Military history of the United States
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North Shoreman
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[[WP:UNDO|Undid]] revision 225872685 by [[Special:Contributions/71.142.96.103|71.142.96.103]] ([[User talk:71.142.96.103|talk]])
{{Nofootnotes|date=February 2008}}
{{USHBS}}
The '''military history of the United States''' spans a period of over two centuries. During the course of those years, the [[United States]] grew from an alliance of [[Thirteen Colonies|thirteen British colonies]] without a professional [[Armed force|military]] to the world's sole remaining [[superpower]] of the late 20th and early 21st centuries.
==Overview==
{{main|Military of the United States|Military budget in the United States}}
[[Image:US military personnel and expenditures.png|thumb|500px|right|U.S. military personnel and expenditures, 1790–2006. Personnel is shown in orange (left axis); expenditures are in teal (right axis). The two axes are scaled to visually align for [[World War II]], thus showing the difference between the cost per soldier before and after President [[Dwight D. Eisenhower]]'s "[[New Look (policy)|New Look]]" policy of the early 1950s.]]
Until the [[Philadelphia Convention|Constitutional Convention]], the military presence in what became known as the United States was organized by each [[U.S. state]] as a voluntary or conscripted [[militia]]. Since 1789, the [[United States Constitution]] has provided authority for the [[United States Congress|Congress]] to levy taxes and to raise a navy and national militia. Federal legislation eventually led to the modern nationalized system of military in the country. Historically, the amount of money the U.S. government spends on the military has often been a politically contentious issues.
As of 2008, the U.S. military consists of an [[United States Army|Army]], [[United States Navy|Navy]], [[United States Air Force|Air Force]] and [[United States Marine Corps|Marine Corps]] under the command of the [[United States Department of Defense]]. There also is the [[United States Coast Guard]], which is controlled by the [[Department of Homeland Security]].
The [[President of the United States]] is the [[commander in chief]] of each branch of the armed forces. In addition, each state has a [[United States National Guard|national guard]] commanded by the state's [[governor]] and coordinated by the [[National Guard Bureau]]. The President of the United States has the authority during national emergencies to assume control of individual state National Guard units.
==Timeline==
===Colonial wars (1620–1774)===
The beginning of the United States military lies in civilian frontiersmen, armed for hunting and basic survival in the wilderness. These were organized into local militias for small military operations, mostly against [[Native Americans in the United States|Native American]] tribes but also to resist possible raids by the small military forces of neighboring European colonies. They relied on the support of the [[United Kingdom|British]] regular army and navy for any serious military operation.
In the early years of the [[British colonization of North America]], military action in the colonies that would become United States were the result of conflicts with Native Americans, such as in the [[Pequot War]] of 1637, [[King Philip's War]] in 1675, and the [[Yamasee War]] in 1715. [[slave revolt|Slave uprisings]] such as the [[Stono Rebellion]] in 1739, and inter-colonial conflicts, such as the [[Pennis Wars]] and the activities of the [[Green Mountain Boys]], were also a part of the colonial military experience.
Beginning in 1689, the colonies also frequently became involved in a [[French and Indian Wars|series of wars]] between [[Kingdom of Great Britain|Great Britain]] and [[France]] for control of [[North America]], the most important of which were [[Queen Anne's War]], in which the British annexed French [[Acadia]], and the final [[French and Indian War]] (1754–1763). This final war was to give thousands of colonists, including [[George Washington]], military experience which they put to use during the [[American Revolution]].
===War of Independence (1775–1783) ===
{{Main|American Revolutionary War}}
[[Image:Yorktown-peale.jpg|thumb|250px|right|Detail from ''Washington and his Generals at Yorktown'' (c. 1781) by [[Charles Willson Peale]]. [[Marquis de Lafayette|Lafayette]] (far left) is at Washington's right, the [[Comte de Rochambeau]] to his immediate left.]]
Ongoing [[American Revolution|political tensions]] between [[Kingdom of Great Britain|Great Britain]] and [[Thirteen Colonies|thirteen colonies]] became a crisis in 1774 when the British placed the [[province of Massachusetts]] under [[martial law]]. While shooting began at [[Battle of Lexington and Concord|Lexington and Concord]] in 1775, the [[Continental Congress]] appointed [[George Washington]] as commander-in-chief of the newly created [[Continental Army]], which was augmented throughout the war by colonial [[militia]]. General Washington was no great battlefield tactician—he lost more battles than he won—but [[Fabian Strategy|his overall strategy]] proved to be sound: keep the army intact, wear down British resolve, and avoid decisive battles except to exploit enemy mistakes.
The British, for their part, lacked both a unified command and a clear strategy for winning. With the use of the [[Royal Navy]], the British were able to capture coastal cities, but control of the countryside eluded them. A British [[Saratoga campaign|invasion from Canada]] in 1777 ended with the disastrous surrender of a British army at [[Battle of Saratoga|Saratoga]]. With the addition in [[1777]] of [[Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben|General von Steuben]], of [[Prussia]]n origin, the training and discipline of the Continental Army began to vastly improve. [[France]] and [[Spain]] then entered the war against Great Britain.
A shift in [[Southern theater of the American Revolutionary War|focus to the southern American states]] resulted in a string of victories for the British, but [[guerrilla warfare]] and the tenacity of General [[Nathanael Greene]]'s army prevented the British from making strategic headway. A French naval [[Battle of the Chesapeake|victory in the Chesapeake]] led to the surrender of a British army at [[siege of Yorktown|Yorktown]] in 1781, resulting in the [[Treaty of Paris (1783)|Treaty of Paris]] in 1783, which recognized the independence of the United States.
Since many Americans of the revolutionary generation had strong distrust of permanent (or “[[standing army|standing]]”) armies, the Continental Army was quickly disbanded after the Revolution. General Washington, who throughout the war deferred to elected officials, averted [[Newburgh conspiracy|a potential crisis]] and submitted his resignation as commander-in-chief to Congress after the war, establishing a tradition of civil control of the U.S. military.
