Book Reviews

Colin Brooker. The Shell Builders: Tab- preservation consultant, has provided by Architecture of Beaufort, South Car- it. Brooker explores tabby from every olina, and the Sea Islands. Columbia, conceivable angle, including its chem- SC: University of South Carolina Press, istry, antecedents, variants, history, www.sc.edu/uscpress, 2020. 320 pp., and literature, and writes with winning illustrations, notes, bibliography, index. ease. His research is impeccable, and US $39.99, paper; ISBN 978-1-64336- his knowledge of the material profound. 072-0. He has seemingly investigated every surviving remnant of the stuff, from Coastal concrete, or tabby, as they call it an old foundation repurposed under a in the Carolina and Georgia Lowcoun- Daufuskie Island lighthouse to a crum- try. No history-minded traveler there bling chimney base situated by a Hil- can miss it—that delightfully practical ton Head baseball diamond. But even concoction of lime, sand, and oyster more interesting than Brooker’s archi- shell that was used to erect brooding tectural knowledge, is his cast of char- river forts, plantation big houses, slave acters—“landowners … sea captains, dwellings, barns, sugar mills, cisterns, pirates, merchants and speculators, rice gates, seawalls, and box tombs. politicians, governors, an occasional Tabby was fashioned from the ocean’s clergyman, one or two signers of the bounty and spread largely by means Declaration of Independence, several of naval power. Surviving examples, heiresses … and women widowed with backgrounded by spreading marsh, fortunes large enough to fuel ambitions placid estuaries, and moss-hung live of suitors and new husbands alike.” (9) oaks eloquently conjure up a culture Who knew that such a modest com- tuned to its distinctive environment. pound could thread through the lives of A good book about tabby has long so many intriguing protagonists? been overdue, and now Colin Brooker, Brooker begins with an overview of a British architect and engineer with tabby’s old-world antecedents. These decades of experience as an historic include examples along the North Af-

The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord, XXX, No. 3 (Fall 2020), 301-338 302 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord rican littoral where mixtures of lime, est towns in the United States. Outly- earth, gravel, and rock were employed ing plantations did not always fare so in buildings, walls, gates, aqueducts, well. After their owners abandoned and fortifications. From there, crafts- them, looting and decay were often men took the technique into southern their fate. The use of tabby declined Spain, whence it eventually spread into during the late nineteenth century when the Caribbean and southeastern margins efficient railroad connections facilitat- of North America. There are accounts ed rapid delivery of building materials of tabby as early as 1493 in Santo Do- from commercial hubs. It is, there- mingo, where Christopher Columbus’s fore, fortunate that so many examples house was made of it. A century later it still survive, especially in Beaufort, but appeared at Spanish Santa Elena (now Brooker worries about ongoing threats Parris Island, S.C.), and St. Augustine, to isolated remnants, including rampant Florida. By the eighteenth century coastal development and “irresponsible it was ubiquitous in the Sea Islands, zoning.” (14) where deep shell deposits provided The Shell Builders will primarily handy quarries. In 1766, the naturalist be of interest to architectural historians, William Bartram wrote that “ye people but maritime historians, and scholars comes and rakes up what they please more generally, should also take note, brings them in a boat heaves them on given that tabby is, in Brooker’s apt shore to dry after which they burn them phrase, “a quintessential product of the to lime.” (50) If the shells were not Atlantic world.” washed before burning they produced a hideous smell that offended neighbours John S. Sledge and proved inferior for construction. Fairhope, Alabama The generally accepted formula for good tabby was three parts clean shell, Margaret Conrad. At the Ocean’s Edge: three parts lime, and three parts sand, A History of Nova Scotia to Confeder- but wise builders adjusted the sand to ation. Toronto: University of Toronto match the quality of their lime. Press, www.utorontopress.com, 2020. Once they had a good supply of 456 pp. illustrations, maps, tables, in- tabby, workmen poured it into pegged dex. CDN $29.96, paper ISBN 978-1- wooden box forms, typically many feet 4875-2395-4. (E-book available.) long and one- to two-feet high. After each pour dried, the form was broken Lying as it does, in the author’s words, apart and reset atop for the next pour. “a great lobster stuck off the northeast- Skilled artisans could raise a wall ern coast of North America,” Nova quickly, and they also excelled at mak- Scotia is the most maritime of Can- ing tabby floors, roofs, and just about ada’s Maritime Provinces, prevented any other construction element required from being an island by only a narrow or the human mind could conceive. isthmus. The title of this new history, Beaufort, S.C., established by roy- the first scholarly treatment in several al charter in 1711, preserves a delight- generations, references the relationship ful collection of tabby buildings, and the area has with the sea and the reader Brooker details them carefully. Beau- with a nautical bent might expect the ti- fort was occupied by Union forces early tle to set a major theme for the work. It in the Civil War but, happily, was not is with a slight disappointment that we burned, and is today one of the pretti- find that the author, although standing Book Reviews 303 at the ocean’s edge, does so with a view downplayed economic and social activ- facing the shore and with only the occa- ities and emphasised politics in the lives sional glance back towards the sea. and contributions of those selected for Nevertheless, this is an impressive entries. The work of the shipbuilders and long-needed volume. A general and merchants, and fishers and sailors history must draw on the research work who created and maintained a maritime of other scholars as well as the special- economy is often ignored in preference ization and interests of the author, and to their political involvements. the scope of this volume, testified to by At the Ocean’s Edge attempts to sit- the range of sources cited in the notes, uate the region in an expansion of Eu- shows how much examination and rope with the attendant damages from thought the region has supported for the settler colonialism and impacts on the last thirty years. In many respects, At environment (335), yet there is rela- the Ocean’s Edge can serve as a read- tively little discussion on the latter, es- er’s guide to Nova Scotia historiogra- pecially as regards the nautical aspects. phy. In addition to dozens of articles in The land-based perspective results in journals such as Acadiensis, the Cana- the sea being generally treated as a bar- dian Historical Association Journal and rier, with Northumberland Strait, Cabot the Journal of the Royal Nova Scotia Strait, the Bay of Fundy, and the Gulf of Historical Society, the volume makes Maine separating Nova Scotia from the extensive and effective use of the Dic- rest of the area, instead of being an eas- tionary of Canadian Biography and an ily negotiated communications corridor extremely large number of monographs for trade, commerce, people and ideas and thesis from the full range of aca- within the region and connecting it to demic research. If the nautical side of the world beyond. Nova Scotia’s story has been slighted, As the volume progresses, there the problem lies more on the dearth of seems to be a reduction in the treatment relevant scholarship in the field than on of the marine aspects of the history. the book’s author. While several nauti- From recognition that in the sixteenth cal themes and events receive coverage, century the value of the area’s cod fish- there is no overall sense of the role of ery “eclipsed all other economic activi- the sea in Nova Scotia’s history. That ties in the Americas.” (41) The narrative being said, Dr. Conrad does draw on concludes with greatly reduced refer- a broad range of the available nautical ence to the role maritime issues played sources including, but certainly not lim- in the psyche of the colony. There is ited to, the important work of the sever- reference to Louisbourg as a major port al scholars associated with the Maritime in the early 1700s exceeded in ship vis- History Group at Memorial University, its only be Boston, New York, and Phil- Greg Marquis’ study of the maritime adelphia. (105) The establishment and role in the American Civil War, Julian growth of Halifax is positioned as a mil- Gwyn’s analysis of the colonial econo- itary consequence of empire with trade my and Faye Kert’s treatment of priva- as a secondary consideration. Although teering in the early nineteenth century. the author does recognize that “greater The reliance on the Dictionary of Cana- Nova Scotia” could be an important re- dian Biography for information about gional approach, once New Brunswick prominent individuals exposes the ex- and Prince Edward Island are carved tent to which the entries in that series out of the territory, there is relatively have, until the more recent volumes, little discussion of how the colony, and 304 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord especially Halifax, still operated as the Press, www.usnwc.edu/press, 2018. financial, industrial, commercial and v+197 pp., illustrations, acronyms, ta- cultural leader for the region. bles, notes. US $37.50, paper; ISBN Where this volume really differs 978-1-9353552-46-4. from earlier general histories is the ex- tent to which the activities and role of I must admit that when I volunteered formerly unrecognized groups and indi- to review this book I had no idea of its viduals is recognized. Before there was contents, but thought if the Naval War a Nova Scotia, there was Mi’kmai, and College Press had produced it then it Conrad, rather than starting the story “Can’t be too bad.” When the book with European settlement opens with arrived “down under” I discovered the First Peoples, unlike some earlier it was the history of African-Ameri- histories which ignored the original in- cans, both male and female, who had habitants after the arrival of the French been commissioned as United States and English. She treats them, and oth- Navy officers, between 1944 and 1988, er later minority populations as a full and subsequently reached star rank; part of the human story on a continu- Rear-Admiral Lower Half (or Com- ing basis. This is an area where the re- modores in Commonwealth navies) cent scholarship of writers such as John through to full (four-star) Admirals. Reid, Stephen Davis and Ruth Holmes While the book, on the surface, Whitehead comes to the fore. It is a might appear to be simply a collection testament to Conrad’s writing skill that of short biographies of these men and this inclusion is not an intrusion or an women, the true insight (and its value) add-on but an integral and essential ele- is that it is a history of how segregation ment in the story. At the Ocean’s Edge in the US Navy was gradually but per- is a very human story with individuals manently removed; and that the ability being allowed to tell their own stories— to rise to the highest ranks in the service not simply the stories of the great and was opened to all. It was not an easy the good, but also the lesser saints and path but those described in the book scoundrels, of which there are a good were more than equal to the task. number, especially in the early Europe- In early 1942 Black men, then de- an settlement period. scribed as Negros, could serve in the Originally planned as a history of US Navy but only as cooks or mess- Nova Scotia to the present, the volume men. In April 1942 the rules were re- leaves the post-Confederation story to laxed to allow men to enlist in other another historian. That person will face specialisations and by early 1944, the an immense challenge matching the first African-American naval officers quality of documentation, analysis, and were commissioned. Their service was writing that Margaret Conrad exhibits not easy and then-Lieutenant Samuel in At the Ocean’s Edge. Gravely, who later rose to the rank of Vice Admiral, recalls being arrested in H.T. Holman Miami, Florida, “for impersonating an Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island officer.” There are several constant themes Lt. Cmdr. Robert Crosby, USN. Inspir- throughout the various biographies ing Innovation. The John A. van Beuren which point to why the three women Studies in Leadership and Ethics. No. 1. (and female officers had it even hard- Newport, RI: U.S. Naval War College er than their male counterparts) and 57 Book Reviews 305 men are detailed in this book. The first later became a four-star Admiral, stood theme is family—all had family who his ground against none other than Ad- encouraged them to work hard and do miral Hyman Rickover when trying to their best. Some came from single-par- enter the nuclear power program. Rick- ent families or were raised by grandpar- over told the midshipman he needed to ents or uncles, aunts or grand-parents. improve his class standing, at the US Most came from backgrounds of pov- Naval Academy, by 20 positions in or- erty, growing up on farms or in cities der to be considered and required him where their parents were blue-collar to sign a document accepting this offer. workers or lowly paid office staff. But The midshipman refused, since while he all of them had strong family support could work hard, so would the others in and encouragement. his class, and while his grades might go The second theme is education. All up, so would others’ and there was no were encouraged (pushed at times) by guarantee he could jump 20 positions. family and various mentors (teachers, At first Rickover refused to accept this, scout leaders, sporting coaches and the but the midshipman stood his ground like) to finish school and where possi- and was accepted into the program. ble, go on to higher education. Many The final theme is mentoring with- entered the Navy via the Reserve Offi- in the US Navy. Many of the Afri- cer Training Corps (ROTC) that existed can-American officers rose to high rank in many American universities. Fewer because their mainly white superiors than half were commissioned via the saw that they had the ‘right stuff’ and US Naval Academy. were prepared to support them and as- Thirdly, all had the dogged deter- sist their career. Or as one Black officer mination to succeed and knew that as put it, he was lucky to serve under offi- they were a minority (making up only cers who were “ladder builders” (help- 13% of the US population) that some ing others to advance through the ranks) in the Navy would find any excuse to rather than “ladder climbers” and only remove them from training courses, or interested in furthering their own ca- the Navy, or refuse to obey their orders. reers. One officer recalled, however, that the The biographies also follow the his- Navy saw rank first and race as unim- tory of de-segregation in the US Navy portant when one of his sailors refused but it was a long and, at times, difficult to follow the orders of a “N……r.” journey. One female officer recalled The then-young ensign took the that even in the late 1980s sailors would sailor to the ship’s executive officer cross the road in order to not salute her where the sailor again refused to carry and that at one mess social occasion, out any orders issued by a Black offi- when she was in civilian clothing; she cer. This was then immediately ele- was mistaken for one the wait staff! vated to the commanding officer who I am highly recommending this held “Captain’s Mast” on the spot and book. Readers will need to look be- the sailor again refused to carry out any yond what might appear to some to just orders issued by an African-American be a collection of 60 biographies of US officer; the sailor was discharged from Naval officers during war and peace the Navy three days later. Regardless of and observe how integration actually race, any challenges to good order and worked in the US Navy. There may be discipline would not be tolerated. other agencies in the US (and Australia Another young Black officer, who for that matter) that could learn from 306 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord the US Navy on how to better integrate Russia, France and Italy. This soon led all genders and races to ensure “good to slow-speed races and cross-Channel order and discipline is maintained.” competition. By 1870, thanks to an interest in the surge of railways there, Greg Swinden Viscount Bury went to Canada and Canberra, Australia met with Thomas Edison to discuss the concept of electric trains to solve the Kevin Desmond. Electric Boats and problem of steam engine emissions in Ships. A History. Jefferson, NC: Mc- tunnels. On his return Bury founded a Farlane & Co. Inc. www.mcfarlane- company to make electric engines suit- pub.com, 2017. vii+273 pp., illustra- able for boats. In the U.S., it wasn’t un- tions, appendices, table of builders, til 1888 that electric batteries in motor notes, bibliography, index. U.S. $39.95, boats began to appear, with a few man- paper; ISBN 978-1- 4766-6515-3. ufacturers experimenting with electric (E-book available.) accumulator-powered small craft. The first two chapters chronicle The author of this comprehensive book all this development up to 1914, some concerning electric motive power on successful, others less so, illustrating the water was in a library researching its progress with multiple drawings a history of motor-boating. The librari- and photographs, sometimes referred an asked if this included electric boats? to as the ‘Golden age of electric boat- Mr. Desmond agreed it should, so was ing.’ The major problem with making given a slim file of mostly old newspa- the concept a wider commercial success per clippings and ads. From that mea- was the weight and complexity of larger gre beginning came this thoroughly batteries, their relatively modest electri- researched description of the slow de- cal output, and the constant requirement velopment of boats and ships powered, for recharging, at home or en route. But at least in part, by various versions of some trials, a few of which are still in electric motors. Today, the industry use, were surprising: in Germany, and is still very much a work in progress, briefly along New York’s Erie Canal, due at least in part to the current grow- barges carrying produce, coal and oth- ing demand for the use of more ‘green er items powered by electricity drawn energy.’ In fact, Desmond’s last six from overhead trolly wires like street- chapters are devoted to the most re- cars, supplemented in open areas by rel- cent developments, and incentives such atively brief endurance batteries proved as 2016 Paris Climate Agreement, at both practical and economical. The whose goals we are supposedly aiming. author gives multiple examples of local As he recounts, the history of elec- electric motor ferries across rivers and tric motors began in the 1830s with ex- canals, where recharging was readily periments, mostly in Europe, with elec- available and speed not a criterion. Un- tro-magnets, moving on to the concepts til about the 1950s, the electric power of the ‘accumulator’ or storage battery at sea industry puttered along relatively by 1848, the ‘Grove cell.’ Soon a few, unappreciated. usually well-to-do, supporters adopted The development of efficient and the idea for small and quiet launches for more powerful gasoline inboard and their enjoyment, for local transport and outboard motors and their easy and for the demonstration of possibilities, wide availability tended to discourage not only in the U.K., but particularly in serious attention to larger electric mo- Book Reviews 307 tive power for those middle years. Nev- This work represents the first English ertheless, the original requirement for translation of Imperial Russian Rear small but quiet and smooth craft kept Admiral Sergei Nikolaevich Timirev’s the demand and experimentation going memoir regarding his service through- in the outskirts of the transportation in- out the First World War and Russian dustry. Solar energy appeared and the Revolution. Completed by Timirev in first solar-powered engine was on trial 1922 while serving as a ship captain in 1976 in England, followed by grow- in Shanghai, this account offers a rare ing interest in Japan, Germany and the firsthand account of the Imperial Rus- U.S. Recently, in the 2000s, fuel cells sian Baltic fleet at both the ground and have appeared as a source. The abili- command level during key points in ty to generate significant electric-drive Russian History. Given the diaspo- power has led to wider experimenta- ra of loyal White Russian forces after tion, plus the use of such low-cost pow- the Revolution and subsequent purges, er to supplement fuel-driven motors primary sources regarding the early even in larger ocean ships, where fuel naval actions of the First World War costs have become a measure of prof- through the upheaval of Revolution itability, have encouraged an increase from a non-Bolshevik perspective were in experimentation and demand. This essentially non-existent for decades is traced carefully in the middle chap- until the Russian-language publication ters. Countries like the Netherlands and of Timirev’s text in 1961. Doubtlessly Switzerland have entered the field. important, this work remained largely For anyone interested in this specif- unavailable to scholars who lacked the ic motive power on water, or in further ability to read it in its original Russian. research in this field, Desmond’s care- Translator Stephen Ellis’s magnificent ful inclusion throughout of the names efforts have solved this dilemma, bring- of companies in the business, the inven- ing Timirev’s words forth in an excel- tors and developers, the list and loca- lent translation, complete with helpful tions of surely all firms working in the endnotes, appendices, and a translator’s field even now, the multiple options for commentary. electric power application, will prove a The work begins with a collection great resource. This general and care- of introductory elements, such as Ellis’ ful overview of this engine power in sea translation preface, the original Russian craft will be at the least a highly valu- language publication’s 1961 biography able reference guide. of Timirev, three personal photographs, and a map of the Baltic area. Timirev’s Fraser McKee memoir is then put on display as he Toronto, Ontario wrote it, with bulleted key point sum- maries at the start of each chapter for Stephen Ellis, translator. The Russian quick reference and the translator’s his- Baltic Fleet in the Time of War and torical notations done as endnotes. As Revolution 1914-1918: The Recollec- a whole, the work is divided into two tions of Admiral S. N. Timirev. Barns- parts—before and after the February ley, South Yorks: Seaforth Publishing, 1917 Revolution. The first section’s www.seaforthpublishing.com, 2020. seven chapters cover Timirev’s expe- 238 pp., illustrations, maps, tables, riences from 10 July 1914 through the appendices, notes, index. UK £25.00, end of February 1917. His firsthand ac- cloth; ISBN 978-1-5267-7702-7. counts of the clumsy and chaotic nature 308 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord of the Baltic Fleet, the personalities of been done” (101). The further indoctri- staff officers and unit commanders, the nation of younger enlisted men by Bol- decisive nature of Admiral Essen in the shevik ‘universities’ is shown to sow early days, and the spike of Germano- distrust amongst once-close crews, with phobia which cost several good officers fear of counter-revolutionary claims re- their positions, all provide excellent in- placing camaraderie. This paranoia and sight into the early war situation faced dissention would aid the Germans in by the Russian Forces. Timirev’s as- their successful seizure of the base at signment to a naval staff position oc- Riga and in the Battle of Moon Sound, curred at a key point in history, allow- forcing the Baltic Fleet back as the Bol- ing him to give accounts of operational sheviks carried out their coup. Timi- planning, the purchasing of former Rus- rev’s decision to be discharged rather sian ships from Japan, and the struggles than serve under the new Bolshevik in the aftermath of the death of Admiral regime is understandable, with the fi- Essen. Likewise, his transfer to com- nal insult of being denied a well-earned mand of the cruiser Baian in mid-1916 pension softened slightly by his story of placed him on the front lines of the war, the Baian’s committee nervously grant- experiencing air raids, mining opera- ing his request to keep the flag from tions, and the rumblings of change as his promotion to Cruiser Brigade Com- Admiral Nepenin took control of the mander. In spite of the collapse of all fleet and became “drunk with pow- he had known, Timirev clearly still had er” (72). Timirev was coincidently on pride in his beloved and “very proper leave in Petrograd at the end of Febru- ship” (168). ary 1917, which also gave him the Bal- The end matter of the work is a com- tic Fleet’s first eyewitness view of the bination of additional primary materials collapse of protest into Revolution. His and commentary by Ellis, consisting of decision to cut his leave short to report the translation of a report on the Janu- back to command just as the tinderbox ary 1915 grounding of the cruiser Riur- was lit proved a fateful respite. ik, three obituaries for Admiral Timirev, The second half of the memoir car- a 25-page translator’s commentary, and ries us from 28 February 1917—the end notes. Ellis’ commentary section in start of the Revolution— through Timi- itself is impressive, detailing not only rev’s 15 January 1918 notification of his translation choices, but Baltic geog- discharge without pension by the Bol- raphy, Imperial Russian naval structure, shevik government. This in itself is a ranks, and officer backgrounds. The fascinating section, detailing the slow scandalous affair between Timirev’s disintegration of the Baltic Fleet from wife with his friend Admiral Kolchak rear echelon bases up to the front-line concludes the section, documenting its vessels from the view of an officer pow- ‘representation’ in modern nationalis- erless to stop it. The execution of Ne- tic productions compared to the reality penin and other officers, the rise of the of the situation. The post-war fates of committees, and visits from key figures Timirev, his wife, and son are included, such as Alexander Kerensky and Pavel adding an underlying level of personal Lebedev in the early days of 1917 are background information to an already all well documented, with Timirev stat- striking war memoir. ing that within two months of February In terms of possible improvements, 28, “everything necessary to destroy the very few come to mind. Given Timi- fighting capacity of the fleet had already rev’s references to both his own vessel Book Reviews 309 and others, an appendix with scaled pro- Evan Mawdsley describes the na- files or images of said ships would help val strategies of the US, Japan, and the with visualization. A similar appendix UK in the run up to war in 1941. This with photographs and brief information analysis starts back in the 1920s and on some of the key people and places concludes that all three powers had con- Timirev discusses would also be appre- fused strategies. It is a masterful paper ciated. Finally, Ellis has an excellent that puts many controversial decisions collection of rank conversion tables in into context, such as the deployment the end matter, whose relocation to the of US bombers and submarines to the front matter might aid in quicker refer- Philippines only weeks before hostil- encing. These are relatively minor sug- ities, the despatch of Prince of Wales gestions, however, and their absence is and Repulse to Singapore, and the Jap- in no way detrimental to the work. anese decision to attack Pearl Harbor. Stephen Ellis’ translation of The Two other chapters focus on the start Russian Baltic Fleet in the Time of War of the war in the Pacific. Rear Admiral and Revolution is an excellent addition Goldrick writes about how, between the to the historiography of the Imperial wars, the RN saw submarines as a key Russian Navy during the twilight of its element in its plans to meet a possible existence. Timirev’s unique career pri- attack on Hong Kong and Malaya by or to the First World War and position- Japan. They were to help delay the ene- ing throughout both the war and col- my during what was termed the “Period lapse into Bolshevism offers a ground before Relief” while the “Main Fleet” level view of the Baltic Fleet interwo- made its way out from the UK. The pa- ven alongside encounters with multiple per describes the various classes of sub- key figures. Ellis’ analytical endnotes marine that operated as part of the RN’s further bolster the usefulness of Timi- China Fleet, and the sort of training rev’s text, creating what is doubtlessly undertaken. These interwar plans were a key resource for scholars of the Baltic never tested, however, because the Chi- Fleet and naval aspects of the Russian na Station submarines were withdrawn Revolution. to the Mediterranean in mid- 1940. (Al- though not mentioned, two RN subma- Charles Ross Patterson II rines were sent from the Mediterranean Yorktown, Virginia in December 1941; they arrived in area in January 1942, but one was damaged Marcus Faulkner and Alessio Patalano by bombing within days and the other (eds). The Sea and the Second World one did not operate with success). Gol- War: Maritime Aspects of a Global Con- drick speculates that “The submarines flict. Lexington, KY: University Press of the Fourth Flotilla might not have of Kentucky, www.kentuckypress.com, been able to stop a seaborne invasion by 2019. 326 pp., tables index. US $50.00, the Japanese, but they would not have cloth; ISBN 978-1-9496-6804-9. allowed it to be a bloodless one,” (23) while conceding that the performance The authors of the ten papers in this of the US and Dutch submarines actual- collection are experts in their subject ly present was” disappointing.” areas. Two have been associated with The chapter by American academ- universities in Australia, and four each ic and former naval officer, Dr. Alan with British and American universities. Zimm, is a careful analysis of the attack Their topics are indeed diverse. on Pearl Harbor in terms of actual effec- 310 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord tiveness of weapons and systems versus defence of Malaya and the Netherlands their potential. He is interested in why East Indies. (Australian destroyers in new technology may not improve per- the Mediterranean are cited fleetingly.) formance and uses Pearl Harbor as a The treatment of South Africa is largely case study. The author describes sever- keyed to the strategic importance of the al aspects of the attack, from command Cape Route to Britain while the Medi- and control of a multi-carrier force and terranean was closed to shipping. The a strike force of aircraft to the low ef- paper describes deficiencies in ship re- fectiveness of Japanese bombs, and the pair capability in South Africa. The role high effectiveness of their level bomb of South African naval and air forces in aiming techniques contrasted with defending shipping is covered in gener- problems created for dive bombers by al terms, but there is no clear picture of low clouds. Finally, the Japanese had the command and control structure and underestimated the effectiveness of of how many RN escorts worked out of anti-torpedo underwater protection in Simon’s Town. American battleships. This is a detailed Canada’s part in providing naval description attack wave by attack wave and maritime forces and in shipbuilding that dissects not only weapon and tac- is given considerable emphasis. The tical performance but inadequate Jap- author makes the important point that anese radio communications. Zimm mariners and marine industry expertise briefly mentions how Japanese bombers from Britain played key roles in the war and dive bombers overwhelmed Allied efforts of all the Dominions. Telling- ships in the following months but does ly, in November 1943 some 40% of the not compare performance in of terms navigating and engineering officers in bombs used, attack formations, etc. Canada’s mushrooming merchant fleet with the Pearl Harbor attack. were from the UK. (90) In “The Dominions and British Iain Johnston-White summarises Maritime Power in the Second World Canadian contributions in the Battle of War,” Dr. Iain Johnston-White explores the Atlantic but several of his assertions how the Dominion navies contributed are based on careless generalizations. to the overall British war effort. This is For example, concerning the first six a complex topic; the coverage of mer- months of 1942 we read “ …set against chant shipping is reliable but his treat- the areas under RN control [Canadian ment of naval aspects lacks depth. Af- forces]… fared very badly; U-boats ter describing how British plans for war operating west of Newfoundland near were based on “naval dominance” the Canadian ports, as well as under Cana- author’s focus becomes the role of ship- dian air cover, took a toll of shipping ping and its defence. The treatment of well above that in the eastern Atlantic.” the several dominions, therefore, nar- (95) Losses were indeed serious, but rowly reflects their role in trade protec- the situation was analogous to the first tion. But the war at sea was more than U-boat “Happy Time” to the west of the the defence of shipping. While the au- British Isles between July and October thor covers the importance of shipping 1940. In both cases, U-boats were able in maintaining imports to Australia to make individual attacks on individ- and New Zealand, he fails to mention ual targets because too many merchant the operations of Australian cruisers ships were being permitted to steam in the Mediterranean and Middle East independently instead of in convoy. In from1939 to mid-1941, and then in the January 1942, U-boats had surged into Book Reviews 311 the western Atlantic in numbers for the the Second World War. Personalities first time, with only a handful left oper- and Administration” is based on ex- ating in the western approaches to the tensive research and mastery