Journal of Military History
Vol. 83, No. 2
April 2019
Articles
Jason Linn, “Attila’s Appetite: The Logistics of Attila the Hun’s Invasion of Italy in 452,” 325-46
Why did Attila the Hun withdraw from Italy in 452? Ancient sources give two explanations: the divine intervention of Pope Leo persuaded Attila to leave; or, the Huns suffered from hunger and disease, the explanation preferred by most historians. To the contrary, this micro-regional study of northern Italy argues that Attila met his food supply needs. By observing the distances traveled and extrapolating the speed of the Huns, this study proposes, in place of the traditional food shortage explanation, that Attila left Italy due to the oncoming winter.
Fabrizio Ansani, “‘This French artillery is very good and very effective.’ Hypotheses on the Diffusion of a New Military Technology in Renaissance Italy,” 347-78
This article aims to reconstruct and compare the technical developments of Italian ordnance production during the second half of the fifteenth century. The analysis will particularly focus on novelties and changes induced by the appearance and the assimilation of French royal cannons into Italian warfare, before and after the famed French Neapolitan campaign of 1494. Data have been collected from numerous contemporary chronicles and several critical editions of documents. Moreover, archival sources have been used for the examination of the significant Florentine case study. The results of the research demonstrate that the Italian states had for some time been engaged in the traditional manufacture of heavy guns, and so were skilled at adopting original practices, searching out innovations, and encouraging effective ideas, in the lively context of a Renaissance technological efflorescence.
Manuel Santirso Rodriguez, “Under the Uniform: Tyrants and Praetorians in the Aftermath of the Revolution (1829–1854),” 379-407
This essay juxtaposes the biographies, ideologies, and military commands of four nearly contemporary soldier-statesmen: Andrew Jackson in the United States, Baldomero Espartero in Spain, Arthur Wellesley, Duke of Wellington, in Great Britain, and Nicolas Jean-de-Dieu Soult in France. Despite the differences between their respective four countries in the decade from 1820 to 1830, all of them went through the same post-revolutionary phase, decisive in the consolidation of representative political systems and the formation of party structures. At this juncture, and independently of cultural or ethnic factors, some of these leaders were held up as popular champions of change, whilst others held up their swords in defence of a more reactionary stance.
David Krueger, “The Red Cross, the Daughters of the American Revolution, and the Origins of the Army Nurse Corps in the Spanish-American War,” 409-34
This article discusses the origins of the Army Nurse Corps in the Spanish-American War and the contributions of the Daughters of the American Revolution Hospital Corps. This organization was a vital proponent of employing contract nurses as medical auxiliaries, women whose service demonstrated both the capability of, and necessity for, female nurses in the military. The article also addresses the role of the American Red Cross in providing medical support, but concludes that tensions over control of transportation, supplies, and personnel drove the Army away from voluntary aid and toward creating a professional nurse corps within its Medical Department.
Elizabeth Stice, “Men on the Margins: Representations of Colonial Troops in British and French Trench Newspapers of the Great War,” 435-54
This essay explores the challenge the First World War posed to imperial culture by looking at representations of colonial troops in British and French soldiers’ wartime writings. The Great War posed significant challenges to empires and created new dynamics of exchange and dependence within them. Never before had so many civilians joined the army nor had so many non-European soldiers served in Europe. As the face of battle changed in so many significant ways, British and French soldiers took up pen and paper to distract and amuse themselves and each other. In the process, they created discourses which also reveal the ways in which the war provided a new context for evaluating empires and their peoples and questioned existing imperial culture.
David K. Yelton, “Older German Officers and National Socialist Activism: Evidence from the German Volkssturm,” 455-85
During the past three decades, historians have largely dismantled the notion that the German Wehrmacht's officer corps was apathetic, or even hostile, to National Socialist ideology. They have shown that younger officers joining the Wehrmacht during the late 1930s and the war years were typically members of Nazi organizations, particularly the Hitler Youth, and frequently held National Socialist ideological perspectives. The NSDAP affiliation of older junior grade officers, a numerically significant group, whose formative years predated the Third Reich have been less extensively studied. This article examines the German Volkssturm's command personnel to demonstrate that many older, lower level officers possessed both successful military careers and extensive credentials as members and leaders in Nazi organizations. This finding not only confirms the Volkssturm's dual military-political role, but also reveals the commitment to Nazi ideology of many in this cohort.
