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March 2, 2007 Michael Allsep (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill) Bridge to Reform: The military reforms initiated by Elihu Root, the New York corporate lawyer selected by President McKinley to head the War Department in the summer of 1899, created the foundation for the twentieth-century American military establishment. The creation of a war college, a general staff and a nationalized militia were important steps in the development of the country's military institutions. These new institutions made possible the creation of a military-industrial complex at home and the deployment of preponderant military power abroad. They were the product of an alliance between professional military elites and an emerging class of civilian elites that Root was able to unite through his understanding of their shared interests and his ability to capitalize on their shared cultural perspectives. Their common success established an enduring bond between civilian and military elites that has continuing relevance today. As a result, Root not only created the modern military's institutional foundation, but also an enduring archetype that reflected values at the core of that alliance that became central to the ethos of the national security establishment. Michael Allsep is a PhD candidate in History at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is currently completing a dissertation under the direction of Dr. Richard H. Kohn entitled An Army for the American Century: Elihu Root, New York Elites and Army Reform. He has taught courses on national security and United States history at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and has taught military history as a Visiting Assistant Professor of History at Duke University. Before coming to Chapel Hill, he was a practicing attorney and state prosecutor in South Carolina. |