William Halsey

In modern times, ten Americans rose to five-star rank: Pershing (who chose to wear only four stars), Leahy, Marshall, King, Arnold, MacArthur, Nimitz, Halsey, Eisenhower, and Bradley. In concert with the Roosevelts, Wilson, Truman, and Sir Winston Churchill, they were at the helm as the world transformed from the machinations of regional despots to an era of global war. With few exceptions, these men exercised their responsibilities with remarkable integrity and ability. The first part of this book reviews the biography and military highlights of each five-star; the second analyzes and compares the ten to identify common features of the elements of command and leadership. While studying the careers of these distinguished men, Hall also provides an insight into the analysis of war. He explains that war operates on five levels of perspective: heroism, tactics, operations, theaters, and national purpose. When these levels conflict, even the best leaders are fortunate to escape with their reputationsintact. This volume details how these commanders achieved success by understanding and properly maintaining these different perspectives almost unfailingly. Consequently, they reached the pinnacle of power in the military profession.

Andidora tells the story of four men who successfully commanded battlefleets in the 20th century: Japan's Heihachiro Togo, England's John Jellicoe, and America's William Halsey and Raymond Spruance. This study provides personality profiles and detailed accounts of their major battles. Analyzing their command decisions based on what each commander knew or could have reasonably inferred at the time decisions were made, Andidora compares their accomplishments to those of Horatio Nelson, who delivered stunning naval victories for England during the Napoleonic Wars. However, he concludes that the Nelsonian standard is inappropriate in the modern naval environment due to the increased size and technological complexity of modern fleets and the political imperative to preserve costly and strategically significant naval assets.

By the spring of 1943, now that Guadalcanal had finally been secured, it was time to move farther up the Solomons in the drive against Rabaul, the major Japanese headquarters & air base situated at the northeastern end of New Britain. The next obstacle up "the slot" from Guadalcanal was the Japanese air base at Munda on the island of New Georgia. The plan was simple: the Army's 43d Division lands on suitable beaches situated east of the Munda airbase & attacks west to secure the airbase while a brigade-size force of Marines lands to the north of Munda & drives south to capture Bairoko Harbor, thereby preventing evacuation of the Japanese defenders by sea. American planners were unaware, however, that the Japanese commander, Maj. Gen. Sasaki, had prepared a series of strong defensive positions & roadblocks on the trails east from Munda, the same trails that the Americans were counting on to speed their attack. These defenses, combined with incredibly difficult terrain, slowed the 43d Division to a crawl. New Georgia was not secured until August 25, three weeks behind schedule. And, General Sasaki had managed to evacuate to safety the bulk of his forces. With evocative, almost surrealistic prose, author Altobello places the reader on the trails to Munda with the American soldiers from this now almost forgotten campaign: "The jungle hissed as the men readied themselves for their first encounter with fear. Everything around them shimmered with movement from the jungle's huge population of small creatures. The earth itself seemed to crawl."