Some Books That Seem Very Contradictory, Ahem

"On Sea Power" is Alfred Thayer Mahan's work on the history of naval warfare and the theory of sea power. In this book, Mahan epoch-makingly proposed the concept of "sea power", elevating the control of the ocean to a strategic level that determines the rise and fall of a country. He believed that sea power and the rise and fall of a country share weal and woe, and maritime interests were crucial to the strength of a country. At the same time, he advocated vigorously developing the navy, developing the merchant fleet, developing maritime trade, and building naval bases and commercial ports. This book interprets the view of "sea power supremacy" from six perspectives: geographical location, natural structure, national territory, population, national characteristics, and government nature. As a masterpiece of sea power, this book also has literary qualities. It objectively and vividly reproduces the process of previous naval battles, expresses praise for those outstanding naval generals without revealing anything, and elaborates on the role of sea power in the development of history, especially the development of world history from the geographical discovery in 1660 to the end of the American Revolutionary War in 1784. It also discusses some necessary factors for sea power. The book attracted attention as soon as it was published. The United States, Japan, Germany, the former Soviet Union and other countries have successively used it as a guide for formulating national development strategies. Since Mahan's death, two world wars and changes in the world's strategic pattern have fully verified the view of sea power theory.