In 1959, the United States Air Force Academy's Department of History began the Harmon Lecture Service on Military History in memory of Lt. Gen. Hubert R. Harmon, first superintendent and "father" of the Academy. The series support two goals - to further encourage the awakened interest in military history that evolved after World War II and to stimulate cadets to develop a lifelong interest in the history of the military profession. This collection of the first thirty Harmon Memorial Lectures reflects the evolution in scholarship of prominent scholars working in military history over the past three decades. United States Air Force Academy, Office of Air Force History, United States Air Force.

The essays, commentaries, and speeches which form this volume were presented at the Eleventh Military History Symposium at the United States Air Force Academy. Few events traumatize a nation more than losing a war. Defeat can bring down an empire, alter national boundaries, end sovereignty, and dramatically change a society's social structure. Failures are explained in many ways and are seldom of a singular nature. Their roots, however, can be traced to the planning for war. For this reason, no other peacetime activity should command more attention from military leaders and scholars than the study of military planning. In reality, commanders prefer to concentrate on more immediate and understandable concerns - supplying, training, and fighting. Military historians also prefer to study combat and the battlefield where the results of all efforts are starkly evident. Consequently, the Department of History decided to dedicate its Eleventh Military History Symposium to the too seldom studied topic of military planning, the foundation for successful warfare. Office of Air Force History, United States Air Force.