The Imperial Cruise by James Bradley: A Book Review

 

    The Imperial Cruise is a non-fiction book that revolves around a secret mission to Asia. This was the largest delegation ever sent to Asia in American history. The most important theme of the book is that the mistakes made by Teddy Roosevelt started a chain reaction that led to the war in the Pacific (WWII). The book presents personal letters which support the ideas. James’ father John, was a Navy corpsman who was awarded the Navy Cross for extreme heroism. John Bradley and other marines were a part of Joe Rosenthal’s picture called Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima. James Bradley has written two other very popular books called Flyboys: A Story of True Courage, and Flags of Our Fathers. The latter is about the six marines who raised the flag in the Pulitzer winning image. The Imperial Cruise shows Theodore Roosevelt in a new and shocking light. The book more than suggests that he was not the perfect president that is so commonly portrayed nowadays.

    The book mainly discusses the SS Manchuria mission sent by the president in 1905. The ship had many high ranking officials, including William Howard Taft, multiple members of congress, and other military officials. The purpose of the mission was to remain dominant and rule over the American territories in the Pacific. The territories included Hawaii and the Philippines. Bradley states that Roosevelt sent this mission due to his belief in racial supremacy. This is what allowed the massacres of the hundreds of thousands of Filipino people to happen. Roosevelt saw that Japan was imitating the Christian methods, and therefore, he offered them a secret deal regarding Japan’s expansion into Korea and other countries. This ignited Japan’s expansionism hopes and led to Pearl Harbor and the rest of WWII in the Pacific decades later.

    I really enjoyed this book. It provided a different point of view from the “America is best” that is taught in so many books. James Bradley has tried to expose and unearth a part of American history which was never shown before. The fact that the belief that non-white people could not govern themselves was so widespread and unquestioned is hard to imagine. Roosevelt’s tactics and personal views changed modern history. The book also discusses that WWII in the Pacific was not the only outcome of this. The Vietnam War and Chinese Communism are also effects. Roosevelt is widely regarded as one of the best presidents in American history, and this book proves that he was not an impeccable president. His actions have changed history, and they have changed the present.

-Rishabh