How important was sea power to the interests of European states?

Résumé du document

Sea power is "the ability to control the sea with armed force" and has always represented an important issue for rulers connected with the sea. European states such as Britain, France, Spain and the Netherlands used sea power in many ways in the early modern period in order to gain benefits and power. One of the main objectives of sea power is to obtain "Command of the Sea", which means, according to the study of Mahan, "to use the oceans as a highway for one's own trade and a barrier to that of the enemy; and that command is the perquisite of the strongest capital fleet." Thus, in order to better understand how important sea power was to the interests of European states, its impact on national development and on war must be studied.

Extraits

[...] Corbett Unwin Brothers Ltd The Political Influence of Naval force in History, James Cable MacMillan Press Ltd Warfare at sea, 1500-1600, Jan Glete Routledge War in European History, Michael Howard Oxford University Press Essays Naval Power, 1450-1650: The Formative Age, by Jan Glete ; and Sea Power : the Struggle for Dominance, 1650-1815, by Richard Harding in Early Modern Military History, 1450-1815, ed. Geoff Mortimer Palgrave Macmillan Naval Power, 1450-1650: The Formative Age, by Jan Glete, p in Early Modern Military History, 1450-1815, ed. Geoff Mortimer Palgrave Macmillan Sea Power: the Struggle for Dominance, 1650-1815, by Richard Harding, p in Early Modern Military History, ed. Geoff Mortimer J. Glete, p 81 The Influence of Sea Power Upon History, 1660-1783, Alfred Thayer Mahan Dodo Press, page 25 J. Glete, p R. Harding, p A. Mahan, p R. [...]

[...] Therefore, with this defensive and offensive objectives purposes in mind, one can conclude that trade played a tremendous role in the importance of sea power for the interests of European states. Indeed, in the early modern period, discovery and trade were almost interchangeable terms”.[13] A quote of an English man who lived in the 17th century sums up well this idea: “What nation soever can attaine to and continue the greatest trade and number of shipping, will get and keepe the Sovereignty of the Seas, and consequently the greatest Dominion of the World”[14]. [...]

[...] Glete, p R. Harding, p J. Cable, p R. Harding, p J. Glete, p R. Harding, p J. Glete, p R. Harding, p Some Principles of Maritime Strategy, Julian S. [...]

[...] Finally, it is plain to see that sea power was essential for the interests of European states in the early modern period. The commerce by sea was a key instrument of state power but the Navy also represented an influential and powerful weapon in the conduct of war in European struggles. It is now clear that sea power represents more than just warfare at sea. However, as Julian S. Corbett reveals in his study of Maritime Strategy, cooperation and coordination with the land are always needed, as is almost impossible that a war can be decided by naval action alone”.[35] Indeed, the actions of both the Army and the Navy are needed in order to gain total victory. [...]

[...] Indeed, both Britain and France had colonial possessions in North America at that time. During the Battle of Quiberon Bay, in November 1759, Britain executed one of their most decisive naval battles in History by beating the French ships and from this point, Britain acted as a Great Power abroad and won this war. A real shift happened, from a reasonable power with a particularly large naval power, to the first global and commercial power in Europe, which had absolute control of the sea. [...]