The Great White Fleet

Roosevelt often preached that it was important to “Speak softly and carry a big stick,” and when he announced that he was going to have a gargantuan fleet sail around the world, he demonstrated exactly what he meant (Smith 1). Roosevelt had sent this fleet, known as the Great White Fleet, around the world on an expedition during peacetime in order to express naval power and to improve political relations with other countries such as Japan. Tensions between America and Japan had been on the rise due to segregation of Japanese immigrants in California and the resulting anti-American movements in Japan. However, with Roosevelt’s innovative political techniques, friendly relations with Japan and multiple other countries were established. In nearly every country that the Fleet visited, the relationship between the two countries was improved. The Great White Fleet was truly a success and it was a symbol of Roosevelt’s political outlook. Roosevelt was able to utilize the Great White Fleet as a diplomatic means of improving relations with other countries successfully during peacetime. The Great White Fleet was a diplomatic display of newborn American naval power that was well accepted by multiple countries and greatly ameliorated political relations with other countries.           

Construction of the fleet began in 1904 and continued to 1907 as American shipyards built eleven battleships (GlobalSecurity 11). These ships, as well as five other battleships were painted white, with gilded scrollwork on their bows (McKinley 1). The fleet consisted of 16 battleships, a torpedo flotilla, and several auxiliary ships. Throughout the journey, the fleet traveled 43,000 miles and was manned by approximately 14,000 sailors. The fleet also made over twenty port calls (McKinley 2). The ships were constructed of steel, and used to coal as their source of fuel. These massive battleships had to go to port every two weeks in order to restock on fuel. While a ship was being coaled, everybody was required to work, and it would take several days in order to coal a ship (McKinley 26). As one sailor said about coaling a ship, “Our ship held about two thousand tons of the stuff. All deckhands would go into the collier and fill these big bags of coal with about five hundred pounds. Then they’d hoist ‘em over to us down in coal bunkers and we’d spread them out with shovels until they were all even to the top.” This illustrates just how much work it took in order to coal a ship and the physical demand that it required (McKinley 27). However, the life of a sailor on the Great White Fleet was not too bad. While they had a busy work routine, there were pianos, phonographs, various games, playing cards, and billiards aboard the fleet. Silent movies were available as well. All of these attributes of the fleet led it to be named the Great White Fleet (McKinley 24).