=== Early national period (1783–1815) ===
{{main|Northwest Indian War|Quasi-War|Barbary Wars|Tecumseh's War|Creek War}}
{{main|Peoria War|War of 1812}}
Following the [American] Revolution, the United States faced potential military conflict on the high seas as well as on the western [[frontier]]. The United States was a minor military power during this time, having only a modest army and navy. A traditional distrust of standing armies, combined with faith in the abilities of local militia, precluded the development of well-trained units and a professional [[officer corps]]. [[Jeffersonian political philosophy|Jeffersonian]] leaders preferred a small army and navy, fearing that a large military establishment would involve the United States in excessive foreign wars, and potentially allow a domestic tyrant to seize power.
In the Treaty of Paris after the Revolution, the British had ceded the lands between the [[Appalachian Mountains]] and the [[Mississippi River]] to the United States, without <ref>consulting the Native</ref> Americans who lived there. Because many of the tribes had fought as allies of the British, the United States compelled tribal leaders to sign away lands in postwar treaties, and began [[Northwest Ordinance|dividing up these lands]] for settlement. This provoked a war in the [[Northwest Territory]] in which the U.S. forces performed poorly; the [[Battle of the Wabash]] in 1791 was the most severe defeat ever suffered by the United States at the hands of American Indians. President Washington dispatched a [[Legion of the United States|newly trained army]] to the region, which decisively defeated the Indian confederacy at the [[Battle of Fallen Timbers]] in 1795.
When [[revolutionary France]] declared [[French Revolutionary Wars: Campaigns of 1793|war on Great Britain]] in 1793, the United States sought to remain neutral, but the [[Jay Treaty]], which was favorable to Great Britain, angered the French government, which viewed it as a violation of the 1778 [[Treaty of Alliance (1778)|Treaty of Alliance]]. French privateers began to seize U.S. vessels, which led to an undeclared "[[Quasi-War]]" between the two nations. Fought at sea from 1798 to 1800, the United States won a string of victories in the [[Caribbean]]. George Washington was called out of retirement to head a "provisional army" in case of invasion by France, but President [[John Adams]] managed to negotiate a truce, in which France agreed to terminate the prior alliance and cease its piracy.
[[Image:Battle erie.jpg|left|300px|thumb|"We have met the enemy and they are ours." Commodore [[Oliver Hazard Perry]]'s [[Battle of Lake Erie|victory on Lake Erie]] in 1813 was an important turning point in the [[War of 1812]]. (Painting by William H. Powell, 1865)]]
In 1801, the United States fought another undeclared war, this time with the city-state of [[Tripoli]]. When President [[Thomas Jefferson]] discontinued the custom of paying [[tribute]] to the [[Barbary States]], the [[First Barbary War]] followed. After the [[USS Philadelphia (1799)|U.S.S. ''Philadelphia'']] was captured in 1803, Lieutenant [[Stephen Decatur]] led a raid which successfully burned the captured ship, preventing Tripoli from using or selling it. In 1805, after [[William Eaton]] captured the city of [[Darnah|Derna]], Tripoli agreed to a peace treaty. The other Barbary states continued to raid U.S. shipping, until the [[Second Barbary War]] in 1815 ended the practice.
By far the largest military action in which the United States engaged during this era was the [[War of 1812]]. When the United Kingdom and France went to [[Napoleonic Wars|war again in 1803]] with renewed vigor, the United States sought to remain neutral while pursuing overseas trade. This proved difficult, and the United States finally declared war on the United Kingdom in 1812, the first time the U.S. had officially declared war. Not hopeful of defeating the [[Royal Navy]], the U.S. attacked the [[British Empire]] by invading British Canada, hoping to use captured territory as a bargaining chip. The invasion of Canada was a debacle, though concurrent wars with Native Americans on the western front ([[Tecumseh's War]] and the [[Creek War]]) were more successful. After defeating [[Napoleon I of France|Napoleon]] in 1814, the United Kingdom was able to send troops from Europe to America, leading to the [[burning of Washington]] on [[25 August]] [[1814]], although the [[Chesapeake Bay]] Campaign was thwarted at the [[Battle of Baltimore]]. A second British offensive was defeated by [[Andrew Jackson]] at the [[Battle of New Orleans]]. By this time, diplomats in Europe had worked out a [[Treaty of Ghent|peace treaty]], restoring the ''[[status quo ante bellum]]''.
=== Continental expansion (1816–1860) ===
{{main|Seminole Wars|Black Hawk War|Mexican-American War|Utah War}}
With the independence of the United States established, military efforts then focused on ensuring a dominant role on the continent, an idea which came to be known as "[[Manifest Destiny]]."
The [[Texas Revolution]] was a war fought from [[October 2]], [[1835]] to [[April 21]], [[1836]] between [[Mexico]] and the breakaway province of Texas. In February 1836, Santa Anna led his army into Texas; delayed by the defense of the [[Alamo]], he overwhelmed it and shot the prisoners. The Texans declared their independence on March 2, 1836. [[Sam Houston]] led a successful retreat, but other insurgents were defeated at Goliad; Santa Anna shot the prisoners. But he was defeated and captured at San Jacinto on April 21; Santa Anna signed a treaty recognizing Texas independence and its expanded boundaries. The government in Mexico City repudiated the treaty and vowed to subdue Texas, a position that led to the [[Mexican-American War]] with the United States in 1846.
In 1857 U.S. troops were sent to the [[Utah Territory]] to reassert federal primacy in the region in what became known as the [[Utah War]].
===American Civil War (1861–1865) ===
{{main|American Civil War}}
[[Image:Bodies on the battlefield at antietam.jpg|right|thumb|300px|Dead soldiers lie where they fell at [[Battle of Antietam|Antietam]], the bloodiest day in American history. [[Abraham Lincoln]] issued the [[Emancipation Proclamation]] after this battle.]]
Sectional tensions had long existed between the states located north of the [[Mason-Dixon Line]] and those south of it, primarily centered on the "peculiar institution" of [[History of slavery in the United States|slavery]] and the ability of states to overrule the decisions of the national government. During the 1840s and 1850s, conflicts between the two sides became progressively more violent. After the election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860 (who southerners thought would work to end slavery) states in the South [[Secession|seceded]] from the United States, beginning with South Carolina in late 1860. On [[April 12]] [[1861]], forces of the South (known as the [[Confederate States of America]] or simply the Confederacy) opened fire on [[Fort Sumter]], whose garrison was loyal to the forces of the North (who represented the United States or simply the Union).
