Steven L. Ossad
writer, historian, consultant, analyst
Selected WorksMajor General John P. Lucas at Anzio: Prudence or Boldness?, Global War Studies, Fall 2011
A hero who faced down Pancho Villa with only a pistol and turned the tide of battle during the Salerno Operation in late 1943, John Lucas discovered at Anzio that his comrades were more dangerous than his enemies. Henry Ware Lawton: Flawed Giant and Hero of Four Wars, Army History, Winter 2007
Brevet Colonel, Commander of the 30th Indiana Volunteers, and recipient of the Medal of Honor - all at the age of 23 - Henry Lawton's career spanned four decades until he fell in battle "bringing democracy to a distant land." BG Joseph Mansfield, Military Heritage Magazine, February 2007
When Joseph K.F. Mansfield fell at the Battle of Antietam, he was the ranking casualty on either side, the oldest general and West Point graduate to die in battle. The Terrills: "God Alone Knows Which Was Right", America's Civil War Magazine, September 2006
William and James Terrill of Virginia chose opposing sides in the Civil War, each rose to general and fell in battle. Theirs is a unique story of "brother against brother". Major General Maurice Rose: World War II's Greatest Forgotten Commander, 2006
The only American armored division commander to die in battle, Maurice Rose was the son and grandson of rabbis who rose from private to general to lead the premier American armored force to victory over the Nazi empire. The Corporate Staff Ride: A Proven Military Training Tool Comes to the Boardroom, Wharton Leadership Digest, January 2006
For more than a century, the "Staff Ride" has been used to train the nation's military leaders. Now it has been adapted by APPLIED BATTLEFIELD CONCEPTS LLC for use by corporations to train top management in the principles of leadership under pressure. Drawings of Antietam Commanders
"Commanders at Antietam" is a collection of the author's drawings related to ongoing work on the Corporate Staff Ride Command Failures: Lessons Learned from Lloyd R. Fredendall, Army Magazine, March 2003
Winner, 2003 Army Historical Foundation Distinguished Writing Award The Fighting McCooks, Military History Magazine, October 2005
Sixteen of the McCook Family served in the Union Army or Navy during the Civil War. Seven became generals. Four gave the last full measure. Commodore Thomas Macdonough: Hero of the Barbary Wars, Victor at Lake Champlain, Military Heritage Magazine, October 2004
Thomas Macdonough faced Arab terrorists with steel and musket - in 1804 Russian General Ivan D. Chernyakhovsky, WWII History Magazine, May 2004
Russia's Rommel, General Ivan Chernyakhovsky survived brutal Anti-Semitisim, Stalin's madness, and German tanks to achieve a stunning combat record and fell at the end of the war. Fighting Admiral of Guadalcanal, World War II Magazine, May 2004
Daniel Judson Callaghan's heroic sacrifice off Guadalcanal saved the embattled defenders of Henderson Field. In the Front Ranks of Gallant Men, World War II Magazine, November 2003
Brigadier General Frederick W. Castle's leadership in and out of the cockpit made him one of the most admired men in the Eighth Air Force The Frustrations of Leonard Wood, Army Magazine, September 2003
The only physician ever to rise to Army Chief of Staff, Leonard Wood's path to success produced as many enemies as admirers. The Last Battle of Gen. William Orlando Darby, Army Magazine, January 2003
Creator of the modern American Rangers, Darby led his men to great victories and a catastrophic defeat, but was always in the thick of the action. Martin Blumenson (1918-2005)
Martin Blumenson spent his life writing the history of an institution he respected greatly and knew intimately, the United States Army. He inspired generations of his students and successors to the highest standard of excellence. The Battle of Anghiari: "This Most Bestial Madness"
Described by eminent art historians as perhaps his greatest work, Leonardo Da Vinci's "Battle of Anghiari" defined for centuries the way artists portray the fury of battle and the anatomy and motion of warriors and horses in combat. The lost work sparked intense and on-going debate, and inspired many other great masters working in a variety of media. But, the battle has disappeared from history. Why? Xenophon's "Hipparchicus, Commander of Cavalry"
Historian, biographer, memoirist, "novelist", and companion of Socrates, at the end of his life Xenophon wrote a small book of advice about reforming the Athenian cavalry. A discussion of specific suggestions, Xenophon's Hipparchicus reflects decades of the author's experience as an army commander. The wily survivor offers subtle insights on leadership as well as observations valuable to modern theorists and practioners of the "mounted service" that will always resonate. The Battle of Kadesh: Public Relations Trumps Performance
The Battle of Kadesh, the greatest chariot clash in all recorded history, pitted the war-hardened Hittites against an untested Pharaoh in a struggle that shaped the destinies of the two dominant empires of the early Iron Age. Recorded as a great Egyptian victory, it is a case study of how a brilliant and well-executed public relations campaign can trump performance - and reality. Charles Sanders Peirce: America's Greatest Genius
Born to greatness, Peirce ended his life in poverty, obscurity, and disappointment. Afflicted by illness, pain, drug-addiction and the suffocating moral intolerance of 19th Century America, the time to tell his story to a broad audience has finally arrived. 'BRAD': The GI’s General - Omar N. Bradley (1893-1981)
Omar Bradley was one of a handful of “larger than life” figures to emerge from World War II and go on to deeply influence the post-war era. Those later contributions especially have shaped our history and culture in decisive, dramatic, and virtually unexamined ways. The challenges we face – fighting fanatic global enemies, organizing our forces for that and other struggles, coordinating our strategy with allies, determining the roles and powers of our military leaders, and providing care and benefits for our veterans – were framed in the top counsels of our government by Omar Bradley. Reading the Bible as Military History
