The Journal of Military History

Volume 89, Number 1 · January 2025

7 articles · 48 book reviews · pp. 9–257

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Articles

  1. News Has Been Secondary to Service: Josephus Daniels, William Sims, and the American Press in World War I

    9–32

    Newspaper coverage of the U.S. Navy in World War I played a significant role in civil-military tensions within the Navy Department. Secretary of the Navy Josephus Daniels cultivated good relations with newspapers, and his attitude toward managing the press was largely limited to protecting sensitive information and ensuring good publicity for the navy. The American naval commander stationed in Europe had a more sophisticated outlook. William S. Sims had fewer qualms about censorship than Daniels, and he realized that the press could be used to his advantage in shaping the administration’s policies. The result was that the press became a pawn in the fractious relationship between the Wilson administration and the senior naval officer in Europe.

  2. Polycracy, Fascism, and the Armed Forces: The Development of Italian Air-Naval Cooperation, 1919–1940

    33–56

    and

    During World War II, joint operations between the Italian Royal Air Force and the Italian Royal Navy revealed significant shortcomings, which negatively impacted the military effectiveness of the two services. This article examines how the failure to develop effective interservice cooperation was rooted in the 1920s and 1930s and was due to a lack of direction from Mussolini and the General Staff. The air force and navy also opposed cooperation, considering it risky to their own institutional survival.

  3. Portable Surgical Hospitals in the Burma Campaign of World War II: Prototypes of Forward Combat Casualty Care

    57–80

    and

    Forward surgical care of combat casualties on austere, non-linear battlefields demands mobility, surgical expertise, routes of evacuation, and resource sustainment. Introduced during the Allied New Guinea offensives of 1942, Percy Carroll’s innovative Portable Surgical Hospitals (PSHs) demonstrated capabilities for evaluation, resuscitation, and limited reparative surgery to revive and salvage victims of major battlefield trauma. During the offensives of late 1943, the PSHs again deployed in the dense wilderness Burma; once again, their capabilities were evident. Carroll’s PSHs served as the prototype for current forward surgical units deployed deep in unsecured territory.

  4. ’The Dramatic Sequel to the War’: The U.S. Army, the International Tracing Service, and the Search for the Missing, 1945–1950

    81–100

    This article examines the relationship between the American Graves Registration Command (AGRC) and the International Tracing Service (ITS) in Europe after World War II. While the AGRC searched for the remains of missing American military personnel and the ITS traced civilian victims of the Third Reich, both regularly uncovered documentary and physical evidence sought by the other agency. These twinned searches benefited from and, in some cases, depended on each other in a symbiotic endeavor. This study highlights the cooperation between the American military and an allied agency, as well as the blurred lines between civilian and military casualties.

  5. ’For Conspicuous Gallantry’: Bravery Awards to the Rhodesian Security Forces, c.1970–80

    101–127

    Following its Unilateral Declaration of Independence (UDI) from Britain in 1965, the rebel colony of Rhodesia’s government could no longer submit recommendations for British honors and awards. The creation, in 1969, of a new set of decorations and medals rectified this issue. This article argues that medals were also part of the Rhodesians’ attempt to create a national identity. It also shows that the standard for awards was set extremely high and that aggression, professionalism, and willingness to engage the enemy were the foremost characteristics required to win a Rhodesian medal. At the same time, it contends that the Rhodesians failed to fully exploit the propaganda value of military decorations by the sparing way in which they bestowed them, by shrouding specific awards in secrecy, and by under-awarding them to African personnel.

  6. Between Frustration and Success: The Canadian Military Experience on the International Commission of Control and Supervision in Vietnam, 1973

    128–154

    and

    From January to July 1973, Canada participated in the International Commission of Control and Supervision on ending the U.S. war in Vietnam. The ICCS investigated accusations of violations and supervised prisoner of war exchanges. Although fraught with complexity, contradiction, and lack of cooperation, and based on blurred mandates, the ICCS was a partial success because of the help provided to the American ally. The analysis suggests Canadians remained committed to the international commission despite major political and ideological struggles. The Canadian military thus learned important lessons on Cold War peacekeeping missions in decolonized spaces, on cooperation with U.S. forces, and about international peace mandates.

Review essays

  1. But it Still Goes On: Paul Fussell’s The Great War and Modern Memory at 50

    155–170

    and

Book reviews (48)

  1. The Globe and Anchor Men: U.S. Marines and American Manhood in the Great War Era, by Mark Ryland Folse171–174

    Reviewed by and

  2. Central Asia in World War II: The Impact and Legacy of Fighting for the Soviet Union, by Vicky Davis174–178

    Reviewed by and

  3. A Call to Arms: The Day War was Invented, by Anne Lehoërff178–179

    Reviewed by

  4. Inside the Roman Legions: The Soldier’s Experience 264–107 BCE, by Kathryn H. Milne179–181

    Reviewed by

  5. The Third Macedonian War and the Battle of Pydna: Perseus’ Neglect of Combined-Arms Tactics and the Real Reasons for the Roman Victory, by Graham Wrightson181–182

    Reviewed by

  6. Sextus Julius Frontinus and the Roman Empire: Author of Stratagems, Advisor to Emperors, Governor of Britain, Pacifier of Wales, by John D. Grainger183–184

    Reviewed by

  7. The Leadership of Muhammad: A Historical Reconstruction; and The Warrior Prophet: Muhammad & War, by Joel Hayward185–187

    Reviewed by and

  8. Gustavus v Wallenstein: Military Revolution, Rivalry & Tragedy in the Thirty Years War, by John Pike187–189

    Reviewed by

  9. The Military History of the Russian Empire from Peter the Great until Nicholas II, by John M. Steinberg189–190

    Reviewed by

  10. Making the Frontier Man: Violence, White Manhood, & Authority in the Early Western Backcountry, by Matthew C. Ward190–192

