History of the Office of the Secretary of Defense, Volume One: The Formative Years: 1947-1950 - Fascinating Account of Post-War Decisions on Communist Threat, Atomic Weapons, Israel, NATO

Nonfiction, History, Military, Strategy, United States
Cover of the book History of the Office of the Secretary of Defense, Volume One: The Formative Years: 1947-1950 - Fascinating Account of Post-War Decisions on Communist Threat, Atomic Weapons, Israel, NATO by Progressive Management, Progressive Management
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Progressive Management ISBN: 9781301315581
Publisher: Progressive Management Publication: July 4, 2013
Imprint: Smashwords Edition Language: English
Author: Progressive Management
ISBN: 9781301315581
Publisher: Progressive Management
Publication: July 4, 2013
Imprint: Smashwords Edition
Language: English

The first volume in an important new series that will provide a comprehensive history of the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD), The Formative Years traces the evolution of OSD from its establishment in September 1947 to the outbreak of the Korean War in June 1950. As the title indicates, these were years of beginnings that ushered in the present-day era of service unification and saw the development of policies and programs that would have lasting impact on national security. A richly documented volume, it draws on a wide variety of primary and secondary sources to present a commanding account of the evolution of both defense organization and national security policy during the critical post-World War II years. The book opens with the swearing-in of the first Secretary of Defense, James Forrestal, who faced the dual challenge of effecting unification of the armed forces and of reconstituting U.S. defense policy to meet an increasing array of problems and threats abroad, the Cold War with the Soviet Union heading the list. As Forrestal discovered, to make unification work, he needed more authority and assistance than the 1947 National Security Act gave him. His successor, Louis Johnson, had the benefit of amendments in 1949 that enhanced the secretary's power. But like Forrestal, Johnson confronted fierce interservice competition for scarce funds and deeply divisive quarrels, especially between the Air Force and the Navy, over the assignment of roles and missions. A series of chapters on the making of the defense budgets for the period strikingly illuminates the intricate relationships among strategic policies, military programs, roles and missions, and money.
Problems abroad threatened to embroil the United States in conflicts for which it was largely unprepared. Students of foreign affairs will be especially interested in the chapters on assistance to Greece and Turkey under the Truman Doctrine, the partitioning of Palestine and the ensuing Arab-Israeli conflict, the civil war in China and its repercussions throughout the Far East, including the early stages of U.S. involvement in Vietnam, and the Berlin crisis of 1948-49, which nearly led to a military showdown with the Soviet Union. Subsequent chapters examine the development of the atomic energy program and growing U.S. reliance on nuclear weapons, the creation of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, the origins of the worldwide Mutual Defense Assistance Program, and the drafting of NSC 68, the landmark policy paper that in 1950, on the eve of the Korean War, proposed an unprecedented program of peacetime rearmament.

17 September 1947 * From Hot War to Cold War * Strategy of Containment * State of Armed Forces * Road to Unification * National Security Act of 1947 * Unification Act on Trial * Office of the Secretary of Defense * Forrestal's Staff * Evolution of Staff Responsibilities * Changes Under Johnson * Congressional Liaison * Public Relations Front * Civil Defense Organization * Joint and Special Committees * Staff Agencies * Munitions Board * Research and Development Board * Nonstatutory Staff Agencies * Military Liaison Committee * OSD and National Security Structure * National Security Council * Relations with State Department * National Security Resources Board * Joint Chiefs of Staff * First Arab-Israeli War * Aid to Palestinian Refugees * Middle East Oil and Security * Crisis in China * Wedemeyer Mission * Question of Formosa * Spreading Turmoil in Asia * Japan Under U.S. Occupation * Divided Korea * Emerging Conflict in Southeast Asia * Berlin Crisis * Supercarrier—B-36 Controversy * Atomic Arsenal * Custody Dispute * Policy on Use of Atomic Weapons * Fission Bomb Production * H-Bomb Decision * Acceleration of H-Bomb Program * North Atlantic Alliance * Movement Toward an Alliance * Development of U.S. Policy * Expanding Military Collaboration * North Atlantic Treaty Alliance Organization

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

The first volume in an important new series that will provide a comprehensive history of the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD), The Formative Years traces the evolution of OSD from its establishment in September 1947 to the outbreak of the Korean War in June 1950. As the title indicates, these were years of beginnings that ushered in the present-day era of service unification and saw the development of policies and programs that would have lasting impact on national security. A richly documented volume, it draws on a wide variety of primary and secondary sources to present a commanding account of the evolution of both defense organization and national security policy during the critical post-World War II years. The book opens with the swearing-in of the first Secretary of Defense, James Forrestal, who faced the dual challenge of effecting unification of the armed forces and of reconstituting U.S. defense policy to meet an increasing array of problems and threats abroad, the Cold War with the Soviet Union heading the list. As Forrestal discovered, to make unification work, he needed more authority and assistance than the 1947 National Security Act gave him. His successor, Louis Johnson, had the benefit of amendments in 1949 that enhanced the secretary's power. But like Forrestal, Johnson confronted fierce interservice competition for scarce funds and deeply divisive quarrels, especially between the Air Force and the Navy, over the assignment of roles and missions. A series of chapters on the making of the defense budgets for the period strikingly illuminates the intricate relationships among strategic policies, military programs, roles and missions, and money.
Problems abroad threatened to embroil the United States in conflicts for which it was largely unprepared. Students of foreign affairs will be especially interested in the chapters on assistance to Greece and Turkey under the Truman Doctrine, the partitioning of Palestine and the ensuing Arab-Israeli conflict, the civil war in China and its repercussions throughout the Far East, including the early stages of U.S. involvement in Vietnam, and the Berlin crisis of 1948-49, which nearly led to a military showdown with the Soviet Union. Subsequent chapters examine the development of the atomic energy program and growing U.S. reliance on nuclear weapons, the creation of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, the origins of the worldwide Mutual Defense Assistance Program, and the drafting of NSC 68, the landmark policy paper that in 1950, on the eve of the Korean War, proposed an unprecedented program of peacetime rearmament.

