Kingseed, Cole C. 1949- (Cole Christian Kingseed)

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Kingseed, Cole C. 1949- (Cole Christian Kingseed)

PERSONAL:

Born August 27, 1949. Education: Graduated from University of Dayton, 1971; Ohio State University, Ph.D., 1983; U.S. Naval War College, M.A., 1992.

ADDRESSES:

E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER:

Military officer and military historian. United States Military Academy, West Point, NY, professor emeritus of history; Brecourt Leadership Experience, NY, president. Military service: U.S. Army, served in the infantry; became colonel.

WRITINGS:

Eisenhower and the Suez Crisis of 1956, Louisiana State University Press (Baton Rouge, LA), 1995.

The American Civil War, Greenwood Press (Westport, CT), 2004.

(Editor) From Omaha Beach to Dawson's Ridge: The Combat Journal of Captain Joe Dawson, Naval Institute Press (Annapolis, MD), 2005.

(With Dick Winters) Beyond Band of Brothers: The War Memoirs of Major Dick Winters, Berkley Caliber (New York, NY), 2006.

Old Glory Stories: American Combat Leadership in World War II, Naval Institute Press (Annapolis, MD), 2006.

SIDELIGHTS:

Cole C. Kingseed is a military historian who achieved the rank of colonel in his thirty-plus years of service in the U.S. Army. Kingseed also taught at the United States Military Academy at West Point and serves as a professor emeritus of history. He also acts as president of his own leadership organization, the Brecourt Leadership Experience.

Eisenhower and the Suez Crisis of 1956 is Kingseed's first book. Published in 1995, the book examines the role that U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower played during the standoff with Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser over his takeover of the Suez Canal in 1956. Kingseed shows how Eisenhower focused on policy formation and left the operational details on the side until his policy was clearly polished. He shows Eisenhower as a hands-on president who maintained the utmost regard for not committing military personnel to the Middle East unless absolutely necessary and willed by the Congress.

Robert Previdi, writing in the Presidential Studies Quarterly, described Eisenhower and the Suez Crisis of 1956 as a "thought-provoking book." Previdi concluded that "Kingseed makes it clear that Eisenhower was a strong chief executive who understood the foreign policy process. It seems obvious now that Eisenhower's education, training, and experience were ideal for a president of the United States. This is an interesting, quick-reading book, which enables the reader to observe a skillful president at work."

Kingseed published The American Civil War in 2004. The book, geared towards high school students, gives an account of the American Civil War. He opens with a timeline of events, focusing primarily on the events that preceded the war itself. Kingseed shows Lincoln's resolution in preserving the Union by abolishing slavery so that the fighting would not have been in vain. Kingseed also incorporates a section in the book on how the war changed the face of the country in its aftermath, politically, economically, and socially. Chuck Romig, writing on the Civil War News Web site, noted that the book "is an educational and reliable source for middle school and high school students. Any teacher teaching the Civil War will be pleased" with its content. Romig noted that "while the book is ninety-nine percent reliable, there are a few facts and dates in need of reconsideration." Romig, a teacher himself, concluded that "all in all, Kingseed's effort is a success. Novices and students will benefit tremendously from this book. I may purchase it for my classes."

In 2005 Kingseed edited From Omaha Beach to Dawson's Ridge: The Combat Journal of Captain Joe Dawson. The book covers the military life of Joe Dawson, an army captain who recorded his experiences in letters to his family while fighting during World War II in Normandy, North Africa, and Germany. Robert Bateman, writing in Parameters, described the book as "a well-woven synthesis of Dawson's letters home with explanatory narrative." Bateman noted that "Kingseed is well suited to the task of bringing Dawson's account back to life." Bateman also remarked that "in interviewing Dawson some months before his death (Dawson died in 1998), Kingseed spoke to Dawson infantryman to infantryman. This shines through, and it also leads to one of the more engaging aspects of the book." Bateman concluded: "I strongly recommend this book."

