Research Catalog

Details

Description

1. 406 pages; 24 cm

Summary

1. Combat tales have come to form an essential piece of our identity as Americans. But as some war stories have been repackaged and embellished, the truth behind the conflicts--the lives of the average soldiers and civilians involved and the lasting significance of the battles on American history--often lies buried. Kenneth C. Davis aims to change that. Here, he takes readers inside six landmark battles that offer crucial insights. From the Battle of Yorktown (1781), where a fledgling America learned hard lessons about what kind of military it would need to survive; to 1945 Berlin, when the downfall of the Third Reich set the stage for decades of Cold War tension; to Fallujah (2004), which epitomized the dawn of privatized war, Davis explores the key battlefield characters and events, shattering myths and misconceptions. Revelations include: the unacknowledged role that enslaved people and free African Americans played in the Revolution and Civil War; the grave miscalculations and cruelty that took place at Petersburg, Virginia, site of the longest siege of an American city; the scandalous use of water torture and civilian atrocities that shook Theodore Roosevelt's White House; the secret reasons why Stalin was desperate to take Berlin in the closing days of World War II--and why General Eisenhower let him; and the epic battle that changed how reporters covered--and Americans viewed--the Vietnam War. With this book, Davis illuminates why we go to war, who fights, the grunt's-eye view of combat, and how these conflicts shaped our military and national identity.--From publisher description.

Subject

1. Battles > United States > History
2. Soldiers > United States > History
3. Civilians in war > United States > History
4. Civil-military relations > United States > History
5. War and society > United States > History
6. Social change > United States > History
7. Battles
8. Civil-military relations
9. Civilians in war
10. Military policy
11. Social change
12. Social history
13. Soldiers
14. War and society
15. United States > History, Military
16. United States > Social conditions
17. United States > Military policy
18. United States

Genre/Form

1. History.
2. Military history.

Contents

1. Washington's men : Yorktown, Virginia : October 1781 -- The battle of the old men and the young boys : Petersburg, Virginia : June 1864 -- The water cure : Balangiga, Philippines : September 1901 -- Berlin stories : Berlin, Germany : April 1945 -- The "living-room war" : Hué, South Vietnam : February 1968 -- The bridge over the River Euphrates : Fallujah, Iraq : March 2004 -- Afterword.

Call number

1. JFE 15-4478

Bibliography (note)

1. Includes bibliographical references (pages 361-372) and index.

Author

1. Davis, Kenneth C.

Title

1. The hidden history of America at war : untold tales from Yorktown to Fallujah / Kenneth C. Davis.

Publisher

1. New York : Hachette Books, 2015.

Edition

1. First edition.

Type of content

1. text

Type of medium

1. unmediated

Type of carrier

1. volume

Bibliography

1. Includes bibliographical references (pages 361-372) and index.

LCCN

1. 2014024942

ISBN

1. 9781401324100 (hardcover)
2. 140132410X (hardcover)
3. 9780316348355 (trade paperback)
4. 9781478903765 (audio download)
5. 9781401330781 (ebook)

Research call number

1. JFE 15-4478