Journal of Military History
Vol. 90, No. 1
January 2026
Articles
“Reconsidering Pērōz’s Generalship at the Battle of Merv (484): Lessons Learned or Lessons Missed?” by Georgios Theotokis, 9–30
The Sassanids engaged in a series of conflicts with the Hephthalites between 474 and 484; the most significant culminated at the Battle of Merv in 484 with the death of King Pērōz I on the field of battle, plunging the Sassanid Empire into a protracted political crisis. This paper reconsiders Pērōz’s generalship and the tactics at the Battle of Merv, focusing on the use of the battlefield trench by the Hephthalite Huns. By building up a picture of how accurate our primary sources are in their description of the battlefield and how detailed are the accounts about the preparations for the battle by the Hephthalite troops, it explains King Pērōz’s decision to ignore lessons from previous battles against steppe armies and order a full-scale charge against the Hephthalite army.
“Ferdinand Foch and the Operational Level of War, Part 1: “Scientific” Battle and Operational Effectiveness on the Industrialized Battlefield,” by William Philpott, 31–56
This article explains the first stage of a two-stage process by which Ferdinand Foch, France’s pre-eminent pre-war military theorist, mastered the First World War’s static industrialized battlefield and delivered victory by rethinking warfare from first principles. At the emergent operational level of war, battle had to be appropriate to the forces, abilities, and objectives of armies. Evaluating his early operational command experience in 1914 and 1915 in the light of his pre-war thought, Foch advocated a new “scientific” battle operational method attuned to battlefield realities. The scientific method ensured appropriate command and control and the integration of material and manpower that restored operational effectiveness by the late 1916 Battle of the Somme.
“Lieutenant Colonel Farman’s War: Attaché Intelligence and the Polish-Soviet Conflict, 1919–1921,” by Matthew R. Schwonek, 57–85
Lieutenant Colonel (acting) Elbert E. Farman Jr., the first U.S. military attaché to Poland, arrived at his new post as the war with the Russian Soviet Republic got underway. His reports and dispatches to the Military Intelligence Division (MID) offered the War Department and other agencies essential data and analysis on not only Poland’s war effort but also Soviet capabilities and operations. This accounting later became the basis of the first English-language monograph treating the 1920 campaign. Farman’s contributions, taken together, offer a picture of uncertain governments, rude conditions, and ragged armies. Despite the conditions, in this fight over lands and peoples, the two sides waged guerre à outrance. Political violence was a feature, and noncombatants paid a heavy price. The contest presented operational changes from the Great War, and Farman analyzed mobile warfare in the region. Farman’s reports illuminate a critical episode in miliary and diplomatic history—the reconstruction of East Central Europe. Analysis offers insight into the attaché, his role, and the problem of attaché intelligence.
“Bottleneck: The Supply of Liquid Oxygen for the German V-2 Rocket,” by Georg Schmundt-Thomas, 86–113
While the lack of propellants as factor in the strategic defeat of the Luftwaffe in WWII has been well documented, the centrality of liquid oxygen to the German rocket program has been overlooked. Based on new archival research of surviving V-2 files, this study argues that building and protecting the liquid oxygen supply network, given the “use it or lose it” characteristics of the substance, became the over-riding operational focus of military program leadership. The scope of oxygen supply was neither reduced nor challenged throughout the war, suggesting the Reich saw a strategic role for the weapon.
“Revisiting the Nazi-Fascist Military Alliance: Italo-German Rivalry and Cooperation during the Mediterranean War, 1940–1943,” by Richard Hammond, 114–37
Historians have generally presented the wartime alliance between Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy as one of incoherence that followed a broadly linear path of decline until its violent denouement. While true for many aspects of the war, there were some exceptions. This article focuses on the Mediterranean war (1940–1943), examining it at different levels. It demonstrates that there, the relationship both declined and improved simultaneously. While Italo-German command relationships in the Mediterranean became increasingly toxic, tactical and technical coordination became closer and more effective. It is too simplistic to view the Italo-German wartime military relationship as one solely characterized by incoherence, decline, mistrust, and rivalry.
