Maritime Supremacy and the Opening of the Western Mind: Naval Campaigns that Shaped the Modern World

In the great wars of modern history, maritime powers have always prevailed over land-based empires. This extraordinary book charts the growth of these powers in various western countries while revealing the way in which supremacy at sea freed thought and society itself. As noted historian Peter Padfield demonstrates, those nations attaining mastery at sea have been distinguished by liberty, flexibility, and enterprise, a historical lesson of burning relevance today.

Maritime Supremacy details the struggles of the first supreme maritime powers of the modern age, the Dutch and the British, and ends with the emergence of the ultimate successor, the United States world power was won. Immersing the reader in the drama of events, including riveting great sea battles, Padfield challenges our view of the evolution of today's world.

"Outstanding . . . offers up naval campaigns and sea battles as vivid as any you will find in Patrick O'Brian." (John Lehman, former secretary of the US Navy, The Wall Street Journal)

"[Padfield's] comprehension of the context and his natural, understandable absorption in the details are expressed in fine writing." (Stephen Howarth, Naval History)

This book, a kind of sequel to or refinement of Alfred T. Mahan's 19th-century classic The Influence of Sea Power upon History, begins with a standard observation: In war, naval power tends to trump land power. But Peter Padfield makes an even bolder claim: "Maritime supremacy is the key which unlocks most, if not all, large questions of modern history, certainly the puzzle of how and why we--the Western democracies--are as we are." To put it more frankly: "Our civilization (if we can lay so large a claim), our beliefs, our dominance are products not of superior minds or bravery, cunning, greed, or ruthlessness--common attributes of mankind--still less of the Christian religion, the 'Protestant work ethic,' or blind chance, but of the particular configuration of the seas and land masses that has given the advantage to powers able to use and command the seas." That may sound incredibly deterministic, but also intriguing. The resulting discussion of military and economic might on the seas begins with the Spanish Armada and concludes with the founding of the United States. It's an engaging mix that will appeal to readers who like to tackle the big questions of history, as in David S. Landes's The Wealth and Poverty of Nations or Thomas Sowell's Conquests and Cultures. Best of all, readers need not agree with the striking thesis of Maritime Supremacy to profit from its ideas. In the end, more than a few may wind up agreeing with Padfield that "We are the heirs of maritime supremacy." --John J. Miller