Book

Boot, Max, 1968-

The savage wars of peace : small wars and the rise of American power / Max Boot.

New York : Basic Books, ©2002.

xx, 428 pages : illustrations, maps ; 25 cm

A compellingly readable history of the forgotten wars of American history: the small conflicts that resulted from-and helped promote-America's rise to world power. Boot (editorial features editor, The Wall Street Journal) celebrates American interventionism and imperialism, arguing that the military strategies involved in small wars of imperialism have been constant in American history and have demonstrated substantial success in dominating less-developed countries. His narrative history documents wars with the Barbary nations shortly after the American Revolution, numerous invasions of Central American nations, and the expansion of empire into the Pacific and notes that many of these efforts consisted of "low-intensity" conflicts that dragged on for years. He argues that if the U.S. had maintained the same strategy for Vietnam, the nationalist insurgency might have been successfully suppressed.

Low-intensity conflicts (Military science) -- United States.

Intervention (International law)

United States -- History, Military.

United States -- Armed Forces -- Foreign countries.

United States -- Foreign relations -- Public opinion.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Preface : Another American way of war -- Part I : Commercial power -- To conquer upon the sea : Barbary Wars, 1801-1805, 1815 ; Butcher and bolt : from the Marquesas, 1813, to China, 1859 ; Empire emerging : from Korea, 1871, to Samoa, 1899 -- Part II : Great power -- Red summer : Boxer Uprising, 1900 ; Attraction and chastisement : the Philippine War, 1899-1902 ; Caribbean constabulary : Cuba, Panama, Nicaragua, Mexico, 1898-1914 ; Lords of Hispaniola : Haiti, 1915-1934 : Dominican Republic, 1916-1924 ; Dusty trail : the Pancho Villa punitive expedition, 1916-1917 ; Blood on the snow : Russia, 1918-1920 ; Chasing Sandino : Nicaragua, 1926-1933 ; By bluff alone : China, 1901-1941 -- Part III : Superpower -- Lessons learned : the small wars manual ; Lessons unlearned : Vietnam, 1959-1975 ; In the shadow of Vietnam : the Powell doctrine and small wars in the 1990s ; In defense of the Pax Americana : small wars in the twenty-first century.

Contributor biographical information

Publisher description

2004695066

0465007201

9780465007202

046500721X

9780465007219

49659947

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953603

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327.73 Boot