A native of Indianapolis, Larry Bland received his BS in physics from Purdue University and his MA and PhD in diplomatic history from the University of Wisconsin. After teaching at colleges in North Carolina, Bland accepted a National Endowment for the Humanities fellowship at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. In 1977, Bland joined the George C. Marshall Foundation and served as the primary editor of their multi-volume edition of the papers of George C. Marshall. Bland also served as the managing editor of the Journal of Military History for 19 years.