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'''Alfred Thayer Mahan''' (1840 - 1914), an American sailor and writer, was the leading [[Military history|military historian]] in the world in the era before World War I.  His concept of "sea power" had an enormous influence in shaping the strategic thought of naval officials across the world, especially in the [[American naval history|American navy]], Germany, Japan and Britain. His ideas still permeate the [[United States Navy]].  

'''Alfred Thayer Mahan''' (1840 - 1914), an American sailor and writer, was the world's leading [[Military history|military historian]] in the era before [[World War I]].  His concept of "sea power" had an enormous influence in shaping the strategic thought of naval officials around the world, especially in the [[American naval history|American navy]], Germany, Japan and Britain. His ideas still permeate the [[United States Navy]].  

 

==Career==

==Career==

Mahan was born in West Point, New York; his father, [[Denis Mahan]] was an influential professor of military tactics at West Point, where he taught many of the generals who commanded in the [[American Civil War]]. After attending Columbia College in New York, the son entered the U.S. Naval Academy, graduating in 1859, second in a class of twenty. His career as a line officer on blockade duty during the Civil War was uneventful. Mahan was considered below par for seamanship; he became commander in 1872 and captain in 1885, and with that rank retired in 1896 after forty years of service. A decade later he was promoted to rear admiral on the retired list, but signed his many books and articles, "Captain Alfred Thayer Mahan."  By the 1890s he had achieved international acclaim, particularly in Britain, where he had been given honorary degrees by Oxford and Cambridge. American recognition followed, with honorary degrees from Harvard, Yale, Columbia, and Dartmouth. He was called from retirement to serve as a member of the Naval War Board for the [[Spanish-American War]], as a delegate to the first [[Peace Conference]] at The Hague, as an occasional lecturer at the Naval War College, and as witness before several congressional committees.  He was well known in military and naval circles, and was a friend and advisor of fellow naval historian President [[Theodore Roosevelt]].

Mahan was born in West Point, New York; his father, [[Denis Mahan]] was an influential professor of military tactics at West Point, where he taught many of the generals who commanded in the [[American Civil War]]. After attending Columbia College in New York, the son entered the U.S. Naval Academy, graduating in 1859, second in a class of twenty. His career as a line officer on blockade duty during the Civil War was uneventful. Mahan was considered below par for seamanship; he became commander in 1872 and captain in 1885, and with that rank retired in 1896 after forty years of service. A decade later he was promoted to rear admiral on the retired list, but signed his many books and articles, "Captain Alfred Thayer Mahan."  By the 1890s he had achieved international acclaim, particularly in Britain, where he had been given honorary degrees by Oxford and Cambridge. American recognition followed, with honorary degrees from Harvard, Yale, Columbia, and Dartmouth. He was called from retirement to serve as a member of the Naval War Board for the [[Spanish-American War]], as a delegate to the first [[Peace Conference]] at The Hague, as an occasional lecturer at the Naval War College, and as witness before several congressional committees.  He was well known in military and naval circles, and was a friend and advisor of fellow naval historian President [[Theodore Roosevelt]].

==Historian==

==Historian==

The turning point in Mahan's career came when Superintendent Stephen B. Luce (1827-1917) called him in 1884 to lecture in naval history and strategy at the newly established Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island.  Mahan plunged into the library and wrote lectures that drew heavily on standard classics and the ideas of work of [[Henri Jomini]]. The lectures became his sea-power studies: ''The Influence of Sea Power upon History, 1660-1783'' (1890); ''The Influence of Sea Power upon the French Revolution and Empire, 1793-1812'' (2 vols., 1892); and ''Sea Power in Relation to the War of 1812'' (2 vols., 1905). ''The Life of Nelson: The Embodiment of the Sea Power of Great Britain'' (2 vols., 1897) supplemented the series. Mahan stresses the importance of the individual in shaping history, and extols the traditional values of loyalty, courage, and service to the state. Mahan sought to resurrect [[Horatio Nelson]] as a national hero in Britain and used the book as a platform for expressing his views on naval strategy and tactics. Criticisms of the work focused on Mahan's handling of Nelson's love affair with Lady Emma Hamilton, but it remains the standard biography.  In addition to these works, Mahan wrote more than a hundred articles on international politics and related topics, which were closely read by policy makers.

The turning point in Mahan's career came when Superintendent Stephen B. Luce (1827-1917) called him in 1884 to lecture in naval history and strategy at the newly established Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island.  Mahan plunged into the library and wrote lectures that drew heavily on standard classics and the ideas of work of [[Henri Jomini]]. The lectures became his sea-power studies: ''The Influence of Sea Power upon History, 1660-1783'' (1890); ''The Influence of Sea Power upon the French Revolution and Empire, 1793-1812'' (2 vols., 1892); and ''Sea Power in Relation to the War of 1812'' (2 vols., 1905). ''The Life of Nelson: The Embodiment of the Sea Power of Great Britain'' (2 vols., 1897) supplemented the series. Mahan stresses the importance of the individual in shaping history, and extols the traditional values of loyalty, courage, and service to the state. Mahan sought to resurrect [[Horatio Nelson]] as a national hero in Britain and used the book as a platform for expressing his views on naval strategy and tactics. Criticisms of the work focused on Mahan's handling of Nelson's love affair with Lady Emma Hamilton, but it remains the standard biography.  In addition to these works, Mahan wrote more than a hundred articles on international politics and related topics, which were closely read by policy makers.