News, Articles and Comment

Ed. A letter reflecting on the profound transformation taking place in terms of Defence, and the RN’s role therein.

BRE. The latest book review is now available. It considers a book examining the maritime campaigns in the Atlantic and northwestern European waters and contribution to Allied victory in the Second World War.

Ed. Originally published in two parts in 1999 [87/1, p. 3 & 87/2, p. 105], the author elaborated with particular clarity the strategic, operational and doctrinal rationale for what is now the current RN carrier aviation capability in the Joint Armed Forces post-Cold War environment. A 50 minute read.

Ed. Through an imagined Socratic dialogue the author conveys to the younger generation the heroism of Shackleton’s rescue of the Endurance crew in August 1916. A 20 minute read.

Ed. In the Sixteenth century, Portugal was a thalassocracy actively pursuing a strategy of maritime influence and control through the acquisition of strategic oceanic chokepoints – the kind Admiral Sir John Fisher would later describe as “the keys that lock up the world.” A 10 minute read.

Ed. Two letters highlighting institutional learning, whether for better in the service of ceremonial fleet reviews or for worse in terms of political-bureaucratic stagnation.

Ed. With his trademark dissident perspective, the author tackles what he describes as the long-term decline of European and British maritime power, and compares the present situation in the Middle East with the financial consequences of the outbreak of war in 1914. A 15 minute read.

BRE. The latest book review is now available. It considers the 2026 edition of the Seaforth World Naval Review.

Ed. With due regard to technological evolution, geostrategy, and climate change, the author contemplates the historical trajectory of sea power theory, law, and its future. A 15 minute read.