortiz, Peruvian Navy
The sea has always been an important factor in Peruvian life. It played a
decisive role in the formation of Andean culture and in the evolution of
the colonial world, and it has remained just as important throughout our modern
history as well. However, for many different reasons, Peruvians remained outside
this important process. Historically, Peru has remained an observer, while
foreigners exploited one of the richest seas of the world, laying adjacent to her
coast (for example, the use of the whaling grounds off the northern coast of Peru
by the British and North Americans in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth
centuries, and the development of the important guano trade in the last century).
A possible explanation for this situation is the tremendous influence that the
Andes have exerted on Peruvian life. It was in the sierra that the most important
cultures flourished, exploiting the great diversity of ecological niches. After the
Europeans arrived in the sixteenth century, enormous mineral resources located
in the mountains became the base for the Spanish colonial economy in the New
World. Nonetheless, maritime routes were the only feasible means for the export
of gold and silver taken from the Andes. That exploration moved the Peruvian
economy increasingly away from agriculture and towards mining. That trend
continues today.
This condition restricted Peruvian maritime activity to insignificant fishing
communities and to a small number of maritime entrepreneurs, ship owners and
seamen. The vast majority of these people were concerned only with their own
businesses. Very few of them played an active role in politics, or devoted
themselves to developing an awareness in the Peruvian community of the
importance of the sea to the national well-being.
This article is intended to explain why maritime and naval history are nearly
absent in the Peruvian academic world and are not being offered as courses or
seminars in any Peruvian university. In fact, aside from some valuable and
pioneering research done in the late nineteenth century, maritime history was,
in the past, largely confined to an adjunct status to naval history. That history
was, in the main, produced by naval officers. Taking this situation into account,
and with the intent of renewing maritime and naval history, a group of naval
270 Peru
officers and historians took upon themselves the task of writing a Peruvian
maritime history nearly thirty years ago.
A few years later, with the firm support of the Peruvian Navy, this group
formed the Peruvian Institute of Maritime History, (Instituto de Estudios
Historico-Maritimos del Peru) and published a large collection of books under
the general title, Historia Maritima del Peru. This collection, covering Peru's
maritime past, from prehispanic times to the twentieth century, already numbers
twenty volumes, and three other volumes are in work.
The functions of the Institute are complemented by the Navy itself through
its historical service. However, despite its formal intentions to promote maritime
history, the Institute has devoted a considerable amount of its effort to naval
history, not only because it forms an important part of maritime history, but also
because the Institute is directed by retired naval officers. Apart from the Institute
and the Navy, and closely linked to both, there are a small number of historians
and other scholars who do research in maritime or naval history themes. As
already suggested, though, while there are historians who have written about
maritime and naval topics, it cannot, in general, be said that they are truly naval
or maritime historians. The exception, perhaps, is Commander Fernando
Romero Pintado, who holds a Ph.D. in history, but whose advanced age has
limited his involvement in academic activities during the last few years.
Taking all of this into consideration, the Peruvian Institute of Maritime Studies
has encouraged and supported some naval officers to take up maritime historical
studies. Furthermore, efforts have been made to attract young historians and
researchers to maritime themes. Several young naval officers studied at the Faculty
of Arts at the Universidat Catolica del Peru and have become professional historians.
One of the first to accept this challenge was the author of this short essay who, along
with some other young historians and researchers, devoted his studies to topics of
the sea. In both cases, there have been some initial successes. In the near future at
least, a small cadre of trained maritime and naval historians will be working in the
areas that maritime and naval history encompass.
Some reference should also be made to the dissemination or publication of
maritime and/or naval themes. While no seminars or courses on maritime or
naval history are currently being given in the universities, they are being offered,
although with some difficulty, at the Instituto de Estudios Historico-Maritima
del Pern, as well as by the Navy itself. In the last few years the following courses
have been offered:
• Naval War College (Escuela Superior de Guerra Naval). Between 1988
and 1991 a course was offered in Maritime Identity. Since 1992, it has been
replaced by three seminars: Historical Analysis of Peruvian Naval Cam-
paigns, A History of War at Sea, and History of the Navy.
i
Historia Maritima del Peru (Lima: Instituto de Estudios Histdrico-Maritimas del Peru, 1912- ).
Ortiz 271
• Peruvian Naval Academy (Escuela Naval del Peru) provides a course on
the History of the Navy.
• Institute for the Study of Peruvian Maritime History (Instituto de Estudios
Historico-Maritimos del Peru). In 1992, a course in maritime history was
begun which was designed to give students a general overview of maritime
topics. That course had three parts: a) evolution of ships, b) history of war
at sea, and c) general maritime history.
The first course mentioned above, the maritime identity, was given by this
author to the Captain's Course. The objective was to present a general overview
of Peruvian maritime history, emphasizing the way it helped to build our national
identity. Among the points covered were the importance of the sea to the
prehistoric settlement of Peru; the myths and legends that shed light on this
reality; and prehispanic navigation as a fundamental element in the production
of food as well as in the pursuit of commerce. Reviewing the colonial period,
the importance of Callao in the maritime commerce of the South Sea was
emphasized, not only during the time of the annual fleets in the sixteenth and
seventeenth centuries, but also during the epoch of the special license ships in
the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Furthermore, we directed the
students' attention to the nascent interest in Peru which was awakened by the
exploitation of marine resources. These activities included whale hunting at the
end of the eighteenth century, which was later replaced by the great guano boom
of the nineteenth century, and by the lucrative fishing industry, especially of
anchovies, in the twentieth century. Peru became the world's leading producer
offish products in the 1950s.
The seminar covering the analysis of Peruvian naval campaigns is given by
several retired admirals and includes three campaigns: Independence (1818—
1826), the war with Chile (1879-1880), and the war with Ecuador (1941). Two
other seminars are directed by this author, which are efforts to provide lieutenant
commanders and commanders with an overview of the evolution of war at sea
and of the Peruvian Navy itself. This course on naval history, given in the Naval
Academy, has not been taught regularly in the last few years, and for this reason
will not be analyzed fully. In 1992, the professor for the course, a retired
commander, died and was replaced by his assistant, a young civilian historian.
The course of maritime history, mentioned above, offers a common base for
researchers who work on maritime and naval themes. It should be noted that
no similar course has ever been given in the country. As a result, in the past
every researcher approached the topic with his own understanding of what was
naval and what was maritime, but often with little understanding of the big
picture and how the two fields meshed. So, for example, we not only try to
present general ideas on the evolution of naval ships, but also emphasize points
on worldwide maritime and naval history as well.
272 Peru
Having already mentioned the work carried out by the Instituto de Estudios
Historico-Maritimos del Peru in reference to the development of maritime
studies, its organization and editorial efforts should be presented as well. The
Institute is a private enterprise, strongly linked to the Navy, but independent in
all its activities. It is made up of forty members, half of them naval officers, and
the other half academics of diverse disciplines, including historians, diplomats,
biologists, etc. Its principal endeavor, The Maritime History of Peru [Historia
Maritima del Peru] which, as previously noted, is the primary resource for those
who wish to become acquainted with the maritime and naval history of Peru.
In addition, they have published more than a dozen other titles, and a reputable
journal is issued, although on a somewhat irregular basis.
On the other hand, the Navy itself carries out and promotes historical research
through the Direccion de Intereses Maritimos, which administers the Navy
Museum and the Historic Archives of the Navy, and which contains documents
dating from the beginnings of the nineteenth century. Another important
archive for study of Peruvian and South American maritime and naval history
is the National Archive, with documentation dating to the sixteenth century.
The Navy has an editorial fund that has published almost thirty titles in the last
few years, not all of which are on strictly naval history topics.
Apart from these two institutions, other works are being or have been
produced which touch on maritime or naval themes. One of these is a thesis
currently in preparation for presentation to the Catholic University, and another
is the collected works of Dr. Maria Rostworowsky de Diez Canseco, published
by the Institute of Peruvian Studies, which deals with the Peruvian coast in the
Late Prehispanic Period.
Finally, it should be noted that, given the importance of the Peruvian viceregal
period, there are more than a few works, published outside Peru, which deal
with maritime or naval aspects of the period.
Naturally, one institution is not capable of handling all these works. None-
theless, there is a concerted effort to establish links among all those who are
interested in these topics. This effort was reinforced in 1991, with the First
Symposium of Ibero-American Maritime Studies of Peru. One of the major
achievements was the establishment of a permanent secretariat, and Chile as well
Maria Rostworowsky de Diez Canseco, Costa peruana prehispanica (Lima: Instituto de Estudios
peruanos, 1989) 2nd ed.; Recursos naturales renovables ypesca, sighs XVI y XVII (Lima: Instituto de Estudios
Peruanos, 1981).
Pablo E. Perez-Mallaifha y Bibiano Torres Ramirez, La Armada del Mar del Sur (Sevilla: Escuela de
Estudios Hispano-Americanos de Sevilla, 1987). Peter T. Bradley, The Lure of Peru. Maritime Intrusion
into the South Sea, 1598-1701 (London: The Macmillan Press: 1989). Peter T. Bradley, "The ships of
the Armada of the Viceroyalty of Peru in the Seventeenth Century" in The Mariner's Mirror, 79 (1993),
pp. 393-402. Hugo O'Donell, El Viaje a Chiloe de Jose de Moraleda (1787-1790) (Madrid: Editorial
Naval, 1990).
Ortiz 273
as Argentina and Brazil agreed to host successive symposia in 1993, 1995, and
1999, respectively.
It is probably too early to speak of intellectual tendencies in the fields of
maritime and naval history, as interest in academic circles has not been applied
consistently over a prolonged period of time to demonstrate such trends or
tendencies.
The War of the Pacific (1879-1884), which Peru and Bolivia lost to Chile,
endowed the Navy with its most famous heroes. This, combined with the fact
that the war proved traumatic for the nation, has been primarily responsible for
so much of Peruvian naval and maritime history being devoted to that war and
that epoch in general. Only in recent times have several works highlighted other
aspects of Peru's rich and diverse maritime and naval past.
In this category, that being the periods least treated but also quite important,
the one spanning the end of the eighteenth and the beginnings of the nineteenth
centuries should be noted. It was the period between the authorization of the
entrance of British and North American whalers and the war for national
independence. A methodical study is also needed on the Spanish South Sea
Fleet, whose existence spanned almost two centuries (between 1579 and 1750).
Some work on the topic exists, but much more needs to be known about this
important colonial entity. Present day Peruvian maritime communities also need
study. One can still find some prehispanic customs and artifacts (such as rafts) in
a number of small fishing villages and ports. It is also necessary to research boats
in general. In Peru, many immigrants settled on the coast in the past two
centuries and many of the boats presently in use by fisherman reflect the influence
of these immigrants. Another theme that should be dealt with urgently is the
conquest of the Amazon, a process begun in the sixteenth century via the river
system. This began to be systematized with the participation of the Navy after
1864.
As noted above, Peruvian historical studies deal largely with naval topics.
Works on maritime themes, if they are attempted, face lack of incentives in the
academic world. It is worth mentioning that while the Navy, through the
Instituto de Estudios Historico-Maritimos and through its own historic division,
supports and develops historic studies,the same does not occur among the diverse
elements that make up the maritime world of our nation.
In sum, Peruvian maritime history is very rich, given its diversity and the long
relationship that Peruvians have had with the sea. In the case of naval history, it
is equally abundant, having begun in the sixteenth century with the formation
of the South Seas Fleet. All this information has been gathered and reviewed by
4 Jorge Ortiz, El Vicealmirante Martin Jorge Guise Wright (1780-1828) (Lima: Direccion de Intereses
Maritimos, 1993). Jorge Ortiz and Alicia Castafieda, Dicaonario biografico maritimo peruatio (Lima:
Direccion de Intereses Maritimos, 1993). Jorge Ortiz, "Peru and the British Naval Station (1809-1839),"
Ph. D. Thesis, St. Andrews University, Scotland, 1994.
274 Peru
the Institute of Historic-Maritime Studies of Peru, however, much research
remains to be done in this field.
24
Poland
Jerzy Litwin
and
Commander Dr. Wincenty Karawajczyk, Polish Navy
Maritime History
Studies of the history of shipping and the Navy, which have been conducted
in Poland over the past seventy-five years, have been strictly related to the
country's political situation. During that period, the country's political-
economic doctrines have undergone three radical changes. As a result, with each
change, the authorities intensified demands to have at their disposal syntheses of
particular fragments of Poland's history. These were utilized, more or less, for
pertinent educational purposes, but also for specific propaganda activities,
conducted in the name of the politics of the state at the time.
The first such period embraced the years 1918—1947, that is, from the
regaining of Poland's independence after 123 years of annexation by Russia,
Prussia, and Austria at the end of the eighteenth century. This period also
included the Second World War and the post-war struggles for independence
conducted by the Polish underground. The second period lasted from 1948 to
the spring of 1989, when Poland was ruled by a communist government whose
policies were imposed by U.S.S.R. authorities. The third period began in the
spring of 1989 when, after the agreement of the so-called "round table," the
communist authorities handed over power in Poland, agreeing to its being taken
over by the forces which produced the social uprising in 1980, known by the
name "Solidarity."
Polish Maritime History in Outline. The oldest written sources telling of
the riparian navigation of the Slavic peoples date to the sixth century A.D. The
northern borders of the Slavic lands stretched along the Baltic coast from the
region known today as Lubeck in the west, to the mouth of the Vistula in the
east.
The people living adjacent to the western Slavs called them Wends. This
point is brought to light in a description by Wulfstan, a ninth century Anglo-
This section is written by Dr. Jerzy Litwin, Deputy Director of the Polish Maritime Museum, Gdansk.
2 Wfedysfaw Filipowiak, Wolin - Vineta (Rostock-Stralsund: 1986); WTadsysfaw Filipowiak, "Poczatki
276 Poland
Saxon traveller, who claims to have had the Wendic lands off his starboard bow
during the entire voyage from Hedeby (Haithabu) to Truso. From Gdansk Bay
he sailed up the Vistula which, as he pointed out, was the natural frontier
between the Wends and the "Old" Prussians.
To meet their transportation, communication, and fishery needs, the riparian
Slavs produced rafts and logboats and, if the necessity arose, larger craft as well.
It was probably in the seventh century that the Slavs first ventured out into
the open sea. To sail in safety there required appropriately constructed craft.
This usually involved increasing the ships' freeboards by attaching single planks
to them, or sets of two or more overlapping planks.
In the larger boats, the dugout part of the ship's bottom was of no great
significance, and in time it came to be left as a semicircular beam: the keel. By
the end of the ninth century, keels had become T-shaped in cross-section.
Dugout keels in small boats persisted on the south coast of the Baltic until the
beginning of the twentieth century.
Ancient Slavic boatbuilding reached its peak of development in the tenth
though the twelfth centuries, when large plank-built boats made quite long
commercial voyages. The Western Slavs also sent fleets to wage war against the
Q
Vikings. Many wrecks and parts of Slavic vessels from this period have been
discovered not only along the southern shores of the Baltic but also in Denmark.
Sweden, and Germany.
Slavic boats of the ninth through the twelfth centuries had a number of
characteristic structural features. They were made of oak. In silhouette they
resembled Viking ships, but their cross-sections were different. Their bottoms
were flat and, even though they were made from overlapping planks; the 10-30
zeglugi slowianskiej u ujscia Odry," Studia nad etnogeneza Sfowian i kultura Europy
wczesnosredniowiecznej, vol. 2 (Wrodaw-Warszawa-Krakow-Gdansk-Lodzl 1988); Witold Hensel,
Stowiariszczyzna wczesno/redniowieczna (Warszawa: 1965); Jozef Kostrzewski, Pradzieje Pomorza
(Wroclaw- Warszawa-Krakow: 1966); Zdenek Vana, Suriat dawnych Sfowian (Praha: 1985).
3 Niels Lund, Two Voyagers at the Court of King Alfred (York: 1984), p. 22-30.
4 W. Hensel, ibid.
Przemysiaw Smolarek, Studia nad szkutnictwem Pomorza Gdanskiego w X-XIII w. (Gdansk: 1969);
Przemysiaw Smolarek, "Szkutnictwo Pomorza Gdariskiego we wczesnym sredniowieczu," Historia
budowtiictwa okretowego na Wybrzezu Gdanskim, ed. E. Cieslak (Gdansk: 1972).
Wolfgang Rudolph, Handbuch der volkstumlichen Boote im ostlichen Niederdeutschland (Berlin: 1966);
Wolfgang Rudolph, Inshore Fishing Craft of the Southern Baltic from Holstein to Curonia (London: 1974).
Wfedysfaw tega, Obraz gospodarczy Pomorza Gdanskiego w XII i XIII wieku (Poznari: 1949); P.
Smolarek, ibid.
Q
Krystyna Pieradzka, Walki Sfowian na Battyku w X-XII wieku (Warszawa: 1953).
Detlev Ellmers, Fruhmittelalterliche Handelsschiffahrt in Mittel- und Nordeuropa (Neumunster: 1984); P.
Herfert, Ralswiek einfruhgeschichtlicherSeehandelsplatz aufder Insel Rugen (Greifswald: 1982); Jan Skamby
Madsen, Danish-wendische Beziehungen am Schluss des 1 1 . Jahrhunderts vom Fund einer Schiffswerft bei Frhrodre
A auf Falster aus beleuchtet, Bistum Roskilde und Rugen (Roskilde: 1987); K.W. Struve, "Ein slawisches
SchifBwrack aus der Eckernforder Bucht," Offa (1978); "Kazimierz Slaski, Slawische Schiffe des
westlichen Ostseeraumes," Offa (1978).
Litwin and Karawajczyk 277
millimeter diameter pegs used to hold the structural elements together proved
1 o
to be an entirely satisfactory substitute for nails.
The East Baltic Slavonic tribes, which belonged to Poland from the end of the
tenth century, continued to expand maritime economy within the boundaries of
the Piast monarchy, which in the tenth and eleventh centuries organized the
state of Poland. At the end of the twelfth century, Poland was divided into a
number of principalities. One of them, Masovia, experienced problems with its
strong neighbor to the west, Prussia. Masovia's Prince Konrad, in 1226, invited
the Teutonic Order Knights to fight with them against Prussia. These new-
comers very soon established their own state on Prussian territory, and at the
beginning of the fourteenth century they, in turn, invaded Gdansk. With that
1 1
act Poland lost her access to the Baltic.
Two points stand out in fifteenth century Poland: her economic growth and
her struggle for supremacy with the Teutonic Order. Settlement in coastal
towns was increasing, which helped to foster trade with foreign centres. By then,
goods were being carried mostly by ship. As early as the fourteenth century,
inland towns were making their contribution to the country's export drive. A
variety of goods were shipped downriver to the coast on rafts, large logboats, or
other craft.
Cogs and hoiks were vessels frequently used in medieval sea transport. Their
designs had generally become more sophisticated, but they differed from one
another in detail. Cogs became common on the Baltic shores in the thirteenth
century and, although probably originating in the Frisian Islands, they were also
built in Gdansk and Elblag. Cogs had flat, flush bottoms and clinker-built sides,
closely resembling Vistula ships in these design features. Hoiks, which were
usually larger than cogs, became common in the fifteenth century and were
traditionally built on a keel, like boats, by means of the shell technique.
River navigation on the Vistula reached its zenith in the sixteenth through
eighteenth centuries, when thousands of ships and rafts sailed down to Gdansk
and Elblag and then, laden with overseas goods, plied back upstream to their
points of origin. Products of farm and forest, minerals and goods in transit, were
all shipped down the Vistula and its tributaries.
Smolarek, see note 5; Tadeusz Delimat, "O genezie -todzi klepkowych na Pomorzu," Lud, 42 (1956);
Jerzy Litwin, "Szkutnictwio i zegluga," Z dziejow techniki w dawnej Polsce (Warszawa: 1992); K. Slaski, ibidem.
11 Edmund Cieslak, Historia Gdanska, I (Gdansk: 1978).
Marian Biskup and Gerard Labuda, Dzieje Zakonu Krzyzackiego w Prusach (Gdansk: 1988).
Aleksander Gieysztor, " Wisia w sredniowieczu," Wisfa, monografia rzeki, ed. A. Piskozub (Warszawa:
1982); Stanistaw Gierszewski, Wista w dziejach Polski (Gdansk: 1982); Przemysfaw Smolarek, "Types of
Vistula Ships in the 17th and 18th Centuries," Yearbook of the International Association of Transport Museums,
8 (Gdansk: 1981).
Jerzy Litwin, Some Remarks Concerning Medieval Ship Construction (Malta: 1989); and From Studies on
Gdansk and Elblpg Ship-building and Shipping in the 13th-15th Centuries (Malta: 1991).
Jan W. Gan, Z dziejow zeglugi srodlpdowej w Polsce (Warszawa: 1978); Sebastian F. Klonowic, Flis, to
278 Poland
The szkuta was the largest vessel that shipped goods on the Vistula. A szkuta
could be up to 38 meters long, 8.5 meters wide, and was capable of taking 100
tons of cargo on board.
A great opportunity to create a Polish navy arose in 1570 when the Polish king,
Zigismund August, brought two experts from Venice and entrusted the construction
of a galleon at Elblag. This brought a new type of warship to the Baltic. We know
how the ship was built from surviving expenditure records. Construction of the
galleon began in June 1570. Ready for launching a year later, the ship was completed
in 1572. However, she was not armed and never entered service, owing to the
1 8
premature death of King Zigismund August.
While Zigismund August failed in his effort to establish a navy, the Polish
kings of the Vasa dynasty enjoyed greater success in that field in the first half of
the seventeenth century. King Zygmunt III created a fighting fleet for which
five ships were built at Gdansk in 1605—6. Poland's naval successes included a
victory over the Swedish fleet in 1627 in the Battle of Oliwa, which took place
in Gdansk Bay. During this battle the Swedish warship Solen was sunk, while
another, the Tigem, was captured.
In 1641—43, King Wladislaw IV's fleet was scrapped. The consequence of this
was that for the next three hundred years the rulers of Poland, for a variety of
reasons, turned their backs to the sea. At the same time, from the mid-seventeenth
century onwards, the policies of Gdansk, which had become rich acting as the
middleman in Polish-European trade, led to a standstill in the local shipbuilding
industry.
Although Poland had never been a major producer of oceangoing ships, she
was a major supplier of raw materials to foreign shipbuilders through the end of
the nineteenth century; timber (beams, planks, and masting) was shipped to the
sea ports, where it was resold, principally to Holland and Britain. Up to the
jest spuszczanie statkow Wisia i inszymi rzekami do niej przypadajjacymi (Warszawa: first edition 1595);
Stanislaw Kutrzeba, Wista w historii gospodarczej daumej Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej (Warszawa: 1922); J.M.
Matecki, "Wisia w okresie od pokoju toruriskiego do pokoju oliwskiego," Wisfa, monografia rzeki, ed.
A. Piskozub (Warszawa: 1982); H. Obuchowska-Pysiowa, Handel wislany w pierwszej potowie XVIIwieku
(Wroclaw: 1964); Krystyna Waligorska, "Konstrukcje statkdw prywajacych po Sanie i Wisle w XVIII
w," Kwartalnik Historii Kultury Materialnej, vol. 8, no. 2.
Mieczysfaw Boczar, Galeona Zygmunta Augusta (Wroclaw- Warszawa-Krakow-Gdarisk: 1973); Jerzy
Litwin, "The First Polish Galleon and its Construction Register from 1570-1572," Carvel Construction
Technique, Oxbow Monograph 12 (Oxford: 1991).
17 Adam Kleczkowski, Regestr budowy galeony (Krakow: 1915).
18 M. Boczar, ibid.;]. Litwin, "First Polish Galleon."
Witold Hubert, "Bitwa pod Oliwa," Przeglpd Historyczno-Wojskowy, vol. 1 (Warszawa: 1929);
Stanislaw Bodniak, Zwipzekjloty i obrona wybrzeza w wojnie Zygmunta III z Karolem IX (Poznan: 1930);
Kazimierz Lepszy, Dziejejloty polskiej, (Gdarisk-Bydgoszcz-Szczecin: 1947); Eugeniusz Koczorowski,
Bitwa Pod Oliwa (Gdynia: 1968).
20 K. Lepszy, ibid.
21 Edmund Cieslak, Historia Gdanska, vol. I-III (Gdansk: 1978; 1982; 1993).
Litwin and Karawajczyk 279
eighteenth century, the materials specification for ships-of-the-line built in British
yards expressly required 4 to 4 1/2 inch-thick oaken planks from Gdansk.
Steam power, which revolutionised industry in Western Europe at the turn
of the eighteenth century, also had an effect on inland shipping. The first river
and canal steamships made their appearance, making transport on those water-
ways more efficient.
Moreover, companies operating steamships came into existence despite the
fact that the powers partitioning Poland were wilfully neglecting the country's
waterways. The pioneers in this respect were Piotr Steinkeller and Konstanty
Wolicki, who established a shipping company in 1825—27. In 1827 they
imported two ships from England, the Victory and the Ksipzp Ksawery. Unfor-
tunately, both ships were sunk during the November Insurrection of 1830. In
1840-42, Steinkeller bought two new ships, again in England, intended for
passenger transport in the Warsaw area.
The most successful steamship company operating on the Vistula at that time
was the "Steamship Company on the Navigable Rivers of the Kingdom, Count
Zamoyski et Companie," founded in 1848 with the assistance of French capital
provided by Eduard Guibert. In 1849, this firm had ten lighters with two
steamboats to move them (the Prince de Varsovie and the Vistule), both built at
Nantes in 1847. Eduard Guibert was also the managing director of the company
until 1852. Additional ships were built for this company in Poland, most of them
at the Steamship Workshops, founded in 1851 in Solec, a suburb of Warsaw.
The company's operations ended as a result of the restrictions imposed by the
tsarist authorities after the January Insurrection of 1863. Count A. Zamoyski was
also deported and his estate confiscated. In 1871 the company was formally
dissolved and the ships sold.
Towards the end of the nineteenth century, passenger travel by boat became
very popular, not only as a means of getting from one place to another, but also
as a form of recreation. Many pleasure steamers were built at Solec (Warsaw),
Oft
Wfodawek and Krakow. M. Fajans' company was the leader in this field.
After the First World War, inland navigation was reactivated under Polish
auspices. The leading companies operating on the Vistula were the Polish
John Charnock, An History of Marine Architecture (London: 1800); John Fincham, An Outline in Ship
Building (London: 1852); James Dodds and James Moore, Building the Wooden Fighting Ship (London:
1984).
23 Witold Arkuszewski, Wislane statki pasazerskie XIX i XX uneku (Gdansk: 1973).
24 Ibid.
25 Ibid.
26 Ibid.
27 Ibid.
28 Ibid.
280 Poland
Navigation Company of Krakow, the Polish River Navigation "Vistula" of
Warsaw, and Lloyd of Bydgoszcz.
From 1918 to 1939 inland Polish shipyards prospered. Among their achieve-
ments were the large passenger ships, Polska and Francja, built in 1925, and the
Bajka built at Solec in 1927. The largest vessel of all was the Baftyk, built at the
Gdansk yard in 1928. Other yards produced smaller ships and lighters. They
also received orders for specialised craft. Particularly profitable for the shipyards
were vessels supplied to the Polish Navy for the Vistula and Pinsk flotillas, and
those supplied to the customs and frontier guards at Gdynia. The Zieleniewski
yard in Krakow built a series of monitors. The Navy's own yards at Pinsk and
Modlin built armed cutters and minelayers, and the Modlin yard built the first
sea-going ship for the modern Polish Navy, the Jaskotka.
As well as fostering the growth of inland navigation, Polish authorities in that
period emphasized the organisation of a sea-going fleet. Among the most
important undertakings of that period were the construction of a modern port
at Gdynia and the formation of a navy and a merchant fleet. The Higher Naval
School was founded to train future ship's officers, and a nationwide association,
the Maritime League, was brought into existence to disseminate information
about and to organise activities dealing with the sea among the populace in
general and among young people in particular.
At that time, France was very active in helping establish Poland's maritime
activities. It was in France that Poland purchased her first modern warships,
destroyers, and submarines, as well as a series of cargo ships, popularly known
as "Frenchmen," many of which were still in service after 1945.
One tremendous achievement on the part of the organisers of the Polish
maritime economy was the founding of a shipyard at Gdynia, where construction
of sea-going vessels developed rapidly. Unfortunately, this healthy progress was
interrupted by the outbreak of the Second World War.
After the war, cleanup operations got under way in the ports and shipyards
along Poland's devastated, but now very much longer, coast. Harbours and
shipyards were rebuilt. A system of maritime education came into being, and
specialist design offices were established.
The industrialization of Poland undertaken after the war has also effected the
dynamic development in the shipbuilding industry which was, until 1989, the
pride of Poland's maritime economy. Even today* following the recent political
and economical changes, the shipbuilding industry seems well positioned to be
a dominant force in the Polish economy.
The Study and Preservation of Polish Maritime History. Compared to
other European literature on naval and shipping history, Polish research publi-
29 Ibid.
Litwin and Karawajczyk 281
cations remain rather modest. The reason for this state of affairs is that systematic
studies on these questions, as well as ship and boat-building, and fishers, started
relatively late. This was due to a large extent to the country's unstable political
situation prior to 1918 and to the prolonged lack of access to the sea, which
precluded the development of more important maritime traditions.
Characteristic of the post-1918 period was the positively enthusiastic interest
in maritime matters demonstrated by the whole population. This followed the
award to Poland of a land corridor to the sea by the Treaty of Versailles. This,
in connection with access to the seaport of Gdansk (which had been given the
status of a free city), led to the development of a maritime economy. A social
organization, most frequently known as the Maritime League, was also estab-
lished.
The first popular maritime publications also appeared. These offered articles
on the Slavs' struggles on the Baltic, the times of King Zygmunt August, the
founder of the Maritime Commission, and the only naval victory — the Battle
of Oliwa, in 1627. The results of studies were also published by such historians
as S. Bodniak, A. Czolowski, W. Hubert, W. Konopczynski, and others.
Of particular importance in these considerations is the work of K. Lepszy, whose
crowning study was The History of the Polish Fleet.
Traditional fishery and small boat-building was primarily the subject of
interest to ethnographers. Unfortunately, these subjects did not constitute a
specific concerted area of study but, rather, just a fragmented body of papers
presenting the material culture of the people inhabitating Poland at the time. Of
a dozen or so papers, that by K. Moszyriski, "The Popular Culture of the Slavs,"'
was of particular importance. It was an attempt to present the basic types of
Slavonic floating structures, including rafts and canoes.
With regard to linguistic studies concerning aquatic occupations, B. Slaski's
Fishery-Nautical and Boat-building Dictionary remains a good source of information
when studying earlier boat-building.
Information on research and publications concerning shipping, shipbuilding,
navies, fishery, rafting and boat-building was substantially supplemented by
periodicals published at the beginning of the twentieth century. An important
Stanisfaw Bodniak, Zwiazek Jloty i obrona wybrzeza w wojnie Zygmunta III z Karolem IX (Poznarf:
1930); "Morze w gtosach opinii dawnej Rzeczpospolitej," Rocznik Gdanski, vol. IV (Gdansk: 1931);
"Sprawy morskie w 'Ksiegach Hetmariskich' Sarnickiego," Rocznik Gdanski, vol. XII (Gdansk: 1938).
Aleksander Czolowski, Marynarka w. Polsce (Lwow: 1922).
Witold Hubert, "Proba tworzenia marynarki wojennej podczas powstania 1863-64," Przeglpd
Morski, vol. 2, no. 4 (1929); "Bitwa pod Oliwa," Przeglad Historyczno-Wojskowy (1937).
Wfadyslaw Konopczynski, Pohka polityka battycka (Poznan: 1930).
Kazimierz Lepszy, "Straznicy morza Stefana Batorego," Rocznik Gdanski, vol. 7 (Gdansk: 1933);
Kazimierz Lepszy, Dzieje Jloty polskiej (Gdarisk-Bydgoszcz-Szczecin: 1947).
Kazimierz Moszyriski, Kultura ludowa Stowian, vol. 1; Kultura materialna (Krakow: 1929).
Bolesfaw Slaski, Stownik rybacko-zeglarski i szkutniczy (Poznarf: 1930).
282 Poland
popularizing role here was played by The Sea [Morze] and TJie Maritime Review
[Przeglad Morski] concerning naval matters; The Technical Review [Przeglad
Techniczny], which was devoted to industry, including shipyard questions; Fishery
Review [Przeglad Rybackt] , which was dedicated to fishermen; The People [Lud\ ,
The Land [Ziemia] and The Vistula [Wista], which were designed for a wider
circle of readers. There were also a whole series of weeklies containing articles
on maritime subjects.
During that period efforts were also made to establish museums of a maritime
character. This was not an easy task, as Poland's maritime traditions were not as
extensive as those of many other European countries. The first attempts to
establish such institutions were taken up in the 1930s, when a private maritime
museum was organized in Warsaw and a fishery museum in the small fishing
village of Debki. Neither of these survived the ravages of the war. Numerous
relics from other museums and private collections also met the same fate.
Despite the tremendous enthusiasm to learn about and propagate maritime
matters in Poland in the years 1918—1947, no comprehensive system of profes-
sional studies and education in the field of historical-maritime problems could
be established. Only the staff of the Baltic Institute conducted studies on Poland's
maritime history, although there was also a fairly large group of scholars who
took up sporadic studies in this field. That group managed to create the climate
for the propagating of maritime history in postwar times.
The period following the Second World War, particularly in the years
1945-1947 was, for Poles, a period of continued struggle to regain independence.
The Yalta Conference of 1945 had bound the future of the nation, oppressed
by the six years of war, to a treaty of unreserved subordination to Soviet Russia,
which was imposed by force. This struggle was carried out with considerable
effort throughout Poland. Diplomatic steps were taken up in allied countries
but, in view of the declining political force of Polish emigre circles, these efforts
failed to achieve expected results. Thus, after 1948, following the wiping out of
the patriotic groups throughout the country, Poland became totally subordinate
to the Soviet Union.
The consequences of this situation became apparent in all spheres of learning,
including history, the fields of studies, and dissemination of knowledge of the
history of the Polish nation, as well as its modest maritime history. All of these
were conducted, particularly until 1956, in the new communist spirit. It became
customary to avoid, or hold back information regarding the country's economic
achievements of the pre-war time when, for over a dozen years, Poland had
managed to establish genuine bases for a versatile maritime economy. It was also
not advisable to glorify the Navy's combat achievements during the 1939-1945
period, when it was on active service with the Western allied fleets. Perfidious
communist authorities generated political trials based on false accusations against
war heroes who continued to serve as officers during the Stalinist rule of terror
Litwin and Karawajczyk 283
(1949—1953). These acts of repression included Navy men, and resulted in the
sentencing of several outstanding officers for (unproven) espionage. The senten-
ces included the death penalty.
Later, the Polish Navy, thanks to the dedicated, professional attitude of its
officers, refused to participate in the suppression of the so-called social protests
which took place with particular intensity in 1956, 1970, and 1981. Thanks to
this, it earned the respect and friendship of the Polish society.
Generally speaking, the achievements in the organization of the maritime
economy in Poland in 1948-1989 were considerable. Not only were the
commercial and fishing port complexes established, but shipowning firms were
developed and shipyards organized. An extensive system of education for this
field of the economy began to function, beginning with basic vocational studies
and leading to specialized, postgradate work. Several schools, particularly the
Gdansk and Szczecin technical universities, as well as other universities and
merchant navy academies in the towns previously mentioned, promoted
hundreds of graduates each year. The Navy could also boast of its own
university-level academies.
In the field of propagation of maritime culture and history, as well as the
conservation of nautical relics, Poland's achievements were the most distinctly
manifested of all the countries in the "Eastern Block."
Attempts to found a maritime museum in Poland were made just as soon as
hostilities ceased, and, in fact, the first such museum was set up in Szczecin in
1946. Unfortunately, this museum was subordinated to the Museum of Western
Pomerania in 1950, where, to this day, it functions as the Maritime Department
of the National Museum in Szczecin. Despite its subordinate status it continues
to play an important part in the preservation of historical nautical objects and in
encouraging townspeople to visit its attractive maritime exhibition. That exhibi-
tion is housed in a building apart from the main body of the museum and
comprises, among other things, the wrecks of three early medieval Slavic boats
and other artifacts illustrating the maritime traditions of the western Slavs. The
museum has a varied collection of ship's fittings, many of which are from the
ship Poznan, one of the "Frenchmen" mentioned earlier.
The second museum to be established in Poland was the Naval Museum,
established in 1953, which can today boast of approximately ten million visitors.
It has no dedicated, permanent display ship, but the destroyer Btyskawica, built
in Great Britain in 1936, has been on display since 1976. Following successful
adaptations to its new purpose, substantial exhibition space was gained. This was
improved by a special passageway made through the turbine and steam boiler
rooms.
An important achievement of the museum employees is the permanent
exhibition of armaments. Thanks to this, it has been possible to safeguard several
examples of what are now relies of armaments used at sea in the twentieth
284 Poland
century. It warrants mention here that the experience in keeping a ship as an
exhibit afloat was gained by the museum in the years 1960-1975 when another
worthy veteran of World War II, built in France in 1928, the destroyer Burza,
was opened to the public. Unfortunately, such exploitation was the reason for
the ship finally being scrapped.
A significant achievement on the part of the scientific staff of the Naval
Museum, is the publishing of the Historical Bulletin [Biuletyn Historyczny] . The
twelfth edition appeared in 1992. Such publications present articles concerning
various aspects of naval history.
The Naval Museum is not the only entity that accumulates relics and
disseminates information on questions of war at sea. A considerable role is played
by the fourteen halls of tradition found in the particular barracks, which
constitute local historical centres not only for the sailors, but also for local
communities. Among these, the most interesting exhibitions and collections are
accommodated at Gdynia-Oksywie and Hel, where one of the exhibits is the
Coast Guard cutter Batory, built in Poland before the war. In October 1939, the
Batory managed to break through the German blockade and reach neutral
Sweden. One commendable tradition is the custom of naming new naval vessels
after units previously famous for their active service. For example, a third Polish
submarine now bears the famous name of Orzet (Eagle).
The Polish Navy also conducts several cultural-educational activities. An
example of this is the organizing of numerous training-propaganda voyages for
young people and teachers. Within the framework of training activities, salvage
vessels traditionally cooperate with the Gdansk Maritime Museum, providing
assistance in the search for and exploration of shipwrecks.
A third museum dealing with the sea is the Oceanographic Museum and
Aquarium in Gdynia. As a part of the Sea Fisheries Institute, it has discharged
its statutory responsibilities in strict accordance with its original charter. Only
recently has it begun to develop broader interests, such as the study of the
ethnography of fisheries.
The leading museum of this kind in Poland, however, is the Central Maritime
Museum in Gdansk, established in 1960 and financed by the Ministry of Culture
and Art. Considering the country's remaining economic difficulties, Gdansk's
Maritime Museum has become a museum giant in the last thirty years, employing
a staff of about 250. In the same way, it constitutes the centre of Polish
nautological studies and provides protection for these types of relics. Through
the staffs efforts, it has been possible to purchase and adapt two historical
sea-going ships: the sail-training frigate Dar Pomorza, and the first coal-ore carrier
to be built entirely in Poland after the last war, the S.S. Sotdek. The museum
also possesses a large collection of traditional inland and sea-going craft, both
from Poland and from elsewhere in the world.
Litwin and Karawajczyk 285
The Museum's continually expanding premises are already extensive: the
unique port crane on the Motlawa river in the old city of Gdansk; a group of
three port granaries and a building taken over from the city's former power
station on the opposite bank of the Motiawa; a branch museum in Hel, displaying
exhibits from the history of fisheries; and a branch in Tczew, the museum of the
Vistula River. The Central Maritime Museum also has a large conservation
laboratory specialising in the preservation of artifacts recovered form the seabed.
It merits mention that the museum initiated in 1965 the first regular underwater
archaeological research in Poland. It has had its own ship for these purposes since
1973. The permanent exhibitions at the museum have become very much more
diverse as a result of the exploration of the numerous wrecks lying around and
on the bed of Gdaiisk Bay.
Having organised a historical monument conservation service, the Polish
Maritime Museum has taken on the responsibility of curator of all nautical
objects of historical interest in the whole of Poland. As a result, the museum has
also developed extensive programmes of ethnological, underwater, and land-
based archaeological investigations.
The Central Maritime Museum attaches considerable attention to educational
activities, offering, among other things, systematic classes for groups of school
children. It also conducts lectures and practical workshops for archaeology
students from the universities of Toruii and Warsaw.
A number of societies have been important in assisting the Polish Maritime
Museum fulfil its statutory obligations. These include the Friends of the Polish
Maritime Museum, who have made an important contirbution towards the
founding and expansion of this institution; the Friends of the Dar Pomorza, who
are raising funds for the construction of a dry dock for this ship; and the Friends
of the S.S. Sofdek, through whose efforts this vessel was adapted to museum
purposes.
A few other museums in Poland are involved in the protection of maritime
heritage. Among them is the Toruii Museum of Ethnography, with its extensive
exhibition of traditional fisheries in Poland. This is yet another institution playing
its part in the conservation of objects of nautical interest. It has a collection of
Vistula craft dating from the early twentieth century. A number of other
museums each have several boats and dugouts. In all, there are some thirty
traditional boats in Polish museums (not counting the maritime museums) as
well as nearly 150 dugouts, mostly obtained from archaeological excavations.
Company museums have also played an important part in preserving Poland's
cultural-industrial heritage. The idea of creating such museums was born in the
early days of communism in Poland. Their purpose was to collect documents
and artifacts illustrating the achievements of that era. Today, in the wake of major
political and economic change, these museums face serious difficulties. Still, their
collections illustrate an important era, that has come to an end and are of
286 Poland
significant historical value. Two companies with such museums are shipyards:
The Gdynia Shipyard, known as the Paris Commune yard before 1990, which,
besides its own museum, has managed to preserve and exhibit on it premises the
first ship it ever built there in 1930. The Gdansk Shipyard Museum has by far
the largest display area, much of which is now devoted to the birth of the social
movement, known to the world today as "Solidarity."
Apart from direct steps taken to safeguard material nautological relics, various
scientific institutions and societies play an important part in popularizing and
promoting that role. Thus, those conducting their activities in Gdansk include
the Institute of Pomeranian History and Maritime Affairs, the Baltic Institute,
and the Maritime Institute. Additionally, the University of Gdansk is becoming
more and more "maritime" in character, boasting a huge library with a significant
maritime profile. For several years now, an Institute of Ocean Technology has
been in existence, but there are no lectures provided in the history of this field.
Toruri University, in contrast, has an active faculty of Underwater Archaeology.
The scientific societies boast a considerable contribution to the study and
propagation of maritime history in Poland. The Gdansk Scientific Society,
whose members include scholars from various fields, including a considerable
group of historians interested in maritime problems, is a force with substantial
potential. Its achievements include several books on Gdansk's maritime history,
shipbuilding and shipping. Another such association is the Polish Nautological
Society, located at Gdynia. Its trademark is the quarterly Nautologia, which has
appeared, uninterrupted, for twenty-eight years. While considering the various
societies, mention must also be made of the Brotherhood of Submarine Lovers,
memberships of which include former crew members of such ships, among
others.
Recently, the "Cutter Brotherhood" has become very active. This is a society
whose aim is the preservation and proper operation of craft that have become
rare or have been withdrawn from service.
Poland's return to democracy in 1989 is clearly reflected in her domestic
politics. The outcome of this change includes elimination of publication cen-
sorship, which has allowed impartial study of naval history to reappear. One
example of this is the intensification of studies on the inland Pinsk flotilla. That
unit was the only formation of the Polish Navy to participate in operations against
the Soviet armies which invaded Poland without declaring war in September,
1939. We still await the results of these and other studies.
Several new steps have recently been taken in respect of the protection and
popularisation of Poland's maritime heritage. Not all can boast visible effects
today, but it is expected that there will be continued increase in interest in naval
history and the protection of such relics in the future. This was supported by
the establishment in 1991 of twelve Regional Centres of Studies and Preserva-
tion of Built Environment. Among these, Gdansk's centre has been entrusted
LitwJn and Karawajczyk 287
with an additional specialization: the study and protection of our waterside
cultural heritage. The Gdansk centre also collects documents and evidence of
relics of technology connected with the shipbuilding industry and shipping.
One expression of this new outlook on our heritage is the call for a conference
devoted to the protection of relics of industrial heritage. This conference, to be
held at Gdansk Technical University in 1999, will devote the sessions to the
protection of the maritime heritage and will be held at the Central Maritime
Museum in Gdansk.
There is hope, therefore, that the combined activities of all these groups will
ensure the continued growth of interest in the protection of maritime heritage
and, particularly, the completest possible preservation of artifacts, inluding
traditional craft which, because of their physical characteristics and condition,
present serious technical problems.
Naval History3
In Poland, there is a distinct division between maritime and naval history, as
well as a significant absence of works considering their relationship. Naval history
is regarded as a sub-discipline of military history which, in turn, is considered a
part of general history. This makes it a subject of special interest to the Polish
Navy and Army. The vast majority of books and articles on Polish naval history
have been published by naval officers or other researchers connected with the
armed forces, since they have had better access to documents kept in military
archives than their civilian colleagues. Access to source materials plays an
important role, particularly in writing contemporary history on the Polish Navy.
There are now in the Polish armed forces three principal institutions inter-
ested in naval history: the Institute of Military History in Warsaw, the Naval
Museum in Gdynia, the Institute of Humanities at the Naval Academy in
Gdynia.
The Institute of Military History conducts research in all branches of military
history, including naval history. The most famous naval historian at the Institute
is, in my opinion, Captain W. Dyskant, an assistant professor. Dyskant has
written several books and many articles on the history of the Polish Navy up to
1939, with an emphasis on the history of river flotillas. It is appropriate to note
that doctoral students of the field of naval history from all over Poland may
defend their theses at the Institute and, if successful, earn their degrees in military
history.
The Naval Museum in Gdynia is busy collecting all kinds of items related to
the past and present history of the Polish Navy, including Polish and foreign
publications. The Museum has a large collection of diaries, memoirs, accounts
and reports produced by officers and seamen who took part in World War II,
37 This section has been written by Commander Wincenty Karawajczyk, Polish Navy. Dr. Karawajczyk
is assigned to the Polish Naval Museum in Gdynia.
288 Poland
as well as many personal documents and keepsakes presented by members of
naval personnel or their families. The Museum has two distinct parts: the
museum ship Btyskawica, and an open-air exhibit of naval armaments. It warrants
mention here that the staff of the Naval Museum is engaged in publishing the
Historical Bulletin [Biuletyn Historyczny] , which has produced thirteen issues thus
far. All Polish naval historians may publish articles in this bulletin. At present,
Commander Dr. Z. Wojciechowski is director of the Naval Museum.
The Naval Academy's Institute of the Humanities, part of which is the
Department of Naval History, plays a leading role in studies and teaching of
Polish naval history. The staff is headed by Captain J. Przybylski, an assistant
professor and a prominent Polish naval historian. The Department of Naval
History is conducting research on the development of the Polish Navy during
its most interesting period: 1918—1989. Its staff prepares doctoral and habilitation
theses which include the main results of this research. These theses are, in most
cases, defended at the Institute of Military History in Warsaw.
The Department of Naval History is presently engaged in writing a
monograph on the Polish Navy and its role in coastal defense through the years
1918-1989. This effort should appear in print in 1996. It is worthwhile to
emphasize that, in preparation of this monograph, not only have professional
historians from the Institute of the Humanities taken part, but also economists
who study economic problems within the Navy in that period, teachers, who
examine the process of education and training of naval officers and seamen, and
sociologists, who study social aspects of the Navy.
