War has played a key role in the history of the United States, from the nation's founding

right down to the present. War made the U.S. independent, kept it together, increased its

size, and established it as a global superpower. Understanding America's wars is essential for understanding American history.

Welcome to Key Battles of American History,

a podcast in which we discuss American history through the lens of the most important battles of America's wars.

Here is your host, James Early.

Music your host, James Early. Hello, everyone.

This is James, as always, coming to you with a special appeal.

As I'm sure you know, this podcast is a labor of love on my part.

Between researching, writing, recording, and doing all the other things required to make this podcast happen, I spend many hours each week.

As you can also imagine, there are many expenses associated with the podcast. If you value this podcast, would you consider supporting it financially?

You can do this by going to patreon.com and searching for

key battles of American history. There are five levels of support, and the first level is just

$2 per month, or about the cost of a soft drink or coffee at McDonald's. For just $2 per month,

you can get ad-free episodes, and you will get them a week earlier than the general public does.

Higher levels of support bring additional benefits, including bonus content,

and even the ability to commission episodes on topics of your choosing.

If you don't want to commit to giving every month, I understand that.

I also accept one-time donations of any size via Venmo, PayPal, or other methods.

If you are interested in making a one-time gift, please email me at Key Battles of American

History at gmail.com, and then I will give you the information you'll need. You can also find

me on Facebook and send me a private message at James R. Early. Thank you for considering. And now, on to today's

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