17 September 1947 * From Hot War to Cold War * Strategy of Containment * State of Armed Forces * Road to Unification * National Security Act of 1947 * Unification Act on Trial * Office of the Secretary of Defense * Forrestal's Staff * Evolution of Staff Responsibilities * Changes Under Johnson * Congressional Liaison * Public Relations Front * Civil Defense Organization * Joint and Special Committees * Staff Agencies * Munitions Board * Research and Development Board * Nonstatutory Staff Agencies * Military Liaison Committee * OSD and National Security Structure * National Security Council * Relations with State Department * National Security Resources Board * Joint Chiefs of Staff * First Arab-Israeli War * Aid to Palestinian Refugees * Middle East Oil and Security * Crisis in China * Wedemeyer Mission * Question of Formosa * Spreading Turmoil in Asia * Japan Under U.S. Occupation * Divided Korea * Emerging Conflict in Southeast Asia * Berlin Crisis * Supercarrier—B-36 Controversy * Atomic Arsenal * Custody Dispute * Policy on Use of Atomic Weapons * Fission Bomb Production * H-Bomb Decision * Acceleration of H-Bomb Program * North Atlantic Alliance * Movement Toward an Alliance * Development of U.S. Policy * Expanding Military Collaboration * North Atlantic Treaty Alliance Organization

More books from Progressive Management

Cover of the book The Contracting Support Brigade (CSB): Is It Capable of Sustaining Tempo and Combat Power in the Operational Environment? Afghanistan and Operation Enduring Freedom, Army Sustainment Capability by Progressive Management
Cover of the book Army Engineers in New England 1775-1975: The Military and Civil Work of the Corps of Engineers in New England, Revolutionary War, George Washington, Dredging, Flood Protection, Boston Harbor by Progressive Management
Cover of the book Affecting U.S. Policy Toward Latin America: An Analysis of Lower-Level Officials - Case Studies of Guatemala 1954, Costa Rica 1948, Present-day Bolivia and President Morales, Anti-Communist Hysteria by Progressive Management
Cover of the book Land-Based Air Power in Third World Crises: A Look at Different Types of Crises, Mayaguez Incident, Bay of Pigs, Yom Kippur War, Sub-Saharan Africa by Progressive Management
Cover of the book Evolution of United States Military Landmine Doctrine and Employment: History from World War I and II to Korea and Vietnam Wars, Study Addresses Technological Innovation and Shifts in Doctrine by Progressive Management
Cover of the book Averting a Massacre in Libya: Speech by President Barack Obama, March 28, 2011 - The American-led Military Action against Muammar Qaddafi (al Qadhafi, Gadhafi, Gaddafi) by Progressive Management
Cover of the book Army Lineage Series: The Organizational History of Field Artillery, 1775 - 2003 - Revolutionary War to Nuclear Missiles, Civil War, World War II, Atomic Field Army, Korea, Vietnam, Desert Storm by Progressive Management
Cover of the book In Service to the Nation: Air Force Research Institute Strategic Concept for 2018-2023 - U.S. Air Force Strategy Past, Present, and Future, Base Closures, Natural Disaster Threats to Air Force Bases by Progressive Management
Cover of the book 2012 Complete Guide to Iran: Authoritative Coverage of Iranian Nuclear and Missile Programs, Sanctions and Threat of War, Regime, Military, Human Rights, Terrorism, History, Economy, Oil Industry by Progressive Management
Cover of the book National Defense Intelligence College Paper: Can't We All Just Get Along? Improving the Law Enforcement-Intelligence Community Relationship, FBI and CIA by Progressive Management
Cover of the book Political Warfare and Contentious Politics: Chilean Case Study under Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, Social Movement, Italian Political Parties, Socialists, Communists, Polity Models, Direct and Indirect by Progressive Management
Cover of the book Cyber Operations and the Warfighting Functions - USCYBERCOM, Cyber Attacks and Cyber War, Distributed Denial of Service attack (DDoS), SCADA, Russian and Georgian Conflict, Hacktivism by Progressive Management
Cover of the book Failed State 2030: Nigeria - A Case Study, Tribal Conflict, Civil War, Islam and Religious Strife, Terrorism, Crime, Niger Delta, OPEC, Military Coups, Goodluck Jonathan by Progressive Management
Cover of the book 21st Century U.S. Military Manuals: The Targeting Process - Field Manual 3-60 - Principles and Philosophy, Dynamic Targeting (Professional Format Series) by Progressive Management
Cover of the book 21st Century U.S. Military Manuals: U.S. Marine Corps (USMC) Pistol Marksmanship Marine Corps Reference Publication (MCRP) 3-01B by Progressive Management
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy