This monograph examines how AirLand Battle doctrine defines and utilizes the term initiative, and how initiative can be achieved at the operational level of war. It concludes that, while doctrine defines initiative as “setting the terms of battle...
This paper determined the public image of the U.S. military as reflected in leading magazines and compared the results with the public image of the military determined in a 1971 study. The 1982 and 1983 issues of twenty-one leading magazines were...
Historians generally submit operational art, and modern war for that matter, emerged during the industrial era wars of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries when national conscription fielded massive armies of corps and divisions. This...
Committee 1, Armored Officers Advanced Course, The Armored School; Brothers, Benjamine M.; Allen, Raymond W.; Smith, Allen T.; Willey, Wilford L.; Greer, Harry A.; Hislop, Albert H.; Wingfield, Oren C.; Wehrle, Howard F., III; Spann, James H.;...
In this historical example is an armored division indoctrinated and trained for the offensive, forced by circumstances of war, to adopt temporarily the defensive.
The ground force doctrine of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization reflects the times in which it was written. It is tactically-oriented and attrition-focused. Since its adoption in 1984, the body of military thought has grown substantially....
Partisan warfare is not new. The histories of numerous campaigns describe participation by civilians in the hostilities under various designations, such as guerrillas, irregulars, bandits or patriots fighting for liberation. However, while...
Discusses the actions of Operation Overlord in the south western zone. This operation was the invasion of western Europe by Allied forces. It began 6 June, 1944 and ended 25 August, 1944.
Report by Generalmajor Alexander Ratcliffe, who served as an infantry battalion and regimental commander for the German Army in Belgium and France. He was also a writer and commentator. In this document he discusses the background of his...
Contains a copy of Headquarters, Communications Zone Planning Directive Series I, No. 4 (Plan "A") Assembly and Staging Areas, dated 14th March, 1945 and Headquarters, European Theater of Operations, Planning Directives, Series 'L', No. 4, dated 1...
This private war journal comprises seven volumes covering the dates 14 August 1939 to 24 September 1942, the date of Halder's dismissal by Hitler. The journal was kept by Halder personally in his own shorthand and contains notes on conferences,...