Great Britain. Royal Navy

Gunnery Lecture No. III.

Captain Percy Scott introduces a paper about training ranges and long-range firing by Lieutenant Commander William Sowden Sims. Scott believes the paper should be studied by officers interested in gunnery training and in towing targets. In the extracts from Sims’s paper, he addresses current misconceptions in teaching men to aim, as well as examining the proper methods of training. Sims believes it is important to train with firearms that are accurate, as well as to train men under circumstances that will test their skills and nerve. Sims concludes his paper with a summary of his points. He says, “You must first train your pointers always to aim accurately, then train your ‘ship’ to get the maximum results from their skill.”

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1904-10-21

Letter from Hermann Speck von Sternburg to Theodore Roosevelt

Hermann Speck von Sternburg sends President Roosevelt a memorandum on Viscount Edward Grey of Fallodon about navies and part of an article written by Andrew Carnegie regarding the growth of Royal Navy.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-02-14

Letter from George H. McConnon to Edwin C. Pendleton

Dr. McConnon reports on the medical relief he provided to Americans, Englishmen, and natives in Kingston, Jamaica, following the recent earthquake. He went to shore and found Americans who were not injured but fearful of mob violence. He dressed wounds and responded to medical needs as they arose, assisted in resupplying medical stores, and treated patients.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-01-20

Partial articles from The Navy and Army Illustrated

The article “Some Important Historical Works” reviews two recently published books, one of which is the sixth volume of the series The Royal Navy, a History from the Earliest Times to the Present. While the work had several authors, including Alfred Thayer Mahan, the review focuses largely on Theodore Roosevelt’s coverage of the War of 1812.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1901-12-21

Letter from Theodore Roosevelt to George Haven Putnam

Theodore Roosevelt declines to join a proposed organization, since he is spending all his time promoting an undivided American nationalism. He agrees with the aim of the organization, that Britain and the United States should have very close ties and be sworn allies. He admires the British Navy and hopes that the United States will build one comparable, although not surpassing it. The envelope is addressed to Mrs. Douglas Robinson.

Collection

Harvard College Library

Creation Date

1918-12-05

Letter from Theodore Roosevelt to Kermit Roosevelt

President Roosevelt tells his son Kermit about the guests they have been entertaining, including poet Madison Julius Cawein and his wife. Roosevelt adds that he has read more poems by Edwin Arlington Robinson. Other visitors included Prince Louis of Battenberg and his nephew Prince Alexander, who attended a state dinner and sat next to Secretary of the Navy Charles J. Bonaparte.

Collection

Harvard College Library

Creation Date

1905-11-06

Letter from Theodore Roosevelt to Louis Alexander Mountbatten

Theodore Roosevelt thinks that when World War I goes in history, it will be recognized that Admiral Louis Alexander Mountbatten’s action in connection with the mobilization of the British Fleet was one of two or three critical things which the Allies did that allowed them to neutralize the extraordinary German efficiency. Roosevelt assures Mountbatten that he will receive credit for this. Roosevelt also sends Mountbatten a copy of an article he has written in which he references Mountbatten’s actions.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1915-10-25

Letter from Theodore Roosevelt to H. Hesketh-Prichard

Theodore Roosevelt and his four sons would like to be in the trenches with British Captain H. Hesketh-Prichard. Roosevelt notes England has fared well in the war, better than Americans would have, although not as well as France has done. Roosevelt is “horrorstruck” by the attitudes of both Welsh miners and rich British men making money off of the war. He also is amazed that the Brits fall behind others in munitions production despite their industrialized economy. Roosevelt advocated mandatory service and has sent his sons all to Plattsburgh for military camp.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1915-08-26

Letter from Theodore Roosevelt to Robert H. Thompson

Theodore Roosevelt is sorry he will not be able to speak at Long Island. Roosevelt believes that sea-power is playing an important role in the current war, and the United States must build up the navy.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1915-06-29