The '''[[American Civil War]]''' caught both sides unprepared. Both the Union and the Confederacy had to build their armies practically from scratch. Both sides sought a quick victory focused on the respective nearby capitols of [[Washington, D.C.]] and [[Richmond, Virginia]], but neither side would surrender their national identity cheaply. Even after the [[First Battle of Bull Run]], many were slow to accept that war would last much longer than a single campaign. However, it spilled across the continent, and even to the high seas. Much of the vast resources of America would be consumed before it would be resolved.
The American Civil War is sometimes called the "first modern war" due to the use of mass [[conscription]], military [[railroad]]s, [[trench warfare]], [[submarine]]s, [[ironclad]]s, [[History of Military Ballooning|aerial reconnaissance]], [[Cartridge (firearms)|modern cartridge firearms]], [[rifles]], and [[Gatling gun|
machine gun]]s. It introduced the modern world to the horrors of [[total war]].
=== Post-Civil War era (1865–1917) ===
{{details|History of the United States (1865-1918)}}
The scope of the Civil War was as great as many of those in Europe, and the United States began to see itself as potential player on the world stage. With the country now stretching to the Pacific, eyes turned to overseas. The motivation behind the [[Spanish-American War]], [[Philippine-American War]], and U.S. involvement in the [[Boxer Rebellion]] are debated among historians.
====Indian Wars (1865–1890)====
{{main|Indian Wars}}
After the Civil War, [[Manifest Destiny]] expansion began in earnest. The [[First Transcontinental Railroad|Transcontinental Railroad]] and other trade routes linking California with the eastern states disrupted traditional Native America interactions. Many Native American tribes of the [[Great Plains]] and Southwest resisted this encroachment. Generals from the Civil War such as [[William Tecumseh Sherman]] and [[Philip Sheridan]] were assigned to conquer any Indians who offered military resistance to the expansion of the United States.
====Spanish-American War (1898) ====
{{main|Spanish-American War}}
The [[Spanish-American War]] took place in 1898, and resulted in the [[United States|United States of America]] gaining control over the former [[Spain|Spanish]] colonies in the [[Caribbean]] and [[Pacific Ocean|Pacific]], most notably [[Cuba]], [[Puerto Rico]], [[Guam]] and the [[Philippines]].
====Philippine-American War (1899-1913)====
{{main|Philippine-American War}}
[[Image:Manila646 1899.jpg|right|thumb|300px|U.S. soldiers of the First Nebraska volunteers, company B, near Manila, 1899]]
The [[Philippine-American War]] was between the armed forces of the [[United States]] and the [[Philippines]] from 1899 through 1913.
This conflict is also known as the "Philippine Insurrection." This name was historically the most commonly used in the U.S., but Filipinos and an increasing number of American historians refer to these hostilities as the "Philippine-American War," and, in 1999, the U.S. [[Library of Congress]] reclassified its references to use this term.
====Banana Wars (1898-1935)====
{{main|Banana Wars}}
The Banana Wars is a term used to describe US intervention in Latin America from the end of the [[Spanish American War]] in 1898 until 1935. These wars include involvement in [[Cuba]], [[Mexico]], [[Panama]] with the [[Panama Canal Zone]], [[Haiti]] (1915-1935), [[Dominican Republic]] (1916-1924) and [[Nicaragua]] (1912-1925) & (1926 - 1933).
Most notable of these conflicts was when U.S. forces [[U.S. occupation of Veracruz, 1914|occupied the Mexican city]] of [[Veracruz (city)|Veracruz]] for over six months in 1914, in response to the [[April 9]], [[1914]] "[[Tampico Affair]]," which involved the brief arrest of U.S. sailors by soldiers of the regime of Mexican President [[Victoriano Huerta]]. The incident came in the midst of poor diplomatic relations with the United States, related to the ongoing [[Mexican Revolution]].
In response to the Tampico Affair, U.S. President [[Woodrow Wilson]] ordered the Navy to occupy Veracruz. Huerta was overthrown and a regime more favorable to the U.S. was installed. The incident, however, worsened U.S.-Mexican relations for many years.
====The Boxer Rebellion====
{{main|Boxer Rebellion}}
The Boxer Rebellion was an uprising against [[Western world|Western]] commercial, religious, and political influence in [[China]] during the final years of the 19th century. The U.S. contributed Army and Marine units, the [[China Relief Expedition]], to an international joint force called the [[Eight-Nation Alliance]], which captured [[Peking]] and forced a Chinese capitulation. By August 1900, over 230 foreigners, thousands of Chinese [[Christian]]s and unknown numbers of rebels, their sympathizers and other Chinese had been killed in the revolt and its suppression.
=== First World War (1917-1918) ===
{{main|World War I}}
[[Image:T MARXUACH.jpg|right|thumb|150px|Lt. Teofilo Marxuach]]
The United States tried to remain neutral when World War I broke out in August 1914. However Washington insisted on its neutral right to send ships without them being attacked by German submarines. The ships carried food and raw materials to Britain. In 1917 the Germans [[unrestricted submarine warfare|resumed submarine attacks]], knowing that it would lead to American entry. However the U.S. had deliberately kept its army small and mobilization took a year. Meanwhile the U.S. sent more supplies and money to Britain and France, and started the first peacetime draft. Economic mobilization was much slower than expected, so the decision was made to send divisions to Europe without their equipment, relying instead on British and French supplies. The first shots fired by the United States in World War I between the United States and Germany occurred in [[Puerto Rico]]'s San Juan Bay and not in Europe. On [[April 6]], [[1917]], the day that the United States declared war on [[Germany]], Lt. [[Teofilo Marxuach]], of the "[[65th Infantry|Porto Rico Regiment]]", was the officer of the day at [[Fort San Felipe del Morro|El Morro Castle]] (then called Fort Brooke). The ''Odenwald'', built in 1903 (not to be confused with the German World War II war ship which carried the same name), was an armed German supply ship which tried to force its way out of the bay and deliver supplies to the German [[submarine]]s waiting in the [[Atlantic Ocean]]. Lt. Marxuach gave the order to open fire on the ship from the walls of the fort. The ''Odenwald'' was forced to return and its supplies were confiscated.<ref>[http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9B00EFDA1E3EE033A25754C0A9629C946496D6CF CALLS ODENWALD AFFAIR AN ATTACK, The New York Times, April 7, 1915]</ref> By summer 1918 a million "[[doughboy]]s" were in Europe under the command of [[John J. Pershing]], with 25,000 more arriving every week. The failure of Germany's spring offensive meant they had exhausted their manpower reserves and were unable to launch attacks or even defend their lines, meanwhile the German home front revolted and a [[Weimar Republic|new German government]] signed a conditional surrender, [[Armistice with Germany (Compiègne)|the Armistice]], ending the war on November 11, 1918.
