Journal of Military History
Vol. 86, No. 2
April 2022
Articles
“Celebrating ‘Bloodless Victories’ in the Roman World,” by Brian Turner, Journal of Military History 86:2 (April 2022): 277–98
Ancient authors frequently refer to Roman victories as bloodless or as having been achieved without the loss of a single Roman soldier. Modern scholars have tended to dismiss such claims as propaganda or have not fully explored the history or consequences of such celebration. This article considers the history of Rome’s promotion of bloodless victories, concern over war losses, and the consequences for Rome’s army and imperial endeavors.
“Husbands, Sons, Brothers, and Neighbors: Eighteenth-Century Soldiers’ Efforts to Maintain Civilian Ties,” by Jennine Hurl-Eamon, Journal of Military History 86:2 (April 2022): 299–320
Where scholars have emphasized the regimental fraternity in Britain’s late eighteenth-century army, this article shifts attention to soldiers’ civilian attachments. It points out that army regulation restricting servicemen’s ability to visit and provide for their kin can be seen as an attempt to erase their former civilian identities. The article’s goal is to demonstrate how the rank and file resisted these policies. They continued to desire marriage and male provisioning roles in violation of century-long regulations. They persisted in asserting their connections to the communities they left, and they forced the army to recognize their civilian identities and explore policies that ran counter to its “social death” strategy.
“The Royal Navy’s Psyche on Lake Ontario: A British Experiment with Prefabricated Warships in the War of 1812,” by Timothy Compeau, Journal of Military History 86:2 (April 2022): 321–43
During the War of 1812, the British Royal Navy attempted to transport four prefabricated warships in pieces from England to be reassembled for service on Lake Ontario. Of the four, only the 56-gun frigate HMS Psyche completed its journey. This paper explores the historical and technical background of this project and reconstructs how British and Canadian seamen, militia, and private contractors hauled a deconstructed warship up the St. Lawrence River, often within cannon range of the American shore. Once regarded as an example of the imbecility of the British Admiralty, a closer look reveals a clearer picture of the capabilities and institutional limitations of the Royal Navy in the Napoleonic Era.
“Guardians and Go-betweens: Germany’s Military Plenipotentiaries during the First World War,” by
Gavin Wiens, Journal of Military History 86:2 (April 2022): 344–71
Gavin Wiens, Journal of Military History 86:2 (April 2022): 344–71
This essay looks at the activities of the Bavarian, Saxon, and Württemberg military plenipotentiaries stationed at German General Headquarters during the First World War. Prior to unification, Germany’s most powerful monarchs signed a series of agreements that created a contingent-based army. Managing relations between the army’s contingents thereafter became the responsibility of the military plenipotentiaries. Examining their activities reveals that the wartime German army, despite the centralizing pressures created by a multi-front war of attrition, remained a federal institution in which sub-national interests could at times be marginalized, but never altogether ignored. Germany’s military federalism remained alive and well, at least until the empire’s “de-crowning” in the autumn of 1918.
“Woodrow Wilson and the Struggle of Civil-Military Relations during the Punitive Expedition of 1916–1917,” by Alex Beckstrand, Journal of Military History 86:2 (April 2022): 372–98
The 1916–1917 Punitive Expedition by the United States into Mexico had two initial goals: dispersing the bands of Pancho Villa and improving border security. While historians have debated the outcome of the campaign, this article argues that the expedition failed, primarily because of President Woodrow Wilson’s conduct of civil-military relations. Throughout the Punitive Expedition, Wilson deferred too much to his military commanders, namely Major General Frederick Funston and Brigadier General John J. Pershing. He needlessly extended the U.S. presence in Mexico and failed to link policy aims to the use of military force.
