The Accidental Admiral

Last updated
The Accidental Admiral
The Accidental Admiral.jpg
Author James G. Stavridis
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
GenreMemoir
Publisher Naval Institute Press
Publication date
October 2014
Pages288
ISBN 978-1-61251-704-9

The Accidental Admiral: A Sailor Takes Command at NATO is a 2014 memoir by James G. Stavridis, a retired four-star admiral in the United States Navy. In this work he recounts his experiences as NATO's 16th Supreme Allied Commander Europe from June 2009 to May 2013 as well as his insights regarding leadership and the future of global security. [1]

Contents

Content

In this "memoir of leadership and life lessons," Admiral Stavridis describes the challenges he faced as the most senior leader of NATO, including the complicated operations in Afghanistan, "military intervention in Libya, preparing for possible war in Syria, countering cyber-threats, and confronting piracy." [1]

He advocates for the use of "smart power," the combination of hard and soft power, to achieve international security in the twenty-first century. He explains that building bridges and connections among different global players is important in modern-day international politics. [2] [3]

Stavridis writes chapters on Libya, Israel, Syria, the Balkans, and Russia In each chapter, he contextualizes the problems these nations or regions face. He describes his involvement in these areas as well as personal anecdotes about interacting with foreign leaders during his time as Supreme Allied Commander. [4]

In the final part of his book, Stavridis discusses the values that inform his leadership. With aphorisms like "speak with simplicity and precision," he guides readers on how to be an effective leader in any situation. [4]

Title

The title of Stavridis' book refers to the fact that he was the first admiral to serve as Supreme Allied Commander of NATO, a position which is typically led by generals. [5] He uses this "accidental" event to discuss other unexpected experiences that influenced his life. "Plans don't work," Stavridis says in segment for Pritzker Military Presents, "I think all of our lives are somewhat accidental." [1]

One such accidental experience occurred when Stavridis nearly decided to leave the U.S. Navy after he had fulfilled his active duty requirement, a choice that surely would have shaped his life differently. [6]

Reception

Former U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates had positive remarks on the book. He calls Stavridis "one of the most forward-thinking military officers and enlightened leaders of his generation" and states that The Accidental Admiral gives readers a window into what it is like to wrestle with the toughest 21st century problems of strategy and diplomacy.” [7]

The Accidental Admiral was featured as a Reader's Pick on the website for the Christian Science Monitor. [8]

In his review, Ryan Evans praises Stavridis' neutral writing about controversial global events. Evans writes: "Stavridis, perhaps the ultimate warrior-scholar of his generation, offers his views on contentious events candidly, but does not let himself get bogged down in score-settling and vitriol." [9]

In his review for the Naval Historical Foundation, Stephen Phillips writes that Stavridis' works "should be in every naval officer’s collection." [4]

See also

Related Research Articles

Supreme Allied Commander is the title held by the most senior commander within certain multinational military alliances. It originated as a term used by the Allies during World War I, and is currently used only within NATO - for Supreme Allied Commander Europe and Supreme Allied Commander Transformation.

Naval War College staff college of the United States Navy

The Naval War College is the staff college and "Home of Thought" for the United States Navy at Naval Station Newport in Newport, Rhode Island. The NWC educates and develops leaders, supports defining the future Navy and associated roles and missions, supports combat readiness, and strengthens global maritime partnerships.

Edmund Giambastiani United States Navy admiral

Edmund P. Giambastiani Jr. is a retired United States Navy admiral who served as the seventh Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff from 2005 to 2007. He retired in 2007, after 37 years of service.

Frank Kelso American Navy admiral

Frank Benton Kelso II was an admiral of the United States Navy, who served as Chief of Naval Operations from 1990 to 1994.

United States Naval Forces Europe-Africa

United States Naval Forces Europe-Africa (CNE-CNA), is the United States Navy component command of the United States European Command and United States Africa Command. Prior to 2020, CNE-CNA was previously referred to as United States Naval Forces Europe – Naval Forces Africa (NAVEUR-NAVAF).

Allied Command Transformation Military command of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation

Allied Command Transformation (ACT) is a military command of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), formed in 2003 after restructuring.

Allied Joint Force Command Naples

Allied Joint Force CommandNaples is a NATO military command based in Lago Patria, in the Metropolitan City of Naples, Italy. It was activated on 15 March 2004, after what was effectively a redesignation of its predecessor command, Allied Forces Southern Europe (AFSOUTH), originally formed in 1951. In NATO Military Command Structure terms, AFSOUTH was a "Major Subordinate Command". The commander of JFC Naples reports to the Supreme Allied Commander Europe at the Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe, Casteau, Belgium.

Supreme Allied Commander Atlantic NATO Command

The Supreme Allied Commander Atlantic (SACLANT) was one of two supreme commanders of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), the other being the Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR). The SACLANT led Allied Command Atlantic is based at Norfolk, Virginia. The entire command was routinely referred to as 'SACLANT'.

