Editors' note In place of the lengthy general bibliography found in earlier editions of this volume, the editors are substituting a personal essay by the Chief of Military History on the subject of reading history. Bibliographic information on the volumes mentioned in this essay, along with that for other general works recommended by the editors, is appended below. Suggestions These remarks are addressed to this volume's principal audience-future officers of the United States Army. Taking advantage of your goodwill and general interest in a new subject, I want to suggest that developing a habit of reading military history is both useful and rewarding. Many of our great captains of war read military history in their spare time. I believe that, like them, you will discover that a familiarity with histories that carefully and clearly analyze our country's military past will provide you with a new and special perspective on your profession. Some of the books I'm going to mention are classics and appear elsewhere in this volume's formal bibliography. Others do not, but they all rate a place on my personal suggested reading list. Not only are they among my own favorites, they also serve a major intention of the Army: to stimulate a lasting interest in ,military history among Army officers. As the Army's leaders have frequently put it, an understanding of military history is essential in our future military leaders. Before I give you my personal reading list, let me urge you to take advantage of the many fine military journals available to Army officers to keep themselves abreast of the latest trends in our profession. Begin with the fine periodicals published by the various branch schools. For generations, officers have gained valuable insights from studying the pages of Infantry, Armor, Field Artillery, and the rest. For a broader view of military matters, I recommend that you pick up the Command and General Staff College's Military Review, which specializes in articles about combined arms war, and the Army War College's Parameters, which will provide you with a useful survey of current thinking on military strategy and theory. My personal recommendations begin with three volumes that introduce the student to the battlefield, the epicenter of the soldier's profession. The Face of Battle, Company Commander, and Seven Firefights in Vietnam, all superb books, approach the battlefield from different perspectives, but each analyzes the performance of the individual soldier under fire and convincingly demonstrates both the reality of fear and the overriding influence of military discipline and leadership on the outcome of battle. I promise they will linger long in your memory. Every officer needs some notion of how the art of war has evolved throughout western history. I'd suggest that you start by sampling the work of four modern masters of our craft. Sir John Winthrop Hackett distilled a lifetime study into the brilliant chapters of his brief survey, Profession of Arms. Bernard Brodie is especially recommended for his examination of the philosophical dimensions of warfare in his masterful War and Politics. J. F C. Fuller focuses on the evolution of military operations in his The Decisive Battles of the Western World, while the authors in Peter Paret's collection, Makers of Modern Strategy: Military Thought From Machiavelli to the Nuclear Age, concentrate on the strategy of war in the West. Taken together, these insightful and beautifully written analyses create the essential context in which American military history must be placed. Knowledge of our own military past has benefited greatly from the work of gifted historians who have specialized in interpreting the American approach to war. Four of the best in terms of originality and clarity of thought are Walter Millis, who in his Arms and Men describes the evolution of American military institutions in the context of the nation's social and economic forces; T. Harry Williams, who examines the effects of military organization on strategy in his short but provocative Americans at War: The Development of the American Military System; Samuel P. Huntington, who presents a classic interpretation of the role of the professional soldier in a free society in The Soldier and the State, and Russell Weigley, who demonstrates the grand sweep of America's military past in The American Way of War. A History of United States Military Strategy and