    Reviewed by

  11. The Road to Ticonderoga: The Campaign of 1758 in the Champlain Valley, by Michael G. Laramie192–194

    Reviewed by

  12. Piracy and the Making of the Spanish Pacific World, by Kristie Patricia Flannery194–195

    Reviewed by

  13. Hessians: German Soldiers in the American Revolutionary War, by Friederike Baer196–197

    Reviewed by

  14. George Washington’s Momentous Year: Twelve Months that Transformed the Revolution, by Volume 1, by Gary Ecelbarger197–198

    Reviewed by

  15. Revolutionary Blacks: Discovering the Frank Brothers, Freeborn Men of Color, Soldiers of Independence, by Shirley L. Green199–200

    Reviewed by

  16. French Invasions of Britain & Ireland, 1792–1815: The Revolutionaries & Spies who Sought to Topple the Government of King George, by Paul L. Dawson200–202

    Reviewed by

  17. The German Liberation War of 1813: The Memoirs of a Russian Artilleryman, by Volume 2. By Ilya Timofeyevi Radozhitskii202–203

    Reviewed by

  18. Remembering Conquest: Mexican Americans, Memory, and Citizenship, by Omar Valerio-Jiménez204–205

    Reviewed by

  19. Swiss Mercenaries in the Dutch East Indies: A Transimperial History of Military Labour, 1848–1914, by Philipp Krauer205–206

    Reviewed by

  20. The Iron Dice of Battle: Albert Sidney Johnston and the Civil War in the West, by Timothy B. Smith207–208

    Reviewed by

  21. The Age of Reconstruction: How Lincoln’s New Birth of Freedom Remade the World, by Don H. Doyle208–210

    Reviewed by

  22. Generals and Admirals, Criminals and Crooks: Dishonorable Leadership in the U.S. Military, by Jeffrey J. Matthews210–211

    Reviewed by

  23. The Gas and Flame Men: Baseball and the Chemical Warfare Service during World War I, by Jim Leeke212–213

    Reviewed by

  24. Making Sense of the Great War: Crisis, Englishness, and Morale on the Western Front, by Alex Mayhew214–215

    Reviewed by

  25. America’s First Aircraft Carrier: USS Langley and the Dawn of U.S. Naval Aviation, by David F. Winkler215–216

    Reviewed by

  26. MacArthur and West Point: How the General and the Academy Shaped Each Other, by Sherman L. Fleek216–218

    Reviewed by

  27. Too Far on a Whim: The Limits of High-Steam Propulsion in the US Navy, by Tyler A. Pitrof218–220

    Reviewed by

  28. Air Force: Disappointments, Mistakes, and Failures, 1940–1990, by Kenneth P. Werrell220–221

    Reviewed by

  29. Warlord Hitler: With Reference to the Campaign in Southern Russia in 1942, by Alan Donohue221–222

    Reviewed by

  30. Skies of Thunder: The Deadly World War II Mission Over the Roof of the World, by Caroline Alexander223–224

    Reviewed by

  31. India in the Second World War: An Emotional History, by Diya Gupta224–226

    Reviewed by

  32. Fascism, the War, and Structures of Feeling in Italy, 1943–1945: Tales in Chiaroscuro, by Simonetta Falasca-Zamponi226–228

    Reviewed by

  33. Fury and Ice: Greenland, the United States and Germany in World War II, by Peter Harmsen228–229

    Reviewed by

  34. Patton’s Tactician: The War Diary of Lieutenant General Geoffrey Keyes, by edited by James W. Holsinger Jr230–231

    Reviewed by

  35. Forgotten Casualties: Downed American Airmen and Axis Violence in World War II, by Kevin T. Hall232–233

    Reviewed by

  36. Earning Their Wings: The WASPs of World War II and the Fight for Veteran Recognition, by Sarah Parry Myers; and The Women with Silver Wings: The Inspiring True Story of the Women Airforce Service Pilots of World War II, by Katherine Sharp Landdeck233–235

    Reviewed by

  37. Of Love and War: Pacific Brides of World War II, by Angela Wanhalla; and Picture Bride, War Bride: The Role of Marriage in Shaping Japanese America, by Sonia C. Gomez236–238

    Reviewed by

  38. China Between Peace and War: Mao, Chiang and the Americans, 1945–1947, by Victor S. C. Cheng238–240

    Reviewed by

  39. The Lumumba Plot: The Secret History of the CIA and a Cold War Assassination, by Stuart A. Reid240–242

    Reviewed by

  40. Does Counter-Terrorism Work?, by Richard English242–243

    Reviewed by

  41. Prisoners After War: Veterans in the Age of Mass Incarceration, by Jason A. Higgins244–245

    Reviewed by

  42. Opération Crevette: Benin, Mercenaries, and the Survival of a New State, by Les Sosnowski and Monique Sosnowski245–247

    Reviewed by

  43. Cornerstone of the Nation: The Defense Industry and the Building of Modern Korea under Park Chung Hee, by Peter Banseok Kwon247–248

    Reviewed by

  44. The Gulf War: George H. W. Bush and American Grand Strategy in the Post-Cold War Era, by Spencer D. Bakich249–250

    Reviewed by

  45. Death, Dominance, and State-Building: The US in Iraq and the Future of American Military Intervention, by Roger D. Petersen250–252

    Reviewed by

  46. Martial Culture in the Lifeways of U.S. Servicemembers and Veterans, by Nathan J. Hogan252–254

    Reviewed by

  47. Military Medicine and the Hidden Costs of War, by Tanisha M. Fazal254–255

    Reviewed by

  48. The Guarded Age: Fortification in the Twenty-First Century, by David J. Betz256–257

    Reviewed by