The U.S. Navy
A Concise History
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Narrated by:
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Noah Michael Levine
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By:
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Craig L. Symonds
About this listen
This fast-paced narrative traces the emergence of the United States Navy as a global power from its birth during the American Revolution through to its current superpower status. The story highlights iconic moments of great drama pivotal to the nation's fortunes: John Paul Jones' attacks on the British in the Revolution, the Barbary Wars, and the arduous conquest of Iwo Jima. The book illuminates the changes - technological, institutional, and functional - of the US Navy from its days as a small frigate navy through the age of steam and steel to the modern era of electronics and missiles. Historian Craig L. Symonds captures the evolving culture of the Navy and debates between policymakers about what role the institution should play in world affairs. Internal and external challenges dramatically altered the size and character of the Navy, with long periods of quiet inertia alternating with rapid expansion emerging out of crises. The history of the navy reflects the history of the nation as a whole, and its many changes derive in large part from the changing role of the United States itself.
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- A Military History of the United States from 1607 to 2012
- By: Allan R. Millett, Peter Maslowski, William B. Feis
- Narrated by: John Pruden
- Length: 33 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
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Called "the preeminent survey of American military history" by Russell F. Weigley, America's foremost military historian, For the Common Defense is an essential contribution to the field of military history. This third edition provides the most complete and current history of United States defense policy and military institutions and the conduct of America's wars. Without diminishing the value of its earlier editions, authors Allan R. Millett, Peter Maslowski, and William B. Feis provide a fresh perspective on the continuing issues that characterize national security policy.
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The chapters in the book are badly labled
- By Hermione on 01-31-23
By: Allan R. Millett, and others
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Struggle for Sea Power
- A Naval History of the American Revolution
- By: Sam Willis
- Narrated by: Derek Perkins
- Length: 15 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
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The American Revolution was a naval war of immense scope and variety, including no less than 22 navies fighting on five oceans - to say nothing of rivers and lakes. In no other war were so many large-scale fleet battles fought, one of which was the most strategically significant naval battle in all of British, French, and American history.
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Fantastic perspective on American Revolution
- By J. Mar on 04-20-21
By: Sam Willis
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Hubris
- The Tragedy of War in the Twentieth Century
- By: Alistair Horne
- Narrated by: James Adams
- Length: 12 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
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Sir Alistair Horne has been a close observer of war and history for more than 50 years, and in this wise and masterly work he revisits six battles of the past century and examines the strategies, leadership, preparation, and geopolitical goals of aggressors and defenders to reveal the one trait that links them all: hubris.
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I Never Heard W ll Explained this Way!
- By John on 09-01-16
By: Alistair Horne
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Broadsides: The Age of Fighting Sail, 1775-1815
- By: Nathan Miller
- Narrated by: David Rapkin
- Length: 15 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
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In the late 18th century, it was widely thought that to be a sailor was little better than to be a slave. "No man will be a sailor," wrote Samuel Johnson, "who has contrivance enough to get himself into jail. A man in jail has more room, better food, and commonly better company." If that were true, historian Nathan Miller suggests, then the record of sailing in the age of tall ships would likely be distinguished by few heroes and fewer grand narratives.
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Misleading description, solid historical summary
- By M J Mills on 08-10-14
By: Nathan Miller
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Decision at Sea
- Five Naval Battles That Shaped American History
- By: Craig L. Symonds
- Narrated by: Stephen R. Thorne
- Length: 13 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
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Decision at Sea is a powerful and illuminating look at pivotal moments in the history of the Navy and of the United States. It is also a compelling study of the unchanging demands of leadership at sea, where commanders must make rapid decisions in the heat of battle with lives - and the fate of nations - hanging in the balance.
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Interesting book...but not great
- By Anonymous User on 11-22-20
By: Craig L. Symonds
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Intelligence in War
- Knowledge of the Enemy from Napoleon to Al-Qaeda
- By: John Keegan
- Narrated by: Richard Matthews
- Length: 15 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
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In fiction, the spy is a glamorous figure whose secrets make or break peace, but, historically, has intelligence really been a vital step to military victories? In this breakthrough study, the preeminent war historian John Keegan goes to the heart of a series of important conflicts to develop a powerful argument about military intelligence. In his characteristically wry and perceptive prose, Keegan offers us nothing short of a new history of war through the prism of intelligence.
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Military history more than history of intelligence
- By D. Littman on 01-10-04
By: John Keegan
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Admiral Bill Halsey
- A Naval Life
- By: Thomas Alexander Hughes
- Narrated by: David Drummond
- Length: 17 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
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William Halsey was the most famous naval officer of World War II. His fearlessness in carrier raids against Japan, his steely resolve at Guadalcanal, and his impulsive blunder at the Battle of Leyte Gulf made him the "Patton of the Pacific" and solidified his reputation as a decisive, aggressive fighter prone to impetuous errors of judgment in the heat of battle.
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Finally a fair assessment
- By Stephen Breen on 06-28-20
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War on the Waters
- The Union and Confederate Navies, 1861–1865
- By: James M. McPherson
- Narrated by: Joe Barrett
- Length: 8 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
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Although previously undervalued for their strategic impact because they represented only a small percentage of total forces, the Union and Confederate navies were crucial to the outcome of the Civil War. In War on the Waters, James M. McPherson has crafted an enlightening, at times harrowing, and ultimately thrilling account of the war’s naval campaigns and their military leaders. McPherson recounts how the Union navy’s blockade of the Confederate coast, leaky as a sieve in the war’s early months, became increasingly effective as it choked off vital imports and exports.
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From Offshore, This War Looks Completely Different
- By John on 04-30-21
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To Risk It All
- Nine Conflicts and the Crucible of Decision
- By: Admiral James Stavridis USN
- Narrated by: Marc Cashman
- Length: 7 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
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At the heart of Admiral James Stavridis’s training as a naval officer was the preparation to lead sailors in combat, to face the decisive moment in battle whenever it might arise. In To Risk it All, he offers up nine of the most useful and enthralling stories from the US Navy’s nearly 250-year history, and draws from them a set of insights that we can all put to use when confronted with fateful choices.
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A great book
- By John A. on 06-06-22
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Who Can Hold the Sea
- The U.S. Navy in the Cold War 1945-1960
- By: James D. Hornfischer
- Narrated by: Christopher Newton, Sharon Hornfischer
- Length: 17 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
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This landmark account of the U.S. Navy in the Cold War, Who Can Hold the Sea combines narrative history with scenes of stirring adventure on—and under—the high seas. In 1945, at the end of World War II, the victorious Navy sends its sailors home and decommissions most of its warships. But this peaceful interlude is short-lived, as Stalin, America’s former ally, makes aggressive moves in Europe and the Far East.
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James D. Hornfisher's last work
- By JWHayn4563 on 05-05-22
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The War of 1812
- A Forgotten Conflict, Bicentennial Edition
- By: Donald R Hickey
- Narrated by: Douglas R. Pratt
- Length: 14 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
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This comprehensive and authoritative history of the War of 1812, thoroughly revised for the 200th anniversary of the historic conflict, is a myth-shattering study that will inform and entertain students, historians, and general listeners alike. Donald R. Hickey explores the military, diplomatic, and domestic history of our second war with Great Britain, bringing the study up to date with recent scholarship on all aspects of the war, from the Gulf of Mexico to Canada.
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The War of 1812 fascinating listening
- By Ira S. Saposnik on 05-28-17
By: Donald R Hickey
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Hell to Pay
- Operation Downfall and the Invasion of Japan, 1945-1947
- By: D. M. Giangreco
- Narrated by: Danny Campbell
- Length: 16 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
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U.S. planning for the invasion and military occupation of Imperial Japan began two years before the dropping of atom bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Hell to Pay brings to light the political and military ramifications of the enormous casualties and loss of material projected by both sides in the climatic struggle to bring the Pacific War to a conclusion through a brutal series of battles on Japanese soil.
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This is a good piece of history.
