If by Sea: The Forging of the American Navy - from the Revolution to the War of 1812
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From Boston Harbor to Yorktown; from wars with France and Tripoli to the dramatic Battle of Lake Champlain in the War of 1812, the definitive history of the creation of the American Navy Kirkus Reviews Ambitious, painstakingly detailed account of how the fledgling American fleet grew into a permanent navy. Despite calls by George Washington and John Adams to raise a naval power, there was no muscular attempt to organize patriot sea militias at the outbreak of the Revolution, largely because the Royal Navy appeared so dominant. The rebels didn't realize, writes Daughan, former director of the Air Force Academy's MA program in international affairs, that their strength lay in their humble whaleboats. This is evident in the author's blow-by-blow re-creation of such early sea skirmishes as the overtaking of the British Margaretta by rebels off the coast of Machias, Maine, on May 24, 1775, a battle that James Fenimore Cooper later called "the Lexington of the sea." The Continental Congress could not adequately direct naval strategy, while the heroic efforts of patriot seamen like John Paul Jones, John Barry, Lambert Wickes and Nicholas Biddle were squandered on insignificant missions. The French alliance helped turn the tide, but what remained of the Continental Navy played little part in the momentous victories, and the new republic was too broke to fund a navy. Goaded by high-seas piracy and impressments and seizure by the English, Congress eventually passed the Naval Act of 1794, which authorized the construction of a half-dozen frigates-"a pathetically small force," notes Daughan. President Adams was determined to bolster defense measures, but his successor was unwilling to expend public funds for defense; Jefferson preferred to use the power of commerce as a foreign-relations weapon. The issues of impressments and trade grew increasingly contentious between America and Britain,culminating in the declaration of war by President Madison in 1812. The author demonstrates how American privateers effected some surprising victories, contributing to the growing consensus that the navy was indeed critical to the nation's defense. Not just a rigorous, steady-going chronological history, but also a cogent analysis of the genesis of a defense strategy. Agent: Rob McQuilkin/Lippincott Massie McQuilkin
Introduction 11 Whaleboats and Men-of-War 52 Launching the Continental Navy 283 Battles in Charleston, New York, and New Jersey 664 Saratoga and Philadelphia 1275 The French Alliance 1606 Denouement 2007 A New Republic 2408 Washington and the Federal Navy 2679 John Adams Builds a Navy 30110 The Quasi-War with France 32511 The Navy Under Jefferson 34612 Peaceful Coercion 37613 War Clouds 39614 The Navy Surprises 41115 The Navy Established 448Acknowledgments 475Glossary 477Source Notes 481Bibliography 505Index 523
