HYDE PARK, NY—The 2005 Theodore and Franklin D. Roosevelt Naval History Prize will be awarded to acclaimed naval and Civil War historian Craig L. Symonds for his illuminating and well-researched book: Decision at Sea: Five Naval Battles that Shaped American History (Oxford University Press). In this work, Symonds examines in riveting detail how five crucial engagements—the Battle of Lake Erie; the duel between the Monitor and the Virginia; Manila Bay; Midway; and the Persian Gulf operation, Praying Mantis—manifest the transformation of technology and weaponry that revolutionized naval combat. Sea battles, that as Professor Douglas Brinkley writes, “shaped the course of American history.”

The announcement of the prize is being issued by the Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt Institute, which awards the prize annually in cooperation with the Theodore Roosevelt Association and the New York Council Navy League of the United States. The award will be presented to Craig L. Symonds at the annual Roosevelt Naval History Prize Luncheon on Thursday, June 8th at the New York Athletic Club.

Craig L. Symonds served as Professor of History for more than 30 years at the U.S. Naval Academy and is now the Chief Historian of the USS Monitor Center at the Mariners Museum in Newport News, Virginia. He is an award-winning author of 10 books including, Confederate Admiral: The Life and Wars of Franklin Buchanan, and Joseph E. Johnston: A Civil War Biography.

The Theodore and Franklin D. Roosevelt Naval History Prize was established in 1984 by the Theodore Roosevelt Association, the Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt Institute, and the New York Council Navy League of the United States.  Both Theodore and Franklin Roosevelt belonged to the New York Council. The judges are historians from the three organizations along with historians from the three maritime academies, the Naval War College, Virginia Military Institute, and Princeton University.