of his UK. The first wolf pack attack did not subject. This is an analysis of how occur in mid-Atlantic until May. The the organization of Combined Oper- U-boats off Newfoundland and Nova ations Headquarters evolved from a Scotia were able to find targets for two shoestring body under Lord Keyes reasons: first because the Admiralty had to a multifaceted body under Com- been dispersing westbound convoys modore Mountbatten starting in July south of Newfoundland, and in addi- 1941, when Mountbatten “brought it tion, several convoys were scattered by up to date by about two decades” in heavy weather as late as March. The his first six months. (144) The role of standard routing was changed to Halifax “Combined Operations” reflects what and then, later in the year, to New York. in today’s jargon is “Joint Operations”. Secondly, the Admiralty had routed too How the British Admiralty has evolved many merchant ships independently over the centuries is Hamilton’s field of and some became targets. The RCN expertise. He describes the inevitable promptly instituted coastal convoys. friction between Combined Operations Virtually all of the RCN’s available es- Headquarters and the Admiralty whose corts were committed to defending the officers saw Mountbatten’s organiza- transatlantic trade convoys along with tion as encroaching on their responsi- Britain’s and a diminishing number of bilities. Over time, Combined Ops HQ American escorts. Ninety-one convoys influenced how certain sections of the with a total of 2,712 merchant ships Admiralty were structured; the Admi- (an average of 452 per month) passed ralty also regained control of parts of through the northwest Atlantic between Combined Ops such as ships assigned January and June with no losses. to it. This all sounds dry and arcane, Professor G.H. Bennett examines but Hamilton writes crisply with a sharp the role of Schnellboote (motor torpedo eye for personalities and does not ne- boats roughly 35m long) in the German glect their influence on developments. defence of occupied Europe. His par- This paper is a rewarding read. ticular focus is the D-Day landings. He Up until 1942 the corporate experi- argues that Schnellboote achieved more ence of the Australian Army along with than has been reflected in historiog- that of the RAN and RAAF had been raphy. He advances a counterfactual gained in fighting in the Middle East case that had the Germans reordered and Malaya. They now became im- their priorities between U-boat and portant participants in General Douglas Schnellboot construction, and in gen- MacArthur’s South West Pacific Com- eral focused on coastal defence in the mand and were faced with the unfamil- face of the anticipated Allied amphib- iar new challenges of amphibious war- ious assault landings, they could have fare to dislodge entrenched Japanese been able to inflict “sufficient casualties forces. Australian academic Professor to give the German Army a chance of Peter Dean contributes a chapter on victory at the water’s s edge and behind how Australia established a training in- the invasion beaches.” (133) frastructure and drew on Combined Op- Charles Ian Hamilton’s “The De- erations developed by the British and velopment of Combined Operations the US Marine Corps and US Navy. He Headquarters and the Admiralty during then describes Australian amphibious 312 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord assaults on Lae in 1943 and Balikpapan background this paper requires careful in 1945. attention. Dr. Donald Mitchener writes about “Naval Power, Mao Zedong, and naval gunfire support for the attack the War in China” by Professor Francis on the island of Iwo Jima in Febru- Grice, a US academic, is about how ary-March 1945 which the Americans naval forces, mostly from outside pow- wanted to occupy for its airfields, being ers, influenced developments in China only 600 miles from Japan. The sub- during the rise of the Chinese Party and title of his paper is “the Perils of Doc- into its early years in power. The au- trinal Myopia”. Mitchener shows that thor underlines that Mao Zedong did that the US Marine leadership, which not understand the role that naval power demanded 10 days of preliminary naval had played. It’s interesting that 40-plus gunfire bombardment based on experi- years after his death, Mao’s successors ence in earlier amphibious assaults, was have made China a major naval power. myopic in not adequately anticipating Professor George Monahan trac- its limitations against the in-depth de- es the impetus for a single authority fence being prepared by the Japanese, over the US armed services through and in concentring the bulk of the bom- the lens of Secretary of War Colo- bardment against the beaches. The nel Henry Stimson’s wartime role and American naval leadership, determined postwar writings in “Antisubmarine to use battleships and cruisers to defend Aviation and the Military Unification carrier groups striking Japan, insisted Debate”. For 18 months between ear- on only three days of bombardment. ly 1942 and mid-1943 the US Army The Japanese commanding general, re- Air Force (USAAF) operated several signed to losing the island in the face squadrons of bombers configured for of overwhelming American resources, anti-submarine warfare. Until July was determined to inflict maximum ca- 1942 the entire American production sualties but was myopic in changing his of large, land-based aircraft was going dispositions to move pillboxes closer to to the USAAF because of a ruling by the beaches where they were promptly Congress in 1920 that the Army should overrun. Michener’s paper is a detailed control land-based aircraft, and the Na- discussion of successive steps in the vy-based (including amphibious) avia- planning process and includes four doc- tion. The USAAF squadrons allocated umentary appendices. While it sketch- for maritime defence were placed under es in available intelligence and the Jap- US Navy operational control in March anese preparations, it concentrates on 1942 as German submarines faced little exchanges of documents among the US opposition while sinking large numbers authorities and who said what when, of ships off the US eastern seaboard. rather than describing the actual bom- Although these squadrons gradually bardment and grinding capture (oddly, bult up expertise in ASW and received not even mentioning the number of ca- better radar equipment, there were on- sualties) and cites several after-action going disagreements between the two analyses. The Iwo Jima campaign obvi- services about doctrine and employ- ously had several controversial aspects. ment of these specialized squadrons. Those familiar with the background Two titanic figures of the Roosevelt will readily understand the significance administration, Secretary Henry Stim- of points being made by Mitchener, but son and Admiral Ernie King became for readers unfamiliar with the general dogged protagonists. The bureaucratic Book Reviews 313 struggle over land-based ASW aircraft Michael E. A. Ford. Hunting the Last dragged on because there was no clear Great Pirate. Benito de Soto and the higher authority to resolve the issues. Rape of the Morning Star. Barnsley, Eventually, the Army ceded its ASW S. Yorks: Pen & Sword History, www. aircraft to the US Navy. pen-and-sword.co.uk, 2020. vi+234 The protracted wrangling became pp., illustrations, notes, bibliography, just one example of poor management index. UK £25.00, US $39.95, cloth; of resources that convinced officials ISBN 987-1-52676-9830-5. that national defence need a single department head. A House of Repre- In 1828, the English merchant vessel sentatives committee started hearings Morning Star, en route from Ceylon on changes to the national defence or- (now Sri Lanka) to the United King- ganization in 1944; subsequently after dom, when it was attacked by the pirate further hearings and in-fighting, both Benito De Soto and his crew on board houses of the US Congress passed an the Burla Negra, a former slave vessel act in 1947 creating the US Air Force that had been taken over by mutineers. out of the USAAF and placing all three After the pirates boarded, they as- armed services under a single Secre- saulted and tortured the crew and pas- tary of Defense. Monahan argues that sengers. After looting the vessel, they it was the counterproductive effects of abandoned it with its hull pierced, in- service parochialism and the pitfalls tended to sink it. The captain and the of divided leadership during wartime mate of the Morning Star were executed as much as strategic unease early in by a shot in the head. Despite the bad the Cold War that lay behind the mil- condition the ship was in, the survivors itary unification debates. He tells this of the ordeal managed to save the ship story in a vigorous manner and incudes from sinking. A month later she sailed George McBundy’s words in On Active into the English port of Deal. Service in Peace and War (1948 which A few days after the attack on the he co-authored with Stimson) about Morning Star, the pirates attacked the Henry Stimson’s view of “….the pe- American merchant ship Topaz. After culiar psychology of the Navy Depart- seizing the ship and its cargo, De Soto ment which frequently seemed to retire had the vessel set on fire with the crew from the realm of logic into a dim re- on board. In 1830 De Soto was tried, ligious world in which Neptune was found guilty, and executed for his ac- God, Mahan his prophet, and the Unit- tions. A simple pirate’s tale you might ed States Navy the only true Church. say, but there is more to it. The high priests of this Church were a The Morning Star was Quak- group of men to whom Stimson always er-owned and hired to carry sick and referred as ‘the admirals.’ These gentle- wounded British army casualties from men were to him both anonymous and Ceylon (Sri Lanka). In accordance with continuous”. (285) strict Quaker custom, Morning Star The Sea and the Second World War was not permitted to carry munitions is a collection of thought- provoking or weapons of any kind. The people on papers about disparate maritime aspects board had no means of defending them- of the Second World War. Recom- selves in case the vessel came under mended. attack. As a hospital ship, she was to be es- Jan Drent corted by either a Royal Navy vessel or Victoria, British Columbia 314 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord an armed ship from the East India Com- a treasure was found. It contained rich- pany. Off St. Helena, it appeared to be es stolen from the Morning Star and the latter, but soon after departure, the Topaz. Morning Star was left to fend for her- The author tells a beautiful sto- self. ry about an ugly event. Sometimes Unknown to most of those on close to over-dramatizing the events, board, the ship carried a precious car- Ford carries the reader along step-by- go. It was the treasure of the Kingdom step. The accounts related to political, of Kandy; the sale would alleviate the commercial and judicial matters are as British government’s financial troubles, gripping as the story of Benito de Soto now headed by the Duke of Wellington, himself. victor of the battle at Waterloo. This page-turner is more than a In England, news about the fate of story of piracy on the high seas. It is a the Morning Star led to political uproar time capsule containing both the good and critical attention from the media. and the bad of the era. Personal greed What did the government intend to do and failures, both inside and outside es- about the piracy on the high seas? Why tablished structures and political mach- wasn’t there a naval squadron in the inations beyond belief, led to great loss South Atlantic? Questions were raised of lives. In the cesspit of diplomacy, about the role of the British East India yellow press, corruption, commerce, Company. Shipping companies and the cover-up, organised crime and religion, public demanded action from the gov- where the underworld meets society, De ernment. Soto almost got away with his crimes. Call it Divine intervention: Benito With Hunting the Last Great Pirate de Soto’s ship was wrecked on a beach Michael Ford has laid down the perfect in the south of Spain near the port of foundation for a movie; a great story. Cadiz. Local police arrested the crew and soon it became clear that they were Jacob Bart Hak the pirates who had attacked Morning Leiden, The Netherlands Star. After a trial, most of them were found guilty, sentenced to death and Peter Fretwell. Antarctic Atlas. New strung up. De Soto, however, managed Maps and Graphics that Tell the Story to escape to British Gibraltar. He was of a Continent. London, UK: Particu- able to hide there for a while, until he lar Books, www.penguinrandomhouse. was recognized and arrested. In his co.uk, 2020. 208 pp., illustrations, possession were items that had been maps, glossary, bibliography, index. stolen from the Morning Star and the UK £22.75, cloth; ISBN 978-1846- American vessel Topaz, the ship that De 14933-7. Soto had torched. After a trial that left something to Most atlases include very few maps be desired, Benito de Soto was found of Antarctica and often represent the guilty and hanged in 1830. Interest- whole continent with a single circum- ingly, there were no witnesses from the polar physical map. Sometimes there is Morning Star who could identify him. the narrow strip at the very bottom of a It was almost a century later before De world map that, due to the limitations of Soto’s guilt could actually be estab- map projection, does not usually show lished. In 1926, in Galicia in the north the South Pole. Without any doubt, of Spain where De Soto had grown up, Antarctica is the least covered continent Book Reviews 315 within the vast majority of atlases. of Antarctica, and the concentration of Peter Fretwell’s new Antarctic At- Antarctic tourism in a few small areas. las breaks this tradition by dealing ex- This is the real strength of the book— clusively with the seventh continent and telling these and other important stories providing an abundance of topical maps without using a single word. Of course, that tell the story of the icy continent in there are explanatory text sections, but a new and refreshing way. Even for the Fretwell lets the maps do most of the few specialists familiar with the topog- talking. Other maps illustrating moun- raphy of Antarctica, whose view of that tain ranges easily rivaling the Alps, or continent is as strong as their knowl- canyons longer than the Grand Canyon, edge of the rest of the globe, Fretwell’s handily demonstrate that Antarctica is a new atlas will provide a wide variety of continent of superlatives. The images new insights. It offers a better under- teach without ever becoming ‘school- standing of the continent, its physical masterly’ lectures. characteristics, its biological features, The subtitle of the atlas reads: “New and most important for the historian, maps and graphics that tell the story of past and present human activities south a continent” and without a doubt, the of the Antarctic convergence. book delivers on this promise. When In recent years, a wide variety of teaching my students how to write books on various aspects of Antarctic book reviews, I often recommend in- history and human activities on the con- cluding at least one critical point about tinent have been published. While most the book, but I must admit that such published works contained a few maps a flaw is hard to find. Of course, the providing some basic information, a maritime historian in me would have comprehensive collection of such maps hoped for a more complete coverage of remained a desideratum. Fretwell has the maritime history of Antarctica and now closed this gap with an atlas that the Southern Ocean, but when looking is a comprehensive collection of charts at the map of the journeys individu- accompanied by short, crisp and con- al seals took around Antarctica these cise explanatory texts for each subject. thoughts are immediately replaced by Unlike many cartographers of the the humble feelings most Antarcticians polar regions, such as the famous nine- get when thinking about the amazing teenth-century German cartographer nature of the continent and that humans August Petermann, who never actually (fortunately) have had so little influence visited the polar regions themselves, on the continent. Finally, the maps re- Fretwell has been to Antarctica sever- lating to the political history and sit- al times. The maps in his atlas do not uation of Antarctica make the reader only provide a precise representation of hopeful that humans have finally found the physical features of the continent, ways to deal with a continent that was but also tell the story of what matters a white spot on most charts only little most to those familiar with Antarcti- more than a hundred years ago with- ca. As one might expect, distribution out resorting to war and the concept of maps of the various species of Antarc- traditional boundaries and nation-state tic penguins and marine mammals are based sovereignty. Each turn of the delivered in convincing quality and car- page provides access to a new feature of tographic design. But he also presents Antarctica; some familiar, some totally maps relating to the various effects of new and unexpected. This knowledge climate change, the building history reflects one of the most important char- 316 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord acteristics of Antarctica— regardless of Nicholas Frykman. The Bloody Flag: how often you have been lucky enough Mutiny in the Age of Revolution. Oak- to visit the southernmost continent, you land, CA: University of California will always discover something new Press, www.ucpress.edu, 2020. 