Kori Schake, "The State and the Soldier: A History of Civil-Military Relations in the United States" (Wiley, 2025)

New Books in American Studies · May 22, 2026 · 1h 8m

One of the biggest worries of the US Constitution's Framers was the danger of a standing army to a democracy, so they designed a system to ensure civilian control over the state's armed forces. In The State and the Soldier: A History of Civil-Military Relations in the United States (Wiley, 2025), Kori Schake looks at how well this principle of civilian control has worked across US history. Writing for popular and academic audiences, Schake highlights instances when the principle of civilian control over the military risked failing as well as when it worked. The State and the Soldier presents…