War Classics – The Influence of Sea Power Upon History 1660-1783

Alfred Thayer Mahan is not a name that is widely recognised nowadays, but of all the writers featured in this column, he can most convincingly be said to have influenced the course of history. His late-19th-century works on naval history and strategy have had an incalculable influence on world leaders, from Kaiser Wilhelm to (arguably) Donald Trump. Naval strategy in the First and Second World Wars followed Mahanian principles, as it did also during the Cold War. His theories have underpinned Chinese naval strategy for more than 20 years, and President Trump’s startling pronouncements on the future of Panama and Greenland align closely to Mahan’s views on control of sea lanes, interna