Policy and History of the United States Army. Military historians have always and with good reason depended on the biographer's craft to help define the role of great commanders. Here are six of the best: Flexner's George Washington, Freeman's Lee's Lieutenants, Henderson's Stonewall Jackson, Pogue's George C Marshall, Blumenson's The Patton Papers, and the articles in Roger Spiller's concise and informative Dictionary of Military Biography. The student often finds biography a particularly human introduction to the complexities of our military past. These authors reveal in fascinating detail the personalities of these great captains, the times in which they lived, and the changing face of war. I've discovered not only that novelists and poets can illuminate the essential truths of our profession in memorable ways, but that fictionalized accounts of warfare can often provide a unique and broad perspective on the nature of conflict. Remarque's All Quiet on the Western Front and Forester's The General masterworks of fiction, cut through the confusion of the Great War with unequaled precision and poignancy. Shaara's Killer Angels puts you with great immediacy into the mind of the Civil War commander, providing thereby an impressive lesson in military leadership. Once an Eagle, Myrer's realistic portrait of the modern Army officer, makes the point well that his training in peacetime is the key to a soldier's success in war. Finally, let me press on you the Book of War Poetry compiled by the Oxford University Press. Here we see in distilled form and beautiful language the inner convictions, along with the doubts and fears, that have possessed the warrior over time. It's a source of pride to me and, I hope, of inspiration to those of you who plan to make the study of military history a part of your Army career that some important books in our field are the work of serving Army officers. General Dave Palmer's insights into military strategy shine through his study of the Vietnam War, Summons of the Trumpet, and of the American Revolution, The Way of the Fox, while General John Galvin shares his special knowledge of modern tactics in Air Assault: The Development of Airmobile Warfare. Although Col. Robert Doughty's The Seeds of Disaster. The Development of French Army Doctrine, 1919-1939, Col. Harold Nelson's Leon Trotsky and the Art of Insurrection, and Lt. Col. Harold Winton's To Change an Army focus on other armies in other times, they address issues that have broad implications for our own Army today. Nelson has joined with the distinguished military history professor Jay Luvaas to produce several books that I am convinced will stand the test of time. The Army War College guides to the battles of Gettysburg, Antietam, and Chancellorsville are proving invaluable to those of us who, by means of staff rides, use the experience of great commanders of the past to prepare us for future tests. Finally, the novelist's skills have enabled Lt. Col. Jim McDonough in his Platoon Leader and Mal. H. W, Coyle in his Team Yankee: A Novel of World War III to add new perspectives to issues that you will be encountering as serving officers. Let me conclude by urging you to dip into three books that newspaper critics were once prone to call "good reads": William Prescott's The Conquest of Mexico, Cecil Woodham-Smith's The Reason Why: The Charge of the Light Brigade, and Matthew Brennan's Brennan's War. Good reads they certainly are, but beware: they are also solid and serious examples of the historian's craft, and they just might hook you for life on reading military history. GENERAL WORKS The Battlefield Cash, John A., Albright, John N., and Sandstrum, Allan W. Seven Firefights in Vietnam. Washington: Government Printing Office, 1970. Esposito, Vincent, ed. The West Point Atlas of American Wars. 2 vols. New York: Frederick A. Praeger, 1959. Keegan, John. The Face of Batik. New York: Viking Press, 1976. MacDonald, Charles B. Company Commander. New York: Ballantine Books, 1966. Western Military History Brodie, Bernard. War and Politics. New York: Macmillan, 1973. Doughty, Robert A. The Seeds of Disaster: The Development of French Army Doctrine, 1919-1939. Hamden, Conn.: Anchor Books, 1985. Fuller, J. E C. The Decisive Battles of the Western World, and Their Influence Upon History. London: Eyre and Spottswoode, 1954. Fuller, JFC A Military History of the Western World. 