Captain J. Przybylski's research concentrates on the postwar development of
the Polish Navy. He also conducts a seminar in naval history for doctoral
candidates. His students prepare theses on the organization, tasks, development,
training, and armament of various parts of the Polish naval forces for the years
1918—1989. They have contributed significantly to the development of the
previously mentioned monograph. Under Captain Przybylski's leadership, the
Institute of the Humanities has organized many symposia in the field of naval
history.
Apart from naval historians working for military institutions, there is a small
group of academic historians, dispersed in a few universities, who are also
interested in naval matters. Most of them are located at the University of Gdansk
(for example, Professors C. Ciesielski, Z. Machalirfski and S. Ordon are part of
the faculty there). A fair number of writers producing popular books about the
Polish Navy and its role in war at sea should also be mentioned. Among them,
E. Kosiarz and J. Pertek deserve special attention. Many valuable publications
on the history of the Polish Navy have also been authored by "researchers living
abroad." Most of them were originally members of the Polish Navy who did
not return to Poland after the dissolution of Polish naval forces in Great Britain
in 1947. They have had excellent access to original documents from World War
Litwin and Karawajczyk 289
II. S. Piaskowski from the older generation, and M. Kiriakowski from the
younger, both conducting their studies in Canada, are the most eminent authors
in this category, and are cited in later footnotes.
With regard to the teaching of naval history, only the Polish Navy
demonstrates a great interest. Except for the Naval Academy in Gdynia, this
subject is not taught at any university in Poland. The Academy has two courses
in naval history that midshipmen must study: the history of the Polish Navy,
and the history of the art of naval warfare. Each course is composed of sixty
hours of lectures and seminars and must be taken by students during the fourth
year of study. The course, on the history of the Polish Navy, examines the
antecedents, origins and development of the Polish naval forces in both their
national and international setting. Special attention is paid to the Polish fleet
between the fifteenth and seventeenth centuries and to the period after 1918,
when Poland regained its independence. The Last seventy-five years are divided
into three main time frames: (1) the Navy of the Second Republic, 1918—1939;
(2) the Polish Navy in World War II and in the postwar period in Great Britain,
1939-1947; and (3) the Navy of the Polish People's Republic, 1945-1989.
The second course examines the development of maritime strategy and tactics
from ancient to modern times. It is made up of three parts; first is the art of naval
war from the age of rowing fleets through World War I; second is the art of naval
warfare in World War II; and, third, the development of the art of naval warfare
after World War II. The focus is on tactical analysis of actions carried out by surface
ships and submarines against shipping lanes, and on the ways and means of
conducting anti-surface and anti-submarine warfare in the two World Wars.
The academic staff for teaching naval history at the Naval Academy includes one
professor and three lecturers, all of whom possess Ph.D. degrees in Military History.
Not only prospective naval officers, but also ordinary seamen (conscripts), are
introduced to naval history in the Polish Navy. During the so-called "patriotic
education" they take an eighteen-hour course entitled "Tradition and the
present day of the Polish arms at sea." This course includes such topics as Polish
arms at sea before 1918, the Polish Navy in the years 1918—1939, combat
operations of the Polish Navy in World War II, and the Polish Navy in the years
1945—1990. Commanding officers at company or ship's department level per-
form all teaching duties in this course.
The Naval Museum is not involved in the regular teaching process, but it
plays an important role in popularizing and protecting our naval heritage.
It must be emphasized that there is no organization in Poland that coordinates
and brings together the various studies in naval history. Each institution has its
own research program. Individual historians choose problems for studies in
accordance with their personal preferences. At times, plans for research are made
only in a small way, as in the Department of Naval History at the Naval Academy,
where the academic staff has focused its efforts on the comprehensive study of
290 Poland
the Polish Navy in the years 1918—1989. There is no doubt that Polish naval
historians, in order to be more effective, need a proper, underlying platform to
develop a common research scheme.
Polish naval tradition goes back to the period between the fifteenth and
eighteenth centuries, when Polish kings made several attempts, some of them
successful, to organize a fleet in order to protect the coast and seaborne trade.
Unfortunately, at the end of eighteenth century, Poland lost its independence
and for many decades could only dream about naval affairs. Hopes revived in
1918, when Poland again became independent. On 28 November 1918, Marshal
Pilsudski, the Polish head of state, issued a decree bringing the Polish Navy into
being. After the outbreak of World War II, the Polish Navy moved to Great
Britain, and it was the only branch of the Polish armed forces that fought against
Nazi Germany and its allies from the very beginning to the very end of that war.
That navy was officially dissolved in March 1947.
When Poland was liberated from Nazi occupation, reconstruction of another
navy, brought into being by the order of the commander-in-chief of the Polish
Army on 7 July 1945, was undertaken. So, for almost two years, there were
actually two Polish navies in existance; one in Great Britain and the other in
Poland, subordinate to the Soviet Union. That is why the Polish Navy, which
operated in conjunction with the British during World War II, did not return
to Poland as an entity. More than 85 percent of its personnel, totalling over
4,000 men, remained in Great Britain, the United States, France, Canada, and
Australia. The current Polish Navy is building on the traditions of both the
prewar and postwar navies.
Most naval historians in Poland have placed most of their research emphasis
on combat actions and on where Polish Navy ships served during World War
II, rather than on any other problems or periods of Polish naval history. Curiously
enough, the majority of comprehensive books on the role of the Polish Navy
in the Second World War have been produced by popular marine writers like
E. Kosiarz and J. Pertek, rather than by professional historians. Their works
have been very well received by the younger generation. Among the numerous
works devoted to World War II, there are a considerable number of studies
made by professional historians as well. For example, A. Rzepniewski and R.
Witowski, among others, have carefully examined the efforts of Polish seamen
in the defense of the Polish coast in September 1939, and later on the side of
the Allies. Some diaries and memoirs published by naval officers taking part in
38 E. Kosiarz, Flota Bialego Orta (Gdansk: 1980); E. Kosiarz, Od pierwszej do ostatniej salwy (Warszawa:
1973); J. Pertek, Matajlota wielka duchem (Poznari: 1989); J. Pertek, Wielkie dni matejjloty (Poznarf: 1967);
W. Kosianowski, ed., Polska Marynarka Wojenna od pierwszej do ostatniej salwy w drugiej wojnie swiatowej.
Album pamiptkowy (Rome: 1947).
A. Rzepniewski, Obrona Wybrzeza w i939 roku na tie rozwoju marynarki wojennej Polski i Niemiec
(Warszawa: 1970); R. Witkowski, "Udziai Polskiej Marynarki Wojennej w drugiej wojnie swiatowej,"
40 lat Ludowego Wojska Polskiego (Warszawa: 1984); A. Jaskowski, Kampania norweska (Glasgow: 1944).
Litwin and Karawajczyk 291
World War II supplement a vast literature in this field. Most valuable are the
diaries of B. Romanowski, B. Karnicki, W. Kon and J. Kfossowski. Thus, the
role of the Polish Navy in the war against the Kriegsmarine is one of the best
explored and most fully described areas of Polish naval history.
Studies of the 1918—1939 Polish Navy have also been undertaken quite
frequently. Although no elaborate, scientific description of that period has thus
far been completed, many interesting monographs on particular subjects have
been produced. For example, C. Ciesielski wrote about the Polish fleet in the
Baltic, and about naval education in Poland between the two World Wars.
W. Dyskant made a thorough analysis of river flotillas in Polish war plans, S.
Ordon described legal and economic problems of the Polish Navy, S. Roz-
wadowski touched upon the history of naval air division, and R. Witowski
showed the role of the naval base of Hel in the defense of the coast. Some
authors have attempted to present a comprehensive vision of the Polish Navy
during that period as well. Chronicles by S. Piaskowski, and two volumes of M.
Kuaikowski's monograph are among the best known works written with such
. .. .... 46
intentions.
After World War II, having discovered new original materials, many naval
historians focused their efforts on the era between the fifteenth and eighteenth
centuries. The privateer fleets attracted much attention and were described
in works authored by K. Lepszy, M. Biskup, E. Koczorowski, and J. Trzoska
among others.
With regard to the history of the People's Navy (the naval forces in Poland
in the years 1945—1989) — that is becoming an increasingly interesting subject of
thorough studies, although archival materials for the last twenty-five years are
still unavailable. Articles and books published by W. Radziszewski deal with the
first period of the People's Navy. Recent periods have been explored by J.
B. Romanowski, Torpeda w celu (Warszawa: 1985); B. Karnicki, Marynarski worek wspomnieri
(Warszawa: 1987); W. Kon, At lantyckie patrole (Warszawa: 1958); J. Kfossowski, Wspomnienia z Matynarki
Wojennej (Warszawa: 1970).
C. Ciesielski, Polskajlota wojenna na Baftyku w latach 1920-1939 na tie batiyckichjlot wojennych (Gdansk:
1985); C. Ciesielski, Szkolnictwo Marynarki Wojennej w II Rzeczypospolitej (Warszawa: 1974).
W. Dyskant, Flotylle rzeczne w planach i dziataniach wojennych II Rzeczypospolitej (Warszawa: 1991).
S. Ordon, Polska Marynarka Wojenna w latach. 1918-1939. Problemy prawtie i ekonomiczne (Gdynia: 1966).
44 J. Rozwadowski, Morski Dywizjon Lotniczy 1918-1939 (Albany: 1973).
45 R. Witkowski, Hel na strazy Wyhrzeza 1920-1939 (Warszawa: 1974).
M. Kudakowski, Marynarka Wojenna Polski Odrodzonej (Toronto: 1988), vols I— II; S.M. Piaskowski,
Kroniki Polskiej Marynarki Wojennej 1918-1946 (Albany: 1983-1990), vols. MIL
K. Lepszy, Dziejejloty polskiej (Gdarlsk-Bydgoszcz-Szczecin: 1947); M. Biskup, Gdanskajlota kaperska
w okresie wojny trzynastoletniej 1454-1466 (Gdarfsk: 1953); E. Koczorowski, Flota polska w latach
1581-1632 (Warszawa: 1973); E. Koczorowski, Bitwa pod Oliwa (Gdynia: 1968); J. Trzoska, Kaprzy
krola Augusta Mocnego 1116-1121 (Gdansk: 1993); Z. Cieckowski, Kaprowie krola Kazimierza (Gdynia:
1968); M. Krwawicz, Marynarke Wojenna i obrona polskiego wyhrzeza" w dawnych wiekach (Warszawa: 1961).
W. Radziszewski, "Powstanie i rozwqj Marynarki Wojennej PRL (Zarys historyczny)," Dzieje oreza
292 Poland
Przybylski who, in my opinion, is the most competent researcher in this field.
His doctoral thesis covered the development of the Polish Navy between 1949
and 1956, while his work, which qualified him as an assistant professor, deals
with more recent times. It is worth mentioning that in 1992 J. Przybylski,
together with C. Ciesielski and W. Pater, produced the most comprehensive
work on the history of the Polish Navy for the years 1918— 1980. 51 Apart from
such fundamental works, a great number of detailed studies on the above subject
have been published in the Maritime Review [Przeglad Morski\, the Historical
Bulletin [Biuletyn Historyczny], the Review of Military History [Wojskowy Przeglad
Historyczny] and other journals. The most important of them were recounted
by Z. Wasko and R. Witkowski in their article about the state of research on
52
the People's Navy.
Historians of the Polish Navy have written not only on the main periods of
its development but also on some particular problems. Unfortunately, not all
essential problems have been touched upon so far. Among the best examined
and described are studies of famous Polish men-of-war, such as the Btyskawica,
Burza, Grom, Wicher, and Orzet. The history of Polish submarines in the years
1926-1969, published by C. Rudzki should also be included in this group of
works.
Another question, relatively well explored, is the education of Polish naval
officers. The period between two World Wars was thoroughly researched by
C. Ciesielski, while the postwar period was studied by W. Biatek and T.
Struniewski. A special 70th anniversary issue of the Przeglad Morski (September
1992) was devoted entirely to Polish naval education.
Other problems have not been investigated so comprehensively. As a result,
we experience numerous lacunae and other weaknesses in Polish naval history.
From this long list, at least a few should be mentioned. For instance, the
polskiego na morzu (Gdynia: 1961); W. Radziszewski, XXX lat marynarki wojennej PRL (Warszawa:
1975); W. Radziszewski, Marynarka Wojenna w latache 1945-1949 (Gdansk: 1976).
J. Przybylski, Rozwdj Marynarki Wojenttej ijej rola w obronie Wybrzeza w latach 1949-1956 (Warszawa: 1979).
50 J. Przybylski, Marynarka Wojenna PRL w latach 1956-1980 (studium historyczno-wojskowe)
(Gdynia: 1988).
51 C. Ciesielski, W. Pater, J. Przybylski, Polska Marynarka Wojenna 1918-1980 (Warszawa: 1992.
Z. Wasko, R. Witkowski, "Proba oceny stanu badan historii Marynarki Wojennej PRL," Przeglad
Morski, 1980, no. 9.
53 W. Szczerkowski, ORP "Btyskawica" (Gdansk: 1970); J. Marczak, Niszczyciel "Btyskawica"
(Warszawa: 1970); J. Marczak, Kontrtorpedowiec "Burza" (Warszawa: 1970); R. Mielczarek, ORP
"Grom." Zarys dziejow (Gdansk: 1970); J. Pertek, Niszczyciele "Grom" i "Btyskawica" (Gdansk: 1969);
J. Pertek, Niszczyciele "Wicher" i "Burza" (Gdansk: 1971); J. Pertek, "Burza" - weteran atlantyckich
szlakow (Gdynia: 1965); J. Pertek, Dzieje ORP "Orzet" (Gdansk: 1972).
54 C. Rudzki, Polskie okrety podwodne 1926-1969 (Warszawa: 1985).
C. Ciesielski, Szkolnictwo Marynarki Wojennej w II Rzeczypospolitej (Warszawa: 1974).
W. Bialek, T. Struniewski, Wyzsza Szkoia Marynarki Wojennej imienia BonaterSw Westerplatte (Warszawa:
1978).
Litwin and Karawajczyk 293
development of naval aviation has not been sufficiently covered. There are only
two important publications from a scholarly point of view: one dealing with
C"J CO
prewar times and the other with postwar times. In addition, economic and
legal aspects of the Navy have not attracted much attention. So far, only one
naval historian, S. Ordon, has considered this subject. In the 1960s he wrote two
remarkable books devoted to the period between 1918 and 1939. Further-
more, the history of ports and naval bases has been almost completely ignored.
Apart from one of R. Witkowski's publications relating to the Hel naval base
in the years 1920—1939, there is virtually no literature in this field.
One of the serious drawbacks of Polish naval historiography has been lack of
a "Mahanian" school, or even individual researchers thinking like A.T. Mahan.
Such a situation can be understood to a certain degree because Poland never
intended to become a sea power. It is much more difficult to understand,
however, why Mahan's works are almost unknown in Poland. None of them,
for instance, have even been translated into Polish.
International naval history issues have often been evaluated by Polish authors.
I note, for example, E. Kosiarz, J. Lipiriski, and J. Pertek. In most cases,
however, their publications have not been based on their own sound studies,
but rather on the research of foreign naval historians. Very few publications have
been dedicated to the art of naval war, strategy, and fighting tactics. Those
authored by W. Glinski and R. Pietraszkiewicz are the most valuable.
Since World War II, ideology and politics have been very important to Polish
naval history. Under the communist regime a few topics, such as brotherhood
in arms, and friendship and cooperation between fleets of socialist countries in
the Baltic, were particularly well received. Others, on the other hand, were
prohibited; for example, the role of the Polish Navy in the war against Soviet
Russia in 1920 and in September 1939, or the oppression of prewar naval officers
in the postwar period. Sweeping political changes in Central and Eastern Europe
from 1989 on have, to some extent, affected the development of naval history
in Poland. There are no longer forbidden themes or problems for scientific
57 J. Rozwadowski, Morski Dywizjon Lotniczy 1918-1939 (Albany: 1973).
Z. Misztal, "Poczatki Lotnictwa Marynarki Wojennej," Rocznik Osrodka Nauk Spotecznych i
Wojskowych Marynarki Wojennej, no. 5 (1975).
S. Ordon, Kampania wrze'sniowa 1939 r. na morzu w swietle prawa miedzynarodowego (Gdynia: 1963);
S. Ordon, Polska Marynarka Wojenna w. latach 1918—1939. Problemy prawne i ekonomiczne (Gdynia:
1966).
60 R. Witkowski, Hel na strazy Wybrzeza 1920-1939 (Warszawa: 1974).
E. Kosiarz, Wojna na Battyku 1939 (Gdansk: 1988); E. Kosiarz, Wojna na morzach i oceanach
1939-1945 (Gdansk: 1988); J. Lipinski, Druga wojna swiatowa na norzu (Gdansk: 1976); J. Pertek, Od
Reichsmarine do Bundesmarine 1918-1965 (Poznari: 1966).
W. Glinski, Morski operacje desantowe w drugiej wojnie swiatowej (Gdansk: 1969); H. Pietraszkiewicz,
"Rozwoj polskiej morskiej mysli wojskowej w latach 1945-1969," Rocznik Osrodka Nauk Spotecznych
i Wojskowych Marynarki Wojennej, no. 5 (1970); E. Kosiarz, L. Ratajczak, "Taktyka 'wilczych stad'
niemieckich okretow podwodnych," Przeglad Morski, no. 10 (1958).
294 Poland
research, but that does not mean that the current political situation has no impact
on naval history. Sometimes one can come away with the impression that some
historians investigate particular problems, not because they are important, but
because they have been prohibited for a long time. In the war against Soviet
Russia in 1920, for example, the Polish Navy played an altogether insignificant
role. Only about one hundred seamen took part in the fighting on land, as there
were no actions at sea. Still, a number of historians have devoted research to this
subject, while there are many considerably more important topics to explore.
To sum up these remarks on the state of naval history in Poland, I must point
out, in the first place, that there exists a wide gulf between the study of military
affairs on the seas and of non-military maritime history; additionally, naval history
is taught exclusively in the Navy, mainly at the Naval Academy, and research
in this field is being done primarily by historians employed by military institu-
tions; furthermore, most researchers have concentrated on military operations
of the Polish Navy while other topics have been to some extent neglected. Also
of concern is that there is no organization or journal that brings the studies in
naval history together; and, finally, ideology and politics have shaped, to a certain
degree, the debates about naval history, mostly by creating demands for inves-
tigation into specific problems.
25
Portugal
Commander J. A. Rodrigues Pereira, Portuguese Navy
The geographical position of Portugal, at the southwestern extremity of the
European continent, has placed it, throughout history, astride important
sea routes. The territory of Portugal, which includes several parallel river systems
with good havens and ports, permits easy penetration of the country's interior
by ships and has led the various populations to pursue maritime activities,
sometimes as a complement to their terrestrial ones.
The Portuguese Navy evolved from the twelfth century and attained, through
judicious legislative measures, a great development by the fourteenth century.
At the beginning of the fifteenth century, under the guiding hands of the
maritime bourgeoisie and the Military Order of Christ, the nation became
conscious of its maritime capabilities and launched the enterprise of maritime
discoveries. In the space of about one century, this endeavor gave the Portuguese
extensive knowledge of two thirds of the surface of the world and produced an
immense maritime empire. Using, for the first time, innovative strategic
concepts that would later be adopted by other nations, Portugal succeeded in
obtaining for a time a command of the seas, which are written about today by
many respected naval strategists.
Portugal is definitively connected with the sea. Its maritime history has played
a significant role in the development of some of the most important chapters of
the world's history: its maritime achievement, its ships and seamen, its caravels
and carracks that voyaged over "seas that had never been previously navigated;"'
the transportation and supply of military expeditions; and seaborne trade and
fishing. The importance of leaving this rich history of our maritime and military
accomplishments to future generations was recognized very early by responsible
national leaders.
The Military Order of Christ replaced the Templars, who had previously been predominant in
Portugal.
Passing through many vicissitudes, and suffering various amputations, this maritime-colonial empire
would last until 1975.
Luis de Camoes, The Lusiads (1655: reprint, with introduction by Geoffrey Bullough, Cartendale:
Southern Illinois University Press, 1964). For a broad general overview in English of early Portuguese
maritime history, see the essays by Charles Verlinden and George Winius in Hattendorf, ed., An
Introduction to Maritime History: The Age of Discovery (Malabar, Fla.: Krieger Publishing, 1995).
296 Portugal
We can say that the history of the Portuguese Navy began with the scribes
of the sixteenth century carracks and with the chroniclers of the realm who left
us detailed accounts of Portuguese voyages, and military and naval actions,
particularly those that took place in the Orient and Africa. Although this was
done in a style that was very characteristic of that age, we find in them a
comprehensive account of Portuguese maritime activities in the fifteenth and
sixteenth centuries.
In 1 835 the first attempt to write a systematic study of our maritime history
appeared in the Annals of the Portuguese Navy, Royal Academy of Sciences.
However, whether due to the possibility that the original author had not finished
his work, or that it was lost, only the part that covers the years of 1 140-1 640 has
been preserved, and that deals only with the events that took place in the Atlantic
Ocean.
The end of the nineteenth century and beginning of the twentieth witnessed
the appearance of numerous scattered studies of our maritime history. The
majority of these were produced by illustrious naval officers.
In the 1930s, when the commemorations of the eighth centenary of the
founding of Portugal and the third centenary of the restoration of Independence
were taking place, The Clube Militar Naval promoted the writing of a history
of the Portuguese Navy, the absence of which was felt by all. This project, which
emerged from an organizing commission presided over by Commander Fon-
toura da Costa, was divided into six parts, and sub-divided into chapters.
Unfortunately, only the first volume, covering the period 1140—1385, was
eventually published.
In the 1960s, when the great commemoration of the fifth centenary of the
Q
death of Prince Henry took place, the absence of a comprehensive naval history
was once again made a prominent issue. At that time an important work of
maritime historiography was published, containing a repository of all the known
Portuguese nautical charts of the fifteenth to the seventeenth centuries.
On 5 March 1969, a Ministry of the Navy decree led to a group of studies of
maritime history. These proved to be the embryo of the present Academia de
Marinha, created in 1978, which presently comprises over one hundred mem-
bers. The Academia includes some of the most dedicated and zealous inves-
Between 1580 and 1640, Portugal and Spain were united under a dualist monarchy.
A Club of naval officers founded at the end of the nineteenth century.
6 The Periods that were to be covered were 1) from the founding of the nation to the battle of
Aljubarrota (1 140-1385); 2) The dynasty of Aviz (1385-1580); 3) The Philippine dynasty (1580-1640);
4) The dynasty of Braganca (until 1820); and 5) the Constitutional Monarchy and the Republic
(1820-1926).
Each period was intended to focus on administration, personnel, materials, and operations.
8 The Master of the Military Order of Christ, and the great stimulator of the Portuguese discoveries.
Armando Cortesao and Avelino Teixeira da Mota, Portugaliae Monumenta Cartagraphica (Lisboa:
Comissao Executiva das Comemorancoes do V Centenaria da Marte do Infante D. Henrique, 1960).
Rodrigues Pereira 297
tigators of maritime history, although it must be recognized that other excep-
tional workers in the same field exist outside that fine organization, as well.
At a time when Portugal is commemorating the centennials of its most
important maritime voyages and discoveries, the Academia de Marinha has
now undertaken the task of publishing a history of the Navy. The intent of this
project is to recognize in a significant manner, the transition from past to future.
After having made an analysis of previous attempts, and their planning, the
decision was made to produce a profound and well-documented work that could
be consulted by serious scholars and investigators, and one which would serve
as a fundamental source for study and investigation. According to the elaborated
plan, the work would be divided into periods, materials, parts and chapters, with
each period being designated a tome and containing the necessary number of
volumes based on the development of the parts and the required chapters. A first
estimate suggested that the complete work would consist of thirty-three tomes
in about one hundred volumes. The theses would be coordinated by a scientific
commission of seven members, who would select the authors and make a
preliminary evaluation of their proposed work so as to ensure compliance with
the defined directives.
The work is to be divided into six periods, according to the following
distribution:
1) From the beginning of the nation to the beginning of expansion
(1140-1415).
2) From the conquest of Ceuta to the death of D. Joao II (1415—1484).
3) From the reign of D. Manuel I to the invasion by the Duke of Alba
(1484-1580).
4) From the Philippine period until the end of the War of Restoration
(1580-1669).
5) The period of absolute monarchy (1669—1820).
6) The period of constitutional governments (after 1820).
Each period consists of generically equal parts comprising the following
subject areas in general:
- Ships, seamen, the art of navigation, and war at sea.
- Men, doctrines, organization, and legislation.
- Voyages and naval operations.
- The passage to India.
- Ports and maritime trade.
10 Those being the Cape of Good Hope (1487), the maritime route to India (1487-1488), Brazil (1500),
and the arrival in Japan (1543).
298 Portugal
Maritime history was first taught in the Naval Academy in 1864, with the
aim of providing "a brief and simple presentation of facts, some development of
outstanding events and a very brief synthesis of the various periods." A course
of naval history is currently being taught at the Naval Academy to give the
students a perspective of the development of naval power throughout history,
its use by the peoples who possessed it, and its consequences for the political
structure of the world. At the same time, it emphasizes the Portuguese maritime
position.
The following themes, dedicated exclusively to the History of the Portuguese
Navy, are also explored:
- The Portuguese Navy from the eleventh to the fourteenth century;
- Portuguese discoveries and expansion in the fifteenth century;
- The Portuguese maritime empire in the sixteenth century;
- The Evolution of cartography and Nautical Science;
- The Portuguese Navy in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries;
- The Portuguese Navy in the nineteenth century: technical evolution and
occupation of the coasts of the continent of Africa.
- The Portuguese Navy in the twentieth century: participation in World
War I, NATO and the war in Africa.
The Higher Institute of Naval Warfare also teaches some facts about our
maritime history, but only from the strategic point of view.
Courses at several Portuguese universities teach maritime history in the
programs leading to degrees in history, but under different names; for example,
the history of the expansion versus the history of the discoveries. The Lisbon
Faculty of Letters even has a course that is designated the History of the
Portuguese Navy. There is, in the Faculty of Letters of the University of
Oporto, a Centre of Historical Studies which is dedicated to study of the
country's traditional vessels in their historical and archaeological context. The
Luis de Camoes University also has a discipline on naval archaeology included
in its curriculum.
The Faculty of Social and Human Sciences of the Universidade Nova de
Lisboa awards a master's degree in the History of the Portuguese discoveries and
Expansion, with a specific area of study in Portuguese maritime activities during
the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. The Faculty of Letters of the classical
University of Lisbon awards a master's degree in Modern History, for the study
Vicente Almeida d'Eca, LJpcaes historia maritima geral (Lisboa: Imprensa Nacional, 1895).
The author taught at the Naval Academy from 1982 to 1988, and collaborated in the elaboration
of the present study programme.
Faculty of Letters of the Lisbon Classical University, Faculty of Letters of the University of Coimbra,
Faculty of Letters of the University of Oporto, Faculty of Social and Human Sciences of the Universidade
Nova de Lisboa, University of Evora, University of the Minho, and University of the Azores, these
being all teaching establishments of the State.
Luis de Camoes University is a private institution.
Rodrigues Pereira 299
of the Maritime Discoveries, and conducts seminars on nautical science and
cartography. Other, recently created, Portuguese universities give courses in
military history, which naturally includes the naval aspects of the conflicts in
which Portugal has been involved.
There is also the Maritime Museum in Lisbon which is a dependency of the
Portuguese Navy. It is dedicated to the study, gathering, and presentation of
elements related to Portuguese maritime activities. Its director enjoys the
collaboration of a consultative technical commission of eight members who are
specialists in various fields and who support the Museum with their studies and
investigation. The Museum also provide replies to consultations requested
from abroad. There are, in addition, about ten small regional museums in
Portugal, dedicated to local maritime affairs, regional craft, and fishing activities.
The period of maritime discoveries and Portuguese expansion (fifteenth and
sixteenth centuries) is the period best studied, albeit with a few lapses, because
it belongs to the most important period of Portuguese history, when Portugal
was a great maritime power and when significant developments in nautical
science and cartography occurred.
On the contrary, the least studied period is the eighteenth and nineteenth
centuries, when there was a progressive reduction in the importance of the
nation in international affairs, primarily as a consequence of the decline in
Portuguese naval power.
Students of our maritime history have been predominantly naval officers.
Thus, those aspects of it which are connected with military activities are logically
more developed than those linked to civilian ones. However, there are also other
dedicated investigators who have made studies of our merchant marine, regional
or traditional vessels (history and archaeology), and fishing activities. In some
parts of northern Portugal, these have special characteristics since they are, at
times, associated with agricultural pursuits.
The lack of a comprehensive history of the Portuguese Navy is a serious lapse
in national historiography, and one which must be corrected. The Portuguese
people, and the rest of the world, need to understand what our seafarers did and
how they lived — from the anonymous sailors of the medieval galleys, to those
who have collaborated recently with the United Nations in the embargoes
placed on Iraq and Serbia — so that other cultures that presently possess maritime
power will not forget that it was Portugal that pioneered those ocean voyages
that made it possible for it to "give new worlds to the world."
The Director is an active naval officer.
Specifically in the fields of strategy and naval shipbuilding.
The Napoleonic wars and Liberal wars are stressed here, particularly from the perspective of naval
power.
Luis de Camoes, The Lusiads.
Singapore
Malcolm H. Murfett1
It is rather paradoxical to think that the Republic of Singapore, which owes
a great deal of its phenomenal commercial success to its close involvement
with the sea, has still to develop more than a token appreciation of the roots of
its maritime and naval history.
Little is done on the island, for example, in an academic sense, to further the
cause of either of these branches of Singapore's local history. No courses on
these themes are offered at its two universities (the National University of
Singapore (NUS) and the Nanyang Technological University (NTU), or at the
Singapore Command and Staff College (SCSC) at Seletar Base. Apart from a few
lectures devoted to the ideas and influence of Mahan, Corbett, and Richmond
in the strategic studies course offerings at NUS and SCSC, there is little attempt
to cover international naval history in a systematic way at either of these
institutions. Although specific naval topics, such as the Anglo-German naval
armaments race, the Washington Conference and the Singapore Strategy, do
find their way onto existing regional-based courses at NUS, and the war at sea
is studied as part of a much broader military component within its history
department, the fact remains that naval issues appear more as an accompaniment
rather than a core of these academic courses. Maritime history fares little better
in comparison. Several lectures by Associate Professor Ng Chin Keong are
devoted to the development of Chinese maritime trade as part of a third year
B.A. general degree course on the Economic and Social History of Modern
China at NUS, but there is little else on the existing slate of courses that takes
account of maritime subjects.
Fortunately, some element of change is likely in light of the modularization
of curricula that both the NUS and NTU are planning to introduce at the
Senior Lecturer in British and European History, National University of Singapore.
In some senses, the irony is greater still since in the recent past Singapore has not only become the
world's busiest port, but also has been actively expanding its relatively small but modern, well-equipped,
naval fleet.
Ng Chin Keong is best known for his admirable book, Trade and Society: The Amoy Network on the
China Coast 1683-1735 (Singapore: Singapore Univ. Press, 1983), on the maritime trade of Fukien.
His book is a revised version of his award winning Ph.D. thesis at the Australian National University
in Canberra.
302 Singapore
beginning of the 1994-95 academic year. It is highly probable that a postgraduate
course in International Naval History will be launched at the NUS by the author
of this article at the earliest opportunity after 1994, and the likelihood is that
once the Singapore Armed Forces Training Institute (SAFTI) is expanded and
upgraded into a military academy in 1995, it will be better able to offer a greater
variety of naval topics for its students than is possible at the present time. On the
maritime front at the NUS, Associate Professor Ng Chin Keong is intending to
introduce a postgraduate level course on the Maritime History of China from
the Twelfth Century to the Fall of the Ch'ng Dynasty, but apart from this new
offering, nothing else is planned for the immediate future. Clearly, much more
could be done than is being tackled at present, particularly in the sphere of
Southeast Asian economic history and on specific issues such as piracy, which
have a contemporary relevance in Southeast Asian waters.
While the development of Singapore's maritime trade and its management
by the Port of Singapore Authority does receive some attention from the staff
of both the Geography and Economics Departments at the NUS and NTU, a far
more rigorous set of practical and technical training courses are offered to school
leavers at the well-equipped Singapore Polytechnic and Ngee Ann Polytechnic.
At the Singapore Polytechnic, which has a marine simulator on the premises,
diploma courses are offered in marine engineering, maritime transport, and
nautical studies, whereas Ngee Ann Polytechnic provides a diploma course in
shipbuilding and offshore engineering.
Of those academics currently working in the area of maritime studies at the
tertiary level in Singapore, arguably, the best known is Associate Professor Chia
Lin Sien of the Geography Department of NUS. Amongst his many research
publications are articles on container port development, ship-generated marine
pollution, navigational, resource, and environmental impacts upon the Straits of
Malacca and Singapore; and a chapter on "The Port of Singapore" in the
magisterial volume edited by Kernial Singh Sandhu and Paul Wheatley entitled
Management of Success: The Moulding of Modern Singapore.
C. Northcote Parkinson was among the first of the academics in Singapore
to write about maritime and naval affairs. As Raffles Professor of History at the
4 Chia Lin Sien, "The Port of Singapore" in Kernial Singh Sandhu and Paul Wheatley, eds.,
Management of Success: The Moulding of Modem Singapore (Singapore: ISEAS, 1989), pp. 314—36.
A selection of Chia 's prolific output is provided below:
"Ship-Generated Marine Pollution Issues in Southeast Asia," a conference paper presented to the
SEAPOL International Conference on the Implementation of the Law of the Sea Convention in the 1990s: Marine
Environmental Protection and Other Issues, Denpasar, Bali, Indonesia, 28—30 May 1990, pp. 264—303;
"Container Port Development in Asean: Shaping up for the Future," Shipper's Times, vol. 1 1(2), 1991,
pp. 2-6; "The Strait of Malacca and Singapore; navigational, resource environmental considerations,"
in Chia Lin Sien & Colin McAndrews eds., Southeast Asian Seas: Frontiers for Development (Singapore:
McGraw Hill, 1981), pp. 239—66; "Transportation of Oil in the Strait of Malacca and potential Marine
Pollution," in P.R. Burbridge, Koesoebiono, H. Dirschl & B. Patton eds., Coastal Zone Management in
the Strait of Malacca (Halifax, Nova Scotia: Dalhousie Univ. Press, 1988), pp. 165-78.
Murfett 303
University of Malaya, Singapore, in 1950—58, Parkinson published several books,
including his famous book on naval administration, Parkinson's Law, as well as
more regionally oriented books, such as War in the Eastern Seas, 1793—1815,
and British Intervention in Malaya, 1867—1877. After the university changed its
name, Kenneth G. Tregonning became Head of the Department of History at
the University of Singapore (Uni of S) and wrote Home Port Singapore: A History
Q
of Straits Steamship Company Limited 1890-1965, while he was still working in
the republic. His successor as Raffles Professor, Wong Lin Ken, a distinguished
economic historian in his own right, was the author of the standard work on
Singapore's early nineteenth century trade. He felt that Singapore's unique
geostrategic position — lying as it does between the Indian and Pacific Oceans —
deserved a more comprehensive study of this equatorial island's place in the
scheme of things than had been attempted hitherto. His exploratory findings,
which were published for the first time as an article, merely whetted the
appetite for more. Sadly, his untimely death in February 1983 robbed the
academic community of the fruits of his ongoing research on this fascinating
subject. Following on from Wong's work on trade, Ambassador Chiang Hai
Ding published his doctoral thesis from the Australian National University, A
History of Straits Settlement Foreign Trade, 1870-1915.
Despite the relative paucity of local academicians working in the realm of
maritime history, Singapore's close relationship with the sea has continued to
exert quite an appeal for a fair number of tertiary students in the past. Over the
years there has been no shortage of honours degree dissertations (known as
Academic Exercises) and masters' theses devoted to maritime affairs. A selection
of the more interesting is provided in the appendix at the end of this chapter.
Outside the realm of the academic world, the Port of Singapore Authority
(PSA) does have an educational function to perform and one which it
discharges responsibly. Apart from holding regional conferences and seminars
on a host of specialist maritime subjects from bunkering to container traffic,
C. Northcote Parkinson, Parkinson's Law and Other Studies in Administration (Boston: Houghton,
Mifflin, 1957).
6 C. Northcote Parkinson, War in the Eastern Seas, 1793-1815 (London: Allen and Unwin, 1954).
C. Northcote Parkinson, British Intervention in Malaya, 1867—1877, Malayan Historical Studies
(Singapore and Kuala Lumpur: University of Malaya Press, 1960). Although much of this deals with
the Royal Navy, it is a written only from the Colonial Office papers, not the Admiralty papers.
Q
Kenneth G. Tregonning, Home Port Singapore: A History of Straits Steamship Company Limited
1890-1965 (Singapore: Oxford Univ. Press, 1967).
Wong Lin Ken, "The Trade of Singapore, 1819-69," Journal of the Malaysian Branch, Royal Asiatic
Society, vol. xxxiii, part 4, no. 192 (December 1960), pp. 1-315.
Wong Lin Ken, "The Strategic Significance of Singapore in Modern History" Commentary, (the
Journal of the NUS Society), vol. 5, no. 2 (1981), pp. 3-16.
Chiang Hai Ding, A History of Straits Settlements Foreign Trade, 1870-1915. Memoirs of the National
Museum, no. 6 (Singapore: National Museum, 1978).
304 Singapore
the PSA encourages members of its executive team to undertake postgraduate
courses overseas in business management. In addition, the PSA also does its best
not only to cater to the demands of MBA students from a wide range of
Singaporean and foreign business schools and trade missions, but also services
requests from secondary school students in the republic who wish to work on
various port-related projects. It has recently established a new computerized
library at the Singapore Port Institute in Maritime Square with an array of
specialist books and reports, microfilm resources, a reasonable file of press
clippings from the early 1970s onwards, numerous trade periodicals, and the
proceedings of the many conferences and seminars the PSA has held on maritime
subjects in the past two decades. Furthermore, the PSA also publishes its own
monthly in-house staff magazine, Port View, and assists in the production of the
annual factual handbook, Singapore Port & Shipping, which is actually published
by Charter Pacific Publications of Victoria, Australia. Being an important
element in Singapore's commercial development, the PSA naturally takes its
economic role very seriously and is justifiably proud of its record of achievement
in the maritime world. Its buoyant and polished self-image is reflected in the
two elegant pictorial studies which it has commissioned in the past decade. Both
1 o
of the quasi-coffee table variety, Singapore: Portrait of a Port and A Port's Story:
1 ^
A Nation 's Success, are expensively produced books that look good and provide
a clue to the unabashed professionalism of the PSA. Eric Alfred, the former
curator of the PSA— sponsored Maritime Museum, also wrote and compiled an
interesting sixteen-page illustrated booklet, Singapore Port History, which does
much to complement Chris Yap's text in A Port's Story: A Nation's Success.
Apart from its publications, the PSA has also endeavoured in the past to bring
Singapore's success as a modern port to the attention of the general public
through the medium of its Maritime Museum sited on the offshore island of
Sentosa. Unfortunately, the static display items, faded photographs, and unex-
citing textual commentaries on the growth of Singapore's maritime trade and
port are not calculated to appeal to the younger generation. In addition, no
lectures, seminars, or conferences on maritime subjects are held on the premises,
and the Museum does not have a manuscript collection or a library or resource
centre for research purposes. It has produced a few, well- written, information
sheets on various aspects of Singapore's seafaring tradition, but these are not
readily available to any but the most inquisitive or persistent visitor. It is,
therefore, difficult to imagine that the Maritime Museum will be able to attract
large numbers of appreciative and enthusiastic visitors to its various galleries
without a large infusion of money, a change of location, and the introduction
of a much more interactive set of items than it has at present. As the Maritime
Port of Singapore Authority, Singapore: Portrait of a Port (Singapore: MPH Magazines (S) Pte, 1984).
Port of Singapore Authority, A Port's Story: A Nation's Success (Singapore: Times Editions, 1990).
14 Eric Alfred, Singapore Port History (Singapore: 1987).
Murfett 305
Museum's long-term future on Sentosa is far from certain, the PSA is under-
standably reluctant to provide it with the investment it so badly needs. This lack
of funds ensures that regardless of how committed its staff may be, the Maritime
Museum looks destined to remain a sad and unsatisfactory relic on a holiday
island given over to leisure and entertainment on a grand scale. Its future may
also be compromised to some extent by the anticipated success of the so-called
Singapore Maritime Showcase — a multimillion-dollar development on the
waterfront by the World Trade Centre on the main island of Singapore. This
high-tech, multimedia attraction — a celebration of Singapore's global port
status — will be roughly 5,000 square feet in surface area when the exhibition is
completed and opened to the public by the end of 1993. If it proves to be as
successful as the PSA imagines it will be, the death knell is likely to sound for
the Maritime Museum on Sentosa. Should that happen, the PSA may try to
house some of the more interesting artifacts from the Maritime Museum, such
as the racing jongs, outrigger canoes, and keeled boats (Kolek Sauh, Kolek Selat,
Kolek Chiau, and Pomehai), in the large foyer of the PSA head office in Alexandra
Road on the main island of Singapore.
Shipping companies who have played their part in the development of
Singapore's maritime trade, such as the Keppel Corporation and Neptune Orient
Lines (NOL), have also recently felt the necessity to commission histories of their
past deeds. Although NOL has already produced an earlier slim account of its
corporate history, it decided against releasing Only Yesterday: The Story of Neptune
Orient Lines 1969—1983 into the public domain. Now it has decided to
commission Dr. Grace Low, the Head of the History Department at NTU, to
prepare an updated version for publication in 1994. Keppel's plans for a
corporate history are still shrouded in mystery despite the planned launch in late
September 1993 of Richard Lim's, Tough Men, Bold Visions — The Story of Keppel.
Although it is expected to have a print run of 1 1 ,000, Lim's book on one of
Singapore's flagship companies is unlikely at this stage to be sold to the general
public and appears to be reserved for the exclusive use of customers and staff
only.
Singapore's controversial (some would describe it as infamous) military legacy,
wrapped up as it is with the fate of the British Empire, has never failed to attract
the attention of a host of historians from all over the world ever since the island
fortress fell to the outnumbered troops of the Imperial Japanese Army on 15
February 1942. Apart from the military historians who have sought a convincing
explanation for this allied debacle, other diplomatic and international scholars
moved into the arena in the hope of placing Singapore's surrender into a wider
Dr. Low has just completed a manuscript on the development of the port ofjurong (located on the
western coast of Singapore) which she is hoping to publish in 1994.
Richard Lim, Tough Men, Bold Visions — The Story of Keppel (Singapore: Keppel Corp., 1993), 141
pp.
306 Singapore
context of Britain's spectacular fall from grace on the world's stage in the
twentieth century. As a result, research work on British military involvement
with Singapore developed into one of the historical growth areas in the 1970s
and early 80s without much help from any of the island's academics. Interestingly
enough, much of this work was concerned with unravelling the so-called
"Singapore Naval Strategy." William Roger Louis's, British Strategy in the Far
1 7
East 1919—1939, may be seen as opening up the field for others to exploit in
the years that followed. W. David Mclntyre went much further in exploring a
r-r-rt 1 ft
purely naval theme in his The Rise and Fall of the Singapore Naval Base, as did
James Lord Neidpath in The Singapore Naval Base and the Defence of Britain's
Eastern Empire 1919-1941. Paul Haggie's, Britannia at Bay, Ian Hamill's, The
Strategic Illusion, Peter Lowe's, Great Britain and the Origins of the Pacific War
and Malcolm H. Murfett's, Fool— proof Relations, all managed to add something
to the naval story of what S. Woodburn Kirby was to describe as "the greatest
national humiliation suffered by Britain since Yorktown." After losing some
of its research topicality for a few years, the "Singapore Strategy" has resurfaced
once more in the vanguard of the republican movement in Australia. David
Day's, The Great Betrayal: Britain, Australia and the Onset of the Pacific War, led
the way and the Rt. Hon. Paul Keating, the Australian Prime Minister, joined
in the fray with a series of outspoken remarks about the iniquities of the British
military and government in allowing the island of Singapore to fall to the Japanese
in 1942. Malcolm Murfett wrote an answer to these charges. While not going
as far as Day and Keating in their scathing denunciations of the perfidious British,
his article is critical of what he sees as both British and Australian wishful thinking
as far as Singapore was concerned during the inter- war period.
Given the high level of interest in Singapore's part in British naval history up
to 1942, the fact that its immediate postwar role is usually passed over in silence,
17 William Roger Louis, British Strategy in the Far East 1919-1939 (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1971).
18 W. David Mclntyre, The Rise and Fall of the Singapore Naval Base (London: Macmillan, 1979).
19 James Lord Neidpath, The Singapore Naval Base and the Defence of Britain's Eastern Empire 1919-1941
(Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1981).
20 Paul Haggie, Britannia at Bay: The Defence of the British Empire Against Japan, 1931-1941 (Oxford:
Clarendon Press, 1981).
Ian Hamill, The Strategic Illusion: The Singapore Strategy and the Defence of Australia and New Zealand,
1919-1942 (Singapore: Singapore Univ. Press, 1981).
22 Peter Lowe, Great Britain and the Origins of the Pacific War (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1977).
23 Malcolm Murfett, Fool-proof Relations: The Search for Anglo-American Naval Cooperation during the
Chamberlain Years, 1937-1940 (Singapore: Singapore Univ. Press, 1984).
24 S. Woodburn Kirby, Singapore: The Chain of Disaster (London and New York : Macmillan, 1971),
p. xiii.
25 David Day, The Great Betrayal: Britain, Australia and the Onset of the Pacific War (New York: W.W.
Norton, 1989).
26 Malcolm Murfett, " Living in the Past: A Critical Re-examination of the Singapore Naval Strategy,
1918-1941 " War & Society, vol. 11, no. 1 (May 1993), pp. 73-103.
Murfett 307
or in a few sentences at most, looks a little odd and requires some investigation.
Sadly, it is all too explicable since it results largely from the deficiencies in the
primary source material covering this topic. All of the authors who have
published works on British defence policy east of Suez in the post— 1945 period
have, for example, been denied access to more than a mere fragmentary record
of the deliberations of the extremely important regional policy-making com-
mittee in Southeast Asia known as the British Defence Coordination Committee
(Far East) . This mixed civil-military review body was chaired by the Commis-
sioner-General Malcolm MacDonald and included the regional Chiefs of Staff
from all three British armed services based at the Far East Station in Singapore.
It was in virtually constant communication with the Chiefs of Staff and the Joint
Planning Section in London, as is witnessed by the large number of references
to the COSSEA and SEACOS cables which litter the Ministry of Defence files
for the immediate post— 1947 period. Its work embraced review studies and
military appreciations which were sent to both departmental and Cabinet sources
in Whitehall. Unfortunately, the British government has embargoed all the files
relating to the work of this committee under Section 3(4) of the Public Records
Act 1958 and steadfastly refuses to relent and release this information into the
public domain. As a result, scholarship on the Singaporean end of the British
defence story east of Suez in the post-war period has been sparse, although Toni
Schonnenberger did try to do justice to this theme in his book. Unfortunately,
little scholarly activity on this topic followed in his wake. After vainly pursuing
the British government for clearance to use the British Defence Coordination
Committee (Far East) papers throughout the decade of the 1980s, Malcolm
Murfett finally decided in 1992 to write up the research project on Singapore's
role in British naval defence of the Far East, which he had been working on for
a number of years.
Complaints about the lack of access to the British records may also be
advanced in the case of the Singaporean National Archives. Although Singapore
has officially adopted a twenty-five-year rule for its public records, there are two
notable departmental exceptions to this rule, namely, the Ministry of Defence
and the Ministry of Home Affairs. Neither of these departments are required by
the government to lodge their official records with the National Archives, and
both will remain independently responsible for all their documents in the years
to come. Presumably, therefore, public access to these primary sources will be
severely restricted. Even those departments and statutory boards that are required
by law to send their primary source material to the National Archives have
somehow managed to circumvent the ruling and retain their most important
and confidential files. Moreover, they have even imposed a restricted access on
Toni Schonnenberger, Derbritische Riickzug aus Singapore 1945- 191 6 (Zurich: Atlantis Verlag, 1981).