“From Sergeant Snorkels to Drill Sergeants: Basic Training of Male Soldiers in the U.S. Army, 1953–1964,” by William M. Donnelly, Journal of Military History 86:2 (April 2022): 399–426
During the ten years following the armistice in Korea, the U.S. Army described its basic training for enlisted male soldiers as a process that transformed civilians into men tough enough to withstand the rigors of a war with the Soviet Union. There was, however, during these years great dissatisfaction with this program. Critics both inside and outside the service found a variety of faults, but the one most frequently cited was the quality of officers and sergeants assigned to shepherd recruits through the transition from civilian to soldier. Despite frequently praising the drill instructor concept used in Marine Corps basic training, senior army officers refused to adapt it for use in their service’s training centers. Effective change, in the form of the drill sergeant program, would come only after intervention into a core military function by Cyrus R. Vance and Stephen Ailes, successive secretaries of the army.
Book Reviews:
Dying to Learn: Wartime Lessons from the Western Front, by Michael A. Hunzeker, reviewed by Frederic Krome and by Dean A. Nowowiejski, 427–30
Greek Warfare beyond the Polis: Defense, Strategy, and the Making of Ancient Federal States, by David A. Blome, reviewed by Emily Mackil, 430–31
Soldiers & Silver: Mobilizing Resources in the Age of Roman Conquest, by Michael J. Taylor, reviewed by Jonathan P. Roth, 432–33
The Battle of Maldon: War and Peace in Tenth-century England, by Mark Atherton, reviewed by Stephen Morillo, 433–34
Elite Participation in the Third Crusade, by Stephen Bennett, reviewed by Laurence W. Marvin, 435–36
Climate of Conquest: War, Environment, and Empire in Mughal North India, by Pratyay Nath, reviewed by Subah Dayal, 436–39
Decision at Brandywine: The Battle on Birmingham Hill, by Robert M. Dunkerly, reviewed by Susan Brynne Long, 439–40
Teacher, Preacher, Soldier, Spy: The Civil Wars of John R. Kelso, by Christopher Grasso, reviewed by Steven E. Sodergren, 441–42
The Siege of Vicksburg: Climax of the Campaign to Open the Mississippi River, May 23–July 4, 1863, by Timothy B. Smith, reviewed by Donald B. Connelly, 442–44
Rites of Retaliation: Civilization, Soldiers, and Campaigns in the American Civil War, by Lorien Foote, reviewed by Brian Matthew Jordan, 444–46
Warrior Generation, 1865–1885: Militarism and British Working Class Boys, by Richard Fulton, reviewed by Jeremy Black, 446–47
Strategiya: The Foundations of the Russian Art of Strategy, edited by Ofer Fridman, reviewed by Jeff Hawn, 447–49
Arming the Irish Revolution: Gunrunning and Arms Smuggling, 1911–1922, by W. H. Kautt, reviewed by Augustine Meaher, 449–50
Plotting for Peace: American Peacemakers, British Codebreakers, and Britain at War, 1914–1917, by Daniel Larsen, reviewed by David Hirsch, 451–52
Burn, Bomb, Destroy: The German Sabotage Campaign in North America 1914–1917, by Michael Digby, reviewed by Gavin Wiens, 452–54
The War Lords and the Gallipoli Disaster: How Globalized Trade Led Britain to Its Worst Defeat of the First World War, by Nicholas A. Lambert, reviewed by Rosanne M. Horswill, 454–55
Indian Soldiers in World War I: Race and Representation in an Imperial War, by Andrew T. Jarboe, reviewed by Alex Paul, 456–57
