Category: Modern Warfare

Saratoga Campaign 1777

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The Battle of Saratoga was a turning point in the American Revolution. Leaders like John Burgoyne, Horatio Gates, and Benedict Arnold, with thousands of valiant men, fought in a drama that would change the world.

By Mark D. Harris, MD, MPH, MBA, MDiv, ThM, PhD, DBA

Background: The Road to Saratoga

After fighting side by side to defeat the French and Indians (1756-1763), Britain and her American colonies drifted apart. Laboring under a heavy debt, Parliament increased taxation and control over the Americans. The Quebec Act (1774) was intended to build support for Britain among the Catholic French Canadians, institute the French system of civil law,[1] and limit colonial migration into the Ohio Valley. However, it infuriated English colonists. But it, and other “intolerable acts,” provided the tipping point into revolution.

Before Congress even declared America to be a new nation (4 July 1776), American rebels captured Fort Ticonderoga (10 May 1775), Crown Point, Fort St. Johns (17 Sep to 3 Nov 1775), and Montreal in the early months of the conflict. US General Richard Montgomery commanded about 1000 militia through the St. Lawrence River north to Quebec. Moving primarily by water, they brought most of the artillery and supplies. US General Benedict Arnold began taking about 1000 militia through the wilderness of Maine, from the Kennebec River to the Chaudière River. Having started in July, Arnold’s force lost about 500 men to starvation, desertion, expiring enlistments, and disease (smallpox). Montgomery’s force diminished to 700 by expiring enlistments.

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The Battle of Tarawa: America’s Early Lesson in WWII Amphibious Warfare

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By Mark D. Harris, MD, MPH, MBA, MDiv, ThM, PhD, DBA

What was the Battle of Tarawa in World War II? Why was it important then,…and today?

The morning of November 20, 1943, dawned over a small coral atoll in the Central Pacific that few Americans had ever heard of. Within seventy-six hours, Tarawa would become seared into the American consciousness as one of the most savage battles of World War II. The ferocious fighting on this tiny strip of land, barely twelve square miles in total area, would claim over 6,000 lives and fundamentally transform how the United States Navy and Marine Corps conducted amphibious operations for the remainder of the war.

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Defending Taiwan

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The world in 2025 is a bigger geopolitical mess than it was in 1914. Taiwan, Ukraine, and Israel are developed states at the epicenter of life-or-death struggles.[1] After a recent visit to Taiwan, this article describes a way, and quite probably the only way, for Taiwan to survive as an independent nation if China invades.

By Mark D. Harris, MD, MPH, MBA, MDiv, ThM, PhD, DBA

Chiang Kai Shek (1887-1975) fled mainland China and moved his nationalists, the Kuomintang (KMT), to Taiwan after their defeat by the communists under Mao Tse Dung (1893-1976) in 1949. Since that year, the Communists ruling mainland China have declared that Taiwan is a renegade province and they will take it back by any means possible, including war.[2]  Every modern Chinese ruler, including the current autocrat Xi Jin Ping, has reaffirmed this intention.[3]

A pre-invasion scenario

Chinese paramilitary “fishing boats”, coast guard ships, and naval vessels encircle Taiwan under the guise of military exercises, law enforcement, or humanitarian actions. These boats partially disrupt Taiwanese imports and exports. Then they leave, having learned valuable lessons and helped lull Taiwanese defenders and politicians into a sleepy acquiescence, like a frog in warming water. Chinese aircraft from bases such as Longtian (in Fujian) harass Taiwanese responding forces. Cyber attackers, space forces, special forces, and others engage. Much of this is happening today. By not firing the first shot, the Chinese undercut nations that may oppose them. If no one physically challenged the blockade, Taiwan would slowly be strangled to death.

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Avoiding Putin’s Trap

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President-elect Donald Trump has vowed to stop the Russian war on Ukraine. While he possesses a strong personality, Trump’s personality alone is not likely to stop the T-80s from rolling into Dnipro and Zaporizhzhia. Stopping the war is a worthy goal, but Trump and his team need to ensure that they do not lose the peace. The following article illuminates how to get a fair deal.