Malcolm Murfett, hi Jeopardy: The Royal Navy and the Role of Singapore in British Far Eastern Defence
Policy, 1945-51 (Kuala Lumpur: Oxford Univ. Press, 1994).
308 Singapore
those papers which they have been willing to pass to the National Archives.
Applications from researchers for approval to examine these records in the
National Archives will be handled on a strictly case-by-case basis. Although it
is not specifically stated, one may infer that Singaporean nationals are more likely
than foreign scholars to get what access may be granted to these records in the
years to come. It is a moot point, of course, whether or not the individual public
bodies will ever trust the National Archives sufficiently to handle their most
sensitive material. An additional problem is posed by the fact that some of the
statutory boards may not have established a file registry as yet — the PSA is a prime
example — an administrative omission that will vastly complicate the process of
anyone using these official records for research purposes in the future.
Moreover, before the bulk of these files are turned over to the National Archives,
the individual ministries and statutory boards will have to evaluate all this material
and decide on what ought to be released for public inspection, or that which
must be embargoed for a specific number of years — or even indefinitely. Once
this stage has been completed, and before the public records of the Republic of
Singapore can be made available to bona fide scholars, the staff of the National
Archives will have to compile a number of reference ledgers that list by name
and number all the individual files which these public bodies have passed to the
National Archives for its safeguarding. If these are not sufficient reasons for
pessimistic concern, the fact is that the National Archives desperately needs a
purpose-built building to house its permanent records. Its present building — an
old, labyrinthine structure, which it shares with the Oral History Archive and
other assorted ventures — is thoroughly unsuitable on a number of grounds.
Apart from its somewhat dilapidated appearance, the Hill Street building is
neither secure nor large enough to act as a repository for all the official
Singaporean records generated since 1959, nor is it equipped to serve as a modern
search-room for scholars and interested members of the general public to consult
those public records that it possesses. Its Oral History Archive (OH A) has some
considerable potential, but its catalogue is hardly user-friendly and provides
insufficient information to potential researchers about the contents of the taped
interviews or personal reminiscences which form the bulk of the OHA's stock
of material.
Of the documents that are open in the National Archives and relate to naval
and maritime history, there are five War Office files drawn from the WO 32
and WO 106 classifications (originating in date between 1924—1939 on the
subject of the Singapore Naval Base); thirty-nine documents are to be found in
the CO 273 series on a range of different naval and maritime subjects, and an
index of Straits Settlements records for the years 1890—1946 is also available. It
should be noted, however, that all this archival material and much else, besides,
in the Ministry of Defence (DEFE) and Foreign Office General Correspondence
Murfett 309
(FO 371) files can be consulted in the Public Records Office at Kew Gardens
in London.
Owing to the highly sensitive nature of its work, the Ministry of Defence
(Mindef) in Singapore is officially exempt from observing the twenty-five-year
rule on the release of its departmental papers. According to the staff of the
Military Heritage Branch at Mindef s new headquarters at Bukit Gombak, the
likelihood is that non-military personnel will not be granted permission to
examine its confidential files at any time in the foreseeable future. If such a ruling
is likely to apply to local researchers, it stands to reason that foreigners will not
have the faintest chance of gaining access to Mindef s files for many years to
come. Research possibilities into aspects of the history of the Republic of
Singapore Navy (RSN) are, therefore, very limited and largely dependent upon
the information the RSN wishes to yield to the general public in the com-
memorative volumes which the Naval Archives produces from time to time.
The Republic of Singapore Navy is one such volume — a slim thirty-page affair
replete with colourful snapshots capturing the essence of an active and demand-
ing service. It does not seek to be a scholarly tome, but looks and reads as though
it were designed as part of a recruitment campaign to sell the merits of the RSN
to the youth of the island. The Pointer, the journal of the Singapore Armed
Forces (SAF), can also be relied upon to publish uncontentious pieces on the
RSN from time to time. Far more important than either of these sources of
information is the ongoing research project on the history of the RSN, which
was set in motion in the early 1990s by Teo Chee Hean, the then Commander
of the RSN. Lieutenant Colonel Lim Kwong Hoon, a trained historian with a
master's from Duke University, was asked to begin the task before he took early
retirement from the service. According to Lieutenant Colonel Lim, he had
finished a chapter on the Confrontation period (1963—65), written up a proposed
outline for a thirteen-chapter manuscript covering the entire history of the
Singaporean fleet and had found source references for many of the individual
topics which he thought should be included in this work before he left the RSN
in 1992. One may assume that the project will continue to be advanced through
the work of other naval officers until the complete history of the RSN is
concluded. Whether this manuscript will be published or merely used as an
in-service information tool for RSN personnel is far from clear at this stage.
Despite its silence on this matter, the RSN is nonetheless keen to provide the
general public with what it describes as "a showcase of the RSN's Heritage"
through the establishment of the Naval Museum which was opened at RSS
Panglima — the School of Naval Training — in Sembawang Camp on 22 June
1987 by Lieutenant General Winston Choo, Chief of General Staff on the SAF.
The Republic of Singapore Navy (Singapore: RSN Archives, 1988)
See also the Singapore Nava
Singapore Navy (Singapore: 1987)
See also the Singapore Naval Archives booklet, Pictorial History of Brani Naval Base: Republic of
310 Singapore
Unfortunately, it has neither a library nor an archive of its own, nor is it used as
a centre for lectures, seminars, or conferences on the RSN's historical develop-
ment. Far from being a research facility, the Naval Museum is designed as a visual
experience. On display are a range of interesting artifacts (including such items
as the mine-sweeping hammer, a decompression chamber, and a host of naval
guns) that have been collected over the years by S.W.O. Wee Cheng Leong, the
part-time curator of the Naval Museum. Despite the fact that S.W.O. Wee has
done a good job in gathering display items to reflect the history of the RSN, the
Naval Museum lacks a certain sophistication and is chronically underfunded. Its
very existence may be an encouraging step in the right direction, but unless the
RSN has a change of heart and decides to upgrade its facilities, it looks destined
to remain a small amateur venture rather than a glamorous professional attraction.
On the whole, therefore, the record of maritime and naval history in
Singapore today is mixed. While, admittedly, some work is being done on both
subjects, research on a whole range of interesting contemporary topics- — espe-
cially for the post— 1959 period — is full of potential pitfalls even for those trusted
and empowered to undertake this work on behalf of the Singaporean authorities.
By the same token, foreign scholars who wish to work on these topics in
Singapore face an even more daunting challenge. If they are denied access to
archival sources (a reasonable assumption in the circumstances!), they will almost
certainly be forced to rely upon conducting oral interviews and scouring the
pages of the local English-language daily newspapers, The Straits Times and
Business Times, together with those quality journals, such as The Economist, Asia
Wall Street Journal and the Far East Economic Review, in an effort to stitch together
what, under the circumstances, cannot be anything more than an incomplete
story. Unless the government relaxes its rules on the freedom of information,
and major companies follow suit — an unlikely scenario — quality research work
on Singaporean maritime and naval subjects in the modern era will remain
regrettably compromised. This is particularly unfortunate since there are lessons
for others to learn from Singapore's postwar experience. At this stage, however,
debate on various aspects of Singapore's maritime and naval past remains
muted — a casualty, one imagines, of the prevailing belief that history is somehow
irrelevant at a time when a nation is in active pursuit of commercial success and
material prosperity. For these reasons the unusual paradox mentioned in the
opening paragraph looks likely to remain ironically valid for many years to come.
Bibliographical Appendix
Economics and Statistics Department (University of Singapore and
National University of Singapore)
Unpublished Academic Exercises:
Chou Sook May, "Marine Resources and Tourism: The Case of Singapore"
(1986)
Kaur, Pirtpal, "Pricing of Services at Telok Ayer Basin" (1973)
Kuek Eng Chyne (Anthony), "Development of Coastal Shipping in Singapore"
(1971)
Lee Fou Yoong, "A Manpower Study of the PSA Operations Division" (1973)
Lee Tuan Penh (Michael J.), "The Port of Singapore" (1969)
Leong Mun Keong, "Shippers and Agents in Singapore's Coastal Trade" (1971)
Loh Fong Kwee (Daniel), "Concentration in the Shipbuilding and Repairing
Industry in Singapore" (1971)
Ng Chee Keong, "The Effects of the Free Trade Zone or the Entrepot Trade
of Singapore" (1973)
Oh Kim Wee, "Flags of Convenience: Practice and Implications for Singapore"
(1977)
Sze Toh Kok Leang, "A Study of Cargo Handling in Singapore in Singapore's
Coastal Shipping" (1971)
Yeo, Annie, "The Structure of Singapore Shipping Industry" (1973)
Geography Department (University of Singapore and
National University of Singapore)
Unpublished Academic Exercises:
Chia Beng Hock (Alan), "The Malacca Straits: A Study in Political Geography"
(1986)
Kalyanam, Ganesh s/o R., "Container Port Development in ASEAN" (1990)
Lee Kai Yin, "South Asian Shipping and its Links with Singapore" (1989)
Teo Kiew Ting (Mary Celine), "The development of the port of Singapore
1819-1959" (1962)
Wee Siew Sun, "The port of Singapore — postwar development of its physical
facilities" (1977)
History Department (University of Singapore and
National University of Singapore)
Unpublished Academic Exercises:
Richard Cheong, "The Singapore Naval Base, a local history" (1983)
312 Singapore
Chiang Ming Shun, "Military Defences and Threat Perceptions in Nineteenth
Century Singapore" (1992)
R.D. Jansen, "The idea of Singapore as a Naval Base & the abandonment of that
idea 1885-1905 (1954)"
Bhajan Singh, "The Defence of Singapore from 1902 to the Washington
Conference" (1975)
E. Wong, "The Singapore Harbour Board 1913-1941 (1961)"
Yeo Piah Woon, "The Singapore Harbour Board 1946-57 (1975)"
History Department
Master of Arts Thesis:
George Bogaars, "The Tanjong Pagar Dock Co." (1952)
Political Science Department (National University of Singapore)
Unpublished Academic Exercises:
Kuldip Singh, "Implications for security in Southeast Asia of the 1982 Conven-
tion on the Law of the Sea" (1985).
South Africa
C.I. Hamilton
To most South Africans, the sea is the hidden frontier. There are so many
who appear to regard it as nothing more than a pleasing background to a
holiday, or perhaps a source of vicarious excitement when a storm endangers
ships off the coast. This indifference is striking, given the strong maritime
elements present in the country's geography, history, and economy. Maritime
studies have inevitably suffered, and to a degree not to be found in other
countries known to this author. The circumstances peculiar to South Africa will
be addressed after a survey of what is taught there and its current state of research.
A suitable beginning is maritime archaeology, because it offers a striking
example of South Africa's uninterest in its maritime heritage. There are nearly
three thousand recorded wrecks off the coast of South Africa, dating from the
sixteenth century; but scarcely any of these have been properly investigated.
There is a telling contrast here with another "new country," Australia, where
there are few wrecks, but much research. It is encouraging, however, that interest
has been increasing lately. Admittedly, some of the growing interest in wrecks
is from scuba-looters, and there are increasing complaints about their selfish
depredations, but there are also private divers who are putting their energies and
enthusiasm at the disposal of institutions. Museums have also become more
active in the area. Those in ports, notably the Local History Museum, Durban;
the East London Museum; the Port Elizabeth Museum and the Natal Museum
in Pietermaritzburg, and to a lesser extent the Bredasdorp Museum, tend to have
good collections of artefacts from wrecks, look to extend them and, where
Dr. C.I. Hamilton is a member of the Department of History, University of the Witwatersrand,
Republic of South Africa.
Acknowledgenment: I wish to thank all those who responded to my requests for information about
maritime studies in South Africa, though I am obliged in particular to the generous help of Commander
W.M. Bisset, Dr. L. van Sittert, Miss H. Van Niekerk (Transport Economics, University of Stellenbosch),
and Drs B. Werz. Of course, only the author can be held responsible for his opinions. I also owe much
to those who suggested (with perfect politeness, apart from one oddity) a degree of surprise that members
of their departments should be thought to have anything to do with the sea: such replies set the context
to the chapter.
The references given are almost entirely limited to work undertaken in the last twenty years. It is
not exhaustive; notably, short reports and undergraduate theses have been excluded; but it is hoped that
at least the great majority of recent significant work has been included.
314 South Africa
possible, study them and publish results. The South Africa Cultural Museum
in Cape Town has a Maritime Archaeology Unit, though at present it has only
one member, and the Local History Museum, Durban, hopes soon to make a
similar appointment. These museums are also much concerned with educating
the public in regard to salvage.
University interest in the subject has grown somewhat, but is still more
limited. There is no specialist department in the country, but in 1988 a trained
maritime archaeologist was appointed to the Archaeology Department at the
University of Cape Town (UCT). The departmental courses reflect this,
perhaps most interestingly in the one on maritime traffic around the African
coast from about 1500 to 1800, dealing, inter alia, with shipboard life and contacts
with indigenous peoples. Moreover, joint student projects have been arranged
with surveying, oceanography, chemistry, marine law and marine geo-science.
With regard to research, one must note the work on the wrecked V.O.C. vessel
C. Auret and T. Maggs [Natal Museum], "The Great Ship Sao Bento: Remains from a mid-sixteenth
century Portuguese wreck on the Pondoland Coast," Annals of the Natal Museum, 25, 1 (1982), pp. 1—39.
G. Bell-Cross [Curator, the Provincial Museum, Mossel Bay], "The Occurrence of Cornelian and Agate
Beads at Shipwreck Sites on the Southern African Coast," The Coelacanth, 25, 1 (1987) pp. 20-32.
Bell-Cross, "Portuguese Shipwrecks and Identification of their Sites," in E. Axelson, ed., Dias and his
Successors, (Cape Town: Saayman & Weber, 1988), pp. 47—80.
T. Maggs, "The Great Galleon Sao Joao: Remains from a mid-sixteenth century wreck on the Natal
South Coast," Annals of the Natal Museum, 26, 1 (1984), pp. 173-86.
B.R. Stuckenberg [Director, Natal Museum], research on the Santiago wreck is far advanced and
publication is planned.
G.N. Vernon [East London Museum], "Oriental Blue and White Porcelain Sherds at Shipwreck Sites
between the Fish and Kei Rivers," The Coelacanth, 25, 1 (1987), pp. 15—19.
On also the human consequences of wrecks, see:
G. Bell-Cross, "A brief Maritime History of the Coast between the Kei and Fish Rivers," The
Coelacanth, 20, 2 (1982), pp. 27-39, and 21, 1 (1983), pp. 7-12.
J.M. Costello [East London Museum], "S.S. Umzimvubu," The Coelacanth, 24, 2 (1986), pp. 6-15.
D.A. Webb and K. Stripp [East London Museum], "Wrecked Twice in one Voyage. The Experiences
of an Eastern Cape Merchant," The Coelacanth, 26, 1 (1988), pp. 35-47.
J. S. Bennie [Port Elizabeth Museum], M.A. research on the Amsterdam.
For an enthusiastic account of a non-professional survey of a wreck, see Allan Kayle, Salvage of the
Birkenhead (Johannesburg: Southern Book Publishers, 1990).
B.E.J. S. Werz [Archaeology, UCT], "Saving a Fragment of the Underwater Heritage; a
Multi-Faceted Approach," CABO: Yearbook of the Historical Society of Cape Town, 4, 4 (1989), pp. 13-18.
Werz, "A Preliminary Step to Protect South Africa's Undersea Heritage," IJNA, 19, 4, (1990), pp.
335-38.
Werz, "The Excavation of the Oosterland in Table Bay: the first Systematic Exercise in Maritime
Archaeology in Southern Africa," South African Journal of Science, 88, 2 (1992), pp. 85—90.
Werz, "Tafelbaai gee sy geheime prys. 'n Histories-argeologiese ondersoek van die VOC-skip
Oosterland," Huguenot Society of South Africa Bulletin, 29 (1992), pp. 54-61.
Werz, "Maritiem argeologiese ondersoeke in 'n Suid-Afrikaanse konteks: doelstelling, metode en
pratyk," Tydskrifvir Geesteswetenskappe, 33, 1 (1993), pp. 20-6.
D. Miller, J. Lee-Thorp, & B. Werz, "Amber in Archaeological Contexts in South Africa," The South
African Gemmologist, 1 , 2 (1993), pp. 4-8.
Werz and U.A. Seemann, "Organic Materials from Wet Archaeological Sites: the Conservation of
Waterlogged Wood," The South African Archaeological Bulletin, 48(1993), pp. 37-41.
Hamilton 315
Oostetland, the first scientific underwater excavation in South Africa. In the same
general context, one ought to mention the Maritime Law Institutes at the Universities
of Natal, Durban (ND) and UCT, and the Department of Public Law at UCT, not
so much because the two former offer courses of inevitable historical maritime
significance (more striking in the case of UCT), but because there are researchers at
all three studying jurisdiction in coastal waters (which is crucial to control of wrecks)
as well as other matters of interest to maritime historians.
One area in which there has long been interest is port development and the urban
history of ports. Here, too, the port musuems are engaged, not just at the level of
organizing exhibits and exhibitions, but occasionally also publication. One museum
unmentioned so far, Simon's Town Museum, has its own historical society, which
regularly publishes articles on the local history of the town in its Bulletin, and some
years ago published a solid and well-illustrated volume of research work. (This is
separate from the new Simon's Town Naval Museum, in the Dockyard.)
4 Professor Devine, (Institute of Maritime Law, UCT), was good enough to send me the following
list of relevant publications of himself and his colleagues:
D.J. Devine and G. Erasmus, "International Environmental Law," chapter 9 of M.A. Rabie, et at.,
Environmental Management in South Africa (Cape Town: Juta, 1982), pp. 155—79.
Devine, "The Cape's False Bay: a Possible Haven for Ships in Distress," SAYIL, 16 (1990-91), pp.
81-91.
J.I. Glazewski, "The Admiralty Reserve — an Historical Anachronism or a Bonus for Conservation in
the Coastal Zone," Actajuridica, (1986), pp. 193-201.
Glazewski, "The International Law of the Sea," Marine Science and Technology in South Africa, (1990),
pp. 12-13.
Glazewski & M.A. Rabie, "The Evolution of Public Policy with regard to the Environment: a Legal
Perspective over the last Fifty Years," S. A. Journal of Science, 86 (1990), pp. 413-19.
Glazewski, "The Regulation of Whaling in International and South African Law," SAYIL, 16
(1990-91), pp. 61-80.
Glazewski, A. Dodson, and H. Smith, "Tightening Up the Law" in M. Ramphele, con. ed. with C.
McDowell, Restoring the Land: Environment and Change in Post-Apartheid South Africa, (London: The
Panos Institute, 1991), pp. 139-54.
Glazewski, J. Gurney, and J. Kirkley, "Offshore Minerals," in M.A. Rabie, et al., Environmental
Management, pp. 380-416.
Glazewski, A. Heydorn, and B. Glavovic, "The Coastal Zone," in M. A. Rabie, pp. 669-89.
One should note, too, B.L. Allen, Coastal State Control over the Historical Wrecks Situation on the
Continental Shelf as Defined in Article 16 of the Law of the Sea Convention 1982, M.A., Public Law, UCT,
1991; and H. Staniland (Institute of Maritime Law, ND), is working on Admiralty Court jurisdiction
over salvage and wreck claims.
G.N. Vernon, [East London Museum], "From Sail to Ro-Ro: the Story of a River Port," The
Coelacanth, 19, 1 (1981), pp. 5-10.
See also M. Parkes and V.M. Williams, Knysna the Forgotten Port. The Maritime Story, (Knysna: EMU,
1988).
B.B. Brock and B.G. Brock, in close collaboration with H.C. Willis, Historical Simon's Town. Vignettes,
Reminiscences and Illustrations of the Harbour and Community from the Days of the Dutch East India Co. and of
the Royal Navy at the Cape of its Administrators, Personalities and Buildings, with Special Notes on Shipwrecks
and Navigation, published on behalf of the Simon's Town Historical Society (Cape Town: A. A. Balkema,
1976).
31 6 South Africa
However, it is the universities that take the lead in studying the history of
ports, although there appear to be no courses with a strong enough historical
and maritime element to qualify for inclusion here. The Architecture Depart-
ment at the University of Port Elizabeth, however, is considering a course on
shipbuilding and urban development. On the other hand, at the research level
there is much activity; a number of masters and even doctoral theses have been
written since the Second World War and more are in hand, with consequent
publications, not just in history departments but also economics, architecture,
and geography. The approaches vary, but even where the ultimate aim is to
write a contemporary study, at least some historical context is given; inevitably,
though, it is the history departments where port research is most relevant to this
survey. The UCT department is predominant, having issued several volumes of
working papers over the past years on various aspects of Cape Town's past and
members of the staff have also published independently on the subject. A
three-year project is now under way to write the history of the "mother city."
However, once one looks beyond work on the ports and the shoreline, far
less research activity is to be found. Seamen, shipping, fishing, and exploration
7 D.P. De Beer, "A Study of the Utilisation of East London Harbour and its Relative Importance in
the South African Import and Export Trade to 1975," doctoral thesis, University of Rhodes, 1979.
H.R. Fitchett [Architecture, Witwatersrand], doctorate research on early architecture at the Cape
under the VOC, 1652-1710.
EJ. Inggs [Ec. History, University of South Africa], "Liverpool of the Cape: Port Elizabeth Harbour
Development, 1820—70," M.A., Economics & Ec History, University of Rhodes, 1984.
A.B. Lumby [Economics, ND], and I. H. McLean, "The Economy and the Development of the Port
of Durban," in B. Guest and J.M. Sellars, eds., Receded Tides of Empire: Aspects of the Economic and Social
History of Natal— Zululand since 1910 (Pietermaritzburg: Natal Univ. Press, in press). § D.W. Rush,
"Aspects of the Growth of Trade and the Development of Ports in the Cape Colony, 1795-1882,"
M.A., Economics, University of Cape Town, 1972.
H.E. Soonike, "The Development of the Port and Harbour of Table Bay with Special Reference to
the Period 1825-1848," M.A., History, UCT, 1974.
K.P.T. Tankard [History, University of Rhodes, East London] "East London. The Creation and
Development of a Frontier Community, 1835—1873," M.A., University of Rhodes, 1985.
Tankard, "The Development of East London through Four Decades of Municipal Control," doctoral
thesis, University of Rhodes, 1990.
Tankard, "Strangulation of a Port: East London, 1847-1873," Contree, 23 (March 1988), pp. 5ff.
LJ. Twyman (Heydenrych), [History, University of South Africa], Durban Harbour in the History of
Natal, 1845-1900, doctoral thesis, University of South Africa, 1986.
Twyman, "Port Natal Harbour, cl850-1897," in B. Guest and J. M. Sellars, eds., Enterprise and
Exploitation in a Victorian Colony: Aspects of the Economic and Social History of Colonial Natal,
(Pietermaritzburg: Univ. of Natal Press, 1985), pp. 17-45.
Twyman, "Port Natal Harbour and the Colonial Politics of Natal," Historia, 36, 2( 1991), pp. 5-16.
Twyman, "The First Harbour Works at Port Natal — the Role ofjohn Milne, 1849-1857," The Civil
Engineer in South Africa, 1993.
C. Saunders [History, UCT], et al., Studies in the History of Cape Town, 5 vols. (Cape Town: Centre
for African Studies, UCT, 1980+).
Recently a volume has been published about the Cape (in the sumptuous Brenthurst series) of wider
maritime significance: (the late) M. Boucher and N. Penn [History, UCT], eds., Britain at the Cape 1 195
to 1803 (Johannesburg: Brenthurst, 1992). For more information on publications about the history of
Hamilton 317
attract relatively little attention. Take the case of the last. One thinks of the
activities of the Van Riebeeck Society, which since 1918 has been publishing
editions of historical documents, many of them of maritime importance.
One thinks as well of Professor E. Axelson, famous for the discovery and
uncovering of the Dias cross at Kwaaihoek in 1937—8, and author since then
of numerous works on Portuguese navigation. He was also the prime mover
behind the commemoration in 1988 of the Dias voyage, when the replica
caravel, Bartolomeu Dias, built in Portugal, sailed to South Africa. (The replica
is now at Mossel Bay.) He is both a leading figure in the country and a nearly
isolated one. Seamen, shipping and fishing however, do not have someone
of Professor Axelson's eminence, though there are a number of re-
1 "^
searchers, and there is a Whale Research Unit at the University of Pretoria
Cape Town, and confirmation about the emphasis on the terra firma, see C. Saunders, ed., and T.
Strauss, comp., Cape Town and the Cape Peninsula, 1806+: A Working Bibliography, (Cape Town: Centre
for African Studies, UCT, 1989).
Recent relevant publications are:
M.D. Nash, ed., The Last Voyage of the Guardian. Lieutenant Riou, Commander 1798—1791, Van
Riebeeck Society, Second Series no. 20 (Cape Town: 1990).
Randolphe Vigne ed., Guillaume Chenu de Chalezac, the "French Boy. " The narrative of his experiences as
a Huguenot refugee, as a castaway among the Xhosa, his rescue with the Stavenisse survivors by the Centaurus,
his services at the Cape and return to Europe, 1686-9, Van Riebeeck Society, Second Series no. 22, (Cape
Town, 1993).
E. Axelson [History, UCT], Portuguese in South— East Africa, 1600-1700, (Johannesburg:
Witwatersrand Univ. Press, 1960).
Axelson, Portuguese in South-East Africa: 1488-1600 (Cape Town: Struik, 1973).
Axelson, Congo to Cape: Early Portuguese Explorers (London: Faber, 1973).
Axelson, Portugal and the Scramble for Africa, 1875—1891 (Johannesburg, Witwatersrand Univ. Press,
1967).
Axelson, E.N. Katz, and E.C. Tabler, Baines on the Zambesi, 1858-1859 (Johannesburg: Brenthurst,
1982).
Axelson, "Recent Identifications of Portuguese Wrecks on the South African coast, especially of the
Sao Goncalo (1630), and the Sacramento and Atalaia (1647)," II Seminario Intemacional de Historia
Indo-Portuguesa, Actas (Lisbon: 1985), pp. 41—61.
Axelson, "The Dias Voyage, 1487—1488: Toponymy and Padroes," Revista da Universidade de Coimbra,
XXXIV (1988), pp. 29-55.
See also note 2.
2 See E. Axelson, Early Portuguese Explorers of Southern Africa, Camoes Annual Lecture, no 2, 1981, at
the University of the Witwatersrand; and "The Voyages of Bartolomeu Dias 1487-88 and of the
Bartolomeu Dias 1987—88," Congresso Intemacional Bartolomeu Dias e a sua Epoca, Actas, Volume II,
Navegacoes na segunda Metade do Siculo XV (Porto: 1989), pp. 106—9.
Commodore N.R. Guy is currently editing a volume Charting and Navigation in Southern Africa, with
a significant historical bias, to be published under the auspices of the Hydrographic Office. Despite her
base just outside South Africa, perhaps one ought also to mention J. Kinahan, [Curator of Historical
Archaeology, State Museum of Namibia], By Command of their Lordships. The Exploration of the Namibian
Coast by the Royal Navy, 1795-1895, (Windhoek: Namibia Archaeological Trust, 1992).
a. Seamen:
M.C. Kitshoff [Church History, University of Zululand], currently researching on Mission and
Ministry to Seamen in S.A.
318 South Africa
(although housed in the South Africa Museum) with some historical interests.
With regard to courses involving shipping and fishing, one can point to those
in maritime economics in the Transport Economics Department at the
University of Stellenbosch, which go up to honours' level and beyond,
though the historical element is comparatively small, at least at the lower
levels.
Looking to other topics, there is a research project to compile a catalogue
raisonne of the William Fehr collection at Rust-en- Vreugd, Tichiu nowal art.
This is particularly interesting because it is a group effort — one, moreover, that
involves the cooperation of members of the Art History Department at UCT as
C.I. Hamilton [History, Witwatersrand], "Seamen and Crime at the Cape, c 1850-1 880," The
International Journal of Maritime History, 1, 2, (December 1989), pp. 1—35.
b. Shipping:
E.A.G. Clark, presently at work on British merchants and the establishment of new ports and trades
in the Cape of Good Hope, 1795-1840. Education, University of Rhodes.
P. Dickinson [Ec. History, Witwatersrand], "Smith's Coasters: the Shipping Interests ofC.G. Smith,
1889-1966," The South African Journal of Economic History, 3, 1 (1988), pp. 20-32.
N.P. Fawcett, M.A. research on shipping in the Eastern Mediterranean in the first millennium B.C.,
Semitiese Tale, University of Stellenbosch.
B.D. Ingpen, South African Merchant Ships. An Illustrated Recent History of Coasters, Colliers,
Containerships, Tugs & Other Vessels (Cape Town: S.S. Balkema, 1979).
Ingpen, "The Coastwise Shipping Industry of Southern Africa — A Study in Transportation
Geography," M.A. thesis, Geography, UCT, 1983.
A.L. Muller (Economics, University of Port Elizabeth], "Coastal Shipping and the Early Development
of the Southern Cape," Contree (July 1985), pp. 10-15.
V.E. Solomon [former Ec. Hist, Witwatersrand, now S.A. Treasury], "The South African Shipping
Question, 1886-1914," doctoral thesis, History, University of Rhodes, 1979. (Published 1982 by the
Historical Publications Society.)
Solomon, "The Freight Rates crisis of 1907," Journal of Natal and Zulu History, 4 (1981), pp. 39-48.
Dr. Solomon is presently working on a biography of Sir Donald Currie.
c. Fishing:
K. Cadle, "The Response of a Coloured Fishing Community to their Marine Resource Base," M.A.
thesis, School of Environmental Studies, UCT, 1983.
A. Kirkaldy, "The Sea is in our Blood: Community and Craft in Kalk Bay, 1880-1939," master's
thesis, History, UCT, 1988.
T. Quinlan, "Line Fishing in Kalk Bay: An Account of a Marginal Livelihood in a Developing
Industrial Environment," M.A. thesis, Soc. Anth., UCT, 1981.
L. van Sittert [Oral History Project, UCT].
"Labour, Capital, and the State in the St. Helena Bay fisheries, cl856-cl956," doctoral thesis, History,
UCT, 1992.
Van Sittert, "Making Like America: the Industrialisation of the St Helena Bay Fisheries cl936-1956,"
Journal of Southern African Studies (September 1993).
Van Sittert, "'More in the Breach than the Observance': Crayfish, Conservation and Capitalism,
1890-1939," Environmental History Review, forthcoming. Dr. van Sittert also has several other papers in
preparation, and his work is particularly interesting in drawing on both oral and archival sources.
P.B. Best, [South African Museum], "Seals and Sealing in South and South West Africa," S.A.
Shipping News and Fishing Ind. Rev., 28 (1973), pp. 49, 51, 53, 55, 57.
Best and P.D. Shaughnessy. "An Independent Account of Captain Benjamin Morrell's Sealing Voyage
to the South West Coast of Africa in the Antarctic, 1828-29," Fish. Bull. S. A., 12 (1979), pp. 1-19.
Best, "Sperm Whale Stock Assessments and the Relevance of Historical Whaling Records," Rep. Int.
Hamilton 319
well as staff of the collection. It certainly contrasts with the general pattern
of maritime studies research in the country, much of which is a matter
of individual work carried on in relative isolation, often little known
outside the sheltering institution.
' However, one category of maritime studies has not yet been spoken of at all:
the history of war navies, or naval history proper. It has been left aside until now,
because in South Africa it is very largely confined to one institution outside the
universities. This is not to say that there is no naval history carried on at the
universities, but there is little of it, only a handful of researchers carrying on
individual work. There are also two courses that have a considerable naval
history element: the honours course offered by the Strategic Studies Centre at
the University of South Africa, and the History of Diplomacy course occasionally
offered by the International Studies Unit at the University of Rhodes. Outside
the universities, some amateur historians have performed sterling work, above
all Wilhelm Griitter, who in one book openly raised some interesting (if
Whal. Comn. (Special Issue 5), 1983, pp. 41-55.
Best & G.J.B. Ross, "Catches of Right Whales from shove-based establishments in Southern Africa,
1792-1975," ibid (Special Issue, 10), 1986, pp. 275-89.
Best, "Estimates of the landed Catch of Right (and other whalebone) whales in the American fishery,
1805-1909," U.S. Fish. Bull, 85 (1987), pp. 403-18.
Best, "Right Whales (Eubalaena australis) at Tristan da Cunha — a Clue to the 'Non-Recovery' of
Depleted Stocks?" Biol. Cons., 1988, 46, pp. 23-51.
Best and G.J.B. Ross, "Whales and Whaling," in Oceans of Life off Southern Africa, Vlaeberg Publishers,
Cape Town, 1989, pp. 315-38.
Best, "The 1925 catch of Right Whales off Angola," Rep. Int. Whal. Comn., 40 (1990), pp. 381-82.
C. de Jong, (Ec. History, University of South Africa, "Walvisvangst bij Kaap de Goede Hoop tijdens
de Bataafse Republiek," Historia, 12, 2, (September 1967), pp. 171-98.
a. History of Art: M. Godby, S. Klopper, M. Stevenson.
b. William Fehr collection: L. Melzer, B. Cole.
E.A. Biggs, M. A. research on the development of traditions and customs in the S.A.N. Afrikaanse
Kultuurgeskiedenis, University Stellenbosch.
E. and F. Bradlow, (respectively History, UCT, and Chairman, Van Riebeeck Society, Witwatersrand
Here Comes the Alabama, (Cape Town: A. A. Balkema, 1958).
G. Burford, M.A. research on Seapower and the Second Gulf War. I.R., Wits.
D.F.S. Fourie (Strategic Studies, UNISA), studying problems of doctrine for the navies of middle to
minor powers.
C.I. Hamilton, "Naval Hagiography and the Naval Hero," The Historical Journal, University of South
Africa 23,2 (1980), pp. 381-98.
Hamilton, Anglo-French Naval Rivalry 1840-1870 (London: Oxford Univ. Press, 1993).
D.B. Saddington (Classics, Witwatersrand), "Praefecti classis, orae maritimae and ripae of the Second
Triumvirate and the Early Empire," Jahrbuch des Romish- Germanischen Zentralmuseums Mainz, XXXV,
(1992), pp. 299-313.
Saddington, "The origin, and character, of the Provincial Fleets of the Early Roman Empire,"
Proceedings oftheXVth International Congress of Roman Frontier Studies, ed. V.A. Maxfield and M.J. Dobson,
(Exeter: 1991), pp. 413-8.
Saddington, "The origin and nature of the German and British fleets," Britannia, XXI (1990), pp.
223-32.
320 South Africa
embarrassing) questions about the recent history of the South African Navy,
notably concerning the Afrikanerization of the force in the 1950s. Otherwise,
naval history in the country is essentially the province of the South African Navy.
Naval history has only a small role in the courses at the Gordon's Bay college
for midshipmen, but is significant at the Muizenberg staff college: one of the
four modules at the latter is largely historical in nature. The colleges' staffs are
principally responsible for the teaching, but Commander W.M. Bisset, the senior
staff officer at the Simon's Town Naval Museum, gives an illustrated survey of
S.A. naval history, principally with the intention of fostering esprit de corps. And
at Muizenberg, Professor D.F.S. Fourie of the Strategic Studies Centre at the
University of South Africa gives lectures on strategy and revolution.
At Saldanha Bay is the tri-service academy, which (in association with the
University of Stellenbosch) offers a bachelor's degree in military science.
Students may take military history as one of their majors and spend some time
on a topic in naval history. The potential for concentration is all the greater at
honours' level.
Naval officers are also encouraged, where feasible, to take research degrees;
few are relevant to this survey, though one officer has just completed an M.A.
at Randse Afrikaans Universiteit on the recent history of missile-carrying
1 ft
vessels. Some officers, retired as well as active, also undertake non-degree
research and publication. Unfortunately, Union War Histories are no longer
being written; the organization was discontinued in 1961 , in part as an economy
measure, though some hitherto unpublished chapters appeared recently in Navy
News and Militaria. But there is at least a small historical section of the South
African Defence Force, although not at present engaged with any specifically
naval project.
The survey has already suggested not just a general inadequacy but also some
specific weaknesses. First, there is the "patchiness" of coverage of subjects and
periods. Particularly noticeable is the way that interest declines markedly with
increased distance from the shore; if coastal shipping and fishing arouse little
enough attention, the maritime history of other nations is usually ignored, at
least outside the naval colleges. There is also a certain narrowness of approach
discernable in the universities, to be observed in South Africa as elsewhere: the
barriers of the discipline often appear to be the barriers to inquiry; this is certainly
apparent in the history departments. It does not seem wholly accidental that
A Name among Sea Faring Men. A History of the Training Ship General Botha (Cape Town: The T.B.F.
Davis Memorial Sailing Fund, 1973).
Lt. Commander L.T. Potgieter. In Afrikaans; restricted circulation.
19 By (the late) Commander H.R. Gordon-Cumming, "The Loss of HMSAS Parktoum" Navy News,
September 1992, pp. 5f. Militaria, S.A. Navy Anniversary Issue, 22, 1 (1992). On pp. 51f of the latter,
Gordon-Cumming expresses a strong opinion about the poor understanding shown at the S.A. Ministry
of Defence about sea power and the role of a navy. He was discussing an early period, but later officers
might well find the statement still has some pertinence.
Hamilton 321
Professor Couzens' life of Trader Horn, undeniably the best recent local work
in maritime studies, and generous in its multidisciplinary approach, came from
an African Studies Centre (Witwatersrand) and not a history department.
But the most obvious point to be picked out from the survey is the few links
between institutions, notably between the universities and the South African
Navy. In part, this is because of long-standing mutual suspicion that is common
enough in other countries, but is particularly sharp in South Africa where politics
have long had a severe effect upon maritime studies. Many academics identify
all the armed forces with apartheid tyranny, and many officers believe that at
least the English-speaking universities are radical hotbeds. Each side has had its
misconceptions: the one, failing to notice the outward-looking, even liberal
strand implicit in naval policy making, and the other, confusing opposition to
vicious stupidity with attempted revolution. And naval history has suffered. If
one looks at what has been published in recent years, ignoring the works of
anecdote or piety or nostalgia, a too-common tendency is found towards
unadorned factual accounts. One looks back with regret to the last of the Union
War History volumes, War in the Southern Oceans, with its insight, telling detail
(a most valuable comparative element), and even some humour. But that was
written in more accommodating days. It is pleasant to note that the S.A.D.F.
historical section is currently attempting to develop military history through
approaching the universities to sponsor projects and encourage more use of the
20 T. Couzens, Tramp Royal. The True Story of Trader Horn with such of his Philosophy as is the gift of Age
and Experience learned in his Quest from Joss House to Doss House and in which appear severally Cannibals and
Pyrates, Gorillas and Lynchings with a guest appearance by Greta Garbo as well as numerous other adventures of a
Remarkable Nature, (Johannesburg: Ravan Press and "Witwatersrand Univ. Press, 1992).
Other interesting works of maritime significance from outside the history departments, so far
unmentioned, are:
J. Hilton, (Classics, ND), "Azania — Some Etymological Considerations," Acta Classica, XXXV (1992),
pp. 151-59.
Hilton, "Peoples of Azania," Scholia, ns, 2 (1993), pp. 3-16.
M.H. Lategan, M.A. research on autobiographical literature with special reference to the writings of
single-handed sailors, English, University of the Orange Free State.
H.P. Maltz, M.A. research on myth in the novels of Herman Melville, a study of the function of the
myths of Eden, the Golden Age and Hero and Dragon in Typee, Moby Dick, and Billy Budd, Sailor,
English, ND.
R. Laverde (International Studies Unit, University of Rhodes), Development, Pursuit and Maintenatice
of the South African Antarctic Policy: 1926-1988, M.A., 1990.
A. Vos (English, ND), presently researching on the relationship between myth, literature, and history,
in connection with the schooner Mazeppa.
B. Warner (Astronomy, UCT), presently researching on the early history of the Cape Observatory.
Professor Warner is also contributing a chapter to the Guy volume (see note 12) concerning the role of
astronomers in the history of navigation in southern waters.
By L.C.F. Turner, H.R. Gordon-Cumming, and J.E. Betzler (Cape Town: Oxford Univ. Press,
1961). Also worthy of note are South Africa's Navy: the First Fifty Years (Cape Town: WJ. Flesch, 1973),
by the late J. C. Goosen (this incorporates work by the late Commander Gordon-Cumming. It was also
published in an Afrikaans version), and Sailor Women, Swans: A History of the South African Women's
Auxiliary Naval Service, 1943-49 (Simon's Town: Simon's Town Swans History Publication Fund, 1986).
322 South Africa
Pretoria military archives' still largely unexploited resources, although — and
perhaps this is in itself indicative — the section has put forward no naval history
topics.
Politics have to be considered in another way as well. Given the fractured state of
maritime studies within the country, there were no serious interior debates that politics
could sharpen. But politics could work from the outside to encourage uninterest or even
aversion towards the subject as a whole. The sea has been politically suspect to most of
the peoples of the country. Evil came from over the sea, according to the different
viewpoints, taking the form of Dutch settlers, or English ones, or capitalism, or godless
communism, or sanctions. Furthermore, politics encouraged South African historians to
look inwards, to study the trekkers fleeing from English imperialism or, more recendy,
to study those previously historically disfranchised. As one of my correspondents
commented, it can seem almost perverse today for a South African historian to work on
anything other than the history of the oppressed majority. The politics of race and
domination are usually the major theme, even in ostensibly maritime research.
It is easy to over-generalize about the country. One must allow that it is the heartland
which remains most indifferent to the sea. A news item about it might reach the front
pages at the coast, only to be relegated to the inside of a Johannesburg newspaper. At the
coast one can find excitement about some maritime events, such as the raising of a sunken
cannon. It is also there that one can expect to find numbers of maritime enthusiasts, such
as the Friends Association of the Local History Museum, Durban, or the engagingly
obsessive "ship-spotters" who publish their sightings in the Cape Town journal, Flotsam
and Jetsam, now more enthusiastic than ever since there is no longer any need to disguise
the identity of certain ships that appear in South African ports. It is also the coastal
branches of the Navy League that have tended to be the most active. However,
both heartland and rimland have suffered alike from two recent forces inimical to
maritime studies — sanctions and depression. The former was instrumental in
choking the two-way relationship that encouraged some to look towards the sea.
When one can see only turned backs on another shore, the response is also to turn
22 Slavery is usually dealt with only in its shore-based manifestations. But there is one researcher working
on the maritime slave trade:
G. Campbell (Ec. History, Witwatersrand): "Madagascar and the Slave Trade, 1810-1895," Journal of
African History, XXII (1981), pp. 203-27.
Campbell, "The East African Slave Trade, 1861-1895: the 'Southern Complex,'" International Journal
of African Historical Studies, XXII, 1 (1989), pp. 1-27.
Campbell, "Madagascar and Mozambique in the Slave Trade of the Western Indian Ocean,
1800-1861 ," in W.G. Clarence—Smith ed., The Economics of the Indian Ocean Slave Trade in the Nineteenth
Century (London: Frank Cass, 1989), pp. 166-93.
Campbell, "Disease, Cattle, and Slaves: the Development of Trade between Natal and Madagascar,
1875-1904," African Economic History, XIX(1990-91), pp. 105-33.
23 The S.A. Navy League remains vigorous overall, in large part because the naval cadet corps operates
under its auspices. For the League, and a brief history of the cadet corps by the League's Federal Secretary,
Captain D. Brown, plus numerous other details about the sea and S.A., see the current Navy League's
Mariner's Diary, published by Walker-Ramus Trading Co. (Pty) Ltd, Durban.
Hamilton 323
away. Significantly, the recent permission for South Africa to participate in
commemorating the Battle of the Atlantic immediately led, even in Johannes-
burg, to richly nostalgic newpaper articles about the war at sea.
Sanctions also deepened the depression, which has been a powerful factor
affecting all levels of maritime studies. The lack of money has been bedeviling the
universities, forcing severe reductions and a concentration on core subjects rather
than something that can be described with dangerous ambiguity as "peripheral." It
has affected the museums, where many artefacts cannot be given proper storage let
alone the treatment vital to their preservation. The Navy has been forced "to cut
fat" and rationalize. And bodies such as the Maritime Institute, at Durban, which
offers courses in maritime trade and transport, have been forced to focus on narrowly
vocational training, cutting away any historical context.
But there are a few hopeful signs. The central grant-giving body, the Human
Sciences Research Council, is improving its data base, so perhaps the present
difficulty in gathering information about maritime research will be mitigated.
Moreover, an attempt is being made to formulate a maritime policy for the
country. Three conferences have been held, attended by academics, museum
staffs, naval officers, and others, and a drafted policy is about to be sent to the
cabinet. The main aim is to coordinate the various coastal maritime agencies,
and there are implications inter alia for fishing, customs, air-sea rescue, tourism, and
salvage.
The significant aspect of that attempt is the way it has been pushed through
by a comparatively small number of people, led by B.C. Floor, lately of the
University of Stellenbosch, but now the head of a private agency. This is
typical of the country. The shortage of the highly trained, and the narrowness
of the elites, means that individual expertise and energy can achieve results
that would not be expected in Western societies, at least when the correct
contacts have been made. One thinks also of Vice-Admiral G. Syndercombe,
former Chief of the Navy, who acts as a universal armature, linking together
many of the maritime organizations in the country. Or there is Drs B. Werz,
the maritime archaeologist at The University of Cape Town, in the midst of
a coming together of the Navy and the National Monuments Council (itself
an important organization and responsible for coordinating salvage work). "
This grouping articulated "Operation Sea Eagle," a survey of the shipwrecks
around Robben Island, followed by a general management plan for the area,
The papers are available as a bound volume from the National Maritime Policy Committee,
University of Stellenbosch.
Dr. J. Deacon has the general supervisory role: see her "Protection of Historical Shipwrecks through
the National Monuments Act," given at the Third National Maritime Conference, at Durban, in March
1993 (see note 24); and "Conservation of Historical Shipwrecks: A Need for Cooperation," Information
Bulletin. Council for the Environment, no. 9 (August 1993), pp. 8—11.
324 South Africa
one that may lay a basis for the future rational exploitation of the island for leisure
as well as research.
Of course, such schemes depend for their ultimate success upon political
stability, economic prosperity, and — crucially — the attitudes of the coming
government. As yet, those attitudes remain uncertain. From what some A.N.C.
representatives have said, one might have cause for pessimism about maritime
studies, for instance in the calls for researchers to concentrate on the history of
the black majority, which would largely mean a history of the soil and of struggle.
But there are also reasons for optimism, as in the suggestion that South Africa
should follow the U.S. example and set up a National Endowment fund with
only a relatively light control over subjects of research, though duplication of
effort is to be avoided. Moreover, the A.N.C. is actively discussing the subject
of fishing, something the Nationalists tended to avoid. A conference in March
1993 in Cape Town, organized by the South African Institute of International
Affairs (Cape) and the Institute for Defence Policy, also suggested that the
A.N.C. has some sympathy towards the Navy and sees a significant future for
it. These are only straws in the wind, but one has to agree with supporters of
the fishing industry and at least some officers in the Navy who think that the
future holds promise for them, if only because it cannot be worse than the past.
In a mood of cautious optimism, one might well say the same about maritime
studies in South Africa.
B.E.J. S. Werz and J. Deacon, Operation Sea Eagle: Final Report on a Survey of Shipwrecks around Robben
Island (Cape Town: National Monuments Council, pending).
