Serving as the companion volume to John B. Wilson's Armies, corps, divisions, and separate brigades, it traces the evolution of two unique and complex U.S. Army organizations -- divisions and separate brigades -- that combined combat arms, combat support, combat service support units into well-oiled engines for war. The Army has used divisions and brigades since the colonial era, but the national leadership did not provide for their permanency in the force until the twentieth century.

Army lineage series.

I. Early Experiences -- 2. Genesis of Permanent Divisions -- 3. The Test- World War I -- 4. The Aftermath of World War I -- 5 A Return to the Past; A Look to the Future -- 6. Prelude to Combat -- 7. The Crucible- Combat. -- 8. An Interlude of Peace -- 9. The Korean War and Its Aftermath -- 10. The Search for Atom Ice Age Divisions -- 11. A New Direction- Flexible Response -- 12. Flexible Response -- 13. The Total Army. -- 14. A New Assessment -- 15. Conclusion. -- A Look Forward -- Bibliographical Note -- Index --