Columbia University History Department
HIST3455S - Empire of Liberty: A Global History of the U.S. Military
America’s wars in context, from King Philip's War in 1675 to present global conflicts.
This course charts the expansion of U.S. military power from a band of colonists to a globe-girdling colossus with over two million personnel, some 750 bases around the world, and an annual budget of approximately $850 billion — 53 percent of federal discretionary spending, and more than the next 10 nations combined. It introduces students to the history of American military power; the economic, political, and technological rise of the military-industrial complex and national security state; the role of the armed services in international humanitarian work; and the changing role of the military in domestic and international politics. A three-point semester-long course compressed into six weeks.
Reviews
“Prof. Neer is one of the very best professors I have ever had. He’s professional, courteous and, most of all, truly cares about his students. And he really knows his materials.”
“He is an excellent professor. His lectures are all really interesting and he allows for conversation and debates within in class that are respectful and he allows students to challenge him and encourages us to form our own opinion with the class material and I think that is a wonderful way to promote a positive discussion.”
“Very strong in all respects. One of the best professors I have had.”
”Super approachable, friendly and knowledgeable.”
“I’ll admit that I had absolutely no idea what I had signed up for, Empire of Liberty was the only thing that fit in my schedule over the summer, but I am so glad I took this class. ... Overall, I really liked taking Professor Neer’s class and would recommend it to anyone interested in history academically or recreationally.”
“Dr. Robert Neer is a passionate and talented instructor. He is deeply knowledgable about the US military and is able to articulate and guide the classroom discussion towards gratifying arguments.”
“Prof. Neer masterfully weaved different forms of media together to exploit the remote format’s full potential. The course’s strength are the strong central topics, excellent readings, and vibrant class discussions.”
“Fantastic course. It is a very informative class and Professor Neer is a great teacher that is interested in his students learning rather than busywork and excessive coursework. The class requires quite a bit of reading, yet nothing that isn’t manageable.”
Syllabus
Requirements, Classes, Readings & Field Trips
The primary objectives for this class are:
🎯 Command of the materials — readings, lectures and discussions, films, and field trips
💡 Paradigmatic thinking — interpretive constructs, supported by evidence, for a global history of the U.S. military
❤️🔥 Rhetoric — persuasive speaking and writing, developed through class discussions, a research paper, and examinations
🤝 Academic collegiality — intellectual teamwork through collective engagement with course materials
Requirements:
📚 Assigned readings (approximately 50 pages of reading per class hour: 150 pages per class meeting, usually in two books)
📄 A 2,500-3,000 word research paper (approximately 10-12 pages)
📘 A one-hour midterm and three-hour final examination, both open-book
🍿 Two films
🚌 Online field trips to a worldwide constellation of locations
🙋 Class attendance and participation, including brief summaries of a few assigned readings
Grading:
15% One hour Midterm Examination (open book)
35% Three hour Final Examination (open book)
35% Research paper
15% Class attendance and participation
Books:
BookCulture bookstore, 112th Street between Broadway and Amsterdam Avenue, and Barnes & Noble Columbia bookstore
Butler library reserves, and online through the library
Graduate students should read the entirety of all books assigned and write a paper of around 10,000 words (about 40 pages). They do not need to take the examinations.
1607 to the present, in six weeks
1. 🥾 Boots on the Ground
🚌 Field Trip: Please visit ONE of the following locations , and write a few sentences about your reaction to it: (a) "Roger Williams: King Philip's War," Providence, RI. National Park Service (2015). NPS.gov; OR (b) ”Great Swamp Fight Monument,” South Kingston, RI. Atlas Obscura (2020). AtlasObscura.com; OR (c) “Timeline.” Mashpee, MA. Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe (2015). MashpeeWampanoagTribe-nsn.gov.
📚 Reading: Jill Lepore (1998 rpt. 1999). The Name of War: King Philip’s War and the Origins of American Identity. Vintage. 3-18, 71-121 (65 pages)
📚 Reading: Fred Anderson (2000). Crucible of War: The Seven Years' War and the Fate of Empire in British North America, 1754–1766. Faber and Faber. 94-123, 240-258, 400-414, 453-475, 729-746 (100 pages) (total 165 pages)
2. 🇺🇸 Empire of Liberty
🚌 Field Trip: Please visit the Trail of Tears National Historic Trail in Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, and Tennessee, and review the History & Culture page, then write a few sentences about your reaction to the way the U.S. military is portrayed there. National Park Service (2020). NPS.gov.
