-
Establishment of the Continental Army
Congress approved the raising of 10 companies of riflemen to enlist in Maryland, Pennsylvania and Virginia until the end of the Revolutionary War. -
First U.S. military academy established
Congress establishes the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, NY. -
war with native indians
Seventy settlers and soldiers, and hundreds of Black Hawk's band, died. It signaled the end of that area's conflict between settlers and Native Americans. -
mexican war
Soldiers fought for the first time far beyond their frontiers. First time the army administered a military government over a conquered area. -
end of mexican war
With heavy losses of 10,000 casualties on each side, some Northerners were appalled by the carnage. Grant came to believe "total war" was necessary.
One of the bloodiest battles of the war, it put the Confederate Army increasingly on the defensive. -
Ulysses Grant
Grant becomes the first man to hold the rank of General of the Army. -
Period: to
World War II: Military Golden Age
U.S. deployed millions of men to fight in Europe. the U.S. military emerged as a one of only two new superpowers. The advent of nuclear weapons sharpened interservice competition among the military as the Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corp vied to adapt to the new technology. Most notably, the U.S. changed its policy to emphasize deterrence, and it was decided that the creation of nuclear weapons seemed to be the best form of deterrence. -
air corps
General MacArthur led a campaign that would eventually become an Allied victory over the Japanese, with massive support from the Army Air Corps. -
a new dimension to warfare
Such campaigns put the Army Air Corps added a new dimension to warfare and put it at the top of the list in military importance. -
creation of the atomic bomb
U.S. Army engineers participated with civilian scientists to create two atomic bombs. -
army's demobilization
With millions of soldiers to release from active duty, the army experienced massive problems demobilizing its forces. -
Period: to
Cold War: Nuclear Deterrence
U.S. Cold War military policy was defined by two themes: communist containment and strategic nuclear deterrence. Such a policy highlighted the move from a crisis oriented military policy to a policy devoted to creating programs that would last as long as the Soviet Union. -
code of conduct
President Dwight D. Eisenhower signs a code for U.S. soldiers to live by during times of war. -
Period: to
Vietnam War: Erosion of U.S. Military Power
U.S. military to become involved during the First Indochina War (1946-1954) and to continue its involvement unabated until Saigon was conquered by the Communist People’s Army of China in 1975. When actual U.S. military combat units first entered the conflict between North and South Vietnam in 1965, they were accompanied by huge logistical support by land, sea, and air. Such a powerful arsenal guaranteed that the U.S. never lost a major battle in Vietnam; -
UN effort
A coalition force of 34 nations, the United Nations effort was led by U.S. Army General H. Norman Schwarzkopf. -
Period: to
September 11th and the War in Iraq
a coalition led by the United States and Great Britain invaded Iraq in 2003 (Bradford 2003). After three weeks of fighting, the United States military captured Saddam Hussein in a hole, and the Iraqi government executed him on December 30, 2006.
Currently, the U.S. military budget is the highest of any country, U.S. military funds are projected to surpass the combined defense funds of the rest of the world.