Ian Speller is Professor of Military History and Director of the Centre for Military History and Strategic Studies at the National University of Ireland, Maynooth. He also lectures at the Irish Military College. He is the author of numerous works on maritime strategy and naval warfare, including Understanding Naval Warfare (2024), The Role of Amphibious Warfare in British Defence Policy, 1945-1956 (2001) and, as co-editor, Small Navies: Strategy and Policy for Small Navies in War and Peace (2014) and Europe, Small Navies and Maritime Security (2021).