Technology, doctrine, and politics of US coast defenses, 1880-1945: a case study in US defense planning

Thesis/Dissertation · Wed Jan 01 00:00:00 EST 1986

OSTI ID:7048454

Hamburger, K E

This study examined the technology of fortifications and armaments available for coast defense in the United States and Europe during each period of change between 1880 and 1945, and analyzed the internal and external political developments, which influenced legislation on coast defenses in the United States. Primary sources included congressional and military archival files, popular and service publications, and technical papers concerning weapons. With respect to defense planning after 1970, primary sources were reports of defense-related commissions, investigations, and hearings Secondary sources included books, articles, and monographs on defense matters since 1880. The study concludes that military professionals of the Army and the Navy tended to follow parochial service interests in recommending how the coasts should be defended. Congressmen usually made decisions on coast defenses based on the perceived benefits of proposed legislation to their constitutents, rather than the national need for coastal defense. As new technology became available for coast defense, the nation never conducted a reappraisal of the need for an integrated force of diverse weapons to perform the mission. Fortifications were retained long beyond obsolescence, and the weapons were never properly integrated into their potential roles.

• Research Organization: Duke Univ., Durham, NC (USA)
• OSTI ID: 7048454
• Resource Relation: Other Information: Thesis (Ph. D.)
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

98 NUCLEAR DISARMAMENT, SAFEGUARDS, AND PHYSICAL PROTECTION
29 ENERGY PLANNING
POLICY AND ECONOMY
COASTAL REGIONS
NATIONAL DEFENSE
POLITICAL ASPECTS
TECHNOLOGY ASSESSMENT
USA
LEGISLATION
PLANNING
INSTITUTIONAL FACTORS
NORTH AMERICA
350000* - Arms Control- (1987-)
290000 - Energy Planning & Policy