Digital Commons Network^™

Tarnished Glory: The Exclusion Of Buffalo Soldiers In World War I, David Michael Barron

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines the exclusion of the Buffalo Soldier regiments during World War I. Due to the rise of racial discrimination in the early twentieth century, the Buffalo Soldier regiments experienced violence with civilians while stationed in the United States. The violence experienced by African American soldiers would shape decisions that would ultimately impact their involvement in World War I. By examining evidence from their war record in previous conflicts and evidence from the racial violence that occurred while stationed in the US, this thesis will show that their exclusion in World War I was due to poor conduct perpetrated …

A Sense Of Loss: The Effect Of Prisoner Camp Conditions On German Pows’ Masculinity During The First World War, Analucia Lugo

The Purdue Historian

During the First World War, almost a million German soldiers became prisoners of war (POW) and held captive in enemy camps. The moment of capture and arrest caused these men to experience debilitating emotions, including guilt and fear. Varied conditions at POW camps bolstered these responses and often determined prisoner health and morale throughout the war. This article examines how camps in Britain, France, and Russia treated German POWs, and how German nationalism affected these soldiers' senses of masculinity and patriotism during and after the war.

A Canadian Civil Affairs Officer In Italy: Lieutenant-Colonel H. S. Robinson, Provincial Commissioner For Brescia In 1945, Janet Sanders, Rolando Anni, Maria Paola Pasini

Canadian Military History

This article provides an overview of one Canadian Civil Affairs Officer, Lieutenant-Colonel Homer Smiley Robinson, and his contribution to the rebuilding of the province of Brescia in north Italy and its eponymous capital after liberation from Nazi occupation. Robinson, as Provincial Commissioner, led the Civil Affairs team from April to October 1945 as the first Canadian to be appointed to the position. Traditionally, Civil Affairs has been studied predominantly as a bureaucratic structure. The human element in terms of staff and stakeholders has been almost entirely neglected. It is hoped that this account of a soldier-turned-governor will prove to be …

Preaching Peace, Selling Arms: The Evolution Of Canadian Military Export Policy, 1946-49, Paul Esau

Canadian Military History

Recent sales of Canadian military equipment to Saudi Arabia have highlighted a contradiction between Canadian military export policy on paper and in practice. This contradiction is rooted in a series of policy decision made between 1946 and 1949, just after the Second World War. During this period Canadian policymakers accepted that military exports were economically and strategically necessary, and become an opportunistic exporter of military equipment to the non-communist world. The military export policies adopted during these years were flexible, pragmatic, and reactive; they incentivised risk-aversion and commercial competitiveness, but not internally consistency. Consequently, the defining principle of Canadian military …

From Zombie To Martyr: The Short Military Service Of Private Hector Sylvestre, Paul Marsden

Canadian Military History

This article outlines the brief military service of Private Hector Sylvestre, a young Franco-Ontarien paratrooper executed by the SS. His career began as a conscript in the Active Army, serving nine months prior to enlisting in the Canadian Active Service Force. From this point forward he made a series of fateful decisions, which ultimately led to his death as a member of the French Resistance. His path from Zombie to “martyr” is unique for a Canadian soldier during the Second World War.

The Vernon Military Camp And The Imperial Training Archipelago, 1939-45, Megan Hamilton

Canadian Military History

The Vernon Military Camp was one of the many interwoven institutions that fed trained soldiers into the vast armies of the British Empire in the Second World War. Beginning the war as a barren hill that lacked modern equipment, it was eventually developed into a professional training centre that both served and benefitted from national, Imperial and Allied war efforts. Taking a ground-level view of Canadian Army training and inter-theatre learning, this article argues that army training camps, even those in the periphery, played a vital role in strengthening Imperial and Allied interoperability by facilitating knowledge transfer away from active …

A Cryptid For Catholics And Communists: The Asuang As An Apparatus For Socio-Political Control In The History Of The Philippines, Alexandra Eckhart

Honors Projects

This essay explores the utilization of folklore beliefs in psychological warfare through a comparative analysis of General Edward Geary Lansdale's tactics during the Hukbalahap insurgency at the beginning of the Cold War and the historical exploitation of the asuang myth by Spanish Catholic missionaries in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. While both instances involved leveraging local superstitions to influence behavior, their motivations and approaches diverged significantly. Unlike the missionaries, Lansdale's actions stemmed from a strategic imperative to combat communism rather than a sense of racial superiority or religious domination. Drawing parallels between Lansdale's methods and centuries-old patterns of oppression, this …

