A Brief History of America at War

Nothing divides the American people like war. From its inception as a nation, the prospect, and in two or three cases the reality, of war has usually been a source of damaging division in the United States. The period prior to the recent conflict in Iraq was no different. How does this historic theme fit into America's divine destiny?

by John Ross Schroeder

As American schoolchildren, my generation was often treated to an idyllic vision of national harmony concerning the Revolutionary War and its resulting independence from Great Britain in 1776. It was only later in life, perhaps while attending university, that many of us discovered that a substantial minority of colonists were deeply divided over whether or not to go to war with England.

Even a few of the nation's chief founding fathers were very reluctant to embark on a conflict with the parent country and did not fully make up their minds for independence until late in the day. There was a strong sense of brotherhood with Britain.

George Washington's advice

We were also taught almost from infancy to greatly respect George Washington and his enormous contribution to American nationhood. Our national capital and one of our northwestern states are both named after him. Humanly speaking, he is truly the father of our country, our first president and the chief architect of the victory over England in the Revolutionary War.

So great was his popularity that his contemporaries wanted to make him a king, but he wisely rejected that notion and set a precedent by choosing not to run again after two terms as president. When that precedent was eventually broken, a two-term limitation was added as an amendment to the Constitution.

Most Americans have the deepest respect for this great man—one of the seven founding fathers who shaped our national destiny. Not fully foreseeing conditions that the 20th-century world would bring, George Washington sternly warned the nation not to get involved in European wars. These words sank very deeply into the American national psyche—penetrating down through the generations.

Twice during the 20th century Britain found itself engaged in Herculean wars with Germany. The United States only entered both world wars well after they had begun. If you were to go to a large library in any American city and page through the newspapers of both eras just prior to these two wars, you would find public opinion in the country deeply divided over whether or not to enter these giant conflicts. President Franklin Roosevelt experienced great difficulty in trying to get the nation to see the enormous dangers posed by the Nazis prior to the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941.

Read the full article at www.wnponline.org/wnp/wnp0305/americaatwar.htm

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