285 pp., and important; something you never maps, illustrations, notes, bibliography, thought about while living in the higher index. US $32.95, cloth; ISBN 978-0- latitudes. Most readers will never have 520-35547-7. seen such an abundance of southern circumpolar maps before, let alone the Nicholas Frykman’s The Bloody Flag: many stories they contain. It will make Mutiny in the Age of Atlantic Revo- you think not only about Antarctica, but lution is an ambitious study of naval more importantly, how this remote, icy mutiny in the Age of Revolution. Ac- wilderness is directly or indirectly con- cording to Frykman, the red flag or the nected with the other six continents and bloody flag that historians associated the oceans in between. with revolution originated as a symbol With a retail price of only UK of naval mutiny in the era of the French £22.75, Fretwell’s book is without any Revolution. Although mariners tradi- doubt a bargain, particularly given that tionally used the red flag to declare their comparable atlases with such a number intentions to stop work or to fight, this of high-quality maps regularly come symbol acquired new meaning in era of with price tags in the three-digit range. republican ideology and collective ac- I recommend Fretwell’s Antarctic Atlas tion. to everyone, even those only remotely Unlike earlier scholars who studied interested in Antarctica and its history. naval mutiny within a national context, For the serious Antarctic historian, it is Frykman, employs an Atlantic approach a long-expected compendium that will to the subject starting at Camperdown, serve as a reference whenever it comes moving to Revolutionary France, the to the spatial dimension of Antarctica. Caribbean and ultimately to England. For the casually interested reader, it According to Frykman, “While con- works as a great coffee-table book and flicts in each navy followed their own conversation starter, while the Antarctic trajectory, in the latter half of the 1790s greenhorn it will find it a quick way to overlapping waves of revolt flowed to- clarify the unfamiliar geography. Even gether into a single revolutionary surge, the armchair traveler who is planning a genuinely Atlantic in both origin and future real trip to the frozen continent Scope.” (10) The French, Dutch and will appreciate this atlas as welcome British navies experienced 150 single travel guide. Having reviewed a good ship mutinies and half a dozen fleet mu- number of books on Antarctica and its tinies which lasted a few days to several history, and recommended them to one months involving 3,000 to 40,000 men. or another group of potential readers, I Navies maintained discipline through have to say that this is the first book I regimen of harsh punishments, includ- would recommend without the slightest ing floggings, keelhauling and hang- hesitation to any reader, even one only ings. Objection to such cruelty and the remotely interested in Antarctica. It shipboard social hierarchy that main- needs to be part of any library having a tained it began with an insurrection in section on the frozen continent. the Toulon dockyard on 1 December 1789 and spread to the French Fleet. Ingo Heidbrink Although the French ship of the Norfolk, Virginia Book Reviews 317 Line, Leopard, left port before the up- wages and opportunities for promotion rising, it sailed to the French part of in the merchant service. The mutineers Santo Domingue, a colony divided be- who engaged in the Spithead Mutiny re- tween the petits blancs, small farmers, alized their demands could not be met overseers, and artisans and the blancs by disabling a single ship, so they pre- blancs, plantation owners. Once revo- sented their grievances to a council of lutionary ideas infiltrated the Leopard’s delegates that met on board the Queen crew, they responded by renaming their Charlotte. Despite achieving several of ship, electing an assembly, and refusing their objectives at Spithead including to intervene in Santo Domingue’s af- higher wages and the removal of 50 of- fairs unless the colony’s assembly was fensive officers, mariners continued to attacked. To avoid losing control of object to the harsh conditions of naval the Leopard, Captain de Gallissonnière service. returned to France. France’s National Mutineers at the Nore Anchorage Assembly responded by issuing a new hoped to join the Spithead Mutiny be- Code Penal de Marine that replaced fore it ended. Although they demanded court martial with jury trials and strict wage increases, payment of bounties, regulations on the degree of punishment and a more equal distribution of prize a man could receive. The code distin- money, their most radical demand con- guished between disciplinary punish- cerned liberty or shore leave. The Nore ments for minor offenses and afflictive Mutineers believed King John granted punishments which resulted in death or the right to shore leave in the Magna galley service. Despite the creation of Carta and the Royal Navy had contin- a new Code Penal de Marine, mutinies uously violated that right since 1215. continued in the French Navy. During the mutiny, each ship was ruled As the Wars of the French Revolu- by a series of committees subordinate tion and Napoleon spread eastward to to a general committee which led nego- the Dutch Republic, republican ideas tiations. spread to the Dutch fleet. When Na- When the red flag appeared at Nore poleon created the Batavian Republic, it symbolized more than just a quest to crews of the Stadholder’s fleet decid- restore lost rights. Flying the red flag ed to sign new ships articles under the took on new meaning as a symbol of new government. Despite instituting a regicide, class warfare and social re- new penal code and replacing offensive newal, forcing the Royal Navy to drop naval officers, the crew of the Jason it from their signal book. “By embrac- rebelled and carried their ship to Gree- ing the red flag as their symbol, the mu- nock, Scotland. When the French fleet tineers at the Nore signaled their under- landed the Black Guard at Fishguard, standing that they were now engaged Wales, the British government went in a conflict between two sides with off the gold standard to prevent a run fundamentally opposing interests, and on the banks. According to Frykman, that a resolution to this conflict could the anxiety created by these events in- only come by superior force.” (163) stigated the great mutiny at Spithead. Once the British Army surrounded the As conflict with France progressed, ships at Nore, sickness spread through mariners found the issue of impress- the fleet and the Committee of Dele- ment increasingly contentious. Mari- gate’s authority collapsed. When the ners forced into naval service for years red flag passed from mutiny to mutiny became more and frustrated with lost it acquired new meaning as a symbol 318 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord of republicanism and collective action men, and other scholarly works on the and eventually emerged as the emblem subject. He also consulted and included of communist revolution at Kiel, Kro- Admiralty records, museum exhibition nstadt, and Sevastopol. accounts, as well as various patents and As Frykman takes his reader on speeches. The images he includes are a whirlwind ride across the Atlantic very appropriate, adding clarification Ocean during the Era of Revolution, and visual examples, while not taking he weaves a compelling narrative that away from his narrative. draws on material cultural, ideology The book is organized chronologi- and mariner’s biographies. Although cally and moves between events occur- numerous studies of the Era of Revolu- ring on Progress’s whaling voyages, in tion abound, Frykman’s book employs New Bedford, Chicago, and the way- a novel methodology that connects this points en route to Chicago on its titular age with the Communist Revolution. “last voyage”. Each chapter focuses on a slightly different location, group of Edward Martin people, and aspect of the overall story, Manchester, Maine but they all set the stage for the pen- ultimate chapter. The author does an Daniel Gifford. The Last Voyage of the excellent job of building the life story Whaling Bark Progress. New Bedford, and importance of Progress in its hey- Chicago and the Twilight of an Industry. day, as well as detailing the events that Jefferson, NC: McFarland Publishing, transpired leading up to its destruction. www.mcfarlandpub.com, 2020. x+194 Carefully building upon the character pp., illustrations, notes, bibliography, of every individual tied to the historic index. US $45.00, paper; ISBN 978-1- whaling bark, Gifford’s account has no 4766-8215-0. (E-book available.) heroes or villains, but certainly high- lights the differences in the approaches Daniel Gifford’s The Last Voyage of the to the ship and its history. Whaling Bark Progress, New Bedford, Gifford’s is one of those desirable Chicago and the Twilight of an Industry, authors who expertly combine academ- focuses on roughly fifty years’ worth of ic information and study with a style events surrounding the titular vessel. of writing that is inviting and compat- From construction to destruction, the ible with a reader of any background or story of Progress is truly remarkable education level. He expresses notions as it ventured to the Antarctic to hunt about the whaling industry, the history whales and was later featured at the of Progress itself, and the events sur- 1893 World’s Fair. Gifford’s narrative rounding the exhibition at the World’s includes the perspectives of the whale- Fair in a way that is easy to follow, un- men who were employed on Progress, derstand, and appreciate. the businessmen and politicians who In some ways, Gifford’s book could saw the value in Progress’s exhibition nearly be seen as a “what not to do with at the World’s Fair, the tabloids along historic items” though the attempt to the route that took the ship from New make Progress an interactive floating Bedford to Chicago, and the descendant museum was the first of its kind and, community of the whaling industry. certainly, there were lessons learned. Gifford’s information was primar- The last chapters highlight the discon- ily gathered from various newspaper nect between the reality of history and articles, personal accounts from whale- the entertainment value for which some Book Reviews 319 stories and museums strive. It is made civilian auxiliaries to the Navy, whose clear that publicity and fascination are duty it was to carry supplies vital to the not the same as education and value, ei- war effort, and whose significant sacri- ther monetarily or culturally. fices to the war effort often receive scant It is quite possible that without recognition. With Merchant Marine Daniel Gifford’s ancestral tie to and Survivors of World War II: Oral His- vested interest in the history and legacy tories of Cargo Carrying Under Fire, of Progress, this story might never have Michael Gillen, former merchant mar- been told. Be it a cautionary tale for iner and professor of Asian History at historians, archaeologists, and curators, Pace University in New York, focuses or a tale of one of the last survivors of on those sacrifices through a collection a bygone era and the complications that of twenty oral histories from Merchant surrounded the last attempt at showcas- Marine veterans. ing its glory, Gifford’s book is an excel- Nearly thirty-five years in the writ- lent addition to any personal or profes- ing, the book began when Gillen was sional library. serving as the director of the preserva- tion efforts on the Liberty Ship SS John Olivia L. T. Fuller W. Brown. He was motivated to begin College Station, Texas interviewing veterans of the Merchant Marine who had served in the Second Michael Gillen. Merchant Marine Sur- World War. Because all of the oral his- vivors of World War II: Oral Histories tories that he presents in the book were of Cargo Carrying Under Fire. Jeffer- collected between 1978 and 1987, all of son, NC: McFarland Publishing, www. his subjects unfortunately died before mcfarlandbooks.com, 2020. xi+213 their stories were published. pp., illustrations, appendices, notes, The central focus of these stories, bibliography, index. US $29.95, paper; as hinted at in the title of the book, is ISBN 978-0-7864-9467-5. (E-book not just the men’s war service but their available.) survival, often in the face of extreme- ly trying circumstances. While Gillen When the naval history of the Second initially intended that all of his subjects World War is considered, even when it should have survived the torpedoing of is granted the sole position of consider- at least one ship on which they served ation within a work, it is almost exclu- during the war, he came to conclude sively discussed in terms of the overtly “that all who served, whether torpedoed militaristic aspects of that history. Pri- or not, contributed vitally and ‘paid with marily, this takes the form of consider- some of their own’ in multiple ways … ations of the various fleet movements that could, from the trauma of it, endure and engagements, particularly where for years.” (4) Gillen diligently pre- they related to the air and land wars. In pares an introductory paragraph about this way, those who were engaged in the each interviewee’s career prior to their war, on waters spanning the globe, are particular story, as well as a conclud- largely considered to be members of the ing paragraph summarizing their career armed uniform services with infrequent after those events. Beyond those con- consideration of the civilian aspects tributions, he has been very careful to of the war. Infrequently considered in allow the voices of his subjects to main- studies of the Second World War are the tain their often rough, occasionally co- men of the U.S. Merchant Marine, the lourful, authenticity. 320 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord This authenticity is in many ways the spotlight on the role of the mer- one of the most valuable aspects of the chant marine in the Second World War. book, creating an emotional connected- As these men were not granted veteran ness that hooks the casual reader, while status until 1988, it can be hoped that also providing the kind of information Merchant Marine Survivors of World that scholars find so tantalizing. These War II will promote more research into gripping accounts cover the globe, rep- their contributions and grant the mer- resenting experiences of merchant sail- chant mariners their rightful place in ors who were in Manila as it fell, who the history of that war well before the had to hurriedly evacuate sinking ships centennial of their service. in nearly every major body of water, who aided in the invasion of Okinawa, Michael Toth and even those who were captured by Fort Worth, Texas German naval auxiliary units. Those with an interest in the Second World Brett Goodin. From Captives to Con- War in the Arctic, will certainly appre- suls: Three Sailors in Barbary and Their ciate three different accounts from sur- Self-Making Across the Early American vivors of the ill-fated PQ-17 convoy, as Republic, 1770-1840. Baltimore, MD: well as outsider descriptions of wartime Johns Hopkins University Press, www. life in Archangel and Murmansk, Rus- press.jhu.edu, 2020. xii+201 pp., illus- sia. Although not an exhaustive collec- trations, notes, index, bibliography. US tion of accounts, the book highlights $49.95, paper; ISBN 978-1-42143-897- the enormous contributions made by 9. members of the U.S. Merchant Marine in the Second World War. In From Captives to Consuls, Brett Gillen deserves a large amount of Goodin has written a scholarly, collec- praise for his skill as an interviewer, tive biography that explores the lives particularly given the numerous de- of three Americans who shared two cades that had passed before he record- characteristics: all were mariners in ed his subjects’ accounts. In reading the early republic, and all were held these memoirs there is little sense of the as slaves in the Maghreb, the Barbary length time that has passed, or of major world of North Africa. Goodin, a post- holes in the narrative. This leads inter- doctoral fellow at New York Univer- ested readers to a better understanding sity, Shanghai, has amassed impres- of the various subjects’ experiences and sive details about the lives of Richard provides researches with a greater lev- O’Brien (1758-1824), James Leander el of evidence. As a former merchant Cathcart (1767-1843), and James Riley mariner himself, Gillen is deeply famil- (1777-1840) from all sorts of hither- iar with the terminology and enjoys a to unknown sources. Using concepts level of credibility that is a major part of “Othering” and Orientalism, Goo- of the book’s success—from which we din tries to demonstrate that these men all benefit. The downside to the long drew on their Barbary experiences to time that it took for this project to reach influence the non-elite American “Vil- fruition it is that any research interest