What Made America? The Professional Military
American History Hit
History Hit
4.3 • 1.8K Ratings
🗓️ 15 June 2026
⏱️ 39 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Today's United States of America boasts one of the largest and most expensive militaries in the world. But this wasn't always a guarantee.
In this episode, we're hearing how the professional military was created despite it's existence being at odds with the Republican ideals the nation was founded on.
Don is joined by friend of the podcast, Cecily Zander. Cecily is Assistant Professor of History at the University of Wyoming and author of “The Army under Fire: Antimilitarism in the Civil War Era” and “Abraham Lincoln and the American West".
Edited by Tim Arstall. Produced by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Freddy Chick.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Want to explore even more history? Sign up to History Hit, where you will discover history from around the world. |
| 0:07.1 | From the American Revolution to prehistoric Scotland, there is plenty to discover. With your subscription, you'll unlock hundreds of hours of exclusive documentaries, with a brand new release every week, exploring everything from the ancient |
| 0:22.4 | world to World War II. Just visit history hit.com slash subscribe to bring the past alive. |
| 0:34.4 | The story of America and its impact on the world is not just told from capitals, congresses, or command tents. |
| 0:42.8 | It is told from the ground and the boots on it. |
| 0:46.1 | From wet leather sinking into Canadian mud in 1812. |
| 0:50.3 | From bare feet bleeding in Mexico. |
| 0:53.1 | And soaked red at Antietam, |
| 0:55.0 | from jungle rot in the Philippines, frozen socks in Korea, |
| 0:59.0 | mud in Vietnam, desert sand in Iraq, and dust-choked mountain trails in Afghanistan. |
| 1:06.0 | The American Republic has changed beyond recognition since its birth. |
| 1:10.0 | The weapons have evolved from smooth war muskets to drones and satellites. The American Republic has changed beyond recognition since its birth. |
| 1:14.8 | The weapons have evolved from smooth war muskets to drones and satellites. |
| 1:17.8 | The boots themselves have changed beyond recognition. |
| 1:22.4 | But the same person stands in them, a young American carrying a rifle. |
| 1:27.8 | So how did this become such a key element in American history? |
| 1:29.7 | Let's find out. Greetings, hello, everyone. |
| 1:42.4 | Welcome. I'm Don Wildman, and today we're bringing you a special |
| 1:46.3 | celebratory episode. As the United States approaches its 250th anniversary of Independence and |
| 1:52.6 | the Declaration that declared it to the world, we thought it fitting to ask a few of our |
| 1:56.3 | favorite voices from past episodes to return. To come back and share what in their opinion are some of the |
| 2:02.1 | most inspiring and compelling stories of the founding era, the moments, the people, the turning |
... |
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