What Should the U.S. Army Learn From History? - Determining the Strategy of the Future through Understanding the Past

What Should the U.S. Army Learn From History? - Determining the Strategy of the Future through Understanding the Past
Author: Colin S. Gray
Publisher: e-artnow
Total Pages: 57
Release: 2017-09-19
Genre: History
ISBN: 8026879384

Download What Should the U.S. Army Learn From History? - Determining the Strategy of the Future through Understanding the Past Book in PDF, Epub and Kindle

This monograph examines the potential utility of history as a source of education and possible guidance for the U.S. Army. The author considers the worth in the claim that since history (more accurately termed the past) is all done and gone, it can have no value for today as we try to look forward. This point of view did not find much favor here. The monograph argues that although history does not repeat itself in detail, it certainly does so roughly in parallel circumstances. Of course, much detail differs from one historical case to another, but nonetheless, there are commonly broad and possibly instructive parallels that can be drawn from virtually every period of history, concerning most circumstances. Contents: Should the U.S. Army Learn From History? Understanding the Past: A Foreign Country? Persisting Concerns and Enduring Hazards A Familiar Past? Parallels and Analogies What Changes and What Does Not? What Can the U.S. Army Learn From History? Recommendations for the U.S. Army

What Should the U.s. Army Learn from History?

What Should the U.s. Army Learn from History?
Author: Strategic Studies Institute
Publisher: Madison & Adams Press
Total Pages: 40
Release: 2019-10-15
Genre: History
ISBN: 9788027333912

Download What Should the U.s. Army Learn from History? Book in PDF, Epub and Kindle

This monograph examines the potential utility of history as a source of education and possible guidance for the U.S. Army. The author considers the worth in the claim that since history (more accurately termed the past) is all done and gone, it can have no value for today as we try to look forward. This point of view did not find much favor here. The monograph argues that although history does not repeat itself in detail, it certainly does so roughly in parallel circumstances. Of course, much detail differs from one historical case to another, but nonetheless, there are commonly broad and possibly instructive parallels that can be drawn from virtually every period of history, concerning most circumstances. Contents: Should the U.S. Army Learn From History? Understanding the Past: A Foreign Country? Persisting Concerns and Enduring Hazards A Familiar Past? Parallels and Analogies What Changes and What Does Not? What Can the U.S. Army Learn From History? Recommendations for the U.S. Army

What Should the U.s. Army Learn from History?

What Should the U.s. Army Learn from History?
Author: Colin S. Gray
Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
Total Pages: 72
Release: 2017-08-09
Genre: History
ISBN: 9781974406104

Download What Should the U.s. Army Learn from History? Book in PDF, Epub and Kindle

"Does history repeat itself? This monograph clearly answers 'no,' firmly. However, it does not argue that an absence of repetition in the sense of analogy means that history can have no utility for the soldier today. This monograph argues for a 'historical parallelism,' in place of shaky or false analogy. The past, even the distant and ancient past, provides evidence of the potency of lasting virtues of good conduct. This monograph concludes by offering four recommendations: 1. Behave prudently; 2. Remember the concept of the great stream of time; 3. Do not forget that war nearly always is a gamble; 4. War should only be waged with strategic sense"--Publisher's web site.

What Should The U.S. Army Learn From History? Recovery From A Strategy Deficit

What Should The U.S. Army Learn From History? Recovery From A Strategy Deficit
Author: Colin S. Gray
Publisher:
Total Pages: 70
Release: 2018-02-09
Genre: Reference
ISBN: 9781387583966

Download What Should The U.S. Army Learn From History? Recovery From A Strategy Deficit Book in PDF, Epub and Kindle

What is commonly known as history is really the past, as it is often selected and preserved both by professional historians and by non-specialist citizens. The past is such a large and diverse repository of happenings, thoughts, and experiences that it requires treatment with a disciplined respect. Frequently, respect for the truth about the past is a victim of contemporary circumstance. In this monograph, Dr. Colin S. Gray seeks to explore how historical data might best be used for the benefit of the U.S. Army and, therefore, the United States. He pulls no punches in explaining how challenging it is to penetrate the fog that obscures much of the past. Since the future cannot be foreseen reliably, we are left rather uncomfortably with a seemingly ever changing today.

America's Forgotten Wars

America's Forgotten Wars
Author: Sam C. Sarkesian
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
Total Pages: 284
Release: 1984-10-24
Genre: History
ISBN: 0313388288

Download America's Forgotten Wars Book in PDF, Epub and Kindle

“[This book provides] numerous brilliant and sound insights into the nature of low-level conflict. Sarkesian also perceptively describes the imperatives of the military mind set and armed forces structure necessary to help the US government achieve its national objectives in a turbulent world. Despite shortcomings, the book is a good and necessary work for those who want to know about the type of warfare that will engage our military forces for the rest of this century and beyond. Community college and above.”–Choice

The Evolution of US Army Tactical Doctrine, 1946-76

The Evolution of US Army Tactical Doctrine, 1946-76
Author: Robert A. Doughty
Publisher:
Total Pages: 68
Release: 1979
Genre: Military art and science
ISBN:

Download The Evolution of US Army Tactical Doctrine, 1946-76 Book in PDF, Epub and Kindle

This paper focuses on the formulation of doctrine since World War II. In no comparable period in history have the dimensions of the battlefield been so altered by rapid technological changes. The need for the tactical doctrines of the Army to remain correspondingly abreast of these changes is thus more pressing than ever before. Future conflicts are not likely to develop in the leisurely fashions of the past where tactical doctrines could be refined on the battlefield itself. It is, therefore, imperative that we apprehend future problems with as much accuracy as possible. One means of doing so is to pay particular attention to the business of how the Army's doctrine has developed historically, with a view to improving methods of future development.