====Russian Revolution====
The so-called [[Polar Bear Expedition]] was the involvement of U.S. troops, during the tail end of [[World War I]] and the [[Russian Revolution of 1917|Russian Revolution]], in fighting the [[Bolshevik]]s in [[Arkhangelsk]], [[Russia]] in 1918 and 1919.
====Neutrality Acts====
After the costly US involvement in the First World War, [[isolationism]] grew in the U.S. Congress refused membership in the [[League of Nations]], and in response to the growing turmoil in [[Europe]] and [[Asia]], the gradually more restrictive [[Neutrality Acts]] were passed, which were intended to prevent the U.S. from supporting either side in a war. The size of the U.S. military declined greatly, with the loss of many senior officers. President [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] sought to support Britain, however, and in 1940 passed the [[Lend-Lease]] Act, which permitted an expansion of the "cash and carry" arms trade to develop with the United Kingdom, which controlled the Atlantic sea lanes.
=== Second World War (1941-1945) ===
{{main|Military history of the United States during World War II}}
During the [[interwar period]] the United States again reduced its military, but mobilized to its largest levels for the ensuing [[World War II|Second World War]]. The [[World war|global conflict]] started in the 1930s and raged until 1945, involving most of the peoples of the world. It was the most extensive and costly war in history as well as the history of the United States.
US involvement in World War II was initially limited to providing [[Lend-Lease|war material and financial support]] to the [[United Kingdom]], the [[Soviet Union]], and [[China]]. The US entered officially on [[7 December]] [[1941]] with the [[attack on Pearl Harbor|Japanese attack]] on [[Pearl Harbor]], Hawaii, followed by attacks on US, Dutch and British possessions across the Pacific. On 11 December, the remaining [[Axis powers]], [[Germany]] and [[Italy]], declared war on the US, drawing the US firmly into the war and removing all doubts about the global nature of the conflict.
The loss of 8 battleships and 2000 sailors and airmen at Pearl Harbor forced the US to rely on its remaining [[aircraft carrier]]s, which won a major victory over Japan at [[Battle of Midway|Midway]] just 6 months into the war, and it's growing [[submarine]] fleet. . The Navy and Marine Corps followed this up with an [[Pacific War|island hopping]] campaign across the central and South Pacific in 1943-45, reaching the outskirts of Japan in the [[Battle of Okinawa]]. During 1942 and 1943, the US deployed millions of men and thousands of planes and tanks to the UK, beginning with the [[strategic bombing]] of [[Nazi Germany]] and occupied [[Europe]] and leading up to the Allied invasions of occupied [[Operation Torch|North Africa]] in November, 1942, [[Operation Husky|Sicily]] and [[Allied invasion of Italy|Italy]] in 1943, [[D-Day|France]] in 1944, and the invasion of Germany in 1945, parallel with the Soviet invasion from the east. That led to the [[Victory in Europe Day|surrender of Nazi Germany]] in May 1945. In the Pacific, the US experienced much success in naval campaigns during 1944, but bloody battles at [[Battle of Iwo Jima|Iwo Jima]] and [[Battle of Okinawa|Okinawa]] in 1945 led the US to look for a way to end the war with minimal loss of lives. The U.S. used [[atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki]] to shock the Japanese leadership, which (combined with the Soviet invasion of Manchuria) quickly brought about the [[Japanese Instrument of Surrender|surrender of Japan]].
Despite the crippling effects of the [[Great Depression]], the United States was able to mobilize quickly, eventually becoming the dominant military power in most theaters of the war (excepting only eastern Europe and mainland China), and the industrial might of the US economy is widely cited as a major factor in the [[Allies of World War II|Allies']] eventual victory in the war. Early in the war, the US military was perceived by some observers to be too "green" and untested to be of much use other than cannon fodder against experienced German and Japanese troops (especially as their first major action against German forces resulted in the [[Battle of the Kasserine Pass|Kasserine disaster]]), but the US eventually acquitted itself well and established a modern military tradition. Strategic and tactical lessons learned by the US, such as the importance of [[air superiority]] and the dominance of the [[aircraft carrier]] in naval actions, continue to guide US military doctrine more than 60 years later.
World War II holds a special place in the American psyche as the country's greatest triumph, and the soldiers of World War II are frequently referred to as "the greatest generation" for their sacrifices in the name of liberty. Over 16 million served (about 13% of the population), and over 400,000 were killed during the war; only the [[American Civil War]] saw more Americans killed. The US entered the war, like many other nations, as a country struggling with economic and social problems and unsure of its identity. It emerged as one of the two undisputed [[superpower]]s along with the [[Soviet Union]], and unlike the Soviet Union, the US homeland was virtually untouched by the ravages of war. The importance of US military and political power in world affairs since 1945 cannot be overstated; the outcome of the war and the fortunes of the victors have shaped world events to this day.
During and following the Second World War, the United States and United Kingdom developed an increasingly strong defense and intelligence relationship. Manifestations of this include extensive basing of US forces in the UK, shared intelligence, shared military technology (e.g. nuclear technology), shared procurement (mainly British purchases of American weapon systems). {{seealso|Special relationship}}
{{further|[[List of United States Army divisions during World War II]]}}
===Cold War (1945–1991) ===
{{main|Cold War}}
Following the Second World War, the United States emerged as a global [[superpower]] vis-a-vis the [[Soviet Union]] in the [[Cold War]]. In this period of some forty years, the United States provided foreign military aid and direct involvement in [[proxy war]]s against the [[Soviet Union]]. It was the principal foreign actor in the [[Korean War]] and [[Vietnam War]] during this era. Nuclear weapons were held in ready by the United States under a concept of [[mutually assured destruction]] with the Soviet Union.