Letter from Theodore Roosevelt to Albert J. Beveridge

Theodore Roosevelt agrees with Albert J. Beveridge’s opinion that additional battleships would have given Spain the excuse to avoid the Spanish War. Roosevelt mentions the high quality of the naval program when he was president and reiterates that World War I was not caused by anything connected to the freedom of the seas.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1916-01-24

Letter from Theodore Roosevelt to Robert Means Thompson

President Roosevelt informs Colonel Thompson that he does not need to see the November number of The Navy to express his opinion that the publication has done more harm than good. While they need criticism, it is worthless if it is malicious, untruthful, or foolish, thereby damaging the Navy’s public reputation. Roosevelt wants Thompson’s views of the Channel Fleet. Regarding Japan, the United States’ assurance of friendship is all that is needed.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-11-08

Letter from Theodore Roosevelt to William Sowden Sims

President Roosevelt asks Admiral Sims, inspector of target practice, how long the battle ranges are on his ships and shares information on the British and Japanese fleets he received from former Civil Lord of the Admiralty of Great Britain Arthur Hamilton Lee. 

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-10-13

Letter from Theodore Roosevelt to Louis Alexander Mountbatten

President Roosevelt thanks Prince Louis Mountbatten for the “remarkable” copies of the medals sculpted by Augustus Saint-Gaudens. He comments on his efforts to have Saint-Gaudens’s newly designed gold coins adopted. Roosevelt wishes Mountbatten could have attended the recent naval review. Although “not much of a fleet” compared to the British Royal Navy, every ship is modern and efficient.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-09-14

Letter from Theodore Roosevelt to Whitelaw Reid

President Roosevelt sends Ambassador Reid copies of the dispatches he sent to the Japanese government and the Russian Czar. He discusses the implications of a potential Anglo-Japanese alliance.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1905-09-08

Letter from Theodore Roosevelt to H. Mortimer Durand

President Roosevelt apologizes to British Ambassador Durand for the “bother” about the English fleet. Roosevelt is trying to arrange with New York Mayor George B. McClellan for the fleet to visit in November.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1905-09-08

Letter from Theodore Roosevelt to Cameron McRae Winslow

President Roosevelt thanks Commander Winslow for the letter, and asks if he can continue as his aide until the English fleet arrives. At that point Roosevelt plans to put Lieutenant-Commander Albert L. Key in his place, and detail him as an additional aide.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1905-08-31

Letter from Theodore Roosevelt to H. Mortimer Durand

President Roosevelt tells British Ambassador Durand that he thinks it will be a good thing to schedule a visit from the naval squadron visit for November, and recommends substituting Newport, Rhode Island, for New York, New York, as that is the location of the naval station. If New York requests the squadron to subsequently visit, that can be arranged.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1905-08-19

Letter from Theodore Roosevelt to George B. McClellan

President Roosevelt acknowledges New York Mayor George B. McClellan’s worries about the a British naval squadron visiting his city, and offers to have the visit changed to send them to Newport, Rhode Island instead. The squadron was not originally scheduled to go there because the extreme interest members of high society pay to foreigners is embarrassing.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1905-08-04

Letter from Theodore Roosevelt to Stephen Bleecker Luce

Assistant Secretary of the Navy Roosevelt strongly objects to getting the frigate, President, back from the British Royal Navy and hopes Admiral Stephen Bleecker Luce agrees. 

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1897-09-20

Letter from Andrew Carnegie to Theodore Roosevelt

Andrew Carnegie has a “deep anxiety” about President Roosevelt’s plan to expand the number of ships in the Navy. This reversal of his original disarmament policy could harm relations with other naval powers, particularly Great Britain, which had been committed to reducing its naval arsenal over the past several years. While Carnegie dismisses the possibility of a war, he cautions that such an act will cause unnecessary tension, give Roosevelt the appearance of weakness and indecisiveness, and would bring unnecessary expenditures during a time of economic crisis. Carnegie instead urges Roosevelt to focus his energies on helping economic recovery.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-11-18