For the Common Defense

Now fully updated and totally revised, this highly regarded classic remains the most comprehensive study available of America’s military history.

Dubbed “the preeminent survey of American military history” (Russell F. Weigley, author of The American Way of War), For the Common Defense has established itself as an essential fixture in the field. In this major revision, authors Allan R. Millett and Peter Maslowski add the last twenty years of the story to a meticulously researched, unbiased analysis that has already withstood the test of time.

While many books cover different chapters of the nation’s military history, only this one tackles the full narrative, examining the characteristics of our evolving military policy alongside the impact that policy has had on America’s international relations and domestic development. This latest incarnation, exhaustively revised, includes updates throughout that reflect current dialogues surrounding key moments in history. In addition to replacing chapters on Korea, Vietnam, and the collapsed Soviet Union, the authors have composed new sections on the complex role of war in the United States since 1994 and the War on Terror. An extraordinary accomplishment of research, analysis, and accessible writing on everything from pre-Revolutionary War battles to the fighting in Afghanistan, For the Common Defense is as relevant and important as ever.