Duty Honor Country: West Point

Author: Stephen E. Ambrose (USA)
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-03-01
Features: Preface by General of the Army Dwight D. Eisenhower, the 34th President of the United States. "There is an enormous body of historical writing about West Point, but this is the best of them. Every American will find something of interest in this outstanding work and take pride in the great role this truly national institution has played in building the nation." "This first-rate history of the U.S. Army Military Academy is titled after the academy's motto. Ambrose traces the footsteps of the gray-clad cadets through history, vividly recreating the management styles of outstanding West Point presidents (Silvanus Thayer and Douglas MacArthur) and telling fascinating anecdotes about cadets who rejected the West Point model (James McElwain Whistler and Edgar Allan Poe)." "As Ambrose explains in his history of West Point, the academy's philosophy is quintessentially Jeffersonian. It is a school that produces engineers—a truly free, democratic, and socially useful department in the military—not designed to cultivate an elite group, but to provide the United States with a treasure trove of talent skilled in specialized military technology. If the ideal of the militia were to become a reality, this treasure trove would be needed. Ambrose clearly and perfectly tells this history, and he also strives to place it within the broader context of American politics, social attitudes, and higher education." This book primarily narrates the emergence, development, and impact of West Point, as well as the various figures who had a significant influence on its development.