Bureaus Of Ungentlemanly Warfare: Comparing The Roles Of Women In The Special Operations Executive And The Office Of Strategic Services During World War Ii, Adaline Nolley

Senior Honors Theses

In 1940, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill created the Special Operations Executive. The SOE was one of the first government agencies to recruit female spies. In 1941, United States President Franklin Roosevelt commissioned the Office of Strategic Services, which also employed women. The organizations approached the concept of female agents differently. The OSS maintained female staff in domestic offices, but employed foreign women as agents. The SOE recruited women to go abroad, as they were less suspicious than men in occupied territories. The study of female staff in the OSS and the SOE allow historians to understand roles of women …

Secrets, Soviets, And Sverdlovsk: Critiques Of The Biological Weapons Convention And Biosecurity In The 1970s And 1980s, Morgan Kelley

Departmental Honors & Graduate Capstone Projects

The Biological Weapons Convention, initially ratified in 1975, banned the production and stockpiling of biological weapons; however, it has faced considerable modern criticism for being unenforceable and not strong enough to ensure states' compliance. These modern critiques are based on the knowledge that the Soviet Union was in violation of the Convention, which was not confirmed until 1989. By analyzing the reactions to the Biological Weapons Convention by scholars and scientists, American intelligence officials, and American news media, it becomes clear that concerns about the Convention did exist prior to 1989, even when for many it was not certain that …

"In The Footsteps Of Hercules": The Influence Of Classical Antiquity On Eighteenth-Century Militaries, Scott Madere

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This project examines the pervasive influence of ancient Roman and Greek figures, historical events, literature, and military methods on the leaders and practitioners of eighteenth-century warfare. Rulers, generals, military theorists, and officers frequently consulted classical histories and literature for solutions to the common military problems of the period – tactical, operational, and strategic – showing remarkable faith in ancient military methods despite their growing dependence on gunpowder weaponry and related technologies. This dissertation examines why this was the case and concludes that classical antiquity not only maintained the credibility of its wisdom in the context of modern warfare, but also …

International Law, Self-Defense, And The Israel-Hamas Conflict, Eric A. Heinze

The US Army War College Quarterly: Parameters

This article examines the international law of self-defense as it applies to the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict to determine whether the October 2023 attacks by Hamas against Israel can be interpreted under Article 51 of the UN Charter as an “armed attack” that gives Israel the right to use military force in self-defense against non-state actors. It situates the conflict within ongoing legal and political debates, shows how this conflict fits into a changing global reality where the most dangerous security threats do not exclusively emanate from other states and concludes that Israel’s resort to force in the current conflict appears …

Strategy As Problem-Solving, Andrew Carr

The US Army War College Quarterly: Parameters

This article proposes a new definition of strategy as problem-solving that challenges the focus on goals and assumptions of order within many post–Cold War approaches to strategy. It argues that the military needs strategy to diagnose the complex problems of the twenty-first century before they can be solved. Inspired by practitioners such as Andrew Marshall and George F. Kennan, this new definition clarifies what strategists do and offers a logic for distinguishing the use of the term strategy. Practitioners will also find problem-solving tools and pedagogies they can adopt today.

Parameters Spring 2024, Usawc Press

The US Army War College Quarterly: Parameters

No abstract provided.

Rethinking The Relevance Of Self-Deterrence, Jeffrey H. Michaels

The US Army War College Quarterly: Parameters

Self-deterrence is critically understudied in deterrence theory. Similarly, deterrence practitioners prefer to focus on adversaries’ threats rather than seeking to account for the full scope of fears influencing the decision calculus of policymakers. Through historical case studies, this article identifies where self-deterrence has occurred, highlights the benefits of incorporating the concept in future strategic planning and intelligence assessments, and recommends that policymakers, strategists, and analysts acknowledge self-deterrence as an important factor when preparing for future wars.

Us-Taiwan Relations And The Future Of The Liberal Order, Christina Lai

The US Army War College Quarterly: Parameters

Strengthening ties with Taiwan is the best chance the United States has to preserve the liberal international order in Asia and improve its security relative to China. This study offers a normative perspective on how Taiwan can contribute to US-led international institutions and the Asian regional order and reduce conflict risk. It concludes with recommendations for the United States and its partners to integrate Taiwan into multilateral institutions in Asia.

