Military

A military or military force (n., from Latin militarius, miles "soldier") has seen many different incarnations throughout time. Early armies may have been just men with sharpened sticks and rocks, through time they have included advancements such as men mounted on horses, men wielding swords and other metallic weapons, the bow and arrow, seige weapons, to the advance of the musket which form the roots of the armed force of most nations we know today. In modern times people use vehicles and guns.

Reference

Major books for understanding the role of the military, and the civilian leadership of the military.

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• Why the Allies Won (WWII} by Richard Overy ISBN 0-393-03925-0
• Many books about WWII, and other wars, focus on the military battles and campaigns. This one focuses on support roles that gave the Allies the edge when the Axis seemed to be ahead in so many senses.
• There was a structure of Scientific Management in the USA, unheard of in the Axis Powers.
• Russia relocated their industry far from the front.
• Axis nations military, particularly in Japan, had an adversarial relationship that was more important to them than the best interests of their nations.
• Allied interception of coded radio signals, and strict secrecy of what they learned from this.
• Allied sophisticated deception.
• Misleading Germany about the Normandy invasion.
• Commando raids were exceptionally successful, such as in figuring out how German Radar functioned, so as to get the correct dimensions for Chaff to Spoof it, but they were trumpeted as failures so as not to tip off German Military Intelligence about the purpose of the raids.
• In Nazi Germany no reputable Aryan wanted to have anything to do with science that had been invented by a Jew. This is one reason why Hitler never developed the Atomic Bomb.
• The Complete Idiot's Guide to the Pentagon by "Jeff Cateau" and Michael Levin. An entertaining explanation of the U.S. military and how it is run.
• Get Yamamoto by Burke Davis, Published by Random House in 1969. During WW II, the USA intercepted top secret communications about a tour of forward bases to be conducted by Admiral Yamamoto, commander of the Japanese Navy. This led to a successful mission to intercept his flight and kill him, the theory being that the Japanese would be handicapped without his leadership.

Periodicals

• Aviation Week and Space Technology
• Defense News
• Jane's Defense Weekly