American Navy knows two main periods of the historic development: the “Old Navy” and the “New Navy.” A borderline between these periods passes through the American Civil War and following Navy activity decay that resulted in Navy reconstruction later. With the course of time, the “New Navy” overgrew the Royal Navy and became the largest and most influential sea power in the world. The aim of this paper is to analyze creation and need of the new American Navy after the Civil War and to discuss its strengths, weaknesses, and relationship with the Merchant Fleet.
After the end of the American Civil War, the American Navy underwent a period of decline. In 1864, the Royal Navy was the largest Navy in the world, and the United States Navy came second. The results of the Civil War and victories of America in sea battles demonstrated Great Britain that American Navy could provide competition to the Royal Navy. As the result, Great Britain started to neglect American sea powers. In 1976, the British published “Naval Powers and their Policy,” and the only words they said about the U.S. Navy run, “its guns were ‘condemned all over the world and superseded,’ and its ‘system of armor plating is also unsound’” (Howarth 216). As useless in times of peace, by 1880, Americans virtually almost destroyed their fleet stopping spending money on its support and placing most of the ships in reserve. The Navy wanted to reclaim its authority, and in 1882 the Navy Secretary William H. Hunt addressed to Congress and requested money for construction of modern ships; however, his request was rejected.
One of the key roles in shaping the modern army belongs to Alfred Thayer Mahan. Alfred Mahan was a naval admiral, theorist, and the President of the United States Naval War College. In 1890, he published The Influence of Sea Power upon History, 1660–1783, “a revolutionary analysis of the importance of naval power as a factor in the rise of the British Empire” (“Mahan’s The Influence of Sea Power upon History”). In his book, Mahan stated that Great Britain became “ the world’s dominant military, political, and economic power” just due to naval strength and control over the seas (“Mahan’s The Influence of Sea Power upon History”). Mahan believed that the United States should develop its economy not only by the domestic industry but also by foreign markets. The American Government could guarantee access to them and secure it through the use of three things: necessary for carrying American products merchant Navy, necessary for destroying rival fleets battleship Navy, and a system of naval bases aimed to provide fuel and supplies for American naval ships on their way to new markets. Mahan’s book had a great impact on the society and Navy governance, one of which representatives was Theodore Roosevelt. After the victory in Spanish-American War, the United States obtained territories suitable for building naval bases. In 1901, Theodore Roosevelt, one of the greatest supporters of the American Navy development, became President; the flourish of the United States Navy started.
The new American Navy had a number of strengths and weaknesses. Under Roosevelt’s administration, the U.S. Navy grew and again became the second largest Navy in the world. It obtained a lot of new battleships and submarines, the latest technological innovation in those days. Generally, during Roosevelt’s Presidency, America underwent flourish of imperialism, and the growth of American Navy together with the increased role of Merchant Fleet allowed Roosevelt to demonstrate the imperialistic power and capabilities of the United States. In 1907, Roosevelt created the “Great White Fleet” of sixteen powerful battleships and sent it to the world voyage. He wanted to protect the United States from overseas possessions, and at the same time to popularize the Navy among American citizens (Bogle 9). Roosevelt’s reckless attempt succeeded in both ways. However, the voyage of the “Great White Fleet” found put such problems as lack of American fuel stations around the world; most of the coal was bought from the British, who were unreliable and could deny access to fuel every time they wanted. Also, the American battleships had some technical deficiencies like poor ventilation and little freeboard (Howarth 293-294).
After the Civil War, the United States went in times of peace and did not see the necessity in the Navy virtually starting to destroy it. However, after Mahan’s book that proved the importance of the Navy and Merchant Fleet in developing the U.S. economy and strengthening presence in the world, the beginning of Roosevelt’s Presidency, and the development of American capitalism, the role of the American Navy and Merchant Fleet significantly increased. Those times, the “New Navy” began to rise. The “New Navy” became the second largest and powerful Navy in the world, but it had some weaknesses as lack of fuel stations and technical deficiencies. Mahan’s theories and Roosevelt’s position helped to strengthen American power in the world and led the United States to the country we know now.
Works Cited
Bogle, L. “Why T.R. Sent the Great White Fleet”. Defense Technical Information Centre. The Daybook, n.d. PDF. Accessed 5 Mar 2016.
Howarth, S. To Shining Sea: A History of the United States Navy, 1775-1998. Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press, 1999.
“Mahan’s The Influence of Sea Power upon History: Securing International Markets in the 1890s.” U.S. Department of State. Office of the Historian. Office of the Historian, n.d. Web. Accessed 5 Mar 2016.
