Message from the Director Geoffrey Wawro:
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What's Happening at the CenterThe Military History Center is proud to host the 4th Annual Air Power Symposium: "The Two Faces of Air Power" by Dr. Dennis Showalter at 11:30 a.m. on Monday, 7 May at the C.R. Smith Museum, 4601 Highway 360 @ FAA Road, DFW Airport, Texas 75261. Dr. Showalter will discus the application of airpower on both the Eastern and Western Fronts during the Second World War. Please click here for more information and to print the registration form. Dr. Mendoza will be teaching a class on 19th Century U.S. Military History in Fall 2012. Drs. Leggiere and McCaslin along with three Student Fellows of the Center - Jon Abel, Chad Tomaselli, and Jordan Hayworth - all presented papers at the 42nd Annual Meeting of the Consortium on the Revolutionary Era, hosted by Louisiana State University at Baton Rouge, LA from 23-25 February 2012. http://www.revolutionaryera.org/ UNT will host the 43rd meeting in 2013 and hold the conference at Ft. Worth. Dr. Citino recently had the honor of being elected chairman of the Department of the Army Historical Advisory Committee (DAHAC), the body that advises the Secretary of the Army on how the service runs its military schools and museums. He was also elected to the Board of Trustees of the Society for Military History. His new book, The Wehrmacht Retreats: Fighting a Lost War, 1943 (Lawrence, KS: University Press of Kansas, 2012), has just appeared in print. He has also published a number of articles and essays in the past year, including "India's Blitzkrieg," in Military History 29, no. 1 (May 2012); "Manstein, the Battle of Kharkov, and the Limits of Command," in Michael S. Neiberg, ed., Arms and the Man: Military History Essays in Honor of Dennis Showalter. Leiden (The Netherlands): Brill, 2011; "Military History at the Operational Level: An Interview with Robert M. Citino," in Historically Speaking: The Bulletin of the Historical Society 12, no. 3 (June 2011), and "The Prussian Tradition, the Myth of the Blitzkrieg and the Illusion of German Military Dominance, 1939-41," in Frank McDonough, ed., The Origins of the Second World War: An International Perspective. London: Continuum, 2011. His article, "Drive to Nowhere? Just How Good was Rommel and his legendary Afrika Korps?" will be appearing in the Summer 2012 issue of MHQ, and his article "Avalanche: Mark Clark and the Wehrmacht at Salerno" will be appearing in the July/August issue of World War II magazine. In 2011 he spoke at Mississippi State University, the University of Southern Mississippi, and the United States Military Academy at West Point. The Texas History Symposium on 21 April 2012, will focus on the 150th anniversary of the Great Hanging in Gainesville, Texas, when Confederate authorities lynched forty men accused of desertion and treason. Dr. McCaslin will speak in the morning; L.D. Clark, a retired English professor who is a descendant of one of the victims, will speak in the afternoon. For more details see http://history.unt.edu/history-events Dr. McCaslin's biography of John S. "Rip" Ford, titled Fighting Stock, won the Pate Award from the Fort Worth Civil War Round Table, meaning it was recognized as the best book on the Trans-Mississippi in the Civil War for 2011. He also has been speaking at teacher workshops in Dallas, Houston, Plano, and Huntsville on the new standards for teaching about the Civil War in Texas middle and high schools. In October 2011 he delivered the keynote for conference on Civil War hosted by Victoria College. In November 2011 he was part of a symposium of Hood's Texas Brigade, an event that featured five speakers on Texas during the first year of the Civil War. Dr. McCaslin was appointed president of the Pearce Museum at Navarro College. This is a fine collection of Western Art and more than 15,000 Civil War documents, including several featured in Ken Burns' series on the Civil War. Dr. Tanner's book, The Battle for Manchuria and the Fate of China: Siping, 1946, will be published by Indiana University Press in December 2012.
