The content of this article comes from the Internet, if it is inconsistent with the actual situation or there is infringement, please contact to delete. This article is only published in today's headlines, please do not move.
Time flies, and the years are like a shuttle. Walking into the life of George Dewey is like embarking on a long journey of history. The commodore was promoted to the spring on May 23, 1896, and had ambitions to take on high positions in the Navy. In his view, the position will mean endless possibilities. But reality disappointed him a little, because although he had risen to brigadier general, he had a force with no ships to dispatch. This period of time was the nourishment of his ambition and the opportunity for him to establish political relations with many celebrities in the political circles. When George Dewey's fate became intertwined with the political power of Theodore Roosevelt and others, a new chapter began in his life.
But to understand George Dewey, we need to rewind to the Civil War period, when he was just a young captain under General Farragut. However, this military career did not extinguish his warmongerence, and more than 30 years later, in 1897, he was still ambitious and unwilling to be ordinary. With only 3 years to retire, he knows that his time is limited and he is determined to write a brilliant chapter again.
In this complex and dramatic history, how did George Dewey befriend political officials such as Theodore Roosevelt and eventually lead to the position of commander of the Asian squadron? The answer may lie behind that history, when things began to change in September 1897, when Secretary of the Navy Lang left Washington for vacation. Congressman William Chandler's letter of recommendation to Long put an officer named John Adams Howell on the table. The congressman suggested to Long that Howell replace the outgoing McNair as the new commander of the U.S. Asian squadron.
However, the unexpected exposure of this recommendation letter seems to have changed Dewey's fate. Roosevelt promptly informed Dewey and encouraged him to go to Congressman Redfield Proctor to fight for his chance. So, George Dewey, full of enthusiasm, began his path of political mediation.
Finally, with the support of Roosevelt's political forces, Dewey was appointed commander of the Asian Squadron on October 21, 1897. However, this promotion seems to be accompanied by some disgraceful controversy. Secretary of the Navy Lang scoffed at his promotion, not forgetting to sarcastically say: "I am pleased to appoint you as commander of the fleet, Commodore Dewey." But don't think of yourself as a major general and do things with this mentality. You are just a brigadier general. ”
Nevertheless, Dewey was looking forward to the position, as he believed that war between the United States and Spain was inevitable, and that this appointment would allow him to travel to Asia to conduct a victorious military operation. So, on December 7, 1897, he set foot on a ship to the Pacific Ocean. On the first day of the new year, he arrived in Nagasaki, Japan, ushering in his new career as commander of the Asian squadron.
But even at this point, Dewey still seems to have not been able to shake off the shadow of promotion. On the issue of etiquette, he had a dispute with Secretary of the Navy Lang. According to the convention, a commodore who was the commander of the Asian squadron could fly the rear admiral's flag, but Lang disputed this, leaving Dewey to fly only the pennant representing the commodore. Behind this subsection, there seems to be a larger political struggle.
When Dewey officially took over as commander, he immediately began to study the situation in Asia. He realized that the situation in East Asia was extremely complex, and countries such as Germany, Britain, Russia and Japan were competing to strengthen their military presence in the region. And the United States, while increasing its troops, has too broad a range of tasks. George Dewey's challenge was not just a lack of combat readiness, but also a lack of intelligence.
The Asian squadron's original mission was to protect U.S. citizens stationed in China and North Korea, but in reality, the force was weak and widely distributed. In the face of possible tensions, Dewey must act to ensure the safety of his fleet and ammunition supply lines. But it was a daunting task, as he was desperately short of ammunition and had to rely on the USS Baltimore to deliver new supplies. It was a process fraught with uncertainty, because whether the Baltimore would arrive on time was closely related to Dewey's plan of action. At this point, Dewey's every decision could affect the future of the war.
One of the problems Dewey also had to deal with was that the intelligence he had about the Philippines was extremely old, and the U.S. Navy's knowledge of the Philippines had not been updated since 1876. Faced with a potential conflict with Spain, Dewey realized that he had to obtain new intelligence in order to develop a reasonable plan of action.
It was against this background that George Dewey entered a new phase of life, faced with political challenges, military preparations and the tasks of intelligence gathering. This key figure in history, at an important moment, became a witness and creator of history.
The above content and materials are derived from the Internet, and the author of this article does not intend to target or allude to any real country, political system, organization, race, individual. The above does not mean that the author of this article endorses the laws, rules, opinions, behaviors in the article and is responsible for the authenticity of the relevant information. The author of this article is not responsible for any issues arising above or related to any of the above, nor does it assume any direct or indirect legal liability.