====Postwar Military Reorganization (1947)====
The [[National Security Act of 1947]], meeting the need for a military reorganization to complement the U.S. superpower role, combined and replaced the former Department of the Navy and War Department with a single [[United States Cabinet|cabinet]]-level Department of Defense. The act also created the [[NSA|National Security Council]], the [[CIA|Central Intelligence Agency]], and the [[United States Air Force|Air Force]].
====Korean War====
{{main|Korean War}}
The Korean War was a conflict between the [[United States]] and its [[United Nations]] allies and the [[Communism|communist]] powers of the [[Soviet Union]] (also a UN member nation) and the [[People's Republic of China]] (which later also gained UN membership). The principal combatants were North and South Korea. Principal allies of South Korea included the United States, [[Canada]], [[Australia]], the [[United Kingdom]], although many other nations sent troops under the aegis of the [[United Nations]]. Allies of North Korea included the People's Republic of China, which supplied military forces, and the Soviet Union, which supplied [[combat advisors]] and aircraft pilots, as well as arms, for the Chinese and North Korean troops. In the United States, the conflict was termed a [[police action]] under the aegis of the United Nations rather than a war, largely in order to remove the necessity of a Congressional [[declaration of war]].
The war started badly for the US and UN. North Korean forces struck massively in the summer of 1950 and nearly drove the outnumbered US and ROK defenders into the sea. However the United Nations intervened, naming [[Douglas MacArthur]] commander of its forces, and US-ROK forces acting under the UN auspices held a perimeter around [[Battle of Pusan Perimeter|Busan]], gaining time for reinforcement. MacArthur, in a bold but risky move, ordered an amphibious invasion well behind the front lines at [[Battle of Inchon|Inchon]], cutting off and routing the North Koreans and quickly crossing the 38th Parallel into North Korea. As UN forces continued to advance toward the [[Yalu River]] on the border with Communist China, MacArthur and [[U.S. President]] [[Harry Truman]] came into serious disagreement about military objectives and resolution of the conflict. In November, 1950, after Truman refused to bomb bridges on the Yalu River, the Chinese Army poured across the border and sent UN forces reeling back across the 38th Parallel. MacArthur was later relieved of his command by Truman for insubordination, and while some feared the conflict might spark another world war, negotiations beginning shortly after MacArthur's dismissal eventually resulted in a stalemate and armistice in 1953, with the two Koreas remaining divided at the [[38th parallel north|38th parallel]]. North and South Korea are still today in a state of war, having never signed a peace treaty, and US forces remain stationed in South Korea as part of US foreign policy.
====Lebanon crisis of 1958====
The [[Lebanon crisis of 1958]] was a political and religious conflict between the pro-Western government of President [[Camille Chamoun]] and Sunni Muslims who supported joining the [[United Arab Republic]]. A Muslim rebellion and the toppling of a pro-Western government in Iraq caused President Chamoun to call for U.S. assistance. President [[Dwight D. Eisenhower]] [[Operation Blue Bat|responded by deploying]] Marines to bolster the pro-Western Lebanese government of President Camille Chamoun against internal opposition and threats from the United Arab Republic. Marines stayed from July 15, 1958 until October 25, 1958.
====Bay of Pigs Invasion====
{{main|Bay of Pigs Invasion}}
The [[Bay of Pigs Invasion]] (also known in Cuba as '''Playa Girón''' after the beach in the [[Bay of Pigs]] where the landing took place) was a CIA-planned and funded landing by armed Cuban exiles in southwest [[Cuba]] in an attempt to overthrow the Cuban government of [[Fidel Castro]] in 1961. The [[Dwight D. Eisenhower|Eisenhower]] and [[John F. Kennedy|Kennedy]] administrations had made the judgment that Castro's nationalization of key Cuban export industries and the subsequent shift toward the [[Soviet Union]] could not be tolerated, and thus moved to overthrow him. However, the invasion failed proving to be an international embarrassment for the Kennedy administration. The failed invasion became both a symbol and example of '[[groupthink]]' and poor [[decision making]]. Although not an operation by U.S. military forces, consideration was given by the Kennedy administration to providing air support to the exile forces or exploiting any success of the invasion with reinforcement by [[U.S. Marines]].
The invasion was not reinforced by US military forces, in accord with the original CIA contingency plans. Newly elected President Kennedy refused to commit U.S. military forces in support of the Cuban exiles who foundered, and were defeated by the Cuban communists in the Cuban exile forces' invasion attempt.
Outgoing President Eisenhower had warned American citizens to beware of the [[military-industrial complex]]. In his Farewell Address to the Nation on January 17, 1961, President Eisenhower described the Cold War and stated:
:"We face a hostile ideology global in scope, atheistic in character, ruthless in purpose and insidious in method..." and he warned about what he saw as unjustified government spending proposals and continued by stating,
:"In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the [[military-industrial complex]]. The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist. We must never let the weight of this combination endanger our liberties or democratic processes. We should take nothing for granted. Only an alert and knowledgeable citizenry can compel the proper meshing of the huge industrial and military machinery of defense with our peaceful methods and goals so that security and liberty may prosper together."
In the penultimate draft of the address, Eisenhower initially used the term military-industrial-congressional complex, and thus indicated the essential role that the United States Congress plays in the propagation of the military industry. But, it is said, that the president chose to strike the word congressional in order to placate members of the legislative branch of the federal government.
After the failed invasion attempt, President Kennedy negotiated with Cuban President Castro and paid $53 million in foods and medicines as ransom for release of the 1,113 surviving exile combatants.{{Fact|date=December 2007}} President Kennedy also issued a number of Executive Orders curtailing the relatively unbridled power of the CIA.
President Kennedy had appointed his brother, Robert F. Kennedy, to the cabinet post of U.S. Attorney General (AG). They had many enemies, both at home and abroad. President Kennedy was assassinated, and he was succeeded by Vice President [[Lyndon B. Johnson]]. AG Robert Kennedy was also later assassinated during his campaign for the U.S. Presidency.
====Dominican Intervention====
{{main|Operation Power Pack}}
On April 28, 1965, 400 Marines were landed in Santo Domingo to evacuate the American Embassy and foreign nationals after dissident Dominican armed forces attempted to overthrow the ruling civilian junta. By mid-May, peak strength of 23,850 U.S. soldiers, Marines, and Airmen were in the Dominican Republic and some 38 naval ships were positioned offshore. They evacuated nearly 6,500 men, women, and children of 46 nations, and distributed more than 8 million tons of food.
