A War of Frontier and Empire: The Philippine-American War, 1899-1902

A War of Frontier and Empire: The Philippine-American War, 1899-1902
by David J. Silbey

A War of Frontier and Empire: The Philippine-American War, 1899-1902
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Book Summary Information

Author: David J. Silbey
Edition: Paperback
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Published: 2008-03-04
ISBN: 0809096617
Number of pages: 272
Publisher: Hill and Wang

Book Reviews of A War of Frontier and Empire: The Philippine-American War, 1899-1902

Book Review: A good short history on a forgotten subject
Summary: 4 Stars

Most people have forgotten about the Philippine war. That is a shame. That little known war has shaped policy for the US for a lot of the 20th century. The war also has some valuable lessons for US military policy in the 21st century.

This book is a good story of the first two years of the war. It is written in an easy to understand format. It flows very well in an entertaining way. If you are looking for an in-depth book on the subject this isn't that book. There are seven or eight more years of the conflict he doesn't address. Also the US Army stayed in the Philippines for the next 40 years or so. Our ties there lead to large numbers of the US Army being lost there early 42 and later when we invaded in 44. How the war was fought then helped form the nation of the Philippines as it is today.

Some of the books stories or the war stories have lessons for us today. In some ways the war sounds like the Iraq war. The war wasn't popular back home either. The question of why we were there echoed across the country then much like the issue about Iraq does now. People forget that war was a guerrilla war which we won. How we won might have lessons that help us today. Of course as you read about the how you will ask yourself if we want to win. The hard stick approach then definitely works. However with 24/7 news coverage we have to ask if we have the stomach for that approach.

The book also briefly talked about a critical thing the Army did. This technique was priceless to the war effort. That thing was how they rebuilt the culture. US garrisons became city government. They set up schools to educate the population. Over time the Army introduced the locals into running things. This technique gave the land some strong institutions. However such approaches involve a lot of money but changes hearts without killing people. Today's sensitivities shackles efforts to do such things today. The Army then didn't have those problems.

The author also does a good job of describing the environment. The harsh jungle descriptions, the mentioning of environmental events like epidemics and it's effect on operations helps add depth to the story.

Overall everyone will like this book. It opens up a secret in US history all should know about.

Summary of A War of Frontier and Empire: The Philippine-American War, 1899-1902

It has been termed an insurgency, a revolution, a guerrilla war, and a conventional war. As David J. Silbey demonstrates in this taut, compelling history, the 1899 Philippine-American War was in fact all of these. Played out over three distinct conflicts-one fought between the Spanish and the allied United States and Filipino forces; one fought between the United States and the Philippine Army of Liberation; and one fought between occupying American troops and an insurgent alliance of often divided Filipinos-the war marked America's first steps as a global power and produced a wealth of lessons learned and forgotten. ?First-rate military history, A War of Frontier and Empire retells an often forgotten chapter in America's past, infusing it with commanding contemporary relevance.

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