Bibliographical references included in "Notes" (p. 469-517).

Officership as a profession -- Rise of the military profession in Western society -- Military mind: conservative realism of the professional military ethic -- Power, professionalism, and ideology: civil-military relations in theory -- Germany and Japan: civil-military relations in practice -- Ideological constant: the liberal society versus military professionalism -- Structural constant: the conservative constitution versus civilian control -- Roots of the American military tradition before the Civil War -- Creation of the American military profession -- Failure of the neo-Hamiltonian compromise, 1890-1920 -- Constancy of interwar civil-military relations -- World War II: the alchemy of power -- Civil-military relations in the postwar decade -- Political roles of the Joint Chiefs -- Separation of powers and Cold War defense -- Departmental structure of civil-military relations -- Toward a new equilibrium.