military performance should read Mark Calhoun’s new biography General Lesley J. This sad fact is one reason all serious students of U.S. well, everything!įifty years ago, most readers would have chosen the first statement today, few would. and Russian forces together could overwhelm the German military with vastly superior numbers of. The American people tightened their collective belt so U.S.The Russians did the preponderance of fighting, leaving an exhausted Wehrmacht to be mopped up by the relatively incapable Army.Army leaders executed an organizational miracle in quickly creating competent armies that won a series of victories from North Africa to the heart of Germany.victories in the European theater during World War II: By way of illustration, ask any military officer which of the following factors best explains U.S. Nevertheless, these achievements seem to have diminished over time. And 12 months later, the Army was on the border of Germany, having just defeated Adolf Hitler’s last-gasp effort to stop the Allied onslaught. In another 12 months, it knocked Italy out of the war. Yet within 12 months of Germany declaring war on the United States, the Army invaded North Africa and knocked Vichy French forces out of the war. Just to refresh the reader’s memory, the United States went to war with a small, impoverished Army that conducted maneuvers with wooden weapons and borrowed vehicles in the years leading up to World War II. This is surprising given what the Army accomplished. Army’s reputation for effectiveness during World War II has not fared well over time, particularly regarding the European theater of operations. Lamb is a Distinguished Research Fellow in the Center for Strategic Research, Institute for National Strategic Studies, at the National Defense University.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |