Page 338 - 1992 - XVIII Congresso Internazionale di Storia Militare

304

and che inc:roduction of armour co cover the vita! pans of ships agaiost explosive
shc:lls, rhe incroducrion of underwacer weapons such as torpedoes and mines. all
had led ro the idea rhar co counter che overwhelming superioricy of especiaJly che
Brirish Royal Navy it was neccssary co employ such modero technologies aboard
small inél<pensive, fighcing crafc co prevem blockades and amphibious attacks, and
ro acquire sea-going vessels whkh could ouc run heavier arrned warships and at·
cack che lines of communicadon of the scronger enemy. This li ne of chinking, found
irs mosc outspoken advocate in che French Admiral Théophile Aube wich lùs "Jeune
Ecole" in che 1880's.
A visionary advocate of commerciai expansion in che Unired Stares was Rear
Admiral Roberr W . Shufeldr, who had mken pan .in the "ope.rllng-up" of Korea
in 1882 and larer became chairman of che N a val Advisory Board. H e convinced
che N a val Affairs Comminee of che House ofRepresentacives chat the Navy should
be composed of scrong warships for coastal defense a nd fase sea-going cruisers for
a gutrrt de cour1e.
Bue evenrs such as the Samoan crisis of 1889, che Chilean war scare of 189l-92
and che coup in Hawaii in 1893 showed that large srrong sea-goiog armoured ships
might be in difficulry against smaller unprotecred cruisers or gunboars. Such ex·
periences opened the way for tht> mosc inOuendal America n theorisr on naval warfart>,
Captain Alfred Thayer Mahan with his " Classica) School". In his opinion naval
wars were foughr for the contro! of the sealines of communkacion. A sea•power
could use che SLOC's in her area of concrol and ro win contro! of the seas, whether
regionally or globally, the sea-power needed a Oeer v.•hich could defear the naval
forces of an opponenr in a decisive sea.J>anle. Far such decisive oaval bacr:les berrer
batcleships and safe bases were necessary. With contro! of the seas won aU ocher
pcoblems couJd be solved. The defeoce of ooe's own coasrs and harbours, the deoi-
al of SLOC's ro the enemy, the blockading of che enemy's harbours, and even am-
phibious armcks againsr his shores could be ensuted.
Mahan was called by the founder of rhe U.S. Naval War College, Rear Ad-
miral Stephen B. Luce, co teach there. In his lecrures he traced Britain's use of sea
power co build up ber world-wide rrade colonial empire and to fìnaUy become the
dominane power in the world. His books on "'The lofiueoce of Sea Power upon
H.istary", published in 1890 and 1892, became the b.ible for his followers in many
countdes. and won more and more suppon in the U nired Statcs, e.speciall.y when
io 1897, he published a new book " The lnreresc of America in Sea Power", jn
wlùch he poinred ouc tbac mosc of the faaors which had made Greac "Brirain so
powerful were also pocentially presenc in che Uniced States.
One of his sraunchesr supponers was Theodore Roosevelt, who in 1897 was
che Assist-an t Secretary of the Navy. Together with other followers an d supporrers
of commerciai expansion be pushed the reluctanr Presideot William McKinley a od
che Secretary of the Navy,John D. Long, into tbe war with Spain, using the cruel
suppression of Cuban nacionaliscs by the Spanish colonia! authorities as a pretexr