On 5 December 2011, Professors Wawro, McCaslin, and Leggiere, joined by Executive Council Member Colonel John Antal visited the US Military Academy at West Point to meet with the head of the department of History Colonel Lance Betros. They also checked in on Major Bill Nance and Captain Dave Musick, the MHC's first West Point Fellows. Nance and Musick completed their MAs in Spring 2011 and reported to West Point over the summer. They started their teaching duties at the Academy in Fall 2011 and we are happy to report that their superiors are very pleased with the education Nance and Musick received at UNT as well as their ability to convey their knowledge to the cadets. Both officers continue to teach while they prepare for their doctoral comprehensive exams. On 30 November, Colonel John Antal, US Army (retired) presented Executive Council Discussion Series Lecture on "Warfare in the 21st Century." Colonel Antal, a member of the MHC Executive Council, is the author of eleven books on military history and military affairs, a founding editor of Armchair General magazine, and a software designer. http://military.hist.unt.edu/executive/exec_antal.html On 8 October 2011, the MHC proudly hosted the 29 Annual Alfred and Johanna Hurley Military History Seminar. The theme of the Seminar was "Dilemmas of American Power 1776 to 2011. The MHC was very proud to host General Anthony Zinni, The Honorable Francis "Bing" West, and Lt.-Colonel Phillip Frietze as the Seminar's speakers. http://military.hist.unt.edu/seminar.htm Dr. Chet has presented academic talks in Britain and the United States on his new research regarding piracy and trade in the early-modern Atlantic. His forthcoming monograph on this topic is titled "The Ocean is a Wilderness: Atlantic Piracy and the Limits of Governmental Legitimacy in the Modern State, 1688-1856." Dr. McCaslin spoke at the Teaching of History Conference at UNT, where the keynote address was delivered by Dr. Brian Linn of Texas A&M University. McCaslin's next speaking engagement is the Dallas Civil War Round Table in October, when he will talk about the Great Hanging. He is also speaking on Texas in the Civil War for a workshop hosted by Humanities Texas and a conference sponsored by Victoria College and the University of Houston at Victoria. UNT will host its own Civil War symposium in November, when it welcomes the Hood's Texas Brigade Re-Activated to the campus. McCaslin will again speak on Texas in the Civil War at that event; more information will soon be posted to the Department of History website. From 10-20 March 2011, Dr. Mierzejewski conducted research at the Bundesarchiv at Koblenz, Germany. On 28 April 2011, he presented a paper titled"Comparing Apples and Oranges: A Comparison of German and American Railway Development," at the Symposium on the Regulation of Network Industries, German Historical Institute, Washington, D.C. This chapter will be published as a chapter in a conference volume by Cambridge University Press. On 29 September 2011, Dr. Mierzejewski presented another paper titled "Ludwig von Mises: The Man and His Ideas," at the Young Americans for Liberty meeting on the UNT campus. In September 2011, Dr. Wawro presented a paper titled "The 'American Way of War' and the U.S. War with Japan, 1941-45," to the Japanese National Institute of Defense Studies, Tokyo, Japan as well as a paper titled "The 'Global War on Terror': History, Progress and Pitfalls," at the Dakota Institute Symposium in Bismarck, ND, September 2011. He gave a presentation titled "Snatching Victory from the Jaws of Defeat: Admiral Chester Nimitz and CEO Jack Welch - Two Leaders, Different Leadership Styles, Both Winners," at the Military History Center Leadership Breakfast in Dallas, TX, likewise in September 2011. In July 2011, he presented "Quicksand: America's Pursuit of Power in the Middle East," to the World Affairs Council of Kentucky and Southern Indiana in Louisville, KY. The MHC proudly launched its Quarterly Leadership Breakfast on the theme of LEADERSHIP IN BUSINESS AND WAR: A Comparison of Two Famous Leaders on 8 September 2011 at the Canyon Creek Country Club. Dr. Wawro gave a fascinating discussion about the leadership "Lessons Learned" from Admiral Chester Nimitz and Businessman Jack Welch. For the details, please see the event flier. The MHC partnered with Texas A&M - Central Texas to hold the first ever Central Texas Military History Symposium at Killeen in the Ft. Hood area on 6 August. The theme was "Military History: Past Perspectives and Future Relevance." Over fifty attended this inaugural event. The MHC was well represented, with John Antal and Gus Seligmann of the Executive Council participating as well as two UNT Faculty Fellows of the MHC - Rick McCaslin and Walt Roberts - and three MHC Student Fellows: Jon Abel, Jordan Hayworth, and Lt. Jon Nesselhuf (USAF). The Symposium was a great success and we plan on it growing every year. See the Flier In May and June two Student Fellows - Jonathan Abel and Jordan Hayworth - went to Paris to conduct research at the French archives of war. Both students spent three weeks examining primary documents upon which they will base their doctoral dissertations. Abel is working on proving that the 18th century French military theorist, Jacques Guibert, was actually the founding father of Napoleon's Grande Armée and