📚 Reading: Russell Weigley (1973). The American Way of War: A History of United States Military Strategy and Policy. Indiana University Press. 3-55 (52 pages)
📚 Reading: Frank Lambert (2005). The Barbary Wars: American Independence in the Atlantic World. Hill and Wang. 3-48, 123-155, 179-202 (100 pages)
📚 Reading: Anthony F. C. Wallace (1993). The Long, Bitter Trail: Andrew Jackson and the Indians. HarperCollins. 50-101 (51 pages) (total 203 pages)
3. 🌅 America Rising
🚌 Field Trip: Please visit The Alamo, “A global cultural icon,” and “the Shrine of Texas Liberty,” according to Alamo Trust, Inc. Visit the “Battle and Revolution” page, and write a few sentences about your assessment of the history offered there. You might also find the “Mapping Texas History” page of interest. Alamo Trust, Inc. (2021). TheAlamo.org
📚 Reading: Anders Stephanson (1995). Manifest Destiny: American Expansion and the Empire of Right. Hill and Wang. 3-65 (62 pages)
📚 Reading: Amy S. Greenberg (2012 rpt. 2013). A Wicked War: Polk, Clay, Lincoln, and the 1846 U.S. Invasion of Mexico. Vintage. 76-85, 95-110, 119-161, 168-175, 200-224, 229-240 (108 pages) (total 170 pages)
🚌 NYC Field Trip
4. 🗽 The Empire Strikes Back
🚌 Field Trip: Please visit the Antietam National Battlefield in Sharpsburg, MD, and look at whatever interests you on the History & Culture page. Write a few sentences on whether you think this field trip was worthwhile. National Park Service (2020). NPS.gov
📚 Reading: James McPherson (1988). Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era. Oxford. 369-453, 718-773 (141 pages)
📚 Reading: Max Boot (2002). The Savage Wars of Peace: Small Wars And The Rise Of American Power. Basic Books. 56-128 (72 pages) (total 213 pages)
5. 💣 Crusaders Keen
🚌 Field Trip: Please visit the Polar Bear Expedition Collection at the University of Michigan's Bently Library, have a look around, and in a few sentences describe something unexpected that you found. Bentley Historical Library, University of Michigan (2021). Bentley.UMich.edu.
📚 Reading: Russell Weigley (1973). The American Way of War. 167-241 (55 pages) (74 pages)
📚 Reading: Max Boot (2002). The Savage Wars of Peace. 205-230 (25 pages), 253-278 (25 pages) (50 pages) (total 124 pages)
6. 🗺️ Discovery of the New World
🚌 Field Trip: Please visit the campus of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, and write a few sentences about where you went, and what you thought about what you saw. U.S. Military Academy at West Point (2021). WestPoint.edu
📚 Reading: Russell Weigley (1973). The American Way of War. 269-359 (165 pages)
📚 Reading: John Ellis (1990). Brute Force: Allied Strategy and Tactics in the Second World War. Viking. 343-388 (45 pages) (total 210 pages)
7. ☢️ Stranger in a Strange Land
🚌 Field Trip: Please visit the American Battle Monuments Commission's Cemeteries & Memorials page,Links to an external site. choose a cemetery or memorial to investigate, and write a few words about which one you chose, and what you found there. Please click here for an interactive map of the Commission's sites worldwide
📚 Reading: Richard Rhodes (1995). Dark Sun: The Making of the Hydrogen Bomb. Simon & Schuster. III. 27-48, 482-512 (50 pages)
📚 Reading: David Halberstam. The Coldest Winter: America and the Korean War. Hyperion. 395-502 (107 pages) (total 157 pages)
8. 🤫 Notes from Underground
🚌 Field Trip: Please visit one, or more, of the following U.S. military service recruiting pages, and write a few sentences about where you went and what you deemed significant. If you observed anything that reminded you of some aspect of the global history of the U.S. military we have studied, please note that. If you would prefer, you can visit a recruiting station in person, or call a recruiter by telephone, to discuss their work.
📚 Reading: Tim Weiner (2008). Legacy of Ashes: The History of the CIA. Anchor. 83-194 (111 pages)
📚 Reading: James Bamford (2002). Body of Secrets: Anatomy of the Ultra-Secret National Security Agency from the Cold War Through the Dawn of a New Century. Doubleday. 1-91 (90 pages) (total 201 pages)
9. 🔥 Prometheus Bound
📚 Reading: Robert Neer (2013). Napalm, An American Biography. Belknap Press of Harvard University Press. 1-108 (108 pages)
📚 Reading: Neil Sheehan (1988). A Bright Shining Lie: John Paul Vann and America in Vietnam. Random House. 127-265 (138 pages) (total 246 pages). Optional: 617-699 (82 pages) (total 190 pages)
10. 💵 Taking Care of Business
🚌 Field Trip: Please visit RaytheonLinks to an external site. ("Our team solves tough, meaningful problems that create a safer, more secure world."), founded in 1922 in Cambridge, Massachusetts by Vannevar BushLinks to an external site. and two others, a subsidiary of RTX Links to an external site.("We are RTX: a diverse team of explorers united in our goal to push the boundaries of known science – and solve the world’s most complex problems). Choose one of their divisions from the What We Do menu, and write a few sentences about your choice and whatever seems interesting to you about it.
📚 Reading: Andrew Feinstein (2012). The Shadow World: Inside the Global Arms Trade. Picador. 237-329 (92 pages)
📚 Reading: Dana Priest (2014). The Mission: Waging War and Keeping Peace with America’s Military. W. W. Norton. 11-57 (46 pages)
📚 Reading: Michelle Sandhoff and Mady Wechsler Segal (2013). "Women in the U.S. Military: The Evolution of Gender Norms and Military Requirements." In David M. Kennedy, Ed. The Modern American Military. Oxford University Press. 273-289 (16 pages) (total 154 pages)
11. 🌏 To the Ends of the Earth
🚌 Field Trip: Please visit U.S. Navy Support Facility Diego GarciaLinks to an external site. at two or more of the following links, then share which ones you visited, and your thoughts about what you learned, in a few sentences.
📚 Reading: Rajiv Chandrasekaran (2007). Green Zone: Imperial Life in the Emerald City: Inside Iraq's Green Zone. Vintage. Part II Shattered Dreams Chapter 9: Let This Be Over, The Green Zone, Scene VII-Chapter 14: Breaking the Rules, 184-257 in 2006 Knopf first edition, pages numbers may be different in different editions (73 pages)
📚 Reading: Daniel Immerwahr (2019). How to Hide an Empire: A History of the Greater United States. Farrar, Straus & Giroux. 355-401 (46 pages) (total 119 pages)