Craig L. Symonds, a distinguished naval historian known for his extensive work on the United States Navy’s role from the Civil War through World War II, died Tuesday at his home in Annapolis, Maryland. He was 79. Symonds’ wife, Marylou Symonds, confirmed that the cause of death was complications related to kidney cancer.

Symonds had a long association with the U.S. Naval Academy, where he taught for more than three decades and was widely regarded as one of the nation’s leading military historians. At the time of his death, he was working on a book about the 12 most decisive maritime battles in history, marking his 21st volume either authored or edited.

Awarded the 2023 Pritzker Military Museum and Library literature prize for lifetime achievement, Symonds’ scholarship earned numerous honors over his career. His 2008 book “Lincoln and His Admirals” received the Gilder Lehrman Lincoln Prize, while “Neptune: The Allied Invasion of Europe and the D-Day Landings” (2014) was recognized with the Samuel Eliot Morison Award for naval literature.

Symonds challenged conventional notions about naval history, emphasizing the underestimated impact of naval power on U.S. military successes. In his work, he highlighted how vital events such as the Battle of Midway in 1942 and the Civil War naval blockade were pivotal to the country’s survival and victory. He argued against attributing the American win at Midway primarily to luck, instead crediting strategic planning, effective use of radar, and superior intelligence operations.

“Without naval technological advances such as aircraft carriers, submarines, and precision torpedoes, as well as the protection of troop and supply convoys, we might not have survived as a country,” he said in various interviews, stressing the importance of logistics and bottom-up operations over grand strategic plans.

Born December 31, 1946, in Long Beach, California, Symonds grew up in Anaheim. He earned his bachelor’s degree from UCLA and master’s from the University of Florida before joining the Navy Reserve and later attaining a doctorate in naval history in 1976. He began teaching at the Naval Academy that year and eventually served as head of its history department.

Symonds was known for his approachable writing style, which made complex naval history accessible to a broad audience. He also co-edited several important volumes, including “The New York Times Complete Civil War, 1861-1865” and “The Lincoln Assassination: Crime and Punishment, Myth and Memory.”

After retiring from full-time teaching in 2005, he continued to lecture and serve as a visiting professor at the Naval War College. He is survived by his wife, Marylou, their son Jeff, and two grandchildren.

In a unique intersection of history and popular culture, actor Harrison Ford shadowed Symonds at Annapolis as preparation for portraying a history professor in the 1992 film “Patriot Games.” Though some classroom scenes were filmed in Symonds’ actual classroom, he made clear he saw no personal parallels with the fictional character.

Symonds’ colleagues remember him as a preeminent scholar whose meticulous research and engaging narratives significantly enriched the understanding of American naval history and its enduring influence on military affairs.