After America's First Battles

Gregory S. Hospodor is Chief of Military History Education, Training, and Curriculum for U.S. Army Transformation and Training Command. He has served on the history faculties at the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College, the U.S. Air Force Academy, Delta State University, and the Honors College at Louisiana State University. He has published widely on an eclectic range of military history topics. Sanders Marble is the senior historian at the Army Medical Department Center of History and Heritage, U.S. Army Medical Center of Excellence, Fort Sam Houston, Texas. He has worked in various capacities for the Army Medical Department history program since 2003, including as command historian at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. He has written a variety of books, articles, and chapters on military history.

“In exploring the question, ‘What happens after first contact,’ Hospodor and Marble have gathered provocative battle analyses from more than a dozen of this generation's best military historians. Ranging from the first two years of the American Civil War to the Surge in Iraq, this collection offers tremendous insight into martial adaptability and innovation in the broadest sense, moving beyond simple tactical discussions to include deep conversations regarding military change at all levels of warfare. A complement to America's First Battles (Kansas, 1986), this volume is a must read for any serious student of modern warfare.”—Robert P. Wettemann Jr., author of Rhino Tanks and Sticky Bombs: GI Ingenuity in World War II“An excellent set of case studies! Hospodor, Marble, and their authors provide a valuable addition to our understanding of how U.S. military organizations learn and adapt, highlighting the many ways the services have done so since the Civil War. After America’s First Battles is a refreshing examination of the multifaceted challenge of learning and its limits.”—Trent Hone, author of Learning War: The Evolution of Fighting Doctrine in the U.S. Navy, 1898-1945 and Mastering the Art of Command: Admiral Chester W. Nimitz and Victory in the Pacific“After America’s Battles achieved longstanding success, remaining in use for nearly four decades. This new work propels the discussion forward from how the U.S. Army adapted during peacetime to the complicated yet more pivotal question of how the various armed services did so during war. The result is a significant achievement.”—William A. Taylor, author of Military Service and American Democracy: From World War II to the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars“A vital and essential study, After America’s First Battles builds upon a classic work of military history and shows how the U.S. military has adapted during wartime since the Civil War. Gregory Hospodor and Sanders Marble have assembled an impressive group of scholars whose analysis skillfully incorporates perspectives on ground, naval, and aerial warfare and how the highlighted engagements shaped future battlefield performance but did not necessarily guarantee victory.”—Ryan Wadle, associate professor in the John B. Hattendorf Center for Maritime Historical Research, U.S. Naval War College