10-25-2014, 12:09
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#1
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Quiet Professional
Join Date: Aug 2004
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The Five Biggest Disasters in American Military History
Invasion of Canada, Antietam, Operation Drumbeat, Across the Partition 1950, Disbanding the Iraqi Army.
Agree or disagree - some interesting points to ponder.
Richard
The Five Biggest Disasters in American Military History
TNI, 23 Oct 2014
Nations often linger on their military defeats as long as, or longer than, they do on their successes. The Battle of Kosovo remains the key event of the Serbian story, and devastating military defeats adorn the national narratives of France, Russia and the American South. What are the biggest disasters in American military history, and what effect have they had on the United States?
In this article, I concentrate on specific operational and strategic decisions, leaving aside broader, grand-strategic judgments that may have led the United States into ill-considered conflicts. The United States may well have erred politically in engaging in the War of 1812, World War I, the Vietnam War and Operation Iraqi Freedom, but here I consider how specific failures worsened America’s military and strategic position.
(Cont'd) http://nationalinterest.org/feature/...-history-11536
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10-25-2014, 16:21
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#2
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Quiet Professional
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Bataan and the PI, the surrender of the largest American Force in our history.
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PRB is offline
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10-26-2014, 07:33
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#3
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Quiet Professional
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and...
Kasserine Pass, Task Force Smith, and senior leaders who became managers who became politicians.
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SouthernDZ is offline
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10-26-2014, 10:49
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#4
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A number of deserving Revolutionary War battles left off the list.
TR
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"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat." - President Theodore Roosevelt, 1910
De Oppresso Liber 01/20/2025
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10-26-2014, 11:10
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#5
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Guerrilla Chief
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Philadelphia
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A few of my friends below Maryland would argue Gettysburg as a huge disaster. Recently, Operation Anaconda passed along a few lessons as well.
Last edited by Five-O; 10-26-2014 at 11:13.
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10-26-2014, 13:25
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#6
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Area Commander
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Pearl Harbor, the Japanese plan was nearly identical to an American study and mission on the vulnerability of the harbor, all carefully observed by the Japanese military envoys that were aboard the American ships years earlier when those missions were carried out.
Little Big Horn, multiple failures.
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10-29-2014, 12:30
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#7
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Guest
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What about the fall of Saigon and our declaration to not help slow the NVA's invasion of the South.
Also, our timeline for withdraw from Iraq, the date, the failure to leave troops behind, and the ineptness of this government to react.
Seems to me that both of the above are one of the same.
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10-29-2014, 13:00
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#8
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Guerrilla
Join Date: Nov 2011
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Quote:
Originally Posted by The Reaper
A number of deserving Revolutionary War battles left off the list.
TR
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And in 1791, the Miami Indians killed or wounded some 900 of the existing 1400 infantrymen of the US Army in a single battle. MG "Mad" Anthony Wayne was recalled from retirement to rebuild the Army.
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10-30-2014, 05:26
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#9
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Asset
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Wounded Knee?
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12-06-2014, 15:28
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#10
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Area Commander
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My Lai?
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mojaveman is offline
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12-06-2014, 17:46
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#11
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Area Commander
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Brush Okie
Obama's elections?
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Fixed it for ya.
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12-06-2014, 18:03
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#12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Hopefully
Battle of Mogadishu?
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You see that as one of the top five U.S. military disasters?
TR
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"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat." - President Theodore Roosevelt, 1910
De Oppresso Liber 01/20/2025
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12-06-2014, 18:43
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#13
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Area Commander
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The political battle of caving to the French post WWII in Indochina?
Allowing/facilitating the French, British, and Dutch in Asia/Pacific post WWII to return to colonial rule to extract value to rebuild Western Europe had some pretty nasty consequences and cost in lives/national treasure for the US later.
It's my understanding Roosevelt wasn't keen on seeing the French return to Indochina.
Roosevelt died, Western Europe was broke, and the opportunity to broker a deal with Ho Chi Minh due to OSS 101's existing relationship with him at the end of WWII was lost.
Could it have avoided the Vietnam War, led to a different path for Vietnam as a country, and developed a stronger and more effective partnership to contain the rise of China today?
Woulda, coulda, shoulda armchair strategist perhaps, but it might be worth consideration.
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12-07-2014, 10:29
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#14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Hopefully
Granted. Although successful, the outcome was still indescribably disastrous.
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I don't think the participants saw it that way.
And in what way was it "indescribably disastrous"?
TR
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"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat." - President Theodore Roosevelt, 1910
De Oppresso Liber 01/20/2025
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12-07-2014, 12:07
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#15
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Quiet Professional
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Hopefully
The American death toll probably wouldn't have been nearly as high, had the brass not been negligent.
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The brass requested armor and AC-130 support, which was denied by the civilian leadership.
18 Americans died (most in aviation crashes and on the Lost Convoy), and more than 1,000 Somalis were killed. Pyrrhic victory with strategic implications, IMHO.
One of the biggest disasters in American military history?
I don't think so.
History is replete with better examples.
TR
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"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat." - President Theodore Roosevelt, 1910
De Oppresso Liber 01/20/2025
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