thus responsible for much of Bonaparte's tactical and operational success. Hayworth is studying the wars of the French Revolution to debunk the myth that France achieved victory in the 1792-1797 war because the social changes caused by the Revolution (Liberty, Equality, Fraternity) carried over to the battlefield, giving the French a tremendous advantage over their unenlightened adversaries. Third Annual Air Power Symposium was held on Monday, 2 May at the American Airlines C.R. Smith Museum. The title of the program was "Designing an Air Force for the 21st Century" and Dr. Grant Hammond gave the luncheon address. At 11:30a was a "Meet and Greet" hosted by the Executive Council of the Military History Center followed at 12:00p by the Lunch/Lecture/Discussion. The MHC at Ft. Hood! On 14 March, three members of the MHC faculty, Drs. Wawro, Leggiere, and McCaslin joined by MHC Student Fellow Captain Bill Nance visited Fort Hood to build relationships with the military community. Hosted by captain Nance's father, Bill, a retired Air Force Colonel, the professors and Dr. Wawro's two sons got the opportunity to train on tank and infantry fighting vehicle simulators as well as tour both the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment and 1st Cavalry Division museums. The day also included lunch with faculty from the history department of Texas A&M Central Texas College and LTG (ret) David Palmer, a former superintendent of the United States Military Academy and leading citizen of the Fort Hood area. The trip marked the beginning of what is expected to be a long and profitable relationship between the MHC and the Fort Hood military community. Photo Gallery » MHC Student Fellow Captain Bill Nance attended the 5th Annual regional International Security / International Safety conference at the University of Mississippi on 1 April 2011. Nance presented his paper "American Great War Cavalry Doctrine, 1911-1923, Wishful Thinking or Proper Reaction." MHC Student Fellow Luke Truxal won third place at the Phi Alpha Theta Regional Conference hosted by Abilene Christian University in Abilene, Texas for his paper: "The Incomplete Offensive: The End of the 1943 Bombing Campaign." The Spring 2011 Military History Center Discussion Series was held on the evening of Monday, 28 March 2011. Dr. Ron Miliam of Texas Tech University discussed his book: Not a Gentleman's War: An Inside View of Junior Officers in the Vietnam War. Read More » Dr. Chet has recently published a chapter ("Colonial Failures, Imperial Triumphs and the Loss of the American Colonies") in Georg Schild's volume, The American Experience of War (Paderborn: Schoeningh, 2010). In March, Dr. Chet delivered a talk at the National Maritime Museum Seminar Series in London about his current research on the decline of piracy in the Atlantic. He is now completing a manuscript for a book-length monograph on this topic. The paperback edition of Dr. Wawro's critically acclaimed book, Quicksand: America's Pursuit of Power in the Middle East, was released in March. He has been actively writing for the Huffington Post and the Daily Beast on the wave of revolutions in the Middle East, as well as doing TV and radio interviews as well. In April, he was commissioned to write a 1,000-word piece on Bismarck for the Wall Street Journal. Dr. Wawro is currently working on his fifth book, titled "The Sick Man: Austria-Hungary and the Outbreak of World War I" for the centennial of 1914. Dr. McCaslin's Fighting Stock: John S. "Rip" Ford of Texas, was published by TCU Press this spring. He has spoken on Ford to the United Daughters of the Confederacy and the Reserve Officers Association, at the Oak Cliff Community Center on the Border War in 1915, on the Great Hanging to the Daughters of the American Revolution and the Sons of Confederate Veterans, on Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War to the Daughters of the American Revolution and the United States Attorney's offices for the Northern District of Texas, and to the Arkansas Civil War Round Table on his J. B. Polley book. He will be making a few more appearances before the summer, including giving a talk on Ford to the state convention of the Military Order of Stars and Bars on April 30 in Brownwood. Dr. McCaslin presented a paper at the annual meeting of the Texas State Historical Association, where as Region VII Director of the Society for Military History he also arranged the first-ever session sponsored by the Society. He hopes to repeat this experiment for many years to come. On 23 April, Dr. McCaslin is hosting the Texas History Symposium which will be on the Red River Campaign of the Civil War. If you are interested in attending, see: http://www.hist.unt.edu/news.htm. Dr. Tanner will present a paper on "'Big Army Groups, Standardization, and Assaulting Fortified Positions': The Transition from Guerrilla to Conventional War in China's Northeast, 1945-1948" at the Annual Conference of the Society for Military History in June. Dr. Alex Mendoza has been quite active after joining the Military History Center faculty in Fall 2010. He has two articles about to be published. The first will appear in the Fall 2011 issue of Military History of the West and is entitled: "'I Know No Other Country': Tejanos and the American Wars of the Twentieth Century, 1917-1972." The second article will