“Anchors of Alliance: How the Italian Royal Navy Shaped the Israeli Navy and Contributed to the Establishment of the State of Israel,” by Cristina M. Bettin and Samuele A. Rocca, 138–62
This article explores the strategic alliance between the Italian Royal Navy and the Jewish Yishuv in Mandatory Palestine after World War II. It highlights two main contributions: facilitating Aliyah Bet, the clandestine immigration of thousands of Holocaust survivors to Palestine by sea, and training recruits for the nascent Israeli navy. These efforts, the article argues, were instrumental in the eventual establishment of the State of Israel. While Aliyah Bet has received considerable scholarly attention, the Italian navy’s involvement in supporting and shaping Israel’s maritime forces remains largely overlooked. This study seeks to illuminate that crucial yet understudied dimension.
Women’s Contested Integration into the U.S. Military and the Persistent Inequities That Affect Their Health and Well-Being,” by Veronica X. Vela and Daniel Habib, 163–75
This paper surveys the progressive integration of women into the military and women’s compensation and benefits during and after their service. The study traces the historical milestones of women’s military participation, highlighting differences in military status, compensation and benefits. Over time, the need for larger forces led to the expansion of women’s roles and movement towards equality in military status, pay and rank. Once women secured equality in these areas, however, differences in benefits and healthcare remained. Today, women veterans represent a rapidly growing demographic, yet inequities persist.
Book Reviews:
Leaving the Fight: Surrender, Prisoners of War, and Detainees in Western Warfare, by John A. Lynn II, reviewed by Darian Abenes, 176–77
The Mask: A History of Breathing Bad Air, by Bruno J. Strasser and Thomas Schlich, reviewed by Thomas I. Faith, 178–79
Landscapes of Warfare: Urartu and Assyria in the Ancient Middle East, by Tiffany Earley-Spadoni, reviewed by Seth Richardson, 179–81
The Rise of Persia and the First Greco-Persian Wars: The Expansion of the Achaemenid Empire and the Battle of Marathon, by Manousos E. Kambouris, reviewed by Jim Tucci, 181–83
Steel Lobsters: Crown, Commonwealth, and the Last Knights in England, by Myke Cole, reviewed by Steven Isaac, 183–84
The Wars of the Lord: The Puritan Conquest of America’s First People, by Matthew J. Tuininga, reviewed by Richard M. McGee, 185–86
Cherokee Power: Imperial and Indigenous Geopolitics in the Trans-Appalachian West, 1670–1774, by Kristofer Ray, reviewed by Stuart H. Marshall, 186–88
The Pirate Menace: Uncovering the Golden Age of Piracy, by Angus Konstam, reviewed by Anne Marie Martin, 188–90
Backcountry War: The Rise of Francis Marion, Banastre Tarleton, and Thomas Sumter, by Andrew Waters, reviewed by Alexander M. Humes, 190–91
I Have Avenged America: Jean-Jacques Dessalines and Haiti’s Fight for Freedom, by Julia Gaffield, reviewed by Carolyn Fick, 192–93
The Clausewitz Myth: Or the Emperor’s New Clothes, by Azar Gat, reviewed by Antulio J. Echevarria II, 193–95
Vigilance is Not Enough: A History of United States Intelligence, by Mark M. Lowenthal, reviewed by Sarah-Jane Corke, 195–96
Quartermaster of Conquest: The Mexican-American War and the Making of South Texas, 1846–1860, by Christopher N. Menking, reviewed by Marlon Londoño, 197–98
Green & Blue: Irish Americans in the Union Military, 1861–1865, by Damian Shiels, reviewed by Catherine V. Bateson, 199–200
