To Provide and Maintain a Navy

"To Provide and Maintain a Navy" by Henry J Hendrix is a must-read for anyone interested in sea power and the United States Navy. Hendrix goes beyond the common debate on how many ships are needed and reveals the crucial importance of Mare Liberum (Free Sea) to the development of the Western thought and the rules based order that governs the global commons. From this philosophical basis, Hendrix explores how sea borne commercial trade has played a central role in the rise of global living standards, followed by the analysis of how the naval balance of power has played out in terms of naval battles, wars over the centuries, and how the United States Navy's dominance has resulted in unprecedented peace on the world's oceans. Hendrix then addresses the rising threat of China and Russia to challenge the United States maritime leadership and discusses the number of ships required for the United States Navy, the industrial base required to build them, and the importance of once again aligning the nation's strategic outlook to that of a "seapower." Engaging and informative, this book provides a brief but deep analysis of the complexities surrounding the most important strategic conversation facing the United States in the new age of great power competition.