American Military History: From Colonials to Counterinsurgents

Exploring The French and Indian War of the mid-1700s, which is one of the formative conflicts in American military history; focusing on the experiences of Lt. Col. George Washington, a young colonial officer fighting for the British.

When the colonies begin their struggle for independence, they choose George Washington to lead the army; Washington's defense of Boston; his defeat trying to hold New York City; contrasting British and American objectives in the Revolutionary War.

Washington's army is in dire straits; his command is in question; he revives his reputation with the famous crossing of the Delaware River; the next four years of the American Revolution, which see Britain's strategic advantage deteriorate.

Why the United States chooses to fight Britain in the War of 1812; America's grievances and ambitions, which include the conquest of Canada; the poor strategy, command and training that lead to a strategic stalemate; the exception is Andrew Jackson.

The continental U.S. reaches its present span due to the Mexican-American War; the strategies and tactics of generals Zachary Taylor and Winfield Scott; what disciplined and bold maneuvers conducted by a professional army can accomplish.

The Civil War sets the pattern for warfare in the 20th and 21st centuries; the political events leading up to the war; the strategy devised by Winfield Scott; the chaotic First Battle of Bull Run; developments in the western theater.

The ebb and flow of battle in the eastern theater; President Lincoln promotes and fires top commanders; The South faces instability in its top ranks until Robert E. Lee becomes the Rebel army's leader; following events through the Battle of Antietam.

In the summer of 1863, the Civil War reaches a climax on two fronts; studying the generalship of Grant in isolating and defeating the Confederate force defending Vicksburg; dissecting Gen. George Meade's tactics that halt Lee's invasion of the North.

The dramatic endgame of the Civil War; Gen. William T. Sherman outmaneuvers Confederate forces in the west to take Atlanta; Grant fights Lee across Virginia; Lee surrenders at Appomattox on Apr. 9, 1865; the murderous toll of the war.

America fights a major war with Spain over its misrule of Spanish colonies; investigating the naval action at Manila Bay and the Rough Riders' assault up San Juan Heights; looking at the insurgency that frustrates American peace efforts.

Surveying World War I; the causes of the conflict; the rival alliances; the failure of Germany's opening gambit; tracing America's belated entry into the war; how Gen. John J. Pershing is chosen to command the American Expeditionary Force.

America joins the fight against Germany; U.S. commanders face a steep learning curve, initially using tactics unsuited to mechanized warfare; the hard-won lessons that allow the U.S. to break the stalemate, driving Germany to accept an armistice.

Two decades after World War I, Germany is ready to fight again; America's preparations for war; its reaction to Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor; Germany's declaration of war against the U.S.; how the U.S. Navy halts Japanese expansion in the Pacific.

President Franklin Roosevelt's strategic dilemma in fighting Germany and Japan; the views of George Marshall and Ernest King; the thoughts of Winston Churchill and Joseph Stalin; why the North Africa campaign is vital; actions in the South Pacific.

The importance of air power in World War II; comparing American and British bombing strategies; the Allied land offensive from North Africa to Sicily to the Italian peninsula; America's campaign in the Pacific; the Battle of the Philippine Sea.

Going ashore on D-Day; tracking the Allied invasion through its breakout from the beachhead and reversals such as the Battle of the Bulge; following Pacific troops to the brink of a planned invasion of Japan; examining the B-29 bombing campaign.

The two rival systems of the U.S. and the Soviet Union clash in Korea in a war that is vicious and inconclusive; America's part in this opening shot of the Cold War; the controversial role of Douglas MacArthur, the U.S. commander in Korea.

Gen. Clark introduces the Vietnam War; the background of the war; how America is drawn deeper and deeper into the conflict; discussing Gen. William Westmoreland's initial American strategy, which proves ineffective for dealing with an insurgency.

The new approach to winning the Vietnam War that is instituted after Gen. Creighton Abrams takes over in 1968; the firefight that abruptly ends Gen. Clark's tour of duty; a sober evaluation of how the disastrous end of the war might be averted.

Exploring the American military's struggle to overcome Vietnam Syndrome; two operations that demonstrate renewed vitality, which are the U.S. invasions of Grenada and Panama; the operations restore democratic rule amid worsening political turmoil.

America rebuilds its war-fighting capability in the 1980s; how this expertise is put to use in 1991 to eject Iraq from Kuwait; with Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf in command, U.S. and coalition forces execute a classic envelopment of the Iraqi army.

Gen. Clark is the head of NATO forces during the Kosovo War of 1998-1999, directing a bombing offensive that defeats an attempted Yugoslav takeover of Kosovo, applying strategic lessons to a conflict rife with ethnic and international tensions.

The terrorist attacks of Sep. 11, 2001, spark a U.S. military response like no other; charting the 2003 invasion of Iraq, another success in regime change; unfortunately, initial victory in both cases evolves into a no-win struggle with insurgents.

Why U.S. troops face endless low-level warfare in Afghanistan and Iraq; reviewing the lessons of American military history; America's challenge for staying preeminent in military technology; insights from Gen. Clark's lifetime of service.