Matthew Hughes, “Women, Violence, and the Arab Revolt in Palestine, 1936–39,” 487-507
This new history brings women center-stage to the Arab revolt (1936–39) in Palestine and asks three related questions: how did Britain’s colonial pacification affect women, what part did women play thereof, and how did soldiers treat women? This includes discussion of sexual assault. It does this through deep mining of multilingual sources. The article argues that British soldiers eschewed sexual violence towards women, but military pacification had considerable oppressive effects on women as a target population during counter-insurgency. The analysis suggests more broadly that national-military cultures prompt armies in war zones to treat women differently, making brief reference to Israel today.
Kenneth P. Werrell, “Friction in Action: Revisiting the U.S. Army Air Forces’ August 1943 Raid on Ploesti,” 509-40
The 1 August 1943 low-level, U.S. Army Air Forces heavy bomber attack on the Ploesti oil facilities in Romania is best known for its daring, its crews’ bravery, and the heavy losses. Little attention has been given to an examination of the plan for the attack, the reasons for its failure, or its limited results. One of the most significant factors contributing to the outcome was combat friction, the accumulation of a number of unforeseen, relatively minor factors that disrupted the plan. This mission illustrates that daring and bravery, while necessary and important, are insufficient for military success and that flexibility and leadership are essential to overcome friction.
Document of Note:
John M. Carland, “Daniel Ellsberg and the Tet Offensive,” 541-52
Book Reviews:
Sparta: Fall of a Warrior Nation, by Philip Matyszak, reviewed by Paul Cartledge, 553-54
Rome Resurgent: War and Empire in the Age of Justinian, by Peter Heather, reviewed by Christopher B. Zeichmann, 555-56
Visions of Empire: How Five Imperial Regimes Shaped the World, by Krishan Kumar, reviewed by Robert A. Schneider, 556-57
The Black Prince and the Capture of a King: Poitiers 1356, by Marilyn Livingstone and Morgen Witzel, reviewed by Anne Curry, 558-59
Richard III: England’s Most Controversial King, by Chris Skidmore, reviewed by Stuart Gorman, 559-60
British Forts and Their Communities: Archaeological and Historical Perspectives, edited by Christopher R. DeCorse and Zachary J. M. Beier, reviewed by Andrew R. Beaupré, 561-62
Armed in America: A History of Gun Rights from Colonial Militias to Concealed Carry, by Patrick Charles, reviewed by Jared Wigton, 562-64
British Flag Officers in the French Wars, 1793–1815: Admirals’ Lives, by John Morrow, reviewed by Stuart Salmon, 564-65
Depredation and Deceit: The Making of the Jicarilla and Ute Wars in New Mexico, by Gregory F. Michno, reviewed by John A. Haymond, 565-67
All Because of a Mormon Cow: Historical Accounts of the Grattan Massacre, 1854–1855, edited by John D. McDermott, R. Eli Paul, and Sandra J. Lowry, reviewed by Paul N. Beck, 567-68
A Fierce Glory: Antietam—the Desperate Battle that Saved Lincoln and Doomed Slavery, by Justin Martin, reviewed by John J. Yurechko, 568-69
River of Death: The Chickamauga Campaign, vol. 1, The Fall of Chattanooga, by William Glenn Robertson, reviewed by Seth Andrew Frederiksen, 570
Hood’s Texas Brigade: The Soldiers and Families of the Confederacy’s Most Celebrated Unit, by Susannah J. Ural, reviewed by Judkin Browning, 571-72
These Rugged Days: Alabama in the Civil War, by John S. Sledge, reviewed by Paul J. Springer, 572-73
Confederate Generals in the Western Theater, vol. 4, Essays on America’s Civil War, edited by Lawrence Lee Hewitt and Thomas E. Schott, reviewed by Gavin Glider, 573-75
Fighting for Atlanta: Tactics, Terrain, and Trenches in the Civil War, by Earl J. Hess, reviewed by Robert W. Sidwell, 575-76
Contested Loyalty: Debates over Patriotism in the Civil War North, edited by Robert M. Sandow, reviewed by Anthony J. Cade II, 576-78
“I Will Not Surrender the Hair of a Horse’s Tail.” The Victorio Campaign, 1879, by Robert N. Watt, reviewed by Alexander M. Humes, 578-79
