A. B. Feuer - Böcker

Feuer has fine-tuned our understanding of the Spanish-American War and the Philippine Insurrection by unearthing and publishing for the first time an illuminating combat diary. . . . Serious students of American military history will appreciate the opportunity to compare nearly a century of changing interpretations with a most valuable primary source. The editor of the Bilibid Diary, Feuer has once again rendered conspicious service to the historical profession. Barry F. Machado Professor of History Washington and Lee University The story of the Old Army as revealed through the eyes of Colonel Jacob Kreps, this book dramatically portrays life in action with the U.S. Infantry on the Western frontier, in the Spanish-American War, and in the Philippine Insurrection. Drawing on the first hand accounts preserved in the diary of Kreps, who served for more than 30 years with the U.S. Twenty-second Infantry Regiment, A. B. Feuer details the hardships endured by the soldiers in combat action.Feuer recounts the experiences of the distinguished U.S. Twenty-second Infantry Regiment beginning in 1883. He also discusses numerous other U.S. Army units--infantry, cavalry, artillery, engineering, medical, quartermaster and signal--and offers important data on the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps. Some of the accounts, such as that of the Pasig River battle and the Mindanao campaign, fill in missing chapters in the chronicles of war history. This book, which includes original maps and photographs, is valuable to anyone interested in military history.

The Bougainville Reports--by Jack Read, Paul Mason, and other coast watchers--are vivid accounts of the coast watching activities on Buka and Bougainville Islands in the Solomon Islands chain during World War II and describe in detail one of the most successful intelligence operations of the war. By the time war came to the South Pacific on December 8, 1941, an excellent intra-district communication network had already been established on Bougainville. A daily system of radio reporting was put into effect by Lieutenant Commander Eric Feldt, who later wrote: Few realized that when the first waves of United States Marines landed on the bitterly contested beaches of Guadalcanal, coast watchers on Bougainville, New Georgia, and other islands were sending warning signals of impending Japanese air raids almost two hours before enemy aircraft formations appeared over the island.Japanese shipping and aircraft activity was monitored and news of spottings was telegraphed to Guadalcanal Headquarters. Information on shipping was directly responsible for the American victory in November 1942, when 12 Japanese transports, loaded with reinforcements, were intercepted and destroyed. Jack Read summarized his activities as follows: Reviewing the course of our operations, we can see that coast watching on that most northerly peg of the Solomons had fulfilled its mission long before we were driven out--and to a far greater effect than even we realized. During the early and uncertain days of the American struggle to wrest Guadalcanal from the Japanese, the reports and timely warnings from Bougainville were directly responsible for the enemy's defeat. Admiral William Halsey praised the work of the coast watchers and said that the intelligence information from Bougainville saved Guadalcanal and that Guadalcanal saved the South Pacific. These edited reports tell the remarkable story of Read, Mason, and other coast watchers and depict their struggles for survival in the Japanese-patrolled jungles of Bougainville. They provide a fascinating account that will intrigue historians, World War II and espionage buffs, and students.

This book records the World War II experiences of Captain Elmer E. Haynes, who flew low-altitude night radar strikes against Japanese shipping in the South China Sea, and daylight raids against various enemy land based installations in eastern and central China. Haynes flew secretly developed B-24 Liberator bombers that were equipped with radar which had been integrated with the Norden bombsight for night missions. These B-24's operated with the 14th Air Force--General Chennault's Flying Tigers. The bombing attacks were so accurate and successful that, in a little over a year, Haynes and his fellow pilots had sunk approximately a million tons of Japanese shipping. Due to the Top Secret classification of this equipment, the story of the radar B-24's, operating with the Flying Tigers, has never before been told.The war in the Pacific was definitely brought to a quicker end by the devastating destruction caused by the sinking of such a tremendous number of Japanese merchant and naval vessels in the South China Sea. In its three years of operation, the 14th Air Force was credited with sinking two and a half million tons of enemy shipping. The radar-equipped B-24's were also used on reconnaissance missions--locating Japanese convoys for U.S. naval ships and submarines. Military historians, and anyone interested in World War II, will find this story highly informative, since it discloses never before published facts about the development of radar systems by the United States. This same radar technique was used by B-17's during the saturation night bombing raids over Germany.