- By David on 08-09-14
By: D. M. Giangreco
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The History of the United States Navy
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The United States Navy has played an essential role both in resolving conflicts and in peacekeeping throughout the entire history of the United States. Today, the US Navy, the world’s most powerful naval force, remains a critical tool of American foreign policy, and a key player in preserving geopolitical stability throughout the world. In The History of the United States Navy, Professor Craig L. Symonds brings alive the extraordinary saga of America’s naval forces, from the first naval shipbuilding on Lake Champlain in 1775 to the present age of nuclear-armed submarines.
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Decent and informative, bur narrow scope
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Decision at Sea
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Decision at Sea is a powerful and illuminating look at pivotal moments in the history of the Navy and of the United States. It is also a compelling study of the unchanging demands of leadership at sea, where commanders must make rapid decisions in the heat of battle with lives - and the fate of nations - hanging in the balance.
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Interesting book...but not great
- By Anonymous User on 11-22-20
By: Craig L. Symonds
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World War II at Sea
- A Global History
- By: Craig L. Symonds
- Narrated by: Eric Martin
- Length: 25 hrs and 52 mins
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World War II at Sea offers a global perspective, focusing on the major engagements and personalities and revealing both their scale and their interconnection: the U-boat attack on Scapa Flow and the Battle of the Atlantic; the "miracle" evacuation from Dunkirk and the pitched battles for control of Norway fjords; Mussolini's Regia Marina - at the start of the war the fourth-largest navy in the world - and the dominance of the Kidö Butai and Japanese naval power in the Pacific; Pearl Harbor then Midway; and much more.
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Outstanding
- By Patrick on 02-14-19
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Nimitz at War
- Command Leadership from Pearl Harbor to Tokyo Bay
- By: Craig L. Symonds
- Narrated by: L.J. Ganser
- Length: 14 hrs and 26 mins
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Only days after the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, President Franklin D. Roosevelt tapped Chester W. Nimitz to assume command of the Pacific Fleet. Nimitz transformed the devastated and dispirited Pacific fleet into the most powerful and commanding naval force in history. Facing demands from Washington to mount an early offensive, he had first to revive the depressed morale of the thousands of sailors, soldiers, and Marines who served under him. And of course, he also confronted a formidable and implacable enemy in the Imperial Japanese Navy.
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Great
- By Jean on 12-14-22
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Into the Bright Sunshine
- Young Hubert Humphrey and the Fight for Civil Rights (Pivotal Moments in American History Series)
- By: Samuel G. Freedman
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During one sweltering week in July 1948, the Democratic Party gathered in Philadelphia for its national convention. The most pressing and controversial issue facing the delegates was not whom to nominate for president—the incumbent, Harry Truman, was the presumptive candidate—but whether the Democrats would finally embrace the cause of civil rights and embed it in their official platform. On the convention's final day, Hubert Humphrey, the relatively obscure mayor of the midsized city of Minneapolis, ascended the podium.
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Narrator bungles pronunciations
- By ARV on 09-23-23
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Neptune
- The Allied Invasion of Europe and the D-Day Landings
- By: Craig L. Symonds
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Seventy years ago, more than 6000 Allied ships carried more than a million soldiers across the English Channel to a 50-mile-wide strip of the Normandy coast in German-occupied France. It was the greatest sea-borne assault in human history. The code names given to the beaches where the ships landed the soldiers have become immortal: Gold, Juno, Sword, Utah, and especially Omaha, the scene of almost unimaginable human tragedy.
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The Whys of D-Day
- By Mike From Mesa on 02-09-15
By: Craig L. Symonds
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The History of the United States Navy
- By: Craig L. Symonds, The Great Courses
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The United States Navy has played an essential role both in resolving conflicts and in peacekeeping throughout the entire history of the United States. Today, the US Navy, the world’s most powerful naval force, remains a critical tool of American foreign policy, and a key player in preserving geopolitical stability throughout the world. In The History of the United States Navy, Professor Craig L. Symonds brings alive the extraordinary saga of America’s naval forces, from the first naval shipbuilding on Lake Champlain in 1775 to the present age of nuclear-armed submarines.