====Vietnam War====
{{main|Vietnam War}}
The [[Vietnam War]], also known as the Second Indochina War, was a [[war]] fought between 1957 and 1975 on the ground in [[Republic of Vietnam|South Vietnam]] and bordering areas of [[Cambodia]] and [[Laos]] (''see'' [[Secret War]]) and in the [[strategic bombing]] (''see'' [[Operation Rolling Thunder]]) of [[Democratic Republic of Vietnam|North Vietnam]]. In [[Vietnam]], the conflict is known as the "American War." Although a small US presence had existed in Vietnam since the late 1950s, major US involvement is generally considered to have begun in 1964, after the [[Gulf of Tonkin Incident]].
Fighting on one side was a [[coalition]] of forces including the [[Republic of Vietnam]] ([[South Vietnam]] or the "RVN"), the [[United States]], [[South Korea]], [[Thailand]], [[Australia]], [[New Zealand]], and the [[Philippines]]. Participation by the [[South Korea]]n military was financed by the [[United States]], but [[Australia]] and [[New Zealand]] fully funded their own involvement. Other countries normally allied with the [[United States]] in the [[Cold War]], including the [[United Kingdom]] and [[Canada]], refused to participate in the [[coalition]], although a few of their [[citizen]]s volunteered to join the U.S. forces. The U.S. and its allies fought against the [[North Vietnamese Army]] (NVA) as well as the [[National Liberation Front]] (NLF, also known as Viet communists [[Viet Cong]]), or "VC", a guerrilla force within South Vietnam. The NVA received substantial military and economic aid from the [[Soviet Union]], turning Vietnam into a [[proxy war]].
The U.S. framed the war as part of its policy of [[containment]] of [[Communism]] in south Asia, but American forces were frustrated by an inability to engage the enemy in decisive battles, corruption and incompetence in the [[ARVN|Army of the Republic of Vietnam]], and ever increasing protests at home. The [[Tet Offensive]] in 1968, although a major military defeat for the NLF, marked the psychological turning point in the war. NLF forces appeared to be everywhere at once, even overrunning the US embassy in [[Saigon]], supposedly one of the most secure places in the country, and news anchor [[Walter Cronkite]], in a famous broadcast from the battlefield, pronounced the war "unwinnable." After more than 57,000 dead and many more wounded, US forces withdrew in 1973 with no clear victory, and in 1975 South Vietnam was finally conquered by communist North Vietnam and unified. The chaotic evacuation of the US embassy in April 1975, as NVA forces closed in on the city, made for enduring images of desperate souls clinging to helicopter skids, trying to escape Communist rule.
Even today, "[[Vietnam]]" is a politically divisive subject in the U.S. Some Americans view the Second Indochina War as a noble, if flawed, cause which limited and delayed communist expansion and conquest of Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia. Others see the conflict as a quagmire; a waste of American blood and treasure in a conflict that did not concern US interests. Military service during Vietnam is still an issue in U.S. presidential campaigns, more than 30 years after US troops left the country, and fears of another "quagmire" have been major factors in U.S. military planning since 1975.
====Tehran hostage rescue====
Following the [[Iranian revolution]] and the resulting [[Iran hostage crisis]], [[Jimmy Carter|President Carter]] in April of [[1980]], gave the order to launch [[Operation Eagle Claw]], which attempted to rescue the hostages using a combination of [[Delta Force|special forces]] and helicopter evacuation. Operational problems forced commanders to abort the mission, and 8 servicemen were killed in a helicopter accident in the Iranian desert. The failure was attributed to inappropriate equipment, incomplete and unrealistic planning, and the lack of joint service training. Despite its size, the mission had significant effects on US military doctrine and training, and led directly to the creation of [[United States Special Operations Command|SOCOM]]. The hostages were eventually released after extensive diplomatic negotiations on January 20, 1981, Carter's last day in office, after 444 days of captivity.
====Grenada====
In October, 1983, alarmed by a violent power struggle in [[Grenada]], the U.S. dispatched paratroopers, Marines, Rangers, and special operations forces to the island in [[Invasion of Grenada|Operation Urgent Fury]]. Over a thousand Americans were on the island. The invasion force quickly moved to seize the entire island, eventually taking hundreds of military and civilian prisoners from a variety of [[East Bloc]] nations.
====Beirut====
In 1983 fighting between [[PLO|Palestinian refugees]] and [[Lebanon|Lebanese]] factions reignited that nation's long-running civil war. A UN agreement brought an international force of peacekeepers to occupy Beirut and guarantee security. US Marines landed in August 1982 along with Italian and French forces. On October 23, 1983, a suicide bomber driving a truck filled with 6 tons of TNT crashed through a fence and [[Marine barracks bombing|destroyed the Marine barracks]], killing 241 Marines; seconds later, a second bomber leveled a French barracks, killing 58. Subsequently the US Navy engaged in bombing of militia positions inside Lebanon. While US President [[Ronald Reagan]] was initially defiant, political pressure at home eventually forced the withdrawal of the Marines in February 1984.
====Panama====
On [[December 20]], [[1989]] the [[United States invasion of Panama|United States invaded Panama]], mainly from U.S. bases within the then-[[Panama Canal Zone|Canal Zone]], to oust dictator and international [[Illegal drug trade|drug trafficker]] [[Manuel Noriega]]. In 1977, both nations had signed a treaty giving the [[Panama Canal]] to [[Panama]] by 1999, but the U.S. government did not wish to relinquish control of the strategically vital area to Noriega, whose government had become a [[narco-state]]. After Noriega nullified an [[election]] that had been won by an opposition [[Political party|party]], a [[United States Marine Corps|U.S. Marine]] officer was murdered by the Panamanian police and various U.S. military personnel were assaulted by Panamanian forces, President [[George H.W. Bush]] sent U.S troops in. The U.S. forces quickly overwhelmed the Panamanian Defense Forces, and Noriega was captured on [[January 3]], [[1990]] after the [[Holy See|Vatican]] refused his asylum request. A new government was installed and new elections were held. Control of the Canal was returned to Panama as scheduled on [[December 31]], [[1999]]. Noriega was tried in [[Miami]] and found guilty and sentenced on September 16, 1992, to 40 years in prison for drug and racketeering violations.
