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Books > Social sciences > Warfare & defence > Military life & institutions
In this book James E. Westheider explores the social and
professional paradoxes facing African-American soldiers in Vietnam.
Service in the military started as a demonstration of the merits of
integration as blacks competed with whites on a near equal basis
for the first time. Military service, especially service in
Vietnam, helped shape modern black culture and fostered a sense of
black solidarity in the Armed Forces. But as the war progressed,
racial violence became a major problem for the Armed Forces as they
failed to keep pace with the sweeping changes in civilian society.
Despite the boasts of the Department of Defense, personal and
institutional racism remained endemic to the system. Westheider
tells this story expertly and accessibly by providing the history
and background of African American participation in the U.S. Armed
Forces then following all the way through to the experience of
African Americans returning home from the Vietnam war.
Nearly everyone in the U.S. has studied the Revolutionary War. Too
often, however, historians of the Revolution focus on the activity
of the army without noticing what was taking place inside the army.
Making liberal use of diaries and correspondence by the soldiers
and their families, Charles P. Neimeyer tells the stories of the
men and women who fought for the young country's independence.
Sometimes starting off as rag-tag groups of men shooting off their
muskets at geese just for the thrill of the sound, the soldiers
became more disciplined and focused. The army recruited a
significant number of African American soldiers, who fought side by
side with whites. Women also fought and served in the army, either
masquerading as male soldiers or providing support for army
operations in camp and on the march. Suffering through times of
numbing cold and starvation where men boiled their shoes for food,
the sheer perseverance of the soldiers in the ranks ultimately won
the war for independence. Presenting stories from letters and
diaries of the men and women of the time, this volume reveals the
stories of fear, exhaustion, hard work, grief, and exhilaration of
the people in the camps and on the march. Highlights include: ;
Recruitment, which included just about any healthy man willing to
serve, including immigrants and enemy POWs ; General Washington's
attempts to create a model, respectable army ; Attempts at medical
treatment, and the ravages of smallpox, which left men dying at
makeshift hospitals ; African American soldiers in the War ;
Women's contributions to war efforts, whether in disguise as
soldiers, or in filling in for husbands killed in battle ; Daily
life in the camp: the monotony, the lack of food and supplies,
drinking, sleeping in huts and out in the open, games, letter
writing and religious observations ; The failure to fairly pay the
soldiers as they mustered out of service The book also includes a
timeline that puts dates and events in better perspective; a
comprehensive, topically arranged bibliography; and a thorough
index.
Military recruitment will become more difficult in times of
demographic aging. The question arises whether demographic change
will constrain the capacity of aging states like Germany to conduct
foreign policy and pursue their national security interests. Since
contemporary military operations still display a strong human
element, particular scrutiny is given to the empirical analysis of
the determinants of military propensity and military service among
youth.
An additional human capital projection until 2030 illustrates
how the decline in the youth population will interact with trends
in educational attainment and adolescent health to further
complicate military recruitment in the future. A concluding review
of recruiting practices in other NATO countries provides insight in
best-practice policy options to reduce the military's sensitivity
to demographic change.
Following this approach, the book gives prominence to a topic
that has thus far been under-represented in the greater discussion
of demographic change today, namely the demographic impact on
international affairs and strategic calculations.
It was 1862, the second year of the Civil War, though Kansans and
Missourians had been fighting over slavery for almost a decade. For
the 250 Union soldiers facing down rebel irregulars on Enoch
Toothman's farm near Butler, Missouri, this was no battle over
abstract principles. These were men of the First Kansas Colored
Infantry, and they were fighting for their own freedom and that of
their families. They belonged to the first black regiment raised in
a northern state, and the first black unit to see combat during the
Civil War. "Soldiers in the Army of Freedom" is the first published
account of this largely forgotten regiment and, in particular, its
contribution to Union victory in the trans-Mississippi theater of
the Civil War. As such, it restores the First Kansas Colored
Infantry to its rightful place in American history.