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Decent and informative, bur narrow scope
- By GJCR on 10-22-23
By: Craig L. Symonds, and others
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Decision at Sea
- Five Naval Battles That Shaped American History
- By: Craig L. Symonds
- Narrated by: Stephen R. Thorne
- Length: 13 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Decision at Sea is a powerful and illuminating look at pivotal moments in the history of the Navy and of the United States. It is also a compelling study of the unchanging demands of leadership at sea, where commanders must make rapid decisions in the heat of battle with lives - and the fate of nations - hanging in the balance.
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Interesting book...but not great
- By Anonymous User on 11-22-20
By: Craig L. Symonds
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World War II at Sea
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- By: Craig L. Symonds
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World War II at Sea offers a global perspective, focusing on the major engagements and personalities and revealing both their scale and their interconnection: the U-boat attack on Scapa Flow and the Battle of the Atlantic; the "miracle" evacuation from Dunkirk and the pitched battles for control of Norway fjords; Mussolini's Regia Marina - at the start of the war the fourth-largest navy in the world - and the dominance of the Kidö Butai and Japanese naval power in the Pacific; Pearl Harbor then Midway; and much more.
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Outstanding
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Nimitz at War
- Command Leadership from Pearl Harbor to Tokyo Bay
- By: Craig L. Symonds
- Narrated by: L.J. Ganser
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Only days after the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, President Franklin D. Roosevelt tapped Chester W. Nimitz to assume command of the Pacific Fleet. Nimitz transformed the devastated and dispirited Pacific fleet into the most powerful and commanding naval force in history. Facing demands from Washington to mount an early offensive, he had first to revive the depressed morale of the thousands of sailors, soldiers, and Marines who served under him. And of course, he also confronted a formidable and implacable enemy in the Imperial Japanese Navy.
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Great
- By Jean on 12-14-22
By: Craig L. Symonds
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Into the Bright Sunshine
- Young Hubert Humphrey and the Fight for Civil Rights (Pivotal Moments in American History Series)
- By: Samuel G. Freedman
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During one sweltering week in July 1948, the Democratic Party gathered in Philadelphia for its national convention. The most pressing and controversial issue facing the delegates was not whom to nominate for president—the incumbent, Harry Truman, was the presumptive candidate—but whether the Democrats would finally embrace the cause of civil rights and embed it in their official platform. On the convention's final day, Hubert Humphrey, the relatively obscure mayor of the midsized city of Minneapolis, ascended the podium.
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Narrator bungles pronunciations
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Neptune
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Seventy years ago, more than 6000 Allied ships carried more than a million soldiers across the English Channel to a 50-mile-wide strip of the Normandy coast in German-occupied France. It was the greatest sea-borne assault in human history. The code names given to the beaches where the ships landed the soldiers have become immortal: Gold, Juno, Sword, Utah, and especially Omaha, the scene of almost unimaginable human tragedy.
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The Whys of D-Day
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Lincoln and His Admirals
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Abraham Lincoln began his presidency admitting that he knew "but little of ships," but he quickly came to preside over the largest national armada to that time, not eclipsed until World War I. Naval historian Craig L. Symonds' Lincoln and His Admirals unveils an aspect of Lincoln's presidency unexamined by historians until now, revealing how he managed the men who ran the naval side of the Civil War, and how the activities of the Union Navy ultimately affected the course of history.
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Another masterpiece from the Master
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Pacific Thunder
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On 27 October 1942, four "Long Lance" torpedoes fired by the Japanese destroyers Makigumo and Akigumo exploded in the hull of the aircraft carrier USS Hornet (CV-8). Minutes later, the ship that had launched the Doolitte Raid six months earlier slipped beneath the waves of the Coral Sea 100 miles northeast of the island of Guadalcanal and just north of the Santa Cruz Islands, taking with her 140 of her sailors. With the loss of Hornet, the United States Navy now had one aircraft carrier left in the South Pacific.
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Good for what it is, but not what it claims to be
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The Sea and Civilization
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A monumental retelling of world history through the lens of maritime enterprise, revealing in breathtaking depth how people first came into contact with one another by ocean and river, lake and stream, and how goods, languages, religions, and entire cultures spread across and along the world's waterways, bringing together civilizations and defining what makes us most human.