Civil War Cavalry: Waging Mounted Warfare in Nineteenth-Century America, by Earl J. Hess, reviewed by Gervase Phillips, 200–2
Our Onward March: The Grand Army of the Republic in the Progressive Era, by Jonathan D. Neu, reviewed by Brian Matthew Jordan, 202–4
Ireland’s Opportunity: Global Irish Nationalism and the South African War, by Shane Lynn, reviewed by Brendon G. Floyd, 204–6
Fort Monmouth: The US Army’s House of Magic, by Melissa Ziobro, reviewed by John M. Hinck, 206–7
Soldiers and Gentlemen: A History of the University and Public Schools Brigade of the Royal Fusiliers, 1914–1918, by Colin W. Taylor, reviewed by Sebastian H. Lukasik, 208–9
Raid and Reconciliation: Pancho Villa, Modernization, and Violence in the U.S.-Mexico Borderlands, by Brandon Morgan, reviewed by Graydon Dennison, 209–11
Black Soldiers, White Laws: The Tragedy of the 24th Infantry in 1917 Houston, by John A. Haymond, reviewed by Jacob Mach, 211–13
Blitzkrieg and the Russian Art of War, by Andrew Monaghan, reviewed by Roger Reese, 213–14
The Sonoran Dynasty in Mexico: Revolution, Reform, and Repression, by Jürgen Buchenau, reviewed by Ellen D. Tillman, 215–16
Innovation and Adaptation in War, by Matthew A. Tattar, reviewed by Kendrick Kuo, 216–18
Marshall’s Great Captain: Lieutenant General Frank M. Andrews and Air Power in the World Wars, by Kathy Wilson, reviewed by Rob Citino, 218–20
A Search for Strategy: British-American Collaboration in 1942, by John F. Shortal, reviewed by Carson Teuscher, 220–21
Nimitz’s Newsman: Waldo Drake and the Navy’s Censored War in the Pacific, by Hamilton Bean, reviewed by Andrew Livsey, 222–23
Rhino Tanks and Sticky Bombs: GI Ingenuity in World War II, by Robert P. Wettemann Jr., reviewed by Nicholas Sambaluk, 223–25
Mediterranean Sweep: The USAAF in the Italian Campaign, by Thomas McKelvey Cleaver, reviewed by Robert H. Clemm, 225–27
Fascist Italy at War: Men and Materiel, by James J. Sadkovich, reviewed by Michael Bird Limmer, 227–28
Empire of Rags and Bones: Waste and War in Nazi Germany, by Anne Berg, reviewed by Manuela Achilles, 229–30
No Average Day: The 24 Hours of October 24, 1944, by Rona Simmons, reviewed by Hannah Palsa, 230–31
The Fifteen: Murder, Retribution, and the Forgotten Story of Nazi POWs in America, by William Geroux, reviewed by James Witkoski, 232–33
Taming America’s Warriors: Assessing U.S. Military Discipline and Responses to Law of War Violations, 1943–2006, by Scott Dale Hamm, reviewed by Jack Emery, 234–35
Homosexuality in the German Armed Forces: A History of Taboo and Tolerance, by Klaus Storkmann, reviewed by Andrew Wackerfuss, 235–37
Frontier Science: Northern Canada, Military Research, and the Cold War, 1945–1970, by Matthew S. Wiseman, reviewed by Ronald E. Doel, 237–39
Marines in Crisis: The Cold War Transformation of the U.S. Marine Corps, 1947–1995, by Charles P. Neimeyer, reviewed by William R. Patterson, 239–41
Sand, Snow, and Stardust: How US Military Engineers Conquered Extreme Environments, by Gretchen Heefner, reviewed by José de Arimatéia da Cruz, 241–43
Korea: War Without End, by Richard Dannatt and Robert Lyman, reviewed by Zach Wriston, 243–44
The End of Empires: A Global History of Decolonization, by Martin Thomas, reviewed by Jason Parker, 245–46
The Airborne Mafia: The Paratroopers who Shaped America’s Cold War Army, by Robert F. Williams, reviewed by Brian Davis Jr., 246–48
Moshe Dayan: The Making of a Strategist, by Eitan Shamir, reviewed by Ilan Zvi Baron, 248–50