0884: Terry Lowry 83rd Chemical Mortar Battalion Collection, 1927-2017, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

The 83rd Chemical Mortar Battalion was activated at Camp Gordon, Georgia, on June 10, 1942. Following intensive training, the unit was shipped overseas for duty and spent the next 508 consecutive days in combat during World War II. First stationed in North Africa, the 83rd participated in campaigns in Sicily, Italy, southern France, and Germany, and occupied Austria after the German surrender.

The collection was compiled by historian and author Terry Lowry, whose father served in the unit, and who was appointed official historian of the 83rd Chemical Mortar Battalion. Lowry’s book on the unit, Bastard Battalion, was published in …

Heroes, Victims, And Future Citizens: Representations Of French Children During World War I, Megan R. Outtrim

Swarthmore Undergraduate History Journal

The effects of total war society in France during WWI dramatically altered the daily lives of both adults and children, witnessing increasing levels of patriotic rhetoric, wartime propaganda, and anti-German sentiment. Children were often made the focal point of this propaganda, as they represented the future of the nation. As such, three specific representations of children emerge from WWI propaganda in France: the heroic child, the victimized child, and the malleable future citizen. Some of these representations were depicted in propaganda meant for children specifically, while others were depicted in propaganda meant to mobilize adults in the name of children. …

Ua1c11/128 Lucian Flora Photo Collection, Wku Archives

WKU Archives Collection Inventories

Photographs and postcards removed from Lucian Flora's World War II scrapbook.

Calvin On War, David Crum

Selected Faculty Publications

Calvin’s teachings on war centred on providence, sovereignty, and judgment – doctrines that Christians have used throughout history to justify entrance into conflicts. In Calvin’s teachings, he always emphasized holiness and godly living. This led to another justification for war – protecting or defending humanity. This article examines Calvin’s instruction and views on war and determines when humanity should enter such a conflict. Further, within the Christian worldview, warfare obviously connects to judgment and sin, two issues that Calvin affirmed resulted in deadly clashes and encounters. Strongly adhering to the idea of providence, Calvin felt that no event in human …

Reformed And Presbyterian Christians In World War Ii, David Crum

Selected Faculty Publications

While World War II challenged the emotions of Americans like never before, firm adherents to Reformed theology and those walking with God knew that the Lord’s will would determine any outcome. Such questions remain essential to discover: How did the war impact Reformed Christians? What role did adherents to Reformed theology play in the war? Did the engagement serve as an evangelistic occasion? This article will present the Second Global Conflict from the lens of Reformed Christians. Some soldiers were faithful Christians; others became believers during the struggle. Similar to today, different denominations within Reformed Christianity existed; this article covers …

The Creation And Destruction Of Zulu And Comanche Power During The 19th Century, Erhard M. Van Deventer Mr.

History Dissertations - Archive

During the 19th century, the Zulu and Comanche were two of the most powerful and dynamic indigenous peoples on opposite sides of the Atlantic Ocean. Both constructed regional powers that opposed European expansion based on their imperialistic nature, not to be confused with European imperialism. Comparing the Zulu and Comanche illustrates how each constructed an imperialistic realm and how their rise to power was connected to their keen use of conquest, diplomacy, and resource management as tools of statecraft in creating their domains. Their domains were created by imperialist expansion based on conquest. However, diplomacy and monopolizing essential regional resources …

In A Hell Of Our Own Creation: Spatial Context And The Wehrmacht’S Genocidal War In Eastern Europe, 1941–1943, Charles Joseph Calcaterra

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

A multitude of social, ideological, psychological, and environmental factors encouraged German servicemen to willingly commit atrocities in Eastern Europe during the Second World War. How should historians contextualize which factors held greater influence over servicemen deployed to different sectors of the vast Eastern Front? Charles Calcaterra highlights soldiers’ responses to their surrounding environments—the landscape of Eastern Europe—to explain why frontline divisions killed and destroyed indiscriminately in accessory to the Holocaust while rearguard personnel socially justified roundups, executions, and the horrid maltreatment of Red Army prisoners of war. Through the lens of military geography, the spatial contexts that fostered frontline units’ …

Ship Shaping: How Congress And Industry Influenced U.S. Naval Acquisitions From 1933-1938, Henry H. Carroll

Harvey M. Applebaum ’59 Award

Studying shipbuilding politics across time can yield key insights into present-day shipbuilding acquisition reform issues, such as the effects of naval industry consolidation and potential “ally-shoring” of warship production on domestic political support for future naval funding. Past studies of naval acquisitions during the late interwar period often focus on how President Franklin Delano Roosevelt and the Navy Department prepared the nation for the beginning of World War II. However, Congress and the shipbuilding industry played an often-overlooked role in creating the political support needed to expand the Navy during the tumultuous late interwar period. Self-interested domestic interest groups were …