Some of the papers and comments were printed in the South African Defence Review, 10 (1993), issued
by the Institute for Defence Policy, Halfway House (Midrand), S.A. 1685. 1 am grateful to Dr. J. Cilliers
for letting me have a copy of the issue.
Spain
Carla Rahn Phillips
Spain's relationship with the sea goes back as far as recorded history, when
mariners from Carthage, Greece, and Rome established settlements of their
seaborne empires on the Iberian peninsula. Muslims from North Africa invaded
Spain by sea in the eighth century, and again in the twelfth century, and naval
engagements marked important phases in the Christian reconquest of the
peninsula in the late Middle Ages. During the sixteenth and seventeenth
centuries, Castile governed a vast worldwide empire, held together by maritime
trade and communication and defended by an impressive naval establishment.
Seaborne trade and defense loomed large in Spanish affairs as long as the empire
lasted — that is, until the late nineteenth century — although with inevitable shifts
of emphasis after most of Spanish America became independent. The twentieth
century presented a different set of challenges, as the civilian shipbuilding
industry eclipsed the naval establishment.
This essay surveys the historiography of Spanish naval and maritime affairs
over the past ninety years or so, during which time virtually every aspect of
Spain's long relationship with the sea has been discussed in print. Bibliographic
aids, such as listings of books and articles published during the twentieth century,
yielded 1,328 items. Although they seem to represent a valid sampling of the
field, undoubtedly many items eluded me. The most serious deficiency in my
search is that I was able to deal only superficially with the enormous output of
the Revista General de Marina (RGM), founded in 1877. The RGMwas published
regularly except for a hiatus during the Spanish Civil War; in over 115 years of
existence, nearly 10,800 articles on a wide range of topics have appeared in its
pages. A conference in 1990 focused on the RGM and its impact on the field of
naval and maritime history. Ten short papers analyzing the journal's contents
since its foundation were prepared for that conference and appeared in print as
part of the monographic series published by the Institute of Naval History and
Lawrence Mott, a graduate student in history at the University of Minnesota, served as my research
assistant on this project, assembling the references and entering them on the bibliographic program
Pro-Cite. I can provide the computer files for the bibliography on "WordPerfect 5.0 to any interested
parties. Send a diskette (3.5 or 5.25 in.) and a self-addressed stamped mailer to Prof. Carla Rahn Phillips,
Department of History, University of Minnesota,, Minneapolis, MN 55455.
326 Spain
Culture (Instituto de Historia y Cultura Naval). Because the full run of the
RGMwas not available to me, I relied primarily on indirect analyses such as these
to characterize the journal's output. I also used a computerized index of
key-words in the titles of RGM articles, prepared by a researcher at the Consejo
Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas in Madrid. In the discussion that follows,
I have included material from the RGM wherever possible, but I cannot pretend
to have analyzed its contents as thoroughly as they deserve.
Judging from that index and from an unsystematic survey of articles, the RGM
seems to deal more heavily with naval history than with maritime history, as
those distinctions are commonly used, though its range is too broad to define in
simple terms. Moreover, in publications of all sorts, distinctions between naval
and maritime history have little relevance in Spain. Many books and articles deal
with all aspects of Spanish seaborne experience, and journals regularly publish a
variety of articles that defy rigid labels. Moreover, books about naval and
maritime history are regularly reviewed in national newspapers, as well as in
scholarly periodicals; in other words, the field is not marginalized as it is in some
countries.
The authors who publish in Spanish naval and maritime history are — not
surprisingly — mostly Spanish. Of the publications I surveyed in detail, nearly 80
percent were written by Spaniards, and the foreign authors generally focused on
matters concerning their home countries. For example, the ill-fated armed fleet,
or armada, that Spain sent against England in 1588 inspired a predictable interest
among English authors, and the naval actions of the 1898 Spanish-American war
attracted a number of authors from the United States. Very few non-Spaniards
have published on broader Spanish nautical topics, however, and some detailed
research by non-Spaniards is not likely ever to be published. I have in mind here
the international fraternity and sorority of treasure hunters who have leafed
through countless documents looking for clues to sunken treasure from
Spain's Atlantic and Pacific fleets, and whose interests are more pecuniary
than scholarly.
Among the Spanish authors my survey turned up, the vast majority are male,
many of them serving in the Spanish Navy. That is predictable, given the nature
of the topic. Several extraordinary scholars and naval officers in the nineteenth
century provided ideal models. Martin Fernandez Navarrete and Cesareo
Fernandez Duro each published numerous works of their own research, as well
as editing multivolume series of documents related to Spanish naval and maritime
"La Re vista General de Marina y su Proyeccion historica," Cuademos monograficos del Instituto de
Historia y Cultura Naval, no. 10 (Madrid: 1990).
Fernando Alonso Castellanos, "Indizacion de la Revista General de Marina mediante un sistema
automatico: El indice rotado de titulos. Utilidades," Cuademos monograficos del Instituto de Historia y Cultura
Naval, no. 10 (Madrid: 1990), pp. 57-68. The author analyzed key words in the titles of nearly 11,000
articles. A listing of words mentioned fifteen or more times is included in that article.
Phillips 327
history. They were followed in the twentieth century by Julio Guillen Tato
and Jose Maria Martinez-Hidalgo Teran, to name only the most distinguished
of the generation that began to publish in the middle of this century. The
tradition continues with Ricardo Cerezo Martinez and Jose Cervera Pery, each
noteworthy for publications on themes that span several centuries, and a score
of other naval officers who are also naval and maritime historians.
Members of the military establishment are by no means the only Spaniards
publishing in the field, however. A small minority of the authors currently active
seems to have no direct connection with the Navy and was trained in regular
history doctoral programs in various Spanish universities. Others studied nautical
archaeology, a relatively new field everywhere, whose practitioners are not
necessarily part of the naval establishment in Spain. Federico Foerster Laures is
the most noteworthy Spaniard publishing in this field; his articles regularly appear
in English in the International Journal of Nautical Archaeology, where they find a
wide audience.
Somewhat unexpectedly, a few Spanish women have also published on naval
and maritime history. Spanish naval archives — in the last several decades at
least— have been staffed in large measure by women. Some of them come from
naval families, and it is quite natural for them to work for the ministry and to
publish on nautical themes. Others are university-trained professional archivists
who happen to specialize in naval and maritime archives. Ana Maria Vigon
Sanchez served as Director of the General Marine Archive (Archivo General de
la Marina) in the Naval Museum (Museo Naval) in Madrid for many years. The
Museo Naval houses a prominent research collection of documents as well as
ship models and other artifacts. Currently, Maria Dolores Higueras Rodriguez
and Maria Luisa Martin-Meras head research sections at the Museo Naval and
publish regularly on naval and maritime history. The significant presence of
women might be typical of the naval history establishment in other countries as
well, although I have not made a study of the matter.
The 1,328 publications in my survey showed a sharply defined pattern of
distribution over time, with an enormous increase from the 1970s onward. The
number of publications began very modestly, with twenty to forty books and
articles per decade from 1900 to 1930. Despite the disruptions of the Spanish
Civil War (1936-39) and World War II (1939-45), however, I noted nearly
fifty publications in the 1930s and nearly one hundred in the 1940s. The number
of publications stayed at an average of nearly one hundred per decade in the
1950s and 1960s as well, but the 1970s marked an increase to one hundred
forty-one publications. During the 1980s, nearly six hundred books and articles
Fernandez Duro was the subject of an issue of the Cuademos monograftcos del Institute de Historia y
Cultura Naval, no. 6 (Madrid: 1990).
Even Admiral Luis Carrero Blanco, for several decades the principal adviser of General Francisco
Franco, published several extended works on naval history.
328 Spain
were published about Spanish naval and maritime history, and the upward trend
seems to be continuing in the 1990s. The 10,800 titles from the Revista General
de Marina would probably change the temporal distribution somewhat, although
the same impulses inspired publications in the field as a whole. Moreover,
although my search captured recent publications much more easily than older
ones, the sharp increase of activity shown for the 1980s seems to be real rather
than a statistical illusion.
SPANISH NAVAL AND MARITIME HISTORY
FREQUENCY OF TOPICS
OTHER 15%
NAVAL EDUCATION 1%
FISHERIES 1°/c
MEDICAL CARE 2%
CORSAIRS 2%
MARITIME LAW 2%
PORTS 3%
NAVIGATION 6%
COMMERCE 8%
EXPLORATION
& COLONIES
25%
BIOGRAPHIES 10%
NAVAL BATTLES
14%
SHIPS & SHIPBUILDING
11%
THE TOTAL NUMBER OF PUBLICATIONS IS 1 ,328, MANY OF WHICH DEALT WITH MORE THAN ONE TOPIC.
THE CHART REPRESENTS ONLY THE MOST FREQUENT THEMES.
The Revista de Historia Naval, founded by the Instituto de Historia y Cultura
Naval in 1983, responded to the growing interest in the field by adding another
venue for publication. Both the Revista de Historia Naval and the Revista General
de Marina sponsor additional publications on a diversity of themes as well. The
topics covered by the field in any given decade show a wide variety, but the
anniversaries of historical events with a nautical dimension attract particular
interest.
The books and articles in my detailed survey of 1,328 publications were
characterized by topic and chronological period. The largest cluster of topics —
fully one-quarter — concerned voyages of exploration and the maritime links
connecting Spain with its overseas empire. By contrast, the key-words in titles
published in the RGM suggest that Spanish exploration figures much less
prominently in that journal than in the field as a whole. This is probably due to
the RGM*s emphasis on modern maritime topics rather than historical ones. A
similar example emerges from publications about physical ships. In my survey,
over 1 1 percent of the books and articles dealt with shipbuilding, repair, wrecks,
Phillips 329
and the lives of individual ships, heavily weighted toward the period before the
nineteenth century. In article titles in the RGM, nearly 14 percent of the key
words concerned ships and shipbuilding, but with a decided bias toward modern
times. In other words, there were hundreds of references to aircraft carriers,
submarines, cruisers, and other modern vessels. By contrast, caravels, galleons,
galleys, and other historical ship types of importance do not appear in the
published index of key words at all, because they fall beneath the threshold for
inclusion.
Naval battles accounted for about 14 percent of the titles in my survey, and
about 10 percent of the key words in the RGM. Biographies of famous mariners
and naval strategists also figure prominently in the field as a whole. Matters
relating to Spanish commerce and the merchant marine account for over 8
percent of my surveyed publications, but for a much smaller proportion of
articles in the RGM. Other matters that have attracted notable attention include
navigation, ports, maritime law, piracy and privateering, medical care, nautical
education, and fisheries. Because no Spanish river is navigable very far from the
coast, inland navigation forms no part of the field. Taken as a whole, Spanish
naval and maritime history reflects the broader patterns of Spanish history and
interests in Europe and around the world. Therefore, it makes sense to discuss
the published work according to the chronological periods covered.
Very little has been published in Spain about ancient nautical history, and
much of that has concerned Greek and Roman shipwrecks near the Spanish
coast rather than topics specifically Spanish. Similarly, the early medieval
centuries and the period of Muslim domination in Spain have attracted little
attention, presumably because the most important historical developments in
that period occurred on land. The late medieval period has been somewhat better
served; I noted twenty-nine publications dealing with the tenth through the
fourteenth centuries. The largely land-based Reconquest of the Iberian Penin-
sula from the Muslims dominates Spain's late-medieval historiography. None-
theless, visual evidence of ships in illustrated devotional works and architectural
embellishments provides a range of hull types and nautical equipment for
historians to interpret. Modern scholars have only just begun to mine these
riches. The documentary record for the Atlantic fleets of the medieval kingdom
of Castile and for the Mediterranean fleets of the eastern regions of Catalonia
and Valencia in the kingdom of Aragon have begun to attract scholarly attention
as well. They may soon provide important insights into the evolution of
European ship design in the era of the Crusades.
The number of scholarly publications about nautical matters in the fifteenth
century nearly doubles that for all previous periods. The fifteenth century is
usually considered part of the Middle Ages, yet it contained developments such
as the consolidation of large territorial monarchies in Europe that heralded the
early modern age. The late fifteenth century also witnessed the first persistent
330 Spain
efforts by Europeans to explore the African coastline and to conquer and colonize
various groups of Atlantic islands.
Not surprisingly, books and articles about Christopher Columbus over-
whelmingly dominate works on the fifteenth century — one hundred one of the
one hundred forty-five publications in my survey for the century as a whole.
Also, predictably, the majority appeared in years centered around 1942 and 1992,
the 450th and 500th anniversaries of his first voyage across the Atlantic. The
Revista General de Marina also published extensively on Columbus. Most of the
publications about Columbus are much more concerned with his life and the
consequences of his voyages than with his ships or his methods of navigation.
Nonetheless, nautical matters occupy a sizeable percentage of the publications.
Many authors have tried to estimate the tonnages and configurations of
Columbus's ships over the past century, and replicas have been designed, built,
and sailed in attempts to bring them back to life. It is not clear, however, that
we are any closer to knowing their characteristics now than we were in 1892.
The documentary and pictorial record is simply too sparse to help us much, and
the craftsmen's traditions that produced the original ships are all but lost in the
modern world. Fortunately, underwater archaeology may eventually analyze
enough shipwrecks from the early years of European global exploration to
suggest believable configurations, not only for Columbus's ships but also for
other Spanish ship types in the late medieval period.
Scholars concerned with the fifteenth century have also focussed on the art
and science of navigation. Modern methods of celestial navigation were
pioneered by Portuguese and Spanish mariners and refined as they confronted
the challenges of sailing far from shore in unfamiliar parts of the globe. One of
the liveliest controversies surrounding Columbus concerns his first landfall in
the Western Hemisphere, a matter intimately related to his navigational track
across the Atlantic and in the waters of the Caribbean. An extraordinary amount
of effort has been expended in exploring this mystery, most of it by non-
Spaniards. A team of researchers at National Geographic in November of 1986
claimed to have solved the matter by computerized analysis of Columbus's log
of his 1492 voyage — or, rather, of the only existing version of that log, an abstract
by Friar Bartolome de las Casas, prepared several decades after Columbus's death.
Many scholars, including several Spanish experts on navigation, greeted the
National Geographies findings with marked skepticism. The Columbian Quin-
centenary produced several new editions of the abstracted log, yet the text itself
is so questionable that any definitive replication of Columbus's course remains
unlikely.
Books and articles in whole or in part about the sixteenth century accounted
for over a quarter of the 1,328 items surveyed for this study — some 373 in all.
During the sixteenth century Spain reached the peak of its power, with an
extensive empire in Europe, a large and growing colonial empire in the Western
SPANISH NAVAL AND MARITIME HISTORY
FREQUENCY OF FIFTEENTH CENTURY TOPICS
CORSAIRS
I 2
III
PORTS
(J
I 2
INSURANCE
1 3
NAVIGATION
20
SHIPS &
SHIPBUILDING
llllll
36
COLUMBUS
101
(
)
— -l
2
i
0
i
40
■ — i —
60
- - - r J— —
80
100
12
THE TOTAL NUMBER OF PUBLICATIONS IS 145, MANY OF WHICH DEALT WITH MORE THAN
ONE TOPIC. THE BAR CHART REPRESENTS ONLY THE MOST FREQUENT THEMES.
FREQUENCY OF SIXTEENTH CENTURY TOPICS
CORSAIRS
MARITIME LAW
ASIA
EUROPE
EXPLORERS
AMERICAS
SHIPS &
SHIPBUILDING
EXPLORATION
NAVAL BATTLES
h
39
:■■■■■ .;
79
88
102
104
m
107
'i^^^Wi^^^^S^
111
I
■
■
■
20
40
60
80
100
120
THE TOTAL NUMBER OF PUBLICATIONS IS 373, MANY OF WHICH DEALT WITH MORE THAN
ONE TOPIC. THE BAR CHART REPRESENTS ONLY THE MOST FREQUENT THEMES.
332 Spain
Hemisphere, and outposts in Asia as well. As the dominant Roman Catholic
power in Europe, Spain also bore the brunt of defending Catholicism in Europe
after the Protestant Reformation began in 1517, and from external enemies in
the Islamic Ottoman Empire and its North African tributaries and allies. The
Ottomans had captured the Christian stronghold of Constantinople in 1453 and
remained on the offensive against the eastern borders of Christian Europe, as
well as in the Mediterranean.
The defense of Catholicism can be said to have dominated Spanish foreign
policy during the first half of the sixteenth century. Naval operations such as the
campaigns to capture and hold Tunis and Goleta on the North African coast in
the 1 530s were part of the struggle waged against the Islamic world by Charles
I, the king of Spain who also served as Holy Roman Emperor with the title
Charles V. Even Charles' perennial wars against Catholic France had a religious
dimension once the French allied with the Ottomans in 1536. The naval and
maritime aspects of these wars in the early sixteenth century have attracted some
scholarly attention, but not as much as one would expect.
Dynastic politics in Europe and abroad shaped Spain's national policies
throughout the 1500s, but maritime and global concerns came to the fore in the
last half of the century, during the reign of Philip II. Historians have written
about the Spanish naval expedition against Djerba in 1560 and about Philip II's
efforts to reinforce Spanish presidios in North Africa, policies that aimed to secure
the Western Mediterranean against Muslim pirates and privateers allied with the
Ottomans. The Christian and Islamic powers confronted one another defini-
tively in 1571 at the battle of Lepanto in the Gulf of Corinth. Spain provided
the majority of ships and men for the Christian fleet, with smaller contingents
from the papacy and the Republic of Venice. Spain also provided the com-
mander-in-chief, in the person of Don Juan of Austria, half-brother of Philip II.
The great Christian victory at Lepanto was commemorated with lavish celebra-
tions all over Europe and long remained a symbol of Christianity's response to
the loss of Constantinople. Because of its psychological importance, Lepanto
also generated a wealth of commemorative engravings and paintings, providing
precious visual evidence for maritime historians.
Lepanto has continued to attract the interest of scholars in this century,
especially during the four-hundredth anniversary of the battle in 1971. Ten
publications in my survey were devoted entirely to Lepanto, and numerous
others dealt with it in conjunction with other naval engagements in the
Mediterranean. Although the battle itself settled nothing decisively, it marked a
turning point in the struggle between the Ottoman and Spanish empires. After
Lepanto, the Ottomans turned to more pressing matters on their eastern land
frontier with Persia, and Philip II turned toward northern Europe, where
rebellion in the Netherlands and worsening relations with England threatened
Spain's grip on its European possessions.
Phillips 333
Naval actions during the early phase of the Netherlands rebellion have not
figured prominently in writings about the late sixteenth century, though the
Spanish convoys of men and money through the channel appear in all the general
histories of that conflict. By contrast, the fleet sent by Spain against England in
1588 has attracted an extraordinary amount of attention, primarily from writers
in England and Spain. Although the Great Armada, as the Spanish called it, has
long held a prominent place in sixteenth-century naval scholarship, the four-
hundredth anniversary of that fleet in 1988 produced a floodtide of publications,
over 23 percent of all sixteenth- century themes. A series of international
conferences in 1988 brought Spanish and English scholars together to reconsider
various aspects of the armada campaign, moving the debate away from
simpleminded nationalism toward a deepened understanding of the ships,
armament, men, and tactics involved. A number of distinguished publications
resulted from those conferences, as well as a wealth of other serious work. For
example, the Instituto de Historia y Cultura Naval in Madrid sponsored a series
of monographs on the armada in its many aspects: ships, medical care, political
concerns, armaments, tactics, and so on. Regrettably, 1988 was also marked by
publication of the inevitable drivel that often accompanies important anniver-
saries.
One of the primary reasons that Philip II decided to launch the Great Armada
had its origins far from Europe, in the Spanish empire in the Western Hemi-
sphere. To the extent that English privateers threatened Spanish control of that
empire, they threatened a major source of tax revenue for the crown, and a
much larger source of profits for Spanish merchants. Publications dealing with
maritime aspects of the American empire accounted for over 27 percent of the
total publications on the sixteenth century.
Spanish scholars have also shown a keen interest in the numerous voyages of
exploration by their countrymen in the late sixteenth century, especially in the
vast Pacific Ocean. Books and articles on the Pacific, Asia, and Spain's outpost
in the Philippines account for over 10 percent of the publications in my survey
dealing with the sixteenth century. The Revista General de Marina also published
many titles dealing with discovery (22 percent) and the Pacific (25 percent),
though not necessarily all on the sixteenth century.
Predictably, famous expeditions such as Ferdinand Magellan's circumnaviga-
tion of the globe in 1519—22 have attracted greater attention than more obscure
voyages. Pedro Sarmiento de Gamboa, — navigator, natural philosopher, poet,
and tireless explorer of the Pacific in the late sixteenth century — formed the
subject of several full-fledged biographies and a half dozen articles, and many
other explorers inspired at least one author. Samuel Eliot Morison, John H.
Parry, and other historians of European exploration dealt with many of these
voyages in the 1950s, but the next generation of historians turned to other topics.
Only recently has global exploration resumed its role as an active field for
334 Spain
scholarly investigation. Overall, the range of exploratory voyages has been fairly
well covered by Spanish authors, especially in the concerted effort at publication
spawned by the Columbian Quincentenary. The Spanish government endorsed
numerous series of publications starting in the 1980s that edited explorers'
accounts of their voyages and provided scholarly analyses of them.
The Netherlands rebellion, the Spanish empire, and further voyages of
exploration have also piqued the interest of scholars publishing on maritime
aspects of the seventeenth century. The first decade of that century, marked by
a new king and the winding down of Spain's conflicts with France, England,
and the Netherlands, has often been seen as a static period in maritime affairs.
Scholars are just beginning to realize that a decade and more of peace allowed
the government of Philip III to sponsor debate on the ideal sizes and configura-
tions of ships for the Atlantic run. The regulations of 1607, 1613, and 1618
established measurements for shipbuilders to follow, in effect forcing private
industry to produce ships that would be suitable for the government to
commandeer and rent in wartime. Spanish governments in the early seventeenth
century also promoted advances in salvage technology. Pedro de Ledesma's
beautifully illustrated manuscript on that topic in 1623 recently appeared in
facsimile in a limited edition.
The Netherlands rebellion resumed in 1621 after a twelve-years' truce,
forming one phase in The Thirty Years' War from 1618 to 1648. In its various
phases, the war used up Spanish men, money, and ships at an alarming rate.
Stretching its resources to the limit, the Spanish government frequently sent
ill-manned and poorly supplied fleets into battle, relying on the courage and
self-respect of commanders and men to overcome adversity. Surprisingly, they
often succeeded in defiance of the odds, which only encouraged the government
to demand more and supply less.
Some distinguished commanders such as Antonio de Oquendo have found
their biographers, but most of his colleagues remain little known outside the
Spanish naval establishment. Only eight biographies of prominent figures
surfaced in publications about the seventeenth century compared to thirty-two
such biographies for the sixteenth century, although brief histories of individual
commanders appear in studies devoted to broader issues of seventeenth-century
war and politics. This neglect may simply reflect a distaste for dealing with Spain's
loss of power; Spanish archives contain ample documentation for a more
extensive collection of biographies, if only scholars seek it out.
The conflicts subsumed under the heading of the Thirty Years' War broke
Spain's power in Europe. Incessant warfare on land and sea coincided disastrously
with a steep decline in Spain's internal economy and in revenues from the empire
in the middle third of the seventeenth century. Given the circumstances, it is
astonishing that Spain held on to as much as it did, including the American
empire. With the peace treaties of 1648, the Netherlands officially won its
Phillips 335
independence from Spain. With the Peace of the Pyrenees in 1659, Spain and
France disengaged and France emerged from their century and a half of
intermittent warfare as the dominant power in Europe. Louis XIV of France,
the great-grandson of Philip II of Spain, also held one of the strongest claims to
the Spanish throne itself, in case the Spanish Habsburg line died out. Just as
interest in England and the Netherlands featured prominently in publications
about the sixteenth century, interest in France increased in publications about
the seventeenth century.
Spain's American colonies and exploration and colonization in the Pacific and
Asia held a prominant place among seventeenth-century topics. Of the one
hundred thirty publications dealing with that century in my survey, fifty-six (43
percent) concerned the Americas, and another two dozen or so dealt with
exploration. Their focus could be as narrow as the voyage of a single obscure
mariner or as broad as the geopolitical strategies pursued by Spain in the Pacific.
The continued interest in global topics serves as a reminder that, whereas Spain
had slipped to second-rank status in Europe by the end of the seventeenth
century, it was still the foremost colonial power abroad, by a large margin.
Spanish ship design changed little in the seventeenth century after the activity
of the early years. The galleon continued to be the workhorse of the Atlantic
fleets, and vessel size edged upward as the century progressed. A series of wars
in the last three decades of the 1600s, provoked by French aggression, sapped
the waning strength of Spain's navy, but the country nonetheless maintained
fleets to protect commercial voyages to America. Spain's internal economy and
its American trade showed unmistakable signs of recovery by 1680. It is likely
that this revival encouraged renewed attention to Spain's fleets on the part of
the government. The recent discovery of an important manuscript on ship design
by Antonio de Gaztaneta, from the end of the century, is already generating
more interest in Spanish naval architecture.
At the start of the eighteenth century, the Bourbon dynasty of France
inherited the Spanish throne when the Habsburgs died out. The change was not
welcomed by other European countries, however, which waged the War of the
Spanish Succession (1701—1713) in an attempt to block Bourbon power. Land
engagements during the war of succession have attracted much more attention
than naval battles, though British grand strategy has inspired one thorough
treatment by John Hattendorf. On the Bourbon side, Spain bore the brunt of
the limited action at sea, as France had a very small navy, and Spain also had to
protect its overseas colonies from English incursions. The strains of war and the
simultaneous restructuring of the Spanish bureaucracy by the Bourbon govern-
ment of Philip V meant that even major naval engagements were documented
erratically. After more than a decade of struggle, the Bourbons kept the Spanish
throne, but at the cost of virtually all Spain's remaining territory in Italy and the
Mediterranean, plus Gibraltar on Spanish soil.
SPANISH NAVAL AND MARITIME HISTORY
FREQUENCY OF SEVENTEENTH CENTURY TOPICS
NAVAL BATTLES
BIOGRAPHIES
CORSAIRS
DEFENSES
EUROPE
EXPLORATION
SHIPS &
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10
20
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50
60
THE TOTAL NUMBER OF PUBLICATIONS IS 130, MANY OF WHICH DEALT WITH MORE THAN
ONE TOPIC. THE BAR CHART REPRESENTS ONLY THE MOST FREQUENT THEMES.
FREQUENCY OF EIGHTEENTH CENTURY TOPICS
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42
i i i i i i i
10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45
THE TOTAL NUMBER OF PUBLICATIONS IS 206, MANY OF WHICH DEALT WITH MORE THAN
ONE TOPIC. THE BAR CHART REPRESENTS ONLY THE MOST FREQUENT THEMES.
Phillips 337
Once the Bourbons settled in, during the reigns of Ferdinand VI (1746—59)
and Charles III (1759—88), they pursued a vigorous policy of administrative
reform that included a revival of the navy. The monarchy and a succession of
extraordinarily able ministers found their efforts aided by demographic and
economic growth that spanned most of the eighteenth century. Within Europe,
England mounted increasing challenges to the power of France, while Spain
aimed to protect its empire and enhance its fortunes by turning the rivalry of its
neighbors to advantage. More often than not, Bourbon Spain allied with
Bourbon France in a series of so-called "family pacts." The reason for this stance
was less dynastic loyalty, however, and more a realization that England posed
the more serious danger to Spanish America. Books and articles about England
account for nearly 12 percent of the historiography of Spain's eighteenth century
naval and maritime history; publications about France account for nearly 8
percent. As an ally of France, Spain participated in the maritime wars of the
mid-eighteenth century and aided the North American colonies rebelling against
England after 1776, inspired in part by the vain hope of regaining control of
Gibraltar. Several articles deal with each of these conflicts and with noted Spanish
commanders.
Imperial concerns outside Europe loomed large in Spanish naval policies
during the eighteenth century, which is reflected in published scholarship. The
defense of Spain's American colonies continued to claim government resources,
and the much-vaunted "Bourbon reforms" of colonial administration aimed in
part to foment seaborne commerce. All of these initiatives have attracted
scholarly interest.
Spanish voyages of exploration also gained a new impetus under the Bourbon
dynasty, and thirty-eight publications in my survey reflect that activity. Voyages
in the Pacific figured in thirty-three (16 percent) of the publications dealing with
the eighteenth century. Prominent among those voyages were the expeditions
of Alessandro Malaspina, an Italian sailing for Spain, in 1789—94. In 1989, spurred
by the bicentenary of Malaspina's expedition, authors of seventeen publications
examined its various aspects. Much of the impetus behind Malaspina's voyage
was scientific — to study and illustrate the flora and fauna encountered in diverse
regions. The expedition's sojourn on the northwest coast of North America had
an important geopolitical focus as well, to pursue Spain's interests from San
Francisco to the Aleutian Islands against rival English and Russian claimants.
Unfortunately, the expedition began in the same year that Bourbon France
erupted in revolution and returned to find Spain involved in war against the
revolutionary French regime. The subsequent chaos in Spain's administration
ensured that the lengthy documentation and exquisite illustrations generated by
the Malaspina expedition were largely forgotten. Thanks to the bicentenary,
they have finally come to light.
338 Spain
The nineteenth century began disastrously for Spain and its navy. After a brief
flirtation with the anti-French coalition in 1792—95, Spain returned to alliance
with France and was drawn into the Napoleonic wars that followed. Although
individual ships and crews performed well, the Spanish fleet as a whole was
ill-prepared to face Britain and its allies. The Spanish Navy was effectively
destroyed at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805, an engagement that featured in
twelve of the one hundred seventy-two books and articles about the nineteenth
century.
Worse was yet to come, as Napoleon sent his armies into Spain, bamboozled
the Bourbon king Charles IV into abdicating in his favor, and then appointed
his brother Joseph Bonaparte as king of Spain. With the Bourbon royal family
in exile in France, and no effective central leadership against the Bonapartes, the
people of Spain organized their own government from the bottom up and
launched a crusade to oust the French invaders. Unaided, they dealt Napoleon's
armies their first defeat, and thus attracted the help of the British-led coalition.
As the war proceeded, and Joseph Bonaparte tried to govern in Madrid, Spanish
patriots met in Cadiz in the name of the exiled Bourbons and wrote a
constitution to govern the country after Bourbon rule was restored. Eventually
the allies defeated Napoleon's forces in Spain and throughout the rest of Europe.
Spain's struggle for and against the French during the revolutionary epoch
resulted in catastrophe, not only for the Navy at Trafalgar, but for the internal
economy and the American empire as well. No sooner had the Bourbon
monarchy been restored under Ferdinand VII than Spain's American colonies,
one after another, declared their independence, after over three centuries of
colonial rule. Virtually without a navy, and with the government still in disarray,
Spain lost most of its American empire by 1824. The large viceroyalties that had
governed nearly fifteen million people in the late eighteenth century were split
into sixteen republics that undertook the difficult task of governing themselves.
Most of the twenty-nine publications dealing with the Americas in the
nineteenth century concern one aspect or another of the colonial wars of
independence. Not surprisingly, most of the officer corps in the navies formed
by the new American republics had begun their careers in Spanish service. With
their loss, the Spanish faced yet another obstacle to rebuilding after the
Napoleonic era.
Within Spain, government ministers formulated a variety of plans to restore
the Navy, but they proved largely ineffectual during the first half of the
nineteenth century. With most of the empire gone, the Navy could not claim
to be a top priority any longer, and the government of Ferdinand VII lacked the
will and the resources to accomplish much. Civil War erupted after Ferdinand's
death in 1833, between supporters of a continued constitutional monarchy and
those who favored a return to absolutism and a tight alliance between the crown
and the Catholic Church. The triumph of the constitutionalists in 1839 led to
SPANISH NAVAL AND MARITIME HISTORY
FREQUENCY OF NINETEENTH CENTURY TOPICS
COMMERCE I
CATALONIA
SHIPS &
SHIPBUILDING
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BIOGRAPHIES
POLITICS &
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THE TOTAL NUMBER OF PUBLICATIONS IS 172, MANY OF WHICH DEALT WITH MORE THAN
ONE TOPIC. THE BAR CHART REPRESENTS ONLY THE MOST FREQUENT THEMES.
FREQUENCY OF TWENTIETH CENTURY TOPICS
AMERICAS
UNITES STATES
CATALONIA
COMMERCE
NAVAL EDUCATION
EUROPE
SHIPS &
SHIPBUILDING
POLITICS &
ORGANIZATION
SPANISH CIVIL WAR
1
2
61
4
5
9
11
16
18
25
■
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10
20
30
40
50
60
70
THE TOTAL NUMBER OF PUBLICATIONS IS 128. MANY OF WHICH DEALT WITH MORE THAN
ONE TOPIC. THE BAR CHART REPRESENTS ONLY THE MOST FREQUENT THEMES.
340 Spain
several decades of fairly stable government, though elections were largely
irrelevant to the process. Through largely bloodless military coups, the right and
left wings of the constitutionalists succeeded one another as advisers to Queen
Isabel II.
Naval reform began in earnest in 1847—51, with the administration of the
Marques de Molina. His plans were aided by the quickening pace of the Spanish
economy, which was increasing in population and agricultural output, as well
as gradually industrializing. Encouraged by this growth and by the recovery of
the navy, the Spanish government engaged in several naval expeditions around
the globe in the 1850s and 1860s. Spanish fleets traveled to Morocco and to
Cochin China (Vietnam), they engaged in a brief unsuccessful naval war against
three South American republics, and they embarked on a joint expedition with
the French to Mexico in the early 1860s, while the United States was embroiled
in Civil War. Scholars have examined these activities in print, even though
nineteenth-century events pale in comparison with Spanish global voyaging in
previous centuries.
A dozen publications about the nineteenth century dealt with naval architec-
ture, centered around the shift from the age of sail to the age of steam. From the
first steamship in 1817 through the rest of the century, designers worked with
new materials and new specifications, as the naval administration tried to remedy
a shortage of engineers and machinists needed to crew the new ships. Chronic
governmental disarray during the late nineteenth century hindered the work of
naval reformers and architects, however. Isabel II had been forced into exile in
1868 by a military conspiracy, and for the next several years a succession of
monarchist and republican governments attempted unsuccessfully to consolidate
their rule. The period of experimentation ended in 1875 with the restoration of
the Bourbons in the person of Alfonso XII, Isabel's eldest son.
Although several capable ministers formulated plans for a large-scale program
of naval construction in the 1870s and 1880s, political in-fighting within the
government nullified their efforts. A plan proposed in 1887 had better success,
although its original aims had to be scaled back to match the financial and political
realities of the times. In the last decade of the nineteenth century, increasing
strife caused by clashes between government forces and increasingly militant
labor organizations created a high degree of tension within the Spanish state. In
that atmosphere, a major naval construction program was simply not feasible,
although some ships were built for both the Navy and for the merchant marine.
The merchant fleet was owned by several large private companies, including the
Transatlantic Company founded in 1850. Together these companies played a
major role in maintaining commercial ties between Spain and the remnants of
its overseas empire in the nineteenth century. The centenary of the Transatlantic
Company in 1950 resulted in several articles analyzing its organization, successes,
and failures over the long term.
Phillips 341
Spain managed to hold on to Cuba and Puerto Rico with great effort during
the early decades of the nineteenth century and also retain the Philippines. In
1898 those colonies rebelled, providing a pretext for the United States to
intervene. The ensuing Spanish-American War found the Spanish Navy un-
prepared. Major defeats at Santiago Bay in Cuba and Cavite in the Philippines
led to Spain's being stripped of its remaining colonies. Publications about Cuba,
Puerto Rico, and the Philippines in the nineteenth century focus on that war,
its antecedents, its battles, and its aftermath. The war itself generated thirty-nine
publications in my survey, most of them analyzing the reasons for Spain's defeat.
The national anguish at Spain's final loss of empire in 1898 spawned a
generation of novelists, poets, and essayists who explored the national psyche in
a passionate outpouring of self-criticism and a quest for renewal. This so-called
"Generation of '98" had its governmental counterparts, as well, in civil servants
and in the person of King Alfonso XIII. During the first decade of the new
century the Navy languished, widely blamed for the defeat of 1898. Spurred by
the need to supervise an unstable situation in Morocco, however, and by the
increasing sophistication of Europe's premier navies in England and Germany,
the Spanish government adopted a far-reaching plan of naval reform in 1908.
Enthusiastically supported by Alfonso XIII, naval reform made considerable
progress, especially as Spain arrived at a modern level of industrialization and
managed to stay out of World War I.
During the nineteenth century, Army officers had often intervened in politics,
protraying themselves as the guarantors of the liberal constitutional monarchy.
Bloodless takeovers by one faction of the Army or another had shifted the
emphasis of the government on a half dozen or more occasions. Against the
rising tide of left-wing demands for worker representation in the late nineteenth
century, the Army seemed to see itself as the preserver of stability against the
fractious divisions of civilian politicians. The Navy largely absented itself from
these confrontations, concentrating on its own priorities.
The Spanish armed services as a whole underwent significant professionaliza-
tion in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, and the Army in
particular became more conservative. When the Army intervened once again
in politics in 1922, General Miguel Primo de Rivera took power for himself,
with the acquiescence of King Alfonso XIII, rather than working through civilian
politicians. He used his dictatorial powers to bolster the economy and to coerce
the political left and right into cooperating with his national program, modeled
on the corporate fascism of Mussolini's Italy.
The Navy concentrated on rebuilding its strength and modernizing the
structure and training of its officers, following the initiative launched in 1908,
with an additional program of naval construction in 1915. The Navy recovered
much of its prestige in military culture, attracting a higher class of officers and
staying apart from political concerns. Publications about the early twentieth
342 Spain
century focus on naval education, naval architecture, shipbuilding, and the
merchant marine. Very few publications even allude to the Army's takeover of
the government under Primo de Rivera.
The king withdrew his support from Primo in 1930, but Primo 's dictatorship
had discredited the monarchy and civilian politicians as well as the Army. In
1931 municipal elections favored republican candidates so strongly that Alfonso
XIII abandoned the field and went into exile. Civilian politicians, largely on the
left of the political spectrum, organized the Second Republic, wrote a new
constitution, and tried to consolidate a stable government. Instead, they managed
to alienate a broad range of opinion from center to right, as well as irritating the
left by cautious approaches to social and economic reform. The republic
descended into chaos as rebellions of the left and of the right brought down a
succession of governments between 1932 and 1936.
Street violence by both extremes of the political spectrum inspired factions
of the Army to launch a major coup in July of 1936. Rather than submit, the
elected Republican government determined to fight back, arming civilian
militias. The Civil War that ensued in 1936—39 would convulse Spain and
engage the rest of Europe in an ongoing debate about the merits of intervention.
Hitler's Germany and Mussolini's Italy openly aided the Army's rebellion. The
Soviet Union and Mexico openly aided the Republic. Everyone else watched
as Spain tore itself apart.
The Spanish naval high command generally backed the Army's insurgency,
though many ordinary sailors tried to rally to the Republic's defense. Sailors at
the southeastern naval base in Cartagena mutinied, murdered many officers, and
commandeered dozens of ships, which became the navy of the Republic. They
then steamed for the Strait of Gibraltar to prevent the Army's insurgents from
ferrying troops from Morocco. The uprising would have failed before it began,
had it not been for the airborne support of Germany and Italy. Naval matters in
the Spanish Civil War emerge in the historiography as the most compelling
topics among all twentieth-century themes. Whether authors deal with in-
dividual ships and their commanders, with actions at sea, or with other themes,
the Civil War accounts for nearly half of the one hundred twenty-eight
publications about the twentieth century.
From this brief survey it is clear that Spanish naval and maritime history has
followed the agenda established by Spanish history in general, rather than
defining a set of topics from within. Some of the topical distribution of
publications is predictable and logical. Exploration and matters related to Spain's
overseas empire loom large in publications about the several centuries wherein
the empire flourished; then they fade precipitously. Other topics, despite their
continuing importance and a wealth of documentation, ebb and flow as
appendages to other concerns. For example, the history of ship design is only
sporadically considered in the published literature, surfacing in periods or around
Phillips 343
events that are judged important for other reasons. Sixteenth century ship design
is fairly well known because the sixteenth century defined the peak of Spanish
power in Europe and abroad. Seventeenth century ship design has been
neglected because Spain's loss of hegemony has attracted less attention.
Although I have not examined naval and maritime historiography systemati-
cally for other countries, I suspect that the pattern I have found for Spain is
typical. To a certain extent, naval and maritime themes cannot and should not
be considered separately from their broader historical contexts. The history of
the sea, broadly conceived, is of necessity also the history of the land and can
best be understood as part of a larger whole. Yet naval and maritime history also
needs to have definitions of its own and priorities for research independent of
general history. How can we establish valid comparisons among nations if the
published work about a given period is abundant for the dominant country and
sparse for the rest? Without such comparisons, it is difficult to see how naval and
maritime history can progress beyond the narrow and often nationalistic con-
cerns that have defined it in the past.
:9
Sweden
Jan Glete
By strong tradition, Swedish naval and maritime history is divided into what
the two words imply: the history of the Swedish Navy and the history of
the Swedish maritime community: maritime trade, seafaring, shipowning,
shipbuilding, and fishing. This tradition is to a considerable extent based on the
realities of naval and maritime history itself. The Swedish Navy has had, over
the centuries, fewer connections with general maritime life than many other
navies. The Navy has been closely associated with the expansion, defence, and
decline of Sweden's Baltic empire and, in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries,
with Swedish anti-invasion planning and coastal defence. Trade warfare has been
of less importance and the connections between naval seamen and mercantile
sailors weaker than in most navies.
The bulk of our present stock of written Swedish naval history was published
from the late nineteenth century up to the 1940s. The last major work of this
type was a five-volume study of the Navy's central administration, written partly
by academic historians and published between 1950 and 1983. Most of it was
produced by sea officers or others connected with the Navy. Few of these works
were official history, but much of the research was sponsored by the Navy. To
their credit, some of these naval historians, even in the late nineteenth century,
put great emphasis on naval administration, personnel and finance, rather than
concentrating on naval operations, as most naval historians in other countries
did in this period. There was no strong "Mahanian" or "blue water" school in
Swedish naval historiography. Most authors stressed the interdependence be-
tween naval and land warfare in the Baltic area rather than the independent
importance of sea power. There was, however, a certain bias in favor of the
battle fleet compared to the archipelago fleet. This had much to do with the
intense nineteenth century political debate about Swedish naval doctrine: a navy
for the open sea or only for the archipelagoes? The debate about the role of the
Navy in twentieth century strategic planning also influenced the naval historians.
As long as most sea officers wished to have ships with heavy guns and armor,
naval historians often tried to derive lessons from the past which showed the
importance of big ships with heavy guns.
346 Sweden
These studies are still useful, but, as they are fifty to one hundred years old,
inevitably much of the research is now dated. Today, the descendants of Navy-
sponsored historical research are found in the activities of the Military History
Department at the Swedish Staff and War College of the Armed Forces
(Militarhogskolan or MHS) in Stockholm. In recent decades, the naval side of this
activity has been very limited and concentrated on the twentieth century. The
school also favors integrated studies which cover the armed forces as a whole, and
much twentieth century Swedish naval history is to be found in studies of defense
policy as a whole. The possibly last major research project about older history
sponsored by MHS is a multi- volume work about Sweden's wars in the Baltic area
from 1655 to 1660. It is perhaps typical of the present lack of interest in Sweden in
writing operational naval history that the volume about sea warfare in this period
was entrusted to a Danish historian, Finn Askgaard.
Historical research about the armed forces is also to some extent government-spon-
sored through the Delegation for Military Historical Research (Delegationen for
militarhistorisk forskning). This organization gives at least partial financial support to
several research projects; it supports conferences and it distributes grants for the printing
ofbooks. However, it has no coordinating responsibility for military and naval history.
Academic interest in naval history has been limited, although rather more has
been written about defense policy and wars, where the Navy is treated usually
as a junior partner to the Swedish Army. A pioneering study in its day 'was the
doctoral dissertation of Oscar Nikula in 1933. The author, a Swedish-speaking
Finnish historian, wrote about the large Swedish eighteenth century archipelago
fleet. More recent studies are about the Navy during the Second World War by
Ake Holmquist, the debate about future coast defence armoured ships before
World War I by Anders Sandstrom, and the interplay between politicians and
sea officers as experts in the debate about the structure of the Navy from 1918
to 1939 by Anders Berge. Within a project about military professionalization,
the present author has undertaken a study of the change of Swedish naval
ft 7
doctrine during the nineteenth century, while Lars Nilehn wrote about the
early development of the Swedish Naval Staff College.
Finn Askgaard, Kampen om ostersjbn pa Carl X Gustafs tld: Ett bidrag till nordisk sjokrighistoria (Stockholm:
Militarhistoriska fbrlaget, 1974).
Oscar Nikula, Svenska skargardsflottan 1 156- 1191 (Helsingfors: Samfundet Ehrensvard Seura, 1 933) .
3 Ake Holmquist, Flottans beredskap 1938-1940 (Stockholm: Allmanna Forlaget, 1972).
4 Anders Sandstrom, Pansarfartyg at Sverigesjlotta: En studie omjlottan och striden om F-baten 1906-1909,
(Stockholm: Sjohistoriska museet, 1984).
Anders Berge, Sakkunskap ochpolitisk rationalitet: Den svenska jlottan och pansarfartygsfragan 1918—1939
(Stockholm: Almqvist & Wiksell International, 1987).
Jan Glete, Kustjbrsuar och teknisk omuandling: Teknik, doktriner och organisation inom svenskt kustforsuar
1850-1880 (Stockholm: Militarhistoriska Forlaget, 1985).
Lars Nilehn, Vagen till erkannande: Militar professionalisering och tillkomsten av en svensk sjokrigshogskola
(Stockholm: Militarhistoriska Forlaget, 1986).
Glete 347
Older periods of naval history are still being investigated, although with
limited resources. The present author has made a study of Swedish sixteenth
century warships and their connections to naval policy and the developing
technology. Nils-Ake Villstrand, a Finnish historian, has made a minor, but
important, study of the Navy's recruitment of sailors during the seventeenth
century. I have also written the naval chapter in a recent study of the
Swedish-Russian war of 1788— 1790, one of the few studies about older history
recently undertaken by the Military History Department. Furthermore, the
Karlskronavarvet Company, formerly the main naval dockyard, is sponsoring a
two— volume study about its history from 1680 to the present day (1993). This
work is being undertaken by several historians and it concentrates on the relations
between the yard and the maintenance of the Navy.
The author of this essay has also published his research in international naval
history. The intent is to analyze naval shipbuilding and its long-term develop-
ment as part of the state-building process from the sixteenth to the nineteenth
1 o
century; it was published in a two-volume work in 1993.
Except for some very elementary education given to future sea officers, naval
history is not taught in Sweden. Officers taking courses at MHS, the Staff
College, may study naval history as a special subject and prepare papers on
historical subjects, but there are no regular courses. No university teaches naval
history as a special subject.
The interest among sea officers about naval history is not dead, and the history
of naval technology provokes public interest. In recent years a naval engineer,
Curt Borgenstam, has edited, together with several co-authors, illustrated books
about Swedish twentieth century warships. Captain Bertil Ahlund has pub-
lished two studies about Swedish naval policy from the late nineteenth century
to the Second World War. Part of this research has been sponsored by the
Royal Swedish Academy of Naval Science (Kungliga Orlogsmannasallskapet),
Jan Glete, "Svenska orlogsfartyg 1521-1560: Flottans upbyggnad under ett tekniskt brytningsskede,"
Forum Navale, 30 (1976), pp. 5-74; 31 (1977), pp. 23-119.
Nils-Erik Villstrand, "Manskap och sjofolk inom den svenska orlogsflottan 1617-1644," Historisk
Tidskrift for Finland, 1 (1986).
Jan Glete, "Kriget till sjoss 1788-1790," in Gunnar Arteus, ed., Gustav libs ryska krig (Stockholm:
Probus, 1992).