it lage Enlightenment” understanding of generates in the U.S. Merchant Marine the Islamic world. But Goodin goes in the period will be blunted by the in- far beyond their captivity experiences. evitable deaths of those veterans. On Through the three not- quite-parallel the other hand, the book finally turns lives of these men, Gooding illustrates Book Reviews 321 what it meant to be a “self-made man” William Wilberforce, the great English in early-nineteenth-century America, a abolitionist, for help with their ransom. phrase, he notes, was coined by Henry Upon their return to America, Pres- Clay in 1832. Goodin attempts to illu- ident John Adams sought to take ad- minate the emergent United States of vantage of the recently freed captives’ the period by focusing on these three knowledge of the Barbary world by lives, to comment on American na- appointing O’Brien as consul to Al- tion-building and evolving concepts of giers and Cathcart as consul to Tripo- liberty, masculinity, and nationhood in li. In Algiers, O’Brien and Cathcart the early republic through the Jackso- had been friends, but in returning to nian era. the Mediterranean with his new, teen- O’Brien was born in Maine to Irish aged wife, Cathcart apparently tried to immigrant parents. His early life is seduce his wife’s maid, who promptly obscure, but he likely served as a cap- fled to O’Brien, who married her after tain in the Pennsylvania and/or Virginia a whirlwind courtship. Cathcart took State Navies during the American Rev- this embarrassment as an affront. He olutionary War. After the war, he was never forgave O’Brien, tried to under- a merchant shipmaster before Barbary mine him, and dealt with him only on “pirates” captured his ship, the Dau- official business; for his part, O’Brien phin out of Philadelphia, in July 1785. often did not deign to respond. Cath- While in captivity, eight of O’Brien’s cart left Tripoli after the bashaw de- letters were published in American clared war against the United States in newspapers. May 1801. After being declared per- Scots-Irish by birth, Cathcart came sona non grata in Tripoli, Tunis, and to America as a child, likely served on an Algiers, Cathcart spent more than a American privateer or Continental Navy decade in consular posts in the Madei- warship before he reached his teenaged ra Islands and in Cadiz, before return- years, but when he was captured, he ing to America. Although he badgered reasserted his British identity to avoid presidents for positions, he received a imprisonment (Goodin unkindly says short-term appointment as a navy agent Cathcart “defected,” and elsewhere re- to survey wood in Louisiana, and then fers to his “negotiable loyalties”), and received a minor, stultifying post in the as the price for a pardon, served brief- Treasury Department for the last two ly in the Royal Navy. Postwar, with a decades of his life. Although he never revived American commerce and a re- made it to the West, he encouraged his vived American allegiance, he returned children to go, and a Cathcart enclave to the sea, but Barbary pirates captured was established in LaPorte, Indiana. his ship, the Maria from Boston. Both The highlight of his career was certain- O’Brien and Cathcart were slaves in ly in Tripoli. Cathcart wrote detailed Algiers, from 1785 to 1796. Through and colourful letters, both official and his wits, luck, and networking, Cath- private, about his posting in Tripoli and cart rose to become the chief Christian his diplomacy with the bashaw, many clerk to the dey. Goodin’s research has of which were published in American uncovered some important new infor- newspapers. More than a half-centu- mation, including that Cathcart, who ry after he died, a daughter published in Algiers temporarily reasserted his two books containing his early letters, British origins, petitioned King George The Captives: Eleven Years a Prisoner III for assistance, and that he wrote to in Algiers (1899), and then Tripoli[:] 322 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord First War With the United States[:] time frontier” as young men, and later, [The] Letter Book [of] James Leander as archetypal self-making Americans Cathcart, First Consul to Tripoli and of their time, they turned to the West- Last Letters from Tunis (1901). ern frontier for new opportunities. But In 1803, O’Brien was superseded in none of the three fit neatly into that Algiers, and although Goodin does not theme. After a few years in northwest mention it, O’Brien stayed in the Medi- Ohio, Riley went back to sea; after some terranean to try to assist in negotiations years in Philadelphia, O’Brien settled to ransom the 300 American sailors on a farm in Carlisle, which was hardly held captive in Tripoli, after the frigate the “West” when he moved there, and Philadelphia ran aground. Like Cath- Cathcart was a contentious job seeker cart, as a consul, O’Brien wrote letters and office holder, who stayed in Wash- about the Barbary world that American ington. newspapers published. When he left the Another Goodin theme postulates Mediterranean, O’Brien moved to Phil- on the effect of the writings of these adelphia and served a single term in the men on popular American understand- Pennsylvania legislature, then settled ing of the Barbary world, and perhaps, on a farm outside of Carlisle, Pennsyl- of the wider Islamic world. With the vania, where he died in near obscurity. many editions of his Authentic Narra- Riley’s life did not intersect with tive, and readership in the thousands, Cathcart’s or O’Brien’s. Riley was Riley certainly had influence, even, it too young for Revolutionary War ser- is said, on Abraham Lincoln. But be- vice, and apparently avoided the War fore Cathcart’s letters were published in of 1812. With the return of peace, books at the turn of the twentieth cen- he commanded a merchant ship, the tury, some of his and O’Brien’s letters Commerce, which ran aground on the from Barbary were published in news- West African coast. Riley spent three papers when they arrived in America. months as a slave, traversing the Sahara Cathcart and O’Brien may well have as a captive to nomadic tribesmen until framed a distinct Orientalism, as Goo- being ransomed by the British consul. din proposes, but it is unclear how wide Riley wrote Authentic Narrative of the an audience, and how much influence, Loss of the American Brig Commerce they enjoyed with the non-elite Village about his experiences, a work that went Enlightenment, based on the short half- through many editions. According to life of letters in newspapers. Goodin, unlike Cathcart and O’Brien, From Captives to Consuls is a valu- Riley was dispassionate about his cap- able book. Unfortunately, some factu- tivity, indeed he saw the humanity of al errors have crept into the narrative. his captors, and helped break down an For example: during the 1798-1800 Orientalist or Othering stereotype about Quasi War, the French did not capture Muslim people. Goodin approaches Ri- 1,800-2,300 American merchant ships; ley primarily as a literary figure, tracing Richard Henry Lee was a Virginian, the impact and focus of the various edi- not a Pennsylvanian; the frigate George tions of his work. Interestingly, at age Washington was neither “brand new” 51, Riley went back to sea, and spent nor “the pride of the young U.S. Navy” the rest of his life as a shipmaster and (she was a converted merchant ship) entrepreneur, dying in the Caribbean. and when Captain William Bainbridge One of Goodin’s broad themes is moored her under Algiers’ gun batter- that these three men went to the “mari- ies, it was not any failure of O’Brien’s Book Reviews 323 diplomacy but rather Bainbridge’s ex- cambridge.org, 2019. xxiv+375 pp., il- traordinary gaffe (which Goodin men- lustrations, maps, tables, notes, bibliog- tions only as an afterthought) that al- raphy, appendices, indices. US $120.00, lowed the dey to humiliate the United cloth: ISBN 978-1-108-47539-6. States by using the George Washington as a transport for his tribute of exot- Professor Harlaftis, the preeminent ic animals and slaves to the Sultan in historian of modern Greek shipping, Constantinople. Goodin makes other has produced an ambitious compara- questionable interpretations, such as tive study of the most successful Greek asserting that Cathcart’s personal diplo- shipping family of the nineteenth centu- macy with the bashaw, and his efforts ry, the Vigliano brothers, and of Aristo- to engage in private trade, “eroded hope tle Onassis, the most famous shipowner in a lasting peace,” as opposed to the of the post-1945 era. Onassis was a ce- Barbary regime’s rapacity for tribute lebrity before he married the widow of payments; suggesting that Jefferson an American president, while the three welcomed war with Tripoli in 1801 as Vigliano brothers were major players a way to put the United States on a par in opening the Russian Black Sea grain with Britain and France; or claiming trade to world markets. Creating Glob- that Jefferson and Secretary of State al Shipping argues that these four Greek James Madison had little foreknowl- shipowners were in large part responsi- edge about using Ahmet Karamanli, the ble for the development of modern bulk deposed brother of the Bashaw of Trip- shipping as a multinational business. oli, to attempt “regime change,” when The author draws on a vast range of ar- in fact they knew all about those plans. chival sources from Imperial Russian In From Captives to Consuls, Goo- court records, the Vigliano Brothers’ din has discovered interesting and pre- accounts in the Bank of England and viously unknown biographical infor- the Aristotle Onassis papers held by his mation about Richard O’Brien, James private foundation in Greece. Harlaftis Leander Cathcart, and James Riley. He appears to be the first scholar to have demonstrates how they perceived and had access to the Onassis records. Thus reacted to the Barbary world as slaves buttressed, she makes her argument and as diplomats, and how they por- forcefully but there are qualifications to trayed that world to Americans. On this thesis that are not discussed. their return to America, each tried to The book is divided into two rough- network themselves into economic bet- ly equal parts, with an introductory terment and higher stations. Using their chapter and a conclusion. Chapters two lives as an interpretive vehicle, Goodin through five analyse the careers of the makes provocative and insightful points three Vigliano brothers, Marino (1804- about the early republic. 1896), Panagi (1814-1902), and Andrea (1827-1887). Aristotle Onassis’ busi- Frederick C. Leiner ness activities are the subject of chap- Baltimore, Maryland ters six through nine. All three Vigliano brothers began as Gelina Harlaftis. Creating Global Ship- ship’s captains with the eldest, Marino ping: Aristotle Onassis, the Vigliano (Mari), commanding a small coasting Brothers, and the Business of Ship- vessel in the Sea of Azov in the early ping, c.1820-1970. Cambridge, UK: 1820s. After he established himself as Cambridge University Press, www. a successful grain trader and shipown- 324 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord er at the port of Taganrog, his younger contacts with London Greek, and Nor- siblings followed him into the family wegian shipowners. He further expand- business. The establishment of a Lon- ed his knowledge and his network by don office by Panagi in the 1850s was a ordering his first new vessels, a series strategic masterstroke that allowed the of tankers from a Swedish shipyard. In Vigliano brothers to expand geograph- 1939 he began moving his vessels to ically and to transform their business the Panamanian registry. Thus, before into an integrated shipping empire. moving to New York in 1942, Onassis They now offered vessel and cargo bro- had already established himself as an kerage services as well as financial ser- ambitious young shipowner. His first vices to their clients while at the same big break came post-war when he was time expanding into steamships. able to finance the purchase of ten Lib- The Vigliano network’s success erty ships handled through the National helped to create problems of its own. City Bank (NCB). Secondly, he intro- In December 1881, Mari was among duced a level of opaqueness not seen a group of Taganrog merchants who before by flagging out the ships to the were arrested by the Russian authori- Honduran and Panamanian registries ties for smuggling, tax fraud, and forg- while they were owned by a Panama- ery. Eventually, after appeal, he was nian company whose stock was owned acquitted of all criminal charges and by another Panamanian company. This merely fined a rather insubstantial sum. type of ownership model became On- More importantly, the senior Vigliano assis’ preferred method of shipping in- escaped being exiled to Siberia. Har- vestment. Not only did it obscure the laftis puts the prosecution down to the beneficial ownership of each vessel, xenophobia of the new Tsar Alexander it protected his own personal liability. III. This, despite the fact that the expert The acquisition of T-2 tankers from the witnesses used by the government came U.S. government presented a thorni- from competing Black Sea ports which er problem because these ships were does hint at the possibility that intra-re- too strategically valuable to be sold gional rivalries may have been involved outright to foreigners. The solution ar- as well. ranged by a prominent Washington law Onassis began his adult life as a ref- firm and a helpful retired Congressman, ugee from the Greco-Turkish War flee- allowed Onassis to control five separate ing Smyrna for Athens in 1922. The U.S. companies which purchased twen- next year, after emigrating to Buenos ty-three vessels, (including fourteen Aires, he used his position as the lo- tankers), from the U.S. government. cal agent for his family’s Greek-based The financing was done through Wall tobacco business to begin to learn the Street banks and insurance companies. shipping business. Onassis purchased The author claims, quoting the CEO of his first two ships from the Canadian the NCB, that Onassis “invented” (244- government at Depression-era prices 245) the ship loan. While this may have in 1931. Following the well developed been true for the NCB, shipping loans strategy of older Greek shipowners, backed by mortgage bonds had been he continued to acquire second hand standard practice in the U.S. since be- tramps throughout the 1930s. fore the start of the twentieth century. While Onassis was developing his American banks had been financing shipping business during 1930s, he was foreign steamship companies for many also learning the ropes by developing years before Onassis arrived in New Book Reviews 325 York. Regardless of the parentage of that was extremely opaque to protect his financing, Onassis made spectacular himself and his investment. Secondly, profits from these purchases which led he helped broaden the financial base for him to begin ordering new tankers from shipping. Creating Global Shipping is American, European, British and Japa- a significant work that opens the door to nese yards. further research in the business history But being a prosperous foreigner in of shipping. the United States during the Cold War drew unwanted attention. In the highly M. Stephen Salmon charged atmosphere of the McCarthy Orleans, Ontario era, Onassis (and several of his fellow Greek shipowners) made the mistake of Erica Heinsen-Roach. Consuls and not appearing to be American citizens. Captives. Dutch-North African Diplo- Most of the shipowners were not, but macy in the Early Modern Mediter- their companies were. After an inves- ranean. Rochester, NY: University of tigation by the FBI, Onassis settled for Rochester Press, www.boydellusa.net, a face-saving fine and moved his oper- 2019. xiii+243 pp., illustrations, notes, ations to Monte Carlo. His ships were bibliography, index. US $125.00, UK now super tankers of ever larger size. £95.00, cloth; ISBN 978-1-58046-974- His fleet operated as part of a virtually 6. ( E-book available.) stateless network. The ownership struc- ture of his fleet was now more elaborate Consuls and Captives is part of a se- than earlier but with the same purpose, ries entitled ‘Changing Perspectives that of protecting each ship from the li- on Early Modern Europe’, and in this ability of its fleet mates while obscur- book Erica Heinsen-Roach analyses the ing the true ownership. Onassis, him- roles of Dutch consuls in Algiers, Tu- self, seemed to have no fixed abode but nis, and Salé during the early-modern spent much of his time on his yacht. period to make the argument that the Harlaftis has provided an insight- idea that Maghrib Corsairs did not re- ful analysis of the development of spect European law and diplomacy and ship owning from the 1820s through therefore, European nations could not to the end of the post-Second World make treaties with them is far too re- War boom. The key to success for ductive. This book rotates around three Greek shipowners was a combination related concepts. First, the roles of con- of family management tied to networks suls as opposed to ambassadors in Eu- of trust. The Vigliano brothers devel- ropean-Maghrib diplomacy. Second, oped trusted networks with a legion of the differences between the Dutch and shipowners, agents, bankers, and