The First World War: A Complete History - Hardcover

Gilbert, Martin

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 080501540X ISBN 13: 9780805015409

Publisher: Henry Holt & Co, 1994

Synopsis

A companion volume to the highly acclaimed The Second World War recounts the course of the war, the enormity of its cost, the advances it brought in technology, and its effect on European society. 25,000 first printing. $20,000 ad/promo.

About this title

About the Author

Martin Gilbert is a Fellow of Merton College, Oxford.

Reviews

Gilbert's (The Second World War) majestic opus covers WWI on all major fronts-domestic, diplomatic, military-as well as such bloody preludes as the Armenian massacre of 1915. He describes the introduction of new instruments of war like the submarine, airplane, tank, machine gun and poison gas, explaining how each was employed in great military confrontations such as Verdun and Jutland. He recounts the arrival of the American contingent (British and French brass tended at first to regard them as rabble) and Gen. John J. Pershing's struggle to prevent U.S. troops from being fed piecemeal into the maelstrom of the western front. Gilbert includes a large amount of contemporary war poetry and doggerel, which conveys the tragedy of the 1914-1918 conflict. On the whole, the author presents WWI from the human perspective, with emphasis on the grisliness and sheer waste of it. His account of the post-Armistice efforts of the international War Graves Commission starkly communicates the epic scale of the slaughter. By the distinguished biographer of Winston Churchill, this is a stunning achievement of research and storytelling on the war to end all wars. Illustrations.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

There may be no event in this century that has been more written about than the First World War. There may be little new to uncover about it. But this splendid book shows that its lessons cannot be too often learned. This is by no means a complete history. Whole areas of the conflict are scanted or mentioned only in passing, in particular the war on the Eastern Front. Distinguished British historian Gilbert (The Second World War, 1989, etc.) gives a great deal of attention to the British, less to the French, and a good deal less to everyone else. Nor is he particularly interested in strategy. But the power and passion that he brings to the story, the vividness with which he recreates the scale of the conflict, the enormity of its suffering, feats of individual bravery and cowardice, of devotion and desertion, will be hard to emulate. What lingers in the mind is the sheer scale of the suffering. In the first five weeks of conflict at Verdun, German soldiers were killed at the rate of one every 45 seconds, and French death rates were even higher. In the five months during which the battles of Verdun and the Somme were waged in 1916, nearly a million men died, an average of 6,600 every day, more than 277 every minute, nearly 5 every second. This was not exceptional: As Gilbert points out, the 20,000 British soldiers killed on the first day of the Somme are often recalled with horror, yet on average, a similar number of soldiers died during every four-day period of the entire war. His searing descriptions of the carnage poignantly remind us of the terrible consequences that followed from the casualness with which European statesmen allowed their nations to drift into war. An incomparable record of how ordinary and extraordinary men and women endured the unendurable. -- Copyright ©1994, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Successfully using a blend of contemporary accounts and overview narrative, Gilbert (The Churchill War Papers, LJ 5/1/93) has produced a readable, one-volume account of the Great War. The impact of new technologies and tactics on humankind is best illustrated by the author's portrayal of the individual suffering of the generation lost in the conflict. The deaths of the sons and sons-in-law of political and military leaders from all sides exemplifies the extent and tragedy of the loss. The effect of the war on future leaders such as Hitler, Himmler, Churchill, and De Gaulle is shown through their experiences in this war. Profusely illustrated and containing 50 maps, this book is a fine companion volume to the author's The Second World War (Holt, 1989). Recommended for all collections.
David Lee Poremba, Detroit P.L.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

The Great War achieved little but changed everything in every country, having destroyed four empires and millions of lives. Causes and effects, however, are beyond Gilbert's intended ken; instead, he addresses the relentless, despairing character of the military actions. A veteran historian, Gilbert's pedigree to write solid histories is unchallengeable, and his books on Churchill (1991), the Holocaust, and the Second World War loom almost as large as their subjects. While praiseworthy as a painstaking compilation of fact, however, it cannot be said that the eloquent muse is upon this narrative; rather, the prose advances like the rolling artillery barrages it describes or the ships it tersely records sunk (for example, the Battle of Jutland rates one paragraph). In descanting upon every engagement and huge casualties at division level or above, Gilbert will stand out at his diligent best, but the work will not budge Barbara Tuchman's Guns of August and Paul Fussell's Great War and Modern Memory from their popular niches among the general readership. With 30 maps and 80 photos, Gilbert's is a hefty general introduction suitable for most libraries. Gilbert Taylor

Edition details

• Publisher: Henry Holt & Co
• Publication date: 1994
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 080501540X
• ISBN 13: 9780805015409
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 615