Seizing the initiative: The intellectual renaissance that changed United States Army doctrine, 1970--1982

A series of reforms transformed the U.S. Army's tactical and operational doctrine between 1970 and 1982. These changes emerged from a confluence of events in the early 1970s that marked a renaissance in American military thought. Later debates among key leaders and military thinkers continued to propel this intellectual revitalization that ultimately shaped the way that the Army would conceptualize future warfare. Thus, it was this conceptual "rebirth," combined with related developments in education and training, that served as a turning point for the post-Vietnam American Army. This evolutionary process produced a broader conceptualization of doctrine that applied not only to war-fighting, but also to training, education, force structure, and weapons acquisition. Above all else, interpersonal dynamics, experience, leadership, and historically-inspired thought determined the fate of Active Defense, AirLand Battle, and the future of the Army as a whole.