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Books > Social sciences > Warfare & defence > General
When in Henry II of England married Eleanor of Aquitaine of France
in 1154 A.D., he became at once the reigning sovereign over a vast
stretch of land extending across all of England and half of
France—and yet, according to the feudal hierarchy of the times, a
vassal to the King of France. This situation, which placed French
and English borders in such a tenuous position, solidified the
precarious ground on which the Hundred Years War was to be fought
183 years later. This epic border conflict—which was
contemporaneous with the age of popular uprisings and the Bubonic
Plague, fought according to enduring notions of chivalry and the
budding pride of nationality, and which numbered among its
participants Richard II, the Black Prince of Wales, Henry IV, Henry
V, and Charles of Navarre—ultimately depended upon a peasant
woman, Joan of Arc, to reinforce the French ideal of a sacred
kingdom, swing the pendulum once more in the direction of the
French, and bring this perennial conflict to an end. When in 1154
A.D. Henry II of England married Eleanor of Aquitaine of France, he
became at once the reigning sovereign over a vast stretch of land
extending across all of England and half of France, and yet,
according to the feudal hierarchy of the times, a vassal to the
King of France. This situation, which placed French and English
borders in such a tenuous position, solidified the precarious
ground on which the Hundred Years War was to be fought 183 years
later. This epic border conflict—which was contemporaneous with
the age of popular uprisings and the Bubonic Plague, fought
according to enduring notions of chivalry and the budding pride of
nationality, and which numbered among its participants Richard II,
the Black Prince of Wales, Henry IV, Henry V, and Charles of
Navarre—ultimately depended upon a peasant woman, Joan of Arc, to
reinforce the French ideal of a sacred kingdom, swing the pendulum
once more in the direction of the French, and bring this perennial
conflict to an end. Topics of the theme essays have been selected
to show the diversity of this complex war, and include discussions
of: the origins of the war; the age of popular rebellion;
chivalry's effect on 14th and 15th century warfare; the religion of
the monarchy and the role of sacred kingship in the building of the
French monarchy; and Joan of Arc's understanding of the war. An
annotated timeline and a chronology of French and English Kings
provide readers with an easy-to-follow overview of the Hundred
Years War and the rulers who presided over it. Nineteen
biographical sketches of key French and English figures lend a
human aspect to historic names; and 14 annotated primary documents
breathe fresh life into the topic, and provide students and readers
with a new look at the period. The book concludes with an annotated
bibliography and index.
This volume offers a comprehensive history of warfare since 1648,
covering conventional and unconventional operations and
demonstrating how most modern wars have been hybrid affairs that
involved both. The book uses a broad range of conflicts to explore
the societal forces that have shaped wars. Written by noted
military historian Thomas R. Mockaitis, this book explores
conventional and unconventional conflicts and considers the
relationships between them. It considers how epic struggles like
the American Civil War, World Wars I and II, and the conflicts in
the Middle East, among many others, shaped human history. The
coverage serves to highlight four themes: the relationship between
armed forces and the societies that create them; the impact of
technology (not just armaments) on warfare; the role of ideas and
attitudes towards violence in determining why and how wars are
fought; and the relationship between conventional and
unconventional operations. The book also covers the advent and
evolution of unconventional warfare, including counterinsurgency,
the War on Terror, and current conflicts in the Middle East. It
concludes with consideration of the forms armed conflict will take
in the future. The book includes valuable excerpts from the
writings of military thinkers such as Clausewitz and Sun Tzu, an
extensive bibliography of primary and secondary sources, and
supporting maps and diagrams.
This is the story of a tragic confrontation between two national
movements contesting the same small piece of land, a clash that has
become one of the most intractable issues in modern times. From the
establishment of the first Zionist colonies in the 1880s, tensions
have run high between the indigenous Arab population of Palestine
and Jews who have sought to create an independent state on land
they consider their ancient home. Clashes, both internal and
external, have become increasingly violent. Since the first
full-scale Palestinian Revolt in 1936, relations have, except for a
few brief periods of peace, been characterized by continuous and
escalating degrees of bloodshed. Twelve major clashes can be
identified from that first three-year struggle to the current
Intifada al Aqsa. Here, 12 Israeli historians and writers present
reflections on the incidents, along with up-to-date analysis and
historical assessment. After a detailed introduction designed to
help readers place the conflicts into a historical context, experts
discuss events ranging from the first organized revolt to the
current conflagration. As a result of the initial weakness of the
Palestinians and the defeats they suffered at the hands of the
better-organized Israelis, the entire Arab world stepped into the
breach. Wars between May 1948 and October 1973 involved Arab
regular armies, but the Palestinian comeback began in 1965, as a
result of guerrilla insurgency. It gathered momentum with the
popular uprising of the first Intifada (1987-1990) and more so with
the start of the second and more lethal Intifada in 2000. The
situation is, these experts argue, not without hope of a
resolution, but an end to the violence isunlikely to come easily or
quickly.