By Mark D. Harris, MD, MPH, MBA, MDiv, ThM, PhD, DBA

Background

Ukraine is renowned for its fertile, black soil, and Ukrainian agriculture ranks among the most productive in the world. Fifty-five percent of Ukraine’s land is arable, mostly in the western and central regions, and 14% of Ukrainians work in agriculture.[1] Equally important, Ukraine has historically had several excellent ports on the Black Sea to safely and cheaply get its crops to market. These ports include Odessa, Chernomorsk, Yuzhny, Berdyansk, Mariupol, and Sevastopol.

Situated to the north and east, Russia lacks Ukraine’s vast swathes of rich farmland. For centuries, Russians moving to Ukraine to find a better life had few opportunities to settle in the western and central regions since native Ukrainians were there. The Donetsk and Luhansk regions along the Dnieper River in the east lacked such productive soil but, as the Industrial Revolution began in the 19th century, these regions had something even more valuable. Eastern Ukraine is flush with coal and iron and has a major river to move the coal and iron to market. In the late 19th and early to mid-20th centuries, Russian settlers flocked to these regions, together known as the Donbas. Nationwide, Ukrainians account for 77.8% of the people in the Ukraine and Russians account for 17.3%, but the Russian population percentage is much higher in the Donbas and in the Crimean Peninsula.[2]

Prelude to War

Putin had what he considered to be good reasons to attack Ukraine. He argued that the West had invaded Russia six times in the past two centuries, while Russia had not initiated hostilities against the West.[3] He cited NATO encroachment as a threat to Russia. Putin styled himself as a modern Russian savior along the lines of Peter the Great.

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Arab-Israeli Conflict

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On 7 October 2023, the Palestinian Arab terror group Hamas suddenly attacked Israel, killing over 1400. In the succeeding two months, more than 10,000 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip have been killed. This article, part of a lecture series called the Bible and the News, answers the questions: What is the situation? How did we get here? What does the Bible say? What do we do about it?

By Mark D. Harris, MD, MPH, MBA, MDiv, ThM, PhD, DBA

What is the situation?

Jews and Palestinian Arabs claim the same land as their homeland, the area known as Palestine. 25 April 2023 was the 75th anniversary of the founding of Israel. 7 Oct 2023 was the fiftieth anniversary of the Yom Kippur War, the Arab states’ most successful war against Israel.

The Israeli claim to the land. God gave Abraham and his descendants the Promised Land. The granted land includes Canaan, part of Transjordan and much of modern Syria. The promise is far larger than modern Israel.

  • Bible testimony
    • Genesis 12:1-3, 7 – God promises to make Abram into a great nation.
    • Genesis 15:18-21 – God promises give Abram a son, make him a great people, and give him the land of Canaan.
    • Genesis 26:3 – God repeats His promises to Isaac, Abraham’s son.
    • Genesis 28:13-15 – God repeats His promises to Jacob, Abraham’s grandson.
    • Exodus 23:30-33 – God repeats His promises to the Hebrew nation.
    • Numbers 34:1-12 – God promises specific areas in Canaan to the twelve Hebrew tribes who came out of Egypt.
  • Historically, the Hebrews only comprised a majority in Canaan from roughly 1400 BC to 586 BC, 800 years. Jews did not live in the land in large numbers from AD 135 to about 1940, over 1800 years.
  • The Hebrew Temple Mount and much of Hebrew religious history is in Palestine.

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Isandlwana and Rorke’s Drift – 22 Jan 1879

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A METT-TC, Combined Arms, and Battlespace Analysis of one of the least expected defeats and miraculous victories in military history.  

By Mark D, Harris, MD, MPH, MBA, MDiv, ThM, PhD, DBA

The military experiences of the British Empire during the reign of Victoria are filled with lessons for modern day soldiers. Isandlwana was one of the most humiliating defeats in the history of British arms, and Rorke’s Drift, occurring on the same day, only a few miles from Isandlwana and against the same enemy, was one of the most amazing victories. Queen Victoria awarded eleven Victoria Crosses (VC), the highest honor in the British Army. It was the most to VCs awarded to members of any regiment in a single action in British history.

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