3 vols. New York: Funk and Wagnalls, 1954-56. Hackett, Sir John Winthrop. Profession of Arms. Washington: Government Printing Office, 1988. Nef, John U. War and Human Progress: An Essay on the Rise of Industrial Civilization. New York: Norton, 1968. Nelson, Harold W, Leon Trotsky and the Art of Insurrection, 1905-1917. London: Frank Cass, 1988. Paret, Peter, Craig, Gordon A., and Gilbert, Felix, eds. Makers of Modern Strategy: Military Thought From Machiavelli to the Nuclear Age. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1986. Preston, Richard A., Wise, Sydney F, and Werner, Hermon 0. Men in Arms: A History of Warfare and Its Relationships With Western Society. New York: Frederick A. Praeger, 1962. Ropp, Theodore. War in the Modern World. Durham: Duke University Press, 1959. Winton, Harold R. To Change an Army: General Sir John Burnett-Stuart and British Armored Doctrine, 1927-1938. Lawrence: University Press of Kansas, 1988. American Military Thought Hagen, Kenneth J., and Roberts, William R., eds. Against All Enemies: Interpretations of American Military History From Colonial Times to the Present. New York: Greenwood Press, 1986. Hammond, Paul. Organizing for Defense: The American Military Establishment in the 20th Century. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1961. Heller, Charles E., and Stofft, William A., eds. America's First Battles, 1776-1965. Lawrence: University Press of Kansas, 1986. Huntington, Samuel R The Soldier and the State. The Theory and Politics of Civil-Military Relations. Cambridge: Belknap Press, 1959- Millett, Allan R., and Maslowski, Peter. For the Common Defense: A Military History of the United States of America. New York: The Free Press, 1984- Millis, Walter. Arms and Men: A Study in American Military History. New York: Putnam, 1956. Nelson, Otto L., Jr. National Security and the General Staff Washington: Combat Forces Press, 1946. Weigley, Russell F The American Way of War: A History of United States Military Strategy and Policy. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1977. Weigley, Russell F History of the United States Army. 2d ed. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1984. Williams, T. Harry. Americans at War. The Development of the American Military System. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1960. Specialized Studies in American Military History Ambrose, Stephen. Duty, Honor, Country: A History of West Point. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1966. Ball, Harry P Of Reasonable Command: A History of the U.S. Army War College. Carlisle Barracks, Pa.: Alumni Association of the U.S. Army War College, 1983. Coffman, Edward. The Old Army: A Portrait of the American Army in Peacetime, 1784-,498. New York: Oxford University Press, 1986. Galvin, John R. Air Assault: The Development of Airmobile Warfare. New York: Hawthorne Books, 1969. Huston, James A. The Sinews of War: Army Logistics, 1775-1953- Washington: Government Printing Office, 1966. Janowitz, Mris. The Professional Soldier: A Social and Professional Portrait. Glencoe, Ill.: The Free Press, 1960. Nalty, Bernard. Strength for the Fight: A History of Black Americans in the Military. New York: The Free Press, 1986. Nelson, Harold W, and Luvaas, Jay. The U.S. Army War College Guide to the Batik of Gettysburg. Carlisle, Pa.: South Mountain Press, 1986. Nelson, Harold W, and Luvaas, Jay. The U.S. Army War College Guide to the Battle of Antietam. Carlisle, Pa.: South Mountain Press, 1987 Nelson, Harold W, and Luvaas, Jay. The U.S. Army War College Guide to the Batik of Chancelibrsvilk. Carlisle, Pa.: South Mountain Press, 1988. Nenninger, Timothy K. The Leavenworth Schools and the Old Army: Education, Professionalism, and the Officer Corps of the United States Army, 1881-1918 Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1978. Palmer, Dave R. Summons of the Trumpet: U.S.-Vietnam in Perspective. Novato, Calif: Presidio Press, 1978. Palmer, Dave R. American Strategy in the War for America, 1775-1783. Westport, CT Palmer, Dave R. The Way of the Fox. Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1975. Military Biography Blumenson, Martin. The Patton Papers. 2 vols. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1974. Flexner, James. George Washington- 4 vols. Boston: Little, Brown, 1965-72. Freeman, Douglas Southall. Lee's Lieutenants. A Study in Command. 