Ruses and Perfidy: Submarine Warfare and the Sinking of Hospital Ships During World War I, by Reinhard Nachtigal, reviewed by Jonathan Slater, 457–59
Trauma, Primitivism, and the First World War: The Making of Frank Prewett, by Joy Porter, reviewed by Sarafina Pagnotta, 459–61
War and Memorials: The Age of Nationalism and the Great War, edited by Frank Jacob and Kenneth Pearl, reviewed by Robert Clemm, 461–62
Forgotten Veterans, Invisible Memorials: How American Women Commemorated the Great War, 1917–1945, by Allison S. Finkelstein, reviewed by Tammy M. Proctor, 462–64
Canada at War: Conscription, Diplomacy, and Politics, by J. L. Granatstein, reviewed by Andrew Burtch, 464–66
Not for King or Country: Edward Cecil-Smith, the Communist Party of Canada, and the Spanish Civil War, by Tyler Wentzell, reviewed by Alexander Clifford, 466–68
Sites of Violence and Memory in Modern Spain: From the Spanish Civil War to the Present Day, edited by Antonio Míguez Macho, reviewed by David A. Messenger, 468–69
Hostages of Empire: Colonial Prisoners of War in Vichy France, by Sarah Ann Frank, reviewed by Derek R. Mallett, 470–71
Air Power and the Evacuation of Dunkirk: The RAF and Luftwaffe during Operation Dynamo, 26 May–4 June 1940, by Harry Raffal, reviewed by Dan Ellin, 471–73
Secret Alliances: Special Operations and Intelligence Operations in Norway, 1940–1945, by Tony Insall, reviewed by Kristo Karvinen, 473–74
Fortress Dark and Stern: The Soviet Home Front During World War II, by Wendy Z. Goldman and Donald Filtzer, reviewed by Kara Irvin, 475–76
The Invasion of the South: Army Air Force Operations, and the Invasion of Northern and Central Sumatra, edited and translated by Willem Remmelink, reviewed by Billy Croslow, 476–78
The War Beat, Pacific: The American Media at War Against Japan, by Steven Casey, reviewed by David L. Snead, 478–79
Monty and the Canadian Army, by John A. English, reviewed by Brad St.Croix, 480–81
Romania’s Holy War: Soldiers, Motivation, and the Holocaust, by Grant T. Harward, reviewed by Anna Marie Anderson, 481–83
Sheer Misery: Soldiers in Battle in WWII, by Mary Louise Roberts, reviewed by Mark E. Grotelueschen, 483–84
Lieutenant General Sir Frederick Morgan, KCB: The Planner Who Saved Europe, by John D. Gazzelli, reviewed by Charles E. A. Sexton, 485–86
Stalin’s War on Japan: The Red Army’s Manchurian Strategic Offensive Operation 1945, by Charles Stephenson, reviewed by Stephen T. Satkiewicz, 486–88
The Soviet Myth of World War II: Patriotic Memory and the Russian Question in the USSR, by Jonathan Brunstedt, reviewed by Nina Janz, 488–89
Defenders of Japan: The Post-Imperial Armed Forces 1946–2016, by Garren Mulloy, reviewed by Kater Ka-Ming Yip, 489–91
All Options on the Table: Leaders, Preventative War, and Nuclear Proliferation, by Rachel Elizabeth Whitlark, reviewed by Henry Richard Maar III, 491–93
Emergency Deep: Cold War Missions of a Submarine Commander, by Alfred Scott McLaren, reviewed by Aldona Sendzikas, 493–95
Strategy Shelved: The Collapse of Cold War Naval Strategic Planning, by Steven T. Wills, reviewed by Tyler A. Pitrof, 495–96
Air Power in the Age of Primacy: Air Warfare Since the Cold War, edited by Phil M. Haun, Colin F. Jackson, and Timothy P. Schultz, reviewed by Brian R. Price, 497–98
Making the Forever War: Marilyn B. Young on the Culture and Politics of American Militarism, edited by Mark Philip Bradley and Mary L. Dudziak, reviewed by Andrew N. Buchanan, 499–500