Composed primarily of former slaves, the First Kansas Colored saw
major combat in Missouri, Indian Territory, and Arkansas. Ian
Michael Spurgeon draws upon a wealth of little-known
sources--including soldiers' pension applications--to chart the
intersection of race and military service, and to reveal the
regiment's role in countering white prejudices by defying
stereotypes. Despite naysayers' bigoted predictions--and a
merciless slaughter at the Battle of Poison Spring--these black
soldiers proved themselves as capable as their white counterparts,
and so helped shape the evolving attitudes of leading politicians,
such as Kansas senator James Henry Lane and President Abraham
Lincoln. A long-overdue reconstruction of the regiment's remarkable
combat record, Spurgeon's book brings to life the men of the First
Kansas Colored Infantry in their doubly desperate battle against
the Confederate forces and skepticism within Union ranks.
The 6th Battalion Lincolnshire Regiment was raised in August 1914
and sailed for Gallipoli in July 1915. Upon arrival, the Battalion
was almost immediately thrown into action at the Suvla Bay landings
on 6 August 1915. The 6th Lincolns continued to serve at Gallipoli
until the evacuation of Suvla. Following a period of respite in
Egypt, the Battalion was transferred to the Western Front where it
served until Armistice. Compiled from a previously unpublished
manuscript written in the 1920's, this book provides a unique and
colourful account of the Battalion's history throughout WW1, as
told by Colonel F.G. Spring who served with the Battalion in 1915.
The book also contains a Roll of Honour listing the names of all
those who died with the Battalion, as well as the citations for
those awarded medals for gallantry. Given that the Battalion War
Diary for Gallipoli was lost, this publication is represents the
most comprehensive account of the 6th Lincolns during the Great
War.
On a bright, sunny day, June 8, 1967, the USS Liberty, a U.S. Navy
Intelligence ship was sailing off the coast of the Sinai Peninsula.
The Israeli/Arab 6 Day War had begun three days earlier. Without
warning, our ally's IDF (Israeli Defense Force) aircraft and
torpedo boats deliberately attacked, killing 34 United States
Americans (31 sailors, 2 marines, and 1 NSA civilian) and wounding
174 - two thirds of the crew were either killed or wounded.
Carrying the scars of this attack would be bad enough, but learning
of a United States and Israeli government cover-up of the facts of
the attack has added insult to injury for the brave men who
survived this attack. Add in bigotry and prejudice toward the USS
Liberty survivors because of their quest to reveal the truth of the
events of that fateful day, you cannot read this book without
feeling a deep-seated rage at what governments will do to protect
their interests - even to the point of wronging the very protectors
of their nation.
What did British combatants wear on the western front in the First
World War? From the idealized recruitment images to the coarse
trousers and ill-fitting tunics, Jane Tynan retraces wartime
culture through images and experiences of khaki. Photographs,
newspapers, memoirs, war office documents and tailoring ephemera
reveal the impact of the war on the tailoring trade. But the story
of uniform also involves the wartime knitting projects, the issue
of 'Kitchener Blue', Sikhs wearing khaki on the western front, and
the punishments given to COs. Military uniforms were designed to
make soldiers of civilian men and to rank them according to race
and class, but Tynan argues that neat images of men in khaki
concealed the reality that clothing an ever-expanding army involved
compromise, resistance and improvisation. Uniforms transformed men
and war changed British society. This book tells the story of
British army clothing during wartime and offers insights into why
khaki has endured as the symbol of modern militarism.
The military claims to be an honourable profession, yet military
torture is widespread. Why is the military violating its own
values? Jessica Wolfendale argues that the prevalence of military
torture is linked to military training methods that cultivate the
psychological dispositions connected to crimes of obedience. While
these methods are used, the military has no credible claim to
professional status. Combating torture requires that we radically
rethink the nature of the military profession and military
training.
