The Influence of Technology in Amphibious Warfare and its impact on U.S. Geopolitical Strategy from 1898 to 1945

This dissertation research examines the influence of technology on amphibious warfare and its impact on the United States’ geopolitical strategy from 1898 to 1945. Specifically, this dissertation investigates how amphibious warfare went through a gradual technological transformation that not only defined American geopolitical strategy, but also had political and social ramifications on the United States. As a result of the Second Industrial Revolution, the unprecedented development of military weapons and technology enabled industrialized nations, such as the United States, to quickly project large, powerful military forces in almost any part of the world. With the conduct of amphibious warfare changing as a result of the technological and scientific know-how of a well-developed industrial base, the United States was able to appreciate the advantages and challenges of its geographic position in the international system to develop highly sophisticated amphibious capabilities to land and defeat its enemies in both the eastern and western hemispheres. In examining the influence of technology on amphibious warfare and its impact on American geopolitical strategy, this dissertation explores the technological and scientific influences that contributed to the United States’ development of amphibious warfare; the political and diplomatic environment that led to this dynamic military capability; and the manner in which this technological influence transformed both the United States and its relationship with the world