About the Author

The legendary Samuel Eliot Morison (1887-1976) was a giant among twentieth-century historians, twice winning the Pulitzer Prize and receiving numerous other honors, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom and sitting as the first Harmsworth professor of American History at Oxford. Morison, who wrote with a signature sweep and flair, is credited with practically inventing the study of maritime history and influencing generations of historians through both his beliefs and his dozens of books chronicling this nation's history.