Erik Norberg, ed., Karlskronavarevts historia, 2 vols. (Karlskrona: Karlskronavarvet AB, 1993).
Jan Glete, Navies and Nations: Warships, Navies and State Building in Europe and America, 1500-1860,
2 vols. (Stockholm: Almqvist & Wiksell International, 1993).
Curt Borgenstam &c Bo Nyman, Motortorpedbat: En Kronika i ord och hild om "Havetsjlygande brigad,"
(Mjolby: BM-fbrlaget, 1981), Curt Borgenstam & Bo Nyman, Attack till sjoss: Med svenska flottans
torpedbatar i 100 ar (Karlskrona: CB Marinlitteratur, 1985), Curt Borgenstam et al., Jagare: Med svenska
flottans jagare under 60 ar (Vastra Frolunda: CB Marinlitteratur, 1989).
Bertil Ahlund, Fran vanmakt till sjbmakt: Oscariansk sjofdrsvarspolitik 1 8 12- 1905 (Karlskrona: Kungliga
orlogsmannasallskapet, 1989), Bertil Ahlund, Svensk maritim sakerhetspolitik 1905-1939 (Karlskrona:
Marinlitteraturforeningen, 1992).
348 Sweden
an organization of sea officers founded in 1771, which recently has tried to raise
interest in the naval aspects of the history of the Baltic area. The sweeping
political changes in this area from 1989 onward has, to some extent, increased
the public interest in Baltic history.
Maritime history, as such, is hardly a coherent tradition in Sweden. There is
considerable study of economic history with maritime connections: maritime
trade, the development of the mercantile marine and shipbuilding. Among
recent works, one may mention Steffan Hogberg's study of the eighteenth
century Swedish maritime trade, the same author's biography of the twentieth
century shipowner Axel Ax:son Johnson (1990) and Ake Sandstrom's study of
Stockholm's maritime trade during the first half of the seventeenth century.
Swedish— Dutch maritime trade in the eighteenth century has been treated with
econometric methods by J. Thomas Lindblad, a Swedish historian working in
the Netherlands. Nineteenth century Swedish shipbuilding has been studied
from an economic perspective by Sven A. Bjorkenstam.
The late nineteenth and twentieth century Swedish shipbuilding industry, its
companies, economic conditions, subcontractors and trade unions, has been the
subject of several studies. Jan Kuuse, Kent Olsson, Bo Strath and Tommy
Svensson, and Jan Bohlin have given a comprehensive survey of this industry,
which from its heyday up to the 1970s, was one of the largest producers of
Of)
mercantile shipping in the world. These studies put a strong emphasis on the
labor market conditions in the industry. Bo Strath has also undertaken a
comparative study of the decline of the European shipbuilding industry in recent
decades.
Apart from studies written by academic historians, Sweden also has a fair
amount of writers producing popular books about ships and shipping, especially
Staffen Hoberg, Utrikeshandel och sjofartpa 1 700-talet: Stapelvaror i svensk export och import 1 738—1808
(Stockholm: Bonniers, 1969).
Staffan Hoberg, Generalkonsuln: Axel Ax: son Johnson somfbretagare (Stockholm: Norstedts, 1990).
Ake Sandstrom, Mellan Tomea och Amsterdam: En undersokning av Stockholms roll somfbrmedlare av uaror
i regional - och utrikeshandel 1600-1650. Stockholmsmonografier, vol. 102 (Stockholm: Stockholms
Universitet, 1990).
18 J. Thomas Lindblad, Sweden's Trade with the Dutch Republic, 1138-1195 (Assen: 1982).
Sven A. Bjorkenstam, Svenskt skeppshyggeri under 1800-talet: Marknad och produktion (Goteborg:
Ekonomisk-historiska institutionen vid Goteborgs universitet, 1989).
Kent Olsson, Fran pansarbatsvarv till tankfartygsvarv: De svenska storvarvens utueckling till exportindustri
1880-1936, (Goteborg: Svenska Varv AB, 1983); Thommy Svensson, Fran ackord till m&nadslbn: En
studie av lonepolitiken, fackforeningama och rationaliseringama inom svensk varvsindustri under 1900-talet
(Goteborg: Svenska Varv AB, 1983); Bo StrSth, Varvsarbetare i TV A varvsstader: En historisk studie av
verkstadsklubbama vid varven i Goteborg och Malmo (Goteborg: Svenska Varv AB, 1983); Jan Kuuse, Varven
och underleverantorema: Forandringar ifartygsbyggandets industriella lankeffekter (Kungalv: Svenska Varv AB,
1983); Jan Bohlin, Svensk varvsindustri 1920-1915: Lbnsamhet, finansiering och arbetsmarknad (Goteborg,
Ekonomisk-historiska institutionen vid Goteborgs universitet, 1989).
Bo Strath, The Politics of Deindustrialisation: The Contraction of the west European Shipbuilding Industry
(London: Croom Helm, 1987).
Glete 349
sailing merchantmen and early steamers. Several such studies have the character
of local history, covering a certain area of the long Swedish coast. There are few
monographs about Swedish shipping companies, but, the one hundred-year
jubilee of the Johnson shipping group in 1990 produced two books of this
character, one about the ships and one about the company.
Maritime history as a special subject is not taught at Swedish universities or
other institutions. This is not to be taken as a total lack of interest in maritime
questions, but "maritime" is not identified as a coherent historical subject. It is
rather divided into various economic and social subjects which have asserted a
stronger position in the Swedish academic world.
History is, however, not the only academic discipline involved in the study
of the naval and maritime past. In Scandinavia, archaeology and ethnology have
strong traditions in these spheres of interest and, through the museums, primarily
the Swedish National Maritime Museum (Statens Sjohistorika Museer), Stock-
holm, these disciplines have a considerable institutional base. In 1956, under-
water archaeology was much stimulated by the discovery of the Wasa (1628).
Through its salvage and restoration, Swedish archaeologists developed consid-
erable skill in this special field. Since the 1980s, the Sjohistoriska Museer has
cooperated with the Department of Archaeology at Stockholm University in a
research and education program in nautical archaeology. This program, which
includes education up to the Ph.D. level, is led by Carl Olof Cederlund, who
wrote his dissertation about carvel-built wrecks known to exist in the Baltic
Sea. Two other major archaeological studies — based on interpretations rather
than excavations are those of Sibylla Haasum and Bjorn Varenius. Both
concentrate upon the Viking period, about 1,000 years ago.
The raising and excavation of Wasa offered a unique opportunity to study
the sculptural ornamentation of a large seventeenth century warship. Hans Soop
took advantage of this opportunity and wrote a major study of these sculptures
as his dissertation in the History of Arts. Bjorn Landstrom, the internationally
well-known maritime artist has given his analysis of the design and construction
9A
of Wasa in a book with his usual high-quality illustrations.
Maritime ethnology is an important subject in all of Scandinavia, covering
both the near past of maritime history and long traditions in ship— and boat-
Soren Larsson & Jaak Saving, Nordstjeman: The Inside Story, 1890-1990 (Stockholm: Norstedts,
1990), Torsten Rinman, The Johnson Line, 1890-1990 (Goteborg: Rinman & Linden, 1990).
Carl-Olof Cederlund, The Old Wrecks of the Baltic Sea: Archaeological recording of the wrecks of carvel-built
ships. BAR Internaitonal Series, no 186 (Oxford, 1983).
Sibylla Haasum, Vikingatidens segling och navigation (Stockholm: Theses and papers in North European
Archaeology, 1974), Bjorn Varenius, Det nordiska skeppet: Teknologi och samhallsstrategi i vikingatid och
medeltid Stockholm Studies in Archaeology, 10 (Stockholm: Stockholm Universitet, 1992).
Hans Soop, The Power and the Glory: The Sculptures of the Warship Wasa (Stockholm: Almqvist &
Wiksell International, 1986).
Bjorn Landstrom, The Royal Warship Wasa (Stockholm: Interpublishing, 1988).
350 Sweden
building. Olof Hasslof, an internationally known Swedish ethnologist, did much
to develop this tradition. In recent years, doctoral dissertations and other major
studies, covering a wide range of subjects, have been produced: deep sea sailors
(Knut Weibust, 1969), a coastal area in change 1800—1970 (Orvar Lofgren,
1977), fishing (Lars Skotte, 1981), nineteenth century countryside shipowners
(Kerstin G:son Berg, 1984), harbor workers in Gothenburg and a shipyard.
The Sjohistoriska Museet has a department for ethnological studies, and research
reports are published regularly. In spite of this considerable research activity,
maritime ethnology is nowhere taught as a special subject and the theories and
methods used are the same as in ethnology in general.
As we have seen, with the exception of archaeology and a limited amount of
staff college teaching, there is no regular teaching of naval and maritime history
in Sweden. Maritime history is a part of history, economic history, ethnology,
and archaeology, and methods and theories common to these academic dis-
ciplines are used. Naval history is part of political history, archaeology, and (to
a very limited extent) the training of officers. Books about naval and maritime
history are read in courses of more general subjects, such as trade and defence
policy. Scholars with naval and maritime interests are conducting research into
their subjects with the expectation that they will be evaluated in comparison
with studies of entirely different subjects.
The result is that such studies often are well connected with Swedish history
in general. The intellectual trends are the same as in the historical disciplines in
general. On the other hand the naval and maritime studies are little connected
with each other or with international debate in the same field. Naval history is
not used in debates about defence policy, nor is it possible today to detect any
systematic bias due to contemporary debate in naval historiography. Although
ideology and political issues have for a long time been more or less dead in this
field of research, an exception is developing: in the 1980s and early 1990s several
incidents, or supposed incidents, where foreign submarines were reported in
Swedish territorial waters, became major foreign policy problems and are now
evolving into a controversial, historical debate.
There is no organization that holds responsibility for coordinating naval and
maritime history on an academic level. The Statens Sjohistoriska museer has
considerable activity in ethnology and archaeology — in the latter subject in
cooperation with Stockholm University — but it undertakes no comparable
research activity in history. This museum also has the largest collections of books
27 Knut Weibust, Deep Sea Sailors: A Study in Maritime Ethnology (Stockholm: Nordiska museet, 1969),
Orvar Lofgren, Fangstman i industrisamhallet: en hallandsk kustbygds omvandling 1800-1970 (Lund: Liber,
1977), Lars Skotte, Slutfiskat (Stockholm: Akademilitteratur, 1981), Kerstin G:son Berg, Redare i
Roslagen: Segelfartygsrederier och deras verksamhet igamla Vato socken (Stockholm: Nordiska museet, 1984),
Anders Bjorklund, Hamens arbetare: En etnologisk undersbkning av stuveriarbetet i Goteborg (Stockholm:
Nordiska museet, 1984), Magnus Wikdahl, Varvets tid: Arbetarliv och kulturellfdrandring i en skeppsbyggarstad
(Stockholm: Gidlund, 1992).
Glete 351
and journals in naval and maritime history, and it has published bibliographies
covering Swedish literature. The lack of coordination may have drawbacks, but
from a qualitative point of view, it is an advantage that historians interested in
naval and maritime subjects regard themselves primarily as historians and avoid
isolation into a special group. There is no Swedish journal of maritime history.
The yearbooks of the naval and maritime museums in Stockholm, Karlskrona,
and Gothenburg publish historical articles as does Forum Navale, the yearly
publication of The Society for Sea History (Sjohistoriska Samfundet). The latter
was founded in 1939 and, over the years, has published several important papers
in naval and maritime history, but it has no resources for undertaking research
of its own.
Finally, which periods and subjects are well covered and which require further
research? Sweden has a long naval and maritime tradition with vast archival
sources and a large amount of surviving artifacts above and under water. The
rather small population makes it difficult to cover all these potential fields of
research. In naval history, the old historiography remains as a foundation
covering all periods and aspects, but most of this research is ripe for reinterpreta-
tions and expansion. Recruitment and training of sailors, the development of
the corps of sea officers, the social conditions in the Navy, the connections
between policy and administration and naval technology are especially tempting
fields for more research for d// periods. The same applies to the economic history
of the Navy: finance, the supply of timber, iron, sails and hemp, the dockyard
activities. Operational history up to about 1650, the period of Swedish expansion
in the Baltic, has also been neglected. This was an era of many naval opera-
tions— -blockades, amphibious operations, logistic support of the army — but few
battles, and it attracted little attention from traditional naval historiography,
which puts its emphasis on battle fleet operations.
The state of Swedish maritime history displays a more scattered picture.
Shipping and maritime trade have been most extensively treated for the
eighteenth century, while other periods are rather neglected compared to other
fields of economic history. The modern Swedish shipbuilding industry is well
covered, while shipbuilding as an economic phenomenon before the late
nineteenth century is much neglected. Social conditions for Swedish seamen
before the period studied by ethnologists are almost forgotten, especially com-
pared to the considerable interest shown to workers in the shipbuilding industry
and to harbor workers.
Swedish naval and maritime history is not neglected compared to other fields
of Swedish history, but naval history has, from an academic point of view, been
a small part of a field of research where the Army has dominated. Most of the
literature about warfare and the armed forces are dominated by the studies on
the Swedish Army, which was so important during the period 1560—1721. The
technical questions are often important in naval history, but such questions have
352 Sweden
seldom been tempting fields of research for academic historians. This may be a
further reason for a comparative neglect of naval history. Maritime history is,
like most modem economic and social history dominated by quantifications — a
fully justified emphasis considering that Sweden generally has a good supply of
quantitative sources. The drawback from a maritime point of view is that
historians seldom attempt to put maritime life in the centre of research. For more
recent periods, ethnological research fills this gap, but older periods are simply
neglected. Looking upon the problem from a more positive view, we may
conclude that naval and maritime history belongs to the underexplored and
promising fields of future research for Swedish historians.
30
Chinese Maritime History in Taiwan
Vice Admiral Liu Ta-tsai, ROCN, Retired
and
Wang Chia-chien
China is a country with an exceptional history and ancient origins. The
Yellow River area was its birthplace. It was over five thousand years ago
that the Chinese people established civilization — one based primarily on agricul-
ture. The Loess plateau region symbolizes this traditional and ancient Chinese
culture.
For thousands of years, Chinese culture valued agriculture more than com-
merce. As an agricultural society, it was inclined to be conservative and
isolationist; the Chinese people are accustomed to staying where they are and
have a strong affinity for the land. Thus, the development of Chinese culture
has been land-oriented, nearly to the exclusion of seafaring development.
Just the same, China is located on the western shore of the Pacific Ocean; it
has a vast territory, abundant resources, a warm climate and a long and winding
coastline. Thus, it commands a superior position for development of sea power.
History also shows that there has been a relationship between the Chinese people
and the ocean, albeit limited, for more than three thousand years.
Even in medieval times, China was renowned for its shipbuilding and
navigation techniques, which were actually far more advanced than Western
countries for that period. During that time, China's maritime trade expanded
significantly, and relations with foreign countries were very close. However,
after seven naval expeditions by Zheng He in the fifteenth century, China's
maritime activities were suspended. Why China did not become a maritime
super power continues to puzzle Western historians of maritime affairs.
Given China's extensive history, many maritime activities of the ancient
Chinese people have been recorded. Modern Chinese history reflects the fact
Vice Admiral Liu Ta-tsai is currently Senior Research Fellow at the Society for Strategic Studies,
Taipei; Professor Wang Chia-chien is with the Department of History at the National Taiwan Normal
University.
The editor is grateful to Professor Arthur Waldron for his assistance with some of the footnotes to
this essay.
Geoffrey Till, Maritime Strategy and the Nuclear Age (New York: St. Martin's Press, 1982), p. 4.
354 Chinese Maritime History in Taiwan
that China's maritime development is closely tied to the rise and decline of the
various dynasties that have ruled the country.
The records of Chinese maritime history support study in a variety of topics,
such as the development of shipbuilding and nautical technology, ocean
transportation, maritime trade, maritime expeditions, and overseas emigration
and exploitation, to name a few. Hence, there is a broad base of Chinese
maritime history for scholars to explore. Chinese historians, including scholars
from both sides of the Taiwan Straits, have undertaken detailed research, and
fruitful results have already been obtained.
The television program, "River Elegy," shown in mainland China in 1988,
had a great impact on the minds of Chinese people, both at home and abroad.
This program provided them an opportunity to ponder and explore the history
created by the Chinese continental and maritime culture. The broadcast literally
caused a sensation throughout the Chinese mainland. When the book was finally
published in Taiwan, it was the best selling book there for nearly a year.
River Elegy was written by a group of scholars in mainland China, and describes
their meditations over the maritime history of China. Their motive was to arouse
the maritime consciousness of the Chinese society, while calling for the Chinese
people to face and march toward the vast, blue ocean.
China's Maritime Civilization
As noted earlier, China is not only a continental nation, but it is also bound
to the sea. Early in the "Emperor Huang Di" period, the maritime industry of
building wooden boats had already evolved in China. In the "Spring and
Autumn" and the "Warring State" periods (771—221 B.C.), feudal states along
the coast of the continent were constantly bickering or making war upon each
other, employing their individual boat forces to do so. However, influenced by
the vastness of the land, and feudal tendencies of kings with their wild ambition
for annexing territory, the focus of interest remained continental.
Over the last several thousand years, foreign aggression toward China often
came overland, from the north. The Great Wall, one of the great architectural
feats in world history, was originally designed and built to protect against
these northern invaders. It is correct to say that the Great Wall symbolizes
ancient China's powerful and prosperous strength. However, the perception
of China as a landlocked culture is reinforced by the Wall and has emphasized
Su Hsiao-k'ang and Wang Lu-hsiang, He shang (Taipei: Feng-yiin, Shih-tai, Chin-feng ch'u-pan
gong-ssu lien-he ch'u-pan, 1988). Su-Hsiao-k'ang and Wang Lu-hsiang, Deathsong of the River: A
Reader's Guide to the Chinese TV series Heshang. Introduced and annotated by Richard W. Bodman and
Pin P. Wan (Ithaca, N.Y.: East Asia Program, Cornell University, 1991).
4 Ts'ao Pao-chien and Kuo Fu-wen, Meditation in Face of the Pacific Ocean — A Revived Perception of the
Ocean and National Defense (Beijing: Defense Univ. Press, 1989), p. 133.
Liu and Wang 355
the evolution of Chinese history, to a great degree, on purely continental issues.
This has seriously undermined the understanding of China's maritime culture.
Nevertheless, ancient China's technique in shipbuilding and navigation were
extremely advanced. British scholar Joseph Needham produced a comparative
research of the nautical technology of ancient China and the West. In this book,
he stated, "As far as many ship building and navigation theories are concerned,
the West fell behind China by several centuries. With regard to operation of a
rudder, the West lagged behind China by four centuries and to the utilization
of the compass by about one century."
Early on, before the Han Dynasty (202 B.C.— A.D. 220), China had built a "Silk
Road" at sea, which brought economic prosperity to ancient china and
propagated the advanced Chinese culture to the West.
According to historical documentation, there were three great inventions in
China: paper, powder, and the compass. They provided a superiority in
shipbuilding and navigation to the ancient Chinese navies. In the Yuan Dynasty
(1279—1367), several expeditions to Southeast Asia, Java, and Japan were
recorded. Although these expeditions ultimately failed, they did prove the
superior technology of the Chinese Navy.
In the Ming Dynasty (1368—1644), China's greatest navigator, Zheng He,
conducted seven expeditions to the Indian Ocean. They were the most brilliant
achievements in the maritime history of China. However, after Zheng died, the
Ming government imposed restrictions on maritime navigation. Thereafter,
Q
China's leadership in the world of maritime affairs suffered a disastrous decline.
China's Maritime History
As previously noted, nautical technology in ancient China was well
developed, allowing China to become one of the earliest ancient countries
possessing a naval force. The "Silk Road," predating the Han Dynasty, has
already been mentioned. Following the Tang Dynasty (618—907), the Silk Road
on land was closed by wars. It was at that time that the maritime Silk Road
entered its golden age. With the Sung (960-1279) and Yuan (1279-1386)
Dynasties, China's maritime transportation entered its most prosperous period.
Maritime trade became the country's major financial source. During this period,
Chinese ships nearly monopolized the entire sea lane from China to the Indian
Ocean. In addition to trade, China's ships greatly stimulated the communication,
development, and integration of the ancient Chinese, Indian, and Arab civiliza-
tions, as well as other Western and Pacific cultures.
Ibid., p. 164.
Joseph Needham, Science and Ciuilisation in China, Vol. 4: "Nautical Technology," p. 484.
Ts'ao Pau-chien and Kuo Fu-wen, Mediation, p. 132.
Chang Wei and Hsu Hua, The Rise and Fall of Sea Power (Beijing: Ocean Publishing Co., 1991), pp. 40-2.
Ts'ao Pao-chien and Kuo Fu-wen, Mediation, pp. 136-7.
356 Chinese Maritime History in Taiwan
China's navigation was at its zenith in the early Ming Dynasty. Seven
expeditions and goodwill missions, led by Zheng He, to the countries along the
South China Sea and the Indian Ocean preceded the grand discovery of world
geography during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries.
For twenty-eight years, from 1405 to 1433, Zheng He led a goodwill fleet
southward from the Pacific Ocean to the Indian Ocean, the Red Sea, and to
the farthest eastern African coast. Such an accomplishment was unprecedented.
Zheng He's navigation feat preceded Christopher Columbus's discovery of the
New World by 87 years, Vasco Da Gama's transit past the Cape of Good Hope
to India by 92 years, and antedated Ferdinand Magellan's circumnavigation of
the world by 114 years. He surely deserved recognition for such a great
geographical discovery. The impact on the politics, economy and culture of the
countries along the South China Sea and the Indian Ocean of Zheng He's
missions has been clearly recorded in the histories of those regions. It was a
prelude to the most glorious achievement in China's maritime history.
Since Zheng He's expedition imposed a tremendous financial burden on the
government, it came to be considered a flawed policy. The government of the
Ming Dynasty, therefore, returned the policy of isolationism and ordered that
construction of big ships be stopped. Even the files of Zheng He's expedition
were burned. Large-scale overseas navigation in China ceased.
Throughout the Qing Dynasty (1644-1912), pirates pillaged Chinese coastal
provinces. Resistance to the Qing Dynasty remained strong in southeastern China
along the coast. The Qing Dynasty, therefore, also adopted policies prohibiting
navigation and other activities of maritime trade in order to isolate China from the
outside world. Only after the European Industrial Revolution did the influence
of the West become overwhelming, forcing China to end this policy.
In every conflict with the Western powers (the Opium War, the Sino-French
War, the Sino-Japanese War, and the seizure of Beijing by the joint forces of
the eight Western powers) China met defeat. The effect of this series of defeats
was that China became a miserable, semi-colony of the Western powers. This
loss of Chinese sovereignty and dignity was a direct result of its lack of sea power.
Modern Maritime China
After World War II China was split into two political entities. In 1949 the
government of the Republic of China (ROC) moved to Taiwan, and mainland
Chang Wei and Hsu Hua, Sea, p. 41.
A British Army major, George Henry Mason, travelled to China at the end of the eighteenth century.
Out of curiosity, he recorded what China looked like to him. To depict vividly the Chinese acrobatics
and dramatic costumes, he hired a Chinese painter. Additionally, Major Mason also adopted the works
of a British painter, William Alexander, who had travelled along the Grand Canal from north to south;
George Henry Mason and William Alexander, Views of 18th Century China (1804 and 1805; reprint
New York: Portland House, 1988). In the eyes of those British who saw the illustrations and had no
idea of this oriental country, China was a mysterious, but rather civilized country. The book has recently
been translated into Chinese.
Liu and Wang 357
China fell into the hands of the Chinese communists. The two sides adopted
and practiced two completely different maritime strategies.
Taiwan, surrounded by the sea, adopted an island-oriented economic system.
Its economic development and national framework are closely related to its
maritime environment. Taiwan's economic miracle is a maritime-oriented
model which has enabled Taiwan to transform from a backward, agricultural
society to a newly developed, industrial nation.
Throughout Chinese history, Taiwan's people have been a maritime society,
using the surrounding oceans to make their fortunes and accomplish great
achievements. Now, Taiwan serves as the example for mainland China to follow
as that country develops for the future.
The Chinese mainland, under the cloak of socialism, largely ignored the
ocean, becoming an introverted and isolated society in the process. Fortunately,
at the beginning of the 1980s, mainland China adopted a more open policy,
developing a coastal economy and working on reforms. It moved toward a
market economy and even publicly expressed the slogan: "learn economic
experience from Taiwan." After more than a decade of efforts, mainland China's
economic reform has made substantial progress.
Currently, a trilateral "Greater Chinese Economic Ring" is taking shape.
This is a great cooperative effort of Chinese people, both in the homeland and
abroad. At the same time, mainland China's economic reform has accelerated.
Its sea power development and naval expansion has earned the serious concern
of other countries worldwide. In particular, neighboring countries in Asia and
the Pacific worry that mainland China will soon become a great maritime power.
During the current period of growth and change, many observers hope that
a democratic and open China, possessing a market economy and maritime
strengths, will be a strong and rich country contributing to the stability and
prosperity of the region in the twenty-first century.
Studies in Maritime History
Despite its continental tendencies, the evolution of Chinese history is closely
related to maritime activities. In order to foster the study of Chinese maritime
history, the Sun Yat-sen Institute for Social Sciences and Philosophy, led by Dr.
Mai Chao-cheng, has regularly gathered scholars interested in this respect to
exchange viewpoints. It also holds symposia on the history of Chinese maritime
1 2
developments biannually to promote systematic academic researches. There
are three main reasons for this.
First, China is a continental as well as an oceanic nation. In the past, local
scholars made substantial research relevant to the former. The symposia are
recognition that the latter has not received the attention it warrants.
Academia Sinica, Proceedings, Studies in Maritime Development in Chinese History, vol. 1 (Taipei:
Academia Sinica, Sun Yat-sen Institute for Social Science and Philosophy, 1984), p. 1.
358 Chinese Maritime History in Taiwan
Second, the boom of maritime navigation and colonialism advocated by the
Western nations since the fifteenth century brought forth changes in all civiliza-
tions affected by the intersection of China with other cultures. Therefore, the
scholar of traditional Chinese maritime history must realize just how far-reaching
the impact of western nations has been on Chinese culture and maritime history.
Third, the successful reclamation and cultivation of Taiwan by the Han people
not only sets a good example, but also reflects the historical evidence that the
Chinese have the capacity for oceanic exploration. The study of Taiwan's history
can contribute to an understanding of the developmental process of the Han
society and provide a historical tracing for the burgeoning maritime society in
Taiwan today.
Based upon the aforementioned reasons, the Institute has gathered a number
of domestic historians in this field to promote these research programs. So far,
the number of participants has increased annually, and the quality of essays has
also become much more refined. It has, therefore, received close attention from
1 ^
the academic circles, both at home and abroad.
1990 was the one hundredth anniversary of the first publication of Admiral
Mahan's well-known work, The Influence of Sea Power Upon History. It was also
the 150th anniversary of the Opium War. Therefore, 1990 was a particularly
important year to Chinese naval officers. When considering modern history, it
becomes apparent that the Opium War was the prelude to a series of disasters
that befell China. Therefore, in order to revive the memory of the Opium War,
to review Admiral Mahan's thoughts on sea power, to recall the historical lessons
learned from past failures, and to facilitate the correct recognition of sea power,
Admirals Ko Tung-hwa and Liu Ta-tsai established a Chinese Sea Power
Research Workshop, officially titled "The 21st Century Sea Power Seminar."
The first conference, held in the Republic of China, combined local scholars
with experts from all relevant academic areas to produce research on sea power.
It produced an emphatic response and received immediate attention from a
variety of scholarly circles.
The second conference, held in July of 1992, stressed the review of maritime
strategy as well as a review of and consideration of the perspectives on the future
development of Chinese naval power. It, too, was characterized as a very
successful and fruitful academic activity by the gathered military and civilian
scholars and experts. The two communities worked together to engender
exchange and to discuss current or prospective issues regarding Chinese sea
power.
Ibid., vol. 4, ed. Wu Chien-hsiung, (Taipei: Academia Sinica, Sun Yat-sen Institute for Social
Science and Philosophy, 1991), pp. 1-7.
Proceedings, First Seminar on the 21st Century Sea Power, (Taipei: Naval Academic Press, 1991),
pp. 1-3.
Liu and Wang 359
Both conferences were supported by the shipping industry and by the
Foundation of the United World Chinese . Commercial Bank. This support
serves to confirm that the study of Chinese sea power has earned a broadening
and important interest.
In addition, as the Sino-Japanese War of 1894—1895 approaches its one
hundredth anniversary, the local historical circle has already engaged in prepara-
tions to convene an international academic seminar which will be held by the
National Taiwan Normal University. The main subjects of the seminar will be
a discussion of the Sino-Japanese War of 1894— 1895 and its influence on Chinese
history as well as its historical significance and lessons learned.
It is understood that this seminar has already received many sponsors and
assistance across the board. In addition, since both the People's Republic of
China and the Republic of China in Taiwan have actively prepared for the
convention, it appears that a significant seminar may be in the offing.
Because of its diversity, Chinese maritime history offers many subjects for
study. Among them are foreign trade, foreign relations, overseas immigration
and exploitation, and overseas Chinese societies. Developments in these areas
have had an important impact on modern Chinese history. Many scholars in
Taiwan have undertaken professional studies in a variety of subjects. Study efforts
in mainland China may be even more extensive. A sampling of Taiwanese
scholars provides the following:
In naval history, for instance, Professor Pau Tzun-peng, the former curator
of National Historical Museum, is a noted author on Chinese naval history. Rear
Admiral (retired) Cheng T'ien-chieh and Captain (retired) Chao Mei-ching, are
co-authors of Sino-Japanese War (1894—1895) and Li Hung-chang. Another is
Wang Chia-chien, professor of history at the National Taiwan Norman Univer-
sity and author of the Anthology of Chinese Modern Naval History. He is also the
author of a series of articles on Chinese naval history. Dr. Ma You-huan, a
professor of oriental language and literature at the University of Hawaii in the
United States has authored a series of studies regarding Chinese naval history.
In the field of maritime history, Mr. Wu Hsiang-hsiang, a former
professor of history at the National Taiwan University, is making many
contributions to the study of modern Chinese maritime history. Professor
Tsao Yung-he, a scholar versed in the Dutch language, enjoys a solid
reputation in historical circles for his specialized study in Taiwan
maritime history and related writings. Dr. Chang Pin-tsun, a research
fellow of the Chung Shan Social Science Institute of Academia Sinica, is
the author of a series of articles concerning his specialized study in
Naval Academic Monthly, Proceedings, Second seminar on the 21st Century Sea Power, (Taipei:
Naval Academic Monthly, 1992), pp. 1-3.
For example, Wang Chia-chien, "Li Hung-Chang and the Peiyang Navy," Chinese Studies in History,
25 (1991), pp. 52-66.
360 Chinese Maritime History in Taiwan
modern maritime trade. Additionally, Chu Te-lan, an assistant researcher
at the Chung Shan Social Science Institute of Academia Sinica, has authored a
series of writings relating to his specialized study in Sino-Japanese maritime trade.
Formal Naval and Maritime History Courses
There are courses regarding naval and maritime history at the Naval Com-
mand and General Staff College, the Armed Forces University and the ROC
Naval Academy. Additionally, courses in the history of warfare at sea are also
given at the War College and Naval Command and General Staff College, as
well as the Armed Forces University. Those courses include instructions in
ancient Chinese sea battles, studies on the Sino-Japanese War, the Falkland
Islands War, and the Persian Gulf War. All lecturers for the courses are active
duty military and naval officers.
Modern Chinese history is closely related to maritime history. Although the
departments of history in our universities have no specific maritime history
course, "Modern Chinese History" is a required course and provides a substantial
introduction to maritime history.
Museums
The Naval Historical Museum, located on the campus of the Chinese Naval
Academy at Tso-ying harbor in southern Taiwan, is a three-story building
decorated with an artistic and systematic design for its collection and exhibition
of naval relics. The elaborate planning for the presentation of these artifacts of
modern Chinese naval history are particularly conspicuous according to the
stages of development. The rich and varied collections of naval relics, particularly
the huge number of historical files and records dating from the Qing Dynasty
to the early days of the ROC, are of great value to historical research. This
museum both helps students understand Chinese naval history and facilitate the
implementation of esprit de corps.
The Tamkang University established the first domestic maritime museum in
Taiwan to assist the development of marine education. Mr. Rong-fa Chang,
Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Evergreen Marine Corporation, not only
contributed to the funding of its construction but also provided equipment,
books, and documents on navigation and marine engineering for exhibit. Based
on the meticulous planning and design of Dr. Tien-fu Lin, the founder and
honorary chairman of the board, construction was completed smoothly. Dr. Lin
is well known in this country and was engaged in the shipping business in his
Chang Pin-tsun, "Chinese Maritime Trade: The Case of Sixteenth-Century Fu-chien (Fukien)"
Ph.D. dissertation, Princeton University, 1983; "The Evolution of Chinese Thought on Maritime
Foreign Trade from the Sixteenth to the Eighteenth Century," International Journal of Maritime History
1(1989), pp. 51-64; "Maritime China in Historical Perspective," International Journal of Maritime History,
4 (1992), pp. 239-255.
Liu and Wang 361
early years. It is particularly commendable that during the preparation stage of
the maritime museum, Dr. Lin travelled around the world to collect various
models of sailing ships and combatants for its exhibits.
The Tamkang Maritime Museum is a five-story, ship-shaped building. The
first two floors display model ships, the third floor houses a library, and an
audio-video room for maritime science books and relics as well. The fourth floor
is a bridge house exhibiting diversified navigation equipment.
The maritime museum is a non-profit organization, open to the public free
of charge in an attempt to promote maritime education. Besides welcoming
visitors, it engages in marine data collection and research and also has undertaken
extensive exchanges with maritime museums around the world to gain ex-
1 8
perience and develop its academic position to a world class level.
Tamkang University, The Convergence of the Ships, (Taipei County: Tamkang University, Maritime
Museum, 1992), p. 2.
1
The State of American Maritime History
in the 1 990s
Benjamin W. Labaree
In a paper of this sort, it is best to open with a definition of its scope. By
"American maritime history," I mean the teaching, writing, or exhibiting of
matters pertaining to American maritime, but not naval, history. By "American"
I mean that which pertains in some fashion to the territory, both before and after
its independence, that became the United States. I should also make clear that
the paper considers only work being done in the United States (taught, published,
or exhibited here). Under "maritime" I have included such land-based activities
as inland waterways and seaports. These are difficult limitations at best, par-
ticularly for a maritime historian. We are here, after all, to bring our disparate
interests together — naval and maritime; national and oceanic; political,
economic, and social; academic, archival, and curatorial. The sea connects
everything, as Gaddis Smith has observed, and it is difficult to draw rigid lines.
Teaching
Historians are well used to taking a running start to their subject, and so "The
State of American Maritime History in the 1990s" very much depends on what
has been happening, and in this case, also what has not been happening, over
the last decade or so. We shall begin with the most difficult part of the subject:
the teaching of American maritime history in the United States today. To look
at the worst of it first, the American Historical Association's Directory of History
Departments shows only sixteen faculty members at American institutions who
describe themselves as American maritime historians. We know and admire the
maritime work of at least a dozen Americanists who do not describe themselves
in the field, and we can add several medieval historians or Europeanists, like Tim
Runyan and Tony Busch, who are also active in American maritime history.
And then there are the broad-gauged navalists such as Clark Reynolds, Ken
Robert B. Townshend, ed., Directory of History Departments and Organizations in the United States and
Canada, 1991-92, 17th ed. (Washington, DC: American Historical Association Institutional Services
Program), 1991. Of course one cannot know whether Directory information is provided by the scholars
themselves in every instance.
364 The State of American Maritime History
Hagan, and Craig Symonds, who work both sides of our street. Further-
more, not all institutions are listed in the Directory, and in the excitement
of reading five hundred pages of names I probably missed a few. Yet,
taking all of these matters into consideration, we must still conclude that
there are no more than, say, thirty American maritime historians on the
faculties of our colleges and universities today. Add naval specialists and
that number might double.
The purpose of this search was to get a rough idea of how many university-
level courses in American maritime history might be offered in the United States
each year. Many of these professors do not teach the subject at all; others offer
such a course once every two or three years, Gaddis Smith at Yale, for example;
still others get to teach their specialty only at off-campus programs. There are,
fortunately, two or three such opportunities. Williams College co-sponsors with
Mystic Seaport Museum an undergraduate Program in American Maritime
Studies. Since its beginning in 1977, nearly seven hundred undergraduates have
taken that subject in the unequalled setting of one of our leading maritime
museums. The Sea Education Association in Woods Hole, Massachusetts, offers
a somewhat similar course. And the Frank C. Munson Institute, also at Mystic
Seaport, has been teaching American Maritime History on the graduate level
every summer since 1955. Munson alumni are now represented in universities
and maritime museums throughout the country. But by whatever reckoning, it
is not easy for any American student interested in pursuing the subject to do so
in the United States.
The biggest setback in the teaching of maritime history has been at the one
American university that actually has an endowed chair in the field. In 1947 Mr.
and Mrs. William H. Gardiner gave Harvard University the then princely sum
of $250,000 to endow a chair in "Oceanic History and Affairs." Robert
Greenhalgh Albion was appointed its first occupant, and he was followed at
retirement by John H. Parry. It was for the hundreds of students who took this
course, incidentally, that Albion prepared the first comprehensive annotated
bibliography of books in English relating to naval and maritime history. Since
Parry's untimely death in 1982, however, Harvard has failed to fill this important
chair, and the best opportunity for American graduate students to prepare in this
field has been lost.
To close this section on a happier note let us turn to East Carolina University.
Here is located the largest collection of maritime historians and archaeologists
in the States. Offering a broad array of maritime-related courses, including
extensive underwater research (a field sadly neglected in this country), East
Carolina may soon become our first and only institution to offer a Ph.D. in the
field. Others could do so as well, like Brown University with the splendid
resources of the John Carter Brown Library QCB) on campus. Director Norman
Fiering of the JCB and John Hattendorf of the Naval War College have teamed
Labaree 365
up to co-sponsor at Brown a summer maritime studies program under the
auspices of the National Endowment for the Humanities.
The teaching of American maritime history, then, remains an undeveloped
field, so undeveloped in fact that no one should at present encourage graduate
students to enter the job market primarily as maritime historians. Rather, they
should follow the example of Bob Albion, originally a historian of the British
Empire— or Gaddis Smith, an American diplomatic historian, or Ted Sloan, a
historian of American business and technology — and pursue at the outset a
mainstream position, sneaking a maritime history course into the catalog when
only eager students are looking. Concerning the graduate level, far more
important than our struggling to establish entire Ph.D. degree programs in
maritime history at various universities is to offer the subject as an ancillary field
in as many graduate schools as possible. Unless more American universities do
so, the men and women who will become our future faculty members will not
have the opportunity to study the subject, and the number of courses offered
will continue to dwindle.
Publication
Fortunately, the next section of this report presents a more positive picture.
In the last decade or so, the publication of works in American maritime history
has continued apace, both in quantity and quality. As compiler of a supplement
to Albion's bibliography of naval and maritime history, I can vouch for the
quantity — over two thousand for the years 1971—1986. While the great majority
of these volumes concerns naval matters or the maritime history of nations other
than the United States, over the past decade or so hundreds of first-rate books
and articles have enhanced our knowledge and understanding of America's
maritime past. There follows some of the more important works that have
appeared in the past decade or so, arranged under a number of subject headings
and chosen to demonstrate the breadth of range within those headings. Brief
comments suggest their particular contributions. In the first group are books on
more traditional subjects.
Ships, Shipbuilding, and Shipping. George F. Bass, the eminent marine
archaeologist at Texas A&M University, has provided an excellent place to begin
the study of vessels that have sailed in American waters in his Ships and Shipwrecks
This position may seem unnecessarily self-limited by those readers from institutions where graduate
work is more narrowly specialized than in the United States.
3 Benjamin W. Labaree, comp. A Supplement 1971-1986 to Robert G. Albion's Naval & Maritime
History: An Annotated Bibliography (Mystic, Conn.: Mystic Seaport Museum for the Munson Institute
of American Maritime Studies, 1988).
Robert Greenhalgh Albion, comp. Naval & Maritime History: An Annotated Bibliography. 4th ed. rev.
and expanded (Mystic, Conn.: The Marine Historical Association for the Munson Institute of American
Maritime History, 1972).
366 The State of American Maritime History
of the Americas. One of the nation's premier shipbuilding regions,
Connecticut's Mystic River is the subject of William N. Peterson's
"Mystic Built"* a book that is particularly noteworthy for the way in
which the author integrates shipbuilding activities into the community
as a whole. In Steam and the Sea, Paul Johnston gives us a well-written
and handsomely illustrated book to accompany the Peabody Museum's
exhibit on the origins and development of steam in American coastal
Q
waters and transoceanic routes. Virginia S. Wood's Live Oaking is the
definitive study of how timber from the live oak forests of the American
south was procured for mercantile and naval shipbuilding. The eleven
essays comprising Robert A. Kilmarx, ed., America's Maritime Legacy
provide a much-needed update of J.G.B. Hutchins' American Maritime
Industries, published in 1941. In each of these works, as in all good books
about ships per se, vessels are shown to be the carefully wrought products
of designers and builders and are the means to some further end, be it
commerce, fishing, science, or whatever, rather than merely ends in
themselves.
Discovery and Exploration. Daniel Boorstin provides a sweeping intro-
duction to the expansion of Europe in The Discoverers, the overarching
theme of which is the intellectual progress that opened up "the world we
now view from the literate West." One of the most exciting books in this
category must certainly be Alfred W. Crosby's The Biological Expansion of
Europe, an expansion of the theme first set forth twenty years ago in his
Columbian Exchange, showing how European disease, animals, and plants
contributed to the conquest of the native populations in the world's temperate
zones. "Maritime History?" one might ask. Certainly, for Crosby's work explores
the paradoxical role of the sea in human affairs, isolating peoples from one
another for centuries and then carrying foreign diseases into their society. The
George F. Bass, Ships and Shipwrecks of the Americas: A History based on Underwater Archaeology (London:
Thames and Hudson, 1988).
6 William N. Peterson, "Mystic Built:" Ships and Shipyards of the Mystic River, Connecticut, 1 784-1919
(Mystic, Conn.: Mystic Seaport Museum, 1989).
Paul Johnston, Steam and the Sea (Salem, Mass.: Peabody Museum, 1983).
Virgiania S. Wood, Live Oaking: Southern Timber for Tall Ships (Boston: Northeastern Univ. Press,
1981).
Robert A. Kilmarx, ed., America's Maritime Legacy: A History of the U.S. Merchant Marine and
Shipbuilding Industry since Colonial Times (Boulder, Colo.: Westview, 1979).
Daniel Boorstin, The Discoverers (New York: Random, 1983).
11 Alfred W. Crosby, The Biological Expansion of Europe, 900-1900 (New York: Cambridge Univ.
Press, 1986).
1 0
Alfred W. Crosby, The Columbian Exchange: Biological and Cultural Consequences of 1492 (Westport,
Conn.: Greenwood Publishing, 1972).
Labaree 367
best of the many works cornmemorating the Columbian quincentenary are William D.
Phillips and Carla Rahn Phillips, The Worlds of Christopher Columbus and Felipe
Fernandez-Armesto's Columbus. More specialized essays on the history of North
American discovery and exploration are edited in a useful volume by Stanley H.
Palmer and Dennis Reinhartz. Two recent works give us contrasting insights
1 f\
into American exploration of the nineteenth century. In Icebound Leonard
Guttridge makes the tragedy of a failed polar expedition into a fascinating study
of leadership. Voyage to the Southern Ocean, on the other hand, is an ably edited
collection of letters by a participant in the highly successful Wilkes Expedition.
Whaling and Fishing. A perennially popular subject for American maritime
writers is whaling, and to a lesser extent commercial fishing. The past decade has
1 ft
brought several significant additions to this literature. Robert L. Webb and John
Bockstoce add much to our understanding of the whaling industry by taking their
readers into new waters. In Doum on T- Wharf, Andrew German's excellent text
accompanies a superb collection of photographs and reminds us of how the New
England fishing industry used to be. In contrast, William Warner's study of Atlantic
deepwater fishing, though ten years old, nevertheless foretells in timely fashion
the decline in both coastal and offshore fishing that has only recendy brought drastic
action by both U.S. and Canadian authorities. The outstanding book in this general
category is Briton Cooper Busch's remarkable history of sealing. It is the first
definitive study of this highly charged subject and offers both the commercial and
environmental points of view fair hearings.
Commerce and Shipping. Surely, one might think, there can be little new
to be said about maritime trade and commerce, and yet each year increasing
William D. Phillips and Carla Rahn Phillips, The Worlds of Christopher Columbus (Cambridge:
Cambridge Univ. Press, 1992).
14 Felipe Fernandez- Armesto, Columbus (New York: Oxford Univ. Press, 1991).
Stanley H. Palmer and Dennis Reinhartz, Essays on the History of North American Discovery and
Exploration (College Station: Texas A&M Univ. Press, 1988).
Leonard Guttridge, Icebound: The Jeannette Expedition's Quest for the North Pole (Annapolis: Naval
Institute Press, 1986).
Anne Hoffman Cleaver and Jeffrey Stann, eds., Voyage to the Southern Ocean: The Letters of Lieutenant
William Reynolds from the U.S. Exploring Expedition, 1838-1842 (Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 1988).
18 Robert L. Webb, On the Northwest: Commercial Whaling in the Pacific Northwest, 1790-1961
(Vancouver: Univ. of British Columbia Press, 1988).
John Bockstoce, Whales, Ice, and Men: The History of Whaling in the Western Arctic (Seattle: Univ. of
Washington Press, 1986).
Andrew German, Down on T- Wharf: The Boston Fisheries as Seen through the Photographs of Henry D.
Fisher (Mystic, Conn.: Mystic Seaport Museum, 1982).
21 William W. Warner, Distant Water: The Fate of the North Atlantic Fisherman (Boston: Litde, Brown, 1 983) .
22 Briton Cooper Busch, The War Against the Seals: A History of the North American Seal Fishery (Kingston
and Montreal: McGill-Queen's Univ. Press, 1985).
368 The State of American Maritime History
numbers of books and articles probe still unexplored aspects of this most
fundamental theme in maritime history. The challenge here is to choose from
among hundreds of recent works five or six that give us new perspectives on
this old subject, that show commerce as an activity with consequences that reach
far beyond the economic bottom line. Here we must begin with Philip D.
Curtin's Cross- Cultural Trade in World History, which concentrates on both
maritime and overland commerce as a vehicle of culture through many parts of
the world. At the other end of the scale is the study of Irish- American trade by
Thomas M. Truxes. Richard Johnson has used the career of Bostonian John
Nelson to explain the commercial and political relations between New England
and New France at the end of the seventeenth century. Finally, on a totally
different scale is the business history of the American President Lines by John
Niven, which places the operation of this important transpacific company into
the broad context of maritime policy.
Here is perhaps the best place to note the most recent attempt to put into one
volume a maritime history of the United States, this one by the late Jack Bauer.
Its strength lies in the author's knowledgeable treatment of America's inland
waterways and their integration into the maritime world beyond our coasts.
Coastal shipping and the fisheries are also well treated. Unfortunately, Bauer's
handling of the topic of overseas commerce after the Civil War is marred by his
mounting distress over the decline of American-flag shipping.
• • •
The past decade of scholarly works in maritime history would be noteworthy
enough on the strength of the foregoing works. But what has made the past ten
years particularly exciting is the abundance of new work in less conventional
aspects of the field. Let us turn now to this second group.