3 vols. New York: Scribners, 1942-44. Henderson, George F R. Stonewall Jackson and the American Civil War New York: Longmans, Green, 1900. Pogue, Forrest C. George C. Marshall 4 vols. New York: Viking, 1987. Spiller, Roger J., et al., eds. Dictionary of American Military Biography- 3 vols. Westport, Conn. : Greenwood Press, 1984, Bibliography Higham, Robin, and Mrozek, Donald, eds. A Guide to the Sources of United States Military History. Hamden, Conn.: Archon Books, 1975 (with Supplements 1, 1981, and 11, 1984). Jessup, John E., Jr., and Coakley, Robert W, eds. A Guide to the Study and Use of Military History. Washington: Government Printing Office, 1970. Further Readings Brennan, Matthew. Brennan's War. Novato, Calif: Presidio Press, 1985. Coyle, H.W, Team Yankee: A Novel of World War III. Novato, Calif: Presidio Press, 1987. Forester, C. S. The General. Baltimore: Nautical and Aviation, 1987. McDonough, James R. Platoon Leader. Novato, Calif: Presidio Press, 1985, Myrer, Anton. Once an Eagle. New York: Dell, ig7o. Prescott, William H. The Conquest of Mexico. New York: Modern Library, 1931. Remarque, Erich M. All Quiet on the Western Front. New York: Fawcett, 1987. Shaara, Michael. Ki1kr Angels. A Novel About the Four Days at Gettysburg. New York: McKay, 1974. Stallworthy, Jon, ed. Orford Book of War Poetry. New York: Oxford University Press, 1984. Woodham-Smith, Cecil. The Reason Why: The Charge of the Light Brigade. New York: Dutton, 1960. Stanley, Timothy W American Defense and National Security. Washington: Public Affairs National Security. Washington: Public Affairs Press, 1956. The U.S. Army in Vietnam Recommended Readings Bergen, John D. Military Communications: A Test for Technology. U.S. Army in Vietnam. Washington: Government Printing Office, 1986. Clarke, Jeffrey J. Advice and Support: The Final Years, 1965-1973. U.S. Army in Vietnam. Washington: Government Printing Office, 1988. Hammond, William M. Public Affairs: The Military and the Media, 1962-1968 U.S. Army in Vietnam. Washington: Government Printing Office, 1988. Herring, George C. America's Longest War: The United States and Vietnam, 1950-1975. New York: John Wiley & Sons, 1979. Krepinevich, Andrew F. The Army and Vietnam. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1986. Lewy, Guenter. America in Vietnam. New York: Oxford University Press, 1978. Meyerson, Joel D. Images of a Lengthy War U.S. Army in Vietnam. Washington: Government Printing Office, 1986. Palmer, Bruce. The 25-Year War: America's Military Role in Vietnam. Lexington: University Press of Kentucky, 1984. Race, Jeffrey. War Comes to Long An: Revolutionary Conflict in a Vietnamese Province. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1972. Spector, Ronald H. Advice and Support: The Early Years, 1941-1960 U.S. Army in Vietnam. Washington: Government Printing Office, 1983 Stanton, Shelby L. The Rise and Fall of an American Army: U.S. Ground Forces in Vietnam, 1965-1973. Novato, Calif: Presidio Press, 1985 Summers, Harry G. On Strategy. San Rafael: Presidio Press, 1986. Westmoreland, William C. A Soldier Reports. Garden City: Doubleday, 1976. Other Readings Cash, John A., Albright, John N., and Sandstrum, Allan W Seven Firefights in Vietnam. Washington: Government Printing Office, 1970. Donovan, David. Once a Warrior King: Memories of an Officer in Vietnam. New York: McGrawHill, 1985 Downs, Fred. The Killing Zone. New York: W. W Norton, 1978. Fall, Bernard B. The Two Vietnams: A Political and Military Analysis. 2d rev. ed. New York: Praeger, 1967. Herrington, Stuart A. Silence Was a Weapon. Novato, Calif: Presidio Press, 1982. Oberdorfer, Don. Tet! Garden City: Doubleday, 1971. The Pentagon Papers. The Defense Department History of United States Decisionmaking on Vietnam. Senator Gravel edition, 4 vols. Boston: Beacon Press, 1971 Pike, Douglas. Viet Cong: The Organization and Techniques of the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam. Cambridge: M.I.T Press, 1966. Santoli, Al. To Bear Any Burden. New York: E. R Dutton, 1985 Tolson, Lieutenant General John J. Airmobility, 1961-1971. Vietnam Studies. Washington: Government Printing Office, 1974. Back to Table of Contents -- US Army in Vietnam Back to Vietnam Military History List of Issues Back to MagWeb Magazine List © Copyright 2004 by Coalition Web, Inc. This article appears in MagWeb.com (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. Other articles from military history and related magazines are available at http://www.magweb.com