Robert M. Citino
| Robert M. Citino | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Prof. Dr. phil. Robert Citino | |||
| Born | 19 June 1958 in Cleveland, Ohio, U.S. | ||
| Known for | Books on the German General Staff, Wehrmacht and the Reichswehr | ||
| Occupation | Professor, writer, military historian | ||
| Organization | University of North Texas United States Army War College (visiting professor) | ||
| Genre | Development of the German operational doctrine into the internationally acclaimed "German way of war" | ||
| Spouse | Citino has been married since 1979 and has three children. | ||
| Awards | Samuel Eliot Morison Prize (2021) | ||
Robert "Rob" Michael Citino (b. 19 June 1958) is an American military historian and the Samuel Zemurray Stone Senior Historian at the National WWII Museum. He is an authority on modern German military history, with an emphasis on World War II and the internationally acclaimed German influence upon modern operational doctrine.
Life
Citino was born and grew up in Cleveland, Ohio. His father was a United States Army veteran of the Pacific War who served in the Guadalcanal Campaign as a combat medic and gave Citino a copy of Guadalcanal Diary by Richard Tregaskis. After graduating magna cum laude with his Bachelor of Arts in history from Ohio State University in 1978, he earned his Master of Arts and Doctor of Philosophy from Indiana University in 1980 and 1984 (Dissertation: Polen greift an – Germany's Defenses in the East, 1918–1933). Citino is fluent in German, having first learned it as an undergraduate, and is a prolific reader of early 20th-century German military literature.
Prof. Citino has held academic postings at the University of North Texas, Lake Erie College, Eastern Michigan University, United States Military Academy at West Point, and the United States Army War College. He is a fellow of the Barsanti Military History Center, a trustee of the Society for Military History, and a consultant for the White House staff. He has also appeared as a consultant on the History Channel and chaired the Historical Advisory Subcommittee of the Department of the Army.
German generals
Citino, professor of European history at the University of North Texas and author of numerous books, wrote in 2012 in the highly respected journal “The Quarterly Journal of Military History” about the ten greatest German generals and listed them with further explanation. Professor Citino recognizes the “genius of war” par excellence in Prussian-German military history. According to the American historian, the ten greatest generals were in ascending order:
- 10. Heinz Guderian (gifted military theorist and practitioner)
- 9. Eberhard von Mackensen (speed record with the III. Army Corps in the Battle of Kharkov)
- 8. Erich von Manstein
- 7. Georg von Derfflinger
- 6. Friedrich Wilhelm Freiherr von Seydlitz-Kurzbach
- 5. Friedrich Karl von Preußen (Prince and Generalfeldmarschall)
- 4. Friedrich Wilhelm von Brandenburg (Great Elector)
- 3. Gebhard von Blücher (Generalfeldmarschall of the Prussian Army)
- 2. Helmuth von Moltke, the Elder
- 1. Friedrich der Große
Awards
- 1993: Distinguished Teaching Award, Eastern Michigan University
- 2002: “Book of the Month” (August), History Book Club (for Quest for Decisive Victory: From Stalemate to Blitzkrieg in Europe, 1899–1940)
- 2005: Distinguished Book Award, Society for Military History (for Blitzkrieg to Desert Storm: The Evolution of Operational Warfare)
- 2005: Paul Birdsall Prize, American Historical Association (for Blitzkrieg to Desert Storm: The Evolution of Operational Warfare)
- 2007: “#1 Professor in the U.S.”, ratemyprofessors.com
- 2009: Spencer Tucker Award for Outstanding Achievement in Military History, ABC-CLIO
- 2012: The Arthur Goodzeit Book Award, New York Military Affairs Symposium (for The Wehrmacht Retreats: Fighting a Lost War, 1943)
- 2013: Distinguished Book Award, Society for Military History (for The Wehrmacht Retreats: Fighting a Lost War, 1943)
- 2021: Samuel Eliot Morison Prize
Works
- Citino (1991). Germany and the Union of South Africa in the Nazi Period. Greenwood Press
- Citino (1994). Armored Forces: History and Sourcebook. Greenwood Press
- Citino (1999). The Path to Blitzkrieg: Doctrine and Training in the German Army, 1920–1939. Lynne Rienner; Stackpole Books (paperback, 2008)
- Citino (2000). Was the Reputation of the Wehrmacht for Military Superiority Deserved? In: "History in Dispute" 4, World War II, 1939–1945 Detroit: St. James Press
- Citino (2001). The Weimar Roots of German Military Planning. In Military Planning and the Origins of the Second World War in Europe. edited by B.J.C. McKercher and Roch Legault. Westport, Conn.: Praeger
- Citino (2002). Quest for Decisive Victory: From Stalemate to Blitzkrieg in Europe, 1899–1940. University Press of Kansas.
- Citino (2004). Blitzkrieg to Desert Storm: The Evolution of Operational Warfare. University Press of Kansas
- Citino (2005). The German Way of War: From the Thirty Years' War to the Third Reich. University Press of Kansas
- Citino (2007). The Death of the Wehrmacht: The German Campaigns of 1942. University Press of Kansas
- Citino (2007). Military Histories Past and Present: A Reintroduction. American Historical Review Vol. 112, No. 4
- Citino (2012). The Wehrmacht Retreats: The Campaigns of 1943. University Press of Kansas
- also published as The Wehrmacht Retreats: Fighting a Losing War in 1943
- Citino (2017). The Wehrmacht's Last Stand: The German Campaigns of 1944–1945. University Press of Kansas.
