School for Strategy: The Early Years

摘要

Washington was in a season of 'transition and uncertainty.' Emerging as the unmatched global power, supreme in military accomplishments and technological dominance, America was caught short by the emergence of a menacing adversary, one that did not mirror the characteristics of past opponents. While there was little shared knowledge about the enemy, there was a unique determination among senior military and political leaders to study and carefully analyze the character and conduct of this threat. There was also a determination to consider grand strategy and assess the 'interrelationship of military and nonmilitary means in the promulgation of national policy' to meet this challenge. It was early spring 1946, and the Nation was relaxed in the postwar glow of victory and returning troops. It was a time to anticipate peace and prosperity and savor the reward for years of sacrifice and loss. Yet by that same spring, some key military, diplomatic, and political officials had already come together to prepare a new generation of leaders to meet the next challenge to international stability and America's position in the world. General Dwight Eisenhower, Army Chief of Staff, Admiral Chester Nimitz, Chief of Naval Operations, James Forrestal, Secretary of the Navy, General Hap Arnold, and Vice Admiral Harry Hill had proposed the creation of a new senior-level college. This National War College would: prepare selected ground, air, and naval officers for the exercise of command and performance of joint staff duties in the highest echelons of the Armed Forces. promote the development of understanding between high echelons of the Armed Forces and those other agencies of government which are an essential part of a national war effort. Building on the work of the Army and Navy Staff College, established in 1943, the new school would have a unique structure and mission.