Revolution 250 Podcast; The Maddest Idea with B.J. Armstrong

Description

On this episode of the Revolution 250 Podcast, host Professor Robert Allison welcomes Captain B.J. Armstrong, a 27-year officer in the United States Navy, Associate Professor of War Studies and Naval History at the U.S. Naval Academy, and Director of the Naval Academy Museum. Their conversation explores one of the most daring and often overlooked decisions of the American Revolution: the creation of an American navy. Armstrong discusses the “maddest idea” debated by the Continental Congress in 1775, when a fledgling rebellion challenged the world’s most powerful maritime empire by taking to the sea. From small-boat raids and irregular warfare to the intellectual legacy of naval strategist Alfred Thayer Mahan, the discussion connects the Revolution’s naval origins to broader questions of maritime strategy and national power. Together, Allison and Armstrong examine how the Revolutionary generation imagined sea power, why maritime history is central to understanding the struggle for independence, and what the early American Navy can still teach us today—250 years later. 🎙️ New to streaming or looking to level up? Check out StreamYard and get $10 discount! 😍 https://streamyard.com/pal/d/6468373475229696