===Post-Cold War era (1991–2001) ===
====Gulf War====
The [[Gulf War|Persian Gulf War]] was a conflict between [[Iraq]] and a coalition force of 34 nations led by the [[United States]]. The lead up to the war began with the [[Iraq]]i invasion of [[Kuwait]] in August 1990 which was met with immediate economic sanctions by the [[United Nations]] against Iraq. The coalition commenced hostilities in January 1991, resulting in a decisive victory for the U.S. led coalition forces, which drove Iraqi forces out of Kuwait with minimal coalition deaths. Despite the low death toll, over 180,000 US veterans would later be classified as "permanently disabled" according to the US Department of Veterans Affairs ([http://www.ngwrc.org/?page=article&id=158 National Gulf War Resource Center]; see also [[Gulf War Syndrome]]). The main battles were aerial and ground combat within Iraq, Kuwait and bordering areas of [[Saudi Arabia]]. Land combat did not expand outside of the immediate Iraq/Kuwait/Saudi border region, although the coalition bombed cities and strategic targets across Iraq, and Iraq fired [[missile]]s on [[Israel]]i and Saudi cities.
Before the war, many observers believed the US and its allies could win but might suffer substantial casualties (certainly more than any conflict since Vietnam), and that the tank battles across the harsh desert might rival those of North Africa during [[World War II]]. After nearly 50 years of [[proxy war]]s, and constant fears of another war in Europe between [[NATO]] and the [[Warsaw Pact]], some thought the Gulf War might finally answer the question of which military philosophy would have reigned supreme. Iraqi forces were battle-hardened after 8 years of war with [[Iran]], and they were well-equipped with late model [[Soviet]] tanks, jet fighters but the anti-aircraft weapons were crippled; in comparison, the US had no large-scale combat experience since its withdrawal from [[Vietnam]] nearly 20 years earlier, and major changes in US doctrine, equipment and technology since then had never been tested under fire.
However, the battle was one-sided almost from the beginning. The reasons for this are the subject of continuing study by military strategists and academics. There is general agreement that US technological superiority was a crucial factor but the speed and scale of the Iraqi collapse has also been attributed to poor strategic and tactical leadership and low morale among Iraqi troops, which resulted from a history of incompetent leadership. After devastating initial strikes against Iraqi air defenses and command and control facilities on [[17 January]] [[1991]], coalition forces achieved total air superiority almost immediately. The Iraqi air force was destroyed within a few days, with some planes fleeing to Iran where they were interned for the duration of the conflict. The overwhelming technological advantages of the US, such as [[stealth aircraft]] and [[infrared]] sights, quickly turned the air war into a "turkey shoot". The heat signature of any tank which started its engine made an easy target. Air defense radars were quickly destroyed by radar-seeking missiles fired from [[wild weasel]] aircraft. Grainy video clips, shot from the nose cameras of missiles as they zeroed in on impossibly small targets, were a staple of US news coverage and revealed to the world a new kind of war, compared by some to a video game. Over 6 weeks of relentless pounding by planes and helicopters, the Iraqi army was almost completely beaten but did not retreat, under orders from Iraqi President [[Saddam Hussein]], and by the time the ground forces invaded on [[24 February]], many Iraqi troops quickly surrendered to forces much smaller than their own; in one instance, Iraqi forces attempted to surrender to a television camera crew that was advancing with coalition forces.
After just 100 hours of ground combat, and with all of Kuwait and much of southern Iraq under coalition control, US President [[George H. W. Bush]] ordered a cease-fire and negotiations began resulting in an agreement for cessation of hostilities. Some US politicians were disappointed by this move, believing Bush should have pressed on to Baghdad and removed Hussein from power; there is little doubt that coalition forces could have accomplished this if they had desired. Still, the political ramifications of removing Hussein would have broadened the scope of the conflict greatly, and many coalition nations refused to participate in such an action, believing it would create a power vacuum and destabilize the region.
Following the Gulf War, in order to protect minority populations, the US, Britain, and France declared and maintained [[Iraqi no-fly zones|no-fly zones]] in northern and southern Iraq, which the Iraqi military frequently tested. The no-fly zones persisted until the 2003 invasion of Iraq, although France withdrew from participation in patrolling the no-fly zones in 1996, citing a lack of humanitarian purpose for the operation.
Additionally, following the discovery of an aborted assassination plot aimed at former President George H.W. Bush, Navy ships bombed Iraqi intelligence facilities with cruise missiles in June 1993.
====Somalia====
{{main|Operation Restore Hope}}
US troops participated in a UN peacekeeping mission in [[Somalia]] beginning in 1992. By 1993 the US troops were augmented with Rangers and special forces with the aim of capturing warlord [[Mohamed Farrah Aidid]], whose forces had massacred peacekeepers from [[Pakistan]]. During a raid in downtown Mogadishu, US troops became trapped overnight by a general uprising in the [[Battle of Mogadishu (1993)|Battle of Mogadishu]]. 18 American soldiers were killed, and a US television crew filmed graphic images of the body of one soldier being dragged through the streets by an angry mob. Somali guerrillas paid a staggering toll at an estimated 1,000-5,000 total casualties during the conflict. Despite much public disapproval, US forces were quickly withdrawn by President [[Bill Clinton]]. The incident had a profound effect on US thinking about peacekeeping and intervention. The book ''[[Black Hawk Down (book)|Black Hawk Down]]'' was written about the battle, and was the basis for the later [[Black Hawk Down (film)|movie of the same name]].
====Yugoslavia====
During the war in Yugoslavia in the early 1990s, the US operated in [[Bosnia and Herzegovina]] as part of the NATO-led [[IFOR|multinational implementation force (IFOR)]] in ''[[Operation Joint Endeavour]]'' . The USA was one of the NATO member countries who bombed Yugoslavia between March 24th and June 9th 1999 during the [[Kosovo War]] and later contributed to the multinational force [[KFOR]].