Advocating Weapons, War and Terrorism: Technological and Rhetorical Paradox, by Ian E. J. Hill, reviewed by Bryon Greenwald, 580-81
Charging Up San Juan Hill: Theodore Roosevelt and the Making of Imperial America, by John R. Van Atta, reviewed by Reilly Ben Hatch, 581-82
Britain and the Mine, 1900–1915: Culture, Strategy, and International Law, by Richard Dunley, reviewed by Eric W. Osborne, 583-84
Germany’s Empire in the East. Germans and Romania in an Era of Globalization and Total War, by David Hamlin, reviewed by Timothy C. Dowling, 584-85
The Deadly Deep: The Definitive History of Submarine Warfare, by Iain Ballantyne, reviewed by Mark Folse, 586-87
Russia in Flames: War, Revolution, Civil War, 1914–1921, by Laura Engelstein, reviewed by Anatol Shmelev, 587-88
Jutland: The Unfinished Battle, by Nicholas Jellicoe and After Jutland: The Naval War in Northern European Waters, June 1916–November 1918, by James Goldrick, reviewed by Andrew Lambert, 589-91
Vimy: The Battle and the Legend, by Tim Cook, reviewed by Andrew Iarocci, 591-92
World War I, Mass Death, and the Birth of the Modern Soldier: A Rhetorical History, by David W. Seitz, reviewed by John M. Kinder, 592-93
The Royal Navy in the Age of Austerity, 1919–22: Naval and Foreign Policy under Lloyd George, by G. H. Bennett, reviewed by Budd Jones, 594-95
Omar Nelson Bradley: America’s GI General, 1893–1981, by Steven L. Ossad, reviewed by Donald B. Connelly, 595-97
Finnish Military Effectiveness in the Winter War 1939–1940, by Pasi Tuunainen, reviewed by Augustine Meaher, 598-99
Bombing the City: Civilian Accounts of the Air War in Britain and Japan, 1939–1945, by Aaron William Moore, reviewed by Kenneth P. Werrell, 599-600
Holocaust Perpetrators of the German Police Battalions: The Mass Murder of Jewish Civilians, 1940–1942, by Ian Rich, reviewed by Stephen Connor, 600-2
The First Day on the Eastern Front: Germany Invades the Soviet Union June 22, 1941, by Craig W. H. Luther, reviewed by Ian Ona Johnson, 602-3
The German Secret Field Police in Greece, 1941–1944, by Antonio J. Muñoz, reviewed by Benjamin R. Nestor, 603-5
African Americans and the Pacific War, 1941–1945: Race, Nationality, and the Fight for Freedom, by Chris Dixon, reviewed by Geoffrey W. Jensen, 605-6
MacArthur’s Coalition: U.S. and Australian Operations in the Southwest Pacific Area, 1942–1945, by Peter Dean, reviewed by Gordon Rudd, 606-8
Controlling Sex in Captivity: POWs and Sexual Desire in the United States during the Second World War, by Matthias Reiss, reviewed by Kellie Wilson-Buford, 608-9
Beyond the Beach: The Allied War against France, by Stephen Alan Bourque, reviewed by William S. Nance, 610-11
Geopolitical Constructs: The Mulberry Harbours, World War Two, and the Making of a Militarized Transatlantic, by Colin Flint, reviewed by Karl L. Rubis, 611-12
Rampage: MacArthur, Yamashita, and the Battle of Manila, by James M. Scott, reviewed by Kevin C. Holzimmer, 612-14
Oppose Any Foe: The Rise of America’s Special Operations Forces, by Mark Moyar, reviewed by Roger Chapman, 614-16
Triumph of the Dead: American World War II Cemeteries, Monuments, and Diplomacy in France, by Kate Clarke Lemay, reviewed by Daniel James Sundahl, 616-17
Spies, Lies, and Citizenship: The Hunt for Nazi Criminals, by Mary Kathryn Barbier, reviewed by Charles B. Lansing, 617-18
Counterinsurgency Wars and the Anglo-American Alliance: The Special Relationship on the Rocks, by Andrew Mumford, reviewed by Charles D. Melson, 619-20
The Bomb and America’s Missile Age, by Christopher Gainor, reviewed by Christian Garner, 620-21
Policing Sex and Marriage in the American Military: The Court-Martial and the Construction of Gender and Sexual Deviance, 1950–2000, by Kellie Wilson-Buford, reviewed by Bradford Wineman, 622-23
On Desperate Ground: The Marines at the Reservoir, the Korean War’s Greatest Battle, by Hampton Sides, reviewed by M. Houston Johnson V, 623-25
The Soviet-Israeli War 1967–1973: The USSR’s Military Intervention in the Egyptian-Israeli Conflict, by Isabella Ginor and Gideon Remez, reviewed by Nicholas M. Sambaluk, 625-26
