Mahan and Corbett emphasize different parts of sea power

Mahan and Corbett both advocate sea power, but they wrote for audiences with different assumptions. Mahan had to establish the need for American sea power, while Corbett could concentrate on how Britain should use an already accepted source of national strength. Treating Mahan as interested only in battles overlooks his discussion of convoys beyond the most frequently read opening chapters. Their correspondence is offered as further evidence of their shared concerns and different circumstances. British business interests helped make the case for naval spending, and Britain's national identity also gave naval power an unusually prominent public place.