Philippine War, 1899-1902 FROM THE PUBLISHER
1999 began the centennial of the Philippine War, one of the most controversial and poorly understood events in American history. The war thrust the U.S. into the center of Pacific and Asian politics, with important and sometimes tragic consequences. It kept the Filipinos under colonial overlordship for another five decades and subjected them to American political, cultural, and economic domination.
In the first comprehensive study in over six decades, Linn provides a definitive treatment of military operations in the Philippines. From the pitched battles of the early war to the final campaigns against guerrillas, Linn traces the entire course of the conflict. More than an overview of Filipino resistance and American pacification, this is a detailed study of the fighting in the "boondocks."
In addition to presenting a detailed military history of the war, Linn challenges previous interpretations. Rather than being a clash of armies or societies, the war was a series of regional struggles that differed greatly from island to island. By shifting away from the narrow focus on one or two provinces to encompass the entire archipelago, Linn offers a more thorough understanding of the entire war.
Linn also dispels many of the misunderstandings and historical inaccuracies surrounding the Philippine War. He repudiates the commonly held view of American soldiers "civilizing with a Krag" and clarifies such controversial incidents as the Balangiga Massacre and the Waller Affair.
Exhaustively researched and engagingly written, The Philippine War will become the standard reference on America's forgotten conflict and a major contribution to the study of guerrilla warfare.
This book is part of the Modern War Studies series.
Author Biography: Brian McAllister Linn is professor of history at Texas A&M University and the Harold K. Johnson Visiting Professor of Military History at the U.S. Army War College. He is the author of The U.S. Army and Counterinsurgency in the Philippine War, 1899-1902 and Guardians of Empire: The U.S. Army and the Pacific, 1902-1940, winner of the 1997 Society for Military History Distinguished Book Award.
SYNOPSIS
1999 began the centennial of the Philippine War, one of the most controversial and poorly understood events in American history. The war thrust the U.S. into the center of Pacific and Asian politics, with important and sometimes tragic consequences. It kept the Filipinos under colonial overlordship for another five decades and subjected them to American political, cultural, and economic domination.
In the first comprehensive study in over six decades, Linn provides a definitive treatment of military operations in the Philippines. From the pitched battles of the early war to the final campaigns against guerrillas, Linn traces the entire course of the conflict. More than an overview of Filipino resistance and American pacification, this is a detailed study of the fighting in the "boondocks."
In addition to presenting a detailed military history of the war, Linn challenges previous interpretations. Rather than being a clash of armies or societies, the war was a series of regional struggles that differed greatly from island to island. By shifting away from the narrow focus on one or two provinces to encompass the entire archipelago, Linn offers a more thorough understanding of the entire war.
Linn also dispels many of the misunderstandings and historical inaccuracies surrounding the Philippine War. He repudiates the commonly held view of American soldiers "civilizing with a Krag" and clarifies such controversial incidents as the Balangiga Massacre and the Waller Affair.
Exhaustively researched and engagingly written, The Philippine War will become the standard reference on America's forgotten conflict and a major contribution to the study of guerrilla warfare.
This book is part of the Modern War Studies series.
FROM THE CRITICS
Robert A. Doughty
Will appeal to serious military historians and military professionals, as well as to the general reader.
John M. Gates
Brian Linn, who has the rare ability to craft a readable text without abandoning the scholar's penchant for accuracy, has written another fine book. Meticulously researched and impressively documented, his study draws upon the literature from all sides of a number of controversies. The result is a book of unusual balance, making Linn's accomplishment without equal among the many works on the war.
Timothy K. Nenninger
An impressively researched and well written narrative history that brings reasoned analysis to topics previously fraught with partisanship and polemics.
Booknews
Focusing purely on the military aspects of the war, Linn (history, Texas A&M U.) argues that previous studies of the war have mischaracterized it as having qualities which can only be ascribed to the final few campaigns (i.e. concentration camps, American brutality and torture, and one officer's threat to turn the Philippines into a "howling wilderness"). Reviewing the fighting in every Filipino province, he finds that the American victory was due more to rebel mistakes and American "social reform" than to overwhelming American military force. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
Martin Marix Evans - Osprey Military Journal
For readers curious about the USA's entry into Far Eastern politics and power plays, Professor Linn's book is an excellent place to start...Here he gives a balanced account derived from massive research of original material and forensic objectivity that subjects the evidence to a demanding evaluation.
I suspect that the Philippine War is little known outside the USA and I even wonder to what extent it receives attention within America. With the publication of Brian Linn's thoughtful and fascinating study there is no further excuse for neglect of the subject.
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