Chronicles battles, military campaigns, and wars throughout history, from the skirmishes of the first empires of ancient Mesopotamia to the armed conflicts in the Middle East being waged today.

American Military History provides the United States Army-in particular, its young officers, NCOs, and cadets-with a comprehensive but brief account of its past. The Center of Military History first published this work in 1956 as a textbook for senior ROTC courses. Since then it has gone through a number of updates and revisions, but the primary intent has remained the same. Support for military history education has always been a principal mission of the Center, and this new edition of an invaluable history furthers that purpose. The history of an active organization tends to expand rapidly as the organization grows larger and more complex. The period since the Vietnam War, at which point the most recent edition ended, has been a significant one for the Army, a busy period of expanding roles and missions and of fundamental organizational changes. In particular, the explosion of missions and deployments since 11 September 2001 has necessitated the creation of additional, open-ended chapters in the story of the U.S. Army in action. This first volume covers the Army's history from its birth in 1775 to the eve of World War I. By 1917, the United States was already a world power. The Army had sent large expeditionary forces beyond the American hemisphere, and at the beginning of the new century Secretary of War Elihu Root had proposed changes and reforms that within a generation would shape the Army of the future. But world war-global war-was still to come. The second volume of this new edition will take up that story and extend it into the twenty-first century and the early years of the war on terrorism and includes an analysis of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq up to January 2009.

This book presents an overview of world military history in all its many aspects, beginning with a summary of warfare in the context of weapons development. Running through the core of the book is a chronological Timeline of Military Events -wars, campaigns and battles -from earliest times to the present. Facing this are illustrated sections expanding upon, and providing background to, the facts in the chronology, with: Biographies of the principal commanders and leaders Weapons, from spears and swords to artillery and ballistic missiles Armour, from shields and breastplates to battle tanks Fortification, castles and siege warfare Aircraft, from balloons to Unmanned Aerial Vehicles Plus Maps of selected battles Completing the book is a comprehensive A-Z reference guide to two thousand of the Great Battles of History.

From the Publisher: This latest edition of an official U.S. Government military history classic provides an authoritative historical survey of the organization and accomplishments of the United States Army. This scholarly yet readable book is designed to inculcate an awareness of our nation's military past and to demonstrate that the study of military history is an essential ingredient in leadership development. It is also an essential addition to any personal military history library.

The award–winning author of Brandywine examines a pivotal but overlooked battle of the American Revolution’s Philadelphia Campaign. Today, Germantown is a busy Philadelphia neighborhood. On October 4, 1777, it was a small village on the outskirts of the colonial capital—and the site of one of the American Revolution’s largest battles. Now Michael C. Harris sheds new light on this important action with a captivating historical study. After defeating Washington’s rebel army in the Battle of Brandywine, General Sir William Howe took Philadelphia. But Washington soon returned, launching a surprise attack on the British garrison at Germantown. The recapture of the colonial capital seemed within Washington’s grasp until poor decisions by the American high command led to a clear British victory. With original archival research and a deep knowledge of the terrain, Harris merges the strategic, political, and tactical history of this complex operation into a single compelling account. Complete with original maps, illustrations, and modern photos, and told largely through the words of those who fought there, Germantown is a major contribution to American Revolutionary studies.

Here is the essential, concise guide to WWII, an authoritative reference, fully illustrated and mapped. The book centres upon a chronological Timeline of World War II -from its origins to the final surrender of Japan. Accompanying this are illustrated sections expanding upon, and providing background to, the facts in the chronology, with: Biographies of the principal commanders and leaders Weapons, including aircraft, tanks, small-arms, rockets, warships, submarines and more Campaigns, with maps and explanatory text Strategy and tactics, including airborne, and amphibious operations Completing the book are sections devoted to such themes as resistance movements, civilians at war, the Holocaust and war trials.