<i>Proceedings</i> (magazine) American magazine

Proceedings is a 96-page monthly magazine published by the United States Naval Institute. Launched in 1874, it is one of the oldest continuously published magazines in the United States. Proceedings covers topics concerning global security and includes articles from military professionals and civilian experts, historical essays, book reviews, full-color photography, and reader commentary. Roughly a third are written by active-duty personnel, a third by retired military, and a third by civilians. Proceedings also frequently carries feature articles by Secretaries of Defense, Secretaries of the Navy, Chairmen of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and top leaders of the Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard.

James G. Stavridis US Navy admiral

James George Stavridis is a retired United States Navy admiral, currently an Operating Executive with The Carlyle Group and Chair of the Board of Counselors at McLarty Associates. In August 2018, he stepped down as the dean of the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University, a graduate school for international affairs. Stavridis serves as the chief international diplomacy and national security analyst for NBC News in New York. He is also Chair Emeritus of the Board of Directors of the U.S. Naval Institute and a Senior Fellow at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory.

Ivo Daalder American diplomat

Ivo H. Daalder, is President of the Chicago Council on Global Affairs and has served since July, 2013. He was the U.S. Permanent Representative on the Council of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) from May 2009 to July 2013. He is a specialist in European security. He was a member of the staff of United States National Security Council (NSC) during the administration of President Bill Clinton, and was one of the foreign policy advisers to President Barack Obama during his 2008 presidential campaign.

Harold W. Gehman Jr. United States admiral

Admiral Harold W. Gehman Jr. is a retired United States Navy four-star admiral who served as NATO's Supreme Allied Commander, Atlantic (SACLANT), Commander-in-Chief of the United States Joint Forces Command, one of the United States' Unified Combatant Commands, and Vice Chief of Naval Operations. He was also the Co-Chairman of the Commission that investigated the terrorist attack on the USS Cole and was Chairman of the Columbia Accident Investigation Board (CAIB) after the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry in 2003, killing all seven crew members.

Mark Stanhope Royal Navy officer

Admiral Sir Mark Stanhope, is a retired Royal Navy officer. After serving as a submarine commander, he commanded a frigate and then commanded an aircraft carrier on operational patrol off Sierra Leone. He went on to be Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Transformation and then Commander-in-Chief Fleet. He served as First Sea Lord and Chief of the Naval staff, the professional head of the Royal Navy, from July 2009 to April 2013. In this role he advised the British Government on the deployment of naval forces during operations around Libya. He was succeeded by Admiral Sir George Zambellas in April 2013.

Wesley L. McDonald United States admiral

Wesley L. McDonald was a United States Navy admiral and naval aviator. He led the first air strike against North Vietnam after the Gulf of Tonkin incident and was the commander in charge of Operation Urgent Fury, the invasion of Grenada to rescue American citizens.

Admiral Sir Ian Andrew Forbes, is a former Royal Navy officer who served as Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Atlantic.

Vice Admiral James Andrew Fulton CMM, CD is a retired Canadian Forces officer who served as Commander Maritime Command from 1980 to 1983.

Günter Luther German admiral

Günter Luther was a German admiral who became Inspector of the Navy and Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe for NATO. During World War II, he served as a military pilot in the Kriegsmarine and a paratrooper in the Luftwaffe. After the war, he joined the newly founded West German Bundesmarine in 1956.

James G. Foggo III United States Navy Admiral

James Gordon "Jamie" Foggo III is a retired United States Navy admiral who last served as commander of United States Naval Forces Europe-Africa and commander of Allied Joint Force Command Naples. He previously served as the director of Navy Staff. Prior to that, he served as the commander of United States Sixth Fleet. He assumed his last assignment on October 20, 2017. On July 17, 2020, he relinquished command of United States Naval Forces Europe-Africa and Allied Joint Forces Command Naples to Admiral Robert P. Burke

Mustafa Zeki Ugurlu

Mustafa Zeki Ugurlu was a two-star admiral in the Turkish Navy who recently served as a flag officer at NATO Supreme Allied Command Transformation in Norfolk-USA.

Aleksandr Arkadevich Tatarinov is a former officer of the Russian Navy. He holds the rank of admiral, and retired in 2016 after serving as First Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "James Stavridis: The Accidental Admiral | Pritzker Military Museum & Library | Chicago". www.pritzkermilitary.org. Retrieved 2015-09-23.
  2. Nadeau, Paul (2014-09-30). "Book Review: The Accidental Admiral". Diplomatic Courier. Retrieved 2015-09-23.
  3. "Book - The Accidental Admiral" . Retrieved 2015-09-23.
  4. 1 2 3 Phillips, Stephen (2015-03-17). "BOOK REVIEW – The Accidental Admiral: A Sailor Takes Command at NATO". Naval Historical Foundation. Retrieved 2015-09-24.
  5. Fellman, Sam. "View from Navy's 'Accidental Admiral'". Navy Times. Retrieved 2015-09-23.
  6. Coyne, John R. (2014-12-08). "The 'renaissance admiral' takes command". Washington Times. Retrieved 2012-09-23.
  7. "Home - The Accidental Admiral". The Accidental Admiral. Retrieved 2015-09-30.
  8. Beamish, Bill (2015-04-15). "Reader Recommendation: The Accidental Admiral". The Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved 2015-09-30.
  9. Evans, Ryan (2015-01-28). "An Admiral in the Storm: Stadrivis on Leadership and Civility". War on the Rocks. Retrieved 2015-09-24.