Sailors, Statesmen and the Implementation of Naval Strategy

Explores the varied relationship between political leaders and naval experts, from the 16th to 21st centuries

The shaping of national defence strategies is particularly difficult in the case of navies. Few political leaders have naval experience, in contrast to the case of armies where political leaders and army commanders have often shared similar social and professional backgrounds. Bringing together historical examples from Britain, the United States, Spain and France, the book provides insights into this key relationship.

The authors highlight factors which have made for successful relationships between political leaders and naval experts, showing how changing circumstances have affected the dialogue and underlines the importance of good exchange of knowledge, expertise and understanding for successful policy making and strategic outcomes. Sea power continues to be crucial in the present world’s increasingly unstable geopolitical situation, the mutual exchange of expertise between naval experts and political leaders is as important as ever, and the risk of political ’sea blindness’ remains high. This book’s historical examples provide good guidance on how to manage the relationship between political leaders and naval experts well.

Richard Harding is emeritus professor at the University of Westminster. He is author and editor of many books, including The Emergence of Britain’s Global Naval Supremacy: The War of 1739-1748 (2010) and Naval Leadership and Management, 1650-1950 (2012), both published by Boydell and Brewer.
Agustín Guimerá is a researcher at the Instituto de Historia, Consejo Supeior de Investigaciones Cientificas, Madrid. He is the author of numerous studies of comparative naval leadership.