| NAVAL SOCIAL HISTORY | Social Reform in the United States Navy 1798-1862 |
| SOCIAL REFORM UNITED STATES NAVY 1798-1862 H.D.Langley | £15.00 + P & P |
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SOCIAL REFORM IN THE UNITED STATES NAVY, 1798-1862 HAROLD D. LANGLEY 1967 First by |
Link to other Sailing Navy books here A NEAR FINE condition light green cloth bound book with dark green lettering to spine & front board- in a VERY GOOD condition unclipped, lightly rubbed on some edges and with light shelf wear to spine |
JACKET BLURBS
SOCIAL REFORM IN THE UNITED STATES NAVY, 1798-1862
HAROLD D. LANGLEY
"0 ye moralists! talk not of the temptations of a city, the corrupting tendency of brothels, the demoralizing influence of theatres and public exhibitions, for city life with all its evil accompaniments, is a career of godliness in comparison with that which is endured on board a man-of-war." Seaman Jacob Hazen, circa 1839
The humanitarian spirit that swept nineteenth-century America- left its mark on virtually all aspects of life. Historians have chronicled its impact on Negro slavery, on workers, women, children, the poor, the insane, and the imprisoned, but its role in the military realm remains a neglected area for historical exploration. Professor Langley here provides a fascinating account of the impact of this reform spirit on the United States Navy, and especially on the lot of the common sailor.
In its "unreformed" state, the U. S. Navy was regarded as a monarchical, authoritarian institution too closely patterned after that of Great Britain. Warships of the day resembled small kingdoms under the absolute rule of the captain and his nobles, the junior officers. At the bottom of this autocratic structure labored the seamen, often characterized as serfs, peasants, or unruly rabble, but seldom as freemen. These conditions were in marked contrast to the nation's growing sense of independence from colonialism and dedication to democratic and equalitarian ideology. Reformers argued that as long as seamen in the public service were oppressed and exploited, it was a mockery for politicians and others to declare their allegiance to the cause of the common man. When agitation against Negro slavery began to divide the country, the lot of the common seaman was underscored anew.
The author illustrates the influence of reform efforts on naval institutions by investigating four major themes in their over-all social context : the origins and activities of religiously motivated societies dedicated to working among sailors, particularly the American Seamen's Friend Society; the Navy's manpower shortage and methods of recruitment; agitation against corporal punishment, itself a chapter in the history of American penal reform; and the movement to abolish the sailor's ration of whisky or grog, an outgrowth of the American temperance crusade.
These developments are set against a revealing history of the Navy and its position vis- a-vis the national political arena.
Contents
Part One: THE NAVY AND THE NATION
1 The Formative Years, 1798-1815
2 The Years of Decline and Reform, 1815-62Part Two: RELIGION AND THE REFORMERS
3 Uplifting the Sailor
Part Three: THE MANPOWER PROBLEM
4 Abuses in Enlistment and Discharges
5 Toward a Career Enlisted ServicePart Four: THE QUEST FOR HUMANE DISCIPLINE
6 The Use and Abuse of Corporal Punishment
7 The End of FloggingPart Five: THE ALCOHOL PROBLEM
8 The Temperance Crusade in the Navy
9 The End of GrogPart Six: EPILOGUE
10 Conclusion
Bibliography
Index
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