Ambrose, Stephen E.

Simpson, B. Mitchell, III

English

U.S. Naval War College Digital Commons

Naval War College ReviewVolume 58Number 2 Spring Article 172005To America: Personal Reflections of an HistorianB. Mitchell Simpson IIIStephen E. AmbroseFollow this and additional works at: https://digital-commons.usnwc.edu/nwc-reviewThis Book Review is brought to you for free and open access by the Journals at U.S. Naval War College Digital Commons. It has been accepted forinclusion in Naval War College Review by an authorized editor of U.S. Naval War College Digital Commons. For more information, please contactrepository.inquiries@usnwc.edu.Recommended CitationSimpson, B. Mitchell III and Ambrose, Stephen E. (2005) "To America: Personal Reflections of an Historian," Naval War CollegeReview: Vol. 58 : No. 2 , Article 17.Available at: https://digital-commons.usnwc.edu/nwc-review/vol58/iss2/17apply to all small wars, or even to allcounterinsurgencies.A related if less telling criticism is thatthe three selected conflicts are clearlygrouped at the more robust end of thesmall-wars spectrum. The size of a warmay be measured by intensity (numberof deaths over a given time), duration(amount of time over which killing oc-curs), or scale (number of total deaths).Other units of measure could be fiscalcost, percentage of armed forces en-gaged, or the extent to which a state’svital national interests are at risk. Noneof the wars Merom looks at were quick,low-cost affairs. Perhaps they shouldnot be included in the “small war” cate-gory at all.That said, this book is not withoutmerit. It certainly suggests several areasfor future research. Of these, one of themore intriguing would be the use of lo-cally recruited military forces as ameans to achieve victory in counter-insurgencies and other forms of smallwars without generating adverse do-mestic public opinion. Such forces havetraditionally had key roles in small warsthroughout history. Merom’s findingssuggest that the need for such units maybe bigger than ever.When it comes to the specific cases ofVietnam, Algeria, and Lebanon,Merom’s scholarship and argument areconvincing. Public opinion and war fa-tigue, aversion to casualties, and refusalto endorse certain methods of warfareclearly impacted national decision mak-ing in these cases. Merom demonstratesthat forces unleashed in the various do-mestic political systems examined inthis study had a profound impact onwar prosecution and termination. Anyscholar wishing to understand theseconflicts in deeper detail should readthe appropriate chapters of this book.Again, it should be noted that it is im-possible not to see similarities betweenthese cases and current U.S. operationsin Afghanistan and Iraq.The potential for such domesticallydriven forces to impact national secu-rity policy is clearly something thatshould be of interest to any modernpolitical-military leader or scholar. For,as this review is being published, U.S.and coalition forces in Iraq and Af-ghanistan are determinedly attemptingto defeat counterinsurgencies while try-ing to avoid initiating the forces Meromexamines. So while Merom’s work doesnot provide the key to the problem ofcounterinsurgency, it does seem to pro-vide at least a significant piece of thepuzzle.RICHARD NORTONNaval War CollegeAmbrose, Stephen E. To America: Personal Reflec-tions of an Historian. New York: Simon &Schuster, 2003. 288pp. $24The United States is the richest andmost powerful country in the world.Yet over two hundred years ago it be-gan as thirteen colonies at the edge of acontinental wilderness. StephenAmbrose, an eminent historian andskilled writer, has used this short, read-able book to explain how the UnitedStates made this amazing transforma-tion. He attributes its success as a na-tion to the American spirit.The American spirit originated with thefounding fathers and was further devel-oped by presidents Andrew Jackson,Ulysses S. Grant, Franklin and TheodoreRoosevelt, and Dwight D. Eisenhower.1 5 4 N A V A L W A R C O L L E G E R E V I E WC:\WIP\NWCR\NWC Review Spring 2005.vpThursday, March 17, 2005 3:23:38 PMColor profile: DisabledComposite  Default screen1Simpson and Ambrose: To America: Personal Reflections of an HistorianPublished by U.S. Naval War College Digital Commons, 2005It is based on the notions of justice,equality, and the rule of law and funda-mental fairness, and embraces the abil-ity to recognize and correct the ills ofsociety.At home the American spirit has beenthe driving force behind the U.S. Con-stitution, civil rights, women’s rights,the rights of Native Americans, thedenouncing of imperialism, the end ofracial segregation, and concern for theenvironment. Abroad, it has broughtdemocracy to former enemies.This slim, modest volume is an autobi-ography as well as an interesting sum-mary of Ambrose’s thesis. He displaysan admirable open-mindedness andwillingness to change his position inlight of changing circumstances, al-though he frequently disagrees with theacademic orthodoxy, and with refresh-ing candor.Ambrose’s life as a historian was trulyremarkable. He was the author of asterling biography of Eisenhower andthe editor of his papers, as well as thebiographer of Richard M. Nixon. From1969 to 1970 he held the Ernest J. KingChair of Maritime History at the NavalWar College, and in his later yearsAmbrose was the founder of the Na-tional D-Day Museum.Ambrose was a first-class writer. Hislist of published works is truly remark-able. Primarily an expert on WorldWar II, he had a tremendous respectfor junior officers and enlisted per-sonnel, for whom he had developedgreat admiration.Shortly before his untimely death in2002, Ambrose ended this compellingvolume with these words: “That [Amer-ican] Spirit got us through September11, 2001 and it will see us through thefuture.”B. MITCHELL SIMPSON IIIEditor, Naval War College Review, 1975–77B O O K R E V I E W S 1 5 5C:\WIP\NWCR\NWC Review Spring 2005.vpThursday, March 17, 2005 3:23:38 PMColor profile: DisabledComposite  Default screen2Naval War College Review, Vol. 58 [2005], No. 2, Art. 17https://digital-commons.usnwc.edu/nwc-review/vol58/iss2/17

To America: Personal Reflections of an Historian

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To America: Personal Reflections of an Historian

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