The U.S. Navy

The Continental Navy was established on 13 October 1775, when the Continental Congress authorized arming vessels to intercept British supply ships — the date the Navy now celebrates as its birthday. Today's Navy projects power worldwide from aircraft carriers, submarines, and surface ships, and secures the sea lanes that carry global commerce.

Its history runs from the War of 1812 and USS Constitution ("Old Ironsides"), through the Civil War ironclads and the carrier battles of the Pacific in WWII, to the nuclear navy launched by USS Nautilus in 1955. Navy officers commission as ensigns. (The Navy has no single official motto; "Forged by the Sea" is its modern ethos.)

The U.S. Naval Academy was founded in 1845 by Secretary of the Navy George Bancroft at Fort Severn in Annapolis, Maryland, beginning with 50 midshipmen; it took the name "U.S. Naval Academy" and a four-year program in the 1850–51 reorganization.

Like West Point, it requires a congressional nomination and offers a tuition-free education ending in a commission. Notably, the Naval Academy (and NROTC) also commission Marine Corps officers through the Marine option. Full academy process →