Hue 1968: A Turning Point of the American War in Vietnam, by Mark Bowden, reviewed by John Worsencroft, 627-28
The Control War: The Struggle for South Vietnam, 1968–1975, by Martin G. Clemis, reviewed by Edwin Moïse, 628-29
My Enemy’s Enemy: India in Afghanistan from the Soviet Invasion to the U.S. Withdrawal, by Avinash Paliwal, reviewed by C. Christine Fair, 630-31
Anatomy of Terror: From the Death of bin Laden to the Rise of the Islamic State, by Ali Soufan, reviewed by Melia Pfannenstiel, 631-33
Redefining the Modern Military: The Intersection of Profession and Ethics, edited by Nathan Finney and Tyrell O. Mayfield, reviewed by F. G. Hoffman, 633-35
BOOKS RECEIVED: 636-40
RECENT JOURNAL ARTICLES: 641-50
LETTER TO THE EDITOR: 651-55
John M. Carland, “Daniel Ellsberg and the Tet Offensive,” 541-52
Book Reviews:
Sparta: Fall of a Warrior Nation, by Philip Matyszak, reviewed by Paul Cartledge, 553-54
Rome Resurgent: War and Empire in the Age of Justinian, by Peter Heather, reviewed by Christopher B. Zeichmann, 555-56
Visions of Empire: How Five Imperial Regimes Shaped the World, by Krishan Kumar, reviewed by Robert A. Schneider, 556-57
The Black Prince and the Capture of a King: Poitiers 1356, by Marilyn Livingstone and Morgen Witzel, reviewed by Anne Curry, 558-59
Richard III: England’s Most Controversial King, by Chris Skidmore, reviewed by Stuart Gorman, 559-60
British Forts and Their Communities: Archaeological and Historical Perspectives, edited by Christopher R. DeCorse and Zachary J. M. Beier, reviewed by Andrew R. Beaupré, 561-62
Armed in America: A History of Gun Rights from Colonial Militias to Concealed Carry, by Patrick Charles, reviewed by Jared Wigton, 562-64
British Flag Officers in the French Wars, 1793–1815: Admirals’ Lives, by John Morrow, reviewed by Stuart Salmon, 564-65
Depredation and Deceit: The Making of the Jicarilla and Ute Wars in New Mexico, by Gregory F. Michno, reviewed by John A. Haymond, 565-67
All Because of a Mormon Cow: Historical Accounts of the Grattan Massacre, 1854–1855, edited by John D. McDermott, R. Eli Paul, and Sandra J. Lowry, reviewed by Paul N. Beck, 567-68
A Fierce Glory: Antietam—the Desperate Battle that Saved Lincoln and Doomed Slavery, by Justin Martin, reviewed by John J. Yurechko, 568-69
River of Death: The Chickamauga Campaign, vol. 1, The Fall of Chattanooga, by William Glenn Robertson, reviewed by Seth Andrew Frederiksen, 570
Hood’s Texas Brigade: The Soldiers and Families of the Confederacy’s Most Celebrated Unit, by Susannah J. Ural, reviewed by Judkin Browning, 571-72
These Rugged Days: Alabama in the Civil War, by John S. Sledge, reviewed by Paul J. Springer, 572-73
Confederate Generals in the Western Theater, vol. 4, Essays on America’s Civil War, edited by Lawrence Lee Hewitt and Thomas E. Schott, reviewed by Gavin Glider, 573-75
Fighting for Atlanta: Tactics, Terrain, and Trenches in the Civil War, by Earl J. Hess, reviewed by Robert W. Sidwell, 575-76
Contested Loyalty: Debates over Patriotism in the Civil War North, edited by Robert M. Sandow, reviewed by Anthony J. Cade II, 576-78
“I Will Not Surrender the Hair of a Horse’s Tail.” The Victorio Campaign, 1879, by Robert N. Watt, reviewed by Alexander M. Humes, 578-79
Advocating Weapons, War and Terrorism: Technological and Rhetorical Paradox, by Ian E. J. Hill, reviewed by Bryon Greenwald, 580-81
Charging Up San Juan Hill: Theodore Roosevelt and the Making of Imperial America, by John R. Van Atta, reviewed by Reilly Ben Hatch, 581-82
Britain and the Mine, 1900–1915: Culture, Strategy, and International Law, by Richard Dunley, reviewed by Eric W. Osborne, 583-84
Germany’s Empire in the East. Germans and Romania in an Era of Globalization and Total War, by David Hamlin, reviewed by Timothy C. Dowling, 584-85
The Deadly Deep: The Definitive History of Submarine Warfare, by Iain Ballantyne, reviewed by Mark Folse, 586-87
Russia in Flames: War, Revolution, Civil War, 1914–1921, by Laura Engelstein, reviewed by Anatol Shmelev, 587-88