A Military History of the New World Disorder, 1989–2022, by Jonathan M. House, reviewed by David R. Gray, 250–52
Preserving the Legacy: Creating the National WWII Museum, by Gordon H. Mueller, reviewed by Adam Givens, 252–53
Kill Talk: Language and Military Necropolitics, by Janet McIntosh, reviewed by Thomas Gregory, 254–55
States Without People: Revolt and Defeat in the Middle East, by Billie Jeanne Brownlee and Maziyar Ghiabi, reviewed by Kate Tietzen-Wisdom, 255–57
The Wagner Group: Inside Russia’s Mercenary Army, by Jack Margolin, reviewed by Mark Thomas-Patterson, 257–59
Battleground Ukraine: From Independence to the War with Russia, by Adrian Karatnycky, reviewed by Jeff Hawn, 259–60
Ground Combat: Puncturing the Myths of Modern War, by Ben Connable, reviewed by Jeremy Black, 260–62
BOOKS RECEIVED: 264–65
RECENT JOURNAL ARTICLES: 266–72
Leaving the Fight: Surrender, Prisoners of War, and Detainees in Western Warfare, by John A. Lynn II, reviewed by Darian Abenes, 176–77
The Mask: A History of Breathing Bad Air, by Bruno J. Strasser and Thomas Schlich, reviewed by Thomas I. Faith, 178–79
Landscapes of Warfare: Urartu and Assyria in the Ancient Middle East, by Tiffany Earley-Spadoni, reviewed by Seth Richardson, 179–81
The Rise of Persia and the First Greco-Persian Wars: The Expansion of the Achaemenid Empire and the Battle of Marathon, by Manousos E. Kambouris, reviewed by Jim Tucci, 181–83
Steel Lobsters: Crown, Commonwealth, and the Last Knights in England, by Myke Cole, reviewed by Steven Isaac, 183–84
The Wars of the Lord: The Puritan Conquest of America’s First People, by Matthew J. Tuininga, reviewed by Richard M. McGee, 185–86
Cherokee Power: Imperial and Indigenous Geopolitics in the Trans-Appalachian West, 1670–1774, by Kristofer Ray, reviewed by Stuart H. Marshall, 186–88
The Pirate Menace: Uncovering the Golden Age of Piracy, by Angus Konstam, reviewed by Anne Marie Martin, 188–90
Backcountry War: The Rise of Francis Marion, Banastre Tarleton, and Thomas Sumter, by Andrew Waters, reviewed by Alexander M. Humes, 190–91
I Have Avenged America: Jean-Jacques Dessalines and Haiti’s Fight for Freedom, by Julia Gaffield, reviewed by Carolyn Fick, 192–93
The Clausewitz Myth: Or the Emperor’s New Clothes, by Azar Gat, reviewed by Antulio J. Echevarria II, 193–95
Vigilance is Not Enough: A History of United States Intelligence, by Mark M. Lowenthal, reviewed by Sarah-Jane Corke, 195–96
Quartermaster of Conquest: The Mexican-American War and the Making of South Texas, 1846–1860, by Christopher N. Menking, reviewed by Marlon Londoño, 197–98
Green & Blue: Irish Americans in the Union Military, 1861–1865, by Damian Shiels, reviewed by Catherine V. Bateson, 199–200
Civil War Cavalry: Waging Mounted Warfare in Nineteenth-Century America, by Earl J. Hess, reviewed by Gervase Phillips, 200–2
Our Onward March: The Grand Army of the Republic in the Progressive Era, by Jonathan D. Neu, reviewed by Brian Matthew Jordan, 202–4
Ireland’s Opportunity: Global Irish Nationalism and the South African War, by Shane Lynn, reviewed by Brendon G. Floyd, 204–6
Fort Monmouth: The US Army’s House of Magic, by Melissa Ziobro, reviewed by John M. Hinck, 206–7
Soldiers and Gentlemen: A History of the University and Public Schools Brigade of the Royal Fusiliers, 1914–1918, by Colin W. Taylor, reviewed by Sebastian H. Lukasik, 208–9
Raid and Reconciliation: Pancho Villa, Modernization, and Violence in the U.S.-Mexico Borderlands, by Brandon Morgan, reviewed by Graydon Dennison, 209–11
