British naval hero Horatio Nelson Admiral Nelson won a number of important victories during his time with the Royal Navy DEA G Nimatallah De Agostini Getty Images
INTRODUCTIO dm Horatio Nelson and other great naval commanders of the past might have trouble recognizing today's navies It s not just the technology that has changed the role and tactics of today s navies are also vastly different than they were throughout much of naval history and increasingly the individuals who comprise those navies are also changing The technological changes have led to large vessels capable of moving at great speeds both on and below the surface of the water Landing craft are designed to move seamlessly from water to dry land while sophis ticated weapons systems combine immense firepower with state of the art radar systems to target enemies on land on or under the water or in the air Meanwhile satellite positioning systems have made possible navir gation with pinpoint precision Technology and weapons systems have contributed to the evolution of naval tactics but so has the nature of modern warfare On one level the ability to launch ball listic missiles from ships and submarines makes a navy a valuable part of the nuclear deterrent wielded by global powers On another level navies have had to become more agile and versatile Fighting terrorism and inter vening in civil conflicts require the ability to strike swiftly at targets that are often isolated and highly specific Modern navies have responded to this need with small high speed boats and elite fighting units trained for action at sea or on land In short as the scope of war fare has become both more global and more localized navies have had to adapt to both
THE HISTORY OF NAVIES AROUND THE WORLD Even the human face of the navy has evolved over the centuries and can be expected to continue chang ing in the years ahead Starting in the second half of the 20th century some countries around the world began relaxing their policies toward gays and women allowing gays to serve openly in the military and women to have more prominent roles including serv ing in combat In the 21st century the United States Navy the world s largest followed suit adopting policies more accepting of gays in the military and women in combat than in the past While the image of a sailor has become increas ingly more difficult to pin down so too has the definition of a modern navy Of course the core of a navy remains ships and sailors but today s navies also consist of planes and helicopters commando units and remote control vehicles This volume will trace the evolution that has led from oardriven galleyships to nuclearpowered submar rines and beyond Its pages will chronicle some 5 000 years of naval history and show how new exploits are continuing to add to naval tradition In describing the navies of today this book will profile some prominent national navies from around the world demonstrating how the challenge of mastering the seas is one that inspires people from a variety of cultures Ultimately naval tradition is not just long lived but is truly a global phenomenon Understanding that tradition is both a key to understanding history and a clue to the future Io
WHAT IS A NAVY navy is the seagoing arm of a nation s military forces In an army the indi vidual soldier is the fighting unit In a navy however it is the individual ship that makes up a fighting unit All members of the crew from the captain on the bridge to the boiler technician work together in order to make the ship an effective instru ment of combat WHY Is A NAVY IMPORTANT On April 2 1982 the military forces of Argentina seized the Falkland Islands a British possession in the South Atlantic Three days later a huge task force of Great Britain's Royal Navy sailed from Portsmouth England on a mission to recover the islands Before the end of April the task force had covered the 8 000 miles 13 000 kilometers between England and the Falklands Military operations officially began on April 25 Less OTI
