Kyle Harrison
to-read

The Neptune Factor

The Neptune Factor: Alfred Thayer Mahan and the Concept of Sea Power
Author
Nicholas A. Lambert
Published
2024
Pages
440
Recommended
Once
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Why it’s on the list: Lambert’s reassessment of Alfred Thayer Mahan — arguing that the sea-power doctrine navies built themselves around was a misreading of what Mahan actually said.

Where I saw it: Recommended by @DustinWalper on X (June 30, 2025): “Essential reading for the sea-curious.”

Connections

  • World War I — the war fought on the doctrine Lambert reexamines.
  • Globalization — sea power as the thing that made trade-based empire possible.