Join us at Harry’s Hofbrau in Redwood City on Tuesday, June 17. Harry’s opens at 11 am for cafeteria style lunch; our meeting will start promptly at 12 noon. See the MEETING INFO menu item for directions. This month’s topic is

Mark Costin on “The Battle of Buena Vista: Training Ground for the Civil War”

This talk describes the 1847 Battle of Buena Vista where the American forces of Zachary Taylor defeated the Mexican army of Santa Anna. The battle saw significant contributions by many future Civil War stalwarts. Particular attention will be paid to the important actions by Jefferson Davis and Braxton Bragg in securing the victory. The talk will conclude with an open discussion of the comparison between the two wars.

Mark Costin is an engineer living in Sunnyvale, CA, working on functional safety for automated and autonomous vehicles. A long time history buff, Mark now has more time to devote to his hobby. He holds a Ph.D. in Systems Engineering from Case Western Reserve University, an M.Eng from McMaster University and B.Eng from McGill University.

Join us at Harry’s Hofbrau in Redwood City on Tuesday, July 15. Harry’s opens at 11 am for cafeteria style lunch; our meeting will start promptly at 12 noon. See the MEETING INFO menu item for directions. This month’s topic is

Jim Rhetta on “England and Recognition of the Confederacy”

A common belief with Civil War historians is that England was frequently politically leaning towards Diplomatic recognition of the Confederacy. That belief is backed up by the view that lack of cotton nearly drove England to recognize the south to secure cotton for economic stability and employment for cotton industry workers. The key missing requirement for Diplomatic recognition was a stunning Confederate battlefield victory to persuade England that the Confederacy was a militarily viable nation.

Closer evaluations of this issue are commonly lacking in US publishing, with the familiar beliefs repeated for generations of readers. This presentation will look at the British decision-makers, influencers, foreign policy, and political process to reveal the truth about England’s intentions to recognize the Confederacy.

Jim Rhetta retired from Lockheed Corp and also retired from the USAF Reserve as a Colonel in the Intelligence Community. In both careers he monitored, analyzed and reported on global conflicts, threat assessments, and force postures for the DoD Community. He had to present hundreds of current intelligence briefings, threat assessments, and order’s of battle to a variety of DoD personnel and units. He continues to study both current events and historical subjects for their impacts on us today.