U.S. Army War College

Students of the Civil War are well versed in the operational campaignsuccesses and the generalship of Lee, Grant, and Sherman. A lesser knowncampaign, General John B. Hood's invasion of Tennessee during the winter of1864, may have been the most important one of the war. Hood's record as atactician was brilliant. For this he received command of the Army ofTennessee as it grappled with Sherman at the gates of Atlanta. After the fallof the city, the Confederacy's options for prolonging the war to exhaustNorthern resolve were limited. Although shaken and reduced, Hood's army wasthe only substantial force available for offensive operations. A threat toSherman's lines of communications in Tennessee and subsequent victory there might have negated the Union threat to the South's heartland and recovered all that had been lost at Atlanta. This was not to be; Hood all but destroyed his army in the try. This book is an analysis of the relative fitness of one military leader'scharacter at escalating levels of command. From early life, Hood possessed the traits of personality that were destined to make him a brilliant success at the tactical level, secure his elevation above it, and cause him dismal failure once there. This book is a journey into the enigma of successful generalship.

The Battle of Britain is thought to be the greatest air battle in history. This battle began on 10 July 1940 and ended on 31 October 1940. It followed the German Blitzkrieg of the Low Countries and France and the ignoble British retreat throughDunkirk. During the previous months the German Luftwaffe had triumphed over the air forces of Poland, Norway, Holland, Belgium and France and had destroyed all but 66 of the 260 BritishHurricanes sent to support the British Army in France. The German victories gave rise to beliefs of invincibility which were replaced by feelings of frustration and failure as the Battle of Britain progressed. Arguably the lack of a coherent plan for the German invasion of Britain, Operation Sealion, and the heroics of the British pilots and ground crews influenced the outcome of the Battle of Britain. However, it is the contention of thisstudy that the Command and Control systems of the British coupled with the technology that made those systems possible were responsiblefor the British victory. The individual systems, RADAR, radio, Identification Friend or Foe (IFF), direction finding and intelligence, and how they were integrated into the command and control structure are discussed.

This book examines the military tribunal system as a means to bring international terrorists to justice, and strategic implications affecting United States interests. The United States will continue to take unilateral action to protect its vital and important interests regardless of world opinion and reaction to using the U. S. Military Tribunal System. However, it may hesitate to fully use this system based upon world opinion concerning our use of the death penalty and secret proceedings. Unfortunately, without strong U. S. and world support for this system of justice, future coalition warfare may be threatened by nations not willing to commit their resources and soldiers. The United States will continue to support the rule of law and at the same time protect its most important concerns and those of its closest allies. It may, however, weigh the potential of using military tribunals as too steep a price to pay to bring international terrorists to justice.

Before the first American ground forces ever landed in North Africa, Britain and her allies fought a long and bloody desert war against the Axis coalition. For 29 months, Britain fought theItalians and Germans. This study reviews the early North African campaigns and shows that the British pursued a strategy of fighting the Axis powers in a secondary theater of war and thatthis strategy evolved more by circumstance than design. This study shows that the British correctly estimated the strategic situation in North Africa and followed a difficult, yet successful, strategythat diverted Axis resources from other fronts and set the stage for the Axis defeat in both North Africa and Europe. This study covers the period from 10 June 1940, when Britain went to war inNorth Africa, until 8 November 1942 when Allied forces conducted landings in Northwest Africa under the code name Operation Torch. This study concludes: that the British followed a succesful strategy, that these campaigns illustrate the political nature of theater warfare and command, that the British Middle-East Commandwas a successful joint and combined command structure, that these campaigns illustrate the importance of properly estimating, planning and providing adequate logistical support to executetheater strategy, and that the British and Americans learned other operational, technical, and tactical lessons from these early campaigns.

After the Gettysburg Campaign of the American Civil War in late July 1863, the Union Army of the Potomac, commanded by Major General George G. Meade, pursued the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia, commanded byGeneral Robert E. Lee, south into Central Virginia. There followed a series of maneuvers and engagements as the two commanders jockeyed for position. The Mine Run Campaign constitutes one of these episodes and was conducted during the period 20 October 1863 to 2 December 1863. Little study has been devoted to this rather obscure campaign because of its relatively inconclusive results. However, the campaign does provide a unique opportunity to analyze the actions and thought processes of an army commander at the operational level of war. Since the Mine Run Campaignwas Meade's first army level offensive operation, this paper is focused on his application of the Operational Art. To that end this study explores the factors that influence the development of the army commander's intent, the design of his campaign plan, and the execution of the campaign in combat operations

The attack of our nation on September 11, 2001by nineteen Islamic terrorists was well planned, calculated, and carried with the purpose to hit our nation with a simultaneous concentrated effort of death and destruction. The United States of America and the world will never be the same since that terrible day. As the military combat operation concludes in Iraq and within the next two years in Afghanistan, what are some approaches to be examined coupled with conflict resolution paradigms to achieve this from a strategic and diplomatic approach? Recent shortfalls in dealing with Islamic nations, and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have shown a gap between acknowledging and examining the religious strands that link the Islamic faith. In looking closely at the Islamic terrorists, one can look at the "religious link or strands" and examine some reasons why these Islamic terrorists and extremists have used religious justifications for violence and acts of terrorism. Examining these religious strands and extreme interpretations can effectively enhance the United States' national strategy, security, both domestically and globally, and policy to ultimately achieve conflict resolution and peace.

Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, was the founder of the Republic of Turkey andits first president. Among the great leaders of history, few achieved somuch in so short a period, or transformed the life of a nation as decisively, or has given such profound inspiration to the world at large. His strategic vision can be divided into two parts; first in military areaand second in the political area. Emerging as a military hero at the Dardanelles in 1915, he became thecharismatic leader of the Turkish national liberation struggle in 1919. Heblazed across the world scene in the early 1920s as a triumphantcommander who crushed the invaders of his country. As a president for 15 years, until his death in 1938, Mustafa KemalAtaturk introduced a broad range of swift and sweeping reforms in thepolitical, social, legal, economic, and cultural spheres virtually unparalleledin any other country

The purpose of this book is to add to the understanding of the dangers of international terrorism as those affect Turkey. Turkey has been the unique target of international terrorism since 1965. Taking into consideration her geographical location, social and economic potential, Turkey has always attracted the Soviet Union's attention. It will be probably the same in the future. Turkey is the only Islamic nation in NATO. It is however, totally secular, democratic and based on free market principles. On the other hand, Turkeyis a major obstacle for the ideological and military expansion of the Soviet Union towards the Middle East. This is the main reason why Turkey has been the main target of international terrorism. Turkey has been accumulating a very costly social experience in the last three decades. There is no shortage of circumstantial evidence of outside involvement in Turkish terrorism. International terrorism has been threatening not only Turkey, but also alldemocratic societies in the world. On account of this fact, the core of the solution, depends in an effective measure which will be taken by all democratic societies, governments and institutions.

Germany did not Initially Intend to become Involved In the North African conflict. Facing a potential Italian collapse. Hitler could no longer ignore a deteriorating situation, for If Africa were lost there was a possibility that the Facist regimewould also fall. removing Italy from the Axis partiership. Erwin Rommel was sent to Africa In 1941 with a small force to assist the Italians. The ensuing battles between the Axis and British forces ebbed and flowed along the North African coast for over two years. These campaigns were to become a battle of logistics characterized by severely extended lines of communication. Rommel's actions were characterized by an almost complete disregard for logistics In his operations planning. whereas British operations were characterized by methodical logistics planning, resulting In supply build-up prior to Initiatingoperations. Rommel was more successful than his British counterparts in applying sound tactics (similar to our current AirLand Battle doctrine). His downfall was logistics. The British. however, were more concerned with the application of sound logistics principles which In the long run served to turn the tide of the campaign. Even though they suffered tactically during the initial stages of the campaign, they learned well from their adversary, and gained the edge which resulted In ultimatevictory. Britain's ability to provide what appeared to be unlimited support in what was considered an extremely critical theater. eventually permitted her forces to overwhelm the Axis "stepchildren" of North Africa. Field Marshall Rommel learned.only too late. the Importance of logistics during the conduct of this important campaign.

In the 2014 Quadrennial Defense Review, military planners speak at great length about the importance of rebalancing our armed forces. As a result of the Budget Control Act of 2011, our U. S. Armed Forces have absorbed significant budget cuts, which are projected to continue into 2016. Not surprisingly, a major theme of the Quadrennial Defense Review is the necessity of making tough choices in a period of fiscal austerity.1 As Dr. Manjikian's analysis points out, however, many of the themes raised by policymakers, military analysts and the general public in relation to this new politics of austerity are not actually new. Rather, such conversations have taken place at the end of U. S. military actions after the Korean War, in Vietnam, and at the end of the Cold War.

Military cyberspace operations have been ongoing since before the advent of the Internet, and their influence on traditional military operations continues to increase. What are the significant changes in mission and structure of Department of Defense offensive and defensive cyberspace activities over the past decade? How do joint and Army cyberspace military operations fit into the complex and dynamic sphere of daily network defense as well as international deterrence and escalation?

The U. S. Army has been and is struggling with sexual harassment, assault, and rape in its ranks, but the future can be different. In this monograph, three seasoned officers and one cadet propose a series of steps-based on West Point's experiences-to "get to the left" of these incidents by changing the cultural structures that allow them to occur. This will only become more critical as the Army works on the policies that will fully integrate women into the combat arms, introducing women to sub-cultures that have, for years, equated martial virtues with masculine ones.

The U. S. Army and the British Army are undergoing similar processes of rebalancing between regular and reserve personnel. The British armed forces are currently at a more advanced stage of this change than the United States, and consequently there are useful lessons to be drawn from their experience to date. This is particularly the case in a time of growing defense austerity; in addition to their smaller scale, the United Kingdom's (UK) armed forces have great familiarity with undertaking missions and maintaining close to full-spectrum capability while subject to severe and apparently insurmountable resource constraints. Studying how this is made possible may also provide valuable pointers for a U. S. defense force in an era of sequestration and budget cuts.

In 2009, the President of the United States spotlighted nuclear terrorism as one of the top threats to international security and launched an international effort to identify, secure, and dispose of global stocks of weapons-usable nuclear materials-namely highly enriched uranium and weapons-grade plutonium. Since that time, three nuclear security summits have been held, along with scores of studies and workshops (official and unofficial), drawing sustained high-level attention to the threat posed by these materials. However, little attention has been given to incidences where sensitive nuclear materials actually went missing. This volume seeks to correct this deficiency, examining incidences of material unaccounted for (MUF) arising from U. S. and South African nuclear weapons programs, plutonium gone missing from Japanese and British civilian production facilities, and a theft of highly enriched uranium from a U. S. military contractor in the 1960s that was used to help fuel Israel's nuclear weapons program.