Serving With Pride: Analyzing Lgbtq+ Personnel Policy In The U.S. Military, Sonja Woolley

CMC Senior Theses

This thesis examines the evolution of LGBTQ+ personnel policies in the U.S. military, analyzing how these changes reflect broader social transformations and the military’s role as both a mirror and catalyst in societal shifts. It traces the historical roots of discriminatory practices against queer and transgender servicemembers, identifying key periods of reform and resistance. Using institutional theory to dissect the mechanisms of policy adaptation, this paper focuses on coercive, mimetic, and normative isomorphism, which illustrate the complex interplay between external societal pressures, internal demands for legitimacy, and the professionalization of the military. Through detailed case studies, the thesis highlights how …

Shaping Modern Europe: Evaluating Napoleon Bonaparte's Governance And Impact On European Statecraft, William R. Thurman

CMC Senior Theses

This thesis explores Napoleon Bonaparte’s profound impact on Europe, examining the leadership, military strategies, and reforms that reshaped European governance and law. Retracing Napoleon’s rise to power from the chaos of the French Revolution to the height of the Empire, it highlights the political acumen and strategic genius that enabled him to seize power and dominate Europe. Napoleon's reign is illustrated both as a quest for power and as a transformative movement to modernize Europe through systematic reforms in administration, law, and education.

Central to Napoleon’s vision was the Napoleonic Code, which revolutionized legal systems around the world by emphasizing …

Architects Of War: The Economic And Industrial Strategies Of The Third Reich And United States Under Albert Speer And William Knudsen, Spencer David Taylor

CMC Senior Theses

This thesis presents a chronological narrative that delves into the economic and industrial underpinnings of the Second World War, focusing on the contrasting war machines of Germany and the United States. By examining the strategic decisions and outcomes shaped by two central figures, Albert Speer of Germany and William S. Knudsen of the United States, this study highlights how their approaches to war production profoundly influenced the overall trajectory and outcome of the war. Knudsen’s embodiment of the American industrial spirit and Speer’s manipulation of Germany's constrained resources illustrate the crucial roles that economic strategies played alongside military operations. The …

Review Of Policing Empires: Militarization, Race, And The Imperial Boomerang In Britain And The Us, Jonathon J. Booth

Publications

No abstract provided.

“A True Tower Of Babel”: Nation, Race, And Gender In The French Foreign Legion, 1831 To 1854, Nicholas Michael Charnley

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

The French Foreign Legion, part of the July Monarchy’s 1831 expansion of the Army of Africa, sought to create a non-French force entirely deployable outside of the metropole. The creation of the expatriate corps intended to solve two of France’s most pressing problems at the time: an excess of foreign migrants at home, and a dearth of French soldiers abroad. The Paris government hoped to attract recruits from its considerable non-national male population, particularly political exiles and migrant workers fleeing Europe’s 1830 revolutionary wave. Initially intended as a temporary expedient for the homeland’s demographic crisis, the expatriate fighting force grew …

The Show Soldiers: The Rifle Volunteers And The First World War, Kyle Lierman

History Theses, Dissertations, and Student Creative Activity

The British Rifle Volunteer movement came about as a response to the perceived threat of invasion by France in 1859. One of the primary responsibilities of the Volunteers was to function as an auxiliary force for the defense of Britain. However, no invasion would come, and the Volunteers would see no combat outside a small deployment during the Second Boer War. The Volunteer Force eventually became a new organization named the Territorial Force in 1908 during the sweeping series of British Army reforms after 1900. Despite the limited military experience, the Volunteer movement would considerably influence the British military and …

Termites, Bully Boys, And The Architect Of Search & Destroy: An Assessment Of General William E. Depuy As Macv J-3 And Commander Of The 1st Infantry Division, Republic Of Vietnam, 1964-67, Adam D. Coste

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

As Assistant Chief of Staff for Operations (J-3) at MACV from 1964-1966, General William DePuy served as the main architect of the campaign strategy implemented by General William Westmoreland in fighting both VC and NVA units during the earliest and most critical years of the Vietnam War. Following his role at MACV, DePuy assumed command of the 1^st Infantry Division in March 1966 where he exhibited a distinct command philosophy and transformed the organizational culture of the “Big Red One” through a series of directives and tactical innovations. Most historians are critical of Westmoreland’s chosen strategy as well as …