Black Soldiers, White Laws: The Tragedy of the 24th Infantry in 1917 Houston, by John A. Haymond, reviewed by Jacob Mach, 211–13
Blitzkrieg and the Russian Art of War, by Andrew Monaghan, reviewed by Roger Reese, 213–14
The Sonoran Dynasty in Mexico: Revolution, Reform, and Repression, by Jürgen Buchenau, reviewed by Ellen D. Tillman, 215–16
Innovation and Adaptation in War, by Matthew A. Tattar, reviewed by Kendrick Kuo, 216–18
Marshall’s Great Captain: Lieutenant General Frank M. Andrews and Air Power in the World Wars, by Kathy Wilson, reviewed by Rob Citino, 218–20
A Search for Strategy: British-American Collaboration in 1942, by John F. Shortal, reviewed by Carson Teuscher, 220–21
Nimitz’s Newsman: Waldo Drake and the Navy’s Censored War in the Pacific, by Hamilton Bean, reviewed by Andrew Livsey, 222–23
Rhino Tanks and Sticky Bombs: GI Ingenuity in World War II, by Robert P. Wettemann Jr., reviewed by Nicholas Sambaluk, 223–25
Mediterranean Sweep: The USAAF in the Italian Campaign, by Thomas McKelvey Cleaver, reviewed by Robert H. Clemm, 225–27
Fascist Italy at War: Men and Materiel, by James J. Sadkovich, reviewed by Michael Bird Limmer, 227–28
Empire of Rags and Bones: Waste and War in Nazi Germany, by Anne Berg, reviewed by Manuela Achilles, 229–30
No Average Day: The 24 Hours of October 24, 1944, by Rona Simmons, reviewed by Hannah Palsa, 230–31
The Fifteen: Murder, Retribution, and the Forgotten Story of Nazi POWs in America, by William Geroux, reviewed by James Witkoski, 232–33
Taming America’s Warriors: Assessing U.S. Military Discipline and Responses to Law of War Violations, 1943–2006, by Scott Dale Hamm, reviewed by Jack Emery, 234–35
Homosexuality in the German Armed Forces: A History of Taboo and Tolerance, by Klaus Storkmann, reviewed by Andrew Wackerfuss, 235–37
Frontier Science: Northern Canada, Military Research, and the Cold War, 1945–1970, by Matthew S. Wiseman, reviewed by Ronald E. Doel, 237–39
Marines in Crisis: The Cold War Transformation of the U.S. Marine Corps, 1947–1995, by Charles P. Neimeyer, reviewed by William R. Patterson, 239–41
Sand, Snow, and Stardust: How US Military Engineers Conquered Extreme Environments, by Gretchen Heefner, reviewed by José de Arimatéia da Cruz, 241–43
Korea: War Without End, by Richard Dannatt and Robert Lyman, reviewed by Zach Wriston, 243–44
The End of Empires: A Global History of Decolonization, by Martin Thomas, reviewed by Jason Parker, 245–46
The Airborne Mafia: The Paratroopers who Shaped America’s Cold War Army, by Robert F. Williams, reviewed by Brian Davis Jr., 246–48
Moshe Dayan: The Making of a Strategist, by Eitan Shamir, reviewed by Ilan Zvi Baron, 248–50
A Military History of the New World Disorder, 1989–2022, by Jonathan M. House, reviewed by David R. Gray, 250–52
Preserving the Legacy: Creating the National WWII Museum, by Gordon H. Mueller, reviewed by Adam Givens, 252–53
Kill Talk: Language and Military Necropolitics, by Janet McIntosh, reviewed by Thomas Gregory, 254–55
States Without People: Revolt and Defeat in the Middle East, by Billie Jeanne Brownlee and Maziyar Ghiabi, reviewed by Kate Tietzen-Wisdom, 255–57
The Wagner Group: Inside Russia’s Mercenary Army, by Jack Margolin, reviewed by Mark Thomas-Patterson, 257–59
Battleground Ukraine: From Independence to the War with Russia, by Adrian Karatnycky, reviewed by Jeff Hawn, 259–60
Ground Combat: Puncturing the Myths of Modern War, by Ben Connable, reviewed by Jeremy Black, 260–62
BOOKS RECEIVED: 264–65
RECENT JOURNAL ARTICLES: 266–72