Jutland: The Unfinished Battle, by Nicholas Jellicoe and After Jutland: The Naval War in Northern European Waters, June 1916–November 1918, by James Goldrick, reviewed by Andrew Lambert, 589-91
Vimy: The Battle and the Legend, by Tim Cook, reviewed by Andrew Iarocci, 591-92
World War I, Mass Death, and the Birth of the Modern Soldier: A Rhetorical History, by David W. Seitz, reviewed by John M. Kinder, 592-93
The Royal Navy in the Age of Austerity, 1919–22: Naval and Foreign Policy under Lloyd George, by G. H. Bennett, reviewed by Budd Jones, 594-95
Omar Nelson Bradley: America’s GI General, 1893–1981, by Steven L. Ossad, reviewed by Donald B. Connelly, 595-97
Finnish Military Effectiveness in the Winter War 1939–1940, by Pasi Tuunainen, reviewed by Augustine Meaher, 598-99
Bombing the City: Civilian Accounts of the Air War in Britain and Japan, 1939–1945, by Aaron William Moore, reviewed by Kenneth P. Werrell, 599-600
Holocaust Perpetrators of the German Police Battalions: The Mass Murder of Jewish Civilians, 1940–1942, by Ian Rich, reviewed by Stephen Connor, 600-2
The First Day on the Eastern Front: Germany Invades the Soviet Union June 22, 1941, by Craig W. H. Luther, reviewed by Ian Ona Johnson, 602-3
The German Secret Field Police in Greece, 1941–1944, by Antonio J. Muñoz, reviewed by Benjamin R. Nestor, 603-5
African Americans and the Pacific War, 1941–1945: Race, Nationality, and the Fight for Freedom, by Chris Dixon, reviewed by Geoffrey W. Jensen, 605-6
MacArthur’s Coalition: U.S. and Australian Operations in the Southwest Pacific Area, 1942–1945, by Peter Dean, reviewed by Gordon Rudd, 606-8
Controlling Sex in Captivity: POWs and Sexual Desire in the United States during the Second World War, by Matthias Reiss, reviewed by Kellie Wilson-Buford, 608-9
Beyond the Beach: The Allied War against France, by Stephen Alan Bourque, reviewed by William S. Nance, 610-11
Geopolitical Constructs: The Mulberry Harbours, World War Two, and the Making of a Militarized Transatlantic, by Colin Flint, reviewed by Karl L. Rubis, 611-12
Rampage: MacArthur, Yamashita, and the Battle of Manila, by James M. Scott, reviewed by Kevin C. Holzimmer, 612-14
Oppose Any Foe: The Rise of America’s Special Operations Forces, by Mark Moyar, reviewed by Roger Chapman, 614-16
Triumph of the Dead: American World War II Cemeteries, Monuments, and Diplomacy in France, by Kate Clarke Lemay, reviewed by Daniel James Sundahl, 616-17
Spies, Lies, and Citizenship: The Hunt for Nazi Criminals, by Mary Kathryn Barbier, reviewed by Charles B. Lansing, 617-18
Counterinsurgency Wars and the Anglo-American Alliance: The Special Relationship on the Rocks, by Andrew Mumford, reviewed by Charles D. Melson, 619-20
The Bomb and America’s Missile Age, by Christopher Gainor, reviewed by Christian Garner, 620-21
Policing Sex and Marriage in the American Military: The Court-Martial and the Construction of Gender and Sexual Deviance, 1950–2000, by Kellie Wilson-Buford, reviewed by Bradford Wineman, 622-23
On Desperate Ground: The Marines at the Reservoir, the Korean War’s Greatest Battle, by Hampton Sides, reviewed by M. Houston Johnson V, 623-25
The Soviet-Israeli War 1967–1973: The USSR’s Military Intervention in the Egyptian-Israeli Conflict, by Isabella Ginor and Gideon Remez, reviewed by Nicholas M. Sambaluk, 625-26
Hue 1968: A Turning Point of the American War in Vietnam, by Mark Bowden, reviewed by John Worsencroft, 627-28
The Control War: The Struggle for South Vietnam, 1968–1975, by Martin G. Clemis, reviewed by Edwin Moïse, 628-29
My Enemy’s Enemy: India in Afghanistan from the Soviet Invasion to the U.S. Withdrawal, by Avinash Paliwal, reviewed by C. Christine Fair, 630-31
Anatomy of Terror: From the Death of bin Laden to the Rise of the Islamic State, by Ali Soufan, reviewed by Melia Pfannenstiel, 631-33
Redefining the Modern Military: The Intersection of Profession and Ethics, edited by Nathan Finney and Tyrell O. Mayfield, reviewed by F. G. Hoffman, 633-35
BOOKS RECEIVED: 636-40
RECENT JOURNAL ARTICLES: 641-50
LETTER TO THE EDITOR: 651-55