ship- Maghribi perceptions of these roles. builders based in the centre of world Third, how geopolitical changes over commerce, London. Panagi Vigliano the seventeenth century altered the first created the prototype for the Greek two. Consuls and Captives looks pri- London office which was followed marily at the roles of the Dutch consuls by a host of Greek shipowners in the in first Algiers and Tunis, and then Salé, twentieth century. The problem of suc- and their roles in releasing and ransom- cession, however, remained unsolved. ing Dutch sailors enslaved by corsairs. Onassis’ contributed to the evolution Discussions of other English, French of shipping management on two fronts. and even Danish and Swedish efforts First, he devised an ownership structure provide context when needed, but the 326 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord focus is very much on the Dutch. move. The very beginning of the book, The book is divided into four sec- and the final 90 pages or so (which tions. Part One, ‘Encountering Bar- comprise sections III and IV), contain bary”, focuses on 1596-22 and the the clearest writing. Most admirably, origins of the Dutch-North African re- Heinsen-Roach brings balance and con- lationships, as well as the diplomatic text when she backs off a bit, and paints relationship with Constantinople. The in the broader strokes about the larger second chapter provides basic informa- transformations that render the gener- tion on corsairs, and the enslavement of al, whiggish description of Dutch ear- individuals by both the corsairs and the ly-modern diplomacy irrelevant. For Dutch. The second part, “Transforma- example, in respect to Salé, she reveals tions” covers 1616-30 and the develop- that the original relationship was built ment of the consul’s role as a state rep- on a common enemy—Spain—which resentative rather than merely a trade didn’t apply after 1648. Likewise, representative, as well as the conflicting Heinsen-Roach smoothly introduces systems between the established prac- aspects of Islamic law and theology tices of ransoming, and Dutch efforts which made long-term, permanent trea- to legislate repatriation of captured sail- ties and frameworks impossible, what- ors through treaties. Part Three (“Con- ever the Dutch might have hoped for. frontations”, 1651-83) deals with the There is an excellent section describing conflicts that arose from Dutch frustra- the 1670s and discussing Sir John Nar- tion with the failures of their treaty ap- brough’s time in the Mediterranean and proach, and more importantly, how the England’s efforts at Tangiers. I really Dutch State’s constant struggle to avoid wish I had had this book when I was financial responsibility for ransoming completing my PhD as it would have sailors, affected the success of their provided some lovely context for my consuls, and why rivalries formed be- discussions of those missions and their tween Christian Dutch consuls sent by effect on the Royal Navy’s profession- Amsterdam and the other cities and lo- alization ca.1690-1710. cally-based Jewish merchants who act- Unfortunately, the writing in the ed as agents for both the Dutch and the middle section of this book is more mud- Maghribi. The final section “Norma- dled. In particular, having put the book tive Relations” (1679-1726) describes down, I found it difficult to get back how the Dutch seemed to finally grasp into the details and the argument due to the importance of tributes, and why the complex nature of the Consuls, and they had never been able to legislate the different conceptions of their roles. away the practice of ransoming sailors. There is also some confusion around a One cannot criticize the research number of the illustrations/images. For which is at the heart of this book; it example, the author includes images of was clearly sufficient for the author’s sabres (nimcha) “owned” by Cornelis doctorate. Her absolute mastery of the Tromp and Michiel de Ruyter, but does information shines like a beacon. Not not directly refer to them in the text. only does she use of the appropriate/lo- In fact, the book would not suffer if cal terms such as Maghrib throughout some of the images were removed and the text, but I also enjoyed her ability to replaced with tables, charts or graphs balance discussions of Algiers, Tunis, to provide visual comparisons of the and Salé, within the context of Con- number of Dutch sailors enslaved by stantinople, but with an important re- Corsairs over time, or the value and the Book Reviews 327 amounts of the gifts made to the gover- History Inspired by Shipwrecks. Mad- nors of Algiers, Tunis and Salé, or simi- ison, WI: Wisconsin Historical So- lar comparisons. The inclusion of maps ciety Press, www.wisconsinhistory. would help situate readers who are less org, 2019. 297 pp., illustrations, maps, familiar with the geography. A fuller notes, bibliography, index. US $29.95, explanation of the Dutch relationship paper; ISBN 978-0-87020-902-4. with the Hanse/Hansa cities would have clarified why the Dutch acted as their Great Lakes maritime history, as so agents during the period. Likewise, it much else that passes as popular mar- would have been helpful if the author itime history, is often told via a collec- had included some discussion around tion of shipwreck tales. Indeed, the the realities and duration of maritime reader will learn of a number of “dark (and naval) scheduling during this pe- and stormy nights” … and days, for riod. For example, the length of voy- that matter. But in this “maritime his- ages between the Netherlands and the tory inspired by shipwrecks,” Jensen Maghrib, the number of crew aboard approaches the wrecks as “the conse- merchant ships of various sizes (as quence and the convergence point of well as warships), the seasonal nature larger patterns of historical events, fac- of maritime warfare as undertaken by tors, processes, and social networks.” Northern European nations such as the (1) Consequently, this volume is partic- Netherlands and England, and similar ularly successful in presenting the read- details. er with the general historical patterns My ongoing complaint about mod- which the class of vessel under discus- ern academic books involves the use of sion illuminates, before diving into the endnotes rather than footnotes, thereby evidence presented by the archaeologi- reducing the likelihood that readers will cal work. bother to access some useful and inter- Jensen is at considerable pains to esting comments. Second, is the cost. situate this study with the historiograph- While $125 may not seem out of line ical paradigm of the Atlantic World, and with comparative books, it is still aw- Atlantic maritime culture. He begins fully expensive for those grad students by arguing that “During much of the and early career researchers who might nineteenth century, the maritime tech- not access to a review or library copy. nologies employed on the Great Lakes That would be a shame, because this differed little in essence from those of is a book that should be widely read, the other coastal regions of the United by maritime historians and diplomatic States and North Atlantic.” (15) The historians, IR specialists and anybody challenge is then to sustain that claim whose interests and research intersects against his own argument that the ear- with this topic. Erica Heinsen-Roach’s ly Great Lakes palace steamers were argument that the existing concepts largely homegrown designs through the of Maghribi diplomacy must be over- 1840s, that were superseded by inferior hauled is absolutely convincing. designs or construction practices im- ported from the Hudson River and Long Sam McLean Island Sound in the 1850s. (89, 91) I Toronto, Ontario suspect there is significantly more evi- dence of Long Island Sound inspiration John Odin Jensen. Stories from the in the steamboat designs through to the Wreckage: A Great Lakes Maritime 1840s than the author has considered, 328 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord which serves to underwrite his larger era. Rather Davidson built over 300- thesis. And the brief discussion of the foot wooden hulls, made possible by evidence from the 1871-built Cumber- iron and later steel cross-bracing, bands land (94) suggests that certain patterns and arches (183), and built to with- of hull framing persisted longer and stand repeated groundings, collisions, may reflect variations within the Great storms and ice. (223) So little is steel Lakes region. Navigation on Lake Su- construction respected here that Jen- perior can be a very different experi- sen proclaims “It was not technological ence than that of Lake Ontario, which obsolescence that finally closed the era makes nearly its only appearance in a of wooden shipbuilding on the Great passing reference to a study of the Ma- Lakes; it was simply the lack of build- ple Leaf. (94) ing material.” (259). Jensen may find While placing the study within the himself alone in this assertion, since, context of Atlantic maritime culture, by by the First World War, steel freight- the end of the volume and the end of the ers were appearing that were twice the nineteenth century, Jensen is beginning length, and as time would prove, fre- to argue for something more nuanced. quently had twice the operational lifes- “By the turn of the twentieth century, pan of Davidson’s best contenders. however, the Great Lakes had become a On another level, this volume is more distinctive maritime region, with even more regional than the Great unique technologies afloat and ashore Lakes. The shipwrecks that inspired …” (153). It was a place “… clearly the sub-title are all situated in the wa- recognized as a nationally and even in- ters of the state of Wisconsin, and have ternationally important and highly cre- been studied by underwater archaeolo- ative maritime region with a distinct At- gists working with the Wisconsin His- lantic frontier cultural heritage” (260). torical Society, including at one time, As such, Jensen laments its marginal- Jensen. Wisconsin can certainly take ization in American maritime history. pride of place among the jurisdictions It is striking that in making the lat- surrounding the Great Lakes for the ter argument, Jensen chooses not to in- care with which its shipwrecks have voke the dominance of the huge, steel been documented, both generally, and bulk carriers, which he characterizes the ones featured in this volume spe- as “industrially produced cargo-mov- cifically. Indeed, Tamara Thomsen’s ing machines,” and others have seen wonderful underwater images, largely as unique to the Lakes, beyond rooting drawn from the archives of the WHS, the emergence of the design in earlier enrich the volume from the front cover wooden-hulled bulk freighters. Instead, to the back. And the paper on which the final three chapters of this volume the volume has been produced serves to pursue the construction, operation and deliver these images well. The publish- eventual archaeological investigation ers (the Wisconsin Historical Society of a series of large wooden bulk car- Press) are to be commended on produc- riers and their schooner-rigged barge ing such a fine physical volume at a rea- consorts, especially those constructed sonable price. by their last, and most enthusiastic ad- No review would be complete, vocate, James Davidson. These were without a couple of caveats. For those not composite hulls, of which no men- not familiar with the coastal geography tion appears in the volume, although of Wisconsin, or the larger Great Lakes, a number were deployed in the same a modern map highlighting those places Book Reviews 329 would not have gone amiss. It might when the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) have prevented a reference to the Ni- suffered a massive defeat in the Battle agara, a “palace” steamboat whose of Midway, the IJN and the Imperial hull was too large for the Welland Ca- Japanese Army were unstoppable. In nal (and thus to navigate the lowest of Images of War. Japan Triumphant, Phil- the Great Lakes, Lake Ontario) having ip Jowett has compiled a very useful arrived at Ogdensburg (on the St. Law- work of little-known photographs ac- rence River) in late 1846. (65) The ut- companied by short, accurate explana- ter lack of imagination of ship owners tory narratives. has led to multiple vessels of the same Jowett’s book comprises an in- name operating in adjoining waters in troduction offering background to the the same years, and thus to the confu- 1941-45 Pacific War, followed by sion of those of us engaging in research fourteen chapters. Jowett rightly states via keyword searches. Beyond this, that Japan’s success in 1941-42 was the only editorial misstep this reviewer the end of a continuum of conflicts that noticed was to 400-foot-long shipping began with the 1894-95 Sino-Japanese containers (145). War, then the 1904-05 Russo-Japanese Stories from the Wreckage is much War, Japanese involvement in the First more than its title suggests. It is a se- World War, the 1931 Japanese Invasion rious effort to explore several dimen- of Manchuria, and the full war with sions of the maritime history of the China beginning in 1937. Great Lakes region, with a weather eye After that useful introduction, the to the larger Atlantic maritime context, book’s chapters are: Japan Prepares for and to bring together the scholarship of War, 1940-1; (sic) The British Empire the underwater archaeologist with the in the Far East Prepares, 1941; ‘De- historian. It is worthy of consideration fence on a Shoestring’—The Philip- by a readership well beyond the limits pines Army, 1935-41; ‘The Forgotten of the state of Wisconsin and the Great Army’—The Army of the Netherlands Lakes watershed. East Indies, 1941; The Japanese Em- pire Versus the USA—‘Japan Strikes, Walter Lewis 1941’; ‘For Reasons of Prestige’ —The Grafton, Ontario Fall of Hong Kong, 1941; The Malay- an Campaign, 1941-2; ‘The British Philip Jowett. Images of War. Japan Army’s Greatest Defeat’— The Fall of Triumphant. The Far East Campaign Singapore, 1942; Battle for the Philip- 1941-42. Rare Photographs from War- pines, 1941-2; The Burma Campaign, time Archives. Barnsley, S. Yorks: Pen December 1941-February 1942; The & Sword Military, ww.pen-and-sword. Burma Campaign, March-May 1942; co.uk, 2019. vii+184 pp., photographs. The War at Sea, December 1941-May UK £14.99, US $24.95, paper; ISBN 1942; The Conquest of the Netherlands 978-1-52673-435-8. East Indies, 1942; and Japan’s Spread- ing Tentacles, 1941-2. During the period 7 December 1941, Each chapter has a well-written when Imperial Japanese forces attacked introductory narrative of two to three American military installations at Pearl pages in length, which, while necessar- Harbor, Hawaii, and the Philippine Is- ily brief, contains much accurate infor- lands and the British colonies of Hong mation on its topic. Kong and Malaya, through 4 June 1942, The photographs and their accom- 330 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord panying captions are the heart of this student of the Pacific War and/or a good book. Only a very few of the photo- introduction to that war for the novice. graphs were familiar to this reviewer; It is recommended. the captions are relevant and well-writ- ten and enable the reader to learn much Robert L. Shoop from the accompanying photos. This Colorado Springs, Colorado reviewer found no errors in the captions worth mentioning. The photos give Joseph Kelly. Marooned. Jamestown, depth and meaning to the narrative and Shipwreck, and a New History of Amer- were taken from all sides in the Pacif- ica’s Origins. London, UK: Blooms- ic War—American, British, Dutch, and bury, www.bloomsbury.com, 2020. Japanese. The reproduction quality is Pp. etc. UK £10.99, paper; ISBN 978- excellent including many details; such 1-63286-778-0. (E-book available.) as propaganda posters and photos from obscure battles such as the invasion of The traditional founding story of Amer- the island of Guam. All these are valu- ica is the Pilgrims, those religious dis- able, connecting the reader with what senters who sought freedom in a new actually happened. land, befriended the Indians and started Besides the above comments, the Thanksgiving. Marooned challenges chapter subjects stand out. The book that tradition and posits that America’s covers topics not well-described in true founding story is Jamestown. It standard histories of the Pacific War. draws its title from a Spanish derived For example, the chapters on British word indicating those who run away, and American war preparation mention separate themselves from civilization to such locally-raised forces such as the become “savages”. The early history of Burma Defence Force, the Tongan De- Jamestown was a tug between the or- fence Force, and the Philippine Army. dered life of Europe with its standards Further, the chapters on the Hong Kong and laws and the life of the marooned, disaster and the Netherlands East In- uncivilized, unrestrained, free to estab- dies Army and conquest thereof are lish their own civilization. important; most histories of the Pacif- This saga begins with a reference ic War simply mention the defeat at to Shakespeare’s The Tempest, drawn Hong Kong and touch only briefly on loosely on the accounts of a 1609 ship- the Netherlands East Indies campaign. wreck that left Jamestown’s Third Sup- The