Since I've have and read both books, I thought I should put up a review for them. Overall, they are both very good books. Discussing just about anything you would want to know about each major navy. To Crown the Waves (WWI era) has chapter on the following countries: Austria-Hungary France Germany Great Britain Italy Russia United States Other Navies (Japan, Ottoman Empire) On Sea Contested (WWII era) is basically the same, but Japan is studied as a major navy. This it the basic outline of the books. Country's Name. (Exp: France: The Marine Nationale) I Backstory: A. History B. Mission II Organization A. Command Structure I. Administration II. Personnel III. Intelligence B. Doctrine I. Surface Warfare II. Aviation III. Antisubmarine IV. Submarine V. Amphibious Operations VI. Trade Protection VII. Communications III Material A. Ships B. Aviation I. Ship-based II. Shore-based C. Weapon Systems I. Gunnery II. Torpedoes III. Antisubmarine Warfare IV. Mines D. Infrastructure I. Logistics II. Bases III. Industry IV. Recapitulation A. Wartime Evolution B. Summary and Assessment Plus there are charts showing strategic naval bases, nice photos of ships, plus much more. Highly recommend to anyone interested in the major navies of the world, and their development, strengths and weaknesses etc, etc, etc.
Heh. When I read the title of this post, I first thought, 'What the Hell is a Contested Book Review'? And images of author v critic deathmatches spawned in my head...
