Influencing the land campaign ...From the sea: the interaction of armies and navies in the American Revolutionary War

• Main Author: Bolich, Harry P.
• Other Authors: Breemer, Jan S.
• Language: en_US
• Published: Monterey, California. Naval Postgraduate School 2013
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10945/31521

This thesis contends that in wars between nations, there is a link between developments at sea and the character of the land campaign. When war occurs in the littoral area, command of the sea offers advantages to the military commander ashore. Those advantages include: mobility of troops and logistics, operational initiative, improved geographic access, and surprise. Naval superiority alone does not guarantee these advantages. The superior naval force must first concentrate and win command of the sea before that command can be exercised. It is only in the exercise of command of the sea that these advantages are realized. Background for supporting these contentions is provided by defining pertinent concepts such as maritime power, sea power, naval power, sea force, and littoral warfare. Next, the American Revolutionary War is analyzed with a focus on the interaction of land and sea forces. An attempt is made to associate changes in the character of the land campaign with changes in the naval condition between belligerents. Linkage is established between events at sea and ashore, and the conclusion is that the character of the land campaign can be influenced. From the Sea.