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Comprehensive
- By Than on 12-29-19
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Six Frigates
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Before the ink was dry on the U.S. Constitution, the establishment of a permanent military had become the most divisive issue facing the new government. Would a standing army be the thin end of dictatorship? Would a navy protect American commerce against the Mediterranean pirates, or drain the treasury and provoke hostilities with the great powers? The founders, particularly Jefferson, Madison, and Adams, debated these questions fiercely and switched sides more than once.
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BE ADVISED THIS BOOK IS ABRIDGED
- By George Carpenter III on 09-11-08
By: Ian W. Toll
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The Imperial Japanese Navy in the Pacific War
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- Narrated by: Joe Barrett
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The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) was the third most powerful navy in the world at the start of World War II and came to dominate the Pacific in the early months of the war. This was a remarkable turnaround for a navy that only began to modernize in 1868. The Imperial Japanese Navy in the Pacific War details the Japanese ships which fought in the Pacific and examines the principles on which they were designed, how they were armed, when and where they were deployed, and how effective they were in battle.
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Great Technical Reference
- By Dale H. Reeck on 06-09-18
By: Mark E. Stille
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The Fleet at Flood Tide
- America at Total War in the Pacific, 1944-1945
- By: James D. Hornfischer
- Narrated by: Pete Larkin
- Length: 23 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
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With its thunderous assault on the Mariana Islands in June 1944, the United States crossed the threshold of total war. In this tour de force of dramatic storytelling, distilled from extensive research in newly discovered primary sources, James D. Hornfischer brings to life the campaign that was the fulcrum of the drive to compel Tokyo to surrender—and that forever changed the art of modern war.
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Hornfischer's Philosophical Summary Up to VJ Day
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What listeners say about The U.S. Navy
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- ST
- 05-25-17
Solid, very concise
Solid coverage, if very brief. Covers the historical waterfront admirably, from battles, to social and cultural issues, to the evolving institution that is the US Navy. An excellent, very brief introduction, accessible to anyone
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- Srvivore
- 12-13-23
4.0 very well done U. S. Naval History.
A comprehensive of History of The U. S. Navy. Welldone good and faithful ! Mission accomplished. A must read. Perfectly written!
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- Danelle Hites
- 11-02-16
Great History Novel of Navy
very informative and captured my attention through the entire novel. I would listen to or read this again.
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2 people found this helpful
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- Mark Mears
- 10-02-22
Definitely concise, definitely good
The US Navy: A Concise History
Craig L. Symonds
I enjoyed this “brief” history of the US Navy.
If you have not studied much on the subject, this book may act as an excellent primer. If you have studied much on the US Navy, you will find yourself craving more details on certain events. That’s great; use Mr. Symonds’ sources or look for other specific books.
Either way, Mr. Symonds will have achieved his goal. Look at the definition of the word “concise.” This is exactly what was done. The book fills in any missed actions you may have, as it did for me.
One of the best things this book illustrated, intentionally or not, was the incredible influence the Navy has had on our foreign policy. In the days before mass communications, a Navy lieutenant or captain thousands of miles from Washington had to make momentous decisions.
The communications revolution is another subject the book demonstrates well.
In the early 1800’s, the President may have received a message describing how a Navy officer had blasted some miscreants several weeks before. Today, the President may be awakened at 3 AM told the Navy needs to know whether to blast these bad guys. The book does not say this specifically, but it makes the point obvious to the reader/listener.
Excellent, quick narration of our history.
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- Joe Mancini
- 10-22-24
Excellent concise history
Craig Symonds presents a fast-moving and complete history of the U.S. Navy up to today.
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- Sean
- 05-27-17
Read the Wikipedia Article
Too concise. Skipped over far too much material that would have not lengthened it considerably. (One paragraph on the Desert Storm that doesn't even talk about the naval aspects of the conflict. Not a single mention of the Korean or Vietnam gunlines or Beruit.) Nothing that can't be found in a high school textbook or the Wikipedia entry for the US Navy.
Boom is riddled with factual errors and misinterpretations.
Reading was too rapid and mechanical with odd inflections and baffling mispronunciations. I almost wonder if it was a bit.
Biggest waste of a credit on Audible.
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1 person found this helpful