US Military Stands

Listen to "US Military Stands"

The following four topics are all stands by the US military. This is just a small selection of famous stands since there are many more (some of which will be mentioned in a future episode).

• Alamo (1836): Lt. Col. Travis leads the Texian defense of the Alamo against a numerically superior foe, the Mexicans led by Santa Anna. The Texians cannot hold and every male is killed.
• Little Bighorn (1876): Lt. Col. Custer underestimates the Lakota/Cheyenne forces in the area (under the leadership of Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull). Custer is overwhelmed and all of his men are killed.
• Khe Sanh (1968): The US military base near the border of North and South Vietnam is besieged by numerically superior NVA forces. Using heavy bombers, the US troops break the siege and damage the NVA significantly.
• Mogadishu (1993): Operation Restore Hope in Somalia suffers a major defeat when special forces groups executing "Operation Gothic Serpent" are trapped in the city. After a horrendous night of fighting, they are rescued by UN forces.

For more information, read Armchair General Magazine (January 2005)

Military History Podcast is sponsored by Armchair General Magazine