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INFORMATION TO USERS This manuscript has been reproduced from the microfilm master. UMI films the text directly from the original or copy submitted. Thus, some thesis and dissertation copies are in typewriter face, while others may be from any type of computer printer. The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleedthrough, substandard margins, and improper alignment can adversely affect reproduction. In the unlikely event that the author did not send UMI a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if unauthorized copyright material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. Oversize materials (e.g., maps, drawings, charts) are reproduced by sectioning the original, beginning at the upper left-hand corner and continuing from left to right in equal sections with small overlaps. Each original is also photographed in one exposure and is included in reduced form at the back of the book. Photographs included in the original manuscript have been reproduced xerographically in this copy. Higher quality 6" x 9" black and white photographic prints are available for any photographs or illustrations appearing in this copy for an additional charge. Contact UMI directly to order. UMI University Microfilms international A Bell & Howell Information Company 300 Nortfi Zeeb Road. Ann Arbor. Ml 48106-1346 USA 313/761-4700 800/521-0600 Order Number 9325565 Theodore Roosevelt: Commander in chief. (Volumes I and II) Oyos, Matthew Mark, Ph.D. The Ohio State University, 1993 Copyright ©1993 by Oyos, Matthew Mark. All rights reserved. UMI 300 N. Zeeb Rd. Ann Arbor, MI 48106 THEODORE ROOSEVELT: COMMANDER IN CHIEF Volume I DISSERTATION Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of the Ohio State University By Matthew M . Oyos, B.A., M.A. ***** The Ohio State University 1993 Dissertation Committee: Dr. Allan R. Millett Approved by Dr. Michael Les Benedict Dr. Michael Hogan Adviser Dr. Kenneth Andrien Department of History Copyright by Matthew M. Oyos 1993 To My Parents IX ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Over the course of this project, I have amassed a debt of gratitude that these few words can hardly begin to repay. First, I wish to thank my adviser. Dr. Allan R. Millett, for his counsel and for sharing with me materials that he had collected in his own research. I would also like to recognize the other members of my dissertation committee for their interest in my work over the years. Among my mentors. Dr. Peter Maslowski, deserves special notice for his continuing support long after my graduation from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. The help of many other individuals was also crucial to the completion of this study. I would like to acknowledge in particular the archivists and librarians at the Ohio State University libraries, the Library of Congress, and the National Archives and Records Administration for their assistance. Too numerous to mention here by name, my graduate student colleagues over the years also made an important contribution by providing a sounding board to test ideas, as well as the occasional convivial diversion from intellectual pursuits. Among friends, Jonathan Mertz 111 warrants a special word of thanks for his hospitality towards an itinerant scholar. Finally, I want to thank my family for their support. I owe much to the assistance of my parents, as well as to their love for education, both at home and in the world at large. The encouragement and support of my mother— in-law must also not be forgotten. Finally, I owe the greatest debt of all to my wife, Cindy Wilkey, who has shared her husband with Theodore Roosevelt for a number of years. She has offered apt criticisms of the manuscript and showed infinite patience and love throughout the research and writing of this dissertation. IV VITA July 27, 1961 ........... Born— Sioux Falls, South Dakota 1984 ...................... B.A., Augustana College, Sioux Falls, South Dakota 1985-1986 ................. Teaching Assistant, University of Nebraska-Lincoln 1986 .... M.A., University of Nebraska- Lincoln 1986-1993 ................. Graduate Teaching Associate, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio FIELDS OF STUDY Major Field: History Adviser: Dr. Allan R. Millett Studies in: Military History Latin American History International Security TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ......................................... iii VITA .................................................... V CHAPTER PAGE I. INTRODUCTION ................................. 1 II. THE YEARS OF P R E P A R A T I O N ...................... 21 III. THE STRENUOUS LIFE AND AMERICAN OFFICERSHIP ........................ 87 IV. THE PRESIDENT AND THE INSTITUTIONS OF COMMAND; THE WAR DEPARTMENT GENERAL STAFF. 157 vx CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION On February 22, 1909, masses of people thronged Hampton Roads, Virginia, anticipating the show of a lifetime. They were not disappointed. That day, the twenty battleships of the Great White Fleet paraded into Hampton Roads, ending a year— long world cruise with a spectacular naval review. The President of the United States was on hand to greet the returning vessels and to receive volley upon yolley of twenty-one gun salutes. Clad in top coat and top hat, his square frame prominently in yiew, he was as much a part of the display as the ships of the fleet. For Theodore Roosevelt, this day was a supreme achieyement. He had worked for almost eight years to make this fleet a reality, and in a little over a week he would surrender the helm of power.^ The battleships' return provided a fitting capstone for his presidency, for he had focused much of his energy upon military affairs. Roosevelt's interest and efforts had helped make the first years of the twentieth century a dynamic and defining period for the United States military. The modernization of the American military rushed forward during these years and left 2 the armed services much better prepared to face potential foes in the remainder of the century. This study examines Theodore Roosevelt as peacetime commander in chief, stressing the "peacetime" part of that title. Thus, it will not focus on Roosevelt's employment of military forces to advance diplomatic ends or in actual combat situations. Various works already cover the military's involvement in the Philippine Insurrection, the Panamanian Revolution, the Venezuelan Crisis, the Cuban Intervention of 1906—09. and other affairs.“ This study will explore Roosevelt's peacetime activities as commander in chief and seek to measure how well he performed those duties, as well as the impact of his actions on the institution of the presidency. Roosevelt strived during nearly eight years in office to prepare the Army, Navy, and Marine Corps for the demands required of the forces of a newly affirmed great power. The Spanish-American War had brought forth an America with far— ranging interests and overseas territorial possessions, and Roosevelt was determined to insure that the United States possessed the military means to speak with a respected voice in the world arena. He would strenuously exert his power and influence as commander in chief to accomplish this goal and left behind an expanded presidency as one result. Roosevelt's efforts to improve readiness added new depth to the president's peacetime responsibilities and 3 challenged congressional prerogatives over the military. Throughout the previous century. Congress had wielded great influence oyer the peacetime military establishment. The local benefits of patronage created strong congressional interest in officer promotions, the location of arsenals and nayy yards, weapons contracts, and other similar matters. Inefficiency resulted, but it failed to excite much concern in an America that seemed geographically insulated from European powers and where aboriginal peoples presented the greatest security problem. By the close of the nineteenth century, attitudes began to shift, especially in military circles. Expanding economic and political interests along with technological improvements created a greater chance of involvement in a great power war and brought calls for a more efficient military establishment. Centered around the office of the president, the executive branch offered the best source of effective leadership, a fact that both military and civilian reformers recognized during the progressive era. Roosevelt was eager to exercise presidential power, especially when military matters were at stake, and he plunged into areas often regarded as congressional territory. He worked to reform officer promotions, alter service missions, determine weapons programs and designs, establish centralized departmental administrations, create new advisory boards, and generate public interest in a strong military, all in 4 addition to being involved in the dailv detail of running the armed services. Roosevelt was not always successful in these endeavors, nor was he entirely original. In several ways, he merely expanded the work of his predecessor, William McKinley. Roosevelt, however, enlarged upon McKinley's precedent and sealed the pattern for executive direction of the armed forces for the twentieth century. Thus he laid the foundation for the present-day role of peacetime commander in chief. During Roosevelt's presidency, new foreign policy concerns and a heightened sense of national insecurity justified this

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