Soldier - Statesmen of the Constitution
This volume represents an important part of
the U.S. Army Center of Military History's contribution to
the celebration of the Bicentennial of the Constitution.
This Bicentennial, like the anniversary of the Declaration
of Independence in 1976, is producing a resurgence of interest
on the part of the Army, the scholarly community, and the
general public in understanding the formation of our republic
and the principles on which it is based. The mission of the
Center of Military History is very explicit in such matters.
In part, we are to "serve the Army and the nation by ensuring
the complete and appropriate use of military historical experience
relevant to professional issues of today and tomorrow."
To
mark the Bicentennial of the Declaration of Independence,
we produced five volumes on the role of the Army in the Revolution.
In 1987, through this volume and a series of lectures and
brochures, we are taking a systematic look at the evolution
of the role of the U.S. military as defined by the Constitution,
focusing in particular on the individual parts played by
key Revolutionary War veterans- the Soldier-Statesmen- in
the shaping and elaboration of that role.
Today's servicemen
and women can hear a special resonance in the stirring words
of the Constitution's Preamble. They are the inheritors of
the responsibility to serve the government of the people
by providing for the common defense, a responsibility that
closely binds them to the intentions of the Soldier-Statesmen
of two hundred years ago who penned those words.
The Constitution
is revered by all of us, but no more so than by the men and
women in uniform who have given their solemn oath to "defend
the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic." To
them especially we dedicate this book, with the hope that
it will strengthen their devotion to the Constitution and
increase their appreciation for the contribution made by
their military forebears, not only to independence but also
to the art of governance.
