News, Articles and Comment

Ed. RAdm James Goldrick RAN provided the first chapter to the NR’s centenary publication, Dreadnought to Daring (2012), in which he conducted a prosopographical study of the Naval Review’s founders. A 50 minute read.

Ed. Our correspondent considers some of the formidable challenges the PLAN would need to overcome to make an amphibious invasion of Taiwan a realistic proposition, and the long-term hybrid warfare alternatives to which the PRC may turn. A 10 minute read.

Ed. Nuclear submarines, along with the aircraft carrier, have become the ultimate symbols of sea power, but their adoption and use remain not only technically complex and expensive, but also diplomatically and politically controversial. The author surveys this background in the case of the Royal Navy. Winner of the Eric Grove prize. A 5 minute read.

Ed. The author revisits the status of the Ukraine War, a year after his initial analysis [111/2, p. 18]. The failure of either side to deliver a knockout blow, and the systemic nature of new military technology, has reduced the conflict to grinding attrition with few prospects for definitive victory. A 25 minute read.

Ed. The Royal Navy not only logistically enabled Wellington’s campaigns during the Peninsular War, but also acted as a force-multiplier during the critical operations at Cadiz, Lisbon and elsewhere. Originally published in 2010 [98/4, p. 385]. A 30 minute read.

Ed. The author questions the ability of the Allies to successfully deter future Russian sub-threshold or hybrid operations, with narrow deterrence having failed both in Syria and Salisbury. The deniability of attacks on vulnerable undersea cables and infrastructure has been clearly demonstrated over the past two years. A 20 minute read.

Ed. This article investigates the role of the aircraft carriers and battleships involved in, and otherwise enabling, Operation OVERLORD. The proper application of naval power over the course of the war ensured Allied victory, with capital ships and escort forces playing important roles in all theatres. Based on a presentation given to the Lunchtime Lecture Series of the Royal Navy Strategic Studies Centre, 17 October 2023. A 20 minute read.

Ed. For the bicentenary of Trafalgar Day in 2005, distinguished scholars and Naval Review members produced a series of articles on Nelson’s legacy for the 21^st century [93/4, p. 320]. Professor Geoffrey Till provided the following comparison between the then emerging Effects Based Approach (EBA) and the illusive Nelson Touch. Reprinted here for the 218^th anniversary of the Battle of Trafalgar. A 20 minute read.