The Law of Armed Conflict: International Humanitarian Law in War, by Gary D. Solis, reviewed by Fred L. Borch III, 501–2
Inside the Hot Zone: A Soldier on the Front Lines of Biological Warfare, by Mark G. Kortepeter, reviewed by Joshua Shiver, 502–4
Securing the MRAP: Lessons Learned in Marketing and Military Procurement, by James M. Hasik, reviewed by Peter Clemens, 504–5
The New Art of War: The Origins, Theory, and Future of Conflict, by Geoffrey F. Weiss, reviewed by Jon Mikolashek, 506–7
BOOKS RECEIVED: 508–10
RECENT JOURNAL ARTICLES: 511–20
Dying to Learn: Wartime Lessons from the Western Front, by Michael A. Hunzeker, reviewed by Frederic Krome and by Dean A. Nowowiejski, 427–30
Greek Warfare beyond the Polis: Defense, Strategy, and the Making of Ancient Federal States, by David A. Blome, reviewed by Emily Mackil, 430–31
Soldiers & Silver: Mobilizing Resources in the Age of Roman Conquest, by Michael J. Taylor, reviewed by Jonathan P. Roth, 432–33
The Battle of Maldon: War and Peace in Tenth-century England, by Mark Atherton, reviewed by Stephen Morillo, 433–34
Elite Participation in the Third Crusade, by Stephen Bennett, reviewed by Laurence W. Marvin, 435–36
Climate of Conquest: War, Environment, and Empire in Mughal North India, by Pratyay Nath, reviewed by Subah Dayal, 436–39
Decision at Brandywine: The Battle on Birmingham Hill, by Robert M. Dunkerly, reviewed by Susan Brynne Long, 439–40
Teacher, Preacher, Soldier, Spy: The Civil Wars of John R. Kelso, by Christopher Grasso, reviewed by Steven E. Sodergren, 441–42
The Siege of Vicksburg: Climax of the Campaign to Open the Mississippi River, May 23–July 4, 1863, by Timothy B. Smith, reviewed by Donald B. Connelly, 442–44
Rites of Retaliation: Civilization, Soldiers, and Campaigns in the American Civil War, by Lorien Foote, reviewed by Brian Matthew Jordan, 444–46
Warrior Generation, 1865–1885: Militarism and British Working Class Boys, by Richard Fulton, reviewed by Jeremy Black, 446–47
Strategiya: The Foundations of the Russian Art of Strategy, edited by Ofer Fridman, reviewed by Jeff Hawn, 447–49
Arming the Irish Revolution: Gunrunning and Arms Smuggling, 1911–1922, by W. H. Kautt, reviewed by Augustine Meaher, 449–50
Plotting for Peace: American Peacemakers, British Codebreakers, and Britain at War, 1914–1917, by Daniel Larsen, reviewed by David Hirsch, 451–52
Burn, Bomb, Destroy: The German Sabotage Campaign in North America 1914–1917, by Michael Digby, reviewed by Gavin Wiens, 452–54
The War Lords and the Gallipoli Disaster: How Globalized Trade Led Britain to Its Worst Defeat of the First World War, by Nicholas A. Lambert, reviewed by Rosanne M. Horswill, 454–55
Indian Soldiers in World War I: Race and Representation in an Imperial War, by Andrew T. Jarboe, reviewed by Alex Paul, 456–57
Ruses and Perfidy: Submarine Warfare and the Sinking of Hospital Ships During World War I, by Reinhard Nachtigal, reviewed by Jonathan Slater, 457–59
Trauma, Primitivism, and the First World War: The Making of Frank Prewett, by Joy Porter, reviewed by Sarafina Pagnotta, 459–61
War and Memorials: The Age of Nationalism and the Great War, edited by Frank Jacob and Kenneth Pearl, reviewed by Robert Clemm, 461–62
Forgotten Veterans, Invisible Memorials: How American Women Commemorated the Great War, 1917–1945, by Allison S. Finkelstein, reviewed by Tammy M. Proctor, 462–64
