Episode 71 – DiMarco on Replacements and Reconstitution in WWII

FM 3-0 Operations 2025 says that “Some combination of maneuver and attrition is typically necessary to achieve victory during armed conflict.” Dr. Jonathan Abel discusses the process of replacements and reconstitution in the European Theater of Operations in World War II with Drs. Bill Nance, co-host, and Dr. Lou DiMarco. They detail how replacements were produced and how the system worked. They explore how reconstitution enabled units to re-man and re-equip after significant loss. Finally, they conclude by examining what modern warfighters can learn from large-scale attritional warfare in the past. “History is only a confused heap of facts.” – Philip Dormer Stanhope, Earl of Chesterfield Host: Dr. Jonathan Abel, CGSC DMHDMH Podcast Team: Drs. Jonathan Abel, Mark Gerges, and Bill NanceArtwork: Daniel O. NealMusic: SSG Noah Taylor, West Point Band

Dr. Jonathan Abel and Dr. Bill Nance talk Operation Southern Watch with Dr. John Kuehn, US Navy (Retired). They explain why Desert Storm wasn’t actually the end of the story in Iraq. They explore how the no-fly zones were set up over Iraq, and their purpose. Dr. Kuehn walks through how missions in Southern Watch worked. They conclude with an examination of the strengths and weaknesses of no-fly zones in subsequent conflicts. Listener caution: some explicit language. “History is only a confused heap of facts.” – Philip Dormer Stanhope, Earl of Chesterfield Host: Dr. Jonathan Abel, CGSC DMHDMH Podcast Team: Drs. Jonathan Abel, Mark Gerges, and Bill NanceArtwork: Daniel O. NealMusic: SSG Noah Taylor, West Point Band

Dr. Jonathan Abel sits down with Dr. Bill Nance to discuss how the US Army prepared for World War II. They begin with the period of austerity in the 1920s and the three competing Army missions in the Philippines, on the Mexican border, and training at home. They move through the era of rising tensions in the 1930s as George Marshall worked to build cadres for a future conscript army. They conclude by examining the early years of the war and how that system came to fruition to provide the armies that won the war for the US. “History is only a confused heap of facts.” – Philip Dormer Stanhope, Earl of Chesterfield Host: Dr. Jonathan Abel, CGSC DMHDMH Podcast Team: Drs. Jonathan Abel, Mark Gerges, and Bill NanceArtwork: Daniel O. NealMusic: SSG Noah Taylor, West Point Band

Dr. Jonathan Abel, joined by Dr. Bill Nance, talk with Dr. Scott Moseman about strategic military intelligence between its birth in the US and the end of World War II. They begin by detailing what intelligence is and how it operates on each level of war. They explain how it came about in the Army and Navy. They explore how it went through a fallow period in the early twentieth century. They examine how it worked in the World Wars, especially the Second Conflict. “History is only a confused heap of facts.” – Philip Dormer Stanhope, Earl of Chesterfield Host: Dr. Jonathan Abel, CGSC DMHDMH Podcast Team: Drs. Jonathan Abel, Mark Gerges, and Bill NanceArtwork: Daniel O. NealMusic: SSG Noah Taylor, West Point Band

Drs. Jonathan Abel and Bill Nance are joined by Drs. Mark Gerges and Sanders Marble, Senior Historian at the US Army Office of Medical History, for a wide-ranging discussion on casualty care in US Army history. They explain how casualty care began in the earliest years of the Army and trace it through the Civil War. They detail how casualty care changed in the twentieth century. They explore the issue in Desert Storm and conclude by speculating on issues with casualty care in future large-scale combat operations. “History is only a confused heap of facts.” – Philip Dormer Stanhope, Earl of Chesterfield Host: Dr. Jonathan Abel, CGSC DMHDMH Podcast Team: Drs. Jonathan Abel, Mark Gerges, and Bill NanceArtwork: Daniel O. NealMusic: SSG Noah Taylor, West Point Band

Dr. Jonathan Abel, joined by Dr. Bill Nance, completes the trilogy on race relations in the US Army with Dr. Amanda Nagel by looking at the period from 1920 to World War 2. They examine how the interwar years changed the discussion of the issue. They detail how changes going into World War 2 influenced race relations. They explore how the war changed them, both in the military and at home. “History is only a confused heap of facts.” – Philip Dormer Stanhope, Earl of Chesterfield Host: Dr. Jonathan Abel, CGSC DMHDMH Podcast Team: Drs. Jonathan Abel, Mark Gerges, and Bill NanceArtwork: Daniel O. NealMusic: SSG Noah Taylor, West Point Band

Drs. Jonathan Abel and Bill Nance discuss Napoleonic officers with Dr. Mike Bonura of DJIMO. They explain where the officers came from and how they were trained. They detail how Napoleonic command and control and mission command worked. They discuss some of the issues with the system. They conclude with lessons modern officers might take from the period. “History is only a confused heap of facts.” – Philip Dormer Stanhope, Earl of ChesterfieldHost: Dr. Jonathan Abel, CGSC DMHDMH Podcast Team: Drs. Jonathan Abel, Mark Gerges, and Bill NanceArtwork: Daniel O. NealMusic: SSG Noah Taylor, West Point Band

Drs. Jonathan Abel and Bill Nance sit down with special guest Dr. Sam Watson from the US Military Academy at West Point. They have a wide-ranging discussion on officers in the early US republic and the state of military history today. “History is only a confused heap of facts.” – Philip Dormer Stanhope, Earl of Chesterfield Host: Dr. Jonathan Abel, CGSC DMHDMH Podcast Team: Drs. Jonathan Abel, Mark Gerges, and Bill NanceArtwork: Daniel O. NealMusic: SSG Noah Taylor, West Point Band

Dr. Jonathan Abel is joined by Dr. John Hosler to discuss the Roman military theorist Vegetius. They discuss Vegetius’s work and its themes. They trace its transmission and influence through the medieval period. They examine its use in early modern France. They conclude by discussing one of the major misuses of Vegetius and similar works. “History is only a confused heap of facts.” – Philip Dormer Stanhope, Earl of Chesterfield Host: Dr. Jonathan Abel, CGSC DMHDMH Podcast Team: Drs. Jonathan Abel, Mark Gerges, and Bill NanceArtwork: Daniel O. NealMusic: SSG Noah Taylor, West Point Band

Drs. Jonathan Abel and Bill Nance continue their discussions about Vietnam with Dr. Martin Clemis. They dive into Vietnamese politics throughout the twentieth century. They begin with major influences on Vietnam like China, France, Marxism, and Buddhism. They detail how politics evolved throughout the century, particularly in the North. They explain how America’s Vietnam War shaped those politics. They conclude by explaining why the US often mis-read Vietnamese politics during its war. “History is only a confused heap of facts.” – Philip Dormer Stanhope, Earl of Chesterfield Host: Dr. Jonathan Abel, CGSC DMH DMH Podcast Team: Drs. Jonathan Abel, Mark Gerges, and Bill Nance Artwork: Daniel O. Neal Music: SSG Noah Taylor, West Point Band