U.S. Military History For Dummies

- Introduction

Part I: The Nitty-Gritty of U.S. Military History
Chapter 1: Why This Stuff Is Important
Chapter 2: Why America Goes to War and Who We Fight
Chapter 3: Meeting the Players
Chapter 4: Lining Up the Armed Services
Chapter 5: The Changing Experience of Warfare

Part II: Born in War
Chapter 6: When the English Were Our Friends: Battling the Indians and the French
Chapter 7: So You Want to Start a Revolution: The War for Independence
Chapter 8: War and Peace: Battling Indians, Old Friends, Tax Delinquents, and Pirates
Chapter 9: We Have Met the Enemy: The War of 1812

Part III: Forged in War
Chapter 10: To the Halls of Montezuma: Fighting Mexico
Chapter 11: The Civil War
Chapter 12: The "Indian Wars": The Army Secures the Frontier
Chapter 13: "Remember the Maine!" Fighting Spain and the Filipinos

Part IV Going Global: The World Wars
Chapter 14: Over There: The First World War
Chapter 15: The Looming Crisis: World War II before American Involvement
Chapter 16: The Greatest War: World War II

Part V: Bearing Any Burden: The Cold War and the Unpaid Peace Dividend
Chapter 17: Toying with Nuclear Armageddon: The Cold War Years
Chapter 18: Hot War in Asia: The Korean War
Chapter 19: The Very Long War: Vietnam
Chapter 20: A War with Allies: The Persian Gulf War
Chapter 21: The Long War Ahead: Terrorism, Afghanistan, and Iraq

Part VI:The Part of Tens
Chapter 22: The Ten Best Generals in U.S. Military History
Chapter 23: The Ten Worst Generals in U.S. Military History
Chapter 24: The Ten Best Movies on U.S. Military History

- Index

John C. McManus, PhD, is an associate professor of U.S. military history at Missouri University of Science and Technology. He teaches courses on the Civil War, World War II, Vietnam, Americans in combat, and the broad sweep of American military history. A prolific lecturer on military history, he has received numerous awards for outstanding teaching.

He has written several books on the American military experience, including The Deadly Brotherhood: The American Combat Soldier in World War II; The Americans at D-Day; and, most recently, Alamo in the Ardennes: The Untold Story of the American Soldiers Who Made the Defense of Bastogne Possible. He is a member of the editorial advisory board at World War II magazine and has served as an historical expert for numerous battlefield tours.