James L. Yarrison

“ SUMMARY The Root reform era, which encompassed the period between the Spanish-American War and World War I, saw vast changes in the entire fabric of the US Army. This reorientation of a largely frontier-based, Indian-fighting force to meet modern requirements started it on the path to becoming, eventually, the most powerful army on the globe. The reforms that Secretary Root sponsored and facilitated made this evolution possible. To his vision and willingness to think beyond the limits imposed by entrenched interests and practices, the Army of the twenty-first century is lastingly indebted. ”

“ Elihu Root, 41st US Secretary Of War GENERAL The rise of the United States to world power status at the dawn of the twentieth century coincided with an intensification of international rivalries that led most world powers to tighten their alliances and alignments in an effort to strengthen their positions. Although it was not aligned with any power bloc, the United States felt the impact of increased world tensions because it had acquired overseas possessions in the Spanish-American War and because it needed new markets and raw materials for its expanding industrial economy. ”

“ The Medical Department was enlarged to include a Medical Corps, a Hospital Corps, an Army Nurse Corps, a Dental Corps, and a Medical Reserve Corps; the Quartermaster Corps was eventually created as an efficiency by combining the Quartermaster, Subsistence, and Pay Departments; and several Army schools were reorganized and new ones established. Of the new ones, the Army War College, established by Secretary Root in 1903 to educate experienced officers in the problems of high command, was the most important. ”