| Abbreviation | NYMAS |
|---|---|
| Formation | 1970s |
| Type | Non-profit organization |
| Purpose | NYMAS is devoted to increasing public knowledge, awareness, and understanding of the interrelationship of war, society, and culture through the presentation and dissemination of diverse scholarly viewpoints. |
| Location | |
Region served | New York City |
| Membership | 120 |
Official language | English |
President: | Prof. David Gordon |
| Affiliations | Society for Military History |
| Staff | 8 Officers and 8 members of Board of Directors |
| Volunteers | All officers are voluntary staff |
| Website | www |
TheNew York Military Affairs Symposium (NYMAS), is an independent,not-for-profit educational body dedicated to the preservation and furthering of military history inNew York City. The membership includesscholars, active and retiredmilitary personnel, and concernedcivilians. NYMAS is devoted to increasing public knowledge, awareness and understanding ofmilitary history,arms control,international relations,defense policy,disarmament, civil-military relations,international security,Veterans Affairs and the interrelationship ofwar, society, and culture through the presentation and dissemination of diverse scholarly viewpoints - with particular reference to the history of warfare involving the United States and of Americans at war.[1][2]
NYMAS has it origins in the late 1970s, when some graduate students in military history fromCUNY, members of the Arms Control Workshop atColumbia University, and a number of interested laymen began holding periodic informal study groups, at Columbia, the Loeb Student Center atNew York University, the former CUNY Graduate Center on 42nd Street, and in private homes.
In 1982 NYMAS was incorporated as a not-for-profit academic organization under the laws of the State of New York.
Since incorporation, NYMAS has hosted more than a thousand guests, including scholars working in many diverse disciplines, as well as journalists, graduate students, active and former military personnel, museum curators, peace activists, novelists, diplomats, political leaders, documentarians, and many more. Many guests have been well-established scholars or specialists in their fields, such as SirMichael Howard,Gerhard Weinberg,Gary Sick,Geoffrey P. Megargee,Peter Paret,David Glantz, Morris Rossabi,[3] SirJohn Keegan,Thomas Fleming, SirJeremy Black,Gunther E. Rothenberg[4]Ellen Schrecker,Sir Max Hastings,David Kahn,Susan Shwartz,Kevin Baker, Theodore Cook, andChristopher Duffy. Most, however, have been younger scholars, a number of whom have subsequently attained some measure of fame, such as James S. Corum,[5]Ross Hassig,David Petraeus,Peter Mansoor,[6] and Arden Bucholz,[7] to note but a few.
NYMAS currently presents twenty-three lectures each academic year. These are given byscholars,journalists, diplomats, active and retiredmilitary personnel, and knowledgeable laymen represent viewpoints all across the political spectrum. In addition, NYMAS usually holds two day-and-a-half conferences each year, bringing together scholars, veterans, diplomats, and others, to explore a particular topic in some depth, and occasionally holds special events.
A short list of some of the talks given over the years illustrates the breadth of interests and topics covered by NYMAS:
NYMAS talks are frequently broadcast on CSPAN'sAmerican History TV
NYMAS conferences have dealt with such topics as "The New Balkan Wars", "1942: Year of Decision", "The Novelist and the Historian", "The Invasion of Japan, 1945", "Military Operations on the Eastern Front, 1944-1945", "Longstreet Reconsidered", which led to the publication ofJames Longstreet: The Man, the Soldier, the Controversy (1998)[1][dead link], and "The Makers of Non-Western Strategy."
NYMAS often co-sponsors events, over the years having partnered with the CUNY Office of Veterans' Affairs,Independent Network News, theSchool of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University,Committee for a SANE Nuclear Policy, theNew York City CWRT, the New York University East Asian Studies Program,the Western Front Association,Weaponry (radio program) onWBAI, and other groups in arranging lectures or conferences.
In addition to lectures and conferences, NYMAS has occasionally sponsored or co-sponsored special events, such as museum tours, film screenings,staff rides, and historical re-enactments.
NYMAS publishes a quarterly review of recent literature for members, and annually presentsThe Arthur Goodzeit Book Award,[8] for the best new work in military history or a related field, andThe Fiet Award, which can go to a notable new book on the American Civil War[9] or to a distinguished scholar for lifetime achievement. The award includes $1,000 prize money, courtesy of Robert and Martha Rowen.
NYMAS is atax exempt membership corporation chartered under the laws ofNew York State and is associated with theSociety for Military History, Region 2.
Presidents of NYMAS:
Executive Directors:
