NEWPORT, R.I. - The U.S. Naval War College (NWC) hosted its seventh annual "Cardines Classic" Army-Navy baseball game at Cardines Field in downtown Newport, Oct. 4.
Designed as an experiential learning opportunity to explore the unique role of baseball in shaping American diplomatic policy and global maritime strategy in war and peace, the annual game features NWC students competing against each other in World War 1 period uniforms.
“Among the oldest baseball fields in the Americas, the rich historical connections between the Naval War College and Cardines Field remain vivid when Army faces Navy in First World War era baseball uniforms for our annual Cardines Classic,” said Dr. David Kohnen, professor with NWC’s John B. Hattendorf Center for Maritime Historical Research and organizer of the event. “However, NWC also has strong institutional connections to the game as it was used to foster global collaboration among maritime powers during the formative periods of the twentieth century world wars and beyond to the twenty-first century.”
Organized with support from the Naval War College Foundation, Naval History and Heritage Command and Newport Gulls, and sponsored by the Pritzker Military Museum and Library, this year’s Cardines Classic drew more than 300 members of the local community, offering them an opportunity to experience and celebrate a piece of U.S. military and sports history.
The event was also attended by former Boston Red Sox player Sam Horn, who took part in the opening ceremonies and thanked those involved for putting the game together.
This year’s game was also dedicated to Joel Sevy, the son of an NWC student playing for team Army who passed away earlier this year. Joel was an avid baseball fan who played on domestic and international Little League teams, including one in Taiwan where his father was stationed with the U.S. State Department.
Kohnen and other NWC faculty members founded Cardines Classic based on a July 4, 1918 Army-Navy baseball game, organized by Rear Adm. William S. Sims, former president of NWC and then commander of U.S. Naval Forces in Europe. Sims saw baseball as a conduit for developing trust and camaraderie between Entente forces at a time when U.S. military personnel arriving on the Western Front was met with skepticism.
An effective, unifying strategy, the game caught the attention of King George V, a regular attendant at baseball games. King George signed the baseball used during the original game, honoring the winners and celebrating the camaraderie between Entente forces that would be needed to ultimately win the war.
Today, a Royal Navy student from NWC’s international programs department stands in for King George and ceremonially signs the game ball.
An exhibit titled “To Win or Lose All: William S. Sims and the U.S. Navy in the first World War” is also on permanent display at the NWC Museum. The exhibit explores the Navy’s role in securing victory for the Allies during the First World War and includes information and objects from the original baseball game in London. The museum is open Mondays through Fridays from 10:00 a.m.to 4:00 p.m. or by special appointment, made by calling 401-856-5270.
Located in historic Founders Hall, the Naval War College Museum serves to educate the U.S. Naval War College (NWC) community, as the corporate memory of the U.S. Navy in the region, and as a clearinghouse for naval history information in New England.
Established in 1884, NWC is the oldest institution of its kind in the world. The college delivers excellence in education, research, and outreach, informing today’s decision makers, educating tomorrow’s leaders, and engaging partners and allies on all matters of naval power in order to preserve the peace, respond in crisis, and win decisively in war.