Mil History Talk

A short podcast that intrduces Prussian military thinker Carl von Clausewitz, his biography and his major ideas.

Explains the creation of the conscript army as part of the French Revolution and how and why this type of army remains a model that many modern militaries emulate.

A review of the classic on the Napoleonic wars --David Chandler's Campaigns of Napoleon.

This podcast describes the shift from mercenary armies to the professional armies that remain the model for many of today's national armies, including the US Army.

See the full written article here: The Rise of the Professional Army, 1600–1790

This podcast is the first in a series that describes the evolution of armies, beginning with the decline of the medieval knight and the rise of professional mercenary forces between 1300 and 1600. Advances in tactics, gunpowder weapons, and siege warfare shifted the battlefield to disciplined infantry like Swiss pike squares, German Landsknechts, and Spanish tercios, funded by emerging fiscal-military states and replacing knights as the core of European armies.

See the full written article here: Home | Substack

A critical look at how the WW2 doctrine and experience continues to effect the US Army in the 21st Century

A sharp and strategic review of Phillips Payson O'Brien’s “How the War Was Won.” This episode breaks down O’Brien’s bold argument that air and sea power—not land battles—decided the outcome of World War II. Join us as we analyze his claims, assess the evidence, and weigh the true engines of Allied victory.

This podcast takes a critical look at US Army doctrine in WW2. The US Army was successful in WW2 but it was not perfect. Understanding those imperfections is as important as recognizing the successes.

A review of probably the best one volume history of the US Navy is World War II, "Two Ocean War" by Samual E. Morison.

This is the first of a multi-part series on the development of US Army doctrine in WW2 and how it continues to influence the way the US military fights in the 21st Century. This first episode focuses on General Adna Chaffee and the development of the US Armored Force.