Admiral Arleigh Burke - Softcover

E. B Potter

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1591146925 ISBN 13: 9781591146926

Publisher: Naval Institute Press, 2005

Synopsis

Considered by many to be the father of the modern U.S. Navy, Arleigh Burke was a sea warrior, strategist, and unparalleled service leader whose impact on the course of naval warfare is still felt today. E.B. Potter's biography follows Burke's distinguished naval career from the his early days at the Naval Academy through the dramatic destroyer operations in the Solomons, where he earned his nickname ""31-Knot Burke,"" to his participation, as chief of staff to Vice Admiral Marc Mitscher, in the crucial carrier operations of World War II. <br><br>The author also fully examines Burke's postwar service as a United Nations delegate to the Korean truce talks and his tenure as chief of naval operations for an unprecedented six years, from 1955 to 1961, where he was a strong advocate of carrier aviation, nuclear propulsion, and a major force in developing the navy's Polaris missile program. In 1977 he was awarded the Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honour, and became the first living U.S. Naval officer to have a class of ship named after him - the Arleigh Burke guided missile destroyers.

About this title

Review:

"One of the military's most colorful figures, and the last surviving WW II naval commander, '31-Knot Burke' was a destroyer captain in the Solomons campaign, served as Admiral Marc Mitscher's chief of staff in the final two years of the war and, in 1955, was chosen over 91 senior admirals as Chief of Naval Operations. Retiring after four decades of active service in 1961, Burke became co-founder and director of the Center for Strategic and International Studies at Georgetown University. Potter, former chairman of naval history at the U.S. Naval Academy, has written an entertaining biography of a talented and resourceful officer who was instrumental in the development of the missile-armed, nuclear-propelled navy. Of particular interest is Potter's clarifying account of the controversy over unification of the armed services in the late 1940s and Burke's role in the so-called "Revolt of the Admirals." Publishers Weekly

About the Author:

The late <strong>E. B. Potter</strong>, a long-time history professor at the U.S. Naval Academy and former naval officer who served in the Pacific during World War II, is the author of several books, including <em>Bull Halsey, Nimitz</em>, and <em>Sea Power: A Naval History</em>, which he wrote with Admiral Nimitz

About this edition

• Publisher: Naval Institute Press
• Publication date: 2005
• ISBN 10: 1591146925
• ISBN 13: 9781591146926
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 494