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Strategy and Doctrine

Sea Power Doctrine (Command of the Sea)

Modern

Sea power doctrine, associated above all with the US naval officer and historian Alfred Thayer Mahan, holds that a nation's greatness rests on command of the sea, won and held by a concentrated battle fleet that denies an enemy the use of the oceans while securing them for the nation's own trade and power projection. Mahan set the doctrine out fully in The Influence of Sea Power upon History, 1660-1783 (1890). This description is adapted from Wikipedia contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

Facts
Core Claim
A nation's greatness rests on command of the sea, won by a concentrated battle fleet that denies the enemy the use of the oceans while securing them for its own trade and power projection. 1
Origin Year
1890 1
Classification
Domain (Land, Sea, Air, Cyber)
Maritime 1
Connections

Associated With

Spanish-American War, Wars
Source Wikipedia: Alfred Thayer Mahan
United States Navy, Armed Forces and Units
Source Wikipedia: Alfred Thayer Mahan

Developed By

Alfred Thayer Mahan, Commanders
Source Wikipedia: Alfred Thayer Mahan
Sources
1. Wikipedia: Alfred Thayer Mahan
Wikipedia
  • doctrine summary
    The primary mission of a navy was to secure the command of the sea, which would permit the maintenance of sea communications for one's own ships while denying their use to the enemy.
  • lead paragraph, key work
    The Influence of Sea Power upon History, 1660-1783
  • Domain attribute (sea-power-doctrine)
    Sea power doctrine, associated above all with the US naval officer and historian Alfred Thayer Mahan, holds that a nation's greatness rests on command of the sea, won and held by a concentrated battle fleet that denies an enemy the use of the oceans while securing them for the nation's own trade and power projection.
  • Developed By: Alfred Thayer Mahan, lead paragraph
  • Associated With: Spanish-American War, Naval War College and writings section, 1898 recall
    he retired from active service, returning briefly to duty in 1898 to consult on naval strategy during the Spanish-American War.
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