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Craig L. Symonds

クレイグ・エル・シモンズ

Craig L. Symonds

Aliases: Craig Symonds / Craig Lee Symonds

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1946-12-31 （Long Beach, California）
Nationality
American
Languages
English
Residence History
Anaheim, California → Annapolis, Maryland → Newport, Rhode Island

Career

Occupations
Naval historian, Historian, Professor
Active Years
1976-2025
Affiliations
United States Naval Academy, Naval War College

Education

University of California, Los Angeles
History
Degree: Bachelor of Arts
Period: 1963-1967
Year of Graduation: 1967
Country: United States
University of Florida
History
Degree: Master of Arts
Period: 1967-1969
Year of Graduation: 1969
Country: United States
Thesis: The defense of the southwestern frontier, 1784–1794
University of Florida
History
Degree: Ph.D.
Period: 1969-1976
Year of Graduation: 1976
Country: United States
Dissertation: Navalists and antinavalists: the naval policy debate in the United States, 1785–1827

Awards

Lincoln Prize
2009
Work: Lincoln and His Admirals
Organization: Lincoln Prize Committee
Result: 受賞
Samuel Eliot Morison Award for Naval Literature
2015
Work: Neptune: The Allied Invasion of Europe and the D-Day Landings
Organization: Naval Order of the United States
Result: 受賞
Pritzker Military Museum & Library Literature Award for Lifetime Achievement in Military Writing
2023
Organization: Pritzker Military Museum & Library
Result: 受賞
Commodore Dudley W. Knox Naval History Lifetime Achievement Award
2014
Organization: Naval Historical Foundation
Result: 受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Lincoln and His Admirals

2008 Naval History

Story of Abraham Lincoln and his admirals during the Civil War.

American Civil WarLeadershipNaval Strategy

Neptune: The Allied Invasion of Europe and the D-Day Landings

2014 Military History

Detailed history of the D-Day landings.

World War IID-DayAllied Invasion

The Battle of Midway

2011 Naval History

Definitive history of the Battle of Midway.

Pacific WarNaval BattleStrategy

Nimitz at War: Command Leadership from Pearl Harbor to Tokyo Bay

2022 Biography

Leadership of Admiral Nimitz.

LeadershipPacific WarNimitz

Bibliography

  • Charleston Blockade: The Journals of John B. Marchand, USN
  • Navalists and Antinavalists: The Naval Policy Debate in the United States, 1785–1827
  • A Battlefield Atlas of the Civil War
  • Recollections of a Naval Officer, 1841–1865
  • Joseph E. Johnston: A Civil War Biography
  • The Naval Institute Historical Atlas of the U.S. Navy
  • Stonewall of the West: Patrick Cleburne and the Civil War
  • Confederate Admiral: The Life and Wars of Franklin Buchanan
  • Decision at Sea: Five Naval Battles That Shaped American History
  • Lincoln and his Admirals
  • The Battle of Midway
  • The Civil War at Sea
  • Neptune: The Allied Invasion of Europe and the D-Day Landings
  • World War Two at Sea: A Global History
  • Nimitz at War
  • Annapolis Goes to War

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Detailed archival researchStrategic analysis
Recurring Motifs
Naval leadership decisionsPivotal battles

Legacy

Preeminent American naval historian specializing in Civil War and WWII naval history, recipient of numerous awards.

Trivia

  • Served in US Naval Reserve reaching Lieutenant.
  • Co-winner of Lincoln Prize with James M. McPherson.