In 1959, the United States Air Force Academy's Department of History began the Harmon Lecture Service on Military History in memory of Lt. Gen. Hubert R. Harmon, first superintendent and "father" of the Academy. The series support two goals - to further encourage the awakened interest in military history that evolved after World War II and to stimulate cadets to develop a lifelong interest in the history of the military profession. This collection of the first thirty Harmon Memorial Lectures reflects the evolution in scholarship of prominent scholars working in military history over the past three decades. United States Air Force Academy, Office of Air Force History, United States Air Force.
In 1959 the United States Air Force Academy's Department of History began the Harmon Memorial Lecture Series on Military History in memory of Lt. Gen. Hubert R. Harmon, first superintendent and "father" of the Academy. The series supported two goals: to further encourage the awakened interest in military history that evolved after World War II and to stimulate cadets to develop a lifelong interest in the history of the military profession. Each year thereafter, a committee of nationally known civilian historians and Academy representatives selected an outstanding military historian to be the annual lecturer. Beginning in 1970, the Harmon Lecture also served as the keynote address for the Academy's biennial Military History Symposium. This collection of the first thirty Harmon Memorial Lectures reflects the evolution in scholarship of prominent scholars working in military history over the past three decades. In keeping with the purpose of the series, the Academy publishes and distributes each lecture to Air Force and Department of Defense agencies, university libraries, and scholars throughout the United States and abroad. A number of lectures are used in courses at the Academy, and we receive many requests for them from civilian scholars and military personnel. Consequently, the Academy's Department of History and the Office of Air Force History have decided to publish the first thirty lectures under one cover, thereby making them more available. In this way, we continue to honor the memory of General Harmon, who during his lifetime developed a deep and abiding interest in military history and contributed so much to establishing the United States Air Force Academy.
Military history is no longer a compartmentalized area of study with a myopic focus on battlefield tactics and outcomes that pays little heed to societal influences. The new military history, born in the 1960s, recognizes that military history is as much a product of social factors--such as politics and economics--as a shaping influence on society. Lt. Gen. Hubert R. Harmon, first superintendent of the U.S. Air Force Academy, was a strong advocate of the study of military history to both understand the world we live in and to shape its destiny. As a tribute to his distinguished career, the Academy started a military history lecture series named after him in 1959. This volume consolidates all the Harmon Lectures through 1987, grouping them by theme. The lectures cover a wide range of topics and eras from revolutionary America and tsarist Russia to contemporary problems in twentieth century warfare and U.S. Air Force doctrine. Keywords: Lectures, Military art, Military science, Military forces(United States), Biographies, Leadership, Soldiers, Military strategy, Military tactics, Military doctrine, Lessons learned.
Colonel Wells investigates the nature of aerial warfare and the men who took part. The book analyzes aircrew selection, reaction to combat, adaptability to stress, morale, leadership and combat effectiveness, and compares the efforts of the US Eighth Air Force and RAF Bomber Command.
