The Greatest Crusade; Roosevelt, Churchill, and the Naval Wars

New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc, 1986. First Edition [Stated], First Printing [Stated]. Hardcover. Very good/Fair. 24 cm. 274 pages. Illustrations. Appendix A. Appendix B. Source References Notes. Index. Front DJ flap price clipped. DJ has some wear, soiling, tears and chips. Pencil erasure residue on half-title page. Richard Alexander Hough (15 May 1922 - 7 October 1999) was a British author and historian specializing in maritime history. Hough won the Daily Express Best Book of the Sea Award in 1972. For a part of their political careers, Churchill and Roosevelt were concerned with the preparation for war of their nations' fleets and with the pursuit of war at sea. An authoritative dual portrait of the two men studied in maritime terms. Derived from a Kirkus review: A survey of the separate careers in naval administration of Franklin Roosevelt and Winston Churchill that ultimately converged in their close-knit prosecution of WW II. Hough handles these two giants strictly in relation to maritime issues. The story is told in counterpoint--alternating chapters chronicle Churchill's, then Roosevelt's development--until the creation of their mutual strategies against Hitler and Japan, with the neat resolution of triumph over tyranny. Roosevelt's career leapt as a result of his successful administration of the Navy, while Churchill went out of office in disgrace to face his ""wilderness years"" as a result of the disastrous Dardanelles expedition. Whatever variations in their styles in mobilizing their forces stemmed from one fundamental difference: Roosevelt's ease in dealing with naval matters came from a strong inner sense of security, while Churchill's pugnacity in naval affairs arose out of his insecurities.