Following up on Donna Starr-Deelen's previous book Presidential
Policies on Terrorism: From Ronald Reagan to Barack Obama
(Palgrave, 2014), this book compares and contrasts the approach of
the Obama administration with the Trump administration regarding
national security and counter-terrorism. It provides an overview of
counter-terrorism in the Obama era and then moves to the rise of
ISIS and the Syrian civil war, ending with an analysis of the new
Trump administration's national security policies.
Warfare in the exotic world of the early days of Britain's Indian
Empire. In the early years of the nineteenth century as Napoleon's
French Army dominated Europe the British empire continued with its
expansion of power on the Indian Sub-Continent. There, a young
general-Arthur Wellesley-who would soon become the Duke of
Wellington fought his formative battles-including the one which he
would always cite as his hardest fought victory at Assaye. The
enemy were the formidable Marathas-one of the pre-eminent martial
races of India. Wellington was not alone in this pivotal war for
Indian domination. His rising, bright star has always overshadowed
the campaigns of Gerard Lake-an accomplished fighting leader of
British soldiers now close to the end of his career. Often
neglected by historians and students alike, Lake's Indian campaign
was fought against a resourceful and ruthless enemy-almost always
superior in numbers to his own forces. Commanding an army of a few
British regular cavalry and infantry regiments, together with
elements of the Honourable East India Company's own army, Lake
fought hard battles and invested strongly held fortresses. In this
book the reader will discover the mighty strongholds of Aligarh,
Agra and Deeg, Lakes own Assaye-Laswari, and the slaughter which
was the attempt on the nearly impregnable stronghold of Bhurtpur.
Lake appears with a host of colourful supporting characters-Perron
and other mercenary 'freelancers', James Skinner and his 'Yellow
Boys' irregular cavalry, the incompetent Colonel Monson and
Holkar-the despotic and cruel Maratha leader himself.
This book examines the complex and under-researched relationship
between recruitment experiences and reintegration outcomes for
child soldiers. It looks at time spent in the group, issues of
cohesion, identification, affiliation, membership and the post
demobilization experience of return, and resettlement.
THE AUTUMN MAN The spell binding memoirs of Albert Slugocki.
Displaced from his native Poland because of his hatred of the
communist government. He served his adopted country faithfully with
honor and distinction for 21 years in peace and war as a combat
arms soldier obtaining the rank of Sargeant Major - an acheivement
of its own. Albert fought in Korea and Vietnam and participated in
other clandestine missions in Southeast Asia and Europe. Wounded
several times, he continued to serve until his retirement. Albert
met his wife Margaret, a sister of a fellow Special Forces soldier
and a good friend while both were recovering from combat wounds at
Walter Reed Hospital in Washington D.C. After being medically
discharged from the U.S. Marshal's Service, he began to suffer from
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (P.T.S.D.). Albert seeks refuge in
the Amazonian jungles of South America - Peru. He gave of himself
both physically and mentally by devoting his life's time and
efforts helping the native Indians who live near the banks of the
mighty Amazon River and in the remote jungle villages with medical
aid. Their latest ambition is the building and staffing of a
clinic-hospital that will provide the only medical services in
these remote areas. Project Amazonas continues to actively recruit
Medical Doctors and Dentists and other medical professionals to
volunteer their services with the organization in Peru Albert
continues to support Project Amazonas and a percentage of the
procedes from the sale of his book will be dedicated to the
Project.
This book explores and analyzes emerging innovations within today's
most cutting-edge science and technology (S&T) areas, which are
cited as carrying the potential to revolutionize governmental
structures, economies, and international security. Some have argued
that such technologies will yield doomsday scenarios and that
military applications of such technologies have even greater
potential than nuclear weapons to radically change the balance of
power. As the United States looks to the future - whether dominated
by extremist groups co-opting advanced weapons in the world of
globalized non-state actors or states engaged in persistent
regional conflicts in areas of strategic interest - new adversaries
and new science and technology will emerge. Choices made today that
affect science and technology will impact how ably the US can and
will respond. Chapters within the book look at the changing
strategic environment in which security operations are planned and
conducted; how these impact science and technology policy choices
made today; and predictions of how science and technology may play
a beneficial or deleterious role in the future. Some game changing
technologies have received global attention, while others may be
less well known; the new technologies discussed within this
proposal, as well as future discoveries, may significantly alter
military capabilities and may generate new threats against military
and civilian sectors.
