By SSG Rich Stowell
Pardon the sensational title, but we still think these are five things you probably didn't know about military history, customs, and equipment. And we won't make you click through a bunch of annoying slides!
Infantry was declared useless in the 1930s
After the stalemate of World War I, military planners in developed nations went back to the drawing board to devise new fighting strategies that wouldn’t result in massive troop losses. The tank held the promise of breaking the deathly standoffs of trench warfare, and added protection to its occupants. The leading military theorist of the interwar period was a British officer named J. F. C. Fuller. He believed that tanks would make the infantry obsolete. Of the tank’s influence on future war, Fuller wrote,
Jeep wasn’t the first car company to make Jeeps
The history of the Jeep is near legendary. Mass-produced for the Army beginning in 1940, the Jeep quickly became the iconic vehicle of World War II, and later as the symbol of all-terrain wheeling. But the first Army Jeep was designed and manufactured by a company called American Bantam, an offshoot of the British Austin Motor Company. Bantam couldn’t supply the Army will all its needs, so the bulk of production went to Willys-Overland, which was later bought by Kaiser Motors. It became Kaiser-Jeep in the 1960s, and was sold to American Motors in 1970. Today Jeep is owned by Fiat.
It’s called “concertina” wire
Razor wire is a staple in all military fortifications. It’s is light, easily transported, and simple to emplace. It is sometimes known as “Dannert” wire, for the German Horst Danner, who developed a form of steel that was harder to cut than ordinary barbed wire. It gets its designation as “concertina” from its similarity to a concertina, an accordion-like instrument (it’s often mistakenly called “Constantine” wire). A spool of concertina wire can be carried by a single soldier and expanded to 50 yards or more. Now you know what the word actually is.
The U.S. was supposed to lose the Mexican War
In 1846, the United States went to war with Mexico. At the time, the northern Americans had a small, rag-tag military, while their southern neighbors boasted a battle-tested professional force led by Gen. Santa Anna. Santa Anna was regarded as a brilliant field commander, and many prominent European military thinkers predicted the U.S. would lose the contest. Most prominently, the Field Marshal Arthur Wellesley, better known as the 1st Duke of Wellington, believed that Mexico would prevail. On paper it had a better army and home field advantage. U.S. commander Gen. Winfield Scott took Mexico City against all odds, and against Wellington’s prediction. After the campaign Wellington declared Scott to be the “greatest living general.”
There was no Department of Defense until after World War II
While the U.S. Army, Navy, Marine Corps and even the National Guard are all older than the United States, the Department under whose authority they operate is pretty young. The unified Department of Defense was created in 1949, four years after the conclusion of World War II. Prior to that, military action was organized under the War Department (established 1789) and the Department of the Navy (established 1798).
Pardon the sensational title, but we still think these are five things you probably didn't know about military history, customs, and equipment. And we won't make you click through a bunch of annoying slides!
Infantry was declared useless in the 1930sAfter the stalemate of World War I, military planners in developed nations went back to the drawing board to devise new fighting strategies that wouldn’t result in massive troop losses. The tank held the promise of breaking the deathly standoffs of trench warfare, and added protection to its occupants. The leading military theorist of the interwar period was a British officer named J. F. C. Fuller. He believed that tanks would make the infantry obsolete. Of the tank’s influence on future war, Fuller wrote,
Cavalry is likely to disappear, except perhaps as mounted police; infantry may become the “queen of fortresses,” but on the battlefield the rule of this monarch is rapidly drawing to an end, for without offensive power this queen is bereft of her crown.
Jeep wasn’t the first car company to make JeepsThe history of the Jeep is near legendary. Mass-produced for the Army beginning in 1940, the Jeep quickly became the iconic vehicle of World War II, and later as the symbol of all-terrain wheeling. But the first Army Jeep was designed and manufactured by a company called American Bantam, an offshoot of the British Austin Motor Company. Bantam couldn’t supply the Army will all its needs, so the bulk of production went to Willys-Overland, which was later bought by Kaiser Motors. It became Kaiser-Jeep in the 1960s, and was sold to American Motors in 1970. Today Jeep is owned by Fiat.
It’s called “concertina” wireRazor wire is a staple in all military fortifications. It’s is light, easily transported, and simple to emplace. It is sometimes known as “Dannert” wire, for the German Horst Danner, who developed a form of steel that was harder to cut than ordinary barbed wire. It gets its designation as “concertina” from its similarity to a concertina, an accordion-like instrument (it’s often mistakenly called “Constantine” wire). A spool of concertina wire can be carried by a single soldier and expanded to 50 yards or more. Now you know what the word actually is.
The U.S. was supposed to lose the Mexican WarIn 1846, the United States went to war with Mexico. At the time, the northern Americans had a small, rag-tag military, while their southern neighbors boasted a battle-tested professional force led by Gen. Santa Anna. Santa Anna was regarded as a brilliant field commander, and many prominent European military thinkers predicted the U.S. would lose the contest. Most prominently, the Field Marshal Arthur Wellesley, better known as the 1st Duke of Wellington, believed that Mexico would prevail. On paper it had a better army and home field advantage. U.S. commander Gen. Winfield Scott took Mexico City against all odds, and against Wellington’s prediction. After the campaign Wellington declared Scott to be the “greatest living general.”
There was no Department of Defense until after World War II
While the U.S. Army, Navy, Marine Corps and even the National Guard are all older than the United States, the Department under whose authority they operate is pretty young. The unified Department of Defense was created in 1949, four years after the conclusion of World War II. Prior to that, military action was organized under the War Department (established 1789) and the Department of the Navy (established 1798).
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