This story is an account of the Santiago, Cuba, land campaign of the Spanish-American War, as conducted by General William R. Shafter's Fifth Army Corps. The narrative is based on firsthand information gathered from handwritten diaries, memoirs, and regimental and company histories of the men who participated in the campaign. These chronicles of frontline action paint an entirely different picture of what has been called The Splendid Little War. The opponent, far from being the cowardly Spanish soldier of myth, is revealed to be a courageous, resourceful foe. Furthermore, the attack on the outer defenses of Santiago was totally mismanaged by William Shafter, the American General in command, and his incompetent staff. Only the U.S. Navy's victory over the Spanish squadron on July 3, 1898, rescued the army from disaster.

By piecing together diaries, letters, scrapbooks, and rare privately printed memoirs, the author has created a story which tells how America's ragtag navy—composed mainly of converted yachts, steamers and tugboats—was able to fight and win against the more powerful Spanish gunboats. The naval battles fought in places like Santiago, Cardenas, Cienfuegos, Manzanillo, Port Nipe, Guantanamo, San Juan, Guanica, and Ponce come alive in this book. The stories of the brave little ships that fought these battles—with names like the Gloucester and the Yosemite—at times against overwhelming odds, demonstrates the excellent training of the men who manned their guns under leadership of daring officers. This book fills in many of the missing pieces in the history of the Spanish-American War.

This little-known story of Australia's M/Z Unit commandos, and the part they played in the Southwest Pacific during World War II, is a fascinating account of daring, clandestine operations conducted by the Allies deep into enemy-held territory. M Unit personnel were secretly landed to set up coastwatching posts and radio stations to report on Japanese shipping movements and bombing flights heading to raid Allied positions. Members of the Z Unit carried out assigned raids into enemy controlled areas, and also attacked targets of opportunity. Many commandos were delivered on their missions by U.S. Navy submarines that sneaked into dangerously shallow waters to put the men ashore—and then returned to pick them up. Other operatives were inserted by PT boats, Catalina aircraft, parachute, and snake boats. Many of these operations are still classified.

When the United States entered World War I in April 1917, the clamoring in the press for a strong army largely overshadowed the need for considerable naval contributions to the war effort. Although it was small at the time, the U.S. Navy transported thousands of doughboys to France, all the while battling the predatory German U-Boats. Henry Ford tried to put his mass-production techniques to work to produce hundreds of submarine chasers to patrol American coastlines. The fledgling Naval Air Service was assigned the daunting task of dealing with enemy aircraft over France and in the Adriatic Sea. This is the personal account of men who served on the sea and in the air, as well as the captains of industry who made victory possible.Industrial innovations contributed greatly to the Allied cause. George Eastman's Kodak Company developed ship and aircraft camouflage, and the General Electric Company perfected the hydrophone, a precursor to modern sonar. While many are aware of the exploits of Eddie Rickenbacker, the U.S. Army's ace, few know that the Navy also had an ace. After more than 80 years, these forgotten naval heroes receive the recognition that they well deserve in an account that attempts to give the war a human face through personal diaries, letters, and photographs.

Using previously unpublished diaries, letters, and photographs—plus the writings of war correspondent John T. McCutcheon—Feuer offers a vivid account of America's war in the Philippine Islands during the early part of the 20th century. This story highlights the experiences of the American soldiers, sailors, and marines who participated in the major battles. Not only did they fight a determined enemy, they also battled the weather, the jungle, and the diseases that threatened to take their lives. Their writings, including a section of poems and songs of the era, reveal the thoughts and anxieties of the American fighting man, serving his country nearly 8,000 miles from home.In 1895 Emilio Aguinaldo became the leader of Katipunan, a revolutionary society that sought complete independence from Spain. A year later, his ragtag band of soldiers defeated a Spanish regiment, a victory that incited the Filipino people to rise up against their oppressors. While the Spanish ultimately paid Aguinaldo to enter voluntary exile, in 1898, after the sinking of the ^IMaine^R, the United States would promise independence for the islands in exchange for Aguinaldo's return to lead an uprising against Spain. The U.S. State Department would later repudiate this promise, a move that would embroil United States troops in a bloody struggle to subdue the islands. This is their story.