chapter on the War at Sea has pho- ply Fleet “marooned” on Bermuda. It tographs of many ships—often written then traces the Jamestown story from about, not always pictured. its 1607 beginnings. The first settlers The only criticisms that can be left who London were contracted with made of this book are 1) that there could the Virginia Company, sponsors of the have been included a page of “Recom- colony. The were listed as “gentle- mendations for Further Reading,” not- men” (presumably with military back- ing at least some of the many works on grounds), councillors, labourers, brick- the Pacific War; and 2) perhaps some layers, carpenters, surgeons, “boys”, a way of stating the sources of the many mason, a fisherman, and a sailor (good photos could also have been included.. to have one on a Trans-Atlantic voyage) Still, this is a very useful book. It and divers others. With the distribution is not a comprehensive history of the of occupations, a successful enterprise first few months of the Pacific War, but was not a given, in fact the road was it was never intended to be such. It is, rocky. rather, a helpful reference book for the Book Reviews 331 Though this was England’s first at- figures and familiar customs, but often tempt at a New World settlement, the lacking the necessities of survival and English were no strangers to the “plan- the “woods”, that land beyond their cul- tation”. They had experience in “plant- ture, populated by “savages” who could ing” English and Scotch settlers in set- share their sustenance and admit desert- tlements in Ireland. The circumstances ers into their own communities which, were both comparable and divergent. at that time, seemed to have more of a The “planted” were similarly placed in future than Jamestown. Connections a foreign land among alien populations between the London theatre and the speaking foreign languages and follow- Virginia wilderness are noted. ing strange customs. Lines of commu- The theme I find to be most in- nication with Virginia were much lon- triguing is the concept of the Middle ger than those with Ireland, the climate Ground, the land where the settlers “go was warmer and the natives of a differ- native” and adopt practices suitable to ent complexion. As an Irish-American the location, thereby no longer being I was surprised by the suggestion that totally European, while the Indians be- settlers found the Indians “less terrify- come dependent on European goods, ing” then the Irish. At first, I thought it thereby no longer being wholly native should be regarded as an insult but, on or masters of their own domains. We further reflection, took it as a source of are introduced to Wahunsonacock, pride. chief of Tsenacomoco, a region almost Much of the tale is predictable: ill- twice the size of England’s largest ness, starvation, death, uneasy relations colony, containing numerous satellite with the Indians and unrest within the villages that paid him tribute. A large stockade. The fascinating develop- segment of this tome is devoted to the ment is the response of the surviving chess match between Wahunsonacock settlers to their new environments. In and John Smith in which food and tools both Jamestown and Bermuda, leaders were exchanged, spheres of influence emerged who guided their communities contested, pressure exerted and na- through their most turbulent challeng- tive loyalties blowing in the prevailing es. In Jamestown Captain John Smith, winds. We see Smith setting himself up he saved by Pocahontas, emerged and as a de facto “chief” commanding the ruled until deposed by men of the Third respect and exacting the tribute previ- Supply fleet. On Bermuda Governor Sir ously given to Wahunsonacock. Thomas Gates organized the castaways Author Joseph Kelly sets out to to survive and escape to Jamestown. challenge the Pilgrim “Shining City Several themes are woven into on the Hill’ as the myth of America’s this work. There are comparisons of origin with the Jamestown story that Spanish and English colonial practices. is situated along the rivers and more Readers are invited into political stud- mud-stained than shining. In making ies that examine shifting commitments his case he provides an introduction to and loyalties and the substitution of one the first southern English settlement in social contract for another as settlers are America in the early Seventeenth Cen- untethered from their home country and tury. At times I found it hard to follow are empowered to construct new agree- when it narrative strayed into unfamil- ments to fill the authority vacuum. Ex- iar realms. Although stretching from aminations are made of the relative at- English royal courts to Irish planta- tractions of the stockade, with authority tions to the Spanish Main to Jamestown 332 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord and Bermuda, Kelly does a nice job of form the last four chapters of this work. weaving the story lines into a mutual- It is profusely illustrated with well-cho- ly supporting unit. Although this was sen photographs but, unfortunately, beyond my familiarity zone, it did help many details are lost in very dark back- expand it. Marooned provides a good grounds. The same can be said for the story, thought provoking historical numbers and some of the other details in analysis and a window into the first per- the maps and charts that are presented. manent English settlement in America. While there is no way of ascertaining if this is caused by the type of paper-stock James Gallen this book is printed on, or the printing St. Louis, Missouri technology used, it definitely detracts from the overall impact of this work. Hans Joachim Koerver. The Kaiser’s Also included are a useful preface, a U-Boat Assault on America. Barnsley, list of main characters, a timeline, and S. Yorks: Pen & Sword, www.pen-and- a table of principle measurements, end- sword.co.uk, 2020. xii+343 pp., illus- notes and a welcome bibliography. Un- trations, timeline, appendices, notes, fortunately, as good and detailed as the bibliography, index. UK £25.00, US latter is, it also underlines the general $34.95, cloth: ISBN 978-1-52677-386- weaknesses of bibliographies regarding 9. what was listed and, more importantly, what is missing. For example, while This very interesting work focusses on Koerver views Germany’s merchant the convoluted path that Imperial Ger- submarine initiative in a very positive many followed until it reached its ulti- light, it doesn’t list the one major gen- mate and fateful decision to wage unre- eral work that was published on these stricted submarine—U-boat in German vessels (Dwight R. Messimer’s The naval parlance—warfare during the Merchant U-Boat, USNIP, 1988). First World War. The author’s previous- Perhaps unexpectedly, this work ly published works include a handful of begins with a glimpse of the global critically acclaimed works on the Impe- economy and that of the key powers of rial German Navy’s U-boat campaign the time and the general development of in the First World War One. Overall, global trade prior to 1914. The author he has developed a detailed thesis and discusses the evolution of the subma- interpretation regarding Germany’s rine as a weapon of war and how sev- U-boat policies of this era which even eral nations wanted to integrate them many general and academically trained into their naval strategies. He agrees readers will find revolutionary, if not with most authors that Grand Admiral shocking. Despite having an MA in his- Tirpitz, the architect of the Imperial tory and working as an IT consultant, German Navy, was not a supporter of there is no doubt that he is more than U-boat construction prior to the war. aptly suited to illuminate this subject. From here on, however, the author’s The attractive book jacket is pre- perception of Germany’s path to unre- sented on the new type of almost stricted submarine war quickly deviates matt-lustre paper which seems to be re- from the accepted paradigm. He argues placing the high-gloss paper previously that Tirpitz became a U-boat advocate favoured by publishers. The volume is because of the Kaisers’ unwillingness divided into forty-two chapters of vary- to risk his fleet of dreadnought battle- ing lengths and its appendices actually ships and battlecruisers in a pitched na- Book Reviews 333 val battle. Britain’s decision to not play before unrestricted submarine warfare into Germany’s hand by implementing was declared. a “distant blockade” instead of a close Suffice it to say, many of the au- blockade also upset Tirpitz’s battle thor’s interpretations and arguments plans for Germany’s battle fleet. Con- will challenge the accepted perceptions sequently, Germany’s only offensive of the reader. Overall, this is a well-re- naval weapon of consequence was the searched and convincingly argued vol- U-boat. ume. Indeed, the author’s viewpoints At the time, submarines were ex- are perhaps at least as eye opening for pected to comply with the rules of naval this topic as those that were espoused warfare as detailed in The Hague Con- by Fritz Fischer in his work on Germa- vention and the rules of Internation- ny’s war aims and subsequent books al Prize Law. Being forced to surface on Germany during the First World and order ships to stop for inspection War. This is highly recommended work exposed submarines to many dangers. that should find its ways on the book- Strangely enough, as the author argues, shelves of twentieth-century European German U-boats working in the Medi- and naval historians alike. terranean Sea were quite successful in carrying out this type of trade war. A Peter K. H. Mispelkamp certain clique within the German Navy, Pointe Clare, Quebec however, refused to believe that what worked in the Mediterranean could Margarette Lincoln. Trading in War. work in the North Atlantic. Overall, London’s Maritime World in the Age of the author convincingly portrays the Cook and Nelson. New Haven, CT: Yale ebb and flow of the drive for unrestrict- University Press, www.yalebooks.yale. ed submarine warfare within Imperial edu, 2018. xxxii+291pp., illustrations, Germany. notes, bibliography, index. US $35.00, In general, this work this work ex- cloth; ISBN 978-0-30022-748-2. poses the reader to a number of seminal, if not revolutionary, interpretations of Here is a fresh look at the River Thames German U-boat warfare during the First and London’s maritime world in the age World War. His main thesis is that a of Cook and Nelson, which we take to small group of German naval and army mean from the mid-1700s to the end of officers, as well as government officials, the Napoleonic Wars. This was an era deliberately worked against the wishes of war, or preparation for war. The tidal of the Kaiser. According to him, they river flows ceaselessly back and forth, went out of their way to manipulate the bringing the wealth of the world to the Kaiser into waging unrestricted U-boat wharves and doorsteps of London and warfare, falsified data on U-boat suc- taking at the same time and in exchange cesses, and even welcomed bringing the the riches of the land, in peoples, skills, US into the war. It should be noted that foodstuffs, industrial goods, naviga- the list of unexpected interpretations tional instruments, and items of knowl- and arguments presented here is not edge such as charts and books. The limited to this main theme. They run Thames, even yet, is a water on cease- the gambit from which navy first intro- less change. Daniel Defoe talked about duced the convoy system in this conflict the river as a silver one, and by that he to how close the Kaiser’s U-boats actu- meant revenue and commerce, wealth ally came to bankrupting England, even and power. London, at the time, was 334 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord the largest European city, and it had all ing took place. Below London Bridge the infrastructure right to hand, close as lay a long, winding series of reaches— it was to Westminster where the politi- Limehouse, Greenwich, and Black- cal power lay and the City of London, wall— that became the hub area for the greatest concentration of financial dockyards, provisioning places, arma- wealth and managerial techniques in ments facilities (at Woolwich), and ship the United Kingdom, if not the world. chandleries. On the north shore, east of And the whole lay close to Antwerp and the Tower of London, stood the more the ports of Europe across the English populous parishes leading from Mile Channel, with links to the Baltic, the End Road and Ratcliffe Highway to Mediterranean, the North Sea and in- Shadwell, Lime House and Poplar. On deed all the seas of the world. the south side, stood the naval/military London, therefore, was the nex- establishments Rotherhithe, Deptford us. It held the world in fee. The early (one of the oldest Royal Dockyards), Tudors were slow to grasp the oppor- then Greenwich with its palace, parks, tunities afforded by salt water but by hospitals and astronomy facility, Wool- seventeenth century and under the reign wich and the royal arsenal and, below of Queen Anne a global empire had again, far again, to Gravesend, and all been achieved—and grew in spite of the way to the English Channel. What attempts to curtail formal growth. The a fabulous geographic conglomeration, Royal Navy was the prime force of the the heartland of commerce, of govern- British economy; Britain was a militant ment, of business, of influence! state, and its navy the enabler of ex- Lincoln takes this all in with ma- pansion, the protector of trade, and the jestic appraisal and true understanding, guarantor of foreign policy. And we are weaving the social with the political. reminded, when reading herein of Eliz- We are given, for instance, an adroit abeth Cook and Elizabeth Blight (sad- understanding of how the East India ly Emma, Lady Hamilton doesn’t get a Company shipping was contracted to nod), that families were part and parcel ship owners, and how, in turn, their pro- of this global expansion and network. prietorial rights were protected, as if by The whole was fueled by war, and the feudal right. Fortunes were made in the wars were reactions to foreign interfer- shipping to eastern seas and elsewhere. ence on the high seas or on the margins Changes on shore were both dramatic of where the Union Jack already flew. and extensive. East India Company The British state of the eighteenth cen- docks at Deptford gave way to im- tury was unlike any other in the world, mense structures at Blackwall. Urban then or later. And it depended on the removal meant tenements and hous- one river and on what happened in the es being swept a side in a flash. The world and on its shores. Pilfering, theft corporate world had priority, and the and crime were rife in this hub of rich- backing of Westminster and the City. es and notorious pubs, too, now of her- So it was that the Thames below Tower itage status. Churches and almshouses Hill was recreated as the pulse of com- abounded. The river not only drained merce matched that of making war. The the extensive and rich Thames Valley, sources for this study are extensive, and but had links by tributary canals to the worth the future student’s every consid- heartland of Industrial England. On the eration as a model and a guide to future upper reaches of the Thames, at Ted- research. We are reminded that part of dington, for instance, small shipbuild- this area would again recreate itself, Book Reviews 335 sweeping aside the old, and doing so in of text and a half-dozen appendices. As the form of the Docklands project. The with all of Polmar’s books, Strike from shipping and warehousing may have the Sea rests on formidable scholarship, disappeared, the hewing and quartering, mastery of the material and an engaging and all the heavy lifting. But still the writing style. It is a tale that the special- throbbing heart of global commerce, in- ist will relish and continue to consult, surance and finance lay headquartered while the general reader will obtain an on the immediate shores of the Thames. education in a key weapon system that There is a romance to this that Pe- in many ways shaped Cold War strate- ter Ackroyd missed, but now we have it gies and has emerged once again in the in Margarette Lincoln’s treasured book. hands of the Russian Federation Navy The many illustrations, extensive bib- (RFN). liography, and index combine with the Even as German “buzz bombs” delightful and edifying text to open to rained down on hapless London in the us a world we had lost but are now hap- summer of 1944, America’s Chief of pily recovering. Naval Operations, Admiral Ernest J. King, grasped the potential of rockets Barry Gough as future naval weapons. From 1946 Victoria, British Columbia on, American scientists worked assid- uously to develop and elaborate both Norman Polmar and John O’Connell. cruise missile technology and the sur- Strike from the Sea. The Development face and subsurface vehicles to deploy and Deployment of Strategic Cruise them both in a land attack and anti-ship Missiles since 1934. Annapolis, MD: configuration. Soviet naval strategists Naval Institute Press, www.usni.org, and scientists were no less aware of 2020. xix+217pp., illustrations, tables, the possibilities of cruise missiles em- appendices, notes, bibliography, indi- ployed in tandem with submarine torpe- ces. US $49.95. cloth; ISBN 978-1- does and, just as promptly, began their 68247-389-4. own development programs in the early Cold War years. Thereafter, both sides One iconic image from the high Cold advanced developments in near-lock War years 1960-85 is of an interconti- step, with America’s initial “Regulus” nental ballistic missile bursting out of program matched by a Soviet mis- the sea to ignite and race on its high-arc sile system designated “Shaddock” by way to rain thermonuclear catastrophe NATO observers. Between 1956 and on the enemy, be it the U.S. or Soviet 1964, the Soviet program was hobbled Union. But years before the ballis- by Premier Nikita Khrushchev’s gen- tic missile, first the U.S. and then the eral disinterest in pursuing advanced U.S.S.R. had developed initially short- naval technologies, preferring land- range cruise missiles (i.e. guided from based assault/deterrent programs. But launch to target) carrying conventional, after his overthrow, Navy chief Admiral and then nuclear, warheads. The in- Sergey Gorshkov was able to pursue a troduction of intercontinental ballistic vigorous naval buildup in which sea- missiles in the arsenals of both powers based missiles of both strategic- and did not terminate cruise missile pro- cruise-missiles played a prominent role. grams but enhanced them. From the outset, the U.S. and So- This is the absorbing story that Pol- viet navies equipped both surface ships mar and Connell tell in some 165 pages and surfaced submarines with cruise 336 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord missiles. In the fifties and sixties, the say apparently because until quite re- Americans converted several heavy cently, the Russians never really em- and light cruisers into missile carriers ployed their cruise missiles against with the Soviets following soon there- adversaries as the Americans did on after. Later, both sides began building several occasions, most notably post- dedicated surface vessels as missile Cold War when attention shifted to ranges steadily increased and payloads anti-terror warfare. In August 1998, advanced from conventional to nu- American missile destroyers and a sub- clear. But it was the development of marine launched somewhere between submarine technologies that most be- seventy and eighty Tomahawk Land At- witched both sides. Even as the Amer- tack cruise missiles (“TLAM”s) against ican Loon (carrying the first generation suspected and existing al Qaeda phar- surface-launched “Regulus”) and So- maceutical, base, support and training viet Whiskey boats that deployed the facilities in Sudan and Afghanistan with “Shaddock” came into service, both devastating effect. The assaults were in sides sought to solve the interlocking retaliation for Osama bin Laden’s re- problems of guidance and submerged cent bombing of the American embas- launch capabilities. In the former in- sies in Kenya and Tanzania. More re- stance, first generation missiles had to cently, however, reports have surfaced be launched from surfaced submarines demonstrating more or less successful and directed to targets roughly three Russian cruise missile attacks against hundred miles away employing air- Islamic State bases in Syria from de- craft and other surfaced submarines to stroyers and submarines operating in literally guide the missile to its target. the eastern Mediterranean. Polmar and McConnell trace how both These attacks once again raise a sides succeeded in developing onboard question insistently posed during the guidance systems and subsurface capa- Cold War: how good is the Russian bilities that made the cruise missile a cruise missile capability? The question truly formidable weapon system on a has added urgency now that the Federa- par with, though not as nearly powerful tion Navy has emerged once again as a as, its ballistic missile cousins. formidable challenger to American sea The authors emphasize that the So- power. Polmar and McConnell’s an- viet naval leadership was ever spurred swer is, very good, indeed. While the onward in its cruise missile develop- Americans have seemingly been con- ment by an obsession with American tent to rest upon the nearly half-century aircraft carriers that most symbolized old (if still formidable) subsonic, 1,000- the West’s ring of sea power around the 1,200 mile range “TLAM” system, the Soviet Eurasian empire. They write Russians have forged ahead with new dramatic accounts of American “Reg- systems of missiles that are both fast- ulus” submarine patrols off Kamchatka er and of longer range. They are also so close to that Peninsula laden with beginning to experiment with subsur- Soviet military and naval bases that face drone weapons that could readily navigators could estimate their posi- threaten America’s coastal cities and tion by referencing mountains ashore. military/naval installations. Perhaps fortunately for the world, they In many ways, the Cold War at sea were never detected. has resumed. The most striking impression one takes away from this study is how for- Lisle A. Rose midable the Soviet sea- (and land-) Edmonds, Washington based missiles apparently became. I Book Reviews 337 Ian W. Toll. Twilight of the Gods: War ny and Italy, nations half a world away. in the Western Pacific, 1944-1945. New In September 1940, Japan had signed York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company, the Tripartite Pact forming the Axis na- www.norton.com, 2020. 926 pp., illus- tions. The downside was that this alli- trations, notes, bibliography, index. US ance with European nations could not $40.00, cloth; ISBN 978-0-393-08065- offer much assistance to the Japanese in 0. their Pacific war effort. They failed to sufficiently recognize America’s resil- Twilight of the Gods: War in the Western iency, its vast resources and its ability Pacific, 1944-1945 is the final volume to garrote or strangle Japan by cutting of a trilogy that includes Pacific Cru- off their war and vital lifeline through cible: War at Sea in the Pacific, 1941- US naval and air superiority. Twilight 1942 and continues with The Conquer- of the Gods switches between the points ing Tide: War in the Pacific Islands, of view on both sides to describe how 1942-1944; a brilliantly written update the metaphorical noose slowly tight- of Samuel Eliot Morison’s 15-volume ened against the Japanese via a detailed classic work on the United States Navy journey drawn from American and Jap- in the Second World War. anese archives. Of particular note, the As Toll points out, this is the story author inserts many references to the of the predictable outcome of a bloody diary of Admiral Matome Ugaki, a na- war that should not have happened. At val commander who participated in the the start of the war, Japan was a na- Pearl Harbor secret attack and fought tion with almost no natural resources. through to Japan’s surrender. It was largely dependent upon foreign In a way, Toll acts as a war cor- suppliers for food, industrial commod- respondent, placing his readers into ities, especially oil, and a labour force graphic scenes of battles while giving of vanquished neighbours. They op- intimate glimpses into the character portunistically acquired territories of most of the important leaders on through diplomacy, exploiting unrest both sides of the conflict. Presidents in nearby countries or by outright con- Franklin Roosevelt and Harry Tru- quest. Japan’ large but vulnerable navy man, Admirals Chester Nimitz, Earnest protected the vital sea lanes, salt water King, Richmond Turner, John McCain highways to their home islands. Al- Sr., Thomas and Raymond Spruance, though an emperor/man-god occupied Frederick Sherman, colourful Joseph the Chrysanthemum Throne, the polit- “Jocko” Clark plus Generals George ical hegemony of the Asian nation was Marshall, Holland “Howlin” Mad” controlled by the heads of the Imperial Smith, and Henry “Hap” Arnold make Army and Navy, who were bitter rivals. extensive appearances. The author The then-neutral United States was a particularly focuses on the psycho-dy- trading partner, but held a tight hand on namics of the flamboyant egotistical but the oil, scrap metal and mineral supply successful characters, the vainglorious that was vital for a nation at war. The General Douglas MacArthur, “ride out Japanese military hierarchy gambled the typhoons” Admiral William “Bull” that by destroying a large part of the Halsey and cigar-chomping Army Air- American naval fleet and air power at force General Curtis LeMay. On the Pearl Harbor, the Yankees would not be other side, Emperor Hirohito, Ministers in a favourable position to retaliate, es- Shigenori Togo, Kantaro Suzuki, and pecially if they declared war on Germa- Admirals Isoroku Yamamato, Jisabu- 338 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord ro Ozawa and Matome Ugaki (among found in miniature submarines, swift many others) are profiled to a more lim- boats and as swimmers carrying a vari- ited degree. ety of explosives devices. The aircraft The closing battles of the Pacific were the first guided one-way missiles, War have become iconic; the renowned a devastating weapon used to fight and assaults in Manilla, Luzon, Leyte, Iwo inflict maximum damage, but these sui- Jima, and Okinawa. The enemy fought cide weapons required a psychological with skill, initiative, persistence and reset of the normal human survival in- at times, a seemingly inhuman lack stinct. Perhaps not unexpectedly, such of fear, in actions Toll graphically de- tactics evolved in a warrior and civilian scribes in blood-stained detail. Perhaps society and wore thin in the final days most chilling are his exceptionally viv- of the war. id accounts of the horrors and destruc- Other fascinating side-stories in- tion from the fire-bombing and the atom volved the use and subjugation of the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. media during war time, devastating ty- Most noteworthy are the many back- phoons that preyed upon Halsey’s Pacif- ground stories. Among them are tales ic fleet, and the varied terrain that posed about the effectiveness of the American challenges for various island landings submarine fleet, the initial and some- as well as the subsequent building of vi- times ongoing problems with defective tal airfields. Also, there was the central torpedoes, and aggressive submariner part that logistics played in a vast and heroes like Dudley W. “Mush” Morton, diverse Pacific theatre and the massive Richard H. O’Kane and Slade Cutter. Russian troop entry into the Pacific War Then there were the men who flew high just prior to its ending. After conquest, above the fray, employing their new, the author looks back upon the after-ef- gargantuan weapon, the B-29s, flying fects of an occupation of a defeated, out of tiny Pacific island bases. It was once-proud nation and upon those who General LeMay who decided that in- fought on both sides. stead of using his huge aircraft to bomb Finally, Twilight of the Gods, the fi- in the standard high-altitude way, they nal panel of a literary triptych, is a tour could come in fast and low and drop in- de force of writing that puts the close cendiary explosives to obliterate large- of the Second World War in the Pacific ly wooden Japanese cities like Tokyo. into a mesmerizing perspective narrat- After the war, LeMay stated that if the ed by a master maritime historian. This Allies had lost the war, he likely would fairly long but extremely rewarding have been tried as a war criminal. The book should not be missed. detailed story of the preparation of the B-29 atom bomb missions and their re- Louis Arthur Norton sults was particularly engrossing. And West Simsbury, Connecticut then there are cameo appearances by young draftees, several of whom who Brian E. Walter. The Longest Cam- went on to make their mark in literature paign: Britain’s Maritime Struggle in and medicine, such as James Michen- the Atlantic and Northwest Europe, er and Dr. Lewis Thomas. Perhaps the 1939–1945. Oxford, UK: Casemate most chilling and simultaneously fasci- Publishing, www.casematepublishing. nating concept was the rise of kamika- co.uk, 2020. xix+332 pp., illustrations, zes. Famously known as suicidal air- maps, tables, notes, bibliography, in- craft pilots, kamikaze forces were also dices. UK £25.00, US $34.95, cloth; Book Reviews 339 ISBN 978-1-61200-856-1. (E-book theatre, Walter’s assertion of the pri- available.) macy of this particular contest requires something more. This he delivers by In The Longest Campaign, retired U.S. augmenting his story with the concur- Army officer Brian E. Walter leverag- rent activities Britain’s Royal Air Force es an impressive amount of statistical and Army. For example, the dire state research into a broad perspective on of the British Army following its suc- Britain’s Second World War maritime cessful yet ruinous evacuation from confrontation with Germany. The au- Dunkirk in mid-1940—a significant na- thor argues that this approach reveals val action in and of itself—dramatically the supreme importance of the Europe- escalated invasion fears on the part of an naval conflict to the Allied victory in the British government. While this fear the wider war. Simultaneously, it also was somewhat unfounded, owing to asserts that the Royal Navy continued the poor state of German preparedness to serve as the bedrock of British power for such an endeavour throughout most throughout this conflict. of that year, Walter is able to system- Walter’s quest for a broader per- atically show that RN naval losses off spective on the European naval war is Norway combined with the fog of war anchored solidly in what he identifies as to radically alter British strategic plan- the three main tenets of Britain’s mari- ning. The result was a string of British time strategy: the securing of seaborne naval decisions and operations that are communications, the containment and often explored only in isolation: the di- destruction of all German shipping version of badly-needed convoy escort (blockade), and the transport and sup- vessels to invasion defense, the attack ply of the British Army. While these are on the French fleet at Mers el Kébir, and simple ideas at a glance, their pursuit concentrated attacks on coastal shipping requires the author to trace all aspects along the French channel coast. While of the Royal Navy’s activities between often criticized for other reasons, these 1939 and 1945. Thus, while games of activities ultimately left the attainment cat-and-mouse with marauding German of air supremacy as Germany’s only op- capital ships and U-Boat wolf packs tion for a possible invasion of Britain. take centre stage in this narrative, as Although many of these logical deduc- one might expect, they are a far cry tions aren’t necessarily new, together from the dominant actors we typically they prove critical to the reader’s ability see in scholarship of this nature. Naval to see the naval story as one part of an mining operations, amphibious raids, integrated whole. and coastal shipping campaigns each What truly sets Brian Walter’s work parade across The Longest Campaign’s apart from the numerous other volumes pages with robust supporting perfor- on the European maritime theatre of the mances that combine to form a much Second World War is his exhaustive ex- more complete and satisfying snapshot ploration of British archival records in of everything taking place off the north- the pursuit of his goal. This is clearly west coast of Europe during this six- evident with every campaign and indi- year period. vidual action he explores; participating While a thorough exploration of vessels, aircraft, and other equipment Allied and Axis naval activities in the are thoroughly described, losses me- Atlantic and off European shores has ticulously tabulated, and outcomes ex- been adequate for most studies of this tensively explored from the political 340 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord down to the tactical level. Occasion- ally overbaked (paragraphs containing long lists of individual U-Boats lost in specific months may have fit better as a footnote, for example), Walter’s style generally flows well and his narrative is both engrossing and easy to follow. Ul- timately, the author’s work culminates with a statistical analysis of the ledger compiled from all the actions through- out the book. Titled “The Reckoning,” the book’s final chapter lays bare the grand scale of the resources committed to its titular struggle, revealing Ger- man naval losses comparable to those suffered by all powers participating in the Pacific War and the Mediterranean combined. In this titanic collision, Walter estimates that the Royal Navy achieved an impressive combat tonnage exchange rate of 4.8 to 1 in its favour. Much of the information contained within The Longest Campaign is not ex- plicitly new or newly discovered. What is unique about Walter’s approach is his perspective and the analysis that it makes possible. The author has clear- ly done his homework; the result is a narrative that is both thorough and con- vincing. While some may contest the overall argument for how fundamental- ly critical this campaign was, such an attempt would require a similar degree of statistical analysis at a minimum. Overall, The Longest Campaign is an impressive piece of work that is rec- ommended to the scholar and maritime history enthusiast alike. Tyler A. Pitrof Baltimore, Maryland