A Platoon Leader's Tour (The PL Book): This book is an
on-the-ground view of U.S. Army combat in Iraq sourced from
in-country interviews of this generation's Platoon Leaders from
2003-2008. The combat vignettes of former Platoon Leaders flow
along the arc of a "typical" 12-month tour in Iraq. The authors
selected stories that reflect the common challenges of young combat
leaders, including: -Taking Charge -Making First Contact with the
Enemy -Engaging the Local Populace -Interacting with Indigenous
Forces -Use of Force -Operating in a Complex/Chaotic Environment
-Facing Personnel Challenges -Making Moral/Ethical Decisions
-Leading in Battle -Dealing with Death -Sustaining the Will to
Fight -Leading Emotionally-Charged Soldiers -Adapting to
Unfamiliar/Non-Standard Missions The book was developed by the U.S.
Army's Center for Company-level Leaders at West Point in
conjunction with the U.S. Army Studies Program and U.S. Army
Research Institute. Interviews, writing, and editing of the stories
was conducted by Pete Kilner, Nate Allen, Nate Self, and Anthony
Lupo.
Intellectual historians generally view the Enlightenment as a
pacifist or anti-war movement. Military historians typically
consider 18th century military thinkers as backward-looking and
inept. Speelman challenges the views of both groups through a
consideration of the writings of Henry Lloyd, a soldier and Welsh
"philosophe" who combined enlightened thought and military
experience to distill a distinct theory of war. Based on previously
unused or underutilized primary materials, this is the first
biography of this key enlightenment thinker who advanced the
general understanding of war as it existed in his day.
Lloyd wrote a multivolume history of the Seven Years' War from
which he derived the Principles of War; a treatise on economics
that prefigured the liberal theories of Adam Smith; a rhapsody on
the invasion and defense of Great Britain; and finally an anonymous
critique of the English constitution that he used to demand
political and electoral reform. Overall, he argued for the reform
of military institutions and practices through breaking from custom
and traditional norms. In his works, Lloyd examined warfare within
the larger context of secular philosophy and human society; and,
thus, he personified the link between the military society and the
Enlightenment that historians often ignore or discount.
Initiated into Latin America via the revolutionary turmoil of the
Dominican Republic in 1965, Sewall ("Stu") Menzel began an
adventure into Latino politics and the struggle for power, wealth
and influence throughout the region, which would further take him
from one trouble-spot to another. Whether it was confronting
revolutionaries in the Caribbean, multiple guerrilla threats in
Central America, drug traffickers in the Andes Mountains, or
recalcitrant dictators, the author brings the reader onto the stage
of Latino politics as he experienced it from 1965 to 1989. In this
unvarnished presentation of conflict and revolution in the
Americas, Colonel Menzel offers a succinct critical analysis of
U.S. policy and operations against a historical backdrop of the
times. While the United States has always maintained a special
relationship with Latin America, the region has been a difficult
milieu to deal with in its complexity. Washington's Cold War
experience in Latin America amply demonstrates this truth as its
attempts to influence regional politics constantly ran up against
competing and countervailing values and cultures. As such, the
author points out how U.S. national security interests constantly
butted heads with and often worked at cross-purposes with the need
for human rights-based socio-economic and political reforms. The
primary lesson learned from the overall experience is that America
needs to know not only what it is against, but also what it is for
if it wants to have a lasting positive impact on Latin America.
Colonel Menzel's personal experiences and observations involving
the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Bolivia,
Peru, Colombia and Panama amply illustrate the point.
Offering an introduction to clanism and tribalism in the Gulf of
Aden area, Dr Lewis uses these concepts to analyse security in
Yemen, Somalia, Somaliland and the broader region. This historical
overview of conflict in each country, and the resulting threats of
piracy and terrorism, will benefit both the casual reader and
student of development.
Ten years after the end of the Gulf War, the conflict continues
with unresolved questions about economic sanctions and IraQ's
participation in the oil export system. A specialist in Middle
Eastern politics and an intelligence officer, Pelletiere covered
the Iran-Iraq War as well as the subsequent Gulf conflict. He
argues that IraQ's victory over Iran in 1988 gave the nation the
capability of becoming a regional superpower with a strong say in
how the Gulf's oil reserves were managed. Because the United States
could not tolerate an ultranationalist state with the potential to
destabilize the world's economy, war then became inevitable.
This study examines the rise of the international oil system
from the 1920s when the great cartel was formed. Comprised of seven
companies, it was designed to ensure their continued control over
the world's oil supplies. When the companies lost control with the
OPEC revolution in 1973, the United States moved into the realm of
Gulf politics with the goal of protecting the world economy.
Pelletire details how Saddam Hussein unwillingly precipitated the
Gulf crisis and why the conflict is not likely to be resolved
soon-or peacefully.
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