If one were to judge Michael Verney’s A Great and Rising Nation: Naval Exploration and Global Empire in the Early U.S. Republic by its cover, it might be misconstrued as merely being a work of oceanographic or naval history. Although it unavoidably contains elements of the latter, it is more precisely a social history of antebellum America. Specifically, it is a study that uses naval exploration as a lens through which to examine the proclivities of influential white men in the early republic. Although the broader conclusions about the roles of race and gender as motive forces for the publicized undertakings of ambitious white men in that age are unsurprising, the book has value in adding depth to that understanding.

The greatest merits of this book are Verney’s thoroughness as a researcher and his engaging style as a writer. The quality and depth of his research are evident throughout the book. Verney employs a multitude of sources ranging from recent studies of American history to personal correspondence and official communications involving key players in his analysis. Indeed, in a book 300 pages in length, from introduction to index, Verney’s notes section reaches nearly 70 pages. Beyond his exhaustive research, Verney is also a capable writer. He sets out to illuminate the more deplorable aspects of American social history, and he makes his points emphatically and with the support of ample evidence.

The book is divided into six chapters, preceded by a useful introduction that sets the tone for all that follows. On the first page of the introduction, venerable naval officer David Porter serves as the hook to make readers aware of the novelty and motives behind the earliest U.S. forays into naval exploration. Fittingly, the book takes its title from a letter written by Porter to President James Madison urging him to embrace the idea of oceanic exploration as something befitting “a great and rising nation.” The following six chapters deal with changing areas of exploration, the prejudices and aims that brought those expeditions into existence, and the purposes behind their commemoration.

According to Verney, this book is about imperialism. Specifically, A Great and Rising Nation is about “the process of imperialization” (p. 5). In Verney’s study, imperialism is far more than the accumulation and domination of new territories. The term becomes descriptive of things ranging from America joining the ranks of established European powers as a leader in voyages of scientific discovery, for the sake of prestige, to exploring prospective sites for the expansion of slavery. During the time addressed in this book, the United States was in the process of expanding its control over more of the North American landmass and had not yet acquired its overseas territories. The role of naval exploration was thus to help spread American social and cultural imperialism beyond its shores.

Taking a broad view of imperialism and focusing tightly on the motives of those who planned and led naval expeditions for the sake of advancing a white male agenda leads to a good deal of Verney’s argumentation. Indeed, the author does not merely establish white men as the dominant force in American politics and exploration; he relentlessly repeats the terms “white men” and “white U.S. citizens” to drive home the importance of race and gender in setting the American agenda. For some readers, this may seem a bit excessive, but it is nonetheless effective in keeping the focus where the author intended.

With A Great and Rising Nation, Verney demonstrates that he is a formidable young scholar. While detailing the conduct of naval explorations is essential to this study, those matters are merely the means to a greater end for Verney. He has written a book that casts new light on familiar problems and gives greater depth to an understanding of the prevailing social and cultural impulses found in antebellum America.