The Vietnam War has had many long-reaching, traumatic effects, not
just on the veterans of the war, but on their children as well. In
this book, Weber examines the concept of the war as a social monad,
a confusing array of personal stories and public histories that
disrupt traditional ways of knowing the social world for the second
generation.
Both harrowing and redeeming, this is the history of a unique
'adoption' system. The book tells how, for generations, local
families, grateful for the sacrifice of their liberators from Nazi
occupation, have cared for the graves of over 10,000 US soldiers in
the cemetery of Margraten in the Netherlands, keeping their memory
alive.
Three hundred and fifty-one men were executed by British Army firing-squads between September 1914 and November 1920. By far the greatest number were shot for desertion in the face of the enemy. Controversial even at the time, these executions of soldiers amid the horrors of the Western Front continue to haunt the history of war. This book provides a critical analysis of military law in the British army and other major armies during the First World War, with particular reference to the use of the death penalty. This study establishes a full cultural and legal framework for military discipline and compares British military law with French and German military law. It includes case studies of British troops on the Frontline.
Voyager / Veteran is designed to provide a paradigm model (for how
one thinks about change) needed and practiced for conducting
exceptional and meaningful job search for veterans. This approach
to job search embodies a combination of traditional and
unconventional tools and simple universal truths. The paths taken
are diverse: inclusive of anecdotal examples, formal and informal
training, educational disciplines, cultural, and social values. The
focus is most certainly one of compassion, inquiry, and
self-discovery, all directed at fostering a productive mindset
resulting in the development and realization of a veteran's true
career and employment potential, a journey towards self-sufficiency
and sustainability.
One of the major issues surrounding the last Inter-governmental
Conference (IGC) of the European Union (EU), the Amsterdam Treaty
and the whole future of the EU in the period 1997 to 2005-7 has
been that of enlargement. Enlargement is not a new phenomenon for
the EEC/EU, but the next enlargements are generally regarded as
qualitatively different because of the number of states and the
challenge that their entry poses to both of them, the states and
the Union. The book is framed within the research approach of the
English School of International Relations on the enlargement of
international society. It connects theoretical aspects with
empirical facts and thereby illustrates the Mediterranean
enlargement fro9m the view of the entry candidates, the EU and the
US. Conten: Eu-Enlargement--English School of International
Relations--Case studies: Cyprus, Malta, Turkey--Mediterranean
enlargement--US-perspective--EU-prespective.
When a Turkish minister of culture declares that "the Turkish
military is synonymous with Turkish national identity," the
embedded assumptions cry out for investigation. Altinay examines
how the myth that the military is central to Turkey's national
identity was created, perpetuated, and acts to shape politics. This
historical and anthropological investigation probes the genesis of
the myth that the Turkish nation is a military nation, traces how
the ideology of militarism has been actualized through education
and conscription, and reveals the implications for ethnic and
gender relations. Altinay sheds light both on the process of how
national identities are constructed and on the deep roots of the
challenges facing Turkey as it potentially moves from being a
plural to a pluralistic society.
The brand NEW instalment in the bestselling Harpers Emporium series
by Rosie Clarke. Can the Harpers Girls look forward to some happy
times as a new dawn rises over London?Sally Harper is busy juggling
running London's Oxford Street Store Harpers and looking after her
beautiful new-born daughter, whilst husband Ben is overseas on
another dangerous mission, this time to rescue a friend in need.
Young Becky Stockbridge finds herself in a difficult situation
which could bring shame to her and her family. Will Becky, with the
help of her friends find her happy ever after and keep her secret?
Marion Jackson is blessed with a son as she eagerly awaits the
return of her husband Reggie. But all is not right when Reggie
returns. Is Marion strong enough to save her family from yet
another crisis? As the war clouds retreat and the victory bells
ring, tears and joy mingle with those of sadness as the world
counts the true toll of war and celebrates peace.
