Jon Hendrickson is a PhD in military history from The Ohio State University. He was the first Class of 1957 Fellow in Naval History at the United States Naval Academy.

Prior to July 1914, the extensive British grip on theMediterranean Sea was beginning to weaken, leading to awide-open competition between Austria-Hungary, Italy,France, and Great Britain. This change, Hendricksoncontends, was driven by three largely understudied events:the weakening of the British Mediterranean Fleet to providemore ships for the North Sea, Austria-Hungary's decision tobuild a navy capable of operating in the Mediterranean, andItaly's decision to seek naval security in the Triple Allianceafter the Italo-Turkish War. These three factors radicallyaltered the Mediterranean balance of power, forcingBritain and France to come to a mutual accommodationand accelerate ship construction to defend their respectiveinterests in the region. However, the July Crisis and theensuing World War obscured these events, leading laterhistorians to ignore these events.