Canada at War: Conscription, Diplomacy, and Politics, by J. L. Granatstein, reviewed by Andrew Burtch, 464–66
Not for King or Country: Edward Cecil-Smith, the Communist Party of Canada, and the Spanish Civil War, by Tyler Wentzell, reviewed by Alexander Clifford, 466–68
Sites of Violence and Memory in Modern Spain: From the Spanish Civil War to the Present Day, edited by Antonio Míguez Macho, reviewed by David A. Messenger, 468–69
Hostages of Empire: Colonial Prisoners of War in Vichy France, by Sarah Ann Frank, reviewed by Derek R. Mallett, 470–71
Air Power and the Evacuation of Dunkirk: The RAF and Luftwaffe during Operation Dynamo, 26 May–4 June 1940, by Harry Raffal, reviewed by Dan Ellin, 471–73
Secret Alliances: Special Operations and Intelligence Operations in Norway, 1940–1945, by Tony Insall, reviewed by Kristo Karvinen, 473–74
Fortress Dark and Stern: The Soviet Home Front During World War II, by Wendy Z. Goldman and Donald Filtzer, reviewed by Kara Irvin, 475–76
The Invasion of the South: Army Air Force Operations, and the Invasion of Northern and Central Sumatra, edited and translated by Willem Remmelink, reviewed by Billy Croslow, 476–78
The War Beat, Pacific: The American Media at War Against Japan, by Steven Casey, reviewed by David L. Snead, 478–79
Monty and the Canadian Army, by John A. English, reviewed by Brad St.Croix, 480–81
Romania’s Holy War: Soldiers, Motivation, and the Holocaust, by Grant T. Harward, reviewed by Anna Marie Anderson, 481–83
Sheer Misery: Soldiers in Battle in WWII, by Mary Louise Roberts, reviewed by Mark E. Grotelueschen, 483–84
Lieutenant General Sir Frederick Morgan, KCB: The Planner Who Saved Europe, by John D. Gazzelli, reviewed by Charles E. A. Sexton, 485–86
Stalin’s War on Japan: The Red Army’s Manchurian Strategic Offensive Operation 1945, by Charles Stephenson, reviewed by Stephen T. Satkiewicz, 486–88
The Soviet Myth of World War II: Patriotic Memory and the Russian Question in the USSR, by Jonathan Brunstedt, reviewed by Nina Janz, 488–89
Defenders of Japan: The Post-Imperial Armed Forces 1946–2016, by Garren Mulloy, reviewed by Kater Ka-Ming Yip, 489–91
All Options on the Table: Leaders, Preventative War, and Nuclear Proliferation, by Rachel Elizabeth Whitlark, reviewed by Henry Richard Maar III, 491–93
Emergency Deep: Cold War Missions of a Submarine Commander, by Alfred Scott McLaren, reviewed by Aldona Sendzikas, 493–95
Strategy Shelved: The Collapse of Cold War Naval Strategic Planning, by Steven T. Wills, reviewed by Tyler A. Pitrof, 495–96
Air Power in the Age of Primacy: Air Warfare Since the Cold War, edited by Phil M. Haun, Colin F. Jackson, and Timothy P. Schultz, reviewed by Brian R. Price, 497–98
Making the Forever War: Marilyn B. Young on the Culture and Politics of American Militarism, edited by Mark Philip Bradley and Mary L. Dudziak, reviewed by Andrew N. Buchanan, 499–500
The Law of Armed Conflict: International Humanitarian Law in War, by Gary D. Solis, reviewed by Fred L. Borch III, 501–2
Inside the Hot Zone: A Soldier on the Front Lines of Biological Warfare, by Mark G. Kortepeter, reviewed by Joshua Shiver, 502–4
Securing the MRAP: Lessons Learned in Marketing and Military Procurement, by James M. Hasik, reviewed by Peter Clemens, 504–5
The New Art of War: The Origins, Theory, and Future of Conflict, by Geoffrey F. Weiss, reviewed by Jon Mikolashek, 506–7
BOOKS RECEIVED: 508–10
RECENT JOURNAL ARTICLES: 511–20
