Posted on 12/17/2007 4:27:53 AM PST by ConorMacNessa
WASHINGTON (NNS) -- One hundred years ago on Dec. 16, 1907, the Great White Fleet departed Hampton Roads, Va., marking the first global naval voyage in America's young history.
The U.S. Navy is honoring the anniversary of Theodore Roosevelt's Great White Fleet deployment over the next year to underscore the Navy's commitment to sustaining a Navy and Marine Corps responsive to the challenges of the 21st century. To kick-off the commemorative period, the Secretary of the Navy, Donald C. Winter, is hosting a ceremony from that very home port on board USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71) Dec. 15.
In 1907, Theodore Roosevelt, 26th president of the United States, sent a portion of the Atlantic fleet on a world tour to test naval readiness, establish global presence and generate international goodwill.
"Theodore Roosevelt's idea to send a fleet of 16 U.S. battleships on a world tour, was a dramatic gesture aimed at audiences both at home and abroad," said Winter. "To the world, the message was that the United States had arrived as a significant world power, outward-looking, and filled with goodwill towards every nation. To the public of this great country, the message was that you have a Navy to be proud of, and that the strength of the U.S. Navy is a primary source of our status as a nation of influence and power."
Forgot to check off the excerpt box.
That’s a cool picture of those old battleships!
As I remember, Teddy Roosevelt had a battle with Congress to pay for this bit of sabor rattling not unlike what GW faces today.
Talk softly and carry a big stick!
Are those ships intentionally burning that inefficiently, or was that how it was done back then? An odd sight, to our modern eyes.
I do not remember who said it (more currently), but I always liked this quote:
“Just because ‘Gun Boat Diplomacy’ is a pejorative term, does not mean it doesn’t work.”
Semper Fi,
I believe that was customary at the time. Many of the ships in the GWF were outdated at the time of the circumnavigation.
Also, they were coal-burning ships.
The ships were pre dreadnoughts, that burned coal to produce steam. Had short ranges compared to the later oil burners, thus the great powers needed coaling stations. That is why the US and many other naval powers competed for control of the Pacific Islands to maintain military presence in their overseas colonies (raw materials).
They were coal burners. The fleet had to plan its route in order to allow it to get to stations where it could coal up or from which colliers could sail to coal them up. I believe that by the time of the “biggie” (WWII) most fleets were oil fueled and the smoke could be better controlled. If the modern liberal....er, uh progressive environmentalist trash were paying attention our fleet today would be powered by sails instead of nuclear power. Of course we wouldn’t need a fleet because we would have surrendered by now. Perhaps President Paul can achieve that when he surrenders.
He'd better be careful *smirk*:
In 1996, the USS Leyte Gulf deployed for six months as part of the USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71) Carrier Battle Group (CVBG). During that deployment, On October 14, the carrier Theodore Roosevelt, without warning, reversed its engines while the Leyte Gulf was behind it and slammed into the cruiser's bow approximately 100 miles off the coast of Cape Hattaras, NC, while conducting routine operations in the western Atlantic. The collision caused $9 million in damages to the cruiser and $7 million to the carrier. The Leyte Gulf's captain at that time was relieved of commandas a result of the incident.
Bully!
If I recall my local history correctly, they departed from their stop at the Jamestown Festival in Norfolk, a huge real estate promotion on a piece of land bounded by the Elizabeth River and Hampton Roads. The Secretary of the Navy, upon visiting the site, had the bright idea that this would be a good location for a Navy base, thus giving rise to the largest Navy base in the world - the Norfolk Naval Air Station.
If I remember my college history correctly, TR had enough money to get the Fleet halfway around the world. He correctly reasoned that Congress would appropriate the funds to bring them back, thus having the circumnavigation.
Sounds a lot like GWB!
I really like that pic.
And I’ll bet Teddy didn’t bother to purchase any carbon offsets before the launch.
Wow! Curb feelers to aid in parallel parking.
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