Mexican War: Perspectives on Force Projection, Then and Now
Abstract
The National Military Strategy of the United States is built upon the crucial element of power projection and the military's ability to plan and execute force projection operations to defend and protect U.S. national interests. Is force projection doctrine new or is its lineage vested in America's first foreign war, the Mexican War, 1846-1848? Paralleling today's Army doctrine, does the historical perspective of the Mexican War validate the force projection process, and are there enduring fundamentals that should guide military strategy in the future? The answers to these questions will be derived by an examination of the Mexico City campaign. This was the decisive campaign of the Mexican War that took the United States Army into Mexico's heartland. The outcome of this campaign, and ultimately the war, was embedded in America's ability to project and sustain its combat forces in a foreign land. This was a mammoth task, a task that could only be accomplished through decisive leadership and the struggles and hardships that soldiers, sailors, and marines endured.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Apr 10, 2000
- Accession Number
- ADA378199
Entities
People
- Peter J. Gitto
Organizations
- United States Army War College