More than 3,500 years ago, Abram, the leader of the Hebrews, led his men on a daring, long-distance, night time commando raid to rescue hostages. Hidden in a very brief passage of Genesis is the story of the first organized military action and victory of the Jewish people, a tale of courage and inspired leadership. The Philosophy of War: A General Inquiry
Does it make any sense to talk about a "philosophy of war?" What kinds of things would be discussed in such an academic sub-category? Whose works would make up the canon of study? On that point, why is it that Carl von Clausevitz's early 19th century book "On War" is virtually the only work universally accepted as a work of philosophy? In a world where war is so common, why is there so little systematic examination of its "first principles?" These are only a few of the questions that spark this general inquiry. Saratoga Corporate Staff Ride
This program is structured as a half-day, corporate retreat tour of the American Revolution Saratoga Campaign, 1777. It was the decisive strategic victory of the War, and pitted the vainglorious British dandy Gen. "Johnny" Burgoyne against the flagrant and grandly ambitious American Gen. Gage. Military History Depicted in US Postage Stamps
A stamp "album" that illustrates the military history of the United States as dispicted in postage stamps. From the first stamp showing George Washington in uniform (1857) to the present, the nation has remembered its wars and battlefields - both famous and forgotten - and honored its heroes. |
Reading the Bible as Military History
Sutton Place Synagogue, November 7, 2009
Hebrew & English Texts, JPS, 1917 Abraham's Journey to Canaan The War of the Kings, 1800 BC ---The Historical View ---The Literary View Hamurrabi's Invasion Route Description of Abraham's Commando Raid at Dan Mid Bronze Age Weapons Art and Artifacts from 2nd Millenium BC 
Abraham's Journey From Southern Mesopotamia to Canaan
13) And there came one who had escaped, and told Abram the Hebrew – now he dwelt by the terebinths of Mamre the Amorite, brother of Eshkol and brother of Aner; and these were confederate with Abram. 14) And when Abram heard that his brother was taken captive, he led forth his trained men, born in his house, three hundred and eighteen, and pursued as far as Dan. 15) And he divided himself against them by night, he and his servants, and he smote them, and pursued them unto Hobah, which is on the left hand of Damascus.
He took his men out to battle organized into three companies of a hundred men each, divided into ten platoons, and grouped by households. Abram and 18 of his closest companions formed the headquarters section and commanded the operation in the field. Eliezer, trusted steward of his household, remained behind to coordinated logistics. The elder, experienced men led the companies, the gifted young led the platoons; the best, were scouts and silent killers. All - free men and slaves - were in some way related.
Mid Bronze Age Weapons @1,800 BC
Armed and trained as light infantry, their weapons were typical middle bronze-age: metal-tipped battle axes, curved swords, and thrusting daggers, but the key was intelligence. Each platoon had a reconnaissance section, of 2 or 3 men, trained in commando tactics and gathering information.
For days, they shadowed the long enemy column, its rear encumbered by loot and moving slowly. Abram’s alliance with the Amorites meant he could travel quickly, supplied along the march by friends, without risk to his rear, or his flanks. At night, the Hebrews drew closer, observing the enemy forces, the location of the prisoners, how they were guarded, where the gaps in the columns were, and other tactical information. The enemy was spread out in widely separated trains, and at the rear, the prisoners were under the guard of the Elamites. When he was ready, Abram struck from three directions simultaneously and quietly. It was probably late in the night – rather than near dawn. That would maximize the surprise and help delay the enemy from reorganizing. Sentries were dispatched silently and then the real horror began. It was not combat, but butchery – killing sleeping men up close. The pitch hauled from Sodom was particularly effective, spreading a vicious fire, like modern napalm. Vehicles were wrecked, horses scattered, the captives and loot quickly secured. Shock and fear among the enemy gave way to panic followed by a rout. The pursuit, by half Abram's men, lasted for days and secured the withdrawal south. The mission was a complete success, an overwhelming victory. There is no mention of casualties, but Hebrew losses must have been light. 
The outcome that really mattered was political. When Abram returned, kings welcomed him as a great hero and vaunted ally, toasted him with wine, offered him his rightful reward – the slaves and loot - which he declined. What I read here is the first source of the modern Israel Defense Forces concept of “the purity of arms”. It holds that wielding weapons as a soldier is such an awesome obligation, laid on us by God, terrible in its effects on the innocent, and subject to strict rules. There can be no material gain in it. Abram is no mercenary; he asks his new allies simply to resupply his forces. The slaves are set free. The loot goes back to Sodom.
Abram’s life or death gamble paid off. His influence in the counsel of the Canaanite kings grew directly from the victory. The alliance with the Amorites made the military action possible. That was at the heart of his long-term strategy. Time. Time for his people to become strong enough to conquer Canaan and hold it. He succeeded. He became Abraham. Never again in his lifetime were the Hebrews in mortal danger. He emerges from the story as the ‘patron saint’ of Special Forces, especially America and Israel’s reconnaissance and commando units. |
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