American Military History

BRAD D. LOOKINGBILL is Professor of History at Columbia College of Missouri. He is the author of The American Military: A Narrative History (Wiley, 2014) and War Dance at Fort Marion: Plains Indian War Prisoners (2006), and is the editor of American Military History: A Documentary Reader (Wiley, 2011). He received the Eugene Asher Distinguished Teaching Award from the American Historical Association in 2010. Dr. Lookingbill served in the Army National Guard and Reserve.

List of Illustrations ix

Acknowledgments xi

Introduction 1

1 An Uncommon Defense 7

1.1 Powhatan Describes War among the Natives (1607) 7

1.2 John Mason Campaigns against the Pequot (1637) 9

1.3 Elizabeth Bacon Observes Skirmishes in Virginia (1676) 11

1.4 Benjamin Church Plans for Action in New England (1704) 13

1.5 James Oglethorpe Strikes Spanish Outposts (1739–1741) 15

1.6 Robert Rogers Provides Rules for the Rangers (1757) 17

1.7 An Unknown Soldier Sings “Yankee Doodle” (1775) 20

2 War for Independence 23

2.1 James Monroe Goes to War (1776) 23

2.2 Albigence Waldo Treats Soldiers at Valley Forge (1777) 26

2.3 Jeffrey Brace Fights for Liberty (1778) 28

2.4 John Paul Jones Captures a British Frigate (1779) 30

2.5 A French Officer Draws the Continental Line (1781) 32

2.6 Deborah Sampson Wears a Uniform (1782) 34

2.7 George Washington Bids Farewell to the Army (1783) 36

3 Establishing the Military 41

3.1 Alexander Hamilton Considers National Forces (1787) 41

3.2 Henry Knox Arranges the Militia (1790) 44

3.3 Anthony Wayne Prevails at Fallen Timbers (1794) 46

3.4 Thomas Truxtun Recruits Seamen for the Quasi‐War (1798) 48

3.5 Congress Passes the Military Peace Establishment Act (1802) 51

3.6 William Eaton Arrives on the Shores of Tripoli (1805) 52

3.7 James Wilkinson Faces a Court Martial (1811) 55

4 Mr. Madison’s War 59

4.1 James Madison Calls for War (1812) 59

4.2 Lydia Bacon Enters Fort Detroit (1812) 62

4.3 Michel Felice Cornè Portrays the U.S.S. Constitution (1812) 64

4.4 Black Hawk Takes the War Path (1813) 65

4.5 Oliver Hazard Perry Defends Lake Erie (1813) 68

4.6 Francis Scott Key Pens “Defence of Fort McHenry” (1814) 71

4.7 Andrew Jackson Triumphs at New Orleans (1815) 72

5 The Martial Republic 77

5.1 John C. Calhoun Proposes an Expansible Army (1820) 77

5.2 The National Guard Parades in New York (1825) 80

5.3 John Downes Sails to Sumatra (1832) 82

5.4 Ethan Allen Hitchcock Patrols in Florida (1836) 84

5.5 Juan Seguín Remembers the Alamo (1837) 86

5.6 Michael H. Garty Serves on the U.S.S. Somers (1842) 88

5.7 Henry W. Halleck Lectures on War (1846) 90

6 The Forces of Manifest Destiny 95

6.1 James K. Polk Calls for War (1846) 95

6.2 James K. Holland Marches into Mexico (1846) 98

6.3 Zachary Taylor Describes Buena Vista (1847) 101

6.4 Winfield Scott Lands at Veracruz (1847) 103

6.5 James Walker Views the Storming of Chapultepec (1847) 105

6.6 Matthew C. Perry Steams to Japan (1852) 106

6.7 Elizabeth C. Smith Petitions for Bounty Land (1853) 109

7 The Blue and the Gray 113

7.1 Abraham Lincoln Issues Proclamations (1861) 114

7.2 Julia Ward Howe Composes “The Battle Hymn of the Republic” (1862) 116

7.3 Samuel Dana Greene Operates an Ironclad (1862) 117

7.4 Francis Lieber Promulgates Rules for War (1863) 119

7.5 Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain Defends Little Round Top (1863) 121