Seaports. One must begin somewhere, and so we will start on dry land, with
some of the books that have illuminated our understanding of seaports. Begin-
ning in New England, Christine L. Heyrman's excellent study of Gloucester and
Marblehead examines the culture of these two fishing communities as it related
23 Philip D. Curtin, Cross- Cultural Trade in World History (London: Cambridge Univ. Press, 1984).
24 Thomas M. Truxes, Irish- American Trade, 1660-1783 (New York: Cambridge Univ. Press, 1988).
Richard Johnson, John Nelson, Merchant Adventurer: A Life Between Empires (New York: Oxford Univ.
Press, 1991).
26 John Niven, The American President Lines and Its Forebears, 1848-1984: From Paddlewheelers to
Containerships (Newark: Univ. of Delaware Press, 1986).
Jack Bauer, A Maritime History of the United States: The Role of America's Seas and Waterways
(Charleston: Univ. of South Carolina Press, 1988).
Christine L. Heyrman, Commerce and Culture: The Maritime Communities of Colonial Massachusetts,
1690-1750 (New York: W.W. Norton, 1984).
Labaree 369
to their commercial activities. In contrast, the planning and development of New
York's waterfront over the course of three centuries is the subject of Ann
Buttenwiser's Manhattan Water-Bound, while Philip C.F. Smith has made
extensive use of maps, lithographs, and photographs to demonstrate that
Philadelphia was and remains a major port city. New Orleans, of all major
American ports perhaps the most neglected by maritime historians, has been the
focus of several recent studies, the most comprehensive of which is Eric
Arensen's Waterfront Workers of New Orleans. The author considers such topics
as the relationship between blacks who worked the waterfront and the larger
black community, and the effects of race relations on the unions. Another
overlooked seaport, Portland, Oregon, is the subject of a study by E. Kimbark
MacColl. Bruce Nelson's Workers on the Waterfront focuses on the 1930s and
gives particular attention to west coast ports. In Atlantic Port Cities, Franklin
W. Knight and Peggy K. Liss have edited the papers of a 1986 conference that
took as its point of departure Jacob Price's essay of 1974 entitled "Economic
Function and the Growth of American Port Towns in the Eighteenth Cen-
tury." Despite the title of the conference essays, however, the book focuses
almost exclusively on Latin America and Caribbean ports.
Inland Waterways. Until recently American maritime historians have largely
ignored the Great Lakes and other inland waterways that have carried a large
portion of this nation's produce to the seaports from which it was ultimately
exported. Now, however, we have in addition to Jack Bauer's Maritime History
of the United States mentioned above, a number of studies that focus on American
canals and riverways and the men who served them. Michael Allen's Western
Rivermen, 1 763-1861 is a case in point. The author explains how and why the
men who operated the flatboats and rafts became romanticized by a rapidly
industrializing nation. Further downstream Harry P. Owens has studied the
effect of steam on the transportation of cotton in the Yazoo-Mississippi
Ann Buttenwiser, Manhattan WaterBound: Planning and Developing Manhattan's Waterfront from the
Seventeenth Century to the Present (New York: New York Univ. Press, 1987).
30 Philip C.F. Smith, Philadelphia on the River (Pennsylvania: Philadelphia Maritime Museum, 1986).
31 Eric Arensen, Waterfront Workers of New Orelans: Race, Class, and Politics, 1863-1923 (New York:
Oxford Univ. Press, 1991).
32 E. Kimbark MacColl, Merchants, Money, and Power: The Portland Establishment, 1843-1913 (Portland,
Ore.: Georgian, 1988).
Bruce Nelson, Workers on the Waterfront: Seamen, Longshoremen, and Unionism in the 1930s (Urbana:
Univ. of Illinois Press, 1988).
Franklin W. Knight and Peggy K. Liss, Atlantic Port Cities: Economy, Culture, and Society in the Atlantic
World, 1650-1850 (Knoxville: Univ. of Tennessee Press, 1991).
Jacob Price, "Economic Function and the Growth of American Port Towns in the Eighteenth
Century" in Perspectives in American History, vol. VIII, pp. 123-86.
36 Michael Allen, Western Rivermen, 1763-1861: Ohio and Mississippi Boatmen and the Myth of the Alligator
Horse (Baton Rouge: Louisiana State Univ. Press, 1990).
370 The State of American Maritime History
delta. Of broader scope is Western River Transportation, by Erik Haites and
others, who put their subject into the context of national policy. Robert Shaw
has given us two useful books, a comprehensive study of the Erie Canal and a
fresh history of the canal era itself in Canals for a Nation.
Immigration. After a long hiatus, American historians are once again writing
about immigration, and several of the recent works on this subject give at least
some attention to the oceanic crossing itself. Thus David Cressy's "Coming
Over' includes a perceptive chapter on the passage to America. Farley Grubb
has published his important research concerning immigration into colonial
Philadelphia in three articles, and A. Roger Ekirch's Bound for America focuses
on the transportation of British convicts into the mainland colonies. Although
not literally about immigration, James P. Delgado's To California by Sea gives
us not only a readable account of the sea passage to the gold fields, but also a
first-rate history of San Francisco's early years as a seaport. One could not close
this section without mentioning Bernard Bailyn's splendid study, Voyaging to the
West, although it is perhaps less concerned with the maritime aspects of his
subject than the title might suggest.
Seamen, Women, and Members of Ethnic Minorities. It is clear to the
most casual observer that the most significant innovation in the writing of
American maritime history in the past decade or so has been the increasing
number of younger scholars who have focused their research on the lives of
Harry P. Owens, Steamboats and the Cotton Economy: River Trade in the Yazoo-Mississippi Delta (Jackson:
Univ. of Mississippi Press, 1990).
38 Erik F. Haites, James Mak, and Gary Walton, Western River Transportation: The Era of Early Internal
Development, 1810-1860 (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Univ. Press, 1990).
39 Robert Shaw, Erie Water West: A History of the Erie Canal, 1 792- 1 854 (Lexington: Univ. of Kentucky
Press, 1990).
40 Robert Shaw, Canals for a Nation: The Canal Era in the United States 1790-1860 (Lexington: Univ.
of Kentucky Press, 1991).
David Cressy, "Coming Over:" Migration and Communication Between England and New England in the
Seventeenth Century (New York: Cambridge Univ. Press, 1987).
Farley Grubb, "British Immigration into Philadelphia: The Reconstruction of Ship Passenger Lists
from May 1772 to October 1773," Pennsylvania History, vol. 55 (1988), pp. 118-41; Farley Grubb, "The
Market Structure of Shipping German Immigrants to Philadelphia," Pennsylvania Magazine of History
and Biography, vol. Ill (1987), pp. 27-48; and Farley Grubb, "Morbidity and Mortality on the North
Atlantic Passage: Eighteenth Century German Immigration," Journal of Interdisciplinary History, vol. 17
(1987), pp. 565-85.
A. Roger Ekirch, Bound for America: The Transportation of British Convicts to the Colonies, 1718—1775,
(New York: Oxford Univ. Press, 1987).
44 James P. Delgado, To California by Sea: A Maritime History of the California Gold Rush (Columbia:
Univ. of South Carolina Press, 1990).
Bernard Bailyn, Voyaging to the West: A Passage in the Peopling of America on the Eve of the Revolution
(New York: Knopf, 1986).
Labaree 371
ordinary mariners, including those belonging to ethnic minorities, and on the
role of women in this maritime society. It is premature to proclaim, as Marcus
Rediker has done, that their work constitutes a "New Maritime History," for
consensus among them has not yet advanced beyond a shared subject-matter.
Yet it is encouraging to note how often they discuss their work together, at
conferences, in "roundtable articles," and in collaborative books. These scholars
also work across international boundaries, bringing to life the dictum that "the
sea is one," to which most of their elders have given little more than lip service.
Indeed, even to discuss this subject from a "Canadian," "American," "British,"
or "Scandinavian" point of view seems unnatural. Like most "new" work, the
writings of this generation have been influenced by several precedents, most
notably Ralph Davis's The Rise of the English Shipping Industry (1962) and Jesse
Lemisch's "Jack Tar in the Streets" (1968).
Let us begin with seamen in general and therefore with Margaret S.
Creighton's Dog Watch and Liberty Days. Written as the catalogue to accom-
pany an exhibit the author arranged for the Peabody Museum, Dog Watch is
based largely on research done for her dissertation. Creighton provides through
text and illustration an unembellished glimpse into the lives of ordinary sailors.
More specialized is Daniel F. Vickers' "Nantucket Whalemen in the Deep-Sea
Fishery,"* in which he places mariners into the broader context of the general
labor force. In "Physical and Social Profiles of Early American Seafarers,
1812-1815," Ira Dye provides us with invaluable information gleaned from
British Admiralty records of American prisoners. The best known and most
controversial of recent studies of maritime society is Marcus Rediker' s Between
CO
the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea. Here the author attempts to show that the
common seamen of the mid-eighteenth century in fact constituted a proletariat.
This is not the place to catalogue the critiques other scholars (younger and older
Ralph Davis, The Rise of the English Shipping Industry in the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries
(London: Macmillan, 1963).
Jesse Lemisch, "Jack Tar in the Streets: Merchant Seamen in the Politics of Revolutionary America,"
William and Mary Quarterly, 3rd ser. 25 (1968), pp. 371-80.
Margaret S. Creighton, Dog Watch and Liberty Days: Seafaring Life in the Nineteenth Century (Salem,
Mass.: Peabody Museum, 1982).
Margaret S. Creighton, "The Private Life of Jack Tar: Sailors at Sea in the Nineteenth Century,"
Ph.D. diss., Boston Univ., 1985).
Daniel F. Vickers, "Nantucket Whalemen in the Deep-Sea Fishery: The Changing Anatomy of an
Early American Labor Force ," Journal of American History, 72 (1985), pp. 277-96. This article is largely
based on sections of the author's "Maritime Labor in Colonial Massachusetts: A Case Study of the Essex
County Cod Fishery and Whaling Industry of Nantucket, 1630-1775" (Ph.D. diss., Princeton Univ., 1981).
Ira Dye, "Physical and Social Profiles of Early American Seafarers, 1812-1815," in Colin Howell
and Richard Twomey, eds.,Jack Tar in History: Essays in the History of Maritime Life and Labour (Fredricton:
Acadiensis Press, 1991), pp. 220-35.
Marcus Rediker, Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea: Merchant Seamen, Pirates, and the
Anglo-American Maritime World, 1700-1750 (Massachusetts: Cambridge Univ. Press, 1987).
372 The State of American Maritime History
alike) have made of Rediker's book, but all would agree that he has stimulated
our thinking as no other maritime scholar in recent years. With co-author Peter
Linebaugh, Rediker has expanded his challenging interpretation in "The Many-
Headed Hydra."
One segment of American seamen as a topic that has attracted attention
from both older and younger historians is the role of blacks and members of
other ethnic minorities in the maritime workforce. Martha S. Putney's Black
Sailors and James B. Farr's Black Odyssey are worthy efforts to get at a
difficult subject. More thorough in both concept and research is Jeffrey
Bolster's prize-winning article "To Feel Like a Man." Judging from the
article, we eagerly await the author's forthcoming book on the subject.
Meanwhile, in his biography of Captain Paul Cuffe, Rise to be a People, '
Thomas D. Lamont shows that not all black mariners were condemned to a
life in the fo'c'sle. Briton Cooper Busch has given us a glimpse into the lives
of another ethnic minority in "Cape Verdeans in the American Whaling and
Sealing Industry, 1850-1900."58
One of the first of the younger historians to have considered the role of
women in the maritime community is Julia C. Bonham. Fifteen years ago she
published the results of her work at Mystic Seaport Museum's Munson Institute
and Brown University as "Feminist and Victorian: The Paradox of the American
Seafaring Woman of the Nineteenth Century." Since that time scholars have
broadened the scope of this topic through an increasing number of articles.
Among the most ambitious are two by Lisa Norling, "Contrary Dependencies:
Whaling Agents and Whalemen's Families, 1830—1870" and "the Sentimen-
talization of American Seafaring," and a particularly strong synthesizing essay
by Margaret S. Creighton, "Women and Men in American Whaling, 1830—
53 Peter Linebaugh and Marcus Rediker, "The Many Headed Hydra: Sailors, Slaves, and the Atlantic
Working Class in the Eighteenth Century," Journal of Historical Sociology. 3 (1990), pp. 225-52. This
article has been reprinted in Howell and Twomey, eds., Jack Tar in History, pp. 1 1-36.
Martha S. Putney, Black Sailors: Afro-American Merchant Seamen and Whalemen Prior to the Civil War
(Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1987).
James B. Farr, Black Odyssey: The Seafaring Tradition of Afro-Americans (New York: Lang, 1989).
Jeffrey Bolster, "To Feel like a Man: Black Seamen in the Northern States, 1800-1860," Journal of American
History, vol 76. 1990, pp. 1173-99, based on research done for Bolster's "African- American Seamen: Race,
Seafaring Work, and Adantic Maritime Culture, 1750-1860" (Ph.D. diss., Johns Hopkins Univ., 1992).
Thomas D. Lamont, Rise to be a People: A Biography of Paul Cuffe (Urbana: Univ. of Illinois Press, 1986).
Briton Cooper Busch, "Cape Verdeans in the American Whaling and Sealing Industry, 1850-1900,"
American Neptune, 45 (1985), pp. 104-16.
59 Julia C. Bonham, "Feminist and Victorian: The Paradox of the American Seafaring Woman of the
Nineteenth Century," American Neptune, vol. 37 (1977), pp. 203-18.
60 Lisa Norling, "Contrary Dependencies: Whaling Agents and Whalemen's Families, 1830-1870,"
Log of Mystic Seaport, vol. 42 (1990), pp. 3-12.
61 Lisa Norling, " The Sentimentalization of American Seafaring: The Case of the New England Whale
Fishery, 1790-1870 " in Howell and Twomey, eds., Jack Tar in History, pp. 164-78.
Labaree 373
1870." Noteworthy among the others are Caroline Mosely's "Images of
Young Women in Nineteenth Century Songs of the Sea" and Joan Druett's
"More Decency and Order: Women and Whalemen in the Pacific." Most
recently Ms. Druett has provided an award-winning edition of the American
Mary Brewster's journals. Focusing on a more recent period is Amy
Kesselman's monograph, Fleeting Opportunities, about women shipyard
workers during World War II. Charlene J. Allison et al. have studied the
growing role of women in the Northwest fisheries. Numerous other
memoirs of sea-going women have been published in the last decade or so,
zro
includingjane Balano's Log of the Skipper's Wife and Julia FreeHand's edition
of the memoirs of Captain Sumner Drinkwater and his wife Alice.
In closing this section I should like to reiterate a point I made at its outset.
Compared to the teaching of American maritime history, the publication of books
and articles in the field seems to remain numerically quite strong, perhaps one
hundred or so a year. And yet a quick survey of the American Neptune during the
five-year period 1988-1992 shows that only fifty-eight (35.8 percent) of the one
hundred sixty-two books reviewed there concern American maritime history
(distinct from naval), with another thirty (18.8 percent) on European maritime
subjects. In contrast, sixty-three works on American and European naval history
account for 38.9 percent of the total. In one sense these figures reflect how
broadly interpreted the phrase maritime history is, and how successful the efforts
of the Neptune editors have been in reaching beyond national boundaries.
Museums
Before we conclude that America's maritime past is disappearing as rapidly as
its deep water mercantile fleet, let us turn to, and close with, the bright spot on
Margaret S. Creighton, "Women and Men in American Whaling, 1830-1870," Intematiotial Journal of
Maritime History, vol. 4 (1992), pp. 195-218.
Caroline Mosely, "Images of Young Women in Nineteenth Century Songs of the Sea," Log of Mystic
Seaport, vol. 35 (1984), pp. 132-39.
Joan Druett, "More Decency and Order: Women and Whalemen in the Pacific," Log of Mystic
Seaport, vol. 39 (1987), pp. 65-74.
65 Joan Druett, "She was a Sister Sailor": The Whaling Journals of Mary Brewster, 1845-1851 (Mystic,
Conn.: Mystic Seaport Museum, 1992). Properly speaking, Ms. Druett's book should not be listed here
because she is a New Zealander, but Mary Brewster was an American, her journal is in the library of
Mystic Seaport Museum library, and the book was also published by Mystic in its American Maritime
Library series. Recently the North American Society for Oceanic History recognized "She was a Sister
Sailor" as the best non-naval book of nautical history published in 1992.
Amy Kesselman, Fleeting Opportunities: Women Shipyard Workers in Portland and Vancouver during World
War II and Reconversion (Albany: State Univ. of New York Press, 1990).
67 Charlene J. Allison, Sue-Ellen Jacobs, and Mary A. Porter, Winds of Change: Women in Northwest
Commercial Fishing (Seattle: Univ. of Washington Press, 1989).
68 James W. Balano, ed., The Log of the Skipper's Wife (Camden, Maine: Down East Books, 1979).
Julia Freehand, A Seafaring Legacy: The Photographs, Diaries, Letters, and Memorabilia of a Maine Sea Captain
(Sumner Drinkwater and his Wife [Alice Drinkwater]) 1859-1908 (New York: Random House, 1981).
374 The State of American Maritime History
the scene: America's maritime museums. With few exceptions, these institutions
are private and not for profit. Most of them are dependent on endowments, gifts,
and membership dues instead of government subsidies for their support. Most
of them have increasingly come to rely on such sources as sales at retail stores,
program charges, and admissions fees. For this reason, whatever activities might
attract tourists and other visitors — chowder festivals, Fourth of July celebrations,
popcorn and ice cream vendors, horse-and-buggy rides — get serious attention
by the management.
But there is an upside to this unfortunate aspect as well. To some extent the
need to attract visitors accounts for what maritime museums in America are most
noted — the number and quality of preserved vessels they have in the water. Each
year hundreds of thousands of people climb aboard, walk the decks, and go
below "tall ships" (as the ad-writers love to call them) from Mystic Seaport's
nineteenth-century whaleship Charles W. Morgan, or South Street Seaport's
Cape Horner Peking, Galveston's bark Elissa, or San Diego's Star of India, to note
but four out of a score or more such museum ships. Still more scores of vessels
are preserved on dry land or under cover. The vessel should not be romanticized
as the be-all and end-all of maritime history, but as a means of educating the
public about our maritime past, an invitation to inspect a historic vessel firsthand
is hard to beat. On the other hand, inviting upwards of a half-million people to
tramp all over your last wooden whaleship is hardly the best way to preserve it!
To the non-seagoing public, however, these vessels do not interpret themselves
very well, and no amount of labeling "martingales," "crojacks," and "fo'c'sles"
will help. Not surprisingly, therefore, the effort to explain these exhibits to the
visitor takes up a large share of the budget and leaves staff members of American
museums with far less time for research and writing than have their colleagues
elsewhere.
With this generalized introduction, we should look at what is happening at
some of our best maritime museums, because if this history is to survive in
America, it will depend largely on these institutions, not on our universities. To
demonstrate some of the ways these institutions in widely separated parts of the
country carry out their goals, the following institutions were chosen from a
group of fifteen or so whose staff responded to a recent questionnaire concerning
their activities.
At the Hawaii Maritime Center in Honolulu, forty-five exhibits cover
Hawaii's maritime heritage from precontact to the present. Its most recent special
exhibit focused on the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. In addition to numerous
public lectures throughout the year, the Maritime Center sponsors an annual
conference on maritime history and underwater archaeology. Its most active
educational program brings 3,000 school children to the museum each month to
plot the track of the Museum's Polynesian voyaging canoe. It is now building a
second canoe of traditional materials to retrace the route of Hawaii's original
Labaree 375
settlers without the aid of modern instruments. The Museum's total annual
visitation is about 100,000.
Near the mouth of the Columbia River, in Astoria, Oregon, the Columbia
River Maritime Museum focuses on fur trade and exploration of the Northwest
coast, fishing, and river navigation. The West Coast's last working lightship,
Columbia, is now moored at the museum and open to visitors. The Museum's
most recent special exhibits have been "Marine Art of the Pacific Northwest"
and "This Noble River: Robert Grey and the Columbia." Four special projects
collectively called the "Year of the Fisherman" received the Award of Merit
from the American Association of State and Local History in 1990. School groups
are admitted without charge throughout the year, and Astoria's community
college offers a course on Columbia River Maritime History. Other state and
regional universities co-sponsor additional lectures and research throughout the
year. The Museum publishes a quarterly magazine, Quarterdeck, featuring
scholarly articles for its 2,000-plus members and has an annual visitation of just
under 100,000.
The Mariners Museum at Newport News, Virginia, is one of the nation's
largest such institutions, perhaps best known for its research library and archives,
which includes a superb collection of nearly 500,000 photographs. The
Museum's Chesapeake Bay Gallery, opened in 1989, displays hundreds of
artifacts, photographs, and maps relating to that important inland sea. The work
of William Francis Gibbs, designer of the Liberty ship and the S.S. United States,
among many other commercial and naval vessels, is commemorated in another
new gallery. The Mariners Museum sponsors a scholarly lecture series, as well
as a graduate course in Maritime Geography through the University of Virginia.
More than 20,000 school children particpate in classes and other educational
programs at the museum each year. Annual visitation is just under 100,000.
Just up the Bay on Maryland's Eastern Shore at St. Michael's, the Chesapeake
Bay Maritime Museum has recently added to its fine collection of workboats
several vessels including the river tug Delaware. A new permanent exhibit,
"Mechanical Power," traces two centuries of change in the use of engines for
propulsion and deckwork and as such is a rarity among institutions that glorify
the age of sail. One educational program, "Bay Heritage Day," really prepares
5th graders to get the most out of their class visit. Middle-schoolers can spend
an overnight tending to the Hooper Strait Lighthouse, now moved to the
Museum grounds. About 85,000 people visit the Chesapeake Bay Maritime
Museum each year.
New York's South Street Seaport Museum, unlike its sister institutions, was
actually begun to save from the wrecking ball the historic maritime district it
now occupies. While restoring buildings, the staff started collecting artifacts of
New York's maritime past, an effort enhanced by the acquisition of the
4,000-piece Seaman's Bank for Savings collection of paintings, prints, and
376 The State of American Maritime History
models. One of its most recent special exhibits, "Hammer and Hand," tells the
history of the New York's maritime trades, as does its quarterly journal, Seaport.
Over the next two years the museum will be sending out four traveling exhibits
and will begin sponsoring a regular symposium on maritime art. In addition to
the restoration work it has done along the waterfront, the museum also has
preserved in the water the iron-hulled Wavertree and the big four-masted bark
Peking. Another of its vessels, the schooner Pioneer, built in 1885, offers daytime
sail training excursions for local school children, who can also spend an overnight
on board the Peking. Altogether 27,000 school children particpate in the
Museum program, out a total visitation of nearly 500,000.
Perhaps America's finest maritime institution is Mystic Seaport Museum. The
Museum's collections of watercraft now number four hundred fifty, with a dozen
vessels in the water, including the whaleship Charles W. Morgan, the Danish
training ship Joseph Conrad (ex- George Stage), and the Gloucester fishing schooner
L.A. Dunton, all of which are open to the public. The Blunt White Library's
collection of manuscripts grows steadily each year, along with the necessary
monographs and periodicals to support ongoing research. The oral history
division has taped over two hundred interviews with fishermen, mariners,
shipwrights, and others and nearly one hundred scholarly lectures delivered at
the Museum. Represented in the ships plans division is the work of numerous
marine architects from both Atlantic and Pacific seaboards.
Until the recent recession, 70,000 school children visited Mystic each year
(about half that number still do). Annual conferences on such topics as yachting
history, small craft, and sea music attract hundreds of scholars and enthusiasts.
As mentioned earlier, Mystic Seaport cosponsors an undergraduate program in
maritime studies with Williams College and since 1955 has offered its own
graduate-level courses to which public school teachers are particularly welcome.
Outreach programs send teacher institutes, theatrical productions, and maritime
artifacts to area schools. Through the generosity of a local family, the museum
awards several Paul Cuffe Fellowships each year to encourage research in the
history of mariners of native American or African descent. The undergraduate
Williams College — Mystic Seaport program offers young scholars the Albion
Fellowship for teaching maritime history to the program's students.
The Publications department puts the Museum's best foot forward to
thousands of scholars and general readers. In addition to its quarterly journal,
The Log, the Museum keeps more than fifty books in print, from John F. Leavitt's
beautifully crafted Wake of the Coasters (1970) to the latest book, Classic Small
Craft You Can Build (1993) by the dean of American wooden boatbuilders, John
Gardiner (age 87). In between are such works as Andrew German's Down on
T-Wharf, Tony Busch's Master of Desolation, and Joan Druett's "She was a Sister
Sailor." John Rogers' Origins of Sea Terms and Douglas L. Stein's American
Maritime Documents are just two of the useful guides recently published by the
Labaree 377
museum. Mystic's average annual attendance over the past five years stands at
about 450,000, and its activities are supported by more than 20,000 members.
The contributions of our maritime museums are impressive. Collectively,
they offer as many accredited courses in one or another aspect of American
Maritime History as do our universities. Through museums, several hundred
thousands of school children are made aware of our nation's maritime past, along
with millions of adults. Counting the maritime museums that are too small to
belong to The Council of American Maritime Museums (CAMM), there are
upwards of seventy-five such institutions in the country. Because they provide
the primary line of contact between the public and our maritime past, whatever
we can do to improve them will in the long run serve the efforts of us all.
Conclusion
Looking back over the state of American maritime history today brings us to
several conclusions.
First, the sea is one, and it does connect us all, as so many of us have observed
in our research and writings. Maritime history is therefore an mter-national
subject and therefore a difficult one to fit into our compartmentalized depart-
ments of history.
Second, maritime history is popular. Enrollments in the few courses we do
offer, attendance at museums, special exhibits, and tall ship extravaganzas all
demonstrate this fact. But in some academic circles popularity is the kiss of death.
The Munson Institute is occasionally criticized for making its courses available
to public school teachers and museum staff members, many of whom have more
modest academic backgrounds than one finds in our graduate schools. We must
improve our standards without jeopardizing our accessibility.
Third, we must be careful that our overuse of nautical terminology in our
work does not become mere jargon for its own sake. We must resist criticizing
newcomers to our field for not having been aloft in a howling gale or knowing
the difference between tacking and wearing ship. There are now more
important aspects to our subject than shiphandling.
Fourth, we must put people back into our history, especially the men and
women of the maritime labor force who, while hardly a proletariat, are
nevertheless an all-important element in the equation. If we ourselves are not
interested in the social and cultural aspects of our topics, we should at least give
encouragement through fellowships and other forms of recognition to those
who are.
Finally, we must bring the two fields of naval and maritime history closer
together. Albion began that effort more than sixty years ago, first with his courses
at Princeton and later at Harvard and the Munson Institute, and since 1951 with
Recent reviews of Barbara Tuchman's The First Salute and Marcus Rediker's Between the Devil and
the Deep Blue Sea do just that.
378 The State of American Maritime History
his bibliography, still called a Naval and Maritime bibliography. This volume gives
all of us the opportunity to renew that effort. Let us now get to work.
Mahan Plus One Hundred
The Current State of American Naval History
Kenneth J. Hagan and Mark R. Shulman
The logos of the U.S. Naval Academy and the Naval War College feature
the three-pronged trident of Neptune, an apt icon for the three principal
manifestations of naval history in the United States: teaching, museums, and
publication. The current state of health of each of these endeavors varies
markedly. The teaching of naval history at colleges and universities is uneven at
best, "with historians often forced to subsume naval history under other subjects
in courses with broader orientations. Naval museums, by contrast, are a thriving
industry, although the future of some of them is under a cloud. Most surprisingly,
in light of the absence of firm support from academic institutions, naval history
today is an extremely vigorous outlet for scholarly and popular writing.
This essay attempts to substantiate the assertions just made. In doing so, it
examines several subsidiary and related topics, such as archival depositories,
libraries, and bibliographies. The conclusions are meant to be cautionary, not
pessimistic.
Teaching
Military and naval history emerged as distinct subdisciplines in the late
nineteenth century. Since that time they have been consistently marginalized or
ignored by history departments. In the early twentieth century, studies of war,
once a prominent feature of the profession, gradually disappeared from university
and college curricula. By 1935—1936, a survey of the thirty leading universities
found no such courses, aside from ROTC offerings. Even at the height of Cold
War paranoia in 1954, only thirty-seven of four hundred ninety-three surveyed
departments were offering any military history courses. A few select departments
The surveys are reported in John Bowditch, "War and the Historian," H. Stuart Hughes, ed., Teachers
of History: Essays in Honor of Laurence Bradford Packard (Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press, 1954),
pp. 322-3; Richard C. Brown, The Teaching of Military History in Colleges and Universities of the United
States, Historical Studies, no. 124 (Maxwell Air Force Base, Ala.: U.S. Air Force Historical Division,
Research Studies Institute, Air University, 1955). See also, Paul M. Kennedy, "The Fall and Rise of
Military History," Military History Quarterly 3, no. 2 (Winter 1991), pp. 8-12; and Louis Morton, "The
Historian and the Study of War," The Mississippi Valley Historical Review 18, no. 4 (1962): pp. 599-613.
380 Mahan Plus One Hundred
(e.g., Princeton, Dartmouth, and Yale) engaged trained historians to teach
military history to ROTC students, but the rest surrendered their responsibility
to active-duty officers with little or no historical training.
In the late 1960s and early 1970s, dissent over the war in Southeast Asia drove
ROTC from many campuses. A modest revival of interest in military history
began in the 1980s as collegiate anger over Vietnam faded and as President
Ronald Reagan began the last military buildup of the Cold War. But the
resurrection of military history was incremental, and the college and university
offerings most often broadly incorporated the study of naval history or sea power
into that of war as a whole. The teaching of naval history as a special offering
has remained highly restricted.
Most teaching of United States naval history is done in government educa-
tional institutions, specifically the National Defense University (NDU), the
Naval Academy (USNA), the Naval War College (NWC), and the Naval Reserve
Officers Training Corps units (NROTC). The NDU has long offered an elective
course on naval strategy, or on "The American Way of War at Sea," which
proceeds chronologically and emphasizes the interaction between national
policy and naval strategy. It attracts about a dozen students per semester. A
similar elective is also taught with some regularity at the Army War College in
Carlisle, Pennsylvania.
Since its founding in 1 884, the Naval War College has regarded naval history
as an essential element in a curriculum designed to educate mid-career officers
for staff positions and high command. Early presidents Stephen B. Luce, Alfred
T. Mahan, French E. Chadwick, and William L. Rodgers made significant
written contributions to naval history while encouraging their students to seek
lessons for the future by studying the past.
Today, there is no explicit course on naval history at the NWC, but the subject
is emphasized in other ways. In terms of research, the college maintains an
excellent book collection in naval history and a growing collection of personal
papers and oral histories. The research arm of the NWC, the Center for Naval
Warfare Studies, provides a chair for the college's principal expert in naval
history: the Ernest J. King Professor of Maritime History, a position held since
1984 by John B. Hattendorf. The occupant is required to conduct research,
write about a wide range of naval historical issues, and establish contacts with
other scholars in the field. Finally, the NWC maintains the Alfred Thayer Mahan
2 George E. Thibault taught this course for several years, followed by Captain W.S. Johnson, upon
whose retirement the NDU hired on a temporary basis H. P. Willmott.
The King Chair was established at the suggestion of Admiral Raymond A. Spruance and was
successively held by such eminent visiting historians as John H. Kemble, James A. Field, Jr., Theodore
Ropp, Harry L. Coles, Raymond G. O'Connor, Stephen E. Ambrose, and Martin Blumenson. In 1974,
the King Chair became a long-term civilian faculty position with the six year appointment of Philip A.
Crowl, followed a decade later by the present incumbent.
Hagan and Shulman 381
Chair of Maritime Strategy, now occupied by George W. Baer, who has just
completed a history of twentieth-century American sea power.
While the graduate level curriculum of the NWC does not provide formal
courses on naval or maritime history, these subjects continue to permeate two
core course offerings in strategy and policy and in joint operations. The first
employs roughly a dozen civilian specialists in diplomatic, military or naval
history, political science, and international relations who use the case study
method for the critical analysis of strategy. The faculty and students scrutinize
the Peloponnesian War, the Second Punic War, the American Revolution, the
French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, the American Civil War, the wars
of German unification, the Russo-Japanese War, the First and Second World
Wars, the Chinese Civil War, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, and many of
the military and naval events of the Cold War. The Joint Operations Course
also includes a number of case studies, including: the Nazi German invasion of
Norway; the Atlantic campaign of World War II; the Pacific war battles of
Midway, Guadalcanal, the Philippine Sea, and Leyte Gulf; and the recent Achille
Lauro incident, the Falklands/Malvinas War and the Gulf War. In a somewhat
catholic approach, the course examines the naval theories of Sir Julian S. Corbett,
Alfred T. Mahan, Herbert F. Rosinski, and Joseph C. Wylie, the analytical
studies of Ken Booth and James Cable, and selected issues of international
maritime law. The breadth and sophistication of these offerings permit the
Naval War College to award a master of arts degree in National Security Affairs
to its graduates.
The Navy's undergraduate degree-granting institution, the U.S. Naval
Academy, records a somewhat different but not too encouraging experience
with naval history. Since World War II the academy has consistently offered a
one or two-semester course in the field. Until the mid-1970s, this offering was
the legendary "sea power" course shaped by Professor E.B. Potter and formatted
according to Sea Power: A Naval History, a book he co-edited with Admiral
Chester W. Nimitz. The course and the book took up the subject with the
4 Baer, One Hundred Years of Sea Power: The U.S. Navy, 1890-1990 (California: Stanford Univ. Press,
1994).
For Corbett, see John B. Hattendorf, ed., Mahan is Not Enough: The Proceedings of the Corbett-Richmond
Conference (Newport, R.I.: Naval War College Press, 1993); for Mahan, see John B. Hattendorf, ed.,
The Influence of History on Mahan (Newport, R.I.: Naval War College Press, 1991). Representative works
of the other authors include: Rosinski, The Development of Naval Thought, ed., B. Mitchell Simpson III
(Newport, RI: Naval War College Press, 1977); Wylie, Military Strategy: A General Theory of Power
Control (Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 1989); Cable, Diplomacy at Sea (London: Macmillan, 1985);
Booth, Law, Force and Diplomacy at Sea (Boston: Allen & Unwin, 1985), and Navies and Foreign Policy
(New York: Crane Russak & Co., 1977).
The Naval Institute Press is cited hereafter as NIP.
E.B. Potter and Chester W. Nimitz, eds., Sea Power: A Naval History (Englewood Cliffs, N.J.:
Prentice-Hall, 1960). There was an earlier version; Potter, ed., The United States and World Sea Power
(Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, 1955).
382 Mahan Plus One Hundred
Greeks and Romans but rushed rapidly to the golden age of the U.S. Navy — the
vast operations of the Pacific campaign of World War II. Many well-known
naval historians taught the course, including the prolific Paolo E. Coletta, Robert
W. Daly, Clark G. Reynolds, Robert Seager II, and Gerald E. Wheeler. It was
a required course, and it is invariably remembered with strong feelings by former
midshipmen.
Since the mid-1970s the history department of the academy has offered a
quite different one-semester required course in the "American Naval Heritage."
As the title suggests, this course focuses very heavily on American naval history.
It stresses the interrelationship between U.S. national policy and U.S. naval
strategy and operations. Among the nationally known naval historians who have
contributed to this course are James C. Bradford, William B. Cogar, Paolo E.
Coletta, Kenneth J. Hagan, Frederick S. Harrod, Michael T. Isenberg, Robert
o
W. Love, Jack Sweetman, and Craig L. Symonds. Innumerable officer-instruc-
tors have also taught the course, the most recognizable of whom is the widely
respected historian of the Marine Corps, Merrill L. Bartlett.
For the foreseeable future, the American Naval Heritage course will remain
securely in place as a staple of the history department, but the department itself has
demonstrated an erosion of interest in naval history in the last decade. It has rather
consistendy failed to replace departing naval historians with new ones, choosing
instead to broaden itself with faculty specializing in other subsets of the discipline.
This ecumenical thrust is understandable, but it has created a staffing crisis. The
course on the American Naval Heritage is offered to 1 ,000 midshipmen per year
Coletta, Admiral Bradley A. Fiske and the American Navy (Lawrence, Kans.: Regents Press of Kansas,
1979), and A Selected and Annotated Bibliography of American Naval History (Lanham, Md: Univ. Press of
America, 1988); Daly, How the Merrimac Won (New York: Crowell, 1957); Reynolds, The Fast Carriers:
The Forging of an Air Navy (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1968; Annapolis: NIP, 1992), and Command of
the Sea (New York: Morrow, 1974); Seager, Alfred Thayer Mahan: The Man and his Letters (Annapolis:
NIP, 1977); Wheeler, Prelude to Pearl Harbor (Columbia, Mo: Univ. of Missouri Press, 1963).
See Bradford, ed., Crucible of Empire: The Spanish— American War and its Aftermath (Annapolis: NIP,
1993), Admirals of the New Steel Navy: Makers of the American Naval Tradition, 1880-1930 (Annapolis:
NIP, 1990), Captains of the Old Steam Navy: Makers of the American Naval Tradition, 1840-1880
(Annapolis: NIP, 1986), and Command under Sail: Makers of the American Naval Tradition, 1115—1850
(Annapolis: NIP, 1988); Cogar, Dictionary of Admirals of the United States Navy, vol. 1, 1862-1900; vol.
2, 1901-1918 (Annapolis: NIP, 1989, 1991); Coletta, ed., American Secretaries of the Navy, vol. 1,
1775-1913; vol. 2, 1913-1972 (Annapolis: NIP, 1980); Hagan, American Gunboat Diplomacy and the Old
Navy, 1811-1889 (Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1973); Harrod, Manning the New Navy: The
Development of a Modern Naval Enlisted Force, 1899-1940 (Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1978);
Isenberg, Shield of the Republic: The United States in an Era of Cold War and Violent Peace, vol. 1, 1945-1962
(New York: St. Martin's Press, 1993); Love, History of the U.S. Navy, vol. 1, 1775-1941; vol. 2,
1942-1991 (Harrisburg, Pa: Stackpole Press, 1992); Sweetman, The Landing at Veracruz (Annapolis:
NIP, 1968), The U.S. Naval Academy: An Illustrated History (Annapolis: NIP, 1979), and American Naval
History: An Illustrated Chronology (Annapolis: NIP, 1991); and Symonds, Navalists and Antinavalists The
Naval Policy Debate in The United States, 1185-1821 (Newark, Del.: Univ. of Delaware Press, 1980).
9 Bartlett, Lejeune: A Marine's Life (Columbia: Univ. of South Carolina Press, 1991); ed., Assault from
the Sea: Essays on the History of Amphibious Warfare (Annapolis: NIP, 1983).
Hagan and Shulman 383
and is taught in small sections of no more than twenty-five students each, for a
total of forty sections per year. The four practicing naval historians currently in
the department can reasonably cover only sixteen of these, leaving a shortfall of
twenty-four sections, or six hundred midshipmen to be taught by non-specialists
or officers.
At Annapolis, the 1970s were marked by the introduction of a series of
biennial conferences in naval history, and in this respect the support of the
department and academy for naval history remains as strong as ever. Directed
by Robert R. Love, Jr., the Eleventh Naval History Symposium was held in
Annapolis in October, 1993. With an emphasis on World War II, it attracted
scholars from all over the world, including delegations from Argentina, Australia,
Austria, Canada, Chile, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Great Britain,
Italy, Japan, Peru, Poland, and Russia. Selected papers from the gathering will
1 n
be published within two years, as has been the tradition.
The largest program for teaching naval history in the U.S. remains that of the
Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps (NROTC). Currently there are about
fifty-five college-level NROTC units which "service" a total of about two
hundred colleges and universities. For the last seventeen years, Naval Academy
Professor Kenneth J. Hagan has served as advisor for the NROTC course entitled
"Sea Power and Maritime Affairs." Required in most units, it derives its
content and structure from the American Naval Heritage course at the U.S.
Naval Academy.
In preparation for teaching the course, junior Navy and Marine Corps officers
fresh from the fleet attend a two-week instructors' seminar where Professor
Hagan suggests teaching techniques, analyzes the content of the course, and
distributes a highly detailed curriculum guide with lesson plans. The officers
respond with enthusiasm and gain a sense of confidence, but they nonetheless
remain underprepared for teaching a rigorous history course at the college level.
This is one of the reasons that very few colleges grant academic credit for the
course, despite its Annapolis pedigree.
The future for "Sea Power and Maritime Affairs" is not entirely rosy. The
Navy Department has resolved to reduce the number of NROTC units nation-
ally, even though NROTC is demonstrably more cost-effective in producing
commissioned officers than is the Naval Academy. An estimated twelve units
are scheduled to be decommissioned in the near future, and this means that there
will be twelve fewer offerings of the course.
The most recent proceedings in print is Jack Sweetman, ed., New Interpretations in Naval History:
Selected Papers from the Tenth Naval History Symposium, Held at the United States Naval Academy, 1 1-13
September 1991 (Annapolis: NIP, 1993).
For the NROTC format, see Hagan, ed., In Peace and War: Interpretations of American Naval History,
1774-1984, 2d ed. (Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1984).
384 Mahan Plus One Hundred
• • •
American naval historians traditionally have taught in subjects other than the
history of the United States Navy. Harold H. Sprout of Princeton was trained
as a political scientist, not as a historian. With his wife as co-author, he published
a major synthesis, The Rise of American Naval Power in 1939, and he helped
establish Princeton's Woodrow Wilson Center of International Relations in
1950. In the early 1960s, he directed a doctoral dissertation on the modern British
Navy written by Navy Commander William J. Crowe, Jr., who later became
chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff under Ronald Reagan and ambassador to
Great Britain under President Bill Clinton.
Closer to Clio, if not to the daily teaching of naval history, was Samuel Eliot
Morison. He spent a professional lifetime teaching surveys and American
colonial history at Harvard University, even though he had distinguished himself
in naval history with biographies of John Paul Jones and Matthew C. Perry, and
with the 15-volume official history of the Navy in World War II. The fate of
teaching mainly outside their specialty in naval history also befell such notable
scholars as Raymond G. O'Connor and Gerald E. Wheeler in the 1950s.
Similarly, the field's current dean, William R. Braisted, served three decades as
a professor of Far Eastern History at the University of Texas.
Today the list of naval historians who are not regularly teaching naval history
is depressingly long. Stephen E. Pelz teaches diplomatic history at the University
of Massachusetts. Peter D. Karsten has turned to the study of constitutional
history at the University of Pittsburgh. Roger Dingman teaches Far Eastern
history at the University of Southern California. James R. Reckner specializes
in the Vietnam War at Texas Tech University. Allan R. Millett of Ohio State
University has written extensively on the Marine Corps and on military affairs,
but he does not teach naval history.
Harold and Margaret Sprout, The Rise of American Naval Power, 1776-1918 (New Jersey: Princeton
Univ. Press, 1939; Annapolis: NIP, 1990). Crowe's strategic viewpoint can be seen in "The Policy
Roots of the Modern Royal Navy, 1946-1963," (Ph.D. diss., Princeton Univ., 1965), and most recently
in his memoir, The Line of Fire: From Washington to the Gulf (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1993). For
an early homage to the Sprouts, see Gordon C. O'Gara, Theodore Roosevelt and the Rise of the Modem
Navy (New Jersey: Princeton Univ. Press, 1 943; New York: Greenwood Press, 1969).
For a Morison sampler, see History of United States Naval Operations in World War II, 15 vols. (Boston:
Little, Brown, 1947-63), fohn Paul Jones: A Sailor's Biography (Boston: Little, Brown, 1959; Annapolis:
NIP, 1989), and "Old Bruin:" Commodore Matthew C. Perry, 1794-1858 (Boston: Little Brown, 1967).
For the others, see O'Connor, Origins of the American Navy: Sea Power in the Colonies and the New Nation
(Lanham, Md.: Univ. Press of America, 1994); Wheeler, Prelude to Pearl Harbor: The United States Navy
and the Far East, 1921-193 1 (Columbia: Univ. ofMissouri Press, 1963); and Braisted, United States Navy
in the Pacific, 1897-1909, and United States Navy in the Pacific, 1909-1922 (Austin: Univ. of Texas Press,
1958, 1971).
Pelz, Race to Pearl Harbor: The Failure of the Second London Naval Conference and the Onset of World
War II (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard Univ. Press, 1974); Karsten, The Naval Aristocracy: The Golden Age
Hagan and Shulman 385
Much the same can be said of Carl Boyd at Old Dominion University, Jeffrey
M. Dorwart of the University of Delaware, William M. Fowler, Jr. at North-
eastern University, William M. McBride at James Madison University, Clark G.
Reynolds at the College of Charleston, Alex Roland at Duke University, David
Syrett at the City University of New York, Spencer Tucker at Texas Christian
University, Richard W. Turk at Allegheny College, Jonathan Utley at the
University of Tennessee, Charles J. Weeks, Jr. at Southern College of Technol-
ogy, and the recently retired David F. Long at the University of New
Hampshire. Harold D. Langley teaches occasional courses in diplomatic and
military history at Catholic University, but his principal professional position is
with the Smithsonian Institution, as was the case with Philip K. Lundeberg and
the late Roger Pineau, both proteges of Samuel Eliot Morison. In a category
all his own is Professor Raimondo Luraghi of the University of Genoa, Italy
who has completed a manuscript on the history of the Confederate States Navy
for publication in the United States.
Although the teaching of naval history remains on the margin at most private
and public colleges and universities, there are several institutions where new
programs have emerged and assumed central pedagogical roles. The pacesetter
is the concentration in Maritime History and Underwater Research at East
Carolina University (ECU), a two-year curriculum leading to a master of arts
degree in history. Established in 1981 by historian William N. Still, Jr. and
of Annapolis and the Emergence of Modem American Navalism (New York: Free Press, 1972); Dingman,
Power in the Pacific: The Origins of Naval Arms Limitation, 1914-1922 (Illinois: Univ. of Chicago Press,
1976); Reckner, Teddy Roosevelt's Great White Fleet (Annapolis: NIP, 1988); Millett, Semper Fidelis: The
History of the United States Marine Corps, 2d ed. (New York: Free Press, 1991).
Boyd and Akihiko Yoshida, The Japanese Submarine Force and World War II (Annapolis: NIP,
forthcoming); Dorwart, The Office of Naval Intelligence: The Birth of America's First Intelligence Agency,
1865-1918 (Annapolis: NIP, 1979), and Conflict of Duty: The U.S. Navy's Intelligence Dilemma,
1919-1945 (Annapolis: NIP, 1983); Fowler, Rebels Under Sail: The American Navy During the Revolution
(New York: Scribner, 1976), Jack Tars and Commodores: The American Navy, 1783-1815 (Boston:
Houghton Mifflin, 1984), and Under Two Flags: The American Navy in the Civil War (New York: Norton,
1990); McBride, Goodnight Officially: The Pacific War Letters of a Destroyer Sailor (Boulder, Colo.:
Westview Press, 1994); Reynolds, The Fast Carriers: The Forging of an Air Navy (New York:
McGraw-Hill, 1968; Annapolis: NIP, 1992); Roland, Underwater Warfare in the Age of Sail (Bloomington:
Indiana Univ. Press, 1978); Syrett, The Royal Navy in American Waters, 1775-1783 (Brookfield, Vt.:
Gower Publishing Co., 1989); Tucker, Arming the Fleet: U.S. Navy Ordnance in the Muzzle- Loading Era
(Annapolis: NIP, 1989), and The Jeffersonian Gunboat Navy (Columbia: Univ. of South Carolina Press,
1993); Turk, The Ambiguous Relationship: Theodore Roosevelt and Alfred Thayer Mahan (New York:
Greenwood Press, 1987); Utley, An American Battleship at Peace and War: The U.S.S. Tennessee (Lawrence,
Kans.: Univ. Press of Kansas, 1991); Weeks, An American Naval Diplomat in Revolutionary Russia
(Annapolis: NIP, 1993); and Long, Gold Braid and Foreign Relations: Diplomatic Activities of U.S. Naval
Officers (Annapolis: NIP, 1988).
16 Langley, Social Reform in the United States Navy, 1798-1862 (Urbana: Univ. of Illinois Press, 1967),
and A Medical History of the United States Navy, 1794-1842 (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Univ. Press,
1994); Lundeberg, Hie Continental Gunboat Philadelphia and the Northern Campaign of 1 776 (Washington:
Smithsonian Institution Press, 1966); Pineau, ed., The Japan Expedition, 1852-1854: The Personal Journal
of Commodore Matthew C. Perry (Washington: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1968).
386 Mahan Plus One Hundred
underwater archaeologist Gordon P. Watts, the ECU endeavor blends the
research methodologies of underwater archaeology and history to paint a clearer
picture of the maritime past. ECU's rich and divergent course offerings include
"Sea Power: 480 BC to the Present," a survey of the nature of warfare at sea and
its changing role in eras of peace and war. East Carolina's most notable
archaeological successes have been in relation to the Civil War. Starting with
the discovery of the USS Monitor off Cape Hatteras and the vessel's designation
as a national maritime sanctuary, ECU scholars have documented the USS
Southfield, the Union transport Maple Leaf, and the Confederate blockade-runner
Mary Celestia. ECU archaeologists have also joined peers in the National Park
Service and the Naval Historical Center to investigate and where possible
preserve the CSS Gaines, the USS Philippi, and the USS Tecumseh — all sunken
relics of the Civil War lying on the bottom of Mobile Bay. In association with
French experts and with William S. Dudley of the Naval Historical Center,
Professor Still and his crew are investigating the remains of the famed Con-
federate raider Alabama, sunk off Cherbourg, France, in 1864.
The published historical scholarship on American naval topics by ECU
scholars is chronologically and topically broad, ranging from Carl E. Swanson,
Predators and Prizes: American Privateering and Imperial Warfare, 1739—1948 to
Michael A. Palmer, On Course to Desert Storm: The U.S. Navy and the Persian
Gulf These ECU authors and other scholars are fortunate to have established
a close working relationship with the University of South Carolina Press, now
an excellent outlet for historical monographs.
Beyond ECU, the University of Alabama has long sponsored naval history in
the person of three teaching scholars: Robert E. Johnson, recently retired;
Ronald H. Spector, briefly; and since 1993, John F. Beeler, who specializes in
the Royal Navy. Spector moved to George Washington University to direct
an international studies center, but he does occasionally offer a course on world
naval history since the 1600s.
Sharply focused on U.S. naval history is Texas A & M University, where
James C. Bradford attracts a large audience to his course on the subject. In
Philadelphia, Temple University recently opened a Center for the Study of Force
and Diplomacy, with David A. Rosenberg teaching naval history. At Yale
Swanson, Predators and Prizes (Columbia: Univ. of South Carolina Press, 1991); Palmer, On Course
to Desert Storm: The U.S. Navy and the Persian Gulf, Contributions to Naval History Series, No. 5
(Washington: U.S. Gov't. Print. Off., 1992). See also Palmer, Guardians of the Gulf (New York: The
Free Press, 1992), and William N. Still, Jr., American Sea Power in the Old World (Westport, Conn.:
Greenwood Press, 1980).
18 Johnson, Far China Station: The U.S. Navy in Asian Waters, 1800-1898 (Annapolis: NIP, 1979), and
Bering Sea Escort: Life Aboard A Coast Guard Cutter in World War II (Annapolis: NIP, 1992); Spector,
Professors of War: The Naval War College and the Development of the Naval Profession (Newport, R.I.: Naval
War College Press, 1977), and Eagle Against the Sun: The American War with Japan (New York: The Free
Press, 1985); Beeler, "Steaming Erratically towards the Dreadnought: The British Navy in the Era of
Gladstone and Disraeli" (Ph.D. diss., University of Illinois, 1991).
Hagan and Shulman 387
University since the early 1980s, American military and naval history has been
covered by term appointments. More significantly, at Yale in 1983, Paul M.
Kennedy inaugurated the J. Richardson Dilworth Chair of International and
Diplomatic History, and in 1989, Sir Michael Howard became the Robert A.
Lovett Professor of Military and Naval History. The Lovett professorship passed
to Geoffrey Parker four years later. By contrast with Yale, some major
university centers of military and strategic studies have no appointments or
courses specifically in naval history; witness Harvard's Center for International
Affairs as well as that university's long vacant Gardiner Chair of Oceanic History
and Affairs. At Stanford University, the Raymond A. Spruance Chair, named
for the World War II admiral, is traditionally occupied by a military historian
specializing in Clausewitz.
* * *
The absence of university centers dedicated to the study of naval history
explains why so many doctoral dissertations have been written under the
direction of specialists in fields other than naval history. The experience of the
two authors of this essay is illustrative. Separated by a generation in age and time
of doctoral work, neither author was directed by a naval historian. The
diplomatic historian Charles S. Campbell, Jr., was Kenneth Hagan's mentor.
Mark Shulman's dissertation was directed by Richard Abrams, a political
historian. A doctoral dissertation currently in process (retired naval Captain Peter
Swartz's study of the Cold War navy) is being directed by Warner R. Schilling
at Columbia. While Schilling's own dissertation was an able essay on naval
history, it was never published and he has not continued to work in the field.
A salient exception to the portrait of doctoral sponsorship just painted is Jon T.
Sumida's energetic direction of doctoral dissertations at the University of
Maryland, but his field is primarily British naval history, not the history of the
United States Navy.22
Harold E. Selesky taught these courses from 1983 until 1991, followed by Mark R. Shulman.
Of the three professors holding endowed chairs, only Paul Kennedy has written widely in naval
history. See The Rise and Fall of British Naval Mastery (New York: Scribner, 1976).
21 Schilling, "Admirals and Foreign Policy, 1913-1919" (Ph.D. diss., Yale University, 1953),
photocopy of typescript (Ann Arbor: Univ. Microfilms, 1970).
00
Other American historians of European sea power include: Daniel Baugh, British Naval Administration
in the Age of Walpole (New Jersey: Princeton Univ. Press, 1965), Professor of History at Cornell
University; Volker Berghahn, Der Tirpitz-Plan (Dusseldorf: Droste, 1 97 1) , Professor of History at Brown
University; John T. Guilmartin, Gunpowder and Galleys (New York: Cambridge Univ. Press, 1974),
Professor of History at Ohio State University; Paul Halpern, The Naval War in the Mediterranean,
1914-1918 (Annapolis: NIP, 1987), Professor of History at the University of Florida; Jon T. Sumida,
In Defense of Naval Supremacy: Finance, Technology and British Naval Policy, 1889—1914 (Boston: Unwin
Hyman, 1989), Associate Professor at the University of Maryland.
388 Mahan Plus One Hundred
• • •
While it is not a teaching organization, the Naval Historical Center in
Washington, D.C. is vital to the national dissemination of historical information
about the Navy. The Center employs approximately twenty-five naval his-
torians, a greater number than any other organization in the United States.
These professionals write monographs and reference works, edit and publish
historical documents, record oral histories, organize scholarly conferences,
sponsor underwater archaeological investigations, and contribute to the Navy's
museums. Some of them teach courses on American naval history as adjunct
faculty at colleges and universities in the Washington area.
The Naval Historical Center is presided over by the Director of Naval
History. Prior to July 1986, this position was occupied by a retired naval officer,
usually an admiral. Since then, two civilian scholars have held the post: Ronald
H. Spector (1986—1989), followed by the present incumbent, Dean C. Allard.
The director's headquarters at the Naval Historical Center is located in the Navy
Yard at Washington, D.C. The Marine Corps Historical Center is adjacent to
the Navy's.
Museums
Most training in U.S. naval history is done by colleges or governmental
organizations, but the Mystic Seaport Museum in Connecticut is noteworthy
for its long-standing dedication to educating the American public about the
history of the sea. In particular, the Munson Institute at Mystic conducts a
graduate-level summer program on American maritime studies. Benjamin W.
Labaree, William F. Fowler, John B. Hattendorf, Jeffrey Safford and Edward W.
Sloan are those who today continue the Mystic tradition of teaching, which was
established by the late Harvard Professor Robert G. Albion.
In addition to Mystic, other museums from time to time organize educational
programs on American naval history. In the spring of 1994, for example, the
Smithsonian Institution joined with the U.S. Naval Academy Museum to offer
a three-day seminar on the history of warfare in the age of sail, a concentrated
schedule of lectures and discussions directed by faculty of the history department
of the Naval Academy at Annapolis.
• • *
23 The Naval Historical Center is located at the Washington Navy Yard, at M and 9th streets. It is
divided into several branches. Phone numbers for these branches are as follows (all are 202-433):
Contemporary History, 3891; Curator, 2220; Early History, 2364; Naval Aviation, 4355/8; Navy Art
Gallery, 3815; Library, 3172; Photographic Section, 2765; Senior Historian, 7230; and Ships' Histories,
2891.
Hagan and Shulman 389
The Naval Academy Museum is one of twelve naval museums scattered at
bases and installations across the United States. The U.S. Marine Corps runs one
official museum in the Washington Navy Yard and another at Quantico,
Virginia. This Navy-Marine Corps total of fourteen compares with seventy in
the Department of the Army, one in the U.S. Air Force, and one for the Coast
Guard.
The twelve museums of the Department of the Navy fall under the general
administrative umbrella of the Director of Naval History. He exercises imme-
diate supervision over only the Navy Museum in the Washington Navy Yard.
Stimulated by former Secretary of the Navy John F. Lehman, Jr., and dynami-
cally directed by Oscar P. Fitzgerald, this museum has made tremendous progress
in the last fifteen years. It conducts outstanding educational programs, displays
works by leading contemporary naval artists, and maintains the largest World
War II exhibit in the country. Its renovated Civil War exhibit contains remnants
from David G. Farragut's flagship, the USS Hartford.
The Navy's oldest official museum is the one at the Naval Academy in
Annapolis, Maryland. Dating back to 1845, the museum presently is housed in
Preble Hall, which was constructed in 1939 and expanded in 1962 with the
sponsorship of the Naval Academy Athletic Association and the U.S. Naval
Institute, both non-governmental institutions. The museum's collection features
artifacts and artwork as varied as midshipmen's class rings, memorabilia from
Matthew C. Perry's nineteenth-century expedition to Japan, paintings of
Columbus's voyages and Commodore Edward Preble's bombardment of Tripoli
in 1804, and the table on which the Japanese surrender was signed aboard the
battleship Missouri in 1945. Across the "Yard" from Preble Hall, in the basement
of the Naval Academy Chapel, the museum is responsible for the crypt
containing the body of John Paul Jones, perhaps the most popular site for visitors
to the Academy.
The Naval Academy Museum experienced a period of revitalization in the
early 1990s. Under the directorship of Professor Kenneth J. Hagan (1990-1993),
it expanded in scope and assumed much greater importance for the study of
naval history by midshipmen, scholars, and the general public. In January, 1993,
it opened the new Class of 1951 Gallery of Ships, which for the first time properly
houses the phenomenal Henry Huddleston Rogers Collection of wooden
dockyard and bone models built in the age of sail.
In October 1993, the museum loaned $3.5 million worth of artifacts to
Hamburg, Germany, for a brief but extensive exhibition on maritime and naval
history entitled ART MARITIM '93. With an attendance of over 25,000 people,
this was the largest overseas exhibit ever mounted by any U.S. Navy museum.
The Naval Academy Museum is also the repository of the Beverley R.
Robinson Collection of historic naval aquatints, messotints, engravings, and
lithographs. Fully endowed to perpetually honor the donor, the collection now
390 Mahan Plus One Hundred
includes over 6,000 originals, many dating from the eighteenth and early
nineteenth centuries, before the advent of photography. Prints from this precious
source for the study of European and American naval history have been
reproduced in a carefully documented catalog and on a 12-inch video disk. The
disk contains a total of 19,000 images relating to naval history generally and to
the Naval Academy in particular.
The largest official Navy museum is the National Naval Aviation Museum
at Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida. It ranks as the largest by virtue of the
size of its artifacts and the enthusiasm of its supporters, many of whom are naval
aviators. The museum currently is undergoing rapid growth funded by the
aviation industry, naval aviation buffs, foundation grants, and the million dollars
in revenues that its gift shop generates annually. When completed, the five-
module museum will overshadow the Smithsonian's Air and Space Museum.
Pensacola already dwarfs the Naval Air Test and Evaluation Museum at the
Naval Air Warfare Center, Patuxent River, Maryland. Founded in 1978, the
Patuxent museum tells the hair-raising story of testing and evaluating naval
aircraft. The collection includes many actual aircraft, and a trainer for the F-4
Phantom allows visitors to sit in the simulated cockpit of a Navy fighter.
With over a million visitors per year, the historic frigate Constitution in the
Charlestown Navy Yard near Boston tops the Navy Department museums in
annual attendance. Nearby, the Submarine Force Museum at Groton, Connec-
ticut has made great strides since the mooring of the USS Nautilus at the back
door of its new facility. It now ranks among the top five museums in New
England in terms of attendance. More modest is the nearby Naval War College
Museum, which focuses on the Naval War College, the naval and maritime
heritage of Newport, Rhode Island, and the seafaring tradition of the people of
Narragansett Bay.
Far to the south, the Hampton Roads Naval Museum is expanding into a
new facility in the commercial center of Norfolk, Virginia. Devoted to the naval
and maritime heritage of the Norfolk region, the exhibitions are chronologically
and topically organized to maximize their pedagogical potential. This expansion
is a success story which the National Endowment for the Humanities declined
to finance, a regrettable commentary on the difficulty of winning support from
the NEH or the National Endowment for the Arts for projects connected with
the federal government.
In Athens, Georgia, the Naval Supply Corps Museum, established in 1974,
serves also as an archives. The Museum traces the development and growth of
the Supply Corps using models of auxiliary ships, uniforms, equipment, and a
diverse collection of objects. It also houses a collection of technical manuals,
cookbooks, and documentary material related to the Supply Corps School in
Athens.
Hagan and Shulman 391
The Navy maintains three West Coast museums. The comprehensive Naval
Undersea Museum is located at the Naval Undersea Warfare Center, Keyport,
Washington. It covers twentieth-century technology as applied to the 'world
beneath the sea, including warfare, exploration, and exploitation of resources on
the ocean bed. The Civil Engineer Corps— Seabee Museum at Port Hueneme,
California commemorates the achievements of the Naval Construction Force
(Seabees) and the Navy's Civil Engineer Corps. In San Francisco Bay, the
Treasure Island Museum was founded during the American Bicentennial to
promote knowledge of naval, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard activities in the
Pacific basin. The future of this small museum is clouded by the uncertainty over
base closures accompanying the Navy's "downsizing" in the 1990s.
• • •
The Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., provides coverage on
naval history and occasionally promotes the topic through special travelling
exhibitions. In the past twenty-five years two major naval exhibitions have been
mounted. "The Japan Expedition of Commodore Matthew C. Perry" in 1964
and "The Magnificent Voyagers: The U.S. Exploring Expedition of 1838-1842"
in 1986 were both held in the National Museum of Natural History, with the
latter also travelling to other museums. In 1994 the Museum of American
History is sending an exhibition on American culture to Japan, to include artifacts
relating to Commodore Perry's expedition borrowed from the Naval Academy
Museum.
The apparent vigor of the Smithsonian Institution in the field of naval history
masks an unfortunate structural malady. The Museum of American History,
presumably the preferred locus for exhibits on American naval history, does not
contain the Smithsonian's walk-through of a simulated World War II aircraft
carrier. That popular eye-grabber, which enables the public to watch film-strips
of carrier operations from the vantage points of the ship's skipper and "air boss,"
is situated in the Air and Space Museum across the Mall from the Museum of
American History.
More ominous is the Museum of American History's consistent retrenchment
of support for naval history during the last two decades. Administratively
subordinated to military history, the naval specialty has lost curatorial time,
exhibit space, and research fellowships. There is now only one curator of naval
history and little prospect of replacement when he retires. A pool of irreplaceable
expertise has evaporated because the Smithsonian hierarchy lacks interest in the
history of the United States Navy.
For a comprehensive view, see Philip K. Lundeberg, "Military Museums," John E. Jessup, Jr., ed.,
Encyclopedia of the American Military, 3 vols. (New York: Macmillan, 1994).
392 Mahan Plus One Hundred
• • •
In the private arena, one highly important organization is the Historic Naval
Ships Association of North America, which assists in the preservation of
sixty-seven former U.S. Navy vessels, including four aircraft carriers, four
battleships, two cruisers, ten destroyers, one destroyer escort, twenty-four
submarines, four wooden ships, and other smaller types such as minesweepers
and PT boats. More than seven million people boarded these vessels in 1990,
and in the same year, their operating budgets reached $21.5 million. Besides the
ships themselves, some of these centers contain elaborate exhibits on board the
ships or in nearby shore facilities. Some have extensive educational programs,
among the most effective of which are overnight youth encampments with
lectures, tours, and films.
Certain exhibitions deserve special note. The Second World War carrier USS
Intrepid is one of the most popular tourist attractions in New York City.
Battleship Cove in Fall River, Massachusetts, has an outstanding collection of
ships, including the USS Massachusetts. And finally, the National Park Service
maintains the emotionally wrenching USS Arizona Memorial in Pearl Harbor —
one of the most highly visited of the national parks.
Many submarines have been saved and converted into museums because they
are smaller and therefore easier and less expensive to maintain than most
warships. For this reason, several submarines are located far from the ocean,
perhaps most dramatically the captured German U-505 in Chicago. At the other
end of the spectrum are the aircraft carriers, notably the USS Yorktown (CV-10)
in Charleston, South Carolina, where hull maintenance in a semi-tropical
climate is a fiscal nightmare.
The historic naval ships of World War II were saved in part because so many
thousands of their crew members came to share a sense of nostalgia for the
exciting times of wartime shipboard life. What will become of these ships once
the veterans of World War II are gone is a major concern to those maintaining
and operating thern today as museums.
State aid may be one answer; it has rescued two important relics of earlier
eras. In 1988, the U.S. brig Niagara, one of Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry's
flagships in 1813, was rebuilt at Erie, Pennsylvania, and now is used as an official
promotional vessel for the state of Pennsylvania. Similarly, the battleship Texas,
the only survivor of service in both world wars, was rescued by the state of Texas
a few years ago when its veterans' support group became minuscule. The Texas
recently underwent an overhaul valued in excess of $21 million.
Two other masterpieces have been less fortunate. Commodore George Dewey's
1898 flagship, the cruiser Olympia at Philadelphia, and the sailing warship USS
Constellation at Baltimore — both beguiling historical specimens — have suffered
Hagan and Shulman 393
devastating periods of neglect. They could sink at their piers because they have
no natural national constituency of concerned individuals to rescue them.
The Historic Naval Ships Association is attempting to alert Congress to the
plight of these ships and win appropriations for their repair in the years ahead.
One innovative idea is to use funds obtained from the scrapping of less historic
ships in the Navy's inventory to maintain the wooden Constellation, the U.S.
destroyer Kidd, the diesel submarine USS Cod, the nuclear-powered USS
Nautilus, and others.
• • •
Two non-government museums fall into a special category and are essential
sites for people interested in the Normandy invasion of 6 June 1944. The First
Division Museum on the Cantigny estate in Wheaton, Illinois, contains a
remarkable recreation of a portion of the Normandy beach as it was on D-day.
In New Orleans, the Eisenhower Center is planning a large D-day museum,
with groundbreaking scheduled for the fiftieth anniversary of history's most
massive amphibious landing. Both sites deserve all the popularity they will
receive in the future.
Archives, Manuscript Collections, and Libraries
American naval studies traditionally have focused heavily on strategy and
operations and have been based almost solely upon government documents,
mostly from within the Department of the Navy or the Defense Department.
A stunning variety of resources used by social and cultural historians remains
virtually untapped by naval historians: the popular press; records on immigration,
health, and voting; television and movie portrayals; propaganda; advertising; and
even sermons. Historians of the United States Navy have also neglected such
trans- or non-national agencies as the United Nations, NATO, and the Red
Cross — each of which holds keys to the American naval experience. These
resources belong to all historians and will not be surveyed here, but one set of
records external to the Navy must be mentioned.
Reports from U.S. consuls and consulates are extremely useful for studies of
overseas naval operations and the category of cruising known as "showing the
flag," or "gunboat diplomacy." Most consular records have been accessioned by
the National Archives, and many have been microfilmed as part of Record
Groups 59 and 84. In addition, many consuls kept priceless letterbooks that have
found their way into other depositories. The Special Collections Division of the
Naval Academy Library, for example, contains the letterbooks of Richard B.
Jones and Moses Young pertaining to U.S. relations with North Africa at the
time of the Barbary Wars. Among the issues they discuss are Great Britain's
claims to two Tripolitan prize ships taken by the U.S. Navy. This is an essential
394 Mahan Plus One Hundred
dimension to the proper analysis of nineteenth-century U.S. naval strategy and
operations.
Three types of archival sources directly applicable to United States naval
history present themselves for special consideration: those concerning construc-
tion plans and blueprints, operational records, and the documents of high-level
decision making. The accessibility of each category of records varies. Plans,
blueprints, and ship-building folders have been preserved to a considerable
extent and are available to scholars at the National Archives Cartographic Office,
located at the new National Archives building at the University of Maryland.
The records of the technical bureaus that did so much to shape the Navy's
physical elements beginning in 1842 — BuOrd, BuShips, BuAer, etc. — are
available, but pose a problem of access. Post-1941 bureau files are stored at the
National Archives Federal Records Center in Suitland, Maryland, but locating
the documents relevant to any particular study is an uncertain and frustrating
exercise. One way to get at some of this material for the twentieth century is to
study the records of the General Board of the Navy, which have been published
on microfilm by Scholarly Resources.
Records of operations, including ships' logs, war diaries, and action reports,
are relatively easy to access at the National Archives. For greater convenience,
Scholarly Resources of Wilmington, Delaware, has microfilmed most of the
material pertaining to the nineteenth-century Navy.
The third category of archival naval records, covering policy and high-level
decision making, is difficult to save and recover, and eventually to declassify.
Since World War II, especially, decisions regarding naval strategy and policy
have been made by numerous bodies, and there is no national standard for storage
and accessibility of interagency documents. Among the bodies that tackle
strategic questions are such sensitive offices as those of the State Department,
the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the National Security Council, the National Security
Agency, the Central Intelligence Agency, and the President. Partly because of
interagency "turf wars" and partly because of valid concerns about preserving
state secrets, these records present a myriad of challenges to the naval historian.
One helpful technique is to desert Washington, D.C. in favor of the presidential
libraries, which often contain a great deal of relevant interagency material.
It is important to recall that many momentous decisions were made at the
"CinC" level, that is, by commanders of joint commands, or of fleets far
distant from Washington. Often the decisions were conveyed over message
traffic. The Navy messages are preserved in the Operational Archives of the
Naval Historical Center, but accessibility is restricted by security-classifica-
tion considerations.
25 Hearings Before the General Board of the Navy, 1911-50 (Wilmington, Del.: Scholarly Resources,
1983), microfilm, 15 reels.
For more on these issues, see David Alan Rosenberg, "Process: The Realities of Formulating Modern
Hagan and Shulman 395
The impediment of security classification affects a broad range of the Navy's
Cold War archives. For all intents and purposes, systematic declassification of
Navy records halted in 1982 with the declassification of most of the Korean War
files. Review of some accessioned records of special interest to the Naval
Historical Center and the Naval Intelligence Command continued after 1982.
In general, however, there now exists a forty-year spread (1953—1993) of
needlessly classified and hence inaccessible materials.
This regrettable situation requires remedy through issuance of a new declas-
sification executive order and implementing directives. The emphasis should be
placed on the release of information, as in President Richard M. Nixon's E.O.
11652, rather than on security, as in President Ronald Reagan's E.O. 12356.
The Clinton administration ought to address questions of what should be
classified and for how long, as well as the possibility of bulk declassification of
Cold War-era materials. Hopefully, a new and liberal executive order would
emerge from such a reexamination of policy.
• • •
The National Archives will accession the World War II operations and
planning records from the Naval Historical Center and the Marine Corps
Historical Office in 1995. In that same year, these and all other military and
diplomatic records dating back to 1941 will be moved to the new National
Archives building on the campus of the University of Maryland at College Park.
For the first time, one repository will house the major documentary resources
on the politico-military policies, decisions, and actions of World War II and
after. This is a major accomplishment and will alleviate hours of tiresome travel
between various repositories scattered around Washington.
The National Capitol contains valuable manuscript collections, although the
personal records of leading naval figures will always remain somewhat scattered.
Many important papers assembled by the Naval Historical Foundation have been
deposited with the Library of Congress Manuscript Division in the Madison
Building. As an aid to locating this collection and others, the Naval Historical
Center publishes U.S. Naval History Sources in the United States. A more
27
comprehensive guide is the National Union Catalogue of Manuscript Collections.
The Naval Historical Center at the Washington Navy Yard is presently
making efforts to collect papers, including those of Admirals Arleigh A. Burke,
Elmo R. Zumwalt, Jr., and Arthur W. Radford, as well as those of recent chiefs
Naval Strategy," in James Goldrick and John B. Hattendorf, eds., Mahan is Not Enough: The
Proceedings of a Conference on the Works of Sir Julian Corbett and Admiral Sir Herbert Richmond (Newport,
R.I.: Naval War College Press, 1993), 14, 15, inter alia.
27 U.S. Naval History Sources in the United States (Washington: Naval History Division, 1979); The
National Union Catalog of Manuscript Collections (Washington: Library of Congress, 1959-61).
396 Mahan Plus One Hundred
of naval operations (CNOs) Carlisle A.H. Trost, James D. Watkins, and Frank
B. Kelso. The most recent collections will remain classified for years. But they
bring up the question as to whether there ought to be an American equivalent
of the successful British Naval Records Society to encourage the collection and
study of the papers of men and women below the top tier of the Navy. The
American Naval History Society has been defunct since World War I and the
Naval Historical Foundation, which did so much to create the manuscript
collection deposited in the Library of Congress, has not demonstrated marked
energy in preserving papers in recent years.
Outside Washington, manuscript collections of special importance to U.S.
naval history are found at the Naval Academy and the Naval War College.
Among the more significant individual papers in the War College's Historical
Collection are those of Admirals Stephen B. Luce, A. T. Mahan, Ernest J. King,
Harris Laning, William V. Pratt, and Raymond A. Spruance. Fragments of
personal records can be found in the Naval Academy Museum and in the Special
Collections Division of the Nimitz Library at the Naval Academy. Elsewhere,
East Carolina, Duke, Yale, Harvard, Brown, the New York Public Library, and
the Hoover Institution at Stanford University have notable manuscript collec-
tions, as do the hometown presidential libraries administered by the National
Archives.
• • •
Two invaluable oral history programs must not be overlooked by serious
scholars seeking insights into the mind-sets of the men and women who made
policy and strategy, even though their recollections must be somewhat dis-
counted because of the inevitable impact of hindsight on memory. One is
conducted by the Naval Historical Center in Washington, D.C. and the other
by the U.S. Naval Institute in Annapolis.
Begun in 1969 and currently directed by Paul Stillwell, the Naval Institute
Oral History Program has amassed a library of one hundred ninety bound
volumes of transcripts. Most of the oral histories cover an individual's entire
career, but some concentrate on specialized topics, such as early WAVES officers,
the first black naval officers, and the Normandy invasion of June 1944. The
volumes are available to the researcher at the Naval Institute's headquarters in
Annapolis, Maryland, and through rental or purchase.
See Evelyn M. Cherpak, A Guide to Archives, Manuscripts and Oral Histories in the Naval Historical
Collection (Newport: Naval War College, 1991).
29 For the oral histories at the Naval Historical Center, see Edward J. Marolda, et al., eds., Oral History
Collection in the Operational Archives, Naval Historical Center (Washington: Naval Historical Center, 1983);
those at the Naval Institute are cumulatively listed in "U.S. Naval Institute Oral History Collection:
Catalog of Transcripts" (Annapolis: NIP, 1993-1994).
For two accessible oral histories, see Paul Stillwell, ed., The Golden Thirteen: Recollections of the First
Hagan and Shulman 397
The Oral History Program is an adjunct of the Naval Institute's Library
Services and Photo Archives, a research center administered by Mary Beth
Straight. This reference collection consists of 4,500 books, indexed back copies
of the U.S. Naval Institute Proceedings and Naval History, and more than 400,000
photographic images.
• • •
One of the nation's two best libraries for the study of naval history is the
Nimitz Library of the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. The other
one is the Navy Department Library at the Naval Historical Center in
Washington, D.C. These two repositories house virtually every book ever
written on the topic of U.S. naval history.
As part of the Naval Academy, the Nimitz Library relies on year-end funding
to supplement its book budget. Without this special but wildly fluctuating
allocation of funds, the library's periodicals' purchases — devoted mostly to
science and engineering — would soon exceed 70 percent of the library's
materials' budget. As a result of this erratic allocations system, the library's book
purchases have declined sharply, from 10,000 titles in fiscal year 1992 to slightly
more than 6,000 in fiscal year 1993. This decline practically guarantees that the
core collection in naval history, so painstakingly gathered by dedicated faculty
and librarians in the one hundred fifty years of the Naval Academy's existence,
will cease to stand as an infallible source of books for scholars and midshipmen.
Published Collections
Published collections of personal papers and correspondence are of consider-
able use to the historian. Foremost of these is The Letters and Papers of Alfred
Thayer Mahan, edited by Robert Seager II and Doris D. Maguire. Also useful
are the New American State Papers, Naval Series; microfilm editions of the papers
of John Paul Jones, Samuel DuPont, and John Ericsson; the diaries of Josephus
Daniels; the correspondence of Theodore Roosevelt and Henry Cabot Lodge;
the writings of Stephen B. Luce; and the various impressive collections of
presidential papers.
Black Naval Officers (Annapolis: NIP, 1993), and ed., Assault on Normandy: First-Person Accounts from
the Sea Services (Annapolis: NIP, 1994).
For a dated but comprehensive listing of depositories relevant to this section, see Dean C. Allard, et
al., U.S. Naval History Sources in the United States (Washington: Naval History Division, 1979).
31 Seager and Maguire, eds., The Letters and Papers of Alfred Thayer Mahan, vol. 1, 1847-1889; vol. 2,
1890-1901; vol. 3, 1902-1914 (Annapolis: NIP, 1975).
The New American State Papers, Naval Series, ed., K. Jack Bauer (Wilmington, Del.: Scholarly
Resources, 1981); The Papers of John Paul Jones, microform edition, ed., James C. Bradford (Alexandria,
Va.: Chadwyck-Healey, 1986); Official Dispatches and Letters of Rear Admiral DuPont, U.S. Navy:
1846-48, 1861-63 (Wilmington, Del.: Press of Ferris Bros., Printers, 1883; Ann Arbor, Mich.:
University Microfilm International, 1986); The Papers of John Ericsson, microfilm edition, Esther
398 Mahan Plus One Hundred
Following the rise of the modern American Navy in the 1880s, the Navy
Department made several serious efforts to collect relevant historical books and
documents for historians. James Russell Soley created the Office of Library and
Naval War Records (in 1915 the name was reversed) and was given funds to
start publishing the documentary series, Official Records of the Union and Con-
federate Navies in the War of the Rebellion (1894—1922). This series was followed
by those on the Quasi— and Barbary Wars at the suggestion of President and
former Assistant Secretary of the Navy Franklin D. Roosevelt. This type of
project continues with the ongoing publication of the records of the Revolu-
tionary and 1812 wars— an enterprise based on documents that FDR himself
found in the State, War and Navy Building. When these projects are eventually
completed, decisions must be made concerning the future of such documentary
editing. Given the sheer volume of collections from subsequent wars, perhaps
only representative selections should be collected, using as a model Ronald H.
Spector's Listening to the Enemy.
Bibliography
Bibliography has always been a thriving form of publication in U.S. naval
history. Each essay in Kenneth J. Hagan's In Peace and War: Interpretations of
American Naval History, 1775—1984 provides a thoughtful bibliography, as do
the individual chapters of Allan R. Millett and Peter Maslowski, For the Common
Defense — the most widely used college textbook of American military history —
and of Millett's Semper Fidelis. The most important volumes specifically dedicated
to bibliography are: Robert G. Albion, Naval and Maritime History: An Annotated
Bibliography; Charles T. Harbeck, A Contribution to the Bibliography of the History
Chilstrom Meixner, project director (Philadelphia: American Swedish Historical Foundation, 1970);
The Cabinet Diaries ofjosephus Daniels, ed., E. D. Cronon (Lincoln: Univ. of Nebraska Press, 1963);
Selections from the Correspondence of Theodore Roosevelt and Henry Cabot Lodge (New York: Charles
Scribner's & Sons, 1925); The Writings of Stephen B. Luce, ed., John D. Hayes and John B. Hattendorf
(Newport R.I.: Naval War College Press, 1975); The Letters of Theodore Roosevelt, eds., Elting E. Morison
and John M. Blum (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard Univ. Press, 1951—54).
For a general overview, see John B. Hattendorf, "Purpose and Contribution in Editing Naval
Documents," in Editing Naval Documents (Washington: Naval Historical Center, 1984), pp. 43—61.
33 Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies in the War of the Rebellion, 30 vols. (Washington:
U.S. Govt. Print. Off., 1894-1922).
34 William B. Clark and William J. Morgan, eds., Naval Documents of the American Revolution:
1774-1777, 9 vols. (Washington: Naval Historical Center, 1964-1980); Naval Documents Related to the
Quasi- War Between the United States and France: Naval Operations from February 1797 to October 1798, 7
vols. (Washington: U.S. Govt. Print. Off., 1935-1938); and Naval Documents Related to the United States
Wars with the Barbary Powers: Naval Operations Including Diplomatic Background from 1785 through 1807, 6
vols. (Washington: U.S. Govt. Print. Off, 1939-1944).
35 William S. Dudley, ed., The Naval War of 1812: A Documentary History, vol. 1, 1912; vol. 2, 1913
(Washington: U.S. Govt. Print. Off, 1985, 1992); Ronald H. Spector, Listening to the Enemy: Key
Documents on the Role of Communications Intelligence in the War with Japan (Wilmington, Del.: Scholarly
Resources, 1988).
Hagan and Shulman 399
of the United States Navy; Benjamin W. Labaree, A Supplement (1971—1986) to
Robert G. Albion's Naval and Maritime History: An Annotated Bibliography; Robin
D. S. Higharn, A Guide to Sources of United States Military History; Paolo E.
Coletta, A Bibliography of American Naval History and A Selected and Annotated
Bibliography of American Naval History; Myron J. Smith's multi-volume bibliog-
raphies, The American Navy and World War II at Sea; and the Naval Historical
Center's United States Naval History: A Bibliography.
More particular bibliographies include: John C. Fredricksen, Free Trade and
Sailors* Rights: A Bibliography of the War of 1812; John B. Hattendorf and Lynn
C. Hattendorf, A Bibliography of the Works of Alfred Thayer Mahan; John D. Hayes
and John B. Hattendorf, The Writings of Stephen B. Luce; and Edward J. Marolda
and James Lesher, A Bibliography of the United States Navy and the Conflict in
Southeast Asia, 1 950- 1 915?1
The Journal of Military History (formerly Military Affairs) publishes fine annual
bibliographies on military history by subject, including books, collections,
articles, and dissertations. The JMH also publishes book reviews — the critical
means of keeping bibliographically current — as do The American Neptune , Naval
War College Review, and the U.S. Naval Institute Proceedings, and its new offshoot,
Naval History.
Immeasurably valuable for beginning to comprehend the tortured history of
women in the Navy and in the military generally is a bibliographical essay,
"Women in the Military," by the historian D'Ann Campbell. Campbell's
working premise touches the Navy directly: "The infamous 'Tailhook' incident
Hagan, In Peace and War: Interpretations of American Naval History, 1775—1984 (Westport, Conn.:
Greenwood Press, 1984); Millett and Maslowski, For the Common Defense (New York: Free Press, 1984);
Albion, Naval and Maritime History: An Annotated Bibliography (Mystic, Conn.: The Marine Historical
Assoc, 1955, 1963, 1972); Harbeck, comp., A Contribution to the Bibliography of the United States Navy
(Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard Univ. Press, 1906); Labaree, A Supplement (1971-1986) to Robert G. Albion's
Naval and Maritime History: An Annotated Bibliography, 4th ed. (Mystic, Conn.: Mystic Seaport Museum,
1988); Higham, ed., A Guide to Sources of United States Military History (Hamden: Archon Books, 1975),
also, three supplements covering five years each, Higham and Mrozek, eds. (Hamden, Conn.: Archon
Books, 1981-1993); Coletta, A Bibliography of American Naval History (Lanham, Md.: Univ. Press of
America, 1981), and A Selected and Annotated Bibliography of American Naval History (Lanham, Md.: Univ.
Press of America, 1988); Smith, The American Navy, 1789—1941: A Bibliography, 5 vols. (Metuchen,
N.J.: Scarecrow Press, 1972-1974), World War II at Sea: A Bibliography of Sources in English, 3 vols.
(Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow Press, 1974-1990), and United States Naval History: A Bibliography, Naval
History Bibliographies, no. 1, 7th ed., revised by Barbara A. Lynch and John E. Vajda (Washington:
Naval Historical Center, 1993). See also Dean L. Mawdsley, Cruise Books of the United States Navy in
World War II: A Bibliography, Naval History Bibliographies, no. 2 (Washington: Naval Historical Center,
1993).
Fredricksen, Free Trade and Sailors' Rights: A Bibliography of the War of 1812 (Westport, Conn.:
Greenwood Press, 1985); J. Hattendorf and L. Hattendorf, comps., A Bibliography of the Works of Alfred
Thayer Mahan (Newport, R.I.: Naval War College Press, 1986); Hayes and Hattendorf, eds., The Writings
of Stephen B. Luce (Newport, R.I.: Naval War College Press, 1975); and Marolda and Lesher, comps.,
A Bibliography of the United States Navy and the Conflict in Southeast Asia, 1950-1975 (Washington: U.S.
Govt. Print. Off., 1991).
400 Mahan Plus One Hundred
and cover-up of 1991—1992 has spotlighted the problem of sexual harassment
in military culture. "" The strong implications of this assertion may partially
explain why the Naval Historical Center is contracting for a comprehensive
monograph on the history of women in the naval service, a project that will take
several years to complete.
The Historiography of the United States Navy
Naval history in the United States is as old as the Navy itself, with origins in
accounts of the Revolutionary, Quasi- and Barbary Wars. The first large body
of writing appeared soon after the now-famous frigate actions of the young
American Navy in the War of 1812. Heroes and martyrs of these early wars
provided most of the subjects for battle narratives tending toward hagiology.
Nonetheless, there were contemporaneous efforts at institutional history by
Benjamin Folsom, Thomas Clark, Isaac Bailey, and Abel Bowen. In a period
of relatively low literacy rates, naval history in the early national period also
included an impressive body of paintings and published engravings.
Nearly three decades after the War of 1812, James Fenimore Cooper
challenged the prevailing eulogistic interpretation of Commodore Oliver
Hazard Perry and opened a rancorous debate about American naval policy
with his controversial History of the Navy of the United States of America. By
then the service was deeply imbued with a heroic history, one personified
by the Perry family that already had third-generation officers in the Navy.
George Bancroft joined in the Perrys' defense. As the pre-eminent historian
of mid-nineteenth century America, Bancroft hastened the demise of
Cooper's brand of historical objectivity by promoting an enduring tradition
38 Campbell, "Women in the Military," Choice, vol. 31 (September 1993): pp. 63-70.
39 For an example, see Alexander Slidell Mackenzie, The Life of Paul Jones (Boston: Hilliard, Gray, &
Co., 1841).
40 Folsom, A Compilation of Biographical Sketches of Distinguished Officers in the American Navy
(Newburyport, Mass.: n.p., 1814), which included Washington Irving's "Commodore Oliver Hazard
Perry;" Clark, Sketches of the Naval History of the United States, from the Commencement of the Revolutionary
War to the Present Time (Philadelphia: M. Carey, 1813); Bailey, American Naval Biography (Providence,
R.I.: H. Mann and Co., 1815); and Bowen, The Naval Monument (Boston: A. Bowen, 1816).
41 Cooper, History of the Navy of the United States of America (London: R. Bendey, 1839). His account
of the Battle of Lake Erie (1813) reopened a feud over credit and blame for the great victory. For the
controversy, see Cooper, The Battle of Lake Erie: or, Answers to Messrs. Burges, Duer, and Mackenzie
(Coopertown, N.Y.: H.E. Phinney, 1843); Robert Emmet Long, James Fenimore Cooper (New York:
Continuum, 1990); and David Curtis Skaggs, "James Fenimore Cooper and the Batde of Lake Erie:
Historical Veracity and Political Correctness" (paper presented to the Eleventh Naval History
Symposium, U.S. Naval Academy, Annapolis, Md., 1993).
42 See Morison, "Old Bruin:" Commodore Matthew C. Perry 1794-1858 (Boston: Litde, Brown & Co.,
1967), pp. 447-9. Much of the historiography of the U.S. Navy is covered in Hagan, "Bibliographical
Essay," This People's Navy: The Making of American Sea Pou>er (New York: Free Press, 1991), pp. 391-411;
and in Shulman, "The Influence of History Upon Sea Power: The Navalist Reinterpretation of the
War of 1812," Journal of Military History (April 1992),: pp. 183-205.
Hagan and Shulman 401
A 'X
of heroic patriotic nationalism. Bancroft also brought note to the Navy
Department when, as Secretary of the Navy, he founded the Naval Academy at
Annapolis in 1845, an institution designed to instruct in the technical require-
ments of the profession while also inculcating the chauvinism of nineteenth-
century military culture.
The Civil War turned the nation's interest in military history to the opera-
tions, heroes, and villains of the land war. The only significant early volumes on
the naval aspects of the war were written by two naval officers, Daniel Ammen
and Alfred Thayer Mahan, and a civilian employee of the Navy, James R.
Soley. The Navy Department ultimately did what it could to facilitate a broader
scholarship with the compilation of the multi- volume Official Records of the Union
and Confederate Navies.
With the construction of the first steel-hulled warships in the early 1 880s, a
new breed of politically savvy historians began to search for guidelines from
American naval history to encourage the creation of a modern strategy. The
young Theodore Roosevelt took the lead in 1 882 with his book, The Naval War
of 1812, but several other historians soon discovered invaluable admonitions
about the importance of sea power to American security in that remote
conflict. Soon after the opening of the Naval War College at Newport in 1 884,
these lessons were sanctified as timeless laws by the new lecturer in naval
history — Captain Alfred Thayer Mahan.
Mahan's successive studies on sea power and history forever changed the way
the nation would regard navies and, indeed, how the Navy would regard itself.
His notions on the concentration of force, massed sea battles a la Trafalgar, and
the importance of maintaining a battle fleet to insure international status would
dominate the service and American naval historiography throughout the twen-
tieth century.
Oliver Dyer, The Battle of Lake Erie and Miscellaneous Papers: The Life and Writings of George Bancroft
(New York: R. Bonner's Sons, 1891; Ann Arbor, Mich: University Microfilm International, 1976), 1
reel.
44 Ammen, The Atlantic Coast (New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1883; Wilmington, N.C.:
Broadfoot Publishing Co., 1989); Mahan, The Gulf and Inland Waters (New York: Charles Scribner's
Sons, 1883; Freeport, N.Y.: Books for Libraries Press, 1970); and James R. Soley, The Blockade and the
Cruisers (New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1883; New York: J. Brussel, 1959).
Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies in the War of the Rebellion (Washington: U.S. Govt.
Print. Off., 1894-1922).
46 Roosevelt, The Naval War of 1812 (New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons, 1882; Annapolis: NIP, 1987).
See also James Barnes, Naval Actions of the War of 1812 (New York: Harper & Bros., 1896); and Rossiter
Johnson, A History of the War of 1812-1815 (New York: Dodd, Mead, & Co., 1882).
47 Mahan, The Influence of Sea Power upon History, 1660-1783 (Boston: Little, Brown & Co., 1890),
The Influence of Sea Power upon the French Revolution and Empire, 1783-1812 (Boston: Little, Brown &:
Co., 1892), and Sea Power and its Relations to the War of 1812 (Boston: Little Brown & Co., 1905). The
literature on Mahan virtually dominates the non-operational history of the United States Navy. See
especially, Seager and Maguire, eds., The Letters and Papers of Alfred Thayer Mahan, vol. 1, 1847-1889;
vol. 2, 1890-1901; vol. 3, 1902-1914 (Annapolis: NIP, 1975), and Seager's "warts and all" biography,
402 Mahan Plus One Hundred
The most persuasive and articulate naval spokesman for this viewpoint was
retired Captain Dudley W. Knox, who published A History of the United States
Navy during the debates over rearmament in the 1930s. Outside the Navy,
the Mahanian torch was brightly carried by Harold and Margaret Sprout, whose
The Rise of American Naval Power remained a standard interpretation from 1939
until the 1960s. Challenges to this intellectual hegemony were few and diverse,
featuring primarily George T. Davis and the noted economic determinist,
Charles A. Beard.
Mahan's critics and supporters were writing with an eye to the coming war,
and indeed, the lessons of sea power soon appeared to be vindicated by the
staggering American naval victories in the Atlantic and Pacific in 1942—1945.
This, at least, was the viewpoint of the late Harvard Professor Samuel Eliot
Morison who oversaw the monumental fifteen- volume official History of United
States Naval Operations in World War II. After the conclusion of the war,
Morison and Mahan were indirectly institutionalized in the required text at the
U.S. Naval Academy, E.B. Potter's Sea Power: A Naval History.
Among the leading successors to the Mahan-Morison navalist interpretation
was Bernard Brodie, who completed his first book, Sea Power in the Machine Age,
just in time to start studying the changing strategic environment of the postwar
world. His subsequent works adapted the lessons of the history of sea power to
Alfred Thayer Mahan: The Man and His Letters (Annapolis: NIP, 1977). For the influence of Mahan,
seeHagan, This People's Navy: The Making of American Sea Power (New York: Free Press, 1991); Shulman,
Naualisnt and the Emergence of American Sea Power, 1882—1893, (Annapolis: NIP, 1995); Hattendorf, ed.,
The Influence of History on Mahan (Newport, R.I.: Naval War College Press, 1992); Hattendorf, B.
Mitchell Simpson, and John R. Wadleigh, eds., Sailors and Scholars: The Centennial History of the U.S.
Naval War College (Newport, R.I.: Naval War College Press, 1984); Potter and Nimitz, eds., Sea Power:
A Naval History (Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, 1960); also, Potter, ed., Sea Power: A Naval
History, 2d ed. (Annapolis: NIP, 1981); and William D. Puleston, The Life and Work of Captain Alfred
Thayer Mahan (New Haven, Conn.: Yale Univ. Press, 1939). It should also be noted that an enthusiastic
following has long existed for "popular" naval histories such as those by J. Willis Abbot, William Bell
Clark, and Fletcher Pratt.
48 48. Knox, A History of the United States Navy (New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1936, 1948).
Sprout and Sprout, The Rise of American Naval Power, 1776-1918 (New Jersey: Princeton Univ.
Press, 1939; Annapolis: NIP, 1990). See also, Charles Oscar Paullin, The Navy and the American Revolution
(Cleveland: Burrows Brothers, 1906), and Diplomatic Negotiations of American Naval Officers (Baltimore:
The Johns Hopkins Univ. Press, 1912; Gloucester, Mass.: P. Smith, 1967). Paullin was the first
professionally trained American naval historian. The Sprouts drew upon his essays, which appeared in
the U.S. Naval Institute Proceedings early in the twentieth century.
Davis, A Navy Second to None: The Development of Modem American Naval Policy (New Haven, Conn.:
Yale Univ. Press, 1940). Davis was a New Haven school teacher who took a Yale Ph.D. and then
disappeared from the field. Beard, The Navy: Defense of Portent} (New York: Harper & Bros., 1932).
One of the foremost scholars of his day, Beard wrote widely in history, first from Columbia University
and then from the New School For Social Research.
Morison, History of United States Naval Operations in World War II, 15 vols. (Boston: Little, Brown
& Co., 1947-1963).
52 Potter and Nimitz, eds., Sea Power: A Naval History (Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, 1960);
also Potter, ed., The United States and World Sea Power (Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, 1955).
Hagan and Shulman 403
nuclear strategy and established the standard of discourse for this popular new
Cold War field. Beard and Davis, on the other hand, found no successors until
the dissolution of consensus associated with the Vietnam-era debates over
empire, strategy, policy, and politics.
In the 1960s, historians of the "New Left" became a potent force in the
reinterpretation of American diplomatic and naval history. Many of them were
schooled in the tradition of the University of Wisconsin's "Progressive His-
torians," and in particular by William Appleman Williams, who ironically was
a World War II graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy. These younger scholars,
soon dubbed "revisionists," quickly focused upon businessmen's pressure for
overseas investments and trade as the source — and the Navy as the tool — of
American aggression, especially in the late nineteenth century. Firing the first
shots in nearly a generation, Walter LaFeber, not himself trained by Williams,
wrote suggestively in The New Empire of the Navy secretary who oversaw the
authorization of America's first true battleships: "In preparing the United States
to occupy this 'seat of empire,' [Benjamin F.] Tracy had few equals."'
LaFeber's work, as well as the contemporaneous political debates over
"America's Empire," sparked a remarkable new industry of tightly focused works
examining the nonoperational aspects of the Navy. The studies include James
C. Bradford, Makers of the American Naval Tradition, an edited series of naval
biographies in three volumes thus far; Richard D. Challener, Admirals, Generals,
and American Foreign Policy, Benjamin F. Cooling, Benjamin Franklin Tracy,
Vincent Davis, The Admirals hobby, JefFery M. Dorwart, The Office of Naval
Intelligence and Conflict of Duty; Frederick C. Drake, The Empire of the Seas; James
A. Field, Jr., From Gibraltar to the Middle East: America and the Mediterranean World,
1776-1882; J.A.S. Grenville and George B. Young, Politics, Strategy, and
American Diplomacy; Kenneth J. Hagan, American Gunboat Diplomacy and the Old
Navy, 1877—1889; Frederick S. Harrod, Manning the New Navy: The Development
of a Modern Enlisted Force, 1899-1940; Walter R. Herrick, The American Naval
Revolution; Peter D. Karsten, The Naval Aristocracy; Harold D. Langley, Social
Reform in the United States Navy, 1 798—1862; Christopher McKee, A Gentlemanly
and Honorable Profession: The Creation of the U.S. Naval Officer Corps, 1 794—1815;
Robert L. O'Connell, Sacred Vessels: The Cult of the Battleship and the Rise of the
U.S. Navy; Ronald H. Spector, Professors of War; and Craig L. Symonds, Navalists
and Antinavalists. These important volumes signified the emergence of a new
Brodie, Sea Power in the Machine Age (New Jersey: Princeton Univ. Press, 1943), and The Absolute
Weapon (New Jersey: Princeton Univ. Press, 1946). For a gathering of naval historians of the 1950s and
early 1960s, see Richard A. von Doenhoff, ed., Versatile Guardian: Research in Naval History, National
Archives Conferences, vol. 14 (Washington: Howard Univ. Press, 1979).
Williams, The Tragedy of American Diplomacy (Cleveland: World Publishing Co., 1959).
55 LaFeber, The New Empire: An Interpretation of American Expansion, 1860-1898 (Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell
Univ. Press, 1963), 127.
56 Bradford, ed., Admirals of the New Steel Navy: Makers of the American Naval Tradition, 1880-1930
404 Mahan Plus One Hundred
generation of historians dedicated to furthering a critical understanding of naval
history.
To a considerable extent, the new naval historians were scrutinizing the late
nineteenth-century origins of the modern American Navy. They and several
others soon moved forward. In 1981 the diplomatic historian David F. Trask
published a thoughtful reappraisal of all aspects of the Spanish American War of
1898, including strategy and leadership. Inevitably, he resurrected the hoary
topic of who deserved credit for the naval victory in Santiago de Cuba on 3 July
1898: Rear Admiral William T. Sampson, who was in overall command, or
Winfield Scott Schley, the tactical commander? Trask also published a defini-
tive study of U.S. naval preparations and operations during the First World War,
joining a debate about the relative merit of battleships and convoys originally
opened by the brilliant commander of U.S. naval forces in European waters,
William Sowden Sims, in his Pulitzer Prize-winning book, The Victory at Sea.
(Annapolis: NIP, 1990), Captains of the Old Steam Navy: Makers of the American Naval Tradition,
1840-1880 (Annapolis: NIP, 1986), and Command under Sail: Makers of the American Naval Tradition
1115—1850 (Annapolis: NIP, 1988); Challener, Admirals, Generals, and American Foreign Policy,
1898—1914 (New Jersey: Princeton Univ. Press, 1973); Cooling, Benjamin Franklin Tracy: Father of the
Modem American Fighting Navy (Hamden, Conn.: Archon Books, 1973); Davis, Postwar Defense Policy
and the U.S. Navy, 1943-1946 (Chapel Hill: Univ. of North Carolina Press, 1966), and The Admirals
Lobby (Chapel Hill: Univ. of North Carolina Press, 1967); Dorwart, The Office of Naval Intelligence: The
Birth of America's First Intelligence Agency, 1865-1918 (Annapolis: NIP, 1979), and Conflict of Duty: The
U.S. Navy's Intelligence Dilemma, 1919-1945 (Annapolis: NIP, 1983); Drake, The Empire of the Seas: A
Biography of Rear Admiral Robert Wilson Shufeldt, USN (Honolulu: Univ. of Hawaii Press, 1984); Field,
From Gibraltar to the Middle East: America and the Mediterranean World, 1116—1882 (Chicago: Imprint
Publications, 1991); Grenville and Young, Politics, Strategy, and American Diplomacy: Studies in Foreign
Policy, 1813-1911 (New Haven, Conn.: Yale Univ. Press, 1966); Hagan, American Gunboat Diplomacy
and the Old Navy, 1811-1899 (Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1973); Harrod, Manning the New
Navy: The Development of a Modem Enlisted Force, 1899—1940 (Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press,
1978); Herrick, The American Naval Revolution (Baton Rouge: Louisiana State Univ. Press, 1966);
Karsten, The Naval Aristocracy: The Golden Age of Annapolis and the Emergence of Modem American Navalism
(New York: Free Press, 1972); Langley, Social Reform in the United States Navy, 1198-1862 (Urbana:
Univ. of Illinois Press, 1967); McKee, A Gentlemanly and Honorable Profession: The Creation of the U.S.
Naval Officer Corps, 1194-1815 (Annapolis: NIP, 1991); O'Connell, Sacred Vessels: The Cult of the
Battleship and the Rise of the U.S. Navy (Boulder, Colo.: Westview Press, 1991); Spector, Professors of
War: The Naval War College and the Development of the Naval Profession (Newport, R.I.: Naval War
College Press, 1977); and Symonds, Navalists and Antinavalists: The Naval Policy Debate in the United
States: (Newark, Del.: Univ. of Delaware Press, 1980).
57 Trask, The War With Spain in 1898 (New York: Macmillan, 1981), and the analysis continued in
James C. Bradford, ed., Crucible of Empire: The Spanish American War & its Aftermath (Annapolis: Naval
Institute Press, 1993). For another endless controversy about the war, see Hyman G. Rickover, How
the Battleship Maine was Destroyed (Washington: Naval History Division, 1976).
58 Trask, Captains and Cabinets: Anglo-American Naval Relations, 1911-1918 (Columbia: Univ. of
Missouri Press, 1972); and Sims, with Burton J. Hendrick, The Victory At Sea (Garden City, N.Y.:
Doubleday, Page & Co., 1920). See also, Trask, The United States in the Supreme War Council: American
War Aims and Inter- Allied Strategy, 1911-1918 (Middletown, Conn.: Wesleyan Univ. Press, 1961), and
The AEF and Coalition Warmaking, 1911-1918 (Lawrence: University Press of Kansas, 1993).
Hagan and Shulman 405
Even as they negotiated the terms of the German surrender at the Paris
conference in 1918—1919, the Anglo-American naval partners fell out over the
postwar naval force structure, thus setting the stage for the Washington Con-
ference on the Limitation of Armaments of 1921—1922. The U.S. Navy's
uncompromisingly hostile reaction to that conference set the tone for the
conservative, pro-Mahanian historiography of the interwar years epitomized by
the works of Captain Dudley W. Knox. A generation later, Thomas H. Buckley
and William R. Braisted analyzed the epochal meeting with unparalleled fairness
and clarity.
While Trask and Braisted were dissecting the Navy of the early twentieth
century, Ronald H. Spector was leaping from the formative years of the "new
navy" of steam and steel to a keenly analytical study of the American war against
Japan, 1941—1945. His searching book, Eagle Against the Sun, puts the nostalgi-
cally glamorous battles of the Pacific war and the possibly decisive American
submarine campaign against Japanese shipping into proper balance. He has been
joined by Dan van der Vat, an English scholar whose comprehensive study of
the Pacific war suggests a more influential role for air power than has previously
been conceded. Van der Vat had earlier analyzed the Battle of the Atlantic from
a non-Mahanian perspective.
• • •
The story of the United States Navy in the Cold War remains largely untold,
although scholars are beginning to chip away at the iceberg. The two earliest
analyses were the studies of naval politics and strategy by Vincent Davis in the
1960s. Next came a pioneering monograph, Nuclear Navy, 1946-1962, which
appeared in 1974 and was written by two historians of the Atomic Energy
Buckley, The United States and the Washington Conference, 1921—1922 (Knoxville: Univ. of Tennessee
Press, 1970); Braisted, The United States Navy in the Pacific, 1909-1922 (Austin: Univ. of Texas Press,
1971).
Spector, Eagle Against the Sun (New York: Free Press, 1985); and van der Vat, The Atlantic Campaign:
World War IPs Great Struggle at Sea (New York: Harper & Row, 1988), and The Pacific Campaign: World
War II, The U.S.-Japanese Naval War, 1941-1945 (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1991).
See also H.P. Willmott, The Barrier and the Javelin: Japanese and Allied Pacific Strategies, February to June
1942 (Annapolis: NIP, 1983), and Empires in the Balance: Japanese and Allied Pacific Strategies to April
1942 (Annapolis: NIP, 1982); Clark M. Reynolds, The Fast Carriers: The Forging of an Air Navy (New
York: McGraw-Hill, 1968), and Admiral John Towers: The Struggle for Naval Air Supremacy (Annapolis:
NIP, 1991). Clay Blair, Silent Victory (Philadelphia: J. P. Lippincott, 1975) corrects oversights of the
Morison project arising from its not having been privy to the ULTRA secrets. The debate continues
to be fought by some of the original actors. For the debates, books, and players, see Roger Pineau,
review of Pearl Harbor: Final Judgement by Henry Clausen and Bruce Lee (New York: Crown, 1992) in
U.S. Naval Institute Proceedings (July 1993), pp. 98-9.
The documentary point of departure for balancing the American surface, subsurface, and air campaigns
is United States, Strategic Bombing Survey, The United States Strategic Bombing Survey, 10 vols. (New
York: Garland, 1976).
406 Mahan Plus One Hundred
Commission, Richard G. Hewlett and Francis Duncan. Dean C. Allard, Floyd
D. Kennedy, Jr., and Lawrence J. Korb continued the Cold War examination
four years later with essays in In Peace and War, edited by Kenneth J. Hagan.
For some time, retired Navy Captain Peter M. Swartz has been writing a doctoral
dissertation on the Navy of the early Cold War. At the Naval Historical Center,
Edward J. Marolda is sparking research and publication as head of the Contem-
porary History Branch. One of his former subordinates, Michael A. Palmer,
has published Origins of the Maritime Strategy: American Naval Strategy in the First
Postwar Decade and two monographs on the Navy in the Persian Gulf. The
second volume of Robert W. Love's History of the U.S. Navy has an extensive
dissection of the Navy since 1945. But the hands-down leader in the race at the
moment is the Naval Academy's Michael T. Isenberg, who has just issued the
first of a monumental two-volume analysis of the Cold War Navy. The views
of Isenberg, Love, Palmer, and Swartz differ fundamentally from the revisionist
interpretation in Kenneth J. Hagan, This People's Navy: The Making of American
Sea Power. This wide disparity of interpretation promises an intense his-
toriographical debate about sea power in the Cold War, especially as scholars
begin to exploit the previously sealed archives of the former Soviet Union.
• • •
Until very recently, the "new military history" had not yielded a complete
history of the U.S. Navy. The 1948 edition of Captain Dudley Knox's A History
61 Davis, Postwar Defense Policy and the U.S. Navy, 1943-1946 (Chapel Hill: The Univ. of North
Carolina Press, 1966), and The Admirals Lobby (Chapel Hill: The Univ. of North Carolina Press, 1967);
Hewlett and Duncan, Nuclear Navy, 1946-1962 (Illinois: The Univ. of Chicago Press, 1967); Hagan,
ed., In Peace and War: Interpretations of American Naval History, 1775-1984, 2d ed. (Westport, Conn.:
Greenwood Press, 1984), pp. 290-370.
Marolda's own work concentrates on the Vietnam War: Marolda, comp., A Bibliography of the United
States Navy and Conflict in Southeast Asia (Washington: Contemporary History Branch, Naval Historical
Center, 1991), and Marolda, ed., Operation End Sweep: A History of Minesweeping Operations in North
Vietnam (Washington: Naval Historical Center, 1993). For the output of Marolda's staff and a
comprehensive listing of other works on the Navy in the Cold War, see Barbara A. Lynch and John E.
Vajda, 7th ed. rev., United States Naval History: A Bibliography (Washington: Naval Historical Center,
1993), pp. 70-9.
Palmer, Origins of the Maritime Strategy: The Development of American Naval Strategy, 1945—1955
(Washington: Naval Historical Center, 1988; Annapolis: NIP, 1990); On Course to Desert Storm: The
U.S. Navy and the Persian Gulf, Contributions to Naval History Series, no. 5 (Washington: Naval
Historical Center, 1992); and Guardians of the Gulf: A History of America's Expanding Role in the Persian
Gulf, 1883-1992 (New York: Free Press, 1992). For a contrasting view, see especially Jeffrey Record,
Hollow Victory: A Contrary View of the Gulf War (Washington: Brassey's (US), 1993), pp. 116-7.
64 Love, History of the U.S. Navy, 1942-1991, vol. 2 (Harrisburg, Pa.: Stackpole Books, 1992), pp.
278-837; Isenberg, Shield of the Republic: The United States in an Era of Cold War and Violent Peace, vol.
1, 1945-1962 (New York: St. Martin's Press, 1993).
65 Hagan, This People's Navy: The Making of American Sea Power (New York: Free Press, 1991), pp.
333-87.
Hagan and Shulman 407
of the United States Navy remained a standard summary, often supplemented with
E.B. Potter's Sea Power: A Naval History, or the Sprouts' Rise of American Naval
Power. But in the last decade, six major syntheses have appeared, giving the
reader a choice of interpretations: George W. Baer, One Hundred Years of Sea
Power: The United States Navy, 1890-1990; Captain Edward L. Beach, The United
States Navy: 200 Years; Kenneth J. Hagan, This People's Navy: The Making of
American Sea Power, Stephen Howarth, To Shining Sea: A History of the United
States Navy, 1115-1991; Robert W. Love, Jr., History of the U.S. Navy; and
Nathan Miller, The U. S. Navy: A History. To some extent, each of these books
attempts "to chronicle and explain the high politics of American naval history.'
Also healthy is the list of "big books" which place the American naval
experience in a wider historical context. Foremost among recent contributions
in this line are: Martin van Creveld, Technology and War: From 2000 B.C. to the
Present; John Keegan, The Price of Admiralty; Robert O'Connell, Of Arms and
Men: A History of War, Weapons, and Aggression; and Paul M. Kennedy, Rise and
Fall of the Great Powers: Economic Change and Military Conflict from 1500 to 2000.
It should be noted that fictional accounts of naval history have never done better
than now, with Patrick O'Brian's salty tales of warfare in the age of Nelson and
the techno-thrillers of Tom Clancy and Stephen Coonts leading the pack.
66 Knox, A History of the United States Navy (New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1936, 1948); Potter, ed.,
Sea Power: A Naval History, 2d ed. (Annapolis: NIP, 1981); Sprout and Sprout, The Rise of American
Naval Power, 1776-1918 (New Jersey: Princeton Univ. Press, 1939; Annapolis: NIP, 1990).
The last comprehensive synthesis by a member of the old guard was Edwin B. Hooper, United States
Naval Power in a Changing World (New York: Praeger, 1988).
While historians disagree widely on a definition of new military history, it would almost certainly
have to be written by a professionally trained historian rather than a career officer. It might also be
characterized as less teleological ("the Rise and Rise". . .), or as giving less credence to notions of
America's unique mission or righteousness.
67 Baer, One Hundred Years of Sea Power: The United States Navy, 1890-1990 (California: Stanford Univ.
Press, 1994); Beach, The United States Navy: 200 Years (New York: H. Holt, 1986); Hagan, This People's
Navy: The Making of American Sea Power (New York: Free Press, 1991); Howarth, To Shining Sea: A
History of the United States Navy, 1775-1991 (New York: Random House, 1991); Love, History of the
U.S. Navy, vol. 1, 1775-1941; vol. 2, 1942-1991 (Harrisburg, Pa.: Stackpole Press, 1992); and Miller,
The U.S. Navy (New York: Quill, 1990).
68 Robert W. Love, Jr., introduction to History of the U.S. Navy: 1775-1941, vol. 1 (Harrisburg, Pa.:
Stackpole Books, 1992), xi.
69 Van Creveld, Technology and War: From 2000 B.C. to the Present (New York: Free Press, 1989);
Keegan, The Price of the Admiralty: The Evolution of Naval Warfare (New York: Viking, 1988); O'Connell,
Of Arms and Men: A History of War, Weapons, and Aggression (New York: Oxford Univ. Press, 1989),
also Sacred Vessels: The Cult of the Battleship and the Rise of the U.S. Navy (Boulder, Colo.: Westview
Press, 1991); and Kennedy, The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers: Economic Change and Military Conflict
from 1500 to 2000 (New York: Random House, 1987).
70 O'Brian, The Ionian Mission (New York: W.W. Norton, 1992), and Master and Commander (1970;
New York: W.W. Norton, 1990); Clancy, The Hunt for Red October (Annapolis: NIP, 1984), and Red
Storm Rising (New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1986); and Coonts, Flight of the Intruder (Annapolis: NIP,
1986), and The Final Flight (New York: Doubleday, 1988).
408 Mahan Plus One Hundred
• • •
Historically, the Navy has been the most technologically sophisticated of the
American armed services. Its historiography reflects this reality, despite the
marked indifference of academic historians. Notwithstanding Jonathan G.
Utley's new social history of the battleship USS Tennessee, American naval
hardware traditionally has been the domain of specialists not holding permanent
71
university or college positions. Frank M. Bennett, for example, was chief
engineer of the Navy. Howard I. Chapelle, author of the monumental History
of the American Sailing Navy, was professionally associated with the Smithsonian
Institution. One of his scholarly successors is Jean Boudriot of France, author of
the scrupulously accurate John Paul Jones and the Bonhomme Richard: A Reconstruc-
72
tion of the Ship and an Account of the Battle with HMS Serapis.
Within today's community of technically oriented naval historians, it is the
physicist Norman Friedman who has made the most indelible mark with his
studies of ships and ordnance. Sometimes assisted by the naval intelligence
specialist A. David Baker III, Friedman has added a ponderous depth of technical
material on types and designs of "gray-hulled" American fighting ships. A
competitor, free-lance writer Norman Polmar, shows a genius for blending hard
technical data with operational aspects of the history of weapons systems. At the
Naval Academy Museum, Ship Model Curator Robert F. Sumrall specializes in
the histories of certain classes of American warships, his favorite being battleships.
Another biographer of battleships, Paul Stillwell, is on the staff of the U.S. Naval
73
Institute.
Utley, An American Battleship at Peace and War: The U.S.S. Tennessee (Lawrence, Kans.: Univ. Press
of Kansas, 1991).
72 Bennett, The Steam Navy of the United States: A History of the Growth of the Steam Vessel of War in the
U.S. Navy, and of the Naval Engineer Corps (Pittsburgh: Press of W.T. Nicholson, 1896); Chapelle, History
of the American Sailing Navy (New York: W.W. Norton, 1949); Boudriot, John Paul Jones and the
Bonhomme Richard: A Reconstruction of the Ship and an Account of the Battle with HMS Serapis, trans., David
H. Roberts (Annapolis: NIP, 1987).
73 Friedman, U.S. Aircraft Carriers: An Illustrated Design History (Annapolis: NIP, 1983), U.S. Cruisers:
An Illustrated Design History (Annapolis: NIP, 1984), U.S. Destroyers: An Illustrated Design History
(Annapolis: NIP, 1982), U.S. Small Combatants: An Illustrated Design History (Annapolis: NIP, 1987),
U.S. Submarines: An Illustrated Design History (Annapolis: NIP, 1994), Naval Radar (Annapolis: NIP,
1981), U.S. Naval Weapons (Annapolis: NIP, 1985), and World Naval Weapons Systems, 2d ed. (Annapolis:
NIP, 1992); Baker, illus., U.S. Aircraft Carriers (Annapolis: NIP, 1983 and The Aircraft Carrier Intrepid
(Annapolis: NIP, 1982); Polmar, The Ships and Aircraft of the U.S. Fleet, 15 editions (Annapolis: NIP,
1978-1992); Alan Raven, Fletcher- Class Destroyers (Annapolis: NIP, 1986), Essex-Class Carriers
(Annapolis: NIP, 1988); Sumrall, Iowa Class Battleships: Their Design, Weapons, and Equipment (Annapolis:
NIP, 1988), Summer- Gearing Class Destroyers: Their Design, Weapons, and Equipment (Annapolis: NIP,
forthcoming), Ship's Data Series, 12 vols. (Annapolis: Leeward Publications, 1973-1979), and Warship's
Data Series, 5 vols. (Missoula, Mont.: Pictorial Histories, 1985-1990); and Stillwell, Battleship Arizona:
An Illustrated History (Annapolis: NIP, 1991), and Battleship New Jersey: An Illustrated History (Annapolis:
NIP, 1986).
Hagan and Shulman 409
Gary E. Weir, the leading historical analyst of the technology of American
submarines, previously taught at the U.S. Naval Academy, but today he is on
the staff of the Naval Historical Center. A colleague, Tamara M. Melia, broke
new ground with a history of U.S. naval mine countermeasures. Much earlier,
the Ships' History Branch and a team of naval reservists produced the
chronological biography of almost every American warship, the Dictionary of
American Naval Fighting Ships. This extremely valuable multivolume en-
cyclopedia should be used in conjunction with the two volumes of ships'
histories prepared by K. Jack Bauer.
With a few exceptions, the burgeoning analyses of naval technology have not
been matched by a flowering of new studies in logistics and administration.
Older works continue to be the standards. Duncan S. Ballantine's U.S. Naval
Logistics in the Second World remains virtually unchallenged, as does A. Hunter
Dupree's, Science in the Federal Government and Robert G. Albion's Makers of
Naval Policy, 1798—1947 — a volume which had been quashed for many years
as reflecting unfavorably upon its subject.
• • •
In many ways, scholars interested in the human aspects of the field dominate
American naval historiography. Nowhere is their triumph more evident than in
the field of biography. The long section on biographies and memoirs in the
74 Weir, Building American Submarines, 1914-1940, Contributions to Naval History, no. 3 (Washington:
Naval Historical Center, 1991), and Forged in War: The Naval- Industrial Complex and American Submarine
Construction, 1940-1961 (Washington: Naval Historical Center, 1993); Melia, Damn the Torpedoes: A
Short History of U.S. Naval Mine Countermeasures, 1777—1991, Contributions to Naval History Series,
no. 4 (Washington: Naval Historical Center, 1991); Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, 8 vols.
(Washington: U.S. Govt. Print. Off., 1964-1981); K.Jack Bauer and Stephen S. Roberts, Register of
Ships of the U.S. Navy, 1775-1990 (Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1991); and Bauer, Ships of the
Navy, 1775-1969 (Troy, N.Y.: Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, 1970).
Weir now has some high-powered competition in Tom Clancy, Submarine: A Guided Tour from Inside
a Nuclear Warship (New York: Berkley Books, 1993).
For one new study, see Thomas Hone, Power and Change: The Administrative History of the Office of
the Chief of Naval Operations, 1946-1986 (Washington: Navy Historical Center, 1989).
Ballantine, U.S. Naval Logistics in the Second World War (New Jersey: Princeton Univ. Press, 1947);
A. Hunter Dupree, Science in the Federal Government: A History of Policies and Activities to 1 940 (Cambridge,
Mass.: The Belknap Press of Harvard Univ. Press, 1957); Albion, Makers of Naval Policy, 1798-1947,
Rowena Reed, ed. (Annapolis: NIP, 1980).
For more on administration, see Julius A. Furer, Administration of the Navy in World War II
(Washington: U.S. Govt. Print. Off., 1959); Charles O. Paullin, History of Naval Administration
(Annapolis: NIP, 1968); and Robert W. Neeser, Statistical and Chronological History of the United States
Navy, 1775-1907, 2 vols. (New York: n.p., 1909; New York: B. Franklin, 1970).
For more on logistics, see Robert H. Connery, The Navy and Industrial Mobilization (New Jersey:
Princeton Univ. Press, 1951); Worrall Reed Carter, Beans, Bullets, and Black Oil: The Story of Fleet
Logistics Afloat in the Pacific During World War II (Washington: Department of the Navy, 1953); and
Carter with Elmer E. Duvall, Ships, Salvage, and Sinews of War: The Story of Fleet Logistics Afloat in Atlantic
and Mediterranean Waters During World War II (Washington: Department of the Navy, 1954).
410 Mahan Plus One Hundred
Naval Historical Center's United States Naval History: A Bibliography attests to the
fascination exerted on writers by the men and women who made American
77
naval history. A perusal of the listings shows that conservative, often uncritical
interpretations of wartime leaders predominate. But there is also a resilient
interest in officers whose most notable contributions lay outside the seas of glory,
such as the new biography of the naval diplomat, Vice Admiral Newton A.
78
McCully, by Charles J. Weeks, Jr. And even the revisionists can take comfort
in the existence of essays like Robert W. Love's "Fighting a Global War," an
incisive criticism of the strategy of Admiral Ernest J. King, and books like
Frederick S. Harrod's Manning the New Navy: The Development of a Modern
Enlisted Force, 1899—1940, Peter D. Karsten, The Naval Aristocracy: The Golden
Age of Annapolis and the Emergence of Modern American Navalism, and Arnold A.
t-r-n 7Q
Rogow, James Forrestal: The Study of Personality, Politics, and Policy. This short
list means the challenge and opportunity exist for the critical biographers of the
late twentieth century.
• • •
Finally, the U.S. Marine Corps, a branch of the Navy always treated as a
separate operational and administrative entity, now has a definitive history in
Allan R. Millett's Semper Fidelis: The History of the United States Marine Corps.
Several recent works also contribute significantly to the Marines' historiography:
Merrill L. Bartlett, Lejeune: A Marine's Life, 1867-1942; John W. Dower, War
Without Mercy: Race and Power in the Pacific War, Craig Cameron, American
Samurai: Myth, Imagination, and the Conduct of Battle in the First Marine Division,
1941—1951; and Timothy Moy, "Hitting the Beaches and Bombing the Cities:
Doctrine and Technology of Two New Militaries."
United States Naval History. A Bibliography , Naval History Bibliographies, no. 1, 7th ed., revised by
Barbara A. Lynch and John E. Vajda (Washington: Naval Historical Center, 1993).
Weeks, An American Naval Diplomat in Revolutionary Russia (Annapolis: NIP, 1993).
Love, "Fighting a Global War," In Peace and War: Interpretations of American Naval History, 1 775—1984,
2d ed. (Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1984), pp. 263-89; Harrod, Manning the New Navy: The
Development of a Modem Enlisted Force, 1899—1940 (Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1978); Karsten,
The Naval Aristocracy: The Golden Age of Annapolis and the Emergence of Modem American Navalism (New
York: Free Press, 1972); and Rogow, James Forrestal: A Study of Personality, Politics, and Policy (New
York: Macmillan, 1963).
For Forrestal, see Robert G. Albion and Robert H. Connery, Forrestal and the Navy (New York:
Columbia Univ. Press, 1962); and Townsend Hoopes and Douglas Brinkley, Driven Patriot: The Life
and Times of James Forrestal (New York: Knopf, 1992).
Millett, Semper Fidelis: The History of the United States Marine Corps, 2d ed. (New York: Free Press,
1991); Bartlett, Lejeune: A Marine's Life, 1867-1942 (Columbia: Univ. of South Carolina Press, 1991);
Dower, War Without Mercy: Race and Power in the Pacific War (New York: Pantheon Books, 1986);
Cameron, American Samurai: Myth, Imagination, and the Conduct of Battle in the First Marine Division,
1941-1993 (New York: Cambridge Univ. Press, 1993); and Moy, "Hitting the Beaches and Bombing
the Cities: Doctrine and Technology of Two New Militaries" (Ph.D. diss., University of California,
Hagan and Shulman 41 1
• • •
This section ends with mention of a well-known paradox: much of the armed
maritime history of the United States involves a service other than the United
States Navy — the U.S. Coast Guard. No attempt has been made here to discuss
that important historiography, but the starting point is the work of Robert L.
Schema, formerly the Coast Guard's official historian and now a professor at the
Industrial College of the Armed Forces.
Outlets for Writing
Naval history is flourishing as a written art form because many publishers are
willing to bring out books for a rather limited market. The larger commercial
houses that have had success with broadly conceived books include The Free
Press, Charles Scribner's & Sons, Random House, and St. Martin's. The leading
academic and quasi-academic presses that regularly publish monographs in
American naval history are Greenwood, University of South Carolina, Univer-
sity of Kansas, and Westview. Three potent but highly specialized outfits
concentrate almost exclusively on the history of naval technology: Brassey's
(U.S.), Conway Maritime Press, and Jane's. Brassey's is especially important to
watch because in 1993 it sailed into uncharted waters with Crossed Currents:
Navy Women from World War I to Tailhook, by Jean Ebbert and Mary-Beth Hall.
Lastly, two quite different specialty presses always bear watching for new titles
in naval history: Nautical & Aviation Press of Baltimore, Maryland, and the
Smithsonian Institution Press in Washington, D.C.
Since its founding in 1873, the Naval Institute has encouraged research on
naval history through forums, its press, the Proceedings, and its new journal, Naval
History. Two current series demonstrate a long-term commitment to excellence
on the part of the Naval Institute Press. Classics of Sea Power, edited by John B.
Hattendorf and Wayne P. Hughes, contains works by Julian Corbett, Philip
Howard Colomb, and Alfred Thayer Mahan. Classics of Naval Literature, edited
by Jack Sweetman, embraces books by Herman Melville, James Fenimore
Cooper, Frederick Marryat, and C.S. Forester as well as memoirs by Admirals
Charles Clark, George Dewey, and Robley D. Evans.
In the last two decades, the Naval Institute Press published three important
works of collective biography: Dictionary of Admirals of the U.S. Navy, by William
Berkeley, 1993).
81 Scheina, U.S. Coast Guard Cutters and Craft, 1946-1990 (Annapolis: NIP, 1990), and U.S. Coast
Guard Cutters and Craft of World War II (Annapolis: NIP, 1982).
Ebbert and Hall, Crossed Currents: Navy Women from World War I to Tailhook, (Washington: Brassey's,
Div. of Maxwell Macmillan Co., 1993).
83 Hattendorf and Hughes, eds., Classics of Sea Power, 9 volumes. (Annapolis: NIP, 1988-1994); and
Sweetman, ed., Classics of Naval Literature, 30 vols. (Annapolis: NIP, 1984-1993).
412 Mahan Plus One Hundred
B. Cogar; American Secretaries of the Navy, edited by Paolo E. Coletta; and The
Chiefs of Naval Operations, edited by Robert W. Love, Jr. With this track record,
the Naval Institute Press will remain the leading commercial publisher of
American naval history and related technical writing for the remainder of the
twentieth century.
Within the Navy, the Naval Historical Center has a long history of publishing
edited collections of documents, bibliographies, and scholarly monographs
under its own imprint, or under those of the Department of the Navy and the
U.S. Government Printing Office. Currently, the center is producing three
important series: the three- volume set of documents on the War of 1812, edited
by William S. Dudley; the Contributions to Naval History Series and the series
known as Naval History Bibliographies. Somewhat less active is the Naval War
College Press, which was founded in 1975. This press has produced a series of
historical monographs based upon the college's own collections. The Naval War
College Historical Monograph Series now encompasses eleven volumes of
edited manuscripts, bibliographies, memoirs, conference proceedings, and
theses, with several volumes forthcoming.
• • •
Scholarly and quasi-scholarly journals publish a large number of articles on
U.S. naval history each year. The premier outlet for popular writing is Naval
History, published by the Naval Institute. This new bimonthly publication
complements the more scholarly American Neptune; the long-established Naval
War College Review, which covers all aspects of sea power and military affairs in
general; and the U.S. Naval Institute Proceedings, which is especially strong in
technical studies. For Marine Corps topics, the leading journal is The Marine
Corps Gazette, with an irregular schedule of publication.
Another important periodical venue is the National Maritime Historical
Society's Sea History. The professional military historians' voice is Thefournal of
Military History published by the Virginia Military Institute and the George C.
Marshall Foundation. The vital museum-related publications include The
84 Cogar, Dictionary of Admirals of the U.S. Navy, vol. 1, 1862-1900; vol. 2, 1901-1918 (Annapolis:
NIP, 1989, 1991); Coletta, ed., American Secretaries of the Navy, vol. 1, 1775-1913; vol. 2, 1913-1972
(Annapolis: NIP, 1980); and Love, ed., The Chiefs of Naval Operations, vol. 1, 1775-1941; vol. 2,
1942-1991 (Annapolis: NIP, 1980).
In addition to titles cited elsewhere, in 1993 the Naval Historical Center published two original
studies: Edward J. Marolda, By Sea, Air, and Land: An Illustrated History of the U.S. Navy and the War
in Southeast Asia (Washington: U.S. Govt. Print. Off., 1993); and Curtis A. Utz, Cordon of Steel: The
U.S. Navy and the Cuban Missile Crisis, The U.S. Navy in the Modern World, no. 1 (Washington: U.S.
Govt. Print. Off., 1993).
86 For the transition between the Proceedings and Naval History, see Clayton R. Barrow, Jr., ed., America
Spreads Her Sails: U.S. Sea Power in the 19th Century (Annapolis: NIP, 1973).
The Marine Corps Gazette (Quantico, Va.: Marine Corps Assoc, 1916-present).
Hagan and Shulman 41 3
American Neptune of the Peabody Museum of Salem, and those published by the
Mystic Seaport Museum, the South Street Sea Port, the Manitowac Maritime
Museum, and the National Maritime Museum in San Francisco.
The journals just named and those discussed in earlier sections contain reviews
of books related to naval history, and these reviews are an essential tool for
keeping up with a subdiscipline that lacks a strong academic institutional base.
Sources of Funding
The principal steady source of financial support for research and writing is
the Naval Historical Center. Each year the center awards the Samuel Eliot
Morison Scholarship of $3,000 to a naval officer, as well as two research grants
of $2,500 each for established scholars, one of $8,000 for a doctoral candidate
writing a dissertation in naval history, and the Ernest M. Eller Prize of $1,000
for an outstanding scholarly article. Additionally, the center administers an
internship program and occasionally awards larger, multi-year grants for official
histories. To mark the bicentennial of the USS Constitution, the Naval Historical
Center will make an award of $750 for an article and one of $2,500 for a book
related to the bicentennial theme and based on original research. The works
must be published or accepted for publication between 1994 and 1998. The
Marine Corps Historical Center, also located in the Washington Navy Yard,
offers similar grants.
Major private foundations support naval history on an ad hoc basis. The John
D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation in Chicago has traditionally
provided institutional grants for graduate and post-graduate research in security
studies. In 1994, the Chicago-based Robert R. McCormick Tribune Founda-
tion joined with the U.S. Naval Institute in sponsoring two scholarly observances
of the fiftieth anniversary of the Normandy landings, one at the Cantigny
Museum in Wheaton, Illinois, the other in Annapolis, Maryland. The Eisen-
hower Center of the University of New Orleans sponsored a more popularly
oriented conference on the same topic in May 1994. This was one of the
Eisenhower Center's series of annual conclaves on World War II topics from
which naval historians are not excluded.
The Harry and Lynde Bradley Foundation of Milwaukee has supported work
such as the series of Yale conferences where this chapter was spawned. The John
M. Olin Foundation in New York has engaged in this type of activity and has
funded pre- and post-doctoral fellowships in military history at the Yale
International Security Program, which is directed by Paul Kennedy, and in
security studies at Harvard's Olin Institute, directed by Samuel Huntington. The
Smith Richardson Foundation of Westport, Connecticut also funds work in this
field. The competition for all of these awards is intense, and generally the grants
The best way to keep up with the multifaceted activities of the Naval Historical Center is by
subscribing to its newsletter, Pull Together.
414 Mahan Plus One Hundred
go to the same few institutions. Some, such as the Eller Fellowship in naval
history at East Carolina University, are restricted to a particular college or
university.
Summary: The State of U.S. Naval History
The teaching of naval history has fallen on tough times. At the Naval
Academy, where it ought to reign supreme, naval history receives lukewarm
support. In many other departments nationally, it is denied a secure niche in the
curriculum. By contrast, American naval museums are stronger than ever before,
although their financial underpinnings are not as solid as they might be, and thus
their future vitality is not guaranteed. Research and publication are surprisingly
healthy activities, although many scholars have to work alone and isolated in
departments indifferent or hostile to their field. And, as has always been the case,
Washington and Annapolis remain the primary geographic centers for research
because of their libraries, archives, and manuscript collections.
• • •
Despite pockets of encouraging activity, a recent reviewer said, "as a sub-
specialty of historical study, U.S. naval history is a toddler." That most naval
historians agree on this is distressing. Remedies must be sought, and one
possibility is to write histories that address the Navy along lines other than policy
and strategy. Sociological, financial, and even psychological approaches should
be brought into play in examining naval history.
The primary challenge facing naval historians is to embrace new
methodologies, or risk being considered completely irrelevant to the profession
as a whole. They must target and address those broad questions insufficiently
studied, such as the social history of sailors, the commercial-cultural history of
Navy yards, civil-military relations, and the technical-bureaucratic history of
weapons systems. Next, they must establish a methodological framework for
investigating recent naval history, an area where most high-level government
documents will remain highly classified for some time.
Finally, naval historians ought to ask, what is the purpose of American naval
history? Is it to eulogize heroes and instill patriotic virtues of self-sacrifice, as it
was for much of the nineteenth century? Is it to enshrine a particular strategic
concept, as it was for the first half of the twentieth century? Or is it to question
prevailing interpretive orthodoxies, as much of it has been since the 1960s?
With the end of the Cold War — if not with the dawning of a particularly
bright "new world order" — it is imperative that the historians of America's great
sea service ask questions relevant to the United States Navy of the future, a navy
89 John B. Hattendorf, review of History of U.S. Navy, by Robert W. Love, Jr., Naval Institute
Proceedings (August, 1993) pp. 99-100.
Hagan and Shulman 41 5
diminished in size from its magnitude of 1950— 1990, but still the world's most
powerful. Are there historical antecedents in the American experience or in the
experience of other nations that will suggest strategic, operational, technological,
logistical, and administrative guidelines for the future?
Some historians do not believe in seeking lessons from the past as lodestars
for the future, but if U.S. naval historians adopt this purist stance, they will
become even less germane to the intellectual and political mainstreams of the
United States than they are now. The chance to reach out to the American
people is a happy, if daunting, prospect.
The authors wish to thank several people for their advice and help on this project, including: Paul
M. Kennedy and John B. Hattendorf for crucial assistance and advice at every stage; David A. Rosenberg
for information and guidance; James C. Bradford, Charles C. Campbell, John P. Cummings, Harold
D. Langley, Jane H. Price, Jack Sweetman, Richard Hume Werking, and Stephen D. Wrage for their
thoughtful reading and comments; Richard A. von Doenhoff for material on the National Archives;
Dean C. AUard and Edward Marolda for data on the Naval Historical Center; Harold Langley for
information about the Smithsonian; James W. Cheevers, senior curator of the Naval Academy Museum,
for the section on museums; Erica Thomas for a jump-start with the footnotes; and Ann Jensen for
editing of the very highest order. This chapter, however, represents only the views of the authors.
The cutoff for information in this essay was 30 January 1994. Suggestions and comments for future
editions may be addressed to the editor at the Naval War College Press.
Kenneth J. Hagan, a retired captain in the U.S. Naval Reserve, is author of American Gunboat Diplomacy
and the Old Navy, 1877-1889 and This People's Navy: The Making of American Sea Power, and editor of
In Peace and War: Interpretations of American History, 1775—1984. Hagan served on the faculty of the
history department of the U.S. Naval Academy, 1973-1993, and was the academy's archivist and
museum director from 1990 through 1993.
Mark R. Shulman is author of Navalism and the Emergence of American Sea Power, 1882-1893
(Annapolis: NIP) and numerous articles. He has edited or co-edited An Admiral's Yam: The Autobiography
of Harris Laning and the Laws of War: Constraints on Warfare in the Western World. Shulman has taught
history at Yale University and is now at The National Strategy Information Center, Washington, D.C.
Beyond Toddlerhood
Thoughts on the Future of U.S. Naval History
David Alan Rosenberg
" /\ s a sub-specialty of historical study, U.S. naval history is a toddler." So
JL A.notes Dr. John B. Hattendorf, the Ernest J. King Professor of Maritime
History at the U.S. Naval War College and editor of the present volume, in his
recent review of Robert W. Love, Jr.'s History of the U.S. Navy. Professors Hagan
and Shulman, in their overview of the current state of American naval history,
have taken note of this comment and have provided some general suggestions
about how historians of American naval affairs can advance their field as a
sub-specialty of scholarly endeavor. This paper presents some additional thoughts
to challenge colleagues old and young as they attack their chosen subject. The
challenge takes the form of three questions historians might ask to move
American naval history toward the complexity and intellectual sophistication
envisioned by Messrs. Hattendorf, Hagan, and Shulman.
The first such question is " What was the U. S. Navy, and who belonged to it?"
For far too long, we have regarded the naval establishment very narrowly,
concentrating on the uniformed service, both officers and enlisted personnel,
and on primarily the seagoing, operational components at that. This has
reinforced naval history's strong traditional focus on the "tip of the spear," the
ships and men that have deployed overseas and met the enemy in battle. As a
result, if we continue the metaphor, we still have only a vague sense of the spear
shaft, which had a different length and a different composition at various times
in the nation's history. Yet that shaft is just as much a part of the naval
establishment as the spearhead, and the shaft may well have determined the
nature and effectiveness of the tip that was sent into harm's way.
We need to know more about the naval establishment, broadly defined. This
includes civilian shipbuilders, gun, mine and torpedo makers, airplane builders,
sail and rope makers, coal and oil suppliers, producers of navigational charts,
books and instruments, victuallers, and white collar bureaucrats. There is also
much additional work to be done on analyzing the evolution of the naval officer
corps and the enlisted ranks, from a professional as well as a sociological
perspective. For example, navy wives and families not only developed their own
41 8 Beyond Toddlerhood
brand of naval culture, but in the twentieth century had a profound role in
shaping personnel policies, particularly with respect to base housing, medical
care, deployment schedules, and support services.
The political underpinnings of the American Navy deserve much more
attention as well. While urban and social historians have begun to explore the
role that military bases have played in shaping the growth of cities and
communities, naval historians have not reciprocated by analyzing how local
politics have influenced the development of the American Navy's shore in-
frastructure. Surprisingly, the role of national politics in shaping naval develop-
ment has also received much less attention in articles and monographs than it
clearly merits.
The second question historians should ask is "What did navies do?" This
question might appear to be an obvious one, and one which historians have
already undertaken to address, but the task is far from complete. Certain aspects
have been ignored. While the gross outlines and in many cases the details of
American naval operations have been traced and analyzed, the internal workings
of shipboard life are little understood. For too long we have implicitly accepted
Samuel Johnson's aphorism: "being in a ship is being in jail, with a chance of
being drowned . . .," and have paid little attention to how sailors occupied their
time while at sea. But life at sea was not simply a punitive exercise. The drills
and discipline applied were not designed just to control human nature, but to
meet the needs of the ship.
In a similar vein, significant progress has been made in recent years in studying
the history of naval invention, but equally important is the as yet unwritten
history of the application of such invention to operations and combat at sea.
What sailors do, and are capable of doing, surely influences technical innovation,
just as technology shapes what is expected of sailors as they sail, steam, and fight
their ships. It is a question of education, training, drills, responsibilities, and
schedules, just as much as it is a question of big guns, planes and missiles, armor
plate, boilers, nuclear reactors, radios, radar, and electronic warfare. All of these
facets come to define naval tactics, tactical doctrine, and command and control.
The extent to which all of these considerations came to shape American naval
strategy has never been analyzed. They may in the end prove to have been as
important as the writings of naval theorists, even Alfred Thayer Mahan himself.
The third area needing further attention is defined by the question: "Why
should other historians care?" Naval history will not come into its own as an
academic discipline until naval historians are more successful at spelling out the
connections between their subject and the concerns of the broader historical
profession. Opportunities for such research abound. The development of navies
and naval technology is not only an important element in national strategy and
diplomacy, but in the history of the industrial nation state. The very existence
of a navy is dependent on the choice of a state to invest in developing and
Rosenberg 41 9
maintaining the industrial capacity to build and sustain it. The centrality of navies
in the history of European states has long been acknowledged, particularly with
reference to Renaissance Venice, imperial Spain, and modern Britain. In the
United States, however, the relevance of the Navy to the era of nation-building
has rarely been considered. In particular, the rise of the American Navy after the
Civil War rested not just on national policy, but on the availability of industrial
manpower, the advancement of steam technology, and major breakthroughs in
understanding and applying the laws of thermodynamics.
During the twentieth century, the American Navy began to operate in three
dimensions: on, over, and beneath the oceans, ultimately fostering and employ-
ing such technologies as nuclear power, nuclear weapons, guided and ballistic
missiles, and a full spectrum of computer systems. The role played by the Navy
in the creation of new technology has been acknowledged, but the part the naval
establishment played in sustaining new industries and shaping them to meet its
needs has not been assessed. Further, the role the Navy played in these matters
in contrast to the Army and the Air Force offers a fruitful avenue for further
research. As America moves to adapt to a post Cold War era and the end of
nearly fifty years of constant mobilization for war, such analyses would be of
great service.
But what of "traditional" naval history: of sea fights, and diplomatic ac-
complishments, and the evolution of policy and strategy? Certainly in the latter
case, asking and answering as best we can the questions just outlined should
enrich such studies. For too long the history of policy and strategy has been
treated as the self-fulfilling motion from words to deeds, without careful
attention to the means — economic and financial, scientific, technological and
industrial— which would translate one into the other. Knowing who made up
navies, what they do and why they matter cannot help but enhance our
understanding of the long-standing concerns of naval historians, from prepara-
tion in peacetime to achievements and failures in times of war.