WEST BETHESDA, Md. –
The United States of America is the dominant naval power in the world, but it wouldn't be here today if not for allies with common interests.
So says naval engineer and 2017 Pulitzer finalist for History Dr. Larrie Ferreiro, who visited his former colleagues at Naval Surface Warfare Center, Carderock Division in West Bethesda, Maryland, to discuss Spain and France's critical role in American independence, a topic he explored in his book "Brothers at Arms: American Independence and the Men of France and Spain Who Saved It."
"We fought the Revolutionary War without a navy, artillery or gunpowder of our own," said Ferreiro, who is currently the director of research for the Defense Acquisition University Center for Defense Acquisition Research, and adjunct professor of history at George Mason University (GMU) and served at Carderock and Naval Sea Systems Command for 20 years. "The Declaration of Independence was not written for Great Britain; it was an engraved invitation for France and Spain to join us. They came here to fight Britain because they were the long-time enemy of France and Spain, and America is where the fighting was. We owe our existence to them."
Ferreiro spoke to an audience of Carderock employees and student interns, calling engineering the continuation of politics by other means and saying that studying history and the context of that history can give engineers like those at Carderock more insight in navigating their own political environments. He said that in supporting America during the war, both countries were primarily supporting their own national interests, a dynamic still present in many alliances today.
France's primary interest in the war was to avenge its loss in the French and Indian War, which was fought in the colonies from 1754 to 1763 and forced France to cede territory to Britain upon losing. After the Declaration of Independence, France began supplying covert support to the Americans, including most of their weapons leading up to the Battle of Saratoga, the turning point of the Revolutionary War. France became an official ally of the young nation at that point, with Spain joining France to fight Britain, with a combined fleet unifying the two nations.
"Wars aren't fought based on altruism; it was in the best interests of both France and Spain to defeat Great Britain," Ferreiro said. "Spain wanted Great Britain to return Gibraltar to them, but they wouldn't, so Spain sided with France. Any victory or defeat in this war was going to be primarily naval in nature and everyone involved knew that. The French navy coming to the United States put the British on the defensive."
French and Spanish forces comprised about 200,000 of the troops who fought in the war from 1776 to 1783, compared to 250,000 to 380,000 Americans. The French and Spanish were also able to hinder Great Britain abroad, and they weren't the only ones resisting the main global power of the time. According to Ferreiro, the British were spread incredibly thin by 1781 due to having to deal with five different nation-states around the world, and British will and ability to fight began to wane, leading to their eventual defeat in the war and American independence. The United States increased its naval power and influence over time, eventually reaching parity with and exceeding Britain during World War II.
"Today, we are clearly the hegemonic naval power in the world; there's a significant margin between us and the other navies in the world, by an order of magnitude," Ferreiro said. "We need to understand what happened before to keep from repeating mistakes made by ourselves and others to effectively continue to operate throughout the world and in the global commons. Ninety percent of the world's trade is by sea and the Navy will always have a very important role to play in protecting that trade, while diplomacy is what we need to continue to work effectively with our allies and maintain that position."
Ferreiro stayed for a lengthy discussion with Carderock's employees and interns after his presentation, answering questions from Carderock Commanding Officer Capt. Mark Vandroff and others about the Revolutionary War and its battles in more detail, along with the state of naval affairs at the time and today, and other relevant topics.
Ferreiro received his doctorate in the history of science and technology from Imperial College London and has worked for over 35 years for the U.S. Navy, U.S. Coast Guard and Department of Defense. He worked as an exchange naval architect with the French navy for several years, was technical lead for Naval Vessel Rules at the American Bureau of Shipping and was trained as a British naval constructor at the University College London. In addition to his work at GMU, he also teaches history and engineering at the Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, New Jersey, and has written the books "Ships and Science," "Measure of the Earth" and more.