Battle Studies, Country Studies, & Staff Rides

The Philippine War thrust the U.S. into the center of Pacific and Asian politics, with important and sometimes tragic consequences. It kept the Filipinos under colonial overlordship for another five decades and subjected them to American political, cultural, and economic domination. Linn provides a treatment of military operations in the Philippines. From the pitched battles of the early war to the final campaigns against guerrillas, Linn traces the entire course of the conflict. More than an overview of Filipino resistance and American pacification, this is a detailed study of the fighting in the "boondocks." In addition to presenting a detailed military history of the war, Linn challenges previous interpretations. Rather than being a clash of armies or societies, the war was a series of regional struggles that differed greatly from island to island. By shifting away from the narrow focus on one or two provinces to encompass the entire archipelago, Linn offers a more thorough understanding of the entire war.

This work chronicles America's drive for empire at the dawn of the twentieth-century, culminating in the conquest of a fledging Asian republic. At the center of the story stands the dynamic Theodore Roosevelt, who pressures a reluctant President McKinley into war against Spain. The clash vaults America to world power and thrusts the nation into a war in the Philippines. On the eve of a new century, an up-and-coming Theodore Roosevelt set out to transform the U.S. into a major world power. The Spanish-American War would forever change America's standing in global affairs, and drive the young nation into its own imperial showdown in the Philippines. From Admiral George Dewey's legendary naval victory in Manila Bay to the Rough Riders' heroic charge up San Juan Hill, from Roosevelt's rise to the presidency amid national tragedy, to charges of U.S. military misconduct and torture in the Philippines, this work captures America's exuberant and at times painful coming of age in an era brimming with American optimism and confidence as the nation expanded its influence abroad.

The study offers new insights for counterinsurgency theory and for the study of America's military experience in Asia.