Clearing the Way

Ben Milligan became a US Navy SEAL in 2001 and served until 2009. He is the recipient of the Bronze Star and other awards. A native of Indianapolis, he received a BA in History at Purdue University and an MA in International Relations at the University of San Diego. His first book By Water Beneath the Walls was released in 2021. Told through the eyes of notable leaders and racing from one longshot, haircurling raid to the next, this book is a tale of the unit’s heroic naval predecessors, and the evolution of the SEALs themselves. But it’s also the story of the forging of American special operations as a whole—and how the SEALs emerged from the fires as America’s first permanent commando force, when again and again some other unit seemed predestined to seize that role. Milligan thrillingly captures the outsize feats of the SEALs’ frogmen forefathers in World War II, the Korean War, and elsewhere, even as he plunges us into the second front of interservice rivalries and personal ambition that shaped the SEALs’ evolution. In equally vivid, masterful detail, he chronicles key early missions undertaken by units like the Marine Raiders, Army Rangers, and Green Berets, showing us how these fateful, bloody moments helped create the modern American commando—even as they opened up pivotal opportunities for the Navy. Written with the insight that can only come from a combat veteran and a member of the book’s tribe, By Water Beneath the Walls is an essential new history of the SEAL teams, a crackling account of desperate last stands and unforgettable characters accomplishing the impossible and a riveting epic of the dawn of American special operations. Milligan currently lives in the Chicago area with his three sons.

Commander Mann was born in Toronto, Canada. He was raised in Vero Beach, Florida, and enlisted there in 1986. He immediately reported to Boot Camp and was subsequently assigned to the USS Harry W. Hill (DD 986), homeported out of San Diego, California. After two years on board, he was selected and attended Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL Training Class 162, graduating in October 1989. Commander Mann’s enlisted operational assignments include two tours onboard DD 986 as a Boatswain Mate, two deployments at SEAL Team FIVE, and seven years at SEAL Team SIX. Upon commissioning in November 2000, he was assigned to Naval Special Warfare Unit One in Guam as the Training Officer. He returned to SEAL Team SIX in June 2004 and was assigned as the Command Training Officer overseeing the assessment, selection and training of all command personnel. In May 2012 he was assigned to NSW Group-2 Training Detachment and completed his Executive Officer tour. He returned to SEAL Team SIX in 2015 and assumed Mobility Squadron Commander, then in 2016, he moved departments to fill the Selection Training & Enhanced Performance (S.T.E.P) director position. He subsequently returned to the Command Mobility Squadron in 2018, serving as the Squadron Commander until his retirement in May 2020. His operational overseas deployments were in support of Operation Desert Shield/Storm, Bosnia, Philippines, Iraq, Afghanistan, and East Africa. He trained with foreign forces from Kuwait, Iraq, Afghanistan, Canada, Australia, Thailand, Malaysia, Philippines, Japan, Korea, Tonga, France, Germany, and the UK. Commander Mann is the recipient of a Bronze Star Medal and numerous other awards over his 34 years of service.

He and wife Wendy have been married for 34 years and have a daughter, Savannah, and son, Breton. He presently serves as the Executive Director of the National Navy SEAL Museum in Fort Pierce, Florida.