A one-stop resource for information about U.S. military commands
and their organizations, this book describes the six geographic
combat commands and analyzes their contributions to national
security. The first book on the topic, Combatant Commands: Origins,
Structure, and Engagements is a unique introduction to the
geographic commands that are now at the heart of the U.S. military
deployment abroad. The book begins with a description of the six
commands—Northern Command, Pacific Command, Central Command,
Southern Command, European Command, and Africa Command—explaining
how they fit into the current national security establishment. Each
command is discussed in depth, including areas of responsibility,
subcommands, priorities, threats faced, and engagement
institutions. The history of joint combatant commands is outlined
as well, particularly the impact of the Root Reforms of the early
20th century, the push for the 1947 National Security Act, and the
1986 Goldwater-Nichols Military Reform Act. In this way, the
evolution of combatant commands becomes a window through which to
view changes in the U.S. military. Geographic combatant commands
are vital to national security. By understanding how they work,
readers will better understand where our military is today and
where it may be headed.
From 1973 to 1990 in Chile, approximately 370,000 young men mostly
from impoverished backgrounds were conscripted to serve as soldiers
in Augusto Pinochet's violent regime. Some were brutal enforcers,
but many themselves endured physical and psychological abuse,
survival and torture training, arbitrary punishments, political
persecution, and forced labor. Leith Passmore examines the
emergence, in the early twenty-first century, of a movement of
ex-conscripts seeking reparations. The former soldiers challenged
the politics of memory that had shaped Chile's truth and
reconciliation efforts, demanding recognition of their own broken
families, ill health and incapacity to work, and damaged sense of
self. Relying on unpublished material, testimony, interviews, and
field notes, Passmore locates these individuals' narratives of
victimhood at the intersection of long-term histories of
patriotism, masculinity, and cyclical poverty. These accounts
reveal in detail how Pinochet's war against his own citizens as
well as the ""almost-wars"" with neighboring Peru, Bolivia, and
Argentina were also waged inside Chile's army barracks.
The Morality of Terrorism argues that terrorism violates certain
human rights, and just war, and consequentialist moral principles,
and so is always wrong. In distinguishing freedom fighting from
terrorism, this study lays down stringent conditions derived from
just war theory, for the moral justifiability of freedom fighting,
such as some revolutions, civil wars, and guerilla warfare. This
book then evaluates the morality of actual and possible judicial
and military responses to terrorism by targeted governments. An
appendix provides a case study (the Palestine problem) of root
causes of political and moralistic-religious terrorism.
This book examines US recourse to military force in the post-9/11
era. In particular, it evaluates the extent to which the Bush and
Obama administrations viewed legitimizing the greater use-of-force
as a necessary solution to thwart the security threat presented by
global terrorist networks and WMD proliferation.
This is a detailed study of the armies of Rome and their enemies,
including the Etruscans, Samnites, Carthaginians, Celts,
Macedonians, Gauls, Huns, Sassanids, Persians and Turks. It is an
incredible visual reference of the fighting men of Rome and their
enemies, from the earliest settlement on the River Tiber in the 8th
century BC to the fall of Constantinople in 1453. It offers a
concise and authoritative overview of the rise of the Roman Empire,
its campaigns, conquests and tactics, with detailed information on
the men at arms. It includes coverage of the Roman navy and sea
battles, as well as the artillery pieces, siege engines, defenses
and military structures built by the army - from the north-west
reaches of the empire to the far east. It is illustrated with over
670 images of military dress, weapons, galleys, ballistas and
fortifications. This book details the uniforms of the Roman army
and its enemies, from the first decades of tribal warfare in Italy,
through the republican and imperial periods, up to the end of the
eastern Roman Empire. It includes expert insight into the army's
astonishing engineering feats, the discipline of the legions and
the relentless expansion of the empire. Including information on
the arms and clothing of the Carthaginians, Persians, Huns and
Turks and other enemies of Rome, the book is a definitive and
accessible visual study of the military dress of the period. There
is also a fascinating history of the Roman's artillery, siege
engines and fortifications, and a special section on the founding
and expansion of its navy.
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