This is my topic:

World War II Battles and Campaigns – World War II Battles and Campaign: New Guinea Campaign (1942-1943)

Writing instructon:
Nov. 14: First post (300 words)

The first thing to do is to get a general sense of the battle/campaign(s) you’ve been assigned. You can then think about what aspect of that event you want to learn more about. For your first post do not write a general narrative of the battle/campaign. Think in terms of analytic history: try to explain some aspect of that campaign.

For your first post, then, select some aspect of your battle/campaign and do some research into that aspect. Your post should report on the results of your preliminary research.

Group members might find it useful to share ideas regarding possible topics or at least let each other what you plan on working on.

Some issues that you might consider:
-examination of units and/or individuals (usually commanders) involved in the battle/campaign; specific role of a given unit or commander
-strategic aim or purpose of the battle/campaign; place of the battle/campaign within broader strategy of the war
-cooperation and/or tension among allies
-operational planning; training and preparation
-operations, which might include unforeseen eventualities that shaped the campaign/battle (weather, geography, lack of roads, etc.), as well as possible “what ifs” or missed opportunities
-role of different branches (air, sea, land; armor, infantry, artillery, etc.) and cooperation or lack thereof
-within a broader campaign, specific battles or combat operations
-role of logistics
-role of intelligence
-role of technology
-role of decision-making and leadership

-historiographical controversies: issues about which there is major disagreement among (well-informed) historians.



For this first post remember that you each need to choose an aspect of this campaign to study. Aspects that you might consider include (but are not limited to): key people, operations, logistics, images/propaganda, technologies, debates, memories, etc. The best way to get started is to check out this Wikipedia page. Keep in mind that you should also consider what our library has to offer (if not now, then soon).