Army Transformation: A View From the U.S. Army War College

Army Transformation: A View From the U.S. Army War College
Author:
Publisher:
Total Pages: 313
Release: 2001
Genre:
ISBN:

Download Army Transformation: A View From the U.S. Army War College Book in PDF, Epub and Kindle

As the United States enters a new century, its army confronts the difficult problems associated with transformation in an uncertain world. Moreover, the strategic environment makes it entirely unclear where, or when, or for what strategic purposes U.S. ground forces will find themselves committed to battle in coming decades. Yet, both the strategic environment as well as the harsh lessons of the past have a direct bearing on why the Army has begun the processes of transformation. The study of the past cannot lead to prediction as to the nature and conduct of war in the 21st century, but it does underline that sometime in the future the Army will find itself committed to a major conflict. Moreover, the nature of the current strategic environment suggests the parameters within which the future Army will have to operate. Finally, history is crucial to understanding what factors and approaches might best prepare the Army to meet future threats. This introduction, then, represents an attempt to set out for the reader the issues-past, present, and future-that could best frame the Army's approach to transformation and innovation. The past is crucial to understanding why ground forces will always be essential to achieving the political aims for which wars are fought. Moreover, the current strategic environment indicates that U.S. military forces are going to have to readdress the two old questions of time and distance. The United States cannot escape the geographic realities that two great oceans separate it from much of the rest of the world by two great continents.

The Past as Prologue

The Past as Prologue
Author: Williamson Murray
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 266
Release: 2006-05-08
Genre: History
ISBN: 1139452584

Download The Past as Prologue Book in PDF, Epub and Kindle

In today's military of rapid technological and strategic change, obtaining a complete understanding of the present, let alone the past, is a formidable challenge. Yet the very high rate of change today makes study of the past more important than ever before. The Past as Prologue, first published in 2006, explores the usefulness of the study of history for contemporary military strategists. It illustrates the great importance of military history while simultaneously revealing the challenges of applying the past to the present. Essays from authors of diverse backgrounds - British and American, civilian and military - come together to present an overwhelming argument for the necessity of the study of the past by today's military leaders in spite of these challenges. The essays of Part I examine the relationship between history and the military profession. Those in Part II explore specific historical cases that show the repetitiveness of certain military problems.

US Army Modernization: Looking at the Past to Build the Future

US Army Modernization: Looking at the Past to Build the Future
Author: U. S. Army US Army Command and Staff College
Publisher:
Total Pages: 55
Release: 2021-10-25
Genre:
ISBN:

Download US Army Modernization: Looking at the Past to Build the Future Book in PDF, Epub and Kindle

With the publication of the 2019 Army Modernization Strategy: Investing in the Future, the US Army initiated another of its periodic modernization campaigns to meet the military requirements of a new era of competition. Considering the challenges associated with change in bureaucracies, it is critical to identify actions and conditions that can contribute to both success and effectiveness. This paper considers what internal conditions the army can influence and shape, and what external conditions it can monitor, to modernize successfully. It further attempts to identify specific modernization conditions, using case studies from the interwar period between World War I and II, on which army leaders should focus. The study draws its conditions, including commitment, leadership, consensus, doctrine, and resourcing, from theorists in the fields of modernization and change management. The results of this work indicate that each of these conditions influences modernization, but further finds that the selected conditions are not exclusively definitive of success. While this study merely lays a groundwork for a better understanding of success in modernization, it opens areas of inquiry for further research, such as integrating modernization across the services, which can improve the likelihood of success, not only for the US Army, but also for the entirety of the Department of Defense. (Stokes, Ted L., Jr.) . The School of Advanced Military Studies (SAMS) is one of the parts of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College (CGSC). Most SAMS students complete the regular CGSC course, then stay for a second academic year. They write either one or two monographs (depending on the requirement at the time) and are awarded a Master of Military Art and Science (MMAS) graduate degree. Most go on to planning jobs in field units. This collection contains all the publicly releasable monographs produced since the program began in 1986. SAMS monographs typically address historical events, current operational issues, or new organizational concepts.

Finding the Target

Finding the Target
Author: Frederick Kagan
Publisher: Encounter Books
Total Pages: 466
Release: 2007
Genre: History
ISBN: 1594032041

Download Finding the Target Book in PDF, Epub and Kindle

A military historian describes three basic transformations that have taken place within the U.S. military since the Vietnam War, including a move to an all-volunteer force, the emergence of stealth technology, and the application of information technology after the fall of the Soviet Union.