===War on Terrorism (2001–present)===
The [[War on Terrorism]] is a global effort by the governments of several countries (primarily the [[United States]] and its principal allies) to neutralize international [[Terrorism|terrorist]] groups (primarily [[radical Islamist]] terrorist groups, including [[al-Qaeda]]) and ensure that [[rogue nations]] no longer support terrorist activities. It has been adopted as a response to the [[September 11, 2001 attacks]] on the United States.
====Afghanistan====
The [[War in Afghanistan (2001–present)|invasion of Afghanistan]] (Operation Enduring Freedom - Afghanistan) in order to depose that country's [[Taliban]] government and destroy training camps associated with al-Qaida is understood to have been the opening, and in many ways defining, campaign of the broader War on Terrorism. The emphasis on Special Forces, political negotiation with autonomous military units, and the use of proxy militaries marked a significant change from prior U.S. military approaches.
====Philippines====
In January 2002, the U.S. sent more than 1,200 troops (later raised to 2,000) to assist the [[Armed Forces of the Philippines]] in combating terrorist groups linked to al-Qaida, such as [[Abu Sayyaf]], under [[Operation Enduring Freedom - Philippines]]. Operations are taking place mostly in the [[Sulu Archipelago]], where terrorists and other groups are active. The majority of troops provide [[logistics]], however a sizable portion are Special Forces troops that are training and assisting in combat operations against the terrorist groups.
====Liberia====
In June 2003, a [[United Nations]] justice tribunal issued a warrant for the arrest of the [[Liberia]]n president, [[Charles G. Taylor|Charles Taylor]], charging him with [[war crimes]]. The pressure on Taylor increased further as [[President of the United States|President]] [[George W. Bush]] stated that Taylor "must leave Liberia" twice in July 2003.
Taylor insisted that he would resign only if American [[peacekeeping]] troops were deployed to Liberia. President Bush publicly called upon Charles Taylor to resign and leave the country if any American involvement was to be considered.
Meanwhile, the [[Africa]]n states, in particular the [[Economic Community of West African States]] (ECOWAS), under the leadership of Nigeria, sent troops to Liberia with the assistance of $10 million from the US[http://www.weeklyholiday.net/290803/inter.html]. On [[August 6]], a 32 member U.S. military assessment team were deployed as a liaison with the ECOWAS troops[http://www.cnn.com/2003/WORLD/africa/07/07/liberia/].
On [[August 11]], Taylor resigned, leaving [[Moses Blah]] as his successor until a transitional government was established on [[October 14]]. The U.S. brought three warships with 2,300 Marines into view of the coast. The subsequent transformations of government and elections were peaceful.
====Iraq====
[[Image:USMarineTankinBaghdad.jpg|thumb|300px|A [[U.S. 1st Marine Division|Marine Corps]] [[M1 Abrams]] tank patrols a Baghdad street in April 2003.]]
{{main|2003 invasion of Iraq|Post-invasion Iraq, 2003-2006}}
After the lengthy [[Iraq disarmament crisis]] culminated with an American demand that Iraqi President [[Saddam Hussein]] leave [[Iraq]], which was refused, a [[Coalition of the willing|coalition]] led by the [[United States]] and the [[United Kingdom]] fought the Iraqi army in the [[2003 invasion of Iraq]]. Approximately 250,000 [[United States]] troops, with support from 45,000 [[United Kingdom|British]], 2,000 [[Australia]]n and 200 [[Poland|Polish]] combat forces, entered [[Iraq]] primarily through their [[staging area]] in [[Kuwait]]. ([[Turkey]] had refused to permit its territory to be used for an invasion from the north.) Coalition forces also supported Iraqi [[peshmerga|Kurdish militia]], estimated to number upwards of 50,000. After approximately three weeks of fighting, Hussein and the [[Ba'ath Party]] were forcibly removed, followed by an extended period of military [[Military occupation|occupation]].
==See also==
{{portal|Military of the United States|Naval Jack of the United States.svg|65}}
* [[Society for Military History]]
*[[Awards and decorations of the United States military]]
*[[Militia]]
*[[United States Armed Forces]]
*[[United States casualties of war]]
*[[United States Colored Troops]]
*[[United States Department of Defense]]
===Related lists===
*[[List of United States military history events]]
*[[Deployments of the United States Military]]
*[[List of United States foreign interventions since 1945]]
*[[List of United States military leaders by rank]]
*[[List of operations and projects (military and non-military)]]
*[[List of military actions by or within the United States]]
*[[List of conflicts in the United States]]
*[[War children]]
===Sources===
*[[List of United States military books]]
==References==
<references />
* ''Atlas of American Military History'', Stuart Murray (2005) ISBN 0-8160-5578-5
* ''American Military History: 1775-1902'', Ed. Maurice Matloff (1996) ISBN 0-938289-70-5
* ''American Military History and the Evolution of Western Warfare'', Robert Doughty (1996) ISBN 0-669-41683-5
* ''The American Way of War: A History of United States Military Strategy and Policy'', Russell Frank Weigley (1977) ISBN 0-253-28029-X
* ''A Handbook of American Military History: From the Revolutionary War to the Present'', Ed. Jerry K. Sweeney and Kevin B. Byrne (1997) ISBN 0-8133-2871-3
* ''The Oxford Companion to American Military History'', Ed. John Whiteclay II Chambers, Fred Anderson, Lynn Eden, Joseph T. Glatthaar, Ronald H. Spector, and G. Kurt Piehler (2000) ISBN 0-19-507198-0
==External links==
*[http://www.history.navy.mil/wars/foabroad.htm Instances of Use of United States Forces Abroad, 1798-1993] by Ellen C. Collier, Specialist in U.S. Foreign Policy, Foreign Affairs and National Defense Division
*[http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~vanhornfamily/military.htm United States Military Campaigns, Conflicts, Expeditions and Wars] Compiled by Larry Van Horn, U.S. Navy Retired
* [http://www.freewebs.com/militaryveterans Veterans Of The US Armed Forces] Services, information, resources, and image gallery for veterans of the United States Armed Forces.
*[http://www.krysstal.com/democracy_whyusa.html Statistics of US foreign policy since 1945]
*[http://www.militaryhistorywiki.org ''Military History wiki'']
*[http://reference.aol.com/history/american_wars American Wars: A Photo Gallery]
*[http://www.randomhistory.com/1-50/020military.html A History of the U.S. Military]
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