7.6 Sam R. Watkins Survives Chickamauga (1863) 123

7.7 James Henry Gooding Protests Unequal Pay (1863) 126

7.8 Robert E. Lee Requests Additional Troops (1864) 128

7.9 Phoebe Yates Pember Nurses at Chimborazo (1864) 130

7.10 Ulysses S. Grant Prevails at Appomattox (1865) 132

8 Twilight of the Indian Wars 137

8.1 William T. Sherman Discusses Indian Policy (1868) 137

8.2 Elizabeth B. Custer Camps with the Cavalry (1873) 139

8.3 Making Medicine Sketches Warriors and Soldiers (1877) 142

8.4 Emory Upton Evaluates Military Policy (1880) 143

8.5 The Soldier’s Handbook Gives Healthy Advice (1884) 145

8.6 Henry W. Lawton Pursues the Apache (1886) 148

8.7 Nelson A. Miles Remembers Wounded Knee (1890) 150

9 A Rising Power 155

9.1 Alfred Thayer Mahan Advocates Sea Power (1890) 155

9.2 William McKinley Calls for War (1898) 157

9.3 Frank W. Pullen Charges in Cuba (1898) 160

9.4 Clara Barton Visits a Field Hospital (1898) 162

9.5 Frederick N. Funston Operates in the Philippines (1901) 165

9.6 The Committee on Naval Affairs Investigates Submarines (1902) 167

9.7 Dan Dugal Tours the World (1907–1909) 169

10 The War to End all Wars 173

10.1 Woodrow Wilson Calls for War (1917) 173

10.2 George M. Cohan Composes “Over There” (1917) 176

10.3 Congress Passes the Selective Service Act (1917) 177

10.4 John J. Pershing Commands the AEF (1917) 180

10.5 Howard Chandler Christy Publicizes the Navy (1917) 183

10.6 Ida Clyde Clarke Supports the Troops (1918) 184

10.7 Ben Hur Chastaine Reaches the Front (1918) 186

11 Out of the Trenches 191

11.1 The American Legion Rallies Veterans (1919) 191

11.2 George S. Patton Ponders the Next War (1922) 194

11.3 Billy Mitchell Advocates Air Power (1927) 196

11.4 Holland M. Smith Studies Marine Landings (1932) 198

11.5 Charles E. Humberger Joins the CCC (1933) 200

11.6 George C. Marshall Speaks to Historians (1939) 202

11.7 Harold R. Stark Recommends Plan Dog (1940) 204

12 Fighting World War II 209

12.1 Franklin D. Roosevelt Calls for War (1941) 210

12.2 Raymond A. Spruance Defends Midway (1942) 211

12.3 Charles C. Winnia Flies in the South Pacific (1943) 214

12.4 Hiro Higuchi Volunteers for Service (1943) 216

12.5 Dwight D. Eisenhower Invades Normandy (1944) 218

12.6 Congress Passes the GI Bill (1944) 221

12.7 Bill Mauldin Draws Willie and Joe (1944) 223

12.8 Melvin E. Bush Crosses the Siegfried Line (1945) 224

12.9 Jacqueline Cochran Praises the WASPs (1945) 227

12.10 B‐29 s Drop Atomic Bombs on Japan (1945) 229

13 A Cold War Begins 233

13.1 James V. Forrestal Manages the Pentagon (1948) 233

13.2 Omar Bradley Discusses Desegregation (1949) 236

13.3 Harry S. Truman Intervenes in Korea (1950) 238

13.4 Douglas MacArthur Addresses Congress (1951) 240

13.5 Spike Selmyhr Maneuvers in Korea (1951) 243

13.6 Maxwell D. Taylor Suggests a Flexible Response (1955) 245

13.7 Presidential Candidates Debate the Cold War (1960) 248

14 The Tragedy of Vietnam 251

14.1 Herbert L. Ogier Patrols in the Tonkin Gulf (1964) 251

14.2 Lyndon Johnson Escalates the War (1965) 254

14.3 Sarah L. Blum Encounters Casualties (1967) 256

14.4 William C. Westmoreland Reacts to Tet (1968) 258

14.5 George T. Olsen Hunts the Enemy (1969) 260

14.6 The Gates Commission Proposes an All‐Volunteer Force (1970) 262

14.7 George J. Eade Assesses the Christmas Bombings (1972) 265

15 A New Military 269

15.1 N. W. Ayer Rebrands the Army (1981) 269

15.2 Ronald Reagan Envisions SDI (1983) 271

15.3 Colin L. Powell Evaluates National Security (1989) 274

15.4 H. Norman Schwarzkopf Defends the Persian Gulf (1990) 276

15.5 Daniel L. Davis Sees Action in Desert Storm (1991) 278

15.6 Congress Approves “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” (1993) 281

15.7 Richard I. Thornton Readies the Marines (1999) 283

16 Global War on Terror 287

16.1 George W. Bush Calls for War (2001) 287

16.2 Jessica Lynch Soldiers in Iraq (2003) 290

16.3 Craig M. Mullaney Deploys to Afghanistan (2003) 292

16.4 David H. Petraeus Counters an Insurgency (2007) 295

16.5 Sean Householder Shares “The Warrior Song” (2009) 297

16.6 William H. McRaven Commands SEALs (2011) 299

16.7 The Pentagon Secures Cyberspace (2015) 301

Full Chronology 305

Sources and Credits 313

Index 325