As the author explains it its Foreword, the book is “a brief review of the now rather extensive military history of the United States in relation to its political, economic and social implications.”“This is a book for the years... a distinguished job of writing... [Millis is] a penetrative analyst... vigorous expression and the steady flow of challenging ideas keep the book from ever becoming dull... The book... is a total study of the evolution of American military power... The au...

James Vincent Forrestal (1892-1949) was the last Cabinet-level United States Secretary of the Navy and the first United States Secretary of Defense. These fascinating diaries begin in 1944 shortly after James Forrestal became Secretary of the Navy, and end with his resignation in March 1949 as America's first Secretary of Defense. Blunt and forceful, Forrestal reveals the American strategy that he helped shape with verve. Expertly edited by seasoned historian Walter Millis, the American hi...