World war II: the alchemy of power; Civil-military relations in the postwar decade; The political roles of the Joints Chiefs; The separation of power and the cold war defense; Departmental structure of civil-military relations; Toward a new equilibrium.

politics, and national security policy.--John R. Ballard "On Point"

Looking at how armies supportive of democracy are built, this title argues that the military is the important institution that states maintain, for without military elites who support democratic governance, democracy cannot be consolidated. It demonstrates that building democratic armies is the quintessential task of democratizing regimes.

After a long era of military rule, the South American nations have been working on the construction of a new democratic order. This book provides a long-term historical assessment of the main features of civil-military relations in this region, from independence in the early nineteenth century to the current process of democratic consolidation, with special attention to the cases of Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Peru.