appear in the Fall 2011 issue or in the January issue of the Southwestern Historical Quarterly. It is entitled, "For Our Own Best Interests': Nineteenth Century Laredo Tejanos, Military Service, and the Development of American Nationalism." Dr. Mendoza also has a book chapter entitled "The Army of Northern Virginia and the Loss of Lookout Mountain," which will appear in Steven E. Woodworth, ed., The Chattanooga Campaign, Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press, in late 2011. In November 2010 he submitted a completed anthology manuscript to Texas A&M University Press entitled Texas at War: New Interpretations of the Military History of the Lone Star State which will be published in early 2012 in time for the Texas State Historical Association conference in March. For the collection, he wrote a chapter studying the history of Tejanos in the wars for Texas and the United States. He will also have an article published in a future issue of Civil War Times titled: "The Downfall of General Daniel Harvey Hill." Dr. Mendoza's 2010 article that appeared in The Journal of America's Military Past, "Bitter Disappointment: Gen. Braxton Bragg's Vendetta Against James Longstreet," is a finalist for the Distinguished Writing Award from the Army Historical Foundation. Results will be released in June of this year. Finally, he will present a paper at the 2011 Annual Conference of the Society for Military History Conference titled "'We're Going to Fight for Those People who Defended our Rights': Mexican Texans and Changing Notions of Patriotism, 1835-1975. Richard Lowe was elected a Fellow of the Texas State Historical Association (TSHA) at its 2011 annual meeting in March. Fellows are "members who show, by published work, special aptitude for historical investigation." Five of Lowe's books and numerous articles deal with some aspects of 19th-century Texas. Another UNT MHC Fellow, Richard McCaslin, is also a Fellow of the TSHA. Dr. Richard Lowe is serving on the 2010-2011 committee of the Museum of the Confederacy in Richmond, Virginia, to select the winner of the Founders Award for the best edited work on the Civil War published in 2009-2010. |
Welcome to the Military History Center at the University of North
Texas. Our goal is to build one of the premier military history
programs in the world. We are hiring great military historians,
who teach and write well. We will use this center to pull together
our own faculty and our advisory fellows -- heavyweights like Niall
Ferguson, Holger Herwig, and Jeremy Black -- and to attract speakers
and conferences like our hugely successful Alfred Hurley Military
History Seminar, which has been an annual event in North Texas for
twenty-five years. Speakers have included Michael Howard, Martin
Blumenson, Dennis Showalter, David Glantz, Carlo D'Este, Allan Millett,
and Gerhard Weinberg. At the UNT Military History Center we are
introducing a PhD. in military history. Here we study, analyze and
discuss the history and future of warfare in every era and culture.
Join us in North Texas, or right here on the web.
Dr. Michael V. Leggiere, one of the leading historians in the world of the Napoleonic Wars, joined UNT and the Military History Center in 2008. Mike comes to us from LSU-Shreveport, where he taught Military, French, and German History for ten years. He received his PhD in history from the Florida State University after studying at the Institute on Napoleon and the French Revolution. Mike has published two acclaimed books, Napoleon and Berlin: The Franco-Prussian War in North Germany, 1813 (2002) and The Fall of Napoleon: the Allied Invasion of France, 1813-14 (2007). He is presently writing volume two of the Fall of Napoleon for Cambridge University Press, and is also writing a biography of Prussian Field Marshal Gebhard von Blücher and, for Yale University Press, a new history of the Battle of Waterloo. Mike is an active member of the Society for Military History and serves on the Board of Directors of the Consortium on the Revolutionary Era. At the Military History Center he will serve as Deputy Director. Mike enjoys teaching the French Revolution, Napoleon, the Age of Nationalism, and the military history of 18th century Europe.
The Military History Center is pleased to welcome Robert M. Citino (Ph.D., Indiana University, 1984) to the Department of History. Rob is the one of the country's most distinguished military historians. He is the author of eight books, most recently The German Way of War (2005) and Death of the Wehrmacht (2007), both of which were main selections of the History Book Club and the Military Book Club. His book Blitzkrieg to Desert Storm (2004) was the winner of both the American Historical Association's Paul M. Birdsall Prize for best book of the year in military and strategic history and the Society for Military History's Distinguished Book Award. In October 2007, his article "Military Histories Old and New: A Reintroduction" appeared in the American Historical Review, the first military history article to appear in the profession's journal of record in decades. He served as Book Review Editor for World War II magazine from 2004 to 2006, is currently the author of the magazine's blog "Front and Center", and has made numerous appearances on The History Channel. In 2007, he was named the "#1 Professor in the U.S." by 