The Influence of Sea Power Upon History (1890) is a work of naval
history and strategy by Alfred Thayer Mahan. Drawing on decades of
experience as a naval officer, researcher, and university lecturer,
Mahan develops his theory of sea power in the seventeenth and eighteenth
centuries in this popular and important text. Despite a lack of primary
sources, The Influence of Sea Power would prove essential to the
expansion of European and American imperialism through the use of naval
might and has been cited as one of the most influential works of the
nineteenth century. "The history of Sea Power is largely, though by no
means solely, a narrative of contests between nations, of mutual
rivalries, of violence frequently culminating in war." For Alfred Thayer
Mahan, there was no greater indicator of national might throughout
history than control of the planet's oceans. In this detailed study of
the subject, drawn from years of research and lectures given at the
Naval War College in Rhode Island, Mahan traces the influence of sea
power on such conflicts as the English Revolution and the Seven Years'
War to argue that supremacy of the seas coincides with global commercial
and political dominance throughout history. Immediately successful, The
Influence of Sea Power Upon History would justify the expansion of
imperialism as well as shape the naval arms race between Great Britain
and Germany in the years preceding the First World War. With a
beautifully designed cover and professionally typeset manuscript, this
edition of Alfred Thayer Mahan's The Influence of Sea Power Upon
History is a classic of naval strategic scholarship reimagined for
modern readers.