With the assistance of Dick Winters, Kingseed wrote Beyond Band of Brothers: The War Memoirs of Major Dick Winters in 2006. The book tells of the heroic actions taken by U.S. Army Major Dick Winters during the Normandy Invasion of World War II. Winters, whose life is also chronicled in the Home Box Office (HBO) television miniseries Band of Brothers, instantly became commanding officer (CO) of his regiment when the former CO's plane was shot down. Scattered and missing most of his men, Winters led his team to destroy German artillery positions and cleared the way for Allied troops to move inland from Utah Beach.

C.D. Bledsoe II, writing on the Armchair General Web site, commented that he would "recommend this to be read by current service members who are in command of troops or may be in command one day, from fire team leaders all the way up to generals," adding that "much could be learned from his experiences." Bledsoe remarked that, "on the whole, the book is well written and held my interest as a person interested in history." Booklist contributor Frieda Murray mentioned Winters's impressive wartime record and accomplishments in her review, saying that in the book "he shows what he did to earn that praise and how he" succeeded in doing so. Murray concluded that Winters's performance, as well as the writing in the book, were "very well done."

That same year, Kingseed also published Old Glory Stories: American Combat Leadership in World War II. The book chronicles stories from a number of American military veterans. Kingseed includes accounts from the widely known Dwight Eisenhower, Omar Bradley, and Douglas MacArthur, to the more obscure but no-less-significant Joseph "Vinegar Joe" Stilwell, Lucian K. Truscott, and Jonathan "Skinny" Wainwright, to name a few.

Richard Hughes, writing in the Air & Space Power Journal, found the book "refreshing," adding that "in a single volume, it evaluates combat leadership at the strategic, operational, and tactical levels of war." Hughes observed: "Clearly, Colonel Kingseed … conducted extensive research for Old Glory Stories, which is well written and well documented." As for the individual accounts in the book, Hughes further suggested that the author "deserves much credit for bringing their stories to light," particularly for the often-absent account of African American leaders in World War II. Hughes concluded that Kingseed's "expertise is evident throughout, especially his objective analysis of the subjects and his handling of the historical context. In sum, Old Glory Stories is a relevant, engaging work with lessons for today's airmen—including those in the senior ranks—on combat leadership, a commodity that remains in demand." Kevin M. Hymel, writing in Army, noted that "Kingseed adds an extra dimension to his citizen-soldier stories. He ends each with personal accounts of visiting the soldiers and discussing their war experiences—and their lives—with them. That part of the book alone is well worth the price." Overall, Hymel noted that "Kingseed's superb research is matched by his writing style. Everyone will find something useful and interesting in these pages." A contributor to the Midwest Book Review commented that the book "offers a comprehensive view of the qualities that surfaced" during World War II by those who prevailed.

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Air & Space Power Journal, fall, 2007, Richard Hughes, review of Old Glory Stories: American Combat Leadership in World War II.

American Historical Review, April, 1997, Peter L. Hahn, review of Eisenhower and the Suez Crisis of 1956, p. 577.

Army, December, 2005, "Excellent Study of Command," p. 75; February, 2006, Kevin M. Hymel, review of Beyond Band of Brothers: The War Memoirs of Major Dick Winters, p. 94; September 1, 2006, Kevin M. Hymel, review of Old Glory Stories.

Booklist, February 15, 2006, Frieda Murray, review of Beyond Band of Brothers, p. 35.

Choice: Current Reviews for Academic Libraries, May, 2005, L. Kincaid, review of The American Civil War, p. 1566.

Historian, spring, 1997, Patricia Wallace, review of Eisenhower and the Suez Crisis of 1956.

Midwest Book Review, August, 2006, review of Old Glory Stories.

Parameters, winter, 2006, Robert Bateman, review of From Omaha Beach to Dawson's Ridge: The Combat Journal of Captain Joe Dawson.

Presidential Studies Quarterly, winter, 1998, Robert Previdi, review of Eisenhower and the Suez Crisis of 1956, p. 233.

Reference & Research Book News, November, 2005, review of